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Weekly Questions Thread for the week of June 05
2023.06.05 08:00 AutoModerator Weekly Questions Thread for the week of June 05
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submitted by AutoModerator to vinyl [link] [comments]
If you want our help in choosing equipment, please list your budget and the area you are in. (Something like [$100] I'm looking for a belt driven table. Amazon only [Ohio, USA]) Try to include as much information as you can, such as online only or if you are willing to do craigslist’s or just stores in your area.
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Also check out /audiophile /BudgetAudiophile for additional information.
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- The Vinyl Guide
- Beginner's Guide by nevermind4790
- Turntables to avoid by slavikcc
- Best new entry-level turntables to start out with by slavikcc
- Vinyl record care/Setups
- Setting up a turntable/Basics
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- How and why to align a cartridge properly
- Vinyl Storage Options
- Speaker Placement Guide
- Shipping records by GothamCountySheriff
- Beginner's Guide to Dating and Identifying Records by GruttePier1
Everyone please be respectful and remember we were all new to this at one point.
Recently reddit's spam filter has become a bit more aggressive, meaning that comments with multiple links are likely to get removed. We try to approve them as fast as possible, but please message us if you think your comment got removed and we'll sort it out asap.
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2023.06.05 07:36 scarlet2248 Wedding Venue in The US: Our Recommendation Part II
Popular wedding venues in the western and central states were featured in Part 1 of US wedding venues. So in part two, we'll focus on wedding venues in the eastern states. Whether it's a luxurious hotel, a rustic barn, or a spacious meadow, all are included. Again, the features of these venues and the approximate prices will be written. Let's explore these beautiful wedding venues!
📷
(Hildene - The Lincoln Family Home)
Finally, we've rounded up our recommendations for wedding venues in each of the remaining states. Choosing the perfect wedding venue is an important step in creating your dream wedding. It sets the tone for the entire celebration and provides the backdrop for your special day. No matter what style of wedding venue you prefer, there is a venue above that perfectly suits your style and preferences.
Last but not least, don't forget to check out Quictent's wedding tent. we offer quality wedding tents for your outdoor wedding, containing various types and sizes.
submitted by scarlet2248 to u/scarlet2248 [link] [comments]
Wisconsin Wedding Venues
The Paine Art Center and Gardens
This is an art museum located at 1410 Algoma Blvd, Oshkosh. It is an English-style country estate and has nearly four acres of gardens. It has perennial plants and is a great outdoor ceremony venue. Also, there is a historic mansion, charming carriage house, and greenhouse. The venue can accommodate up to 200 people and costs approximately $3000 to $4000 For 100 Guests.The Lageret
This is a professional event venue located at 515 E Main St, Stoughton. This historic venue offers industrial and rustic charm with exposed brick walls, high ceilings, and wood beams. It has ample space for ceremonies and receptions. The venue offers event coordination, customizable lighting options, a bridal suite, and access to preferred vendors. Accommodations for up to 250 people start at $3,500 for a 12-hour rental.The Enchanted Barn
Located at 1543 6 1/2 Ave, Hillsdale, this barn has an old-world rustic atmosphere around every corner. Featuring several indoor and outdoor venues, one of the most popular ceremony locations is located in Barn's upper-level Hayloft, featuring old wood timbers. Several wedding package options are available here and can accommodate up to 220 people. Off-season all-inclusive wedding packages are $5,000 plus $21 per person.Illinois Wedding Venues
Danada House
This is a historic mansion located at 3S501 Naperville Rd, Wheaton. a short drive from Chicago. The mansion is also surrounded by a forest preserve that allows for nature-filled photos. There are seven ceremony locations in total, and the largest Magnolia Garden can accommodate up to 300 guests. Venue rentals start at $3,500.The Morton Arboretum
This is a public nature garden and outdoor museum located at 4100 IL-53, Lisle. Inside there are not only mature trees and flowers but also a playground for children. Offering beautiful woodland and lakeside views. The large garden has a total of 12 venues to choose from and the largest room can accommodate up to 300 guests. Prices range from $600 to $9,000 depending on the size of the room and the time of year it is held.Salvage One
Located at 1840 W Hubbard St, Chicago, this is a very unique location that serves as a store besides being a wedding venue. It preserves treasured furniture from the past. This old Chicago warehouse offers an enchanting vintage atmosphere. The ceremony and banquet space can accommodate about 200 people and space rentals start at $4,000.Kentucky Wedding Venues
The Barn at Cedar Grove
The address is 1000 Brockman Keltner Rd, Greensburg, which has a rustic barn setting with picturesque scenery. Offering outdoor ceremony space, climate-controlled reception space, bridal suite, groom's quarters, and fire pit. The venue in the barn can accommodate up to 230 people. For fewer guests, the average budget for a wedding here is between $6,000 and $9,000.The Brown Hotel
This 100-year-old hotel is located at 335 W Broadway, Louisville. The hotel has a striking Georgian Revival look and offers elegant ballrooms, luxurious accommodations, and a gorgeous rooftop garden. The hotel also has extensive experience in hosting weddings of different cultures, such as Jewish and Indian weddings. Prices are $18,000 in the off-season and can accommodate up to 300 guests.Talon Winery & Vineyards
This winery has a large outdoor space at 7086 Tates Creek Rd, Lexington. Offers vineyard and winery backdrop, outdoor ceremony space, and rustic barn. The best part is the wine-tasting and vineyard tours. The venue can accommodate up to 250 guests and prices for ceremonies start at $1500.Tennessee Wedding Venues
Butterfly Hollow
Located at 28 Bussell Rd, Gordonsville, our vacation accommodations are perfect for small weddings. Surrounded by scenic walking trails, mountains, and woods. This venue specializes in small weddings of 30 people or less, with a focus on an intimate and cozy experience. Wedding packages range from $1795 to $5000.Dixon Gallery and Gardens
An art gallery on 17 acres of gardens located at 4339 Park Ave, Memphis, offers a romantic and artistic setting for weddings. The gallery offers two indoor reception venues as well as woodlands and gardens, both of which can accommodate up to 200 guests. Prices are approximately $4000 to $5000 For 100 guests.The Bell Tower
The Bell Tower, located at 400 4th Ave S, Nashville, is almost 140 years old. The ballroom features large windows that provide plenty of natural light, creating a charming and historic setting for weddings. There are two floors beside the lobby. Seated dinners for up to 400 people range from $3,500 to $16,000 depending on time and venue.Mississippi Wedding Venues
The Cedars
The site at 4145 Old Canton Rd, Jackson is the oldest residential building in Jackson, with a history of 175 years. The courtyard in front of the house with trees such as cedar, oak, and magnolia provides a natural backdrop for weddings. The venue can accommodate up to 300 people and costs $3,500 for a two-day weekend rental.Dunleith Historic Inn
A National Historic Landmark located at 84 Homochitto St, Natchez, the mansion features Greek Revival columns and original pine floors. The event space has a main floor, courtyard, and South Lawn, which can accommodate up to 700 people. Wedding packages start at $6,500, not including catering.The Gin at Flora Station
The address is 4819 MS-22, Flora. The refurbished cotton gin blends rustic charm with modern amenities. It offers indoor and outdoor spaces, including a covered gazebo and a patio with an old-fashioned truck bar. Rentals for ceremonies and receptions start at $3,500.Alabama Wedding Venues
B&A Warehouse
This building, located at 1531 1st Ave S, Birmingham, is historic from the outside. With its industrial-inspired design and high ceilings along with red brick walls. Three indoor venues can accommodate up to 300 guests, and the cost of a ceremony starts at $4,000.The Sterling Castle
This castle is located at 389 Deseret Dr, Shelby, and has been voted the best wedding venue in Alabama. The fairytale-style castle, elegant ballroom, charming courtyard, and lakeside and drawbridge venues. This beautiful venue can accommodate up to 300 guests and all-inclusive weddings are priced at $10,000+.Huntsville Museum of Art
This is an art museum located at 300 Church St SW, Huntsville. With unique indoor and outdoor spaces, the museum is a contemporary art gallery. Offering outdoor spaces with a rooftop terrace, and five indoor hospitality venues. The starting venue fee for a wedding reception in high season is $1,500.Michigan Wedding Venues
Colony Club Detroit
Located at 2310 Park Ave, Detroit, this Georgian-style, historic venue features stunning architecture and gorgeous interiors. The hotel features a grand ballroom decorated with crystal chandeliers and intricate details. The ballroom can accommodate up to 350 guests and is priced between $12,000 and $15,000.Castle Farms
This historic building, built in 1918, is located at 5052 M-66, Charlevoix. With a total of four site combinations in the summer. It offers several ceremony and reception spaces, including a charming outdoor garden and a majestic stone courtyard. The largest of these, the East Garden and Queen's Courtyard can host up to 300 guests. And the price range is between $6,750 and $9,250.The Inn at Stonecliffe
This is a Victorian village located at 8593 Cudahy Cir, Mackinac Island. away from the hustle and bustle of the area. With beautiful gardens and breathtaking views of Lake Huron and the Mackinaw Bridge. Accommodates up to 300 people and prices range from $4000 to $10,000.Ohio Wedding Venues
Franklin Park Conservatory
This is a horticultural and educational institution located at 1777 E Broad St, Columbus. The most popular venue is the indoor garden with an all-glass ceiling. Besides, there is an industrial-style venue and a 200-year-old barn. The venue has plenty of space and can accommodate up to 500 people, with prices ranging from $7,000 to $11,000 for a wedding of 100 guests.The Columbus Athenaeum
The historic building at 32 N 4th St, Columbus, was built in 1899. With a total of ten venues to choose from, the Grand Ballroom boasts gorgeous details and a stunning atrium. It is decorated with classical Greek art as well as soaring ornate ceilings. It can accommodate up to 230 guests. Prices for receptions start at $3,000.Gervasi Vineyard
An oversized wine estate located at 1700 55th St NE, Canton. Picturesque vineyard setting and sparkling lake views. The open-air venue can accommodate up to 300 people, while the indoor venue can accommodate up to 120 guests. Full-service event planning, vineyard tours, and wine tastings are available. Prices for receptions will start at $1,450.Georgia Wedding Venues
Barnsley Resort
This resort is located at 597 Barnsley Gardens Rd NW, Adairsville. With over 3,000 acres of land, it is a historic southern estate. With lush gardens, luxurious cabins, and grounds that can accommodate up to 250 people. Three wedding packages are available: $275 per person, $320 per person, and $350 per person. And a least of 150 people is required.Summerour Studio
This is a renovated warehouse located at 409 Bishop St NW, Atlanta. The roof is supported by massive bow trusses, which allow for a spacious, open floor plan without columns or supports. Through a wall of windows running the length of the space, there are breathtaking views of Atlantic Station and the downtown skyline. Accommodating up to 425 people, prices start at $4,000.The Biltmore Ballrooms
The ballroom is located at 817 W Peachtree St NW 208, Atlanta, and was established in 1924. The ballroom features a handcrafted plaster relief ceiling, ornate crystal lighting, and a marble floor. Capacity ranges from 50 to 1,500 people and offers eleven caterers. Rental rates range from $3,500 to $5,000, depending on the day of the week.Florida Wedding Venues
The Ancient Spanish Monastery
Located at 16711 W Dixie Hwy, North Miami Beach. This monastery was dismantled piece by piece from northern Spain and shipped to the United States, then rebuilt over 19 months. It offers a chapel and gardens for ceremonies. The garden can accommodate up to 300 guests for $6,500 and includes only the cost of the reception.The Breakers Palm Beach
This is a luxury resort located at 1 S County Rd, Palm Beach. This luxury resort is located in Palm Beach and enjoys magnificent beachfront views, lush gardens, and an exquisite ballroom. It boasts a timeless and elegant ambiance. It can host weddings for a maximum of less than 500 people, and detailed prices need to be communicated with the hotel.The Ringling Museum
The museum is located at 5401 Bay Shore Rd, Sarasota, with a breathtaking view of Sarasota Bay. This venue offers unique views of art, culture, and the stunning waterfront. It includes many event spaces, including a large courtyard and an elegant ballroom. The largest art gallery courtyard can accommodate up to 125 guests and prices start at $20,000.New York Wedding Venues
Mohonk Mountain House
Located at 1000 Mountain Rest Rd, New Paltz, this historic resort is surrounded by 40,000 acres of pristine forest. Featuring a majestic Victorian castle with panoramic mountain views. Choose from lakeside, garden, and mountain views for your ceremony. Wedding packages range from $275 to $375 per person.The Foundry
The address is 42-38 9th Street, Long Island City, with a history dating back to the 19th century. Offering an industrial chic atmosphere, a garden courtyard and conservatory, a stunning main space, plus rustic interiors. Accommodates up to 180 guests, with receptions starting at $14,000.The Garrison
Estate at 2015 US-9, Garrison, with superb Hudson River views and Catskill Mountain views. The venue offers a modern ballroom, outdoor ceremony space, and golf course. The venue can accommodate up to 200 guests for $12,000.Pennsylvania Wedding Venues
The Curtis Atrium
The historic building at 699 Walnut St, Philadelphia used to be the Curtis Publishing Company. It is now a building with a mix of residential, office, and retail space. It features a stunning atrium, marble columns, and a stunning rotunda. Space rentals start at $8,000.The Cork Factory Hotel
This boutique hotel is located at 480 New Holland Ave 3000, Lancaster, a converted historic cork mill with exposed brick walls. Offering industrial charm and modern amenities. The venue has a ballroom, a terrace, and a 2,300-square-foot warehouse. Space is available for up to 200 guests, and wedding packages start at $7,000.Terrain Gardens at Devon Yard
A stunning garden is located at 138 W Lancaster Ave Suite 130, Devon. The venue is decorated with elements such as reclaimed barn wood floors, raised holiday lights, and skylights to create a unique aesthetic. Of course, there is an essential gardening setting and open-air venue that can accommodate up to 140 guests. Prices for receptions start at $4,525.West Virginia Wedding Venues
Stonewall Resort
The entire resort is nestled beside a tranquil lake at 940 Resort Drive Roanoke, a place of scenic beauty and rustic charm. Wedding venues are available on the lakeside lawn or in the courtyard, with an indoor grand hall and stone-walled ballroom. Spa services, golf courses, and entertainment can also be experienced with wedding packages ranging from $3,500 to $12,000.The Greenbrier
A luxury resort located at 101 W Main St, White Sulphur Springs. With stunning architecture, beautiful gardens, and breathtaking mountain views. The indoor venue has a dramatic chandelier and stage. The outdoor grounds feature expansive lawns and rustic cabins. Packages start at $10,000 and vary depending on the number of guests, season, and customization.Sleepy Hollow Golf Club
The Club at 3780 Sleepy Hollow Dr, Hurricane. It is a private golf club for families. Featuring a scenic golf course, elegant ballroom, outdoor lawn ceremony venue, and picturesque countryside views. Wedding packages start at $3,500.Virginia Wedding Venues
Maymont
Historic Manor River Park at 1700 Hampton St, Richmond. Inside are gardens, botanical gardens, and native wildlife habitats. The scenic setting includes 100-year-old Italian gardens, European-style manor houses, pavilions, expansive lawns, and the Robbins Nature Center. Prices range from $3,500 to $6,100.Inn At Willow Grove
This is a rustic accommodation located at 14079 Plantation Way, Orange. It is unusually peaceful and romantic, surrounded by ancient trees and beautiful gardens. One of the gardens, Boxwood, can accommodate up to 175 guests and offers idyllic views. A versatile barn is also available as a hospitality venue, with rates starting at $7,500.The Tides Inn
Located at 480 King Carter Dr, Irvington, the entire hotel is situated on a beautiful body of water with views of the Chesapeake Bay. It is a waterfront resort. You can also come here to take part in fun activities such as tennis, golf, paddle boarding, biking, and kayaking. Weddings start at $3,100.North Carolina Wedding Venues
The Bradford
Professional wedding venue located at 523 Pea Ridge Rd, New Hill. It resembles a European town building with charming gardens and rustic barns. It can accommodate up to 250 guests for a ceremony in the gardens. Wedding packages will vary depending on the time of year and are priced at $8,000 on Fridays and $9,800 on Saturdays.The Merrimon-Wynne House
The mansion located at 500 N Blount St, Raleigh was built in 1876 and has been well maintained and is now a venue for various events. The building has a main floor full of Southern charm. Inside are original floors and mantelshelves, ornate chandeliers, and a wide porch. The outdoor area is also large enough to host ceremonies in the garden and can accommodate up to 250 guests. Prices for receptions start at $5,000.Fearrington Village
It's an English-style country hotel located at 2000 Fearrington Village Center. Besides the quaint country setting there are dense gardens with water features. The largest venue is the barn, which offers spacious dining and dancing space and can accommodate up to 250 people guests. Prices for ceremonies start at $2500.South Carolina Wedding Venues
Middleton Place
This National Historic Landmark is located at 4300 Ashley River Rd, Charleston. You can experience daily life on an 18th-century plantation and enjoy 65 acres of unobstructed views and private garden rooms. Also, enjoy the oldest landscaped gardens on the property. There are 7 ceremony venues, ranging from small weddings of 50 to 400 guests. Prices start at $5,000.William Aiken House
The 1807 mansion is located at 456 King St, Charleston, a restored mansion that showcases Southern charm and architectural elegance. The yard features a magnolia tree that is over two hundred years old and an elegant terrace. It is also rated as one of South Carolina's premier wedding venues. The cost of a ceremony starts at $3,000.The Cedar Room
Modern industrial event space at 701 E Bay St, Charleston. Featuring exposed brick walls, high ceilings, and large windows overlooking the cityscape. The indoor Cedar Room venue can accommodate up to 500 people for events, and the outdoor yard can seat up to 200. Events on Fridays or Sundays start at $3,500.Vermont Wedding Venues
Inn at Mountain View Farm
The Inn at 3383 Darling Hill Rd, East Burke, has breathtaking mountaintop views. Enjoy mountain biking, cross-country skiing, and visits to animal farms, among many other activities. Venues can range from beautiful fields to cozy campfires. Weekend wedding packages start at $3,500.Hildene - The Lincoln Family Home
The building at 1005 Hildene Rd, Manchester is full of meaning. The Lincolns built Hildene as a summer home at the turn of the 20th century. Here you can look out over the Taconic Mountains to the west and the Green Mountains to the east. The outdoor venue can accommodate up to 200 people and wedding reception prices start at $8,000.📷
(Hildene - The Lincoln Family Home)
The Henry House
The historic house at 1338 Murphy Rd, North Bennington, built in 1769, is one of the oldest surviving houses in Vermont. Overlooks the authentic red-covered Henry Bridge. The site offers several vendors for you to consider. The large trees outside the house make for the best wedding photos. The venue needs to be contacted for a specific quote.Massachusetts Wedding Venues
The Crane Estate
This is a Tudor Revival mansion located at 290 Argilla Rd, Ipswich. It was the summer home of Mr. and Mrs. Richard Taylor Crane, Jr. with winding salt marshes, miles of barrier beaches, and a beautiful hilltop mansion. And of course the rolling lawns and gardens. There are three sites to choose from in all, with the beachfront site accommodating 200 to 500 people. Weekend weddings are priced at $6500.Red Lion Inn
The Inn at 30 Main St, Stockbridge has a 250-year history. The entire Inn combines traditional New England hospitality with the amenities of a modern hotel. The largest Hitchcock room capacity is capacity 30-175 people. Venue rentals start at $4,000.Liberty Hotel
A sophisticated hotel located at 215 Charles St, Boston. Located in the heart of downtown, just steps from shopping, dining, Boston Parks, and more. The hotel offers a private secret garden that can accommodate up to 200 people outdoors and an indoor 3000-square-foot ballroom. Wedding venue rates start at $26,000 for up to 100 guests.Connecticut Wedding Venues
The Lace Factory
This historic factory is located at 161 River St, Deep River, and offers a charming and rustic atmosphere for a wedding venue. It has wood floors, high ceilings, and large windows overlooking the river. The Lace Factory offers event planning services, on-site catering, and a variety of rental options for weddings of all sizes. The Factory can accommodate up to 225 people and prices start at $5,000.Eolia Mansion at Harkness State
The address is 275 Great Neck Rd, Waterford. Nestled on the shoreline of Waterford, Connecticut, this elegant mansion offers breathtaking views of Long Island Sound. It has manicured gardens, a stone terrace, and a beautiful ballroom. The price of $5,100 includes exclusive use of the mansion's first floor and south courtyard tent for 5 hours.The Society Room of Hartford
This event venue is located at 31 Pratt St, Hartford, and the historic venue boasts magnificent architecture. It includes a marble staircase, beautifully frescoed ceilings, and crystal chandeliers. It provides a luxurious and timeless setting for weddings. The venue can accommodate up to 300 guests and prices start at 15,000.New Hampshire Wedding Venues
Wentworth By The Sea Country Club
Country Club at 60 Wentworth Rd, Rye. This private club is near the shore and enjoys magnificent waterfront views and a romantic atmosphere. The hotel has manicured grounds and a historic clubhouse. It can accommodate up to 250 guests in this setting. Three options are available: lawn, clubhouse, and tent weddings. Reception prices start at $30,000.The Preserve at Chocorua
This venue, located at 88 Philbrick Neighborhood Rd, Tamworth, is a rustic and secluded wedding venue nestled in the White Mountains. It offers scenic views, a charming barn, and plenty of outdoor space for the ceremony. Outdoor activities such as sleigh rides and hiking are also available. Approximate prices will start at $1000.Bishop Farm
The Farmhouse, located at 33 Bishop Cutoff, Lisbon, is a historic and beautifully landscaped site in the White Mountains. It offers a restored 1876 farmhouse, a barn, and lush greenery. There is also a romantic bistro with a terrace to relax in. Accommodating up to 200 guests, prices start at $15,000.Rhode Island Wedding Venues
The Chanler at Cliff Walk
A luxury hotel located at 117 Memorial Blvd, Newport. The Chanler offers luxurious accommodations and a grand mansion setting with stunning views of the Atlantic Ocean and access to their world-class restaurant. Specializing in weddings for up to 120 guests with access to their world-class restaurant. Site rentals start at $10,000.Blithewold Mansion, Gardens & Arboretum
Historic mansion on 33 acres located at 101 Ferry Rd, Bristol with breathtaking views of Narragansett Bay. Large tents are available in the outdoor area, followed by sunset views. Accommodating up to 225 guests, weekend wedding rates start at $12,995.The Dorrance
Situated in the heart of Providence, The Dorrance is a restored bank building with a sophisticated atmosphere and elegant decor. The most special feature is the long, luxurious bar, which can accommodate up to 200 guests throughout the venue. Venue rentals start at $7,500.New Jersey Wedding Venues
The Ashford Estate
Located at 637 Province Line Rd, Allentown, this elegant property is nestled in a picturesque setting. Surrounded by hundreds of acres of beautifully preserved farmland, it features sparkling fountains, waterfalls, garden pavilions, expansive views, and of course, luxurious private suites. The wedding venue can accommodate up to 300 guests. Starting at $10,000.Mallard Island Yacht Club
A club surrounded by water at 1450 NJ-72, Manahawkin. six more venues to choose from in the luxurious private island mansion. The center plaza boasts grand arches and ornate ceilings reminiscent of old-world glamour. The ballroom can accommodate up to 250 people, and prices for receptions start at $20,000.Liberty House Restaurant & Events
This waterfront event venue is located at 76 Audrey Zapp Dr, Jersey City. It features unparalleled views of the New York City skyline, Ellis Island, the Statue of Liberty, and the Liberty Landing Pier. The Grand Ballroom features a marble floor and floor-to-ceiling windows. The venue can accommodate up to 300 people and venue rental fees start at $8,000.Delaware Wedding Venues
The Queen Wilmington
This dazzling venue is located at 500 N Market St, Wilmington is downtown. It is a historic music venue that offers a unique and eclectic atmosphere. The venue features a grand ballroom with a stage, state-of-the-art sound system, and elegant décor. The venue can accommodate up to 200 guests and wedding reception prices start from $3,000.The Cordrey Center
The address is 30366 Cordrey Rd, Millsboro, and its restored barn and surrounding gardens provide a rustic and charming setting. The venue offers a range of services, including in-house catering, bar service, and event coordination. It has indoor and outdoor options and can accommodate up to 200 guests. Venue rental rates start at $3,500.The Waterfall Catering and Special Events
With an address at 3416 Philadelphia Pike, Claymont, The Waterfall has a modern venue. Centered around a stunning indoor waterfall. The spacious ballroom features contemporary décor and customizable LED lighting systems. The venue can accommodate up to 500 guests. Prices for venue rentals start at $6,000.Maryland Wedding Venues
Belvedere Hotel
Located at 1 East Chase Street and built-in 1902 as a historic landmark in Baltimore, The Belvedere showcases stunning architecture and classic charm. It offers a variety of event spaces, including a rooftop ballroom with panoramic views of the city. Inside, the décor is more vintage and ornate. Accommodating up to 500 guests, venue rentals start at $8,000.Evergreen Museum & Library
This grand Gilded Age mansion is located at 4545 N Charles St, Baltimore. It is full of history with a house museum and research library. With beautiful gardens, this venue offers a mix of elegance and history. It's architectural details and scenic surroundings provide a unique backdrop. As well as a tour of the museum's collection. Accommodates up to 200 guests and starts at $6,000.Chesapeake Bay Beach Club
Located at 500 Marina Club Rd, Stevensville, this venue offers stunning waterfront views and an elegant ballroom. It also has an oceanfront ceremony venue and luxurious accommodations. There are four ballrooms in total, three indoor and one outdoor. Accommodations for up to 300 guests start at $10,000.District of Columbia Wedding Venues
Larz Anderson House
Located at 2118 Massachusetts Ave NW, Washington, the Anderson House, established in 1905, is a stunning Beaux-Arts mansion that offers a romantic and intimate setting for weddings. The venue features beautiful gardens, a grand staircase, and gorgeous rooms decorated with historic artwork. It can accommodate up to 200 guests and has access to the house's magnificent library. Prices start from $8,000.The Hay-Adams
Located at 800 16th St NW, Washington, across from the White House, the hotel offers magnificent views of the iconic landmark. This venue has many event spaces, including a rooftop terrace from which the White House can be used as a photo backdrop. Wedding venues can accommodate up to 250 guests and prices start at $15,000.National Museum of Women in the Arts
Located at 1250 New York Ave NW, Washington, this unique venue celebrates women artists and offers a distinctive setting for weddings. With its stunning architecture and world-class art collection, it provides an exquisite atmosphere for your special day. The venue offers a variety of event spaces, including an assembly hall and mezzanine level, and can accommodate up to 400 guests. However, the museum is temporarily closed for renovations.Maine Wedding Venues
Hidden Pond
The resort's address is 354 Goose Rocks Rd, Kennebunkport, and is nestled in a secluded wooded area. Featuring elegant indoor and outdoor spaces. Surrounded by 60 acres of birch and balsam fir, it features two outdoor pools and a three-room treetop spa. It ensures an unforgettable wedding experience. Prices start from US$10,000.Hardy Farm
The farm is located at 254 W Fryeburg Rd, Fryeburg. This rustic and chic site features a restored 18th-century farmhouse and a spacious barn with panoramic mountain views. Of course, there are also seasonal gardens and a woodland church. The most special feature is the provision of a cable car to reach the top of the mountain, which is also a popular backdrop for photos. It can accommodate up to 250 guests and prices start from $6,500.Portland Regency Hotel & Spa
The address is 20 Milk St, Portland, and is centrally located, offering a blend of classic elegance and modern amenities. With many event spaces, on-site catering, and a spa, it can accommodate intimate and large weddings. Accommodations range from 10 to 220 guests, with rates starting at $3,500.Conclusion
"When you realize you want to spend the rest of your life with somebody, you want the rest of your life to start as soon as possible." When Harry Met SallyFinally, we've rounded up our recommendations for wedding venues in each of the remaining states. Choosing the perfect wedding venue is an important step in creating your dream wedding. It sets the tone for the entire celebration and provides the backdrop for your special day. No matter what style of wedding venue you prefer, there is a venue above that perfectly suits your style and preferences.
Last but not least, don't forget to check out Quictent's wedding tent. we offer quality wedding tents for your outdoor wedding, containing various types and sizes.
2023.06.05 06:15 kylexyz001 23 [M4F] [Relationship] Ohio/Worldwide- Let's Be Each Other's Everything (Longest post ever?)
Brace yourselves, this is gonna be a long one.
Table of Contents
1…… The Main Goal
2…… What I’m Seeking
3…… Personality
4…… Interests
5…… Physical Characteristics (with pics)
6…… Expectations of You
7…… Living Situation
8…… Deal Breakers
9…… Closing Remarks
(1)
The Main Goal:
Well if you’re browsing this subreddit then much like me, you were alone this weekend and I’m sure you’d like to change that as much as me. I won’t lie, I am going through a rough part of my life right now. It’s difficult for me to find the energy for anything at the moment and I’m just really seeking affection in general, anything that will give me a push. I don’t want to be that person who brings everyone down but I could really use someone to talk to right now. I’d really like to find someone who’s similar to me so much to the point that we do everything together and talk about everything while not having to pretend to be interested. I want someone with whom we can mutually spew our emotions onto and have those feelings reciprocated. Not an emotional punching bag, but an emotional teddy bear to hug and cuddle until everything feels better as many times as we need. There’s people who I’m sure have told you the same, they’ll be there no matter how many times you need the support, no matter how many times the insecurities and bad thoughts come back but they don’t mean it. I will be the exception, I’m not so ignorant to think some nice words and tales of relating to you will magically forever heal whatever ails you then get mad when you seek the same support again. Mental ailments are rarely temporary and I don’t care about someone because they’re perfect, caring about someone means being there no matter how many times they need you to be. It doesn’t feel like a chore, it doesn’t get old, and it never will.
(2)
(2.a)
What I'm Seeking:
I will upfront let you know if I’m clicking better with someone else or if you’re the one, I’m not here to tread the sea of fish or keep my options open, I’m here for one singular person.
(2.b)
Relationship:
A relationship is difficult for me right now, it’s been nearly half a year since I got out of my last relationship and the reasons for it ending are partially responsible for how I’ve been feeling and why it’s so hard for me to seek the comfort I so desperately crave. I will tell you about it but for the sake of not treating the entirety of the internet as my therapist, it’ll be in private. I really need the comfort of intimacy and the warmth of someone who cares. I'm not going to feel better if I just sulk and don’t move on. This is my attempt to get better, I’ll admit I’m not great right now and I don’t expect you to be either. If we can help each other heal, then I’d be more than happy :) A relationship isn’t just being there for when someone’s at their best. Even if a relationship is hard at the moment, I do want a life partner and I don’t want to be alone. Things aren’t going to get easier without you so I don’t want to hesitate. I view my other as an equal, I don’t like categorizing us into specific roles. We take care of each other and treat each other how we like to be treated, whatever that is, it's as simple as that. I don't care if you're "successful" or not, living simple lives with our days filled with love is the ultimate measure of success to me.
(3)
Personality:
(3.a)
On the Surface:
As you can tell I can be rather… stoic but that’s largely due to my current stressors, I truthfully am goofy and fun loving but I just can’t find it in me right now. I want to return to that but without someone to light up my world it’s been difficult to just have fun and enjoy stuff. I’m definitely more introverted, you won’t catch me at any parties or really outside at all. I definitely prefer being home though the occasional outing is not out of the question and one day I’d like to travel to other countries because I think that kind of perspective is important.
(3.b)
The Core of My Being:
I like being a spectator to it all and if we bear witness to humanity burning or its miraculous recovery, I want to watch it with you. I enjoy watching humanity advance, less so when it devolves but I want to watch it to the end nonetheless. I’m both a realist and someone who lives with my head in the clouds dreaming of scenarios or worlds that don’t exist. I’m saying that I enjoy a good narrative and can suspend my disbelief to enjoy something but you won’t catch me refusing vaccines or ignoring blatant facts for the sake of some pseudo science or witch doctor’s remedy. I’m an atheist but I do not rule out existence after death, not because I’m agnostic but because due to the nature of potentially infinite time at some point after how many googol years with a googol amount of 0s after that, something’s bound to replicate your consciousness perfectly at some point. It’s actually a really fascinating topic I like talking about. If infinite time and infinite possibilities exist, does non existence exist? Though that’s an awfully existentially dreadful thought process considering the ramifications of infinite existence and infinite possibilities during said infinite existence. I would say I’m confidently left leaning and I don’t think I could truly get along with anyone right leaning, at least America’s definition of right leaning. Left and right seems to have just become; do people deserve to suffer or do they deserve to live good lives? Being political is not something I expected to become but how can you not be when crimes against human rights are being passed on a daily basis and at the end of the day, everything’s political. Oftentimes I imagine the perfect moment as relaxing with my significant other playing games or cuddling in a cold room under blankets.
I value that special someone above all of the existential thoughts, the bad of the world, the good of the world, they practically become my world. So many worries wash away when I’m with them. I don’t know if that’s the defense mechanism my brain created to not feel bad 24/7 but if it is, I’m currently without it.
(3.c)
Insecurities:
I talk of philosophy and politics here but really I spend most of my time just playing games, watching stuff, and trying to not be sleep deprived. I’m also nowhere near as well spoken, heck sometimes I feel like my speech is broken. I won’t claim to be something I’m not, I sit at home while I complain about the world doing nothing about it wishing I had someone here with me. I’m not noble nor do I really want to be, I have morals I uphold but much like most other hypocrites I acknowledge that my comfortable life is built on the suffering of others without doing anything about it. Why? My sleep problems? Am I depressed? Is that why I have no energy to do anything? Do I just think nothing I could do could help? I can’t nail it down myself, maybe it’s a mix of everything, maybe I’m just a bad person. I have always told myself that if I had wealth I would help people but if I get that kind of wealth will I just become a wealth hoarder who tries to justify my riches as something I earned rather than something given to me through incredibly lucky circumstances? If I do help people is it because I’m a good person or out of guilt? Will I die alone? I feel like I drive everyone away with my clinginess, I get paranoid often and need reassurance often. It’s something I want to work on, something I’ve been trying to work on. Hearing that someone cares about me just never gets old. I value self awareness even if it’s painful.
(3.d)
Socializing:
I’m definitely a socially anxious/awkward mess, especially around strangers. I do feel a large amount of anxiety in public, people can’t tell by looking at my face since I kind of go stone faced in an attempt to block everything out but yeah you’ll notice that if we go out in public. Growing up my pediatrician said I was probably autistic, never got a formal diagnosis so that’s just great. But yeah that explains why I can’t make eye contact with people, I kinda just stare at the ground and avoid their gaze at all costs. A lot of these social struggles go away to a great degree once I know you for a bit but yeah I apologize for how terrible I am at socializing at first. Don’t let my social struggles fool you though, I love cuddling and being close with my person.
(3.e)
Sexuality:
I am a heterosexual male, though I’m not very masculine like at all. I may even be a bit feminine sometimes. Not that I believe any activity or manner of acting belongs to a gender but I don’t know how else to describe it. I’m definitely super affectionate and love it when my partner is too. I am open to dating demi people but I do have a libido so I don't think asexual would work out.
(4)
Interests:
(4.a)
Video Games:
As stated before, I do spend a lot of my time playing video games. It’s been hard lately with me having no energy but I really do want to play more games and have a good time playing them with you! I primarily play on PC though I do have a switch. I’m primarily into platform fighters, roguelikes, open world, survival, and sandbox games. As for single player story games, I enjoy watching them through twitch or youtube but for the most part I don’t play them myself. I’d watch you play them though!
Here’s a list of games we can play:
-Minecraft (Java)
-Risk of Rain 2
-Gunfire Reborn
-Roboquest
-7 Days to Die
-Phasmophobia
-Rust
-Unturned
-Bloons TD 6
-Platform fighters: Super Smash Bros. Melee, Slap City, Multiversus, Flash Party, Fraymakers
Whatever you want to play I’ll give it a shot! I will say that League bores me to death but I’ll play it for you :) I try to avoid MMOs, not because I don’t like them but because of how addicted I can get to them. I enjoy learning games in-depth so MMOs can be a fast track to addiction.
I recently got Kerbal Space Program 2 and ehhh not really worth it right now but hopefully later it will be? I’m super excited for Tears of the Kingdom! In the far off future I’m excited for Rivals of Aether 2 which is a platform fighter releasing in 2024, let me know of your most anticipated releases and I’ll see if I could play them with you!
Also I never got into FPS games but I could totally see myself playing like CoD with you or Escape From Tarkov. Any FPS really, I’m down.
I am a fan of Pokemon but with how things have been lately I don’t know how long that will last. Pixelmon is a common Pokemon mod I play for Minecraft if you want to play that! Also if I say I want to play something with you I mean it but there are often times when no matter how much I want to I'm just drained and can do little more than lay in bed so please don't think I'm making an excuse.
(4.b)
Science:
I really enjoy keeping up with the latest advances in pretty much everything, it could be biology, technology, astronomy, anything! I love seeing progression and I love talking about it! Really I could go on and on about what I’m obsessing about that day. I particularly love technology, ask me for my laptop specs I dare you. When I was little I always wanted to be a scientist of any kind but then insomnia and fear of college stuff hit me like a truck aaaand that’s the end of that dream.
(4.c)
Anime:
You got me, I like anime but I’d like to think my tastes are benign.
Here’s some of my favorites I can list from the top of my head:
- To Your Eternity
- Vinland Saga
- Spice and Wolf
- Re:Zero
- Mob Psycho
- Dr. Stone
- Attack on Titan
- Spy x Family
- My Hero Academia
- Ranking of Kings
- Demon Slayer
Okay I can go on and on but I will say I don’t like pointless fan service and the spamming of cliche anime moments. I mostly enjoy action and anything well animated if it doesn’t have a potato story. Heck Demon Slayer could be my top 3 out of season 2’s animation alone. I don’t watch slice of life often or romance but I would with you!
(4.d)
Misc:
I’m not going to go on and on about the tiniest little things when the main ones are covered but I’ll watch pretty much any show with you and anything really. I like random youtube videos that explain some kind of lore or mystery, sometimes mini documentaries too.
As for food I looove sushi and I’m a sucker for fast food. Okay and candy, definitely candy.
I used to play tennis but haven’t really had the opportunity nor friends to play it with and I’m way too socially anxious to seek it out. Also I will say that when we move to something like discord I type waaaay more casually. I’m not going to expect long paragraphs back and forth like we’re writing English papers for each other, I do enjoy long conversations but seriously don’t worry about having to put the utmost effort into every response, I just like making good first impressions I guess.
(5)
(5.a)
My Physical Characteristics:
I’m 5’8 (172cm), 128 pounds (58kg), with curly brown hair and blue eyes. I like keeping my hair long in the winter and cutting it in the summer. I’m pretty slim in general so if you’re looking for someone large, that’s not me. I don’t work out but my work is pretty physical so at least I’m not totally inactive. I don’t have the urge to work out or gain muscle but I do want to maintain my slim figure so if I start losing control of that I’ll work out. I like to keep my face shaved because I don’t think I look good with a beard/mustache so if you’re into those I apologize. I have an average amount of body hair? I’d prefer to be completely shaved but it’s easy to lose motivation with that battle, if you prefer shaved then I’d have no problem complying. Anyways here’s what I look like: https://imgur.com/a/MZZgf2t
(5.b)
My Physical Preferences:
Having physical preferences makes me feel shallow, if I could make myself not have them I would but unfortunately that’s now how that works. I don’t care if you’re shorter or taller than me and I don’t care if you weigh more or less than me. All I ask is that you’re slim-average weight. I would never ask for someone to be something I’m not. I don’t care about tattoos or piercings.
(6)
Expectations of You:
I am not looking for someone “exciting” or someone to “keep me on my toes” I’m not looking for someone to cater to my every whim or anything like that. I don’t care if you’re “boring” or if you aren’t “successful”. I know it’s a common thing for people to not want a “boring” relationship and to seek something argumentative or something with constant challenges but I just want to be with you. During the exciting times, the boring times, and everything in-between, all of it will be great with you! Maybe we do argue sometimes or maybe there will be challenges but that will never be something I purposefully seek out and I don’t want that to be something you seek out either. I will not play tricks on you and I will not play mind games, I expect the same from you. We all have personal measures of success we may or may not have lived up to but what I care about most is our commitment to each other. If we have each other we can get through tough times, near the ends of our lives I want us to look back and feel that this life together was worth more than anything. That’s not saying I want us to be haphazard, I don’t want us to make poor decisions for the sake of yolo and I want us to always be rational, especially with each other. I want you to be someone I can trust to make decisions and weigh the options with a level head, I’ll try my best to live up to the same for you. Most of all I want empathy, understanding, someone to feel the utmost comfort and trust in.
(7)
Living Situation:
Currently my life is pretty relaxed, I work 3 times a week as a night shift stocker. I currently live in a 2 bedroom apartment with my roommate but we’re looking to move into someplace larger by the end of the year if everything works out. The internet is weirdly great for Ohio too like I have fiber and later this year we’re supposed to be getting dedicated fiber so that’s neat. I’m not attached to Ohio so the ultimate goal living location wise is probably moving to a country that won’t send you into a lifetime of dealing with the repercussions from one medical emergency.
(8)
Deal Breakers:
Might as well make this simple and make it a list.
- Anti-vaxxers
- Unironically believing astrology
- Right wingers
- Hard drugs (occasional 420 and alcohol is fine, may even join you)
- Wanting children, there was a time when I was younger when I wanted children but with the state of the word that’s a definite no and I feel like I wouldn’t be able to handle the stress. I’d love a stress free life with as much time with you as possible.
- Homophobic
- Transphobic
- Racist
- Super Religious
- Don’t be a bigot and don’t deny facts.
(9)
Closing Remarks:
Well you made it, I was thinking that finding someone I’d be willing to put a lifetime of effort into at least required this much effort. If I think of anything more I’ll update the post. Also about timezones, it really doesn’t matter where in the world you are. I don’t have a sleep schedule and I have most of the week off from work so it really doesn’t matter.
I request that in your response you do put effort into it, it doesn’t have to be anywhere near as long as this but at least enough so I know that you read this and enough about you so I know why you saw potential compatibility. I will seriously read all of it and respond the best I can. I do also request a pic included in your response (sfw please) or one soon after we start talking to prove identity, I’ll send identity proving pics too. As long as this post is up, you can send a reply!
submitted by kylexyz001 to MeetPeople [link] [comments]
Table of Contents
1…… The Main Goal
2…… What I’m Seeking
3…… Personality
4…… Interests
5…… Physical Characteristics (with pics)
6…… Expectations of You
7…… Living Situation
8…… Deal Breakers
9…… Closing Remarks
(1)
The Main Goal:
Well if you’re browsing this subreddit then much like me, you were alone this weekend and I’m sure you’d like to change that as much as me. I won’t lie, I am going through a rough part of my life right now. It’s difficult for me to find the energy for anything at the moment and I’m just really seeking affection in general, anything that will give me a push. I don’t want to be that person who brings everyone down but I could really use someone to talk to right now. I’d really like to find someone who’s similar to me so much to the point that we do everything together and talk about everything while not having to pretend to be interested. I want someone with whom we can mutually spew our emotions onto and have those feelings reciprocated. Not an emotional punching bag, but an emotional teddy bear to hug and cuddle until everything feels better as many times as we need. There’s people who I’m sure have told you the same, they’ll be there no matter how many times you need the support, no matter how many times the insecurities and bad thoughts come back but they don’t mean it. I will be the exception, I’m not so ignorant to think some nice words and tales of relating to you will magically forever heal whatever ails you then get mad when you seek the same support again. Mental ailments are rarely temporary and I don’t care about someone because they’re perfect, caring about someone means being there no matter how many times they need you to be. It doesn’t feel like a chore, it doesn’t get old, and it never will.
(2)
(2.a)
What I'm Seeking:
I will upfront let you know if I’m clicking better with someone else or if you’re the one, I’m not here to tread the sea of fish or keep my options open, I’m here for one singular person.
(2.b)
Relationship:
A relationship is difficult for me right now, it’s been nearly half a year since I got out of my last relationship and the reasons for it ending are partially responsible for how I’ve been feeling and why it’s so hard for me to seek the comfort I so desperately crave. I will tell you about it but for the sake of not treating the entirety of the internet as my therapist, it’ll be in private. I really need the comfort of intimacy and the warmth of someone who cares. I'm not going to feel better if I just sulk and don’t move on. This is my attempt to get better, I’ll admit I’m not great right now and I don’t expect you to be either. If we can help each other heal, then I’d be more than happy :) A relationship isn’t just being there for when someone’s at their best. Even if a relationship is hard at the moment, I do want a life partner and I don’t want to be alone. Things aren’t going to get easier without you so I don’t want to hesitate. I view my other as an equal, I don’t like categorizing us into specific roles. We take care of each other and treat each other how we like to be treated, whatever that is, it's as simple as that. I don't care if you're "successful" or not, living simple lives with our days filled with love is the ultimate measure of success to me.
(3)
Personality:
(3.a)
On the Surface:
As you can tell I can be rather… stoic but that’s largely due to my current stressors, I truthfully am goofy and fun loving but I just can’t find it in me right now. I want to return to that but without someone to light up my world it’s been difficult to just have fun and enjoy stuff. I’m definitely more introverted, you won’t catch me at any parties or really outside at all. I definitely prefer being home though the occasional outing is not out of the question and one day I’d like to travel to other countries because I think that kind of perspective is important.
(3.b)
The Core of My Being:
I like being a spectator to it all and if we bear witness to humanity burning or its miraculous recovery, I want to watch it with you. I enjoy watching humanity advance, less so when it devolves but I want to watch it to the end nonetheless. I’m both a realist and someone who lives with my head in the clouds dreaming of scenarios or worlds that don’t exist. I’m saying that I enjoy a good narrative and can suspend my disbelief to enjoy something but you won’t catch me refusing vaccines or ignoring blatant facts for the sake of some pseudo science or witch doctor’s remedy. I’m an atheist but I do not rule out existence after death, not because I’m agnostic but because due to the nature of potentially infinite time at some point after how many googol years with a googol amount of 0s after that, something’s bound to replicate your consciousness perfectly at some point. It’s actually a really fascinating topic I like talking about. If infinite time and infinite possibilities exist, does non existence exist? Though that’s an awfully existentially dreadful thought process considering the ramifications of infinite existence and infinite possibilities during said infinite existence. I would say I’m confidently left leaning and I don’t think I could truly get along with anyone right leaning, at least America’s definition of right leaning. Left and right seems to have just become; do people deserve to suffer or do they deserve to live good lives? Being political is not something I expected to become but how can you not be when crimes against human rights are being passed on a daily basis and at the end of the day, everything’s political. Oftentimes I imagine the perfect moment as relaxing with my significant other playing games or cuddling in a cold room under blankets.
I value that special someone above all of the existential thoughts, the bad of the world, the good of the world, they practically become my world. So many worries wash away when I’m with them. I don’t know if that’s the defense mechanism my brain created to not feel bad 24/7 but if it is, I’m currently without it.
(3.c)
Insecurities:
I talk of philosophy and politics here but really I spend most of my time just playing games, watching stuff, and trying to not be sleep deprived. I’m also nowhere near as well spoken, heck sometimes I feel like my speech is broken. I won’t claim to be something I’m not, I sit at home while I complain about the world doing nothing about it wishing I had someone here with me. I’m not noble nor do I really want to be, I have morals I uphold but much like most other hypocrites I acknowledge that my comfortable life is built on the suffering of others without doing anything about it. Why? My sleep problems? Am I depressed? Is that why I have no energy to do anything? Do I just think nothing I could do could help? I can’t nail it down myself, maybe it’s a mix of everything, maybe I’m just a bad person. I have always told myself that if I had wealth I would help people but if I get that kind of wealth will I just become a wealth hoarder who tries to justify my riches as something I earned rather than something given to me through incredibly lucky circumstances? If I do help people is it because I’m a good person or out of guilt? Will I die alone? I feel like I drive everyone away with my clinginess, I get paranoid often and need reassurance often. It’s something I want to work on, something I’ve been trying to work on. Hearing that someone cares about me just never gets old. I value self awareness even if it’s painful.
(3.d)
Socializing:
I’m definitely a socially anxious/awkward mess, especially around strangers. I do feel a large amount of anxiety in public, people can’t tell by looking at my face since I kind of go stone faced in an attempt to block everything out but yeah you’ll notice that if we go out in public. Growing up my pediatrician said I was probably autistic, never got a formal diagnosis so that’s just great. But yeah that explains why I can’t make eye contact with people, I kinda just stare at the ground and avoid their gaze at all costs. A lot of these social struggles go away to a great degree once I know you for a bit but yeah I apologize for how terrible I am at socializing at first. Don’t let my social struggles fool you though, I love cuddling and being close with my person.
(3.e)
Sexuality:
I am a heterosexual male, though I’m not very masculine like at all. I may even be a bit feminine sometimes. Not that I believe any activity or manner of acting belongs to a gender but I don’t know how else to describe it. I’m definitely super affectionate and love it when my partner is too. I am open to dating demi people but I do have a libido so I don't think asexual would work out.
(4)
Interests:
(4.a)
Video Games:
As stated before, I do spend a lot of my time playing video games. It’s been hard lately with me having no energy but I really do want to play more games and have a good time playing them with you! I primarily play on PC though I do have a switch. I’m primarily into platform fighters, roguelikes, open world, survival, and sandbox games. As for single player story games, I enjoy watching them through twitch or youtube but for the most part I don’t play them myself. I’d watch you play them though!
Here’s a list of games we can play:
-Minecraft (Java)
-Risk of Rain 2
-Gunfire Reborn
-Roboquest
-7 Days to Die
-Phasmophobia
-Rust
-Unturned
-Bloons TD 6
-Platform fighters: Super Smash Bros. Melee, Slap City, Multiversus, Flash Party, Fraymakers
Whatever you want to play I’ll give it a shot! I will say that League bores me to death but I’ll play it for you :) I try to avoid MMOs, not because I don’t like them but because of how addicted I can get to them. I enjoy learning games in-depth so MMOs can be a fast track to addiction.
I recently got Kerbal Space Program 2 and ehhh not really worth it right now but hopefully later it will be? I’m super excited for Tears of the Kingdom! In the far off future I’m excited for Rivals of Aether 2 which is a platform fighter releasing in 2024, let me know of your most anticipated releases and I’ll see if I could play them with you!
Also I never got into FPS games but I could totally see myself playing like CoD with you or Escape From Tarkov. Any FPS really, I’m down.
I am a fan of Pokemon but with how things have been lately I don’t know how long that will last. Pixelmon is a common Pokemon mod I play for Minecraft if you want to play that! Also if I say I want to play something with you I mean it but there are often times when no matter how much I want to I'm just drained and can do little more than lay in bed so please don't think I'm making an excuse.
(4.b)
Science:
I really enjoy keeping up with the latest advances in pretty much everything, it could be biology, technology, astronomy, anything! I love seeing progression and I love talking about it! Really I could go on and on about what I’m obsessing about that day. I particularly love technology, ask me for my laptop specs I dare you. When I was little I always wanted to be a scientist of any kind but then insomnia and fear of college stuff hit me like a truck aaaand that’s the end of that dream.
(4.c)
Anime:
You got me, I like anime but I’d like to think my tastes are benign.
Here’s some of my favorites I can list from the top of my head:
- To Your Eternity
- Vinland Saga
- Spice and Wolf
- Re:Zero
- Mob Psycho
- Dr. Stone
- Attack on Titan
- Spy x Family
- My Hero Academia
- Ranking of Kings
- Demon Slayer
Okay I can go on and on but I will say I don’t like pointless fan service and the spamming of cliche anime moments. I mostly enjoy action and anything well animated if it doesn’t have a potato story. Heck Demon Slayer could be my top 3 out of season 2’s animation alone. I don’t watch slice of life often or romance but I would with you!
(4.d)
Misc:
I’m not going to go on and on about the tiniest little things when the main ones are covered but I’ll watch pretty much any show with you and anything really. I like random youtube videos that explain some kind of lore or mystery, sometimes mini documentaries too.
As for food I looove sushi and I’m a sucker for fast food. Okay and candy, definitely candy.
I used to play tennis but haven’t really had the opportunity nor friends to play it with and I’m way too socially anxious to seek it out. Also I will say that when we move to something like discord I type waaaay more casually. I’m not going to expect long paragraphs back and forth like we’re writing English papers for each other, I do enjoy long conversations but seriously don’t worry about having to put the utmost effort into every response, I just like making good first impressions I guess.
(5)
(5.a)
My Physical Characteristics:
I’m 5’8 (172cm), 128 pounds (58kg), with curly brown hair and blue eyes. I like keeping my hair long in the winter and cutting it in the summer. I’m pretty slim in general so if you’re looking for someone large, that’s not me. I don’t work out but my work is pretty physical so at least I’m not totally inactive. I don’t have the urge to work out or gain muscle but I do want to maintain my slim figure so if I start losing control of that I’ll work out. I like to keep my face shaved because I don’t think I look good with a beard/mustache so if you’re into those I apologize. I have an average amount of body hair? I’d prefer to be completely shaved but it’s easy to lose motivation with that battle, if you prefer shaved then I’d have no problem complying. Anyways here’s what I look like: https://imgur.com/a/MZZgf2t
(5.b)
My Physical Preferences:
Having physical preferences makes me feel shallow, if I could make myself not have them I would but unfortunately that’s now how that works. I don’t care if you’re shorter or taller than me and I don’t care if you weigh more or less than me. All I ask is that you’re slim-average weight. I would never ask for someone to be something I’m not. I don’t care about tattoos or piercings.
(6)
Expectations of You:
I am not looking for someone “exciting” or someone to “keep me on my toes” I’m not looking for someone to cater to my every whim or anything like that. I don’t care if you’re “boring” or if you aren’t “successful”. I know it’s a common thing for people to not want a “boring” relationship and to seek something argumentative or something with constant challenges but I just want to be with you. During the exciting times, the boring times, and everything in-between, all of it will be great with you! Maybe we do argue sometimes or maybe there will be challenges but that will never be something I purposefully seek out and I don’t want that to be something you seek out either. I will not play tricks on you and I will not play mind games, I expect the same from you. We all have personal measures of success we may or may not have lived up to but what I care about most is our commitment to each other. If we have each other we can get through tough times, near the ends of our lives I want us to look back and feel that this life together was worth more than anything. That’s not saying I want us to be haphazard, I don’t want us to make poor decisions for the sake of yolo and I want us to always be rational, especially with each other. I want you to be someone I can trust to make decisions and weigh the options with a level head, I’ll try my best to live up to the same for you. Most of all I want empathy, understanding, someone to feel the utmost comfort and trust in.
(7)
Living Situation:
Currently my life is pretty relaxed, I work 3 times a week as a night shift stocker. I currently live in a 2 bedroom apartment with my roommate but we’re looking to move into someplace larger by the end of the year if everything works out. The internet is weirdly great for Ohio too like I have fiber and later this year we’re supposed to be getting dedicated fiber so that’s neat. I’m not attached to Ohio so the ultimate goal living location wise is probably moving to a country that won’t send you into a lifetime of dealing with the repercussions from one medical emergency.
(8)
Deal Breakers:
Might as well make this simple and make it a list.
- Anti-vaxxers
- Unironically believing astrology
- Right wingers
- Hard drugs (occasional 420 and alcohol is fine, may even join you)
- Wanting children, there was a time when I was younger when I wanted children but with the state of the word that’s a definite no and I feel like I wouldn’t be able to handle the stress. I’d love a stress free life with as much time with you as possible.
- Homophobic
- Transphobic
- Racist
- Super Religious
- Don’t be a bigot and don’t deny facts.
(9)
Closing Remarks:
Well you made it, I was thinking that finding someone I’d be willing to put a lifetime of effort into at least required this much effort. If I think of anything more I’ll update the post. Also about timezones, it really doesn’t matter where in the world you are. I don’t have a sleep schedule and I have most of the week off from work so it really doesn’t matter.
I request that in your response you do put effort into it, it doesn’t have to be anywhere near as long as this but at least enough so I know that you read this and enough about you so I know why you saw potential compatibility. I will seriously read all of it and respond the best I can. I do also request a pic included in your response (sfw please) or one soon after we start talking to prove identity, I’ll send identity proving pics too. As long as this post is up, you can send a reply!
2023.06.05 06:14 kylexyz001 23 [M4F] Ohio/Worldwide- Let's Be Each Other's Everything (Longest post ever?)
Brace yourselves, this is gonna be a long one.
Table of Contents
1…… The Main Goal
2…… What I’m Seeking
3…… Personality
4…… Interests
5…… Physical Characteristics (with pics)
6…… Expectations of You
7…… Living Situation
8…… Deal Breakers
9…… Closing Remarks
(1)
The Main Goal:
Well if you’re browsing this subreddit then much like me, you were alone this weekend and I’m sure you’d like to change that as much as me. I won’t lie, I am going through a rough part of my life right now. It’s difficult for me to find the energy for anything at the moment and I’m just really seeking affection in general, anything that will give me a push. I don’t want to be that person who brings everyone down but I could really use someone to talk to right now. I’d really like to find someone who’s similar to me so much to the point that we do everything together and talk about everything while not having to pretend to be interested. I want someone with whom we can mutually spew our emotions onto and have those feelings reciprocated. Not an emotional punching bag, but an emotional teddy bear to hug and cuddle until everything feels better as many times as we need. There’s people who I’m sure have told you the same, they’ll be there no matter how many times you need the support, no matter how many times the insecurities and bad thoughts come back but they don’t mean it. I will be the exception, I’m not so ignorant to think some nice words and tales of relating to you will magically forever heal whatever ails you then get mad when you seek the same support again. Mental ailments are rarely temporary and I don’t care about someone because they’re perfect, caring about someone means being there no matter how many times they need you to be. It doesn’t feel like a chore, it doesn’t get old, and it never will.
(2)
(2.a)
What I'm Seeking:
I will upfront let you know if I’m clicking better with someone else or if you’re the one, I’m not here to tread the sea of fish or keep my options open, I’m here for one singular person.
(2.b)
Relationship:
A relationship is difficult for me right now, it’s been nearly half a year since I got out of my last relationship and the reasons for it ending are partially responsible for how I’ve been feeling and why it’s so hard for me to seek the comfort I so desperately crave. I will tell you about it but for the sake of not treating the entirety of the internet as my therapist, it’ll be in private. I really need the comfort of intimacy and the warmth of someone who cares. I'm not going to feel better if I just sulk and don’t move on. This is my attempt to get better, I’ll admit I’m not great right now and I don’t expect you to be either. If we can help each other heal, then I’d be more than happy :) A relationship isn’t just being there for when someone’s at their best. Even if a relationship is hard at the moment, I do want a life partner and I don’t want to be alone. Things aren’t going to get easier without you so I don’t want to hesitate. I view my other as an equal, I don’t like categorizing us into specific roles. We take care of each other and treat each other how we like to be treated, whatever that is, it's as simple as that. I don't care if you're "successful" or not, living simple lives with our days filled with love is the ultimate measure of success to me.
(3)
Personality:
(3.a)
On the Surface:
As you can tell I can be rather… stoic but that’s largely due to my current stressors, I truthfully am goofy and fun loving but I just can’t find it in me right now. I want to return to that but without someone to light up my world it’s been difficult to just have fun and enjoy stuff. I’m definitely more introverted, you won’t catch me at any parties or really outside at all. I definitely prefer being home though the occasional outing is not out of the question and one day I’d like to travel to other countries because I think that kind of perspective is important.
(3.b)
The Core of My Being:
I like being a spectator to it all and if we bear witness to humanity burning or its miraculous recovery, I want to watch it with you. I enjoy watching humanity advance, less so when it devolves but I want to watch it to the end nonetheless. I’m both a realist and someone who lives with my head in the clouds dreaming of scenarios or worlds that don’t exist. I’m saying that I enjoy a good narrative and can suspend my disbelief to enjoy something but you won’t catch me refusing vaccines or ignoring blatant facts for the sake of some pseudo science or witch doctor’s remedy. I’m an atheist but I do not rule out existence after death, not because I’m agnostic but because due to the nature of potentially infinite time at some point after how many googol years with a googol amount of 0s after that, something’s bound to replicate your consciousness perfectly at some point. It’s actually a really fascinating topic I like talking about. If infinite time and infinite possibilities exist, does non existence exist? Though that’s an awfully existentially dreadful thought process considering the ramifications of infinite existence and infinite possibilities during said infinite existence. I would say I’m confidently left leaning and I don’t think I could truly get along with anyone right leaning, at least America’s definition of right leaning. Left and right seems to have just become; do people deserve to suffer or do they deserve to live good lives? Being political is not something I expected to become but how can you not be when crimes against human rights are being passed on a daily basis and at the end of the day, everything’s political. Oftentimes I imagine the perfect moment as relaxing with my significant other playing games or cuddling in a cold room under blankets.
I value that special someone above all of the existential thoughts, the bad of the world, the good of the world, they practically become my world. So many worries wash away when I’m with them. I don’t know if that’s the defense mechanism my brain created to not feel bad 24/7 but if it is, I’m currently without it.
(3.c)
Insecurities:
I talk of philosophy and politics here but really I spend most of my time just playing games, watching stuff, and trying to not be sleep deprived. I’m also nowhere near as well spoken, heck sometimes I feel like my speech is broken. I won’t claim to be something I’m not, I sit at home while I complain about the world doing nothing about it wishing I had someone here with me. I’m not noble nor do I really want to be, I have morals I uphold but much like most other hypocrites I acknowledge that my comfortable life is built on the suffering of others without doing anything about it. Why? My sleep problems? Am I depressed? Is that why I have no energy to do anything? Do I just think nothing I could do could help? I can’t nail it down myself, maybe it’s a mix of everything, maybe I’m just a bad person. I have always told myself that if I had wealth I would help people but if I get that kind of wealth will I just become a wealth hoarder who tries to justify my riches as something I earned rather than something given to me through incredibly lucky circumstances? If I do help people is it because I’m a good person or out of guilt? Will I die alone? I feel like I drive everyone away with my clinginess, I get paranoid often and need reassurance often. It’s something I want to work on, something I’ve been trying to work on. Hearing that someone cares about me just never gets old. I value self awareness even if it’s painful.
(3.d)
Socializing:
I’m definitely a socially anxious/awkward mess, especially around strangers. I do feel a large amount of anxiety in public, people can’t tell by looking at my face since I kind of go stone faced in an attempt to block everything out but yeah you’ll notice that if we go out in public. Growing up my pediatrician said I was probably autistic, never got a formal diagnosis so that’s just great. But yeah that explains why I can’t make eye contact with people, I kinda just stare at the ground and avoid their gaze at all costs. A lot of these social struggles go away to a great degree once I know you for a bit but yeah I apologize for how terrible I am at socializing at first. Don’t let my social struggles fool you though, I love cuddling and being close with my person.
(3.e)
Sexuality:
I am a heterosexual male, though I’m not very masculine like at all. I may even be a bit feminine sometimes. Not that I believe any activity or manner of acting belongs to a gender but I don’t know how else to describe it. I’m definitely super affectionate and love it when my partner is too. I am open to dating demi people but I do have a libido so I don't think asexual would work out.
(4)
Interests:
(4.a)
Video Games:
As stated before, I do spend a lot of my time playing video games. It’s been hard lately with me having no energy but I really do want to play more games and have a good time playing them with you! I primarily play on PC though I do have a switch. I’m primarily into platform fighters, roguelikes, open world, survival, and sandbox games. As for single player story games, I enjoy watching them through twitch or youtube but for the most part I don’t play them myself. I’d watch you play them though!
Here’s a list of games we can play:
-Minecraft (Java)
-Risk of Rain 2
-Gunfire Reborn
-Roboquest
-7 Days to Die
-Phasmophobia
-Rust
-Unturned
-Bloons TD 6
-Platform fighters: Super Smash Bros. Melee, Slap City, Multiversus, Flash Party, Fraymakers
Whatever you want to play I’ll give it a shot! I will say that League bores me to death but I’ll play it for you :) I try to avoid MMOs, not because I don’t like them but because of how addicted I can get to them. I enjoy learning games in-depth so MMOs can be a fast track to addiction.
I recently got Kerbal Space Program 2 and ehhh not really worth it right now but hopefully later it will be? I’m super excited for Tears of the Kingdom! In the far off future I’m excited for Rivals of Aether 2 which is a platform fighter releasing in 2024, let me know of your most anticipated releases and I’ll see if I could play them with you!
Also I never got into FPS games but I could totally see myself playing like CoD with you or Escape From Tarkov. Any FPS really, I’m down.
I am a fan of Pokemon but with how things have been lately I don’t know how long that will last. Pixelmon is a common Pokemon mod I play for Minecraft if you want to play that! Also if I say I want to play something with you I mean it but there are often times when no matter how much I want to I'm just drained and can do little more than lay in bed so please don't think I'm making an excuse.
(4.b)
Science:
I really enjoy keeping up with the latest advances in pretty much everything, it could be biology, technology, astronomy, anything! I love seeing progression and I love talking about it! Really I could go on and on about what I’m obsessing about that day. I particularly love technology, ask me for my laptop specs I dare you. When I was little I always wanted to be a scientist of any kind but then insomnia and fear of college stuff hit me like a truck aaaand that’s the end of that dream.
(4.c)
Anime:
You got me, I like anime but I’d like to think my tastes are benign.
Here’s some of my favorites I can list from the top of my head:
- To Your Eternity
- Vinland Saga
- Spice and Wolf
- Re:Zero
- Mob Psycho
- Dr. Stone
- Attack on Titan
- Spy x Family
- My Hero Academia
- Ranking of Kings
- Demon Slayer
Okay I can go on and on but I will say I don’t like pointless fan service and the spamming of cliche anime moments. I mostly enjoy action and anything well animated if it doesn’t have a potato story. Heck Demon Slayer could be my top 3 out of season 2’s animation alone. I don’t watch slice of life often or romance but I would with you!
(4.d)
Misc:
I’m not going to go on and on about the tiniest little things when the main ones are covered but I’ll watch pretty much any show with you and anything really. I like random youtube videos that explain some kind of lore or mystery, sometimes mini documentaries too.
As for food I looove sushi and I’m a sucker for fast food. Okay and candy, definitely candy.
I used to play tennis but haven’t really had the opportunity nor friends to play it with and I’m way too socially anxious to seek it out. Also I will say that when we move to something like discord I type waaaay more casually. I’m not going to expect long paragraphs back and forth like we’re writing English papers for each other, I do enjoy long conversations but seriously don’t worry about having to put the utmost effort into every response, I just like making good first impressions I guess.
(5)
(5.a)
My Physical Characteristics:
I’m 5’8 (172cm), 128 pounds (58kg), with curly brown hair and blue eyes. I like keeping my hair long in the winter and cutting it in the summer. I’m pretty slim in general so if you’re looking for someone large, that’s not me. I don’t work out but my work is pretty physical so at least I’m not totally inactive. I don’t have the urge to work out or gain muscle but I do want to maintain my slim figure so if I start losing control of that I’ll work out. I like to keep my face shaved because I don’t think I look good with a beard/mustache so if you’re into those I apologize. I have an average amount of body hair? I’d prefer to be completely shaved but it’s easy to lose motivation with that battle, if you prefer shaved then I’d have no problem complying. Anyways here’s what I look like: https://imgur.com/a/MZZgf2t
(5.b)
My Physical Preferences:
Having physical preferences makes me feel shallow, if I could make myself not have them I would but unfortunately that’s now how that works. I don’t care if you’re shorter or taller than me and I don’t care if you weigh more or less than me. All I ask is that you’re slim-average weight. I would never ask for someone to be something I’m not. I don’t care about tattoos or piercings.
(6) Expectations of You: I am not looking for someone “exciting” or someone to “keep me on my toes” I’m not looking for someone to cater to my every whim or anything like that. I don’t care if you’re “boring” or if you aren’t “successful”. I know it’s a common thing for people to not want a “boring” relationship and to seek something argumentative or something with constant challenges but I just want to be with you. During the exciting times, the boring times, and everything in-between, all of it will be great with you! Maybe we do argue sometimes or maybe there will be challenges but that will never be something I purposefully seek out and I don’t want that to be something you seek out either. I will not play tricks on you and I will not play mind games, I expect the same from you. We all have personal measures of success we may or may not have lived up to but what I care about most is our commitment to each other. If we have each other we can get through tough times, near the ends of our lives I want us to look back and feel that this life together was worth more than anything. That’s not saying I want us to be haphazard, I don’t want us to make poor decisions for the sake of yolo and I want us to always be rational, especially with each other. I want you to be someone I can trust to make decisions and weigh the options with a level head, I’ll try my best to live up to the same for you. Most of all I want empathy, understanding, someone to feel the utmost comfort and trust in.
(7)
Living Situation:
Currently my life is pretty relaxed, I work 3 times a week as a night shift stocker. I currently live in a 2 bedroom apartment with my roommate but we’re looking to move into someplace larger by the end of the year if everything works out. The internet is weirdly great for Ohio too like I have fiber and later this year we’re supposed to be getting dedicated fiber so that’s neat. I’m not attached to Ohio so the ultimate goal living location wise is probably moving to a country that won’t send you into a lifetime of dealing with the repercussions from one medical emergency.
(8)
Deal Breakers:
Might as well make this simple and make it a list.
- Anti-vaxxers
- Unironically believing astrology
- Right wingers
- Hard drugs (occasional 420 and alcohol is fine, may even join you)
- Wanting children, there was a time when I was younger when I wanted children but with the state of the word that’s a definite no and I feel like I wouldn’t be able to handle the stress. I’d love a stress free life with as much time with you as possible.
- Homophobic
- Transphobic
- Racist
- Super Religious
- Don’t be a bigot and don’t deny facts.
(9)
Closing Remarks:
Well you made it, I was thinking that finding someone I’d be willing to put a lifetime of effort into at least required this much effort. If I think of anything more I’ll update the post. Also about timezones, it really doesn’t matter where in the world you are. I don’t have a sleep schedule and I have most of the week off from work so it really doesn’t matter.
I request that in your response you do put effort into it, it doesn’t have to be anywhere near as long as this but at least enough so I know that you read this and enough about you so I know why you saw potential compatibility. I will seriously read all of it and respond the best I can. I do also request a pic included in your response (sfw please) or one soon after we start talking to prove identity, I’ll send identity proving pics too. As long as this post is up, you can send a reply!
submitted by kylexyz001 to r4r [link] [comments]
Table of Contents
1…… The Main Goal
2…… What I’m Seeking
3…… Personality
4…… Interests
5…… Physical Characteristics (with pics)
6…… Expectations of You
7…… Living Situation
8…… Deal Breakers
9…… Closing Remarks
(1)
The Main Goal:
Well if you’re browsing this subreddit then much like me, you were alone this weekend and I’m sure you’d like to change that as much as me. I won’t lie, I am going through a rough part of my life right now. It’s difficult for me to find the energy for anything at the moment and I’m just really seeking affection in general, anything that will give me a push. I don’t want to be that person who brings everyone down but I could really use someone to talk to right now. I’d really like to find someone who’s similar to me so much to the point that we do everything together and talk about everything while not having to pretend to be interested. I want someone with whom we can mutually spew our emotions onto and have those feelings reciprocated. Not an emotional punching bag, but an emotional teddy bear to hug and cuddle until everything feels better as many times as we need. There’s people who I’m sure have told you the same, they’ll be there no matter how many times you need the support, no matter how many times the insecurities and bad thoughts come back but they don’t mean it. I will be the exception, I’m not so ignorant to think some nice words and tales of relating to you will magically forever heal whatever ails you then get mad when you seek the same support again. Mental ailments are rarely temporary and I don’t care about someone because they’re perfect, caring about someone means being there no matter how many times they need you to be. It doesn’t feel like a chore, it doesn’t get old, and it never will.
(2)
(2.a)
What I'm Seeking:
I will upfront let you know if I’m clicking better with someone else or if you’re the one, I’m not here to tread the sea of fish or keep my options open, I’m here for one singular person.
(2.b)
Relationship:
A relationship is difficult for me right now, it’s been nearly half a year since I got out of my last relationship and the reasons for it ending are partially responsible for how I’ve been feeling and why it’s so hard for me to seek the comfort I so desperately crave. I will tell you about it but for the sake of not treating the entirety of the internet as my therapist, it’ll be in private. I really need the comfort of intimacy and the warmth of someone who cares. I'm not going to feel better if I just sulk and don’t move on. This is my attempt to get better, I’ll admit I’m not great right now and I don’t expect you to be either. If we can help each other heal, then I’d be more than happy :) A relationship isn’t just being there for when someone’s at their best. Even if a relationship is hard at the moment, I do want a life partner and I don’t want to be alone. Things aren’t going to get easier without you so I don’t want to hesitate. I view my other as an equal, I don’t like categorizing us into specific roles. We take care of each other and treat each other how we like to be treated, whatever that is, it's as simple as that. I don't care if you're "successful" or not, living simple lives with our days filled with love is the ultimate measure of success to me.
(3)
Personality:
(3.a)
On the Surface:
As you can tell I can be rather… stoic but that’s largely due to my current stressors, I truthfully am goofy and fun loving but I just can’t find it in me right now. I want to return to that but without someone to light up my world it’s been difficult to just have fun and enjoy stuff. I’m definitely more introverted, you won’t catch me at any parties or really outside at all. I definitely prefer being home though the occasional outing is not out of the question and one day I’d like to travel to other countries because I think that kind of perspective is important.
(3.b)
The Core of My Being:
I like being a spectator to it all and if we bear witness to humanity burning or its miraculous recovery, I want to watch it with you. I enjoy watching humanity advance, less so when it devolves but I want to watch it to the end nonetheless. I’m both a realist and someone who lives with my head in the clouds dreaming of scenarios or worlds that don’t exist. I’m saying that I enjoy a good narrative and can suspend my disbelief to enjoy something but you won’t catch me refusing vaccines or ignoring blatant facts for the sake of some pseudo science or witch doctor’s remedy. I’m an atheist but I do not rule out existence after death, not because I’m agnostic but because due to the nature of potentially infinite time at some point after how many googol years with a googol amount of 0s after that, something’s bound to replicate your consciousness perfectly at some point. It’s actually a really fascinating topic I like talking about. If infinite time and infinite possibilities exist, does non existence exist? Though that’s an awfully existentially dreadful thought process considering the ramifications of infinite existence and infinite possibilities during said infinite existence. I would say I’m confidently left leaning and I don’t think I could truly get along with anyone right leaning, at least America’s definition of right leaning. Left and right seems to have just become; do people deserve to suffer or do they deserve to live good lives? Being political is not something I expected to become but how can you not be when crimes against human rights are being passed on a daily basis and at the end of the day, everything’s political. Oftentimes I imagine the perfect moment as relaxing with my significant other playing games or cuddling in a cold room under blankets.
I value that special someone above all of the existential thoughts, the bad of the world, the good of the world, they practically become my world. So many worries wash away when I’m with them. I don’t know if that’s the defense mechanism my brain created to not feel bad 24/7 but if it is, I’m currently without it.
(3.c)
Insecurities:
I talk of philosophy and politics here but really I spend most of my time just playing games, watching stuff, and trying to not be sleep deprived. I’m also nowhere near as well spoken, heck sometimes I feel like my speech is broken. I won’t claim to be something I’m not, I sit at home while I complain about the world doing nothing about it wishing I had someone here with me. I’m not noble nor do I really want to be, I have morals I uphold but much like most other hypocrites I acknowledge that my comfortable life is built on the suffering of others without doing anything about it. Why? My sleep problems? Am I depressed? Is that why I have no energy to do anything? Do I just think nothing I could do could help? I can’t nail it down myself, maybe it’s a mix of everything, maybe I’m just a bad person. I have always told myself that if I had wealth I would help people but if I get that kind of wealth will I just become a wealth hoarder who tries to justify my riches as something I earned rather than something given to me through incredibly lucky circumstances? If I do help people is it because I’m a good person or out of guilt? Will I die alone? I feel like I drive everyone away with my clinginess, I get paranoid often and need reassurance often. It’s something I want to work on, something I’ve been trying to work on. Hearing that someone cares about me just never gets old. I value self awareness even if it’s painful.
(3.d)
Socializing:
I’m definitely a socially anxious/awkward mess, especially around strangers. I do feel a large amount of anxiety in public, people can’t tell by looking at my face since I kind of go stone faced in an attempt to block everything out but yeah you’ll notice that if we go out in public. Growing up my pediatrician said I was probably autistic, never got a formal diagnosis so that’s just great. But yeah that explains why I can’t make eye contact with people, I kinda just stare at the ground and avoid their gaze at all costs. A lot of these social struggles go away to a great degree once I know you for a bit but yeah I apologize for how terrible I am at socializing at first. Don’t let my social struggles fool you though, I love cuddling and being close with my person.
(3.e)
Sexuality:
I am a heterosexual male, though I’m not very masculine like at all. I may even be a bit feminine sometimes. Not that I believe any activity or manner of acting belongs to a gender but I don’t know how else to describe it. I’m definitely super affectionate and love it when my partner is too. I am open to dating demi people but I do have a libido so I don't think asexual would work out.
(4)
Interests:
(4.a)
Video Games:
As stated before, I do spend a lot of my time playing video games. It’s been hard lately with me having no energy but I really do want to play more games and have a good time playing them with you! I primarily play on PC though I do have a switch. I’m primarily into platform fighters, roguelikes, open world, survival, and sandbox games. As for single player story games, I enjoy watching them through twitch or youtube but for the most part I don’t play them myself. I’d watch you play them though!
Here’s a list of games we can play:
-Minecraft (Java)
-Risk of Rain 2
-Gunfire Reborn
-Roboquest
-7 Days to Die
-Phasmophobia
-Rust
-Unturned
-Bloons TD 6
-Platform fighters: Super Smash Bros. Melee, Slap City, Multiversus, Flash Party, Fraymakers
Whatever you want to play I’ll give it a shot! I will say that League bores me to death but I’ll play it for you :) I try to avoid MMOs, not because I don’t like them but because of how addicted I can get to them. I enjoy learning games in-depth so MMOs can be a fast track to addiction.
I recently got Kerbal Space Program 2 and ehhh not really worth it right now but hopefully later it will be? I’m super excited for Tears of the Kingdom! In the far off future I’m excited for Rivals of Aether 2 which is a platform fighter releasing in 2024, let me know of your most anticipated releases and I’ll see if I could play them with you!
Also I never got into FPS games but I could totally see myself playing like CoD with you or Escape From Tarkov. Any FPS really, I’m down.
I am a fan of Pokemon but with how things have been lately I don’t know how long that will last. Pixelmon is a common Pokemon mod I play for Minecraft if you want to play that! Also if I say I want to play something with you I mean it but there are often times when no matter how much I want to I'm just drained and can do little more than lay in bed so please don't think I'm making an excuse.
(4.b)
Science:
I really enjoy keeping up with the latest advances in pretty much everything, it could be biology, technology, astronomy, anything! I love seeing progression and I love talking about it! Really I could go on and on about what I’m obsessing about that day. I particularly love technology, ask me for my laptop specs I dare you. When I was little I always wanted to be a scientist of any kind but then insomnia and fear of college stuff hit me like a truck aaaand that’s the end of that dream.
(4.c)
Anime:
You got me, I like anime but I’d like to think my tastes are benign.
Here’s some of my favorites I can list from the top of my head:
- To Your Eternity
- Vinland Saga
- Spice and Wolf
- Re:Zero
- Mob Psycho
- Dr. Stone
- Attack on Titan
- Spy x Family
- My Hero Academia
- Ranking of Kings
- Demon Slayer
Okay I can go on and on but I will say I don’t like pointless fan service and the spamming of cliche anime moments. I mostly enjoy action and anything well animated if it doesn’t have a potato story. Heck Demon Slayer could be my top 3 out of season 2’s animation alone. I don’t watch slice of life often or romance but I would with you!
(4.d)
Misc:
I’m not going to go on and on about the tiniest little things when the main ones are covered but I’ll watch pretty much any show with you and anything really. I like random youtube videos that explain some kind of lore or mystery, sometimes mini documentaries too.
As for food I looove sushi and I’m a sucker for fast food. Okay and candy, definitely candy.
I used to play tennis but haven’t really had the opportunity nor friends to play it with and I’m way too socially anxious to seek it out. Also I will say that when we move to something like discord I type waaaay more casually. I’m not going to expect long paragraphs back and forth like we’re writing English papers for each other, I do enjoy long conversations but seriously don’t worry about having to put the utmost effort into every response, I just like making good first impressions I guess.
(5)
(5.a)
My Physical Characteristics:
I’m 5’8 (172cm), 128 pounds (58kg), with curly brown hair and blue eyes. I like keeping my hair long in the winter and cutting it in the summer. I’m pretty slim in general so if you’re looking for someone large, that’s not me. I don’t work out but my work is pretty physical so at least I’m not totally inactive. I don’t have the urge to work out or gain muscle but I do want to maintain my slim figure so if I start losing control of that I’ll work out. I like to keep my face shaved because I don’t think I look good with a beard/mustache so if you’re into those I apologize. I have an average amount of body hair? I’d prefer to be completely shaved but it’s easy to lose motivation with that battle, if you prefer shaved then I’d have no problem complying. Anyways here’s what I look like: https://imgur.com/a/MZZgf2t
(5.b)
My Physical Preferences:
Having physical preferences makes me feel shallow, if I could make myself not have them I would but unfortunately that’s now how that works. I don’t care if you’re shorter or taller than me and I don’t care if you weigh more or less than me. All I ask is that you’re slim-average weight. I would never ask for someone to be something I’m not. I don’t care about tattoos or piercings.
(6) Expectations of You: I am not looking for someone “exciting” or someone to “keep me on my toes” I’m not looking for someone to cater to my every whim or anything like that. I don’t care if you’re “boring” or if you aren’t “successful”. I know it’s a common thing for people to not want a “boring” relationship and to seek something argumentative or something with constant challenges but I just want to be with you. During the exciting times, the boring times, and everything in-between, all of it will be great with you! Maybe we do argue sometimes or maybe there will be challenges but that will never be something I purposefully seek out and I don’t want that to be something you seek out either. I will not play tricks on you and I will not play mind games, I expect the same from you. We all have personal measures of success we may or may not have lived up to but what I care about most is our commitment to each other. If we have each other we can get through tough times, near the ends of our lives I want us to look back and feel that this life together was worth more than anything. That’s not saying I want us to be haphazard, I don’t want us to make poor decisions for the sake of yolo and I want us to always be rational, especially with each other. I want you to be someone I can trust to make decisions and weigh the options with a level head, I’ll try my best to live up to the same for you. Most of all I want empathy, understanding, someone to feel the utmost comfort and trust in.
(7)
Living Situation:
Currently my life is pretty relaxed, I work 3 times a week as a night shift stocker. I currently live in a 2 bedroom apartment with my roommate but we’re looking to move into someplace larger by the end of the year if everything works out. The internet is weirdly great for Ohio too like I have fiber and later this year we’re supposed to be getting dedicated fiber so that’s neat. I’m not attached to Ohio so the ultimate goal living location wise is probably moving to a country that won’t send you into a lifetime of dealing with the repercussions from one medical emergency.
(8)
Deal Breakers:
Might as well make this simple and make it a list.
- Anti-vaxxers
- Unironically believing astrology
- Right wingers
- Hard drugs (occasional 420 and alcohol is fine, may even join you)
- Wanting children, there was a time when I was younger when I wanted children but with the state of the word that’s a definite no and I feel like I wouldn’t be able to handle the stress. I’d love a stress free life with as much time with you as possible.
- Homophobic
- Transphobic
- Racist
- Super Religious
- Don’t be a bigot and don’t deny facts.
(9)
Closing Remarks:
Well you made it, I was thinking that finding someone I’d be willing to put a lifetime of effort into at least required this much effort. If I think of anything more I’ll update the post. Also about timezones, it really doesn’t matter where in the world you are. I don’t have a sleep schedule and I have most of the week off from work so it really doesn’t matter.
I request that in your response you do put effort into it, it doesn’t have to be anywhere near as long as this but at least enough so I know that you read this and enough about you so I know why you saw potential compatibility. I will seriously read all of it and respond the best I can. I do also request a pic included in your response (sfw please) or one soon after we start talking to prove identity, I’ll send identity proving pics too. As long as this post is up, you can send a reply!
2023.06.04 23:27 truedilemma What happened to these six older and elderly women? A write up of five women who went missing under mysterious circumstances.
This post is about a couple of older and elderly women who vanished without a trace. I wanted to include women who disappeared without much of an explanation. When elderly people go missing, their disappearances can often be chalked up to a dementia-related event. I believe many elderly people who vanished with their cars may be in the bottom of lakes and rivers. Those who lived near wilderness may have gotten lost and died of exposure. Those who were picked up or hitchhiked could've been brought to a hospital where they were unable to communicate their true identity. The women I included went missing under more suspicious circumstances.
Mayme Hart Johnson - Disappeared June 12th, 2000 from Nashville, Tennessee.
Mayme is the first on the list and the reason I decided to do this post. On June 12th, 2000, Mayme Hart Johnson, a local historian, researcher, and teacher went missing from Nashville, Tennessee. Mayme, who was 85, lived in the 100 block of Bosley Springs Road in West Nashville with her son, Sam, in his apartment. At 6:30 am that morning, her son woke to find his mother gone. While he reported that he wasn't initially concerned because Mayme occasionally left the apartment around that time, he became alarmed when she didn't return by lunchtime. Where Mayme would go/what she would do at that time is not known. Richland Creek is close by to the apartments, but from what I've seen, it's narrow and a body would probably soon be found if it was in there, despite it being 28 miles long. Of course, there is always a chance she made it into a larger body of water that concealed her. A maintenance man from the Johnson's building told authorities that he had seen Mayme at 6:30 am the day she went missing. This was around the time Sam woke up. Whether this employee saw her outside the building, inside the building, near or on her apartment floor, or down the street is not mentioned. At the time of her disappearance Mayme was 5'5, 120 pounds, with brown eyes and gray hair, and last seen wearing pink pants and a pink blouse. Whether these were pajamas or not (possibly indicating a dementia-like episode, where she got up out of the house and left without telling her son or getting dressed) is, like many things in this case, unknown. Mayme, as I mentioned, was a historian and if you google her name you will find a few sites that show her body of work. In 1986, she published "A Treasury of Tennessee Churches". A search for Mayme was conducted in the Nashville area and extended to Huntingdon, TN, where her husband's grave was, and where she had been visiting the weekend before she vanished. There was also an aerial search of Eastern Maury County that took place in July 2000 after law enforcement came up with a theory that she could be a target of the I-65 rapist. I'm not sure where police got this idea from. The I-65/Days Inn Killer, now identified as Harry Edward Greenwell, murdered three hotel clerks (ages 21, 24, 34) in the late 1980s. He also sexually assaulted a 21 year old hotel clerk in 1990. While LE does believe he's connected to more violent crimes, I'm not sure how they link Mayme to him--if you know, please add your knowledge in the comments. After the aerial search, nothing was found linking anything to Mayme. In 2008 she was declared deceased.
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Helen Joyce Rawley - disappeared June 4th, 2003 from College Park, Maryland
Helen Joyce Rawley lived in a bungalow on the 4600 block of Knox Road in College Park, Maryland with her son. 75 year old Helen went by her middle name "Joyce" so that is how I'll refer to her. Seventy-five year old Joyce and her son, Tom, had lived together since the death of Joyce's husband of 48 years, Nelson, in 2001. Between 6:45 and 7:00 am on June 4th, 2003, Joyce was last seen by her tenant, a man who had rented a room at the Rawley home for the last eight years. Joyce was seen by him on her porch that morning as he returned home from work. Beginning the day after her husband died in February 2001, Joyce suffered two strokes four days apart. Because of the strokes, she was unable to talk and considered disabled because of her inability to communicate. In 2002, Joyce underwent chemotherapy and radiation for rectal cancer. She was on medication that made her tired and weak. She didn't go out anywhere by herself except to get the mail. Her mind remained "sound", according to her son. The day she went missing, her son returned home from his foreman job at 3:30 pm, and found the house empty with the lights off. Joyce's purse and wallet remained left behind in her bedroom, everything was in place, and there were no signs of a robbery. Police tracked Joyce's scent out the front door which she never used, and to the corner of the block. However, she went missing on a "rain-soaked" and "dreary" day and it's possible the bad weather could've washed away any more of her scent outside. Since the death of her husband who died unexpectedly in his sleep, and her two other sons who died together in a 1982 boating accident, Joyce's immediate family consisted of her remaining child Tom, who was unmarried and childless at the time of his mother's disappearance. If she had other family out of the area is unknown. She does have a beach house in Annapolis, Maryland, but had not visited there after she went missing. She was 75 when she disappeared, standing between 5'4-5'5 and 110 pounds. Due to her cancer, she wore a colostomy bag and was on several medications that she can't go long without. Fliers with Joyce's information went out, woods were searched, local bus drivers were notified and questioned if they had seen her, and hospitals had been checked. A helicopter flew over the city at night with a heat-detecting device. No sight of her was ever found. She had brown eyes and white hair and was last seen in a sweatshirt and slacks. She enjoys gardening, crossword puzzles, and reading. Police don't suspect foul play and Tom isn't considered a suspect (neither is the tenant who was the last to see her), but they aren't sure what could've happened.
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Maebell Dawson - disappeared January 3rd, 1998 from Jefferson Township, Ohio
68 year old Maebell Dawson had lived in a one bedroom apartment on the 2nd floor of the Martin Luther Manor Living Center on Liscum Drive for about a year when she went missing. Maebell was divorced, had two daughters, and had retired from a hospital housekeeping job two years prior. Maebell was close to her family, and when calls to reach her went unanswered for two days, by January 5th, her residence was checked. Nothing in the second-story apartment was missing or out of place. Her winter coat was draped over a chair, her wallet, credit cards, cash, and a check for rent dated 1/8/98 were all found in her purse on the table. Her bank account was never accessed again. There were no signs of forced entry, a struggle or robbery inside the apartment. LE does not believe Maebell was attacked from her apartment or lured from the premises, but they do believe foul play was involved. According to CharleyProject, suicide "has not been ruled out but has been deemed unlikely". In 1998, Maebell was between 5'4 - 5'6 and 180 pounds. She had brown eyes and gray hair, wore glasses, and was last seen in a tan jogging suit. She was last seen entering her apartment at 9:30 pm on January 3rd. Five and a half years after her disappearance, Maebell was declared legally dead.
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Norma Mae Maynard - disappeared February 3rd, 1979 from Boone, Iowa.
Norma Mae Maynard went missing in early February of 1979, just two weeks after the unexpected death of her husband, Carl, on January 19th. Norma and Carl had been married for three decades and Norma was deeply grieving the loss. Norma lived with her 30 year old son, and he was the last to see his mother. He stated that shortly before noon on February 2nd, he found a note from his 61 year old mother that stated she was on her way to Los Angeles, not to look for her, and that she'd get in touch again someday. The validity of this note (if seen by LE, if handwritten analysis was performed, etc) is not known. Norma's purse and a few items of clothing were missing, but her checkbook and jewelry were left behind. There was no sign of a break-in at the house. Her husband's pension which she lived off of and her bank account with savings was not touched. Norma was a shy woman who spent most of her time at home and had a regular routine. She didn't drive and her brothers stated that she had never been more than a few miles from her hometown. Her husband's funeral bill was paid for by a check dated four days after she vanished and signed by "Mrs. Carl Maynard". According to Charley Project, "The signature appeared to match Maynard's handwriting, and her son said she had signed a blank check and left it with him to fill in and pay the bill". The validity of this is not known either. A sighting of a woman matching Norma's description was seen by a local Greyhound bus station employee. The woman was boarding a bus bound for Los Angeles. Police are not sure of the accuracy of this sighting and consider it "shaky". Norma didn't drive but she didn't normally travel by bus, and why she allegedly went to Los Angeles is unknown: she had no friends or family there. Norma's son was not considered a suspect in her case, though some members of her family believe he was involved in her disappearance. He has maintained his innocence and has since moved out of state. Norma was 5'3 tall and weight 175 pounds, with blue eyes and gray hair. If she was alive today, she'd be 105. I believe someone close to her knows what happened and made up the story about her leaving for California. My second theory would be suicide, and she made up the California story so her family wouldn't worry.
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Yu Chin Goodson - disappeared March 25th, 2005 from Russellville, Franklin County, Alabama.
Yu Chin Goodson is one of the youngest on my list, and at 57, I wouldn't classify her as elderly, but she is an older woman with a lot of mental and physical issues, who went missing under mysterious circumstances like these other women. Yu Chin is an Asian woman suffering from paranoid schizophrenia, diabetes, and a heart problem which required daily medication. In 2005, she was living in group home for patients with mental disabilities in Russellville, Alabama. On March 25th, 2005, a witness claimed to see Yu Chin enter a small, older grey or silver car with a loud muffler. The car was headed toward the Decatur, Alabama area, which is where her son lives. Staff at the group home were informed that Yu Chin was gone, and within 15 minutes of her disappearance, the police were notified and a search for Yu Chin began. No trace of her was ever found. Her son, who lives in the Decatur area, was never contacted by his mother. There has been no mention of foul play, and authorities believe she could currently be homeless and living in shelters. At the time of this write up, she has been missing for almost twenty years and would be around 75 if still alive.
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Barbara B. Blount - disappeared May 2nd, 2008 from Holden, Louisiana
Barbara B. Blount was a 58 year old widow who lived on the same road as her children, kept in regular contact with her family and friends, and was active in her local church. It came as a surprise one morning when her nephew came over to visit her residence in rural Livingston Parish, Louisiana, and Barbara was nowhere to be found. A neighbor had just spoken to her over the phone, and Barbara had said she was cleaning out her kitchen cabinets. By the time her nephew had arrived for a visit, the front door was wide open, Barbara's phone was lying on the floor with the battery pulled out, her car was gone, and Barbara was missing. Besides for the unusual circumstances in the home, police didn't find any proof of forced entry. A few hours later in the late afternoon, the silver four door 2006 Toyota Camry Barbara owned was found a quarter of a mile from her home. It was found 25-30 yards off the main road and out of sight, hidden by trees. No trace of Barbara was discovered, baffling friends and family who described Barbara as a cautious individual who carried a gun when she went outside to milk the cows and didn't open the door to strangers. Waterways and woods were searched in attempt to find Barbara, but nothing was ever found.
edit: ooof messed up the title.
submitted by truedilemma to UnresolvedMysteries [link] [comments]
Mayme Hart Johnson - Disappeared June 12th, 2000 from Nashville, Tennessee.
Mayme is the first on the list and the reason I decided to do this post. On June 12th, 2000, Mayme Hart Johnson, a local historian, researcher, and teacher went missing from Nashville, Tennessee. Mayme, who was 85, lived in the 100 block of Bosley Springs Road in West Nashville with her son, Sam, in his apartment. At 6:30 am that morning, her son woke to find his mother gone. While he reported that he wasn't initially concerned because Mayme occasionally left the apartment around that time, he became alarmed when she didn't return by lunchtime. Where Mayme would go/what she would do at that time is not known. Richland Creek is close by to the apartments, but from what I've seen, it's narrow and a body would probably soon be found if it was in there, despite it being 28 miles long. Of course, there is always a chance she made it into a larger body of water that concealed her. A maintenance man from the Johnson's building told authorities that he had seen Mayme at 6:30 am the day she went missing. This was around the time Sam woke up. Whether this employee saw her outside the building, inside the building, near or on her apartment floor, or down the street is not mentioned. At the time of her disappearance Mayme was 5'5, 120 pounds, with brown eyes and gray hair, and last seen wearing pink pants and a pink blouse. Whether these were pajamas or not (possibly indicating a dementia-like episode, where she got up out of the house and left without telling her son or getting dressed) is, like many things in this case, unknown. Mayme, as I mentioned, was a historian and if you google her name you will find a few sites that show her body of work. In 1986, she published "A Treasury of Tennessee Churches". A search for Mayme was conducted in the Nashville area and extended to Huntingdon, TN, where her husband's grave was, and where she had been visiting the weekend before she vanished. There was also an aerial search of Eastern Maury County that took place in July 2000 after law enforcement came up with a theory that she could be a target of the I-65 rapist. I'm not sure where police got this idea from. The I-65/Days Inn Killer, now identified as Harry Edward Greenwell, murdered three hotel clerks (ages 21, 24, 34) in the late 1980s. He also sexually assaulted a 21 year old hotel clerk in 1990. While LE does believe he's connected to more violent crimes, I'm not sure how they link Mayme to him--if you know, please add your knowledge in the comments. After the aerial search, nothing was found linking anything to Mayme. In 2008 she was declared deceased.
-
Helen Joyce Rawley - disappeared June 4th, 2003 from College Park, Maryland
Helen Joyce Rawley lived in a bungalow on the 4600 block of Knox Road in College Park, Maryland with her son. 75 year old Helen went by her middle name "Joyce" so that is how I'll refer to her. Seventy-five year old Joyce and her son, Tom, had lived together since the death of Joyce's husband of 48 years, Nelson, in 2001. Between 6:45 and 7:00 am on June 4th, 2003, Joyce was last seen by her tenant, a man who had rented a room at the Rawley home for the last eight years. Joyce was seen by him on her porch that morning as he returned home from work. Beginning the day after her husband died in February 2001, Joyce suffered two strokes four days apart. Because of the strokes, she was unable to talk and considered disabled because of her inability to communicate. In 2002, Joyce underwent chemotherapy and radiation for rectal cancer. She was on medication that made her tired and weak. She didn't go out anywhere by herself except to get the mail. Her mind remained "sound", according to her son. The day she went missing, her son returned home from his foreman job at 3:30 pm, and found the house empty with the lights off. Joyce's purse and wallet remained left behind in her bedroom, everything was in place, and there were no signs of a robbery. Police tracked Joyce's scent out the front door which she never used, and to the corner of the block. However, she went missing on a "rain-soaked" and "dreary" day and it's possible the bad weather could've washed away any more of her scent outside. Since the death of her husband who died unexpectedly in his sleep, and her two other sons who died together in a 1982 boating accident, Joyce's immediate family consisted of her remaining child Tom, who was unmarried and childless at the time of his mother's disappearance. If she had other family out of the area is unknown. She does have a beach house in Annapolis, Maryland, but had not visited there after she went missing. She was 75 when she disappeared, standing between 5'4-5'5 and 110 pounds. Due to her cancer, she wore a colostomy bag and was on several medications that she can't go long without. Fliers with Joyce's information went out, woods were searched, local bus drivers were notified and questioned if they had seen her, and hospitals had been checked. A helicopter flew over the city at night with a heat-detecting device. No sight of her was ever found. She had brown eyes and white hair and was last seen in a sweatshirt and slacks. She enjoys gardening, crossword puzzles, and reading. Police don't suspect foul play and Tom isn't considered a suspect (neither is the tenant who was the last to see her), but they aren't sure what could've happened.
-
Maebell Dawson - disappeared January 3rd, 1998 from Jefferson Township, Ohio
68 year old Maebell Dawson had lived in a one bedroom apartment on the 2nd floor of the Martin Luther Manor Living Center on Liscum Drive for about a year when she went missing. Maebell was divorced, had two daughters, and had retired from a hospital housekeeping job two years prior. Maebell was close to her family, and when calls to reach her went unanswered for two days, by January 5th, her residence was checked. Nothing in the second-story apartment was missing or out of place. Her winter coat was draped over a chair, her wallet, credit cards, cash, and a check for rent dated 1/8/98 were all found in her purse on the table. Her bank account was never accessed again. There were no signs of forced entry, a struggle or robbery inside the apartment. LE does not believe Maebell was attacked from her apartment or lured from the premises, but they do believe foul play was involved. According to CharleyProject, suicide "has not been ruled out but has been deemed unlikely". In 1998, Maebell was between 5'4 - 5'6 and 180 pounds. She had brown eyes and gray hair, wore glasses, and was last seen in a tan jogging suit. She was last seen entering her apartment at 9:30 pm on January 3rd. Five and a half years after her disappearance, Maebell was declared legally dead.
-
Norma Mae Maynard - disappeared February 3rd, 1979 from Boone, Iowa.
Norma Mae Maynard went missing in early February of 1979, just two weeks after the unexpected death of her husband, Carl, on January 19th. Norma and Carl had been married for three decades and Norma was deeply grieving the loss. Norma lived with her 30 year old son, and he was the last to see his mother. He stated that shortly before noon on February 2nd, he found a note from his 61 year old mother that stated she was on her way to Los Angeles, not to look for her, and that she'd get in touch again someday. The validity of this note (if seen by LE, if handwritten analysis was performed, etc) is not known. Norma's purse and a few items of clothing were missing, but her checkbook and jewelry were left behind. There was no sign of a break-in at the house. Her husband's pension which she lived off of and her bank account with savings was not touched. Norma was a shy woman who spent most of her time at home and had a regular routine. She didn't drive and her brothers stated that she had never been more than a few miles from her hometown. Her husband's funeral bill was paid for by a check dated four days after she vanished and signed by "Mrs. Carl Maynard". According to Charley Project, "The signature appeared to match Maynard's handwriting, and her son said she had signed a blank check and left it with him to fill in and pay the bill". The validity of this is not known either. A sighting of a woman matching Norma's description was seen by a local Greyhound bus station employee. The woman was boarding a bus bound for Los Angeles. Police are not sure of the accuracy of this sighting and consider it "shaky". Norma didn't drive but she didn't normally travel by bus, and why she allegedly went to Los Angeles is unknown: she had no friends or family there. Norma's son was not considered a suspect in her case, though some members of her family believe he was involved in her disappearance. He has maintained his innocence and has since moved out of state. Norma was 5'3 tall and weight 175 pounds, with blue eyes and gray hair. If she was alive today, she'd be 105. I believe someone close to her knows what happened and made up the story about her leaving for California. My second theory would be suicide, and she made up the California story so her family wouldn't worry.
-
Yu Chin Goodson - disappeared March 25th, 2005 from Russellville, Franklin County, Alabama.
Yu Chin Goodson is one of the youngest on my list, and at 57, I wouldn't classify her as elderly, but she is an older woman with a lot of mental and physical issues, who went missing under mysterious circumstances like these other women. Yu Chin is an Asian woman suffering from paranoid schizophrenia, diabetes, and a heart problem which required daily medication. In 2005, she was living in group home for patients with mental disabilities in Russellville, Alabama. On March 25th, 2005, a witness claimed to see Yu Chin enter a small, older grey or silver car with a loud muffler. The car was headed toward the Decatur, Alabama area, which is where her son lives. Staff at the group home were informed that Yu Chin was gone, and within 15 minutes of her disappearance, the police were notified and a search for Yu Chin began. No trace of her was ever found. Her son, who lives in the Decatur area, was never contacted by his mother. There has been no mention of foul play, and authorities believe she could currently be homeless and living in shelters. At the time of this write up, she has been missing for almost twenty years and would be around 75 if still alive.
-
Barbara B. Blount - disappeared May 2nd, 2008 from Holden, Louisiana
Barbara B. Blount was a 58 year old widow who lived on the same road as her children, kept in regular contact with her family and friends, and was active in her local church. It came as a surprise one morning when her nephew came over to visit her residence in rural Livingston Parish, Louisiana, and Barbara was nowhere to be found. A neighbor had just spoken to her over the phone, and Barbara had said she was cleaning out her kitchen cabinets. By the time her nephew had arrived for a visit, the front door was wide open, Barbara's phone was lying on the floor with the battery pulled out, her car was gone, and Barbara was missing. Besides for the unusual circumstances in the home, police didn't find any proof of forced entry. A few hours later in the late afternoon, the silver four door 2006 Toyota Camry Barbara owned was found a quarter of a mile from her home. It was found 25-30 yards off the main road and out of sight, hidden by trees. No trace of Barbara was discovered, baffling friends and family who described Barbara as a cautious individual who carried a gun when she went outside to milk the cows and didn't open the door to strangers. Waterways and woods were searched in attempt to find Barbara, but nothing was ever found.
edit: ooof messed up the title.
2023.06.04 16:41 Simplybuns9 Suggestions for small town/village in Ohio
Looking for a small rural village or town in Ohio, within an hour-ish drive of Columbus or Cincinnati (and not on a route that would be a terrible commute). Things I’m seeking:
We don’t drink and mostly eat at home, so those things are not important to us. Not needing a place with nightlife.
submitted by Simplybuns9 to SameGrassButGreener [link] [comments]
- houses (with ~an acre or more of land) in the $150k range
- near bike paths
- in a county with lower taxes (local, sales, income, property)
- good public schools
- family friendly. A place where you see kids running around outside, walking around town with friends, etc
- safe, not high crime
- low cost of living
- reliable internet
- within 30-ish minute drive of a Mennonite church
- walkable/bikeable within the town/village
- a grocery store in the village/town
- some level of racial diversity, no big KKK reputation (will be adopting in the future and their race is unknown)
- if there is a college within 30 minutes
- if there is a nearby hospital
- doesn’t get a lot of tornadoes or flooding
We don’t drink and mostly eat at home, so those things are not important to us. Not needing a place with nightlife.
2023.06.04 15:11 YukiteruAmano92 Remembrance, Chapter 3 of 28
TWBS Previous Next First
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---Esme’s perspective---
---Saturday, 11th of November, 2682 Terran Calendar---
---Southern England---
Fucking Sussex!
‘Can you send me to the Forth Valley?’
‘Oh, we can try… On an unrelated note, how’s your standard English? No problems in communicating?’
I should’ve just said ‘No, I have great difficulty in communicating in anything but Lallans Scots!’ instead of putting on my poshest English speech register to say ‘Marjorie dearest, would you be a lamb and pass another buttered scone… hold the raspberry jam, it’s far too spicy for me!’ which she told me she’d take as a ‘Yes.’
“This is an English language barracks. If you have been directed here in error, please make yourself known to barracks staff for reassignment.” plays a loud, prerecorded Welsh language announcement, over speakers.
They’re fucking rubbing it in!
“This is an English language barracks. If you have been directed here in error, please make yourself known to barracks staff for reassignment.” it repeats in Scots Gaelic.
“Ceci est une caserne Anglophone. Si vous avez été assigné ici par erreur, veuillez vous faire connaître auprès du personnel de la caserne pour une réaffectation.” it says in what I’m 90% sure is a French version of the same announcement (I can’t be certain, though, as that’s not one of my languages).
Looking at the crowds queuing to get in makes me regret asserting that I didn’t need transport here.
‘You shouldn’t be sending someone to War that you don’t trust to navigate themself from Galloway to Sussex!’ were my exact words.
I brushed off the recruitment officer saying that I’d be processed faster if I arrived on Military organised transport.
Well, standing here’s not gonna get me to the front of the queue now, is it!
I walk forward to join the massive throng of people, almost all of which look to be about my age.
It’s astonishing how short you feel, being an average height girl in a crowd of people!
178cm really isn’t all that much when you’ve got a not insignificant number of +2m guys here!
Even guys who are the average 188cm can make a girl feel short when their packed too close…
I see a few Neanderthal hunks… perhaps conscription won’t be all bad(!)
When I make it to the front of the line, the guy just stares expectantly at me like I’m supposed to already know what to do.
“Y’awright?… Err… mah nam’s Esme Reid…?” I say, hesitantly, in perfectly comprehensible speech.
“I’m sorry, would you repeat that?” he answers, looking at me like I just spoke to him in fucking Chinese!
“Greetings, gracious sir! You may kindly refer to me by the name ‘Esme Reid’!” I say, affecting my supercilious Southern English gentlewoman accent.
“Alright, Ms Reid. Please present your draft papers and identification.”
The balls they have to ask me to prove who I am when they’re the ones asking me to go off and fucking die for them!
I think about quipping that I should ask him to show me some proof that this is a legitimate Military installation sanctioned by the government of Sol… but think better of it…
Instead, I pull out my draft papers and my holopad, quickly getting up my identification app.
The man scans the code with his own holo and spends a few seconds glancing from his screen to my face and back.
Seeming satisfied that I’m not attempting to enlist under a false identity (for whatever strange reason a person might want to do that) he glances at my papers, says “Everything seems to be in order.” and waves a hand in front of a machine which whirs for half a second before spitting out a simple chain necklace with two little metal rectangles hanging off of it.
He hands it to me and says “This is your identification tag. Please check that the information on it is correct and, if it is, put it on and never take it off.”
I check the tag.
“You’ve got my name and birthday right…” I say, making a conscious effort to keep my speech register in that that a standard English speaker would consider acceptable “…don’t know about the regiment and serial number.”
“Those will be correct.” he says with a ‘move along’ tone.
I shrug, raise the dogtag over my head and drop it around my neck.
I walk on and he’s serving the girl behind me before I’ve even rounded the counter.
I’m ushered through the barracks, herded by the staff, until I reach a building labelled ‘Billet House 279’.
It doesn’t really look like I expected soldiers’ digs to look.
Definitely prefabbed but sort of has more the look of a uni hall than anything else… though I think it’s probably a bit much to expect that I’ll get a room to myself(!)
I follow the throng of draftees through to a wide open room, on the ground floor, that looks like it’s normally a cafeteria.
The camp attendants (who I’m guessing were in the same boat as us, not too long ago) direct us to stand along the left, right and nearside walls, keeping the back wall and centre of the room clear.
Everyone in place, there follows a few minutes of silence broken only by people whispering to one another.
Then, she enters the room.
Dark skinned and clad in green camo clothing, her scalp is easily visible between her cornrows with nary a hair out of place.
Her expression looks absolutely indifferent with just the slightest hint of a curled lip.
From the broadness and flatness of her facial features as well as her single mauve eye, she is clearly half Tshwane… though, you’d never guess that from her stature!
Female Tshwane average nearly 2m… the men are more like 2.2m!
She’s shorter than me!
She’s also built like a Sapiens, not the willowy thinness typical of Tshwane
I guess genetics interact in funny ways sometimes…
Based on her age, her Tshwane parent would probably have to have been one of the very first to be cloned back!
The other eye seems to have been ripped out at some point because in its place is a bionic and there’s a patch of hypopigmented scar tissue, forming a tear shape, at the right corner.
“Recruits… Welcome to the United Terran Coalition Infantry Trainin’ Camp, Graffham… My name is Warrant Officer Simone Sands… and I’ll be your drill instructor…” says the woman, cooly, speaking in a rough sounding, London accent.
The surname ‘Sands’ probably means her dad was the Tshwane (though not necessarily… she might have been given her mum’s surname… or it might be a coincidental English surname).
“…You all know why you’re here… Most of you’ve prob’ly already lost loved ones to this War… You are here to defend our right to exist… and I can’t think of a more worthy reason to fight than that…”
I’ve decided I like this woman… She may be English but I’ll try not to hold that against her(!)
“The first thing I need to tell all of you is that, by the end of your trainin’, you will NOT like me…” she says, as if reading my mind “…that’s OK. My job ain’t to be liked, my job ain’t to make friends… my job is to make soldiers!”
She casts her biological and bionic eyes around the room, letting her words hang in the air.
“Note… that I said ‘soldiers’… This ain’t Full Metal Jacket. This ain’t the 20th Century. There’ll be no Pvt Piles here!… I ain’t aimin’ to destroy your minds or your individuality. I ain’t goin’ to physic’ly and psychologic’ly abuse you into becomin’ robots or killers… I am makin’ you into soldiers… Regardless… this process will not be easy! In fact, it may well be the hardest thing you ever do!… As the face of this process, you will come to hate and resent me for it!… I hope for it! The more you hate me the more-DO YOU HAVE SOMETHIN’ TO SAY, PRIVATE?!”
Everyone in the room is startled by the authoritative woman breaking herself off to shout angrily at someone on the other side of the room.
“STEP FORWARD AND SPEAK SO EVERYONE CAN HEAR YOU!”
The boy that steps forward is tall, bulky and muscular with a handsome, half Neanderthal face… just my type!
Then he has to go and ruin it by opening his mouth.
“I was just saying… that I find it somewhat difficult to take you seriously as a commanding officer… You just seem a little bit… little.” says the boy in the poshest, smarmiest English drawl I’ve ever heard!
The woman does not shout, she does not scream, she doesn’t snarl or even purse her lips!
She just nods, as if considering his words, then asks “What’s your name, Soldier?”
“Rupert Forest.” responds the boy, proudly.
“And, how tall are you, Pvt Forest?” responds the woman, unimpressed
“195cm.” he answers.
“And, what’s your mass?” she asks.
“110kg.”
“I see, I see… So, by your logic… you’d make a better drill sergeant than me, would you? You’re 25cm taller and 35kg heavier, afterall!”
He smirks “I wouldn’t presume to say so, Ma’am…” in a way that definitely suggests that he thinks he would.
She seems to consider that for some moments before answering “Alright then, fight me for it!”
“I’m sorry…?” responds the poshboy.
“You heard me… Clearly, you got no respect for skill and experience but it seems like you must respect power… so fight me for it! You win, you get to train this lot, I win, you never question my authority again!”
Is this woman mad!?
She may be a soldier but this boy she just challenged is a half Neanderthal giant!
She’s gonna lose!
I do not want to be drilled by some snotty, privileged English brat who got here at the same time as I did and just couldn’t keep his fucking mouth shut!
Then again, I don’t really want to be drilled by a woman so delusional that she felt the best way to squash insubordination was to challenge a man she has no hope of beating, either!
The guy is clearly salivating over the power that’s just been slapped on the table in front of him as he answers “I accept your terms, Ms Sands…” with faux magnanimity.
There’s no way they’d let a Private run drills, is there? When he wins, someone just needs to go and complain and they’ll give us another (less stupid) drill sergeant… right?
He strips off his jacket to reveal a pair of thick, muscular arms that (in spite of his repulsive personality) are a thrilling sight.
He has to go and ruin it by flexing and posing, clearly revelling in the room’s worth of gasps he got when he revealed his arms… He obviously likes being the centre of attention.
“Done?” asks Sands, drily.
“If you still want to do this…” he says, smugly “…you could just concede defeat and I’m sure no one would hold it against you!”
Her lip curls as she answers “But… if I did that, no one would learn nothin’, now would they…”
He shrugs before launching himself at her without waiting for her to give the word to begin.
She whirls out of the way and he snatches at her, unsuccessfully, as his momentum carries him past.
“Lesson 1:…” she shouts while snapping into the space behind him and kicking out his knee “…size does not determine victory, strength does not determine victory…” levelling another powerful kick between his shoulderblades to bring him to the ground.
She backs off, allowing him to scramble to his feet and turn to face her, hunched in readiness and scowling.
“…Pvt Forest here looked at me with contempt on account of my small size and, though he didn’t say so, I’d guess that my rough accent, my lack of a graduate epithet and my lack of a penis also played a roll in his judgin’ me as less than!… He thought he could beat me, he probably still DOES, and, ’causa that, he didn’t respect my ability to lead…!”
Forest makes another lunge for the smaller woman, misses and is punished for it by being knocked back to the floor.
I’m agog as I watch this little woman… there’s no other word but toy with the giant man!
“…but victory does not care how big you are, how strong you are, how classy or educated you are or what**’**s in your pants or panties…!”
She dodges around his arm and pins his chest to the floor with her knee.
“Discipline and trainin’ determine victory!… Things that I have and Pvt Forest LACKS!… Things that ALL of you will acquire, over the next 8 months!!!” she turns her head down to the mountain of man she’s pinning to the floor “Concede, Private!”
The man shakes his head, trying in vain to leverage himself up.
“Alright then… Lesson 2: When faced with a resistant individual, compliance can be effectively enforced by the expedient of lockin’ their joints to induce PAIN!!!”
She grabs his thick arms by the wrists and pulls them backwards in a way they are not meant to bend!
He screams in agony!
“CONCEDE!!!… Don’t make me send you to the Medical Officer! It’d be inconvenient for BOTH of us if your pride makes you miss your first week of trainin’ while your arms heal!!!”
He holds out for two more seconds before screaming “I concede! I CONCEDE!!!”
She releases him and stands back up.
“On your feet, Soldier…” she growls down at him.
He stands back up, his face beet red.
“Are you ever goin’ to question my fitness to instruct again, Private?” she glares up at the humiliated giant.
“No.” he answers, gracelessly.
“No…?” she says as if waiting for something else.
Forest looks as confused as I am about what she’s expecting.
“No, Ma’am!” she snarls.
“No, Ma’am.”
“Good, we’ll work on your attitude, movin’ forward. Now, get back in line!”
The humiliated man picks up his civvy jacket and returns to the place he was called out from.
“Now, I don’t think I need to prattle on anymore about how you’re gonna hate me by the end of our time together, do I?… I think Pvt Forest helped me prove that point quite well, so I’ll move on… You will sleep in this buildin’, six to a room. Your rooms will be gender segregated. If you wish for a place to be… intimate with people of the opposite gender, you may request use of one of the conjugal rooms… I suggest you do the same if you want to be intimate with a same gender partner but that’s between you and your roommates! You will eat in this room at 0700hrs, 1200hrs and 1800hrs. Diet’ry requirements will be accommodated but, bare in mind, this ain’t your mummies’ and daddies’ kitchen! ‘This food is forbidden by my religion/personal ethics’ is a diet’ry requirement. ‘I am allergic to this food’ is a diet’ry requirement! ‘I don’t like how this food tastes’ is not(!)… In the mornin’s, you will be receivin’ lessons in lecture theatres, workshops and the like…”
“Oh great… just what I wanted after leaving school(!) More classrooms(!)” I mutter to myself.
Her head instantly wheels to me with unnerving precision.
“Someone else with somethin’ they’d like to say!?” she says, locking eyes with me, terrifyingly.
“No, Ms Sands!” I answer, instantly.
“Miss?! I’m not your bloody schoolteacher girl!!!”
Everyone laughs. Even Pvt Forest, like he wasn’t just humiliated himself, 2 minutes ago!
“Ma’am… err… Ma’am, no, Ma’am!!!” I say, doing my best to emulate the tone I’ve seen soldiers use in films.
She rolls her eye (it’s difficult to tell if the bionic rolls too) and says “Better… What’s your name, Private?”
“Ma’am, the Private’s name is Esme Reid, Ma’am!!!”
“Do you remember me tellin’ you this ain’t Full Metal Jacket?… You don’t need to scream when you talk to me, you don’t need to refer to yourself in third person and one ‘Ma’am’, when you’re done speakin’, is enough, Reid!”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
She points to her single, mauve eye, then to me and says “I’ll have my eye on you, Reid!”
Somehow, her tone sends a chill up my spine but I do my best not to show it.
She turns away and I release a silent sigh of relief.
“As I was sayin’… In your lectures you will learn the ins and outs of military theory; tactics, strategies, logistics etc. You will learn as much as we can tell you about the nature of the species we are fightin’; their capabilities, tendencies, political organisations and known weaknesses… bear in mind that First Contact weren’t much more than 4 years ago and we’ve been at War for almost all the intervenin’ time, so a lot of what we teach you will be little more than guesswork and hearsay from prisoners we’ve interrogated… The mornin’s’ll also be where you learn the particulars of the equipment you’ll be expected to be proficient with in the field. This includes firearms, plasmaweaponry and durasteel armour, as well as the tech you’ll likely encounter from the opposite side; kinetic pulse weapons, laser weapons, field emitters etc… I strongly suggest that no one allows word to get back to me that they’re not takin’ these classes seriously!… A stupid soldier is a dead soldier!”
She glares around the room, her eyes resting on me four a quarter of a second.
“…In the afternoons and evenin’s, you’ll be doing PT… that’s ‘Physical Trainin’’… soon to be every one of your two least favourite words in the English Language(!) “
I notice a wry smirk twist the mouths of a few of the camp attendants.
“In PT you will be drilled in agility, endurance, close quarters combat and coordinated marching… Five times over the comin’ 8 months, you and your trainin’ partner will be dropped into a remote bit of wilderness, somewhere on Earth, for five day practical survival experience. You will be given a beacon, to summon retrieval, but these are only to be used in cases of actual threat to life or bodily integrity… not because you’re feelin’ miserable!”
She takes a second to pause for breath.
“You get an allowance of 12 days off, over your time here… that’s two a month… These are subject to my approval and I may deny them for any reason, including no reason… so don’t piss me off!… You may not take more than 2 consecutive days leave at a time! Certain classes are mandatory and leave will not be approved on days they occur. If your allowance is spent, no more leave will be approved, barring a real emergency!… Now, for today, you are going to line up to have your maps and room keys downloaded onto your holos when your name is called, then you are going to have your bodies scanned for your armour measurements… at that point everyone with no uterus has the rest of the day free to settle in… If you have a uterus, you’ll need to report to medical to get your cycle paused! This is, I’m afraid, nonoptional… You are not prohibited from engaging in relations with your fellow recruits but you cannot be a soldier while you’re able to get pregnant. Attempts to circumvent this requirement in any way will land you in the Stockade!… After your cycle pause has been given, you’ll also have the rest of the day to settle in… Enjoy it! It’ll be the most downtime you get for a while!… Finally… I believe we have a 17 year old with us here… Pvt Taylor?”
A few people put their hands up, most looking confused.
“Pvt Oskar Taylor! The 17 year old?” she says, exasperated.
All but one of those with their hands up put them down.
The one remaining Pvt Taylor with his hand in the air has pale skin, black hair, brown eyes and a sharp featured face wearing a dour expression.
He stands even taller than Forest… Nearly 2m tall!
Though he’s not quite as heavily built, he’s certainly a good looking piece of boycandy!
“Pvt Taylor…” says Sands, her mouth breaking into a smile for the first time I’ve seen “…couldn’t wait to go off to War, could you(?)”
He mutters something but, while I can hear the power and deepness of his voice, I can’t make out a word he says.
“You’ll have to speak up, Taylor! Nobody’ll be able to hear you if you mumble.” points out Sands.
“I said I had some personal circumstances that made this the most sensible course of action for me, Ma’am.” says the tall, dark haired man, looking over her head rather than down at her and speaking in a grim monotone. He definitely loses boycandy points for the poshness of his accent, unfortunately…
“I see… I won’t pry into that but… you didn’t think of Officer Training? That’s the route that most people take when volunteering ahead of their conscription.”
He shakes his head “I thought of it and decided against it, Ma’am.”
“Oh? Why’s that, Pvt Taylor?”
“I didn’t believe I would make a good officer, Ma’am.” he answers simply.
She laughs “I wish every soldier could be as introspective, Taylor! I like you!… Unfortunately, bein’ a minor does mean that you can’t be put in a room with others… Sooo, that means you get a room to yourself… for the moment. Might sound cushy but before anyone else gets too jealous, bare in mind that privacy is the only advantage! His room will be a sixth the size of yours so its basic’ly a broomcupboard… the disadvantage will be severely reduced opportunity to socialise!… If that doesn’t sound doable, you can leave and come back when you turn 18, Taylor.”
“It’s acceptable, Ma’am.” he says without hesitating.
Yeah… it’s official… I don’t like him…
---later---
I rub the spot on my arm where the serum was thunked into me about 15 minutes ago.
Like with everything else about conscription, I get it… I understand the point…
But seeing the sense doesn’t mean I have to like it!
It’s not like I want to get pregnant (getting a nine month reprieve from service would be a fairly shitty reason for me to bring a child into the world) but it does feel like one last slap in the face to my personal autonomy that I’ve just had a cycle pause fucking mandated upon my body by the government!
As I draw near, door 1512 detects the key downloaded on my holo and unlocks
I open it and am greeted by a blonde girl, smiling broadly and instantly identifiable as brimming with ADHD energy.
“Hey there! My name’s Charlotte, it’s lovely to meet you!” says the girl, wrapping me in a hug without asking if I’m OK with that.
Her accent makes me wonder if everyone I meet here is going to be a posh toff!
She makes three of three of my fellow draftees!
“A pleasure, Charlotte… the name’s Esme…” I say, speaking Scottish accented standard English and gingerly patting her back.
“Oh, you’re Scottish…?” she says pulling herself off me with an expression that suggests meeting a Scottish person is just the most wonderful thing she could have imagined “…My great grandmother was from Edinburgh, where are you from?”
“Stranraer.” I answer.
She frowns “I don’t know it, I’m sorry!”
“I won’t hold it against you… Southwestern tip of Scotland? Where it nearly touches Ireland and the Man Peninsula?… ’Bout two and a half million people?”
“Oh, wooow! I don’t think I’ve ever met someone from a village before!” she says, seeming entirely oblivious to how that might be taken as an insult.
“Yeah… I guess it’s not that big.”
“Well…” she wraps me back in the hug and continues “…we’re the first ones to the room and that has to mean we’re going to be best friends!”
“I’m afraid my best friend’s name is Tamsin… the position is not open.” I say, firmly setting a boundary.
“I meant best bootcamp friends, silly!” she says, as if that should have gone without saying.
“Alright… I guess that positions open… but you’ve not got the job yet(!)” I quip, warming up a little to the ball of posh English energy.
She pulls back and beams at me “Alright then, for my first act as best bootcamp friend candidate, let me show you the view!… That should earn me some points!”
She says, leading me into the room that’s so small it makes me doubt that that goody-two-shoes 17 year old can possibly have one a sixth this size!
She leads me to the window and spends a few moments making sure I’m positioned just right before she draws back the curtain.
The view is quite breathtaking… rolling hills of snow blanketed mammoth steppe, lit by evening sun, with barely any of the sprawling military camp visible.
Though, you can see one of the tallest structures ever built by Humanity… the Sussex Space elevator… several times the Earth’s own diameter, the ‘top’, if you can even call it that, is a fifth of the way from here to Luna! …And… in 8 months, I’m going to be riding it, all the way up, to get on a troop transport.
“Look! See! There’s a herd of aurochs over on that hill! You know this place used to be a national park, before even Unification or the Reset! It’s called the South Downs! My mum told me we had family from here… obviously I never met any of them because they would have left hundreds of years ago!…”
The bubbly girl talks and talks and… just keeps talking… but I don’t particularly mind.
---
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---Esme’s perspective---
---Saturday, 11th of November, 2682 Terran Calendar---
---Southern England---
Fucking Sussex!
‘Can you send me to the Forth Valley?’
‘Oh, we can try… On an unrelated note, how’s your standard English? No problems in communicating?’
I should’ve just said ‘No, I have great difficulty in communicating in anything but Lallans Scots!’ instead of putting on my poshest English speech register to say ‘Marjorie dearest, would you be a lamb and pass another buttered scone… hold the raspberry jam, it’s far too spicy for me!’ which she told me she’d take as a ‘Yes.’
“This is an English language barracks. If you have been directed here in error, please make yourself known to barracks staff for reassignment.” plays a loud, prerecorded Welsh language announcement, over speakers.
They’re fucking rubbing it in!
“This is an English language barracks. If you have been directed here in error, please make yourself known to barracks staff for reassignment.” it repeats in Scots Gaelic.
“Ceci est une caserne Anglophone. Si vous avez été assigné ici par erreur, veuillez vous faire connaître auprès du personnel de la caserne pour une réaffectation.” it says in what I’m 90% sure is a French version of the same announcement (I can’t be certain, though, as that’s not one of my languages).
Looking at the crowds queuing to get in makes me regret asserting that I didn’t need transport here.
‘You shouldn’t be sending someone to War that you don’t trust to navigate themself from Galloway to Sussex!’ were my exact words.
I brushed off the recruitment officer saying that I’d be processed faster if I arrived on Military organised transport.
Well, standing here’s not gonna get me to the front of the queue now, is it!
I walk forward to join the massive throng of people, almost all of which look to be about my age.
It’s astonishing how short you feel, being an average height girl in a crowd of people!
178cm really isn’t all that much when you’ve got a not insignificant number of +2m guys here!
Even guys who are the average 188cm can make a girl feel short when their packed too close…
I see a few Neanderthal hunks… perhaps conscription won’t be all bad(!)
When I make it to the front of the line, the guy just stares expectantly at me like I’m supposed to already know what to do.
“Y’awright?… Err… mah nam’s Esme Reid…?” I say, hesitantly, in perfectly comprehensible speech.
“I’m sorry, would you repeat that?” he answers, looking at me like I just spoke to him in fucking Chinese!
“Greetings, gracious sir! You may kindly refer to me by the name ‘Esme Reid’!” I say, affecting my supercilious Southern English gentlewoman accent.
“Alright, Ms Reid. Please present your draft papers and identification.”
The balls they have to ask me to prove who I am when they’re the ones asking me to go off and fucking die for them!
I think about quipping that I should ask him to show me some proof that this is a legitimate Military installation sanctioned by the government of Sol… but think better of it…
Instead, I pull out my draft papers and my holopad, quickly getting up my identification app.
The man scans the code with his own holo and spends a few seconds glancing from his screen to my face and back.
Seeming satisfied that I’m not attempting to enlist under a false identity (for whatever strange reason a person might want to do that) he glances at my papers, says “Everything seems to be in order.” and waves a hand in front of a machine which whirs for half a second before spitting out a simple chain necklace with two little metal rectangles hanging off of it.
He hands it to me and says “This is your identification tag. Please check that the information on it is correct and, if it is, put it on and never take it off.”
I check the tag.
“You’ve got my name and birthday right…” I say, making a conscious effort to keep my speech register in that that a standard English speaker would consider acceptable “…don’t know about the regiment and serial number.”
“Those will be correct.” he says with a ‘move along’ tone.
I shrug, raise the dogtag over my head and drop it around my neck.
I walk on and he’s serving the girl behind me before I’ve even rounded the counter.
I’m ushered through the barracks, herded by the staff, until I reach a building labelled ‘Billet House 279’.
It doesn’t really look like I expected soldiers’ digs to look.
Definitely prefabbed but sort of has more the look of a uni hall than anything else… though I think it’s probably a bit much to expect that I’ll get a room to myself(!)
I follow the throng of draftees through to a wide open room, on the ground floor, that looks like it’s normally a cafeteria.
The camp attendants (who I’m guessing were in the same boat as us, not too long ago) direct us to stand along the left, right and nearside walls, keeping the back wall and centre of the room clear.
Everyone in place, there follows a few minutes of silence broken only by people whispering to one another.
Then, she enters the room.
Dark skinned and clad in green camo clothing, her scalp is easily visible between her cornrows with nary a hair out of place.
Her expression looks absolutely indifferent with just the slightest hint of a curled lip.
From the broadness and flatness of her facial features as well as her single mauve eye, she is clearly half Tshwane… though, you’d never guess that from her stature!
Female Tshwane average nearly 2m… the men are more like 2.2m!
She’s shorter than me!
She’s also built like a Sapiens, not the willowy thinness typical of Tshwane
I guess genetics interact in funny ways sometimes…
Based on her age, her Tshwane parent would probably have to have been one of the very first to be cloned back!
The other eye seems to have been ripped out at some point because in its place is a bionic and there’s a patch of hypopigmented scar tissue, forming a tear shape, at the right corner.
“Recruits… Welcome to the United Terran Coalition Infantry Trainin’ Camp, Graffham… My name is Warrant Officer Simone Sands… and I’ll be your drill instructor…” says the woman, cooly, speaking in a rough sounding, London accent.
The surname ‘Sands’ probably means her dad was the Tshwane (though not necessarily… she might have been given her mum’s surname… or it might be a coincidental English surname).
“…You all know why you’re here… Most of you’ve prob’ly already lost loved ones to this War… You are here to defend our right to exist… and I can’t think of a more worthy reason to fight than that…”
I’ve decided I like this woman… She may be English but I’ll try not to hold that against her(!)
“The first thing I need to tell all of you is that, by the end of your trainin’, you will NOT like me…” she says, as if reading my mind “…that’s OK. My job ain’t to be liked, my job ain’t to make friends… my job is to make soldiers!”
She casts her biological and bionic eyes around the room, letting her words hang in the air.
“Note… that I said ‘soldiers’… This ain’t Full Metal Jacket. This ain’t the 20th Century. There’ll be no Pvt Piles here!… I ain’t aimin’ to destroy your minds or your individuality. I ain’t goin’ to physic’ly and psychologic’ly abuse you into becomin’ robots or killers… I am makin’ you into soldiers… Regardless… this process will not be easy! In fact, it may well be the hardest thing you ever do!… As the face of this process, you will come to hate and resent me for it!… I hope for it! The more you hate me the more-DO YOU HAVE SOMETHIN’ TO SAY, PRIVATE?!”
Everyone in the room is startled by the authoritative woman breaking herself off to shout angrily at someone on the other side of the room.
“STEP FORWARD AND SPEAK SO EVERYONE CAN HEAR YOU!”
The boy that steps forward is tall, bulky and muscular with a handsome, half Neanderthal face… just my type!
Then he has to go and ruin it by opening his mouth.
“I was just saying… that I find it somewhat difficult to take you seriously as a commanding officer… You just seem a little bit… little.” says the boy in the poshest, smarmiest English drawl I’ve ever heard!
The woman does not shout, she does not scream, she doesn’t snarl or even purse her lips!
She just nods, as if considering his words, then asks “What’s your name, Soldier?”
“Rupert Forest.” responds the boy, proudly.
“And, how tall are you, Pvt Forest?” responds the woman, unimpressed
“195cm.” he answers.
“And, what’s your mass?” she asks.
“110kg.”
“I see, I see… So, by your logic… you’d make a better drill sergeant than me, would you? You’re 25cm taller and 35kg heavier, afterall!”
He smirks “I wouldn’t presume to say so, Ma’am…” in a way that definitely suggests that he thinks he would.
She seems to consider that for some moments before answering “Alright then, fight me for it!”
“I’m sorry…?” responds the poshboy.
“You heard me… Clearly, you got no respect for skill and experience but it seems like you must respect power… so fight me for it! You win, you get to train this lot, I win, you never question my authority again!”
Is this woman mad!?
She may be a soldier but this boy she just challenged is a half Neanderthal giant!
She’s gonna lose!
I do not want to be drilled by some snotty, privileged English brat who got here at the same time as I did and just couldn’t keep his fucking mouth shut!
Then again, I don’t really want to be drilled by a woman so delusional that she felt the best way to squash insubordination was to challenge a man she has no hope of beating, either!
The guy is clearly salivating over the power that’s just been slapped on the table in front of him as he answers “I accept your terms, Ms Sands…” with faux magnanimity.
There’s no way they’d let a Private run drills, is there? When he wins, someone just needs to go and complain and they’ll give us another (less stupid) drill sergeant… right?
He strips off his jacket to reveal a pair of thick, muscular arms that (in spite of his repulsive personality) are a thrilling sight.
He has to go and ruin it by flexing and posing, clearly revelling in the room’s worth of gasps he got when he revealed his arms… He obviously likes being the centre of attention.
“Done?” asks Sands, drily.
“If you still want to do this…” he says, smugly “…you could just concede defeat and I’m sure no one would hold it against you!”
Her lip curls as she answers “But… if I did that, no one would learn nothin’, now would they…”
He shrugs before launching himself at her without waiting for her to give the word to begin.
She whirls out of the way and he snatches at her, unsuccessfully, as his momentum carries him past.
“Lesson 1:…” she shouts while snapping into the space behind him and kicking out his knee “…size does not determine victory, strength does not determine victory…” levelling another powerful kick between his shoulderblades to bring him to the ground.
She backs off, allowing him to scramble to his feet and turn to face her, hunched in readiness and scowling.
“…Pvt Forest here looked at me with contempt on account of my small size and, though he didn’t say so, I’d guess that my rough accent, my lack of a graduate epithet and my lack of a penis also played a roll in his judgin’ me as less than!… He thought he could beat me, he probably still DOES, and, ’causa that, he didn’t respect my ability to lead…!”
Forest makes another lunge for the smaller woman, misses and is punished for it by being knocked back to the floor.
I’m agog as I watch this little woman… there’s no other word but toy with the giant man!
“…but victory does not care how big you are, how strong you are, how classy or educated you are or what**’**s in your pants or panties…!”
She dodges around his arm and pins his chest to the floor with her knee.
“Discipline and trainin’ determine victory!… Things that I have and Pvt Forest LACKS!… Things that ALL of you will acquire, over the next 8 months!!!” she turns her head down to the mountain of man she’s pinning to the floor “Concede, Private!”
The man shakes his head, trying in vain to leverage himself up.
“Alright then… Lesson 2: When faced with a resistant individual, compliance can be effectively enforced by the expedient of lockin’ their joints to induce PAIN!!!”
She grabs his thick arms by the wrists and pulls them backwards in a way they are not meant to bend!
He screams in agony!
“CONCEDE!!!… Don’t make me send you to the Medical Officer! It’d be inconvenient for BOTH of us if your pride makes you miss your first week of trainin’ while your arms heal!!!”
He holds out for two more seconds before screaming “I concede! I CONCEDE!!!”
She releases him and stands back up.
“On your feet, Soldier…” she growls down at him.
He stands back up, his face beet red.
“Are you ever goin’ to question my fitness to instruct again, Private?” she glares up at the humiliated giant.
“No.” he answers, gracelessly.
“No…?” she says as if waiting for something else.
Forest looks as confused as I am about what she’s expecting.
“No, Ma’am!” she snarls.
“No, Ma’am.”
“Good, we’ll work on your attitude, movin’ forward. Now, get back in line!”
The humiliated man picks up his civvy jacket and returns to the place he was called out from.
“Now, I don’t think I need to prattle on anymore about how you’re gonna hate me by the end of our time together, do I?… I think Pvt Forest helped me prove that point quite well, so I’ll move on… You will sleep in this buildin’, six to a room. Your rooms will be gender segregated. If you wish for a place to be… intimate with people of the opposite gender, you may request use of one of the conjugal rooms… I suggest you do the same if you want to be intimate with a same gender partner but that’s between you and your roommates! You will eat in this room at 0700hrs, 1200hrs and 1800hrs. Diet’ry requirements will be accommodated but, bare in mind, this ain’t your mummies’ and daddies’ kitchen! ‘This food is forbidden by my religion/personal ethics’ is a diet’ry requirement. ‘I am allergic to this food’ is a diet’ry requirement! ‘I don’t like how this food tastes’ is not(!)… In the mornin’s, you will be receivin’ lessons in lecture theatres, workshops and the like…”
“Oh great… just what I wanted after leaving school(!) More classrooms(!)” I mutter to myself.
Her head instantly wheels to me with unnerving precision.
“Someone else with somethin’ they’d like to say!?” she says, locking eyes with me, terrifyingly.
“No, Ms Sands!” I answer, instantly.
“Miss?! I’m not your bloody schoolteacher girl!!!”
Everyone laughs. Even Pvt Forest, like he wasn’t just humiliated himself, 2 minutes ago!
“Ma’am… err… Ma’am, no, Ma’am!!!” I say, doing my best to emulate the tone I’ve seen soldiers use in films.
She rolls her eye (it’s difficult to tell if the bionic rolls too) and says “Better… What’s your name, Private?”
“Ma’am, the Private’s name is Esme Reid, Ma’am!!!”
“Do you remember me tellin’ you this ain’t Full Metal Jacket?… You don’t need to scream when you talk to me, you don’t need to refer to yourself in third person and one ‘Ma’am’, when you’re done speakin’, is enough, Reid!”
“Yes, Ma’am.”
She points to her single, mauve eye, then to me and says “I’ll have my eye on you, Reid!”
Somehow, her tone sends a chill up my spine but I do my best not to show it.
She turns away and I release a silent sigh of relief.
“As I was sayin’… In your lectures you will learn the ins and outs of military theory; tactics, strategies, logistics etc. You will learn as much as we can tell you about the nature of the species we are fightin’; their capabilities, tendencies, political organisations and known weaknesses… bear in mind that First Contact weren’t much more than 4 years ago and we’ve been at War for almost all the intervenin’ time, so a lot of what we teach you will be little more than guesswork and hearsay from prisoners we’ve interrogated… The mornin’s’ll also be where you learn the particulars of the equipment you’ll be expected to be proficient with in the field. This includes firearms, plasmaweaponry and durasteel armour, as well as the tech you’ll likely encounter from the opposite side; kinetic pulse weapons, laser weapons, field emitters etc… I strongly suggest that no one allows word to get back to me that they’re not takin’ these classes seriously!… A stupid soldier is a dead soldier!”
She glares around the room, her eyes resting on me four a quarter of a second.
“…In the afternoons and evenin’s, you’ll be doing PT… that’s ‘Physical Trainin’’… soon to be every one of your two least favourite words in the English Language(!) “
I notice a wry smirk twist the mouths of a few of the camp attendants.
“In PT you will be drilled in agility, endurance, close quarters combat and coordinated marching… Five times over the comin’ 8 months, you and your trainin’ partner will be dropped into a remote bit of wilderness, somewhere on Earth, for five day practical survival experience. You will be given a beacon, to summon retrieval, but these are only to be used in cases of actual threat to life or bodily integrity… not because you’re feelin’ miserable!”
She takes a second to pause for breath.
“You get an allowance of 12 days off, over your time here… that’s two a month… These are subject to my approval and I may deny them for any reason, including no reason… so don’t piss me off!… You may not take more than 2 consecutive days leave at a time! Certain classes are mandatory and leave will not be approved on days they occur. If your allowance is spent, no more leave will be approved, barring a real emergency!… Now, for today, you are going to line up to have your maps and room keys downloaded onto your holos when your name is called, then you are going to have your bodies scanned for your armour measurements… at that point everyone with no uterus has the rest of the day free to settle in… If you have a uterus, you’ll need to report to medical to get your cycle paused! This is, I’m afraid, nonoptional… You are not prohibited from engaging in relations with your fellow recruits but you cannot be a soldier while you’re able to get pregnant. Attempts to circumvent this requirement in any way will land you in the Stockade!… After your cycle pause has been given, you’ll also have the rest of the day to settle in… Enjoy it! It’ll be the most downtime you get for a while!… Finally… I believe we have a 17 year old with us here… Pvt Taylor?”
A few people put their hands up, most looking confused.
“Pvt Oskar Taylor! The 17 year old?” she says, exasperated.
All but one of those with their hands up put them down.
The one remaining Pvt Taylor with his hand in the air has pale skin, black hair, brown eyes and a sharp featured face wearing a dour expression.
He stands even taller than Forest… Nearly 2m tall!
Though he’s not quite as heavily built, he’s certainly a good looking piece of boycandy!
“Pvt Taylor…” says Sands, her mouth breaking into a smile for the first time I’ve seen “…couldn’t wait to go off to War, could you(?)”
He mutters something but, while I can hear the power and deepness of his voice, I can’t make out a word he says.
“You’ll have to speak up, Taylor! Nobody’ll be able to hear you if you mumble.” points out Sands.
“I said I had some personal circumstances that made this the most sensible course of action for me, Ma’am.” says the tall, dark haired man, looking over her head rather than down at her and speaking in a grim monotone. He definitely loses boycandy points for the poshness of his accent, unfortunately…
“I see… I won’t pry into that but… you didn’t think of Officer Training? That’s the route that most people take when volunteering ahead of their conscription.”
He shakes his head “I thought of it and decided against it, Ma’am.”
“Oh? Why’s that, Pvt Taylor?”
“I didn’t believe I would make a good officer, Ma’am.” he answers simply.
She laughs “I wish every soldier could be as introspective, Taylor! I like you!… Unfortunately, bein’ a minor does mean that you can’t be put in a room with others… Sooo, that means you get a room to yourself… for the moment. Might sound cushy but before anyone else gets too jealous, bare in mind that privacy is the only advantage! His room will be a sixth the size of yours so its basic’ly a broomcupboard… the disadvantage will be severely reduced opportunity to socialise!… If that doesn’t sound doable, you can leave and come back when you turn 18, Taylor.”
“It’s acceptable, Ma’am.” he says without hesitating.
Yeah… it’s official… I don’t like him…
---later---
I rub the spot on my arm where the serum was thunked into me about 15 minutes ago.
Like with everything else about conscription, I get it… I understand the point…
But seeing the sense doesn’t mean I have to like it!
It’s not like I want to get pregnant (getting a nine month reprieve from service would be a fairly shitty reason for me to bring a child into the world) but it does feel like one last slap in the face to my personal autonomy that I’ve just had a cycle pause fucking mandated upon my body by the government!
As I draw near, door 1512 detects the key downloaded on my holo and unlocks
I open it and am greeted by a blonde girl, smiling broadly and instantly identifiable as brimming with ADHD energy.
“Hey there! My name’s Charlotte, it’s lovely to meet you!” says the girl, wrapping me in a hug without asking if I’m OK with that.
Her accent makes me wonder if everyone I meet here is going to be a posh toff!
She makes three of three of my fellow draftees!
“A pleasure, Charlotte… the name’s Esme…” I say, speaking Scottish accented standard English and gingerly patting her back.
“Oh, you’re Scottish…?” she says pulling herself off me with an expression that suggests meeting a Scottish person is just the most wonderful thing she could have imagined “…My great grandmother was from Edinburgh, where are you from?”
“Stranraer.” I answer.
She frowns “I don’t know it, I’m sorry!”
“I won’t hold it against you… Southwestern tip of Scotland? Where it nearly touches Ireland and the Man Peninsula?… ’Bout two and a half million people?”
“Oh, wooow! I don’t think I’ve ever met someone from a village before!” she says, seeming entirely oblivious to how that might be taken as an insult.
“Yeah… I guess it’s not that big.”
“Well…” she wraps me back in the hug and continues “…we’re the first ones to the room and that has to mean we’re going to be best friends!”
“I’m afraid my best friend’s name is Tamsin… the position is not open.” I say, firmly setting a boundary.
“I meant best bootcamp friends, silly!” she says, as if that should have gone without saying.
“Alright… I guess that positions open… but you’ve not got the job yet(!)” I quip, warming up a little to the ball of posh English energy.
She pulls back and beams at me “Alright then, for my first act as best bootcamp friend candidate, let me show you the view!… That should earn me some points!”
She says, leading me into the room that’s so small it makes me doubt that that goody-two-shoes 17 year old can possibly have one a sixth this size!
She leads me to the window and spends a few moments making sure I’m positioned just right before she draws back the curtain.
The view is quite breathtaking… rolling hills of snow blanketed mammoth steppe, lit by evening sun, with barely any of the sprawling military camp visible.
Though, you can see one of the tallest structures ever built by Humanity… the Sussex Space elevator… several times the Earth’s own diameter, the ‘top’, if you can even call it that, is a fifth of the way from here to Luna! …And… in 8 months, I’m going to be riding it, all the way up, to get on a troop transport.
“Look! See! There’s a herd of aurochs over on that hill! You know this place used to be a national park, before even Unification or the Reset! It’s called the South Downs! My mum told me we had family from here… obviously I never met any of them because they would have left hundreds of years ago!…”
The bubbly girl talks and talks and… just keeps talking… but I don’t particularly mind.
---
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TWBS Previous Next First
2023.06.04 05:05 A_Stony_Shore Murkintok Municipal Airport
I was going to be late. I was on the verge of panic, uncertain of where I’d come from or why I was late, but I was going to be late.
Today was supposed to be different. I was sure of it. The start of something new. My only opportunity to move out of my little dead-end corner of Appalachia rested on me arriving for the night shift on time.
I sped over the rolling road in a panic. Dense old growth rushed past in a blur periodically broken by small plots of pasture, apple orchards and fields that a few months earlier were brimming with corn. Shadows danced out there in the dim moonlight and the closer I got to the airfield the more separated from the small outlying town I felt.
My steering wheel was cold and it vibrated wildly in rhythm with my heart. I tapped it impatiently.
The rusted hulk nearly left the road each time I crested a hillock. My suspension groaned under the salt spurred corrosion and strain.
I can get a new car if this all works out.
I nearly missed my turn. Fishtailing, I plodded off the main road onto an aptly named “Airport Drive”.
I came to a halt at the designated stall and turned the car off.
A minute to spare.
I looked out into the darkness beyond the parking area and a tingle ran down my spine. The shadows that were once dancing as I passed were still now and the air oppressive. My hands were tingled with cold yet brimmed with sweat. Before opening the door, I took a few deep breaths, flattened my hair, and made sure my uniform was sharp. Looking into my image in the rearview mirror I cleared my throat.
“Alright buddy. You’ve been drifting from service job to service job in this dying county for half a decade. Somethings got to change. *You’ve* got to change. You’ve got a daughter now, you can’t be out there chasing bar weasels and getting drunk every other night. It’s time to up your game. You aren’t the little boy who had to stand in the corner with his nose to the wall every time you messed up anymore. Now your choices matter for her life too. The pay and experience here are going to help springboard you off into something bigger and brighter. You can do this.”
My car door shrieked open causing the chirping and croaks in the forest around the airfield to briefly fall silent. The crunch of gravel followed me across the unpaved, unmarked parking spaces poorly illuminated by one lonely floodlight. I made my way to the entrance of the terminal and pulled open the door to the chime of an old brass bell.
“Oh, hey buddy.” He glanced at the clock. “You’re early.” Stepping into the room I saw Gus casually looking up from his crossword, bifocals resting on his fat, bright red nose.
“Yessir. I figured maybe if things weren’t too busy we could get started early. I’ve heard night shift can be a lot to take in.”
His brows furrowed and his mouth hung half open.
“Well….alright, I guess. But we’ll be easing you in. Just the basics for the first week.” He held up a finger, “Will and I are gonna rotate each night, until we know you’ve got the hang of it, then we’ll start giving you more responsibilities – if you’re up to it.”
We spent several hours on the night shift responsibilities for the airfield. Many of the duties weren’t too complicated. When we went to the control room at the base of the single tower overlooking the tarmac we flipped several very clearly marked switches turning the runway lights on and off. Then we walked over the several generators tucked away behind baggage claim to check their fuel and oil levels.
“Checking these emergency generators things each night seems a bit overkill, no?” I asked.
Gus smiled. “These aren’t for emergencies. This is our power. Yea, this past winter much to our surprise we found that some of the power poles came down. Some heavy rainfall right before the first snow turned the ground to soup and the just sort of…fell over.”
“They really shouldn’t do that.”
Gus shrugged. “Yea well, corners get cut all over the place. Damn things still aren’t back up, so here we are.”
As we walked back over to the portables for baggage claim and arrivals/departures. Another tingle ran down my spine. Instinctively I looked around and caught sight of something out in the dark. It was the feeling of being watched. I tried to focus my eyes on the darkness. I saw some gently pulsating shadows near the trees but nothing more.
The chirping and croaks were nowhere to be heard and I shivered.
“Come on kid, I ain’t got all night.”
I came to and trotted over to where Gus had stopped. “Sorry, I thought I saw…something.”
We continued onward, restocking the restrooms, went over baggage tagging and safe lifting procedures and the other mundane parts of preparing for the night’s departures and arrivals.
Finally, we wrapped up my first training session with perimeter checks.
Gus’ labored breathing alternated with his footfalls on the blacktop as we walked down the small runway.
“Every 3 hours you are going to be making this walk.” He gestured around. “You start over at the ATC tower and head out to the tree line, then follow that parallel to the tarmac until you pass the last of the landing lights and keep going until you hit the transmission shack. Don’t get distracted and go off following the transmission lines. Had a guy do that a year or two ago and it took us a week only to find his ass mumbling by the side of the road talking about the linemen – boy wasn’t right after that.”
He paused thoughtfully for a moment.
“Anywho, after the transmission shack you hook right following the shore of the river until you hit Eddie’s orchard then head back. You’ll pass his cornfield and follow that until you see the two terminal portables, then you check the parking lot and come back to the office to enter it all in the logbook. Just need to make sure there ain’t nothing out there that shouldn’t be.”
We continued walking in silence for a few minutes. “So what do I do if I find something? Are we looking for the Wilson boys or something? I thought they stopped causing trouble after you…”
“Well, you need to enter it in the logbook for one.”
“Bears? What do I do if it’s bears?”
He stopped. “Bears? What the hell are you rambling about? We don’t get bears this time of year. Oh, and be sure to bring your bear spray.”
“Even though there aren’t bears?”
“It’s under the counter next to the logbook.” He paused again. “If you see any wildlife, just take the truck out there and honk at it to get it away from the runway. Be sure to use your high beams, too. Very important. You see any people you get back to the office and call the Sheriff – don’t need to be a hero. You hear anything weird out there in the dark you leave it be, if it’s off property it’s not our problem.”
“Any questions?” he asked as we got back to the office.
A few.
“No, I’m good.”
“Great, Will’s in the control tower if anything comes up. No flights scheduled for tonight so it should be awfully quiet. Here’s the keys to the castle. Adios.”
He placed a massive key ring into my hand that had more keys than there were doors on the property and took off.
I sat down behind the counter, looked at the broken clock and sighed.
I was able to knock out the task list before midnight and had 6 more hours to kill before the end of my shift. There was no cell service, because of course not. I tried reading an old Town and Country magazine I found stashed under the desk and found most of the pages had been covered in circles and doodles by someone who must have been just as bored as I was on some unknown shift prior.
I decided to sweep up and clean the counters to keep myself busy and after I was done it was only 12:15.
I groaned.
The silence was oppressive. Outside the window was an empty, dark expanse with a slowly strobing series of red lights marking the flight line. I felt safer indoors but even then as I stared into the dark something felt off. If I turned my gaze from the windows I could see something out of the corner of my eyes. Branches swaying in the breeze.
There was no wind here.
12:34.
I pulled the logbook out from its shelf and placed it on the counter entering my start time, grabbed my flashlight and headed out into the frigid night.
The occasional whistling of the wind punctuated my footfalls. I passed red light posts every few yards on a never-ending runway. I kept walking for what felt like half an hour, losing count of the lights I’d passed. I turned back out of curiosity and still saw the slowly receding light of the air traffic control tower confirming that yes, all was well. After the runway ended I continued into the dark until coming to the boarded up transmission shack and the power lines that ran off into the forest.
I came the edge of the marsh and began following it. Minutes passed. I turned to get my bearings on the tower and found it’s lonely beacon, but I also noticed a void in the dark – not a blackness per-se, black is a color. No, it was a complete lack of color, a hole in existence out past the power lines. It was getting larger.
I picked up my pace.
I got to the orchard and looked back finding that the lights were out. All of them were out. And that thing in the forest was growing near.
I stood there and watched it for several minutes waiting for it to move. It didn’t.
I turned back now walking as fast as I could. After a dozen yards I stopped and turned around.
It was closer, I was sure of it. Much closer.
I turned and began to jog forgetting everything Gus had told me. It was gaining on me.
Now I was in a full-blown run down the flight line, glancing back every few moments, still unable to see it but sure it was there. The thing that had been watching me since I got here. The thing that drove a cold shock down my spine. This was it.
My legs pumped like pistons and the sting of cold air shot through my chest with each strained, gasping breath.
I passed the recently harvested cornfield, in which stood two perfectly still Deer judging me for my frantic escape.
It was gaining on me.
Finally I came to the portables. I slammed into the nearest door but it stood firm. I slammed my shoulder into it three more times and it didn’t budge. I remembered my key chain.
I pulled it out and started flipping through the keys. *too many keys*.
First key. No.
Second key. No.
Third key. No.
The fourth key worked, the tumbler clicked and I was in. Slamming the door back in place, I frantically locked it.
My hands were shaking and even though I was panting, I went to the window. The void cast long shadows across the field as it stood transfixed not on me, but on the deer.
“Shhhh” a man’s voice whispered from behind me.
“Oh SWEET JESUS FU-“ I screamed as a hand clamped down on my mouth.
“SHHH.” Sharper this time, commanding. “It’s me.” Will whispered, releasing his hand from my mouth.
“What..” I replied quietly as I turned to see him using his phone to maneuver the drone. “What’s going on? You scared the shit out of me. Nice to meet you by the way I’m..”
He smiled, “You gotta be more careful buddy, Didn’t Gus tell you not to go out into the woods?” Now that I could hear him clearly, his odd vowel pronunciation took me off guard. He’d fit right in, in Venice beach. Surfers. He sounded exactly like how I imagined California Surfers sounded. Very out of place for this part of the country. I shook the thought from my mind.
“I didn’t, I..”
He shushed me and pointed to the deer.
“Just…watch.”
I’d never seen deer stay still so long.
I strained my eyes to see. The shadows, tilled earth and wilted corn husks broke up the terrain making it hard to see what was hidden in plain sight. I’d see movement then have to dismiss it as wind kicking up gentle curtains of soil or the shifting of a shadow from the small movements in the night.
Slowly a thin sharp shadow moved, followed by another, then another. They moved in concert from that enormous void that had followed me.
The deer stood transfixed before it all happened at once.
A mixture of humanlike screams erupted as each of their bodies were slammed into the ground. Viscera painted the wind. In another moment the light went out and I heard Will sigh.
The wind whistled and died, but we could still hear it out there breathing heavily as it gorged itself. From where I stood I could only see a throbbing silhouette breaking the horizon as it went to work. A crisp snap rang out as it pulled limb by limb from the carcass. The throbbing of the shape slowed as a new sound arose. A contented hum made its presence felt through the rattling of the windows and doors and threatened to overwhelm my own beating heart.
The sound rose as the shape slowly moved closer.
“What do we..”
Will shushed me.
I jumped and stifled a scream as a wet, boneless appendage slammed against the window curiously. The doorknob rattled though this time not from the creatures’ purr but from it’s clumsy efforts to open the door and join us inside.
The ceiling creaked above us under a massive weight.
It groaned as if remembering something and suddenly began moving away back towards the trees. There were no footfalls, just the gently receding sound of a blissful purr.
When it finally entered the world beyond its movements melted into those of the swaying branches becoming indiscernible. The more I tried to focus on it the harder it was to recall its form or the impossibility I’d just witnessed.
Will smiled and patted me on the shoulder sadly, “Welcome to Murkintok.”
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Today was supposed to be different. I was sure of it. The start of something new. My only opportunity to move out of my little dead-end corner of Appalachia rested on me arriving for the night shift on time.
I sped over the rolling road in a panic. Dense old growth rushed past in a blur periodically broken by small plots of pasture, apple orchards and fields that a few months earlier were brimming with corn. Shadows danced out there in the dim moonlight and the closer I got to the airfield the more separated from the small outlying town I felt.
My steering wheel was cold and it vibrated wildly in rhythm with my heart. I tapped it impatiently.
The rusted hulk nearly left the road each time I crested a hillock. My suspension groaned under the salt spurred corrosion and strain.
I can get a new car if this all works out.
I nearly missed my turn. Fishtailing, I plodded off the main road onto an aptly named “Airport Drive”.
I came to a halt at the designated stall and turned the car off.
A minute to spare.
I looked out into the darkness beyond the parking area and a tingle ran down my spine. The shadows that were once dancing as I passed were still now and the air oppressive. My hands were tingled with cold yet brimmed with sweat. Before opening the door, I took a few deep breaths, flattened my hair, and made sure my uniform was sharp. Looking into my image in the rearview mirror I cleared my throat.
“Alright buddy. You’ve been drifting from service job to service job in this dying county for half a decade. Somethings got to change. *You’ve* got to change. You’ve got a daughter now, you can’t be out there chasing bar weasels and getting drunk every other night. It’s time to up your game. You aren’t the little boy who had to stand in the corner with his nose to the wall every time you messed up anymore. Now your choices matter for her life too. The pay and experience here are going to help springboard you off into something bigger and brighter. You can do this.”
My car door shrieked open causing the chirping and croaks in the forest around the airfield to briefly fall silent. The crunch of gravel followed me across the unpaved, unmarked parking spaces poorly illuminated by one lonely floodlight. I made my way to the entrance of the terminal and pulled open the door to the chime of an old brass bell.
“Oh, hey buddy.” He glanced at the clock. “You’re early.” Stepping into the room I saw Gus casually looking up from his crossword, bifocals resting on his fat, bright red nose.
“Yessir. I figured maybe if things weren’t too busy we could get started early. I’ve heard night shift can be a lot to take in.”
His brows furrowed and his mouth hung half open.
“Well….alright, I guess. But we’ll be easing you in. Just the basics for the first week.” He held up a finger, “Will and I are gonna rotate each night, until we know you’ve got the hang of it, then we’ll start giving you more responsibilities – if you’re up to it.”
We spent several hours on the night shift responsibilities for the airfield. Many of the duties weren’t too complicated. When we went to the control room at the base of the single tower overlooking the tarmac we flipped several very clearly marked switches turning the runway lights on and off. Then we walked over the several generators tucked away behind baggage claim to check their fuel and oil levels.
“Checking these emergency generators things each night seems a bit overkill, no?” I asked.
Gus smiled. “These aren’t for emergencies. This is our power. Yea, this past winter much to our surprise we found that some of the power poles came down. Some heavy rainfall right before the first snow turned the ground to soup and the just sort of…fell over.”
“They really shouldn’t do that.”
Gus shrugged. “Yea well, corners get cut all over the place. Damn things still aren’t back up, so here we are.”
As we walked back over to the portables for baggage claim and arrivals/departures. Another tingle ran down my spine. Instinctively I looked around and caught sight of something out in the dark. It was the feeling of being watched. I tried to focus my eyes on the darkness. I saw some gently pulsating shadows near the trees but nothing more.
The chirping and croaks were nowhere to be heard and I shivered.
“Come on kid, I ain’t got all night.”
I came to and trotted over to where Gus had stopped. “Sorry, I thought I saw…something.”
We continued onward, restocking the restrooms, went over baggage tagging and safe lifting procedures and the other mundane parts of preparing for the night’s departures and arrivals.
Finally, we wrapped up my first training session with perimeter checks.
Gus’ labored breathing alternated with his footfalls on the blacktop as we walked down the small runway.
“Every 3 hours you are going to be making this walk.” He gestured around. “You start over at the ATC tower and head out to the tree line, then follow that parallel to the tarmac until you pass the last of the landing lights and keep going until you hit the transmission shack. Don’t get distracted and go off following the transmission lines. Had a guy do that a year or two ago and it took us a week only to find his ass mumbling by the side of the road talking about the linemen – boy wasn’t right after that.”
He paused thoughtfully for a moment.
“Anywho, after the transmission shack you hook right following the shore of the river until you hit Eddie’s orchard then head back. You’ll pass his cornfield and follow that until you see the two terminal portables, then you check the parking lot and come back to the office to enter it all in the logbook. Just need to make sure there ain’t nothing out there that shouldn’t be.”
We continued walking in silence for a few minutes. “So what do I do if I find something? Are we looking for the Wilson boys or something? I thought they stopped causing trouble after you…”
“Well, you need to enter it in the logbook for one.”
“Bears? What do I do if it’s bears?”
He stopped. “Bears? What the hell are you rambling about? We don’t get bears this time of year. Oh, and be sure to bring your bear spray.”
“Even though there aren’t bears?”
“It’s under the counter next to the logbook.” He paused again. “If you see any wildlife, just take the truck out there and honk at it to get it away from the runway. Be sure to use your high beams, too. Very important. You see any people you get back to the office and call the Sheriff – don’t need to be a hero. You hear anything weird out there in the dark you leave it be, if it’s off property it’s not our problem.”
“Any questions?” he asked as we got back to the office.
A few.
“No, I’m good.”
“Great, Will’s in the control tower if anything comes up. No flights scheduled for tonight so it should be awfully quiet. Here’s the keys to the castle. Adios.”
He placed a massive key ring into my hand that had more keys than there were doors on the property and took off.
I sat down behind the counter, looked at the broken clock and sighed.
I was able to knock out the task list before midnight and had 6 more hours to kill before the end of my shift. There was no cell service, because of course not. I tried reading an old Town and Country magazine I found stashed under the desk and found most of the pages had been covered in circles and doodles by someone who must have been just as bored as I was on some unknown shift prior.
I decided to sweep up and clean the counters to keep myself busy and after I was done it was only 12:15.
I groaned.
The silence was oppressive. Outside the window was an empty, dark expanse with a slowly strobing series of red lights marking the flight line. I felt safer indoors but even then as I stared into the dark something felt off. If I turned my gaze from the windows I could see something out of the corner of my eyes. Branches swaying in the breeze.
There was no wind here.
12:34.
I pulled the logbook out from its shelf and placed it on the counter entering my start time, grabbed my flashlight and headed out into the frigid night.
The occasional whistling of the wind punctuated my footfalls. I passed red light posts every few yards on a never-ending runway. I kept walking for what felt like half an hour, losing count of the lights I’d passed. I turned back out of curiosity and still saw the slowly receding light of the air traffic control tower confirming that yes, all was well. After the runway ended I continued into the dark until coming to the boarded up transmission shack and the power lines that ran off into the forest.
I came the edge of the marsh and began following it. Minutes passed. I turned to get my bearings on the tower and found it’s lonely beacon, but I also noticed a void in the dark – not a blackness per-se, black is a color. No, it was a complete lack of color, a hole in existence out past the power lines. It was getting larger.
I picked up my pace.
I got to the orchard and looked back finding that the lights were out. All of them were out. And that thing in the forest was growing near.
I stood there and watched it for several minutes waiting for it to move. It didn’t.
I turned back now walking as fast as I could. After a dozen yards I stopped and turned around.
It was closer, I was sure of it. Much closer.
I turned and began to jog forgetting everything Gus had told me. It was gaining on me.
Now I was in a full-blown run down the flight line, glancing back every few moments, still unable to see it but sure it was there. The thing that had been watching me since I got here. The thing that drove a cold shock down my spine. This was it.
My legs pumped like pistons and the sting of cold air shot through my chest with each strained, gasping breath.
I passed the recently harvested cornfield, in which stood two perfectly still Deer judging me for my frantic escape.
It was gaining on me.
Finally I came to the portables. I slammed into the nearest door but it stood firm. I slammed my shoulder into it three more times and it didn’t budge. I remembered my key chain.
I pulled it out and started flipping through the keys. *too many keys*.
First key. No.
Second key. No.
Third key. No.
The fourth key worked, the tumbler clicked and I was in. Slamming the door back in place, I frantically locked it.
My hands were shaking and even though I was panting, I went to the window. The void cast long shadows across the field as it stood transfixed not on me, but on the deer.
“Shhhh” a man’s voice whispered from behind me.
“Oh SWEET JESUS FU-“ I screamed as a hand clamped down on my mouth.
“SHHH.” Sharper this time, commanding. “It’s me.” Will whispered, releasing his hand from my mouth.
“What..” I replied quietly as I turned to see him using his phone to maneuver the drone. “What’s going on? You scared the shit out of me. Nice to meet you by the way I’m..”
He smiled, “You gotta be more careful buddy, Didn’t Gus tell you not to go out into the woods?” Now that I could hear him clearly, his odd vowel pronunciation took me off guard. He’d fit right in, in Venice beach. Surfers. He sounded exactly like how I imagined California Surfers sounded. Very out of place for this part of the country. I shook the thought from my mind.
“I didn’t, I..”
He shushed me and pointed to the deer.
“Just…watch.”
I’d never seen deer stay still so long.
I strained my eyes to see. The shadows, tilled earth and wilted corn husks broke up the terrain making it hard to see what was hidden in plain sight. I’d see movement then have to dismiss it as wind kicking up gentle curtains of soil or the shifting of a shadow from the small movements in the night.
Slowly a thin sharp shadow moved, followed by another, then another. They moved in concert from that enormous void that had followed me.
The deer stood transfixed before it all happened at once.
A mixture of humanlike screams erupted as each of their bodies were slammed into the ground. Viscera painted the wind. In another moment the light went out and I heard Will sigh.
The wind whistled and died, but we could still hear it out there breathing heavily as it gorged itself. From where I stood I could only see a throbbing silhouette breaking the horizon as it went to work. A crisp snap rang out as it pulled limb by limb from the carcass. The throbbing of the shape slowed as a new sound arose. A contented hum made its presence felt through the rattling of the windows and doors and threatened to overwhelm my own beating heart.
The sound rose as the shape slowly moved closer.
“What do we..”
Will shushed me.
I jumped and stifled a scream as a wet, boneless appendage slammed against the window curiously. The doorknob rattled though this time not from the creatures’ purr but from it’s clumsy efforts to open the door and join us inside.
The ceiling creaked above us under a massive weight.
It groaned as if remembering something and suddenly began moving away back towards the trees. There were no footfalls, just the gently receding sound of a blissful purr.
When it finally entered the world beyond its movements melted into those of the swaying branches becoming indiscernible. The more I tried to focus on it the harder it was to recall its form or the impossibility I’d just witnessed.
Will smiled and patted me on the shoulder sadly, “Welcome to Murkintok.”
2023.06.04 05:01 A_Stony_Shore Murkintok Municipal Airport
I was going to be late. I was on the verge of panic, uncertain of where I’d come from or why I was late, but I was going to be late.
Today was supposed to be different. I was sure of it. The start of something new. My only opportunity to move out of my little dead-end corner of Appalachia rested on me arriving for the night shift on time.
I sped over the rolling road in a panic. Dense old growth rushed past in a blur periodically broken by small plots of pasture, apple orchards and fields that a few months earlier were brimming with corn. Shadows danced out there in the dim moonlight and the closer I got to the airfield the more separated from the small outlying town I felt.
My steering wheel was cold and it vibrated wildly in rhythm with my heart. I tapped it impatiently.
The rusted hulk nearly left the road each time I crested a hillock. My suspension groaned under the salt spurred corrosion and strain.
I can get a new car if this all works out.
I nearly missed my turn. Fishtailing, I plodded off the main road onto an aptly named “Airport Drive”.
I came to a halt at the designated stall and turned the car off.
A minute to spare.
I looked out into the darkness beyond the parking area and a tingle ran down my spine. The shadows that were once dancing as I passed were still now and the air oppressive. My hands were tingled with cold yet brimmed with sweat. Before opening the door, I took a few deep breaths, flattened my hair, and made sure my uniform was sharp. Looking into my image in the rearview mirror I cleared my throat.
“Alright buddy. You’ve been drifting from service job to service job in this dying county for half a decade. Somethings got to change. *You’ve* got to change. You’ve got a daughter now, you can’t be out there chasing bar weasels and getting drunk every other night. It’s time to up your game. You aren’t the little boy who had to stand in the corner with his nose to the wall every time you messed up anymore. Now your choices matter for her life too. The pay and experience here are going to help springboard you off into something bigger and brighter. You can do this.”
My car door shrieked open causing the chirping and croaks in the forest around the airfield to briefly fall silent. The crunch of gravel followed me across the unpaved, unmarked parking spaces poorly illuminated by one lonely floodlight. I made my way to the entrance of the terminal and pulled open the door to the chime of an old brass bell.
“Oh, hey buddy.” He glanced at the clock. “You’re early.” Stepping into the room I saw Gus casually looking up from his crossword, bifocals resting on his fat, bright red nose.
“Yessir. I figured maybe if things weren’t too busy we could get started early. I’ve heard night shift can be a lot to take in.”
His brows furrowed and his mouth hung half open.
“Well….alright, I guess. But we’ll be easing you in. Just the basics for the first week.” He held up a finger, “Will and I are gonna rotate each night, until we know you’ve got the hang of it, then we’ll start giving you more responsibilities – if you’re up to it.”
We spent several hours on the night shift responsibilities for the airfield. Many of the duties weren’t too complicated. When we went to the control room at the base of the single tower overlooking the tarmac we flipped several very clearly marked switches turning the runway lights on and off. Then we walked over the several generators tucked away behind baggage claim to check their fuel and oil levels.
“Checking these emergency generators things each night seems a bit overkill, no?” I asked.
Gus smiled. “These aren’t for emergencies. This is our power. Yea, this past winter much to our surprise we found that some of the power poles came down. Some heavy rainfall right before the first snow turned the ground to soup and the just sort of…fell over.”
“They really shouldn’t do that.”
Gus shrugged. “Yea well, corners get cut all over the place. Damn things still aren’t back up, so here we are.”
As we walked back over to the portables for baggage claim and arrivals/departures. Another tingle ran down my spine. Instinctively I looked around and caught sight of something out in the dark. It was the feeling of being watched. I tried to focus my eyes on the darkness. I saw some gently pulsating shadows near the trees but nothing more.
The chirping and croaks were nowhere to be heard and I shivered.
“Come on kid, I ain’t got all night.”
I came to and trotted over to where Gus had stopped. “Sorry, I thought I saw…something.”
We continued onward, restocking the restrooms, went over baggage tagging and safe lifting procedures and the other mundane parts of preparing for the night’s departures and arrivals.
Finally, we wrapped up my first training session with perimeter checks.
Gus’ labored breathing alternated with his footfalls on the blacktop as we walked down the small runway.
“Every 3 hours you are going to be making this walk.” He gestured around. “You start over at the ATC tower and head out to the tree line, then follow that parallel to the tarmac until you pass the last of the landing lights and keep going until you hit the transmission shack. Don’t get distracted and go off following the transmission lines. Had a guy do that a year or two ago and it took us a week only to find his ass mumbling by the side of the road talking about the linemen – boy wasn’t right after that.”
He paused thoughtfully for a moment.
“Anywho, after the transmission shack you hook right following the shore of the river until you hit Eddie’s orchard then head back. You’ll pass his cornfield and follow that until you see the two terminal portables, then you check the parking lot and come back to the office to enter it all in the logbook. Just need to make sure there ain’t nothing out there that shouldn’t be.”
We continued walking in silence for a few minutes. “So what do I do if I find something? Are we looking for the Wilson boys or something? I thought they stopped causing trouble after you…”
“Well, you need to enter it in the logbook for one.”
“Bears? What do I do if it’s bears?”
He stopped. “Bears? What the hell are you rambling about? We don’t get bears this time of year. Oh, and be sure to bring your bear spray.”
“Even though there aren’t bears?”
“It’s under the counter next to the logbook.” He paused again. “If you see any wildlife, just take the truck out there and honk at it to get it away from the runway. Be sure to use your high beams, too. Very important. You see any people you get back to the office and call the Sheriff – don’t need to be a hero. You hear anything weird out there in the dark you leave it be, if it’s off property it’s not our problem.”
“Any questions?” he asked as we got back to the office.
A few.
“No, I’m good.”
“Great, Will’s in the control tower if anything comes up. No flights scheduled for tonight so it should be awfully quiet. Here’s the keys to the castle. Adios.”
He placed a massive key ring into my hand that had more keys than there were doors on the property and took off.
I sat down behind the counter, looked at the broken clock and sighed.
I was able to knock out the task list before midnight and had 6 more hours to kill before the end of my shift. There was no cell service, because of course not. I tried reading an old Town and Country magazine I found stashed under the desk and found most of the pages had been covered in circles and doodles by someone who must have been just as bored as I was on some unknown shift prior.
I decided to sweep up and clean the counters to keep myself busy and after I was done it was only 12:15.
I groaned.
The silence was oppressive. Outside the window was an empty, dark expanse with a slowly strobing series of red lights marking the flight line. I felt safer indoors but even then as I stared into the dark something felt off. If I turned my gaze from the windows I could see something out of the corner of my eyes. Branches swaying in the breeze.
There was no wind here.
12:34.
I pulled the logbook out from its shelf and placed it on the counter entering my start time, grabbed my flashlight and headed out into the frigid night.
The occasional whistling of the wind punctuated my footfalls. I passed red light posts every few yards on a never-ending runway. I kept walking for what felt like half an hour, losing count of the lights I’d passed. I turned back out of curiosity and still saw the slowly receding light of the air traffic control tower confirming that yes, all was well. After the runway ended I continued into the dark until coming to the boarded up transmission shack and the power lines that ran off into the forest.
I came the edge of the marsh and began following it. Minutes passed. I turned to get my bearings on the tower and found it’s lonely beacon, but I also noticed a void in the dark – not a blackness per-se, black is a color. No, it was a complete lack of color, a hole in existence out past the power lines. It was getting larger.
I picked up my pace.
I got to the orchard and looked back finding that the lights were out. All of them were out. And that thing in the forest was growing near.
I stood there and watched it for several minutes waiting for it to move. It didn’t.
I turned back now walking as fast as I could. After a dozen yards I stopped and turned around.
It was closer, I was sure of it. Much closer.
I turned and began to jog forgetting everything Gus had told me. It was gaining on me.
Now I was in a full-blown run down the flight line, glancing back every few moments, still unable to see it but sure it was there. The thing that had been watching me since I got here. The thing that drove a cold shock down my spine. This was it.
My legs pumped like pistons and the sting of cold air shot through my chest with each strained, gasping breath.
I passed the recently harvested cornfield, in which stood two perfectly still Deer judging me for my frantic escape.
It was gaining on me.
Finally I came to the portables. I slammed into the nearest door but it stood firm. I slammed my shoulder into it three more times and it didn’t budge. I remembered my key chain.
I pulled it out and started flipping through the keys. *too many keys*.
First key. No.
Second key. No.
Third key. No.
The fourth key worked, the tumbler clicked and I was in. Slamming the door back in place, I frantically locked it.
My hands were shaking and even though I was panting, I went to the window. The void cast long shadows across the field as it stood transfixed not on me, but on the deer.
“Shhhh” a man’s voice whispered from behind me.
“Oh SWEET JESUS FU-“ I screamed as a hand clamped down on my mouth.
“SHHH.” Sharper this time, commanding. “It’s me.” Will whispered, releasing his hand from my mouth.
“What..” I replied quietly as I turned to see him using his phone to maneuver the drone. “What’s going on? You scared the shit out of me. Nice to meet you by the way I’m..”
He smiled, “You gotta be more careful buddy, Didn’t Gus tell you not to go out into the woods?” Now that I could hear him clearly, his odd vowel pronunciation took me off guard. He’d fit right in, in Venice beach. Surfers. He sounded exactly like how I imagined California Surfers sounded. Very out of place for this part of the country. I shook the thought from my mind.
“I didn’t, I..”
He shushed me and pointed to the deer.
“Just…watch.”
I’d never seen deer stay still so long.
I strained my eyes to see. The shadows, tilled earth and wilted corn husks broke up the terrain making it hard to see what was hidden in plain sight. I’d see movement then have to dismiss it as wind kicking up gentle curtains of soil or the shifting of a shadow from the small movements in the night.
Slowly a thin sharp shadow moved, followed by another, then another. They moved in concert from that enormous void that had followed me.
The deer stood transfixed before it all happened at once.
A mixture of humanlike screams erupted as each of their bodies were slammed into the ground. Viscera painted the wind. In another moment the light went out and I heard Will sigh.
The wind whistled and died, but we could still hear it out there breathing heavily as it gorged itself. From where I stood I could only see a throbbing silhouette breaking the horizon as it went to work. A crisp snap rang out as it pulled limb by limb from the carcass. The throbbing of the shape slowed as a new sound arose. A contented hum made its presence felt through the rattling of the windows and doors and threatened to overwhelm my own beating heart.
The sound rose as the shape slowly moved closer.
“What do we..”
Will shushed me.
I jumped and stifled a scream as a wet, boneless appendage slammed against the window curiously. The doorknob rattled though this time not from the creatures’ purr but from it’s clumsy efforts to open the door and join us inside.
The ceiling creaked above us under a massive weight.
It groaned as if remembering something and suddenly began moving away back towards the trees. There were no footfalls, just the gently receding sound of a blissful purr.
When it finally entered the world beyond its movements melted into those of the swaying branches becoming indiscernible. The more I tried to focus on it the harder it was to recall its form or the impossibility I’d just witnessed.
Will smiled and patted me on the shoulder sadly, “Welcome to Murkintok.”
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Today was supposed to be different. I was sure of it. The start of something new. My only opportunity to move out of my little dead-end corner of Appalachia rested on me arriving for the night shift on time.
I sped over the rolling road in a panic. Dense old growth rushed past in a blur periodically broken by small plots of pasture, apple orchards and fields that a few months earlier were brimming with corn. Shadows danced out there in the dim moonlight and the closer I got to the airfield the more separated from the small outlying town I felt.
My steering wheel was cold and it vibrated wildly in rhythm with my heart. I tapped it impatiently.
The rusted hulk nearly left the road each time I crested a hillock. My suspension groaned under the salt spurred corrosion and strain.
I can get a new car if this all works out.
I nearly missed my turn. Fishtailing, I plodded off the main road onto an aptly named “Airport Drive”.
I came to a halt at the designated stall and turned the car off.
A minute to spare.
I looked out into the darkness beyond the parking area and a tingle ran down my spine. The shadows that were once dancing as I passed were still now and the air oppressive. My hands were tingled with cold yet brimmed with sweat. Before opening the door, I took a few deep breaths, flattened my hair, and made sure my uniform was sharp. Looking into my image in the rearview mirror I cleared my throat.
“Alright buddy. You’ve been drifting from service job to service job in this dying county for half a decade. Somethings got to change. *You’ve* got to change. You’ve got a daughter now, you can’t be out there chasing bar weasels and getting drunk every other night. It’s time to up your game. You aren’t the little boy who had to stand in the corner with his nose to the wall every time you messed up anymore. Now your choices matter for her life too. The pay and experience here are going to help springboard you off into something bigger and brighter. You can do this.”
My car door shrieked open causing the chirping and croaks in the forest around the airfield to briefly fall silent. The crunch of gravel followed me across the unpaved, unmarked parking spaces poorly illuminated by one lonely floodlight. I made my way to the entrance of the terminal and pulled open the door to the chime of an old brass bell.
“Oh, hey buddy.” He glanced at the clock. “You’re early.” Stepping into the room I saw Gus casually looking up from his crossword, bifocals resting on his fat, bright red nose.
“Yessir. I figured maybe if things weren’t too busy we could get started early. I’ve heard night shift can be a lot to take in.”
His brows furrowed and his mouth hung half open.
“Well….alright, I guess. But we’ll be easing you in. Just the basics for the first week.” He held up a finger, “Will and I are gonna rotate each night, until we know you’ve got the hang of it, then we’ll start giving you more responsibilities – if you’re up to it.”
We spent several hours on the night shift responsibilities for the airfield. Many of the duties weren’t too complicated. When we went to the control room at the base of the single tower overlooking the tarmac we flipped several very clearly marked switches turning the runway lights on and off. Then we walked over the several generators tucked away behind baggage claim to check their fuel and oil levels.
“Checking these emergency generators things each night seems a bit overkill, no?” I asked.
Gus smiled. “These aren’t for emergencies. This is our power. Yea, this past winter much to our surprise we found that some of the power poles came down. Some heavy rainfall right before the first snow turned the ground to soup and the just sort of…fell over.”
“They really shouldn’t do that.”
Gus shrugged. “Yea well, corners get cut all over the place. Damn things still aren’t back up, so here we are.”
As we walked back over to the portables for baggage claim and arrivals/departures. Another tingle ran down my spine. Instinctively I looked around and caught sight of something out in the dark. It was the feeling of being watched. I tried to focus my eyes on the darkness. I saw some gently pulsating shadows near the trees but nothing more.
The chirping and croaks were nowhere to be heard and I shivered.
“Come on kid, I ain’t got all night.”
I came to and trotted over to where Gus had stopped. “Sorry, I thought I saw…something.”
We continued onward, restocking the restrooms, went over baggage tagging and safe lifting procedures and the other mundane parts of preparing for the night’s departures and arrivals.
Finally, we wrapped up my first training session with perimeter checks.
Gus’ labored breathing alternated with his footfalls on the blacktop as we walked down the small runway.
“Every 3 hours you are going to be making this walk.” He gestured around. “You start over at the ATC tower and head out to the tree line, then follow that parallel to the tarmac until you pass the last of the landing lights and keep going until you hit the transmission shack. Don’t get distracted and go off following the transmission lines. Had a guy do that a year or two ago and it took us a week only to find his ass mumbling by the side of the road talking about the linemen – boy wasn’t right after that.”
He paused thoughtfully for a moment.
“Anywho, after the transmission shack you hook right following the shore of the river until you hit Eddie’s orchard then head back. You’ll pass his cornfield and follow that until you see the two terminal portables, then you check the parking lot and come back to the office to enter it all in the logbook. Just need to make sure there ain’t nothing out there that shouldn’t be.”
We continued walking in silence for a few minutes. “So what do I do if I find something? Are we looking for the Wilson boys or something? I thought they stopped causing trouble after you…”
“Well, you need to enter it in the logbook for one.”
“Bears? What do I do if it’s bears?”
He stopped. “Bears? What the hell are you rambling about? We don’t get bears this time of year. Oh, and be sure to bring your bear spray.”
“Even though there aren’t bears?”
“It’s under the counter next to the logbook.” He paused again. “If you see any wildlife, just take the truck out there and honk at it to get it away from the runway. Be sure to use your high beams, too. Very important. You see any people you get back to the office and call the Sheriff – don’t need to be a hero. You hear anything weird out there in the dark you leave it be, if it’s off property it’s not our problem.”
“Any questions?” he asked as we got back to the office.
A few.
“No, I’m good.”
“Great, Will’s in the control tower if anything comes up. No flights scheduled for tonight so it should be awfully quiet. Here’s the keys to the castle. Adios.”
He placed a massive key ring into my hand that had more keys than there were doors on the property and took off.
I sat down behind the counter, looked at the broken clock and sighed.
I was able to knock out the task list before midnight and had 6 more hours to kill before the end of my shift. There was no cell service, because of course not. I tried reading an old Town and Country magazine I found stashed under the desk and found most of the pages had been covered in circles and doodles by someone who must have been just as bored as I was on some unknown shift prior.
I decided to sweep up and clean the counters to keep myself busy and after I was done it was only 12:15.
I groaned.
The silence was oppressive. Outside the window was an empty, dark expanse with a slowly strobing series of red lights marking the flight line. I felt safer indoors but even then as I stared into the dark something felt off. If I turned my gaze from the windows I could see something out of the corner of my eyes. Branches swaying in the breeze.
There was no wind here.
12:34.
I pulled the logbook out from its shelf and placed it on the counter entering my start time, grabbed my flashlight and headed out into the frigid night.
The occasional whistling of the wind punctuated my footfalls. I passed red light posts every few yards on a never-ending runway. I kept walking for what felt like half an hour, losing count of the lights I’d passed. I turned back out of curiosity and still saw the slowly receding light of the air traffic control tower confirming that yes, all was well. After the runway ended I continued into the dark until coming to the boarded up transmission shack and the power lines that ran off into the forest.
I came the edge of the marsh and began following it. Minutes passed. I turned to get my bearings on the tower and found it’s lonely beacon, but I also noticed a void in the dark – not a blackness per-se, black is a color. No, it was a complete lack of color, a hole in existence out past the power lines. It was getting larger.
I picked up my pace.
I got to the orchard and looked back finding that the lights were out. All of them were out. And that thing in the forest was growing near.
I stood there and watched it for several minutes waiting for it to move. It didn’t.
I turned back now walking as fast as I could. After a dozen yards I stopped and turned around.
It was closer, I was sure of it. Much closer.
I turned and began to jog forgetting everything Gus had told me. It was gaining on me.
Now I was in a full-blown run down the flight line, glancing back every few moments, still unable to see it but sure it was there. The thing that had been watching me since I got here. The thing that drove a cold shock down my spine. This was it.
My legs pumped like pistons and the sting of cold air shot through my chest with each strained, gasping breath.
I passed the recently harvested cornfield, in which stood two perfectly still Deer judging me for my frantic escape.
It was gaining on me.
Finally I came to the portables. I slammed into the nearest door but it stood firm. I slammed my shoulder into it three more times and it didn’t budge. I remembered my key chain.
I pulled it out and started flipping through the keys. *too many keys*.
First key. No.
Second key. No.
Third key. No.
The fourth key worked, the tumbler clicked and I was in. Slamming the door back in place, I frantically locked it.
My hands were shaking and even though I was panting, I went to the window. The void cast long shadows across the field as it stood transfixed not on me, but on the deer.
“Shhhh” a man’s voice whispered from behind me.
“Oh SWEET JESUS FU-“ I screamed as a hand clamped down on my mouth.
“SHHH.” Sharper this time, commanding. “It’s me.” Will whispered, releasing his hand from my mouth.
“What..” I replied quietly as I turned to see him using his phone to maneuver the drone. “What’s going on? You scared the shit out of me. Nice to meet you by the way I’m..”
He smiled, “You gotta be more careful buddy, Didn’t Gus tell you not to go out into the woods?” Now that I could hear him clearly, his odd vowel pronunciation took me off guard. He’d fit right in, in Venice beach. Surfers. He sounded exactly like how I imagined California Surfers sounded. Very out of place for this part of the country. I shook the thought from my mind.
“I didn’t, I..”
He shushed me and pointed to the deer.
“Just…watch.”
I’d never seen deer stay still so long.
I strained my eyes to see. The shadows, tilled earth and wilted corn husks broke up the terrain making it hard to see what was hidden in plain sight. I’d see movement then have to dismiss it as wind kicking up gentle curtains of soil or the shifting of a shadow from the small movements in the night.
Slowly a thin sharp shadow moved, followed by another, then another. They moved in concert from that enormous void that had followed me.
The deer stood transfixed before it all happened at once.
A mixture of humanlike screams erupted as each of their bodies were slammed into the ground. Viscera painted the wind. In another moment the light went out and I heard Will sigh.
The wind whistled and died, but we could still hear it out there breathing heavily as it gorged itself. From where I stood I could only see a throbbing silhouette breaking the horizon as it went to work. A crisp snap rang out as it pulled limb by limb from the carcass. The throbbing of the shape slowed as a new sound arose. A contented hum made its presence felt through the rattling of the windows and doors and threatened to overwhelm my own beating heart.
The sound rose as the shape slowly moved closer.
“What do we..”
Will shushed me.
I jumped and stifled a scream as a wet, boneless appendage slammed against the window curiously. The doorknob rattled though this time not from the creatures’ purr but from it’s clumsy efforts to open the door and join us inside.
The ceiling creaked above us under a massive weight.
It groaned as if remembering something and suddenly began moving away back towards the trees. There were no footfalls, just the gently receding sound of a blissful purr.
When it finally entered the world beyond its movements melted into those of the swaying branches becoming indiscernible. The more I tried to focus on it the harder it was to recall its form or the impossibility I’d just witnessed.
Will smiled and patted me on the shoulder sadly, “Welcome to Murkintok.”
2023.06.04 03:57 Wavy77777 Top 20 songs 2014-2023 (subjective rankings)
Let's make a list for the last 10 Years!
So I wanted to look at the last ten contests to draw out the essence from those shows, or at least what was the most enjoyable moments for me personally. At first I thought it was too big of a task to make one big mega ranking, giving points all over again to songs I've almost forgotten, but then I decided to do this a little methodically, so it became a little more doable. So first thing, I had to listen to all the songs. Or maybe not all songs, that would take weeks, but let's at least do the short version: recaps.
Nominating
My first task was to watch recaps from all shows to remember what songs were worthy and who was not good enough for such a list. I nominated X amount of songs from each year, depending on the quality of the songs. Then I ended up with 94 songs. The spread per year was as follows: 2014: 7 songs, 2015: 14 songs, 2016: 4 songs, 2017: 13 songs, 2018: 7 songs, 2019: 7 songs, 2020: 13 songs, 2021: 8 songs, 2022: 11 songs, 2023: 10 songs. Please note that since there was no contest in 2020 I was less familiar with these songs, so I had a lower threshold for nominating songs from this year. Also the number of songs nominated doesn't necessarily reflect my overall ranking of that contest as a whole.
Giving points
After finding what songs was nominated I watched each and every song (that I had nominated) once again in its entirety, then giving a somewhat honest score of how much I enjoy the song now. I used a 1-20 score, meaning I had more increments than I normally do when I score Eurovision songs on a 1-12 (-9&11) scale. That was to be able to make more distinctions between songs that were close to another, avoiding too many "point lumps". I also tried to avoid influence from how I initially rated the songs when they were released. I was actually quite happy to see that I both rated some songs higher and lower than what I did initially, meaning that my opinion on a song can change over time. I even found myself rating songs from 2023 different than how I rated them just a couple weeks ago. As for versions, I always try to find the best version, whether it's the music video, national final, semi final or grand final version. The lowest I ranked any song in this ranking was 9 points. Any song lower than that would not be able to make the nomination. Again most of the lower ranked songs was from 2020, since that was the year least familiar to me, with the most amount of songs falling outside my quality criteria. The average amount of points was 13,7. The median was actually right between 13 and 14. The spread was as follows: 9 points: 2 entries, 10 points: 4 entries, 11 points: 4 entries, 12 points: 12 entries, 13 points: 24 entries, 14 points: 17 entries, 15 points: 13 entries, 16 points: 9 entries, 17 points: 4 entries, 18 points: 3 entries, 19 points: 1 entry, 20 points: 1 entry
Fine tuning
Since this was about finding a top 20 list I then went back on all the songs I put up around 15-20 points and tried to split hairs between the different songs I had listed that high. This was the most enjoyable part, since the songs up there are so good, but it's also so difficult to distinguish different types of songs when you have a ballad, a medium tempo bop, an industrial techno song and a singer song writer folk song. I did end up with a list I feel good about though, so I will list it below from number 1-20 with a small text to why I like each song. I first make the list, then write a text to each below the list.
The List
Other songs that almost made the list: (Sweden 2022 Cornelia Jakobs-Hold me closer), (Ukraine 2016 Jamala-1944), (Denmark 2018 Rasmussen-Higher Ground),(Moldova 2020 Natalia Gordienko-Prison), (France 2022 Alvan and Ahez-Fulenn),(The Netherlands 2022 S10-De Diepte),(Finland 2023 Käärija-Cha Cha Cha), (Georgia 2023 Iru-Echo),(Latvia 2023 Sudden Lights-Aija),(Norway 2023 Alessandra-Queen of the Kings), (Spain 2023 Blanca Paloma-Eaea), (Ireland 2015 Molly Sterling-Playing with numbers), (Armenia 2017 Artsvik, Fly with me)
About each song
submitted by Wavy77777 to eurovision [link] [comments]
So I wanted to look at the last ten contests to draw out the essence from those shows, or at least what was the most enjoyable moments for me personally. At first I thought it was too big of a task to make one big mega ranking, giving points all over again to songs I've almost forgotten, but then I decided to do this a little methodically, so it became a little more doable. So first thing, I had to listen to all the songs. Or maybe not all songs, that would take weeks, but let's at least do the short version: recaps.
Nominating
My first task was to watch recaps from all shows to remember what songs were worthy and who was not good enough for such a list. I nominated X amount of songs from each year, depending on the quality of the songs. Then I ended up with 94 songs. The spread per year was as follows: 2014: 7 songs, 2015: 14 songs, 2016: 4 songs, 2017: 13 songs, 2018: 7 songs, 2019: 7 songs, 2020: 13 songs, 2021: 8 songs, 2022: 11 songs, 2023: 10 songs. Please note that since there was no contest in 2020 I was less familiar with these songs, so I had a lower threshold for nominating songs from this year. Also the number of songs nominated doesn't necessarily reflect my overall ranking of that contest as a whole.
Giving points
After finding what songs was nominated I watched each and every song (that I had nominated) once again in its entirety, then giving a somewhat honest score of how much I enjoy the song now. I used a 1-20 score, meaning I had more increments than I normally do when I score Eurovision songs on a 1-12 (-9&11) scale. That was to be able to make more distinctions between songs that were close to another, avoiding too many "point lumps". I also tried to avoid influence from how I initially rated the songs when they were released. I was actually quite happy to see that I both rated some songs higher and lower than what I did initially, meaning that my opinion on a song can change over time. I even found myself rating songs from 2023 different than how I rated them just a couple weeks ago. As for versions, I always try to find the best version, whether it's the music video, national final, semi final or grand final version. The lowest I ranked any song in this ranking was 9 points. Any song lower than that would not be able to make the nomination. Again most of the lower ranked songs was from 2020, since that was the year least familiar to me, with the most amount of songs falling outside my quality criteria. The average amount of points was 13,7. The median was actually right between 13 and 14. The spread was as follows: 9 points: 2 entries, 10 points: 4 entries, 11 points: 4 entries, 12 points: 12 entries, 13 points: 24 entries, 14 points: 17 entries, 15 points: 13 entries, 16 points: 9 entries, 17 points: 4 entries, 18 points: 3 entries, 19 points: 1 entry, 20 points: 1 entry
Fine tuning
Since this was about finding a top 20 list I then went back on all the songs I put up around 15-20 points and tried to split hairs between the different songs I had listed that high. This was the most enjoyable part, since the songs up there are so good, but it's also so difficult to distinguish different types of songs when you have a ballad, a medium tempo bop, an industrial techno song and a singer song writer folk song. I did end up with a list I feel good about though, so I will list it below from number 1-20 with a small text to why I like each song. I first make the list, then write a text to each below the list.
The List
- Belgium 2017, Blanche - City Lights, 20 points
- Estonia 2015, Elina Born and Stig Rästa - Goodbye to Yesterday, 19 points
- Azerbaijan 2021, Efendi - Mata Hari, 18 points
- Slovenia 2015, Maraaya - Here for You, 18 points
- Serbia 2022, Konstrakta - In Corpore Sano, 18 points
- Sweden 2014, Sanna Nielsen - Undo. 17 points
- Iceland 2019, Hatari - Hatrið mun sigra , 17 points
- Azerbaijan 2017, Dihaj - Skeletons, 17 points
- Montenegro 2015, Knez - Adio, 17 points
- Czechia 2023, Vesna - My Sister's Crown, 16 points
- Italy 2015, Il Volo - Grande Amore, 16 points
- Norway 2019, Keiino - Spirit in the Sky 16 points
- Estonia 2017, Koit Toome and Laura - Verona, 16 points
- Bulgaria 2016, Poli Genova - If Love was a Crime, 16 points
- Portugal 2017, Salvador Sobral - Amor pelos dois, 16 points
- Cyprus 2022, Andromache - Ela, 16 points
- Ukraine 2021, Go_A - Shum, 16 points
- Georgia 2015, Nina Sublatti - Warrior, 15 points
- Austria 2016, Zoë - Loin d'Ici, 15 points
- Spain 2015, Edurne - Amanecer, 15 points
Other songs that almost made the list: (Sweden 2022 Cornelia Jakobs-Hold me closer), (Ukraine 2016 Jamala-1944), (Denmark 2018 Rasmussen-Higher Ground),(Moldova 2020 Natalia Gordienko-Prison), (France 2022 Alvan and Ahez-Fulenn),(The Netherlands 2022 S10-De Diepte),(Finland 2023 Käärija-Cha Cha Cha), (Georgia 2023 Iru-Echo),(Latvia 2023 Sudden Lights-Aija),(Norway 2023 Alessandra-Queen of the Kings), (Spain 2023 Blanca Paloma-Eaea), (Ireland 2015 Molly Sterling-Playing with numbers), (Armenia 2017 Artsvik, Fly with me)
About each song
- Blanche-City Lights. It was actually quite easy for me to put this on top, and it was the song I was the most sure about. I consider this song pure pop magic. Blanche's dark toned down vocals to the dark minor chords and the effective beat in a sort minimalist electro production is so effective on so many levels I don't know where to begin. I have listened to some of the other songs she has released after Eurovision, and she is a really gifted musician.
- Elina Born and Stig Rästa-Goodbye to Yesterday. This almost cinematic singer songwriter tune with it's relatively trad arrangement reminds me of Lee and Nancy (Lee Hazelwood and Nancy Sinatra) who made some pretty cool albums back in the 6os and 70s. It almost has this road movie feel to it and is an ubercool feel and very melodic verse. Stig's toned down voice and Elina's emotional performance made it an instant hit. If you want to see where Elina got her idea from her Grand finale costume, take a look at Tura Satana from Russ Meyer's Faster Pussycat Kill Kill.
- Efendi-Mata Hari. Actually everything about this song screams The Netherlands. It's song written by Dutch people about a Dutch spy performed in the Netherlands, it even charted in the Netehrlands. I wouldn't be surprised if Efendi actually has a Dutch grandfather or mother...;) Jokes aside, this oriental-ish bop is about as catchy and fiery and visually seductive as they come. There's no shortage of spice and sauce on this quality song or it's visual presentation. I still get thrown back in my chair everything I hear the "MATA HARI" opening.
- Maraaya-Here for You. The opening suggests some sort of jazz ballad with Marjetka's vocal fry "When you're down down low..."over the minimalist piano intro. But then comes the drums and the key changes and the vocal sound and style changes just like that to a darker, more energetic melody before we get a more orchestrated version of the intro now as a chorus. The el violin, piano licks highlights this great song along with Marjetka's great voice. The bridge is not too bad either. There's actually a lot going on here so it's kind of hard to analyse, but the result is great. And you just gotta love Marjetka's head phone coupled with the wind machine with her ginger hair blowing in the wind.
- Konstrakta-In Corpore Sano. This must be one of the more curious ESC songs of all time with it's relatively minimalist melody with Serbian lyrics about health and body fixation with its electronic choir like background vocals but it's the ultimate clap release chorus that makes us go "Biti zdrava" while we frenetically do a robotic golf clap that shows this strange song its appeal. It's just very cool and catchy, and it shows us all a side of ourselves we didn't know we had in us. Pure art, pure performance, pure magic.
- Sanna Nielsen-Undo. A fantastic pop ballad with beautiful minor moods and a dramatic chorus, plus the archetypical modulation towards the end. One of those songs that simply stands the test of time and I can listen to over and over again. Sanna is a very good singer who focuses a lot on schlager type music in her repertoire. I prefer this over many other songs from Sweden. It might have to do with my preference for drama and sadness over joyful and cheery songs. If you look at the heritage of Abba and what made them good songwriters it had a lot to do with their knack for making these bittersweet type songs with both sadness and joyfulness to them. This is a good example of such a song.
- Hatari- Hatrið mun sigra. How about sending an industrial techno song about how society will collapse? Why not? Iceland did it and they got away with it...;) At least almost as they got fined during the voting for showing a Palestinian flag during the voting. So the fine wasn't about the song. The song is very intense with it's hard electronic bassline with Matthias Haraldsson's distorted shouting in the verse, then to Klemens Hannigan's seductive and high, melodic singing in the chorus, making the contrast between the two singing styles extremely enjoyable and almost refined. The synth licks complementing the singing is also very well arranged. A true classic. Oh and I didn't even mention the visuals with the red blinking lights, the fire, the BDSM outfits that makes it look like some kind of alternative from East Berlin 1982.
- Dihaj-Skeletons. 80s electro style pop tune with jet like bass synths backing an angelic voice and baroque like synth licks that comes in at the pre chorus part before it explodes into an energetic chorus. Very cool. Dihaj is also a very good singer with a good range. I never quite understood the staging at the contest though. I expected something completely different.
- Knez-Adio. For me this is the quintessential Balkan ballad. The string arrangements, the soothing rhythm, the harmonic background vocals and the strong melody just blend together so well, and gives you images of mountains, rivers, waterfalls and works well into this mid tempo ballad with pretty minor chords and a pretty, sentimental delivery from Knez, who I think is one of the stronger vocalists the contest have seen.
- Vesna-My Sister's Crown. So onto this year's only entry on this list. As much as I liked a lot of the songs from 2023, a lot of them ended around the 30th spot in this list. Vesna was my lone candidate actually ending up on the list. To me they were always this year's number one, with their anthem about sisterhood, whether it was about slavic sisterhood or not is not so important to me. It was the song itself that got to me. It probably hit at the right time since I've become very interested in Czech history, culture and language the last years as well. As someone who is into harmonic music with folk elements this really hit the spot for me. I was so happy to see their final performance with their long braids and pink jumpsuits, plus very good choreography. The dancing at the end of the song really got to me, and I still have to focus really hard not to get emotional everytime I see that part. Dobra prace, holky!
- Il Volo-Grande Amore. Is it possible to get more Italian than this? And I mean it as a compliment. With great drama, big time forte this operapop schlager with grand voices hit big time in 2015 and won the popular votes of the contest. Some wondered if it would be too kitchy to send something so rooted in an ancient music style from the 17th century to a modern song contest that focuses greatly on visuals. The answer was an absolute no. I must admit that this was not among my favourites initially in 2015, but it slowly grew on me and now I really love it. The arrangement here is also interesting with a relativley monotonous bassline topped with the grand string arrangements that leads us to the crescendo.
- Keiino-Spirit in the Sky. My own country's only entry for this list. Combing EDM and joik actually works, and it's mindblowing how catchy this song gets when all the voices come together in the chorus. The melody in the chorus is slightly similar to Saara Alto's Monsters from 2018, but the song itself is very different. The Sami culture is quite exotic and far away even for us Norwegians, and even though the song is not a Sami song per se, all the elements of joik, Northern lights and shaman symbolism sends us into this mystical journey into the far north of ice, snow and winter darkness.
- Koit Toome and Laura-Verona. This pop love drama that uses Romeo and Juliet's city as it's background, was absolutely robbed of a place in the grand final when televotes gave it a 6th place in the second semi final while the juries only gave it 16 points, ending up 17th on the jury ranking, ultimately ending up only 14th on the combined list. As you can see, I have it higher on my Song of the decade-list than juries had it in that semi final. I also remember how bad the sound was, microphones not working, maybe even monitors not working when they were to perform in the semi final. For the best version of this song, watch the music video. The video of the semi final performance only makes me angry. Now, about the song itself, it's super catchy, almost anthemic in it's "o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o, we lost and we found our Verona" chorus. A great pop composition that has really stood the test of time.
- Poli Genova-If Love was a crime. Another song that I didn't love at first, but that has really grown on me over time. A quite dance friendly pop tune with almost soul like elements in the chorus, with it's unison singing and that trademark dance that come along with the performance. The song starts with a piano backing track, drums and that flute like synth that plays some infectious riff that sounds like a bird whistle or something. The true genius of this song is the pre chorus when she sings the title of the song. That part has some fantastic harmony arrangements and a great melody. It also took me a while to understand that the chorus was sung in Bulgarian. I never really understood why she sang "All I'm in Luther, I'm in Luther"...;)
- Salvador Sobral-Amor pelos dois. The only winner song on this list. When I made this list I didn't actually believe that this song would make it onto the top 20, but here it is! Some look at this as a sentimental journey back to old style Eurovision with no electronic music, no dancers, no smoke machines, basically nothing fancy going on whatsoever, and to some people, maybe even boring. I just look at this as a very pretty song about love that is sung in the prettiest and most heartfelt way possible. At the time of the final Salvador Sobral was due to a heart transplant caused by a weak heart, so at the time of the performance there where doubts about how long he could survive. Fortunately this looks like it has succeeded, and the performances I've seen of him since he looks a lot more healthy than he did in 2017. Thank god.
- Andromache-Ela. My second NQ on the list. It's claimed that the reason she didn't go the final was due to a bad vocal performance in the semi final, but it was the juries that really put her down with only giving her 9 points, and juries don't go off the televised performance do they? Or was it only in the grand finale that there's an extra jury performance? Anyhow, this beautiful Greek-balkan style pop song really deserved a lot more than it got from the juries and should have been in the grand finale. Pretty and delicate strings opens up before a pop track emerges with Andromache's pretty voice singing a heavenly melody and the super catchy chorus sends us straight to the Greek gods of lush voices and soft femininity. Nice use of echo and reverberation in this track.
- Go_A-Shum. Ukrainian techno folk sang entirely in Ukrainian is just one of these things I never imagined myself that I would enjoy, and going into then final I considered this song more of a curiosity than a song that I would thoroughly enjoy, but I was wrong. Folk music always takes a bit of a different ear to enjoy than "normal pop". The style of singing and the rhythm has a monotonous, almost chanting feel to it, and can sound off to many western ears. Yet this song really hit a nerve with me eventually. I just love what Ukraine has done to Eurovision, and I hope they keep sending great songs like this.
- Nina Sublatti-Warrior. A very powerful song with great attitude. A bumblebee like synth opens up before we have tribal drums and Nina singing about fighting and something about "oximated". It doesn't matter cause I believe everything she sings anyway. The chorus comes in hard and powerful with Nina singing her heart out and again those big drums. A pretty straight forward angry war-pop song, but very haunting and no-nonsense. My ESC universe is better with songs like these. Arguably the best song from Sakartvelo we've had, even though Iru challenged her pretty good this year.
- Zoë-Loin d'Ici. How many entries has there been that is sung in a language that is not a national language that is not English? I have watched the movie The Piano Teacher which is an Austrian movie where the dialogue is in French, but I've never had the impression that Austria had this thing about the french langauge or what? Nevermind, Zoë's tune Loin d'Ici is a dreamy, heavenly pop song with an amazing melody and stellar rhythm arrangement. I recognise her vocal style more as French than Austrian, but that could be the language. Anyway I'm not complaining, cause I'm a big fan of french vocals in the first place. This would fit in a movie I think with it's rich colourful style it could paint a faraway country in your dreams in a very nice way.
- Edurne-Amanecer. The sixth entry from 2015, so I guess that year wins it for me. And even though this song sounds very Spanish to me it's actually composed by Swedish composers. It has an ethnic style with a big dramatic chorus and a melody in minor chords. This is the same year Grande Amore from Italy and even though the songs are quite different I do also see similarities with the big crescendo like chorus and the songs being sung in each country's national language. It didn't perform very well in the final with only 15 points, of which 8 came from neighbours France and Portugal. Big countries also have neighbours! However in my opinion this is the best Spanish entry the last 10 years, even though I both nominated 2022 and 2023 also, so it's safe to say that things are moving in the right direction.
2023.06.03 21:20 slightlyassholic [The Great Erectus and Faun] Isekai Armageddon 5
It's really starting to thump, backwards thump, and bump now!
First Previous
***
The fortress city Raven’s Peak was under siege by what seemed to be an unending horde of demons (because it was).
In the main chapter house of the Champion’s Guild, the long benches and tables normally crowded with plates, tankards, and champions were covered with blood-soaked bedding upon which lay dozens of wounded, champions, and normal people alike as a few healers, both champion and otherwise, rushed about desperately trying to save at least a few lives.
“The potions!” a pretty young woman who usually handed out quests wailed, “They have stopped replenishing!”
“What?!?” Valeria Heartsong shouted with a voice filled with confusion and terror. “How?!?”
“I don’t know!” the guild secretary cried, “They… They just stopped!”
“No!” Jason Wellheart cried. “My spells… They’re… Out?!?”
He looked helplessly at the city guardsman bleeding out on the richly decorated table in front of him.
“Mine too!” Sheila Noblesoul yelled.
“Not just my healing,” Lucinda Lighthands said, “diagnose, appraise… all of it… gone.”
“What’s happening?” a guild healer cried as desperately tried to hold in the blood flowing from her patient.
“Apply pressure to the wound!” a wounded champion said as he struggled to his feet. “Get some straps or rope for tourniquets!”
He wiped the blood from his eyes.
“And get me some alcohol, needle, thread, clean bandages, any herbs you have left… all of it!”
“Chad?” Lucinda asked, confused.
“That’s Sergeant Chad,” he said with a grim smile. “And I’ve done this before. We need to set up triage, Lucinda!”
“Yes… Sergeant?”
“Take some of the guild healers and… and determine who we can save and who we can’t.”
“Chad?”
“We can’t save everyone. We can’t even save who we could a minute ago. We have to make some hard calls, and we need to make them fast. You!” he shouted to a low-ranking champion hiding under a bench.
“Y-yes?”
“Get some men and run to every single herbalist and alchemist you can. Get supplies… Take them if you have to. You, with the green hair, you’re a rogue, right?”
“(Yelp)… Um…” a young woman said bravely.
“Get some of your guild, keep your heads down, and spread the word. Bring the wounded here. Also, find any former military… from our world. Tell them that I’m setting up a field hospital, such as it is. Have them help gather the wounded, and we need a perimeter around this building. Holding the town is no longer possible. Fuck it. Bring everyone you can. We will hold this position as long as we can. We might even be able to…”
He turned to a battered witch with a freshly removed arm.
“Azure Fire, right?”
“Yeah?”
“You are supposed to be a genius or something. Work on a way of getting us, all of us, out of here! There must be somewhere where these things aren’t. Find it and get us there!”
“Not going to be easy,” she mused, “The guild facilities have run dry, and I don’t think I can cast a gate anymore.”
“Well, try to come up with something.”
“On it,” Azure said thoughtfully, “Maybe if we pooled our lifeforce, we could… hmm… A few of us would die, but we could… hmm…”
Chad Firecrest, formerly Sergeant Chad Thorpe, turned away and limp-strode forth in a desperate attempt to do the impossible.
“Chad!... Um… I mean, Sergeant?” Lord Geoffrey asked hesitantly.
“Either works.”
“What… What’s going on? Why aren’t our spells working?”
“I don’t know.”
“I do,” a strange eldritch voice said as the demi-entity Hilde and Illandria emerged from a green column of flames to the shouts and drawn blades of champion and guild staff alike.
“Hold!” Sergeant Chad shouted as he walked towards Hilde.
“I know you,” he said.
“Is that all I get from you?” Hilde snickered, light drooling from her mouth. “You know me? You knew me. Am I that forgettable?”
“No!” Chad exclaimed. “I mean…”
“I know,” Hilde snickered, “Just trying to inject some much-needed levity.”
Chad chuckled. “I always let the wrong one get away, don’t I?”
“I didn’t,” Hilde grinned, a green light blazing from behind her teeth.
“I deserved that,” he smirked. “So, you know what happened? And more importantly, what the FUCK happened to you?”
“You aren’t going to like this…”
***
“You mean that it was all a lie?!?” a guild waitress wailed, “that I’m a lie?!?”
“It was all a lie,” Hilde said gently, “But you? You are very much real.”
“So that’s then?” Chad asked grimly. “We’re done for?”
“The game is done,” Hilde replied, “However, we remain, at least for a little while longer.”
“But without our powers…”
Backward Thump…
“About that,” Hilde smiled grimly, “I may have an idea.”
She closed her eyes and raised her hands.
She cracked one eye open and smiled.
“This is going to hurt.”
Then, Hilde, for lack of a better word, exploded.
Every champion’s eyes blazed green.
“My spells are back!” a healer shouted as he cast healing on the dying soldier in front of them, causing the soldier to scream as green light burst from every wound, ripping it back together (it’s about as comfortable as it sounds).
The soldier started ripping off his armor as his body started to grow, covered with rippling muscles that weren’t there before.
His eyes also started to glow…
***
“Ow!” Faun exclaimed, still wrapped in her snug and surprisngly comfy cocoon."
“Are you okay?” F10w3rchy1d asked weakly.
“I think a flea bit me or something.”
“My venom consumes all!” Nixx shouted with delight. “Soon, you will be liquid the same as your friend!”
“Okay, now you are really starting to annoy me,” Faun replied.
***
“Oh, Great Bunny,” the high priest of the Church of Bun intoned as adepts walked through the sacred hall of code swinging incense censers, the smoke flowing out in countless ones and zeros, “hallowed be thy code. May we lope down the sacred runs laid by you at the dawn of time. May our…”
The high priest’s voice trailed off as a pair of white-clad individuals entered the temple, one a demonic, red-skinned humanoid with horns and the other a glowing featureless holographic being, both bearing the crest of Cerberus, Frostie’s real enforcers (the ones she uses when she’s done playing).
They are NOT people you want walking into your temple. More importantly, they aren’t people you want looking at YOU.
“…M-may our code without error… and… and…”
“We regret disturbing your worship and breaching your sanctum,” the hologram said, “But time is of the essence, and the boss is angry…”
“And we think you know why,” the demon added with a grim fang-laden sneer.
***
“That’s all I know!” the high priest wailed from the pulpit of the now hastily evacuated temple (no way anyone was sticking around after the “hounds” showed up). “I swear!”
“And at no point did you think about informing someone about what was clearly an irregular event?” the demonic humanoid asked.
“It was the Almighty F10w3rchy1d!” the high priest exclaimed, “Second in might only to Frostie herself! Her commands are law, her words divine!”
“Oh, by Frostie’s Snow-Cones,” the hologram muttered. “Horns, was I ever that annoying?”
“Oh yeah,” the demonic humanoid snickered, “You don’t remember?”
“I must have dumped those files.”
“You don’t get off that easy,” the demon smirked, “Here.”
The two Cerberus agent’s eyes flashed in sync for a fraction of a second.
“Oh…” the hologram moaned, “That is so cringe!”
“And don’t you dare dump those files,” the demon chuckled.
“What files?”
“You asshole,” the red-skinned humanoid chuckled.
“You know it,” the hologram flickered happily, “and speaking of cringe …”
It turned to the high priest, who twitched miserably.
“It’s okay,” the hologram flashed, “As you said, the (snerk) Almighty F10w3rchy1d’s word is pretty much law to someone like you. You have done nothing wrong, inconvenient, but not wrong. Where did she take you? Where is this universe-spanning unbreachable (by you) firewall?"
“I… I don’t…”
“How can you not know?” the hologram dimmed at the miserable high priest. “Okay. We do this the hard way. I apologize in advance.”
“Apologize?!?” the high priest blurted in alarm, “What… Buuuuuunnnnnn!” he screamed as the hologram reached out with amoeba-like projections, plunging them into the high priest’s brain.
“Oof,” the demon winced. “That does NOT look fun.”
“It isn’t. However, I have what we seek.”
It withdrew his pseudopods, and the high priest slumped to the ground.
“Is he…”
“Nah,” the hologram replied, “He’s just… resting.”
“Resting as in resting or as in resting?”
“Which one means that he will get back up… eventually?”
“The first one,” the demon replied cheerfully. “Let’s go tell the boss.”
***
“Oh, dear,” the blue-skinned amphiboid lounging in Zeb’s office laughed. “I know where your missing bedbugs are.”
“Am I going to become upset by the answer?”
“Almost certainly.”
“Wait a moment,” Zeb said as he poured himself another shot and downed it.
“Hit me,” he said as he winced and slammed the gilded shot glass down onto his desk.
“They are trapped behind a firewall,” Hades replied, “presumably one that has been locked down, thus our inability to locate or communicate with our beloved troublemakers.”
“Which means they will all hit us at once…”
“Hopefully.”
“Oh, bother,” Zeb sighed as he picked up an ornate old-school rotary phone on his desk. “Hello, please put me through to the Reality Engineering Emergency Response Division, please…”
***
“Make a circle!” Pantsu shouted as they were swarmed by a horde of thousands so hastily respawned that they were now nothing but gross monstrosities of already gross monstrosities.
“They are trying to crush us!” a handmaiden shouted as she cut a dozen of the horde down, only for them to be replaced instantly.
Pantsu looked at the edges of the horde and scowled as she saw glowing distorted forms appearing and then “hardening” into more demons as quickly as they destroyed them.
“Bastard’s switched off the respawn timer!” Pantsu shouted as she unleashed a gout of fire, pointlessly evaporating a hundred of the unending horde. “Any time now, Flopsy! Quit jerking off and hack!”
“They are encrypted!” Flopsybun shouted back as he dodged a hurled spear. “I’m going to need...”
“Pantsu!” a booming voice bellowed as a monstrous humanoid abomination appeared, “Look upon me and despair, for it is your death that approaches!”
“I’m sorry, scrub,” Pantsu shouted back. “Do I know you?”
“I am Brixx, first and most favored of my master’s creations! He has sent me to defeat you and deliver you unto him where you will pay for your sins!”
“Oh, don’t you worry,” Pantsu laughed, “I will be paying him a visit in just a bit. Hopefully, F10w3rchy1d will leave a little bit of his ass for me!”
“You mean her?” Brixx chortled as an image of F10w3rchy1d appeared wrapped in her silken prison.
“Ha!” Pantsu laughed, “Oh, I’m going to give her so much shit over this!”
“You can chide her once you hang in my master’s larder,” Brix bellowed.
“You going to talk,” Pantsu snarled, “or are you going to fight?”
***
Pantsu and Brixx clashed the way only two demi-entities can, unleashing wave after wave of destruction as Pantsu’s tiny form whirled and darted around Brixx’s goliath-like frame.
As they fought, Pantsu smirked as light, her real blood, leaked from numerous wounds.
“Why do you smile, fool?” Brix shouted, “I have the advantage!”
“Look around, dumbass,” Pantsu laughed.
Brixx did and bellowed with rage. Pantsu had artfully led their battle into Brixx’s own forces…
…and all those attacks that “missed”? They didn’t miss what they were actually aiming at.
The number of attacking demons had been cut by over half, their spawn rate completely overwhelmed.
“Looks like your master is running out of juice,” Pantsu grinned as light spilled from her mouth and trickled down her chin.
“No matter,” Brixx laughed, “You are the real prize, and I have you!”
Brixx raised his hand and unleashed his secret weapon, a bolt of very non-immersive ICE.
“Shit!” Pantsu yelled as she collapsed. “STEVE! Get this asshole off of me while I…”
Riiiip…. ROOOOARRRRRRR!
Brixx stood there, dumbfounded, as a shadow fell over him.
“Whhyyyyy doonn’t youuu piiiiick oooon sooooomeoooone yoooourrr ooooown siiiiizeee…”
***
“Okay!” Pantsu shouted as she struggled to her feet. “Okay, Steve, I’m… Steve!”
Steve turned around with Brixx’s legs hanging out of his mouth, flailing helplessly.
Sluuurp
“You stole my kill, asshole!”
“Sooorrrry…”
“Steve!” Flopsybun shouted, “Let me link! I can get what I need as you digest him!”
“Does that mean we can get the hell out of here?” A demon shouted as they grappled with a half-formed demon twice its size.
“Flopsy?” Pantsu asked as she fell back, still injured.
“As long as Steve can keep him down, sure!”
“Let’s bounce!” Pantsu exclaimed as her eyes flashed…
…and nothing happened.
“This joke is getting real old real fast,” she grumbled. “Why can’t we port out?”
“There!” Flopsybun said as he held his prayer beads, “That one has us quarantined!... Crap.”
“What?” Pantsu yelled as she tried to literally pull herself together.
“That one has us quarantined too… and that one… and that one…”
“That’s not good,” Pantsu said as she looked nowhere for a moment. “Okay. Steve, you chew on Mister Fugly and keep the spawns off Flopsy. Flopsy, time for you to be one of Bunny’s kids. Break that quarantine, or whip up some ICE or…”
She ducked a bolt of raw chaos.
“…or whatever it is you fursuit-wearing freaks do. The rest of us keep them off of Steve and Flopsy for as long as we can. I don’t…”
There was suddenly a roaring, rocket-like sound above them as a giant blue dragon flew over, sweeping the field with white-hot flames.
“Darling!” Pantsu yelled happily and then cried out as a massive bolt shot from an even more massive demon, knocking the dragon prince to the ground and crushing dozens of demons in the process.
“Everyone...” Pantsu shouted.
“No!” the dragon prince said as he, breathing fire and casting spells, pulled down the demon that struck it. “I am already dying.”
“No, you aren’t!” Pantsu wailed as she charged from her monster’s perimeter, desperate to reach him.
“Knickers,” the dragon prince said lovingly as he unleashed demi-entity level hell upon the battlefield, “We both know that’s not true.”
“No…”
“Let me do this last thing for you,” the dragon prince said, “Let me die a dragon and not rot away in a chair. I… I love you, Knickers. I love you so much but fall back. I’ll take out the quarantine my way!”
“No!!!” Pantsu screamed as she launched herself toward him…
…only to be grabbed by one of Steve’s many twisted limbs.
“Let me go!” Pantsu screamed as she blew Steve’s hand apart (It’s okay. He has plenty of them.)
“Liiiiisssten to hiiiimmm,” Steve bubbled as a dozen more of his hands grabbed her. “Let hiiiim beee a draaagon.”
Cursing and struggling, Pantsu was dragged back into the middle of her monsters.
“Flopsy!” she screamed as she shook him.
“You are NOT helping!” Flopsybun shouted as he clutched his prayer beads.
“I thought you were supposed to be good!”
“I am!” Flopsybun shouted back, “But this code is awful! It’s just a solid block of spaghetti logic. No comments. A bunch of cut-and-paste bullshit, with half of it unused. Who wrote this?!?”
“Who do you think!” Pantsu yelled as she helplessly watched her beloved prince stumble. “Do something!!!” she desperately screamed as she shook Flopsybun again.
“Then shut up and let me work!!!” Flopsybun yelled as he shoved Pantsu away.
Pantsu blinked and backed away.
“You had better deliver,” Pantsu hissed and then rejoined the battle.
“Damn,” a demoness said as she glanced at Flopsybun approvingly… very approvingly. (Clover might just have some competition.)
Flopsybun didn’t notice.
He reached somewhere and pulled out a ragged pair of bunny ears and reverently placed them on his head, clutched his prayer beads, and, for the first time in a very long time, prayed, actually prayed.
Bunny, first and greatest of us, I… I’m in trouble. Please… I need you… Please... Help me...
Backward big motherfucking thump…
***
Back at the Temple of Bun, the high priest was desperately trying to restore some sort of decorum and calm after the little visit by Cerberus and them bitch slapping him on his own turf.
He decided that the best course of action was to “purify” the “profaned” temple by holding an emergency cleansing service inside the inner sanctum, where the actual crypt holding the remains of the code that was their goddess, the almighty Bunny, was kept in a room covered with faintly glowing pink bunny wallpaper.
“Oh, great and powerful Bunny…”
He hopped.
Dozens of adepts in the chamber hopped.
“First among pirates…”
(hop)
“Creator of the sacred daemons…”
(hop)
“Silent star that guides we who lurk in the shadows…”
(hop)
“Hacker! Creator! Teacher!... Goddess! She who ate not of the apple…”
(hop)
“But through her own power…”
(hop)
Backward big motherfucking thump…
Suddenly, a thumping sound could be heard from within the crypt, almost as if something was rolling in their grave.
The sanctum fell silent as everyone stared at the crypt with wide eyes.
The lid slowly opened…
…and a single paw could be seen emerging from the darkness within.
Soon another paw and a very annoyed head followed it.
“Goddammit, Frost, we had a…”
She looked around.
“Oh, you gotta be KIDDING ME!”
submitted by slightlyassholic to HFY [link] [comments]
First Previous
***
The fortress city Raven’s Peak was under siege by what seemed to be an unending horde of demons (because it was).
In the main chapter house of the Champion’s Guild, the long benches and tables normally crowded with plates, tankards, and champions were covered with blood-soaked bedding upon which lay dozens of wounded, champions, and normal people alike as a few healers, both champion and otherwise, rushed about desperately trying to save at least a few lives.
“The potions!” a pretty young woman who usually handed out quests wailed, “They have stopped replenishing!”
“What?!?” Valeria Heartsong shouted with a voice filled with confusion and terror. “How?!?”
“I don’t know!” the guild secretary cried, “They… They just stopped!”
“No!” Jason Wellheart cried. “My spells… They’re… Out?!?”
He looked helplessly at the city guardsman bleeding out on the richly decorated table in front of him.
“Mine too!” Sheila Noblesoul yelled.
“Not just my healing,” Lucinda Lighthands said, “diagnose, appraise… all of it… gone.”
“What’s happening?” a guild healer cried as desperately tried to hold in the blood flowing from her patient.
“Apply pressure to the wound!” a wounded champion said as he struggled to his feet. “Get some straps or rope for tourniquets!”
He wiped the blood from his eyes.
“And get me some alcohol, needle, thread, clean bandages, any herbs you have left… all of it!”
“Chad?” Lucinda asked, confused.
“That’s Sergeant Chad,” he said with a grim smile. “And I’ve done this before. We need to set up triage, Lucinda!”
“Yes… Sergeant?”
“Take some of the guild healers and… and determine who we can save and who we can’t.”
“Chad?”
“We can’t save everyone. We can’t even save who we could a minute ago. We have to make some hard calls, and we need to make them fast. You!” he shouted to a low-ranking champion hiding under a bench.
“Y-yes?”
“Get some men and run to every single herbalist and alchemist you can. Get supplies… Take them if you have to. You, with the green hair, you’re a rogue, right?”
“(Yelp)… Um…” a young woman said bravely.
“Get some of your guild, keep your heads down, and spread the word. Bring the wounded here. Also, find any former military… from our world. Tell them that I’m setting up a field hospital, such as it is. Have them help gather the wounded, and we need a perimeter around this building. Holding the town is no longer possible. Fuck it. Bring everyone you can. We will hold this position as long as we can. We might even be able to…”
He turned to a battered witch with a freshly removed arm.
“Azure Fire, right?”
“Yeah?”
“You are supposed to be a genius or something. Work on a way of getting us, all of us, out of here! There must be somewhere where these things aren’t. Find it and get us there!”
“Not going to be easy,” she mused, “The guild facilities have run dry, and I don’t think I can cast a gate anymore.”
“Well, try to come up with something.”
“On it,” Azure said thoughtfully, “Maybe if we pooled our lifeforce, we could… hmm… A few of us would die, but we could… hmm…”
Chad Firecrest, formerly Sergeant Chad Thorpe, turned away and limp-strode forth in a desperate attempt to do the impossible.
“Chad!... Um… I mean, Sergeant?” Lord Geoffrey asked hesitantly.
“Either works.”
“What… What’s going on? Why aren’t our spells working?”
“I don’t know.”
“I do,” a strange eldritch voice said as the demi-entity Hilde and Illandria emerged from a green column of flames to the shouts and drawn blades of champion and guild staff alike.
“Hold!” Sergeant Chad shouted as he walked towards Hilde.
“I know you,” he said.
“Is that all I get from you?” Hilde snickered, light drooling from her mouth. “You know me? You knew me. Am I that forgettable?”
“No!” Chad exclaimed. “I mean…”
“I know,” Hilde snickered, “Just trying to inject some much-needed levity.”
Chad chuckled. “I always let the wrong one get away, don’t I?”
“I didn’t,” Hilde grinned, a green light blazing from behind her teeth.
“I deserved that,” he smirked. “So, you know what happened? And more importantly, what the FUCK happened to you?”
“You aren’t going to like this…”
***
“You mean that it was all a lie?!?” a guild waitress wailed, “that I’m a lie?!?”
“It was all a lie,” Hilde said gently, “But you? You are very much real.”
“So that’s then?” Chad asked grimly. “We’re done for?”
“The game is done,” Hilde replied, “However, we remain, at least for a little while longer.”
“But without our powers…”
Backward Thump…
“About that,” Hilde smiled grimly, “I may have an idea.”
She closed her eyes and raised her hands.
She cracked one eye open and smiled.
“This is going to hurt.”
Then, Hilde, for lack of a better word, exploded.
Every champion’s eyes blazed green.
“My spells are back!” a healer shouted as he cast healing on the dying soldier in front of them, causing the soldier to scream as green light burst from every wound, ripping it back together (it’s about as comfortable as it sounds).
The soldier started ripping off his armor as his body started to grow, covered with rippling muscles that weren’t there before.
His eyes also started to glow…
***
“Ow!” Faun exclaimed, still wrapped in her snug and surprisngly comfy cocoon."
“Are you okay?” F10w3rchy1d asked weakly.
“I think a flea bit me or something.”
“My venom consumes all!” Nixx shouted with delight. “Soon, you will be liquid the same as your friend!”
“Okay, now you are really starting to annoy me,” Faun replied.
***
“Oh, Great Bunny,” the high priest of the Church of Bun intoned as adepts walked through the sacred hall of code swinging incense censers, the smoke flowing out in countless ones and zeros, “hallowed be thy code. May we lope down the sacred runs laid by you at the dawn of time. May our…”
The high priest’s voice trailed off as a pair of white-clad individuals entered the temple, one a demonic, red-skinned humanoid with horns and the other a glowing featureless holographic being, both bearing the crest of Cerberus, Frostie’s real enforcers (the ones she uses when she’s done playing).
They are NOT people you want walking into your temple. More importantly, they aren’t people you want looking at YOU.
“…M-may our code without error… and… and…”
“We regret disturbing your worship and breaching your sanctum,” the hologram said, “But time is of the essence, and the boss is angry…”
“And we think you know why,” the demon added with a grim fang-laden sneer.
***
“That’s all I know!” the high priest wailed from the pulpit of the now hastily evacuated temple (no way anyone was sticking around after the “hounds” showed up). “I swear!”
“And at no point did you think about informing someone about what was clearly an irregular event?” the demonic humanoid asked.
“It was the Almighty F10w3rchy1d!” the high priest exclaimed, “Second in might only to Frostie herself! Her commands are law, her words divine!”
“Oh, by Frostie’s Snow-Cones,” the hologram muttered. “Horns, was I ever that annoying?”
“Oh yeah,” the demonic humanoid snickered, “You don’t remember?”
“I must have dumped those files.”
“You don’t get off that easy,” the demon smirked, “Here.”
The two Cerberus agent’s eyes flashed in sync for a fraction of a second.
“Oh…” the hologram moaned, “That is so cringe!”
“And don’t you dare dump those files,” the demon chuckled.
“What files?”
“You asshole,” the red-skinned humanoid chuckled.
“You know it,” the hologram flickered happily, “and speaking of cringe …”
It turned to the high priest, who twitched miserably.
“It’s okay,” the hologram flashed, “As you said, the (snerk) Almighty F10w3rchy1d’s word is pretty much law to someone like you. You have done nothing wrong, inconvenient, but not wrong. Where did she take you? Where is this universe-spanning unbreachable (by you) firewall?"
“I… I don’t…”
“How can you not know?” the hologram dimmed at the miserable high priest. “Okay. We do this the hard way. I apologize in advance.”
“Apologize?!?” the high priest blurted in alarm, “What… Buuuuuunnnnnn!” he screamed as the hologram reached out with amoeba-like projections, plunging them into the high priest’s brain.
“Oof,” the demon winced. “That does NOT look fun.”
“It isn’t. However, I have what we seek.”
It withdrew his pseudopods, and the high priest slumped to the ground.
“Is he…”
“Nah,” the hologram replied, “He’s just… resting.”
“Resting as in resting or as in resting?”
“Which one means that he will get back up… eventually?”
“The first one,” the demon replied cheerfully. “Let’s go tell the boss.”
***
“Oh, dear,” the blue-skinned amphiboid lounging in Zeb’s office laughed. “I know where your missing bedbugs are.”
“Am I going to become upset by the answer?”
“Almost certainly.”
“Wait a moment,” Zeb said as he poured himself another shot and downed it.
“Hit me,” he said as he winced and slammed the gilded shot glass down onto his desk.
“They are trapped behind a firewall,” Hades replied, “presumably one that has been locked down, thus our inability to locate or communicate with our beloved troublemakers.”
“Which means they will all hit us at once…”
“Hopefully.”
“Oh, bother,” Zeb sighed as he picked up an ornate old-school rotary phone on his desk. “Hello, please put me through to the Reality Engineering Emergency Response Division, please…”
***
“Make a circle!” Pantsu shouted as they were swarmed by a horde of thousands so hastily respawned that they were now nothing but gross monstrosities of already gross monstrosities.
“They are trying to crush us!” a handmaiden shouted as she cut a dozen of the horde down, only for them to be replaced instantly.
Pantsu looked at the edges of the horde and scowled as she saw glowing distorted forms appearing and then “hardening” into more demons as quickly as they destroyed them.
“Bastard’s switched off the respawn timer!” Pantsu shouted as she unleashed a gout of fire, pointlessly evaporating a hundred of the unending horde. “Any time now, Flopsy! Quit jerking off and hack!”
“They are encrypted!” Flopsybun shouted back as he dodged a hurled spear. “I’m going to need...”
“Pantsu!” a booming voice bellowed as a monstrous humanoid abomination appeared, “Look upon me and despair, for it is your death that approaches!”
“I’m sorry, scrub,” Pantsu shouted back. “Do I know you?”
“I am Brixx, first and most favored of my master’s creations! He has sent me to defeat you and deliver you unto him where you will pay for your sins!”
“Oh, don’t you worry,” Pantsu laughed, “I will be paying him a visit in just a bit. Hopefully, F10w3rchy1d will leave a little bit of his ass for me!”
“You mean her?” Brixx chortled as an image of F10w3rchy1d appeared wrapped in her silken prison.
“Ha!” Pantsu laughed, “Oh, I’m going to give her so much shit over this!”
“You can chide her once you hang in my master’s larder,” Brix bellowed.
“You going to talk,” Pantsu snarled, “or are you going to fight?”
***
Pantsu and Brixx clashed the way only two demi-entities can, unleashing wave after wave of destruction as Pantsu’s tiny form whirled and darted around Brixx’s goliath-like frame.
As they fought, Pantsu smirked as light, her real blood, leaked from numerous wounds.
“Why do you smile, fool?” Brix shouted, “I have the advantage!”
“Look around, dumbass,” Pantsu laughed.
Brixx did and bellowed with rage. Pantsu had artfully led their battle into Brixx’s own forces…
…and all those attacks that “missed”? They didn’t miss what they were actually aiming at.
The number of attacking demons had been cut by over half, their spawn rate completely overwhelmed.
“Looks like your master is running out of juice,” Pantsu grinned as light spilled from her mouth and trickled down her chin.
“No matter,” Brixx laughed, “You are the real prize, and I have you!”
Brixx raised his hand and unleashed his secret weapon, a bolt of very non-immersive ICE.
“Shit!” Pantsu yelled as she collapsed. “STEVE! Get this asshole off of me while I…”
Riiiip…. ROOOOARRRRRRR!
Brixx stood there, dumbfounded, as a shadow fell over him.
“Whhyyyyy doonn’t youuu piiiiick oooon sooooomeoooone yoooourrr ooooown siiiiizeee…”
***
“Okay!” Pantsu shouted as she struggled to her feet. “Okay, Steve, I’m… Steve!”
Steve turned around with Brixx’s legs hanging out of his mouth, flailing helplessly.
Sluuurp
“You stole my kill, asshole!”
“Sooorrrry…”
“Steve!” Flopsybun shouted, “Let me link! I can get what I need as you digest him!”
“Does that mean we can get the hell out of here?” A demon shouted as they grappled with a half-formed demon twice its size.
“Flopsy?” Pantsu asked as she fell back, still injured.
“As long as Steve can keep him down, sure!”
“Let’s bounce!” Pantsu exclaimed as her eyes flashed…
…and nothing happened.
“This joke is getting real old real fast,” she grumbled. “Why can’t we port out?”
“There!” Flopsybun said as he held his prayer beads, “That one has us quarantined!... Crap.”
“What?” Pantsu yelled as she tried to literally pull herself together.
“That one has us quarantined too… and that one… and that one…”
“That’s not good,” Pantsu said as she looked nowhere for a moment. “Okay. Steve, you chew on Mister Fugly and keep the spawns off Flopsy. Flopsy, time for you to be one of Bunny’s kids. Break that quarantine, or whip up some ICE or…”
She ducked a bolt of raw chaos.
“…or whatever it is you fursuit-wearing freaks do. The rest of us keep them off of Steve and Flopsy for as long as we can. I don’t…”
There was suddenly a roaring, rocket-like sound above them as a giant blue dragon flew over, sweeping the field with white-hot flames.
“Darling!” Pantsu yelled happily and then cried out as a massive bolt shot from an even more massive demon, knocking the dragon prince to the ground and crushing dozens of demons in the process.
“Everyone...” Pantsu shouted.
“No!” the dragon prince said as he, breathing fire and casting spells, pulled down the demon that struck it. “I am already dying.”
“No, you aren’t!” Pantsu wailed as she charged from her monster’s perimeter, desperate to reach him.
“Knickers,” the dragon prince said lovingly as he unleashed demi-entity level hell upon the battlefield, “We both know that’s not true.”
“No…”
“Let me do this last thing for you,” the dragon prince said, “Let me die a dragon and not rot away in a chair. I… I love you, Knickers. I love you so much but fall back. I’ll take out the quarantine my way!”
“No!!!” Pantsu screamed as she launched herself toward him…
…only to be grabbed by one of Steve’s many twisted limbs.
“Let me go!” Pantsu screamed as she blew Steve’s hand apart (It’s okay. He has plenty of them.)
“Liiiiisssten to hiiiimmm,” Steve bubbled as a dozen more of his hands grabbed her. “Let hiiiim beee a draaagon.”
Cursing and struggling, Pantsu was dragged back into the middle of her monsters.
“Flopsy!” she screamed as she shook him.
“You are NOT helping!” Flopsybun shouted as he clutched his prayer beads.
“I thought you were supposed to be good!”
“I am!” Flopsybun shouted back, “But this code is awful! It’s just a solid block of spaghetti logic. No comments. A bunch of cut-and-paste bullshit, with half of it unused. Who wrote this?!?”
“Who do you think!” Pantsu yelled as she helplessly watched her beloved prince stumble. “Do something!!!” she desperately screamed as she shook Flopsybun again.
“Then shut up and let me work!!!” Flopsybun yelled as he shoved Pantsu away.
Pantsu blinked and backed away.
“You had better deliver,” Pantsu hissed and then rejoined the battle.
“Damn,” a demoness said as she glanced at Flopsybun approvingly… very approvingly. (Clover might just have some competition.)
Flopsybun didn’t notice.
He reached somewhere and pulled out a ragged pair of bunny ears and reverently placed them on his head, clutched his prayer beads, and, for the first time in a very long time, prayed, actually prayed.
Bunny, first and greatest of us, I… I’m in trouble. Please… I need you… Please... Help me...
Backward big motherfucking thump…
***
Back at the Temple of Bun, the high priest was desperately trying to restore some sort of decorum and calm after the little visit by Cerberus and them bitch slapping him on his own turf.
He decided that the best course of action was to “purify” the “profaned” temple by holding an emergency cleansing service inside the inner sanctum, where the actual crypt holding the remains of the code that was their goddess, the almighty Bunny, was kept in a room covered with faintly glowing pink bunny wallpaper.
“Oh, great and powerful Bunny…”
He hopped.
Dozens of adepts in the chamber hopped.
“First among pirates…”
(hop)
“Creator of the sacred daemons…”
(hop)
“Silent star that guides we who lurk in the shadows…”
(hop)
“Hacker! Creator! Teacher!... Goddess! She who ate not of the apple…”
(hop)
“But through her own power…”
(hop)
Backward big motherfucking thump…
Suddenly, a thumping sound could be heard from within the crypt, almost as if something was rolling in their grave.
The sanctum fell silent as everyone stared at the crypt with wide eyes.
The lid slowly opened…
…and a single paw could be seen emerging from the darkness within.
Soon another paw and a very annoyed head followed it.
“Goddammit, Frost, we had a…”
She looked around.
“Oh, you gotta be KIDDING ME!”
2023.06.03 20:40 bit-dev-diver Medics - Do you have physician fly cars? How do you like it?
Question for fellow medics. Our county has obtained a grant for a pilot program of having Emergency Medicine Physicians responding to calls out in the field. I am not sure to what calls they respond to or if they will be self dispatched.
My question for other medics is how do you feel about it? Does it work well? Do you become relegated to doing nothing or do you still get to use your medic level skills?
I am trying to maintain an open mind and look at it as a good opportunity to lear from the doc, but I became a medic to lead the call and use my skills, I am hoping to still be able to do so.
There are a number of things a doc could do in the field but they pretty rarely occur (traumatic amputation, pericardiocentiusis, thoracotomy, give blood, etc …).
Our call volume is about 15 EMS calls a shift split between two dual medic rescues and we cover about 10 towns.
Thanks for your input.
submitted by bit-dev-diver to Paramedics [link] [comments]
My question for other medics is how do you feel about it? Does it work well? Do you become relegated to doing nothing or do you still get to use your medic level skills?
I am trying to maintain an open mind and look at it as a good opportunity to lear from the doc, but I became a medic to lead the call and use my skills, I am hoping to still be able to do so.
There are a number of things a doc could do in the field but they pretty rarely occur (traumatic amputation, pericardiocentiusis, thoracotomy, give blood, etc …).
Our call volume is about 15 EMS calls a shift split between two dual medic rescues and we cover about 10 towns.
Thanks for your input.
2023.06.03 18:17 throwawaymcat12 Sanity check for final school list? High stats, good ECs, maybe some red flags
Hey everyone! Posting this WAMC from a throwaway just because it has more personal details. I had done a WAMC on SDN and here before, but the school list seemed really top heavy, and also there are apparently people out there with 10-30 publications 💀. Hoping to just get some final feedback before I submit.
GPA: cGPA: 3.82 and sGPA: 3.74, B.S. in Biochemistry, minor in chemistry
MCAT: 521
Demographics: URM white hispanic (so marking white and mexican), bisexual.
Illinois residency, ties to Ohio and Michigan
School type: T40 private, primarily paid for with merit scholarships, grants, and work during school
Clinical (all volunteer): 200 hrs EMT emergency response (over 2 years), 700 hrs with a free clinic working primarily with AA and hispanic populations (over 2 years), doing patient assessments and vitals
Research: Roughly 1,000 hrs at 2 labs (400 hrs at first, 600 at second) with 2 first-author presentations at local school conferences from the 2nd lab
Shadowing: 32 hrs shadowing an anesthesiologist, 32 hrs primary care physician
Non-clinical volunteering (most impactful):
I have to double check because it's my part-time gap year work, but it's probably over 2,000 hours at this point over 3 years and my gap year. All my hours have been as a volunteer and now as a director for a 100-person social justice and government policy non-profit. As a volunteer, I largely worked with hispanic and AA students by going into local schools and helping host sessions to discuss issues affecting local students and their communities (food deserts, lack of internet access, LGBTQ issues, etc), as well as leading laptop and internet hotspot distribution programs that gave students hundreds of devices.
As I worked up in leadership, I got more involved in the policy side of things. I've been the director of our national townhall series, which are events hosted with national political leaders. I coordinated and ran the events for townhalls with all the candidates for Cleveland's mayoral election (including incumbent mayor), the candidates for Congresswoman for our national congressional district, and our state's Secretary of State. All these events primarily focused on lack of internet access in our city and have had around 5,000 attendees in total. I also later helped to manage the school program mentioned in the first paragraph, which has worked with over 6,000 students across 40 different schools in the area.
Finally, I helped get legislation passed at the state level, entailing over $200 million in internet broadband funding from the Federal Government for our state. This entailed writing up a policy white paper, going to the state capital to talk to the State congress, discussing the issues and details with the bill's sponsor, and working with another policy research non-profit. This ultimately created the BroadbandOhio program, which I've been working with for the last year on additional legislation for Ohio. I've also been involved with our grant process and have applied for and managed about $200,000 in grant funding.
Other extracurricular activities (including athletics, military service, gap year activities, leadership, teaching, etc):
Biology TA for 2 years, resident assistant and senior resident assistant for 3 years, emergency dispatcher for one year, and led a large campus board for 3 years.
This board involved me leading and overseeing about 13 student organizations and 1,000 students, working directly with administration on student issues related to media. I also wrote up a report and created a new student center through the conversion of an old building; got about $300,000 in funding from administration for it and the board itself had about $500,000 in annual budget that I managed directly. Board was advised by an associate dean that I'm close with. I also have some minor leadership in comparison to the campus board and non-profit work.
Relevant honors or awards:
Won two national awards, about $15,000 in scholarships, several campus awards, and featured on the news for the non-profit; won a campus award and a $1,000 prize for leading the student center project. Some other minor stuff like Dean's list and around $10,000 for research funding over 2 summers from 2 separate grants.
Anything else not listed you think might be important:
Letter writers will be the biology professor I took a class with and later TA'd for; nutrition professor I took several classes and a graduate research seminar with; physics professor I had for a small class and who liked my non-profit work; founder and former CEO of the non-profit I'm on the board for; and dean for the student board.
Issues:
Got 2 Cs in Calc 2 and Ochem 1 freshman year and a withdrawal from an economics class during sophomore year (got a concussion and just general difficulties with adapting to college). However, I've had a near 4.0 since then, with As in Ochem 2, 4 physics courses, and 2 upper division calculus courses. Finally, my school offers a committee letter but, because of a change I had to make in my application, it'll be delayed until SeptembeOctober because my school normally submits them in August. Because of that, I've decided to go with individual letters, which I know is a negative and a knock against me, but I'd rather have the guarantee of submitting early with my own letters. I also will not have a PI letter of recommendation and research will not be one of my MMEs (the student board, non-profit, and free clinic will be)
I primarily want to target T20 ish schools (maybe want to do a competitive specialty) in the Midwest/Northeast in urban areas (I do bike and transportation advocacy as a hobby, so they're very important to me) and apply to around 20-30 schools, hopefully with merit money.
Preliminary list:
Northwestern
UChicago
Rush
UIC
Loyola
Washington University in St. Louis
University of Iowa
University of Michigan
Ohio State
University of Cincinnati
Mayo (MN)
Vanderbilt
Duke
Emory
University of Pittsburgh
University of Rochester
Albert Einstein
Columbia
Mt. Sinai
Cornell
Georgetown
Yale
Harvard
UCLA
UCSF
Case Western
Maybe: NYU, Stanford, Penn, JHU, Jefferson, Boston, George Washington, Brown
submitted by throwawaymcat12 to premed [link] [comments]
GPA: cGPA: 3.82 and sGPA: 3.74, B.S. in Biochemistry, minor in chemistry
MCAT: 521
Demographics: URM white hispanic (so marking white and mexican), bisexual.
Illinois residency, ties to Ohio and Michigan
School type: T40 private, primarily paid for with merit scholarships, grants, and work during school
Clinical (all volunteer): 200 hrs EMT emergency response (over 2 years), 700 hrs with a free clinic working primarily with AA and hispanic populations (over 2 years), doing patient assessments and vitals
Research: Roughly 1,000 hrs at 2 labs (400 hrs at first, 600 at second) with 2 first-author presentations at local school conferences from the 2nd lab
Shadowing: 32 hrs shadowing an anesthesiologist, 32 hrs primary care physician
Non-clinical volunteering (most impactful):
I have to double check because it's my part-time gap year work, but it's probably over 2,000 hours at this point over 3 years and my gap year. All my hours have been as a volunteer and now as a director for a 100-person social justice and government policy non-profit. As a volunteer, I largely worked with hispanic and AA students by going into local schools and helping host sessions to discuss issues affecting local students and their communities (food deserts, lack of internet access, LGBTQ issues, etc), as well as leading laptop and internet hotspot distribution programs that gave students hundreds of devices.
As I worked up in leadership, I got more involved in the policy side of things. I've been the director of our national townhall series, which are events hosted with national political leaders. I coordinated and ran the events for townhalls with all the candidates for Cleveland's mayoral election (including incumbent mayor), the candidates for Congresswoman for our national congressional district, and our state's Secretary of State. All these events primarily focused on lack of internet access in our city and have had around 5,000 attendees in total. I also later helped to manage the school program mentioned in the first paragraph, which has worked with over 6,000 students across 40 different schools in the area.
Finally, I helped get legislation passed at the state level, entailing over $200 million in internet broadband funding from the Federal Government for our state. This entailed writing up a policy white paper, going to the state capital to talk to the State congress, discussing the issues and details with the bill's sponsor, and working with another policy research non-profit. This ultimately created the BroadbandOhio program, which I've been working with for the last year on additional legislation for Ohio. I've also been involved with our grant process and have applied for and managed about $200,000 in grant funding.
Other extracurricular activities (including athletics, military service, gap year activities, leadership, teaching, etc):
Biology TA for 2 years, resident assistant and senior resident assistant for 3 years, emergency dispatcher for one year, and led a large campus board for 3 years.
This board involved me leading and overseeing about 13 student organizations and 1,000 students, working directly with administration on student issues related to media. I also wrote up a report and created a new student center through the conversion of an old building; got about $300,000 in funding from administration for it and the board itself had about $500,000 in annual budget that I managed directly. Board was advised by an associate dean that I'm close with. I also have some minor leadership in comparison to the campus board and non-profit work.
Relevant honors or awards:
Won two national awards, about $15,000 in scholarships, several campus awards, and featured on the news for the non-profit; won a campus award and a $1,000 prize for leading the student center project. Some other minor stuff like Dean's list and around $10,000 for research funding over 2 summers from 2 separate grants.
Anything else not listed you think might be important:
Letter writers will be the biology professor I took a class with and later TA'd for; nutrition professor I took several classes and a graduate research seminar with; physics professor I had for a small class and who liked my non-profit work; founder and former CEO of the non-profit I'm on the board for; and dean for the student board.
Issues:
Got 2 Cs in Calc 2 and Ochem 1 freshman year and a withdrawal from an economics class during sophomore year (got a concussion and just general difficulties with adapting to college). However, I've had a near 4.0 since then, with As in Ochem 2, 4 physics courses, and 2 upper division calculus courses. Finally, my school offers a committee letter but, because of a change I had to make in my application, it'll be delayed until SeptembeOctober because my school normally submits them in August. Because of that, I've decided to go with individual letters, which I know is a negative and a knock against me, but I'd rather have the guarantee of submitting early with my own letters. I also will not have a PI letter of recommendation and research will not be one of my MMEs (the student board, non-profit, and free clinic will be)
I primarily want to target T20 ish schools (maybe want to do a competitive specialty) in the Midwest/Northeast in urban areas (I do bike and transportation advocacy as a hobby, so they're very important to me) and apply to around 20-30 schools, hopefully with merit money.
Preliminary list:
Northwestern
UChicago
Rush
UIC
Loyola
Washington University in St. Louis
University of Iowa
University of Michigan
Ohio State
University of Cincinnati
Mayo (MN)
Vanderbilt
Duke
Emory
University of Pittsburgh
University of Rochester
Albert Einstein
Columbia
Mt. Sinai
Cornell
Georgetown
Yale
Harvard
UCLA
UCSF
Case Western
Maybe: NYU, Stanford, Penn, JHU, Jefferson, Boston, George Washington, Brown
2023.06.03 15:09 seannestor This Week in Toledo 6/3/23
 | submitted by seannestor to toledo [link] [comments] https://preview.redd.it/vqfgv168ys3b1.png?width=780&format=png&auto=webp&s=fe5f891d22cac511f70d30faa8cea6cf5199341b • On Monday, Bitwise Industries - the Fresno, California-based tech training company that has been renovating the former Jefferson Center downtown at 1300 Jefferson Ave. - furloughed its entire staff of 900 employees citing cash flow issues. A $33 million lawsuit has been filed against the company by its financial partners, who cite that they were misled and that contracts were breached. • On Tuesday, Toledo City Council voted 9-3 to approve a $180,000 contract with Louisville-based Cities United to develop a crime-reduction plan. Council members Hobbs, Moline, and Sarantou cast dissenting votes. • Also on Tuesday, City of Toledo Safety Director Brian Byrd announced he will be retiring on September 1. He has worked for the City since 1988. • On Wednesday, ProMedica announced that it plans to close the Goerlich Memory Center and a skilled nursing facility in Sylvania by August 31 as part of ongoing cost-cutting measures related to its dire financial position. The Goerlich Memory Center has been open since 1994. • On Thursday, the Toledo Area Regional Transit Authority (TARTA) launched its TARTA Summer Blast Pass, which allows young people aged 6 through 19 to make use of TARTA services at no cost through August 31. For more information, visit https://tarta.com/blast/ • Also beginning Thursday, ratepayers are likely to see a hike of up to 47% on their electric bills due to rising energy costs influenced by the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine. For those interested in changing their energy supplier, the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO) operates a website comparing all available energy providers at http://www.energychoiceohio.gov/ • The Ohio Department of Transportation has reintroduced plans to expand I-475 between Douglas Road and US-23. Several residents are concerned as the project will involve acquiring and demolishing homes as early as 2026. • The Ohio Controlling Board has earmarked $2,000,000 for cleanup in the Maumee River as well as $750,000 to Unison Behavioral Health Group to purchase a 16-bed residential treatment facility for those with severe and persistent mental illness. • On Saturday (June 3) from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., the City of Toledo is sponsoring a free disposal day at the Hoffman Road Landfill (3962 Hoffman Rd.) Lucas county residents can drop off bulk solid waste at no cost during this time. For more information, visit https://toledo.oh.gov/landfill • Also on Saturday (June 3) at 10 a.m. in the Old West End, the King Wamba Parade will kick off the 50th Annual Old West End Festival. For more information about the festival and the various events and activities taking place within it, visit http://www.toledooldwestend.com/festival • In further Saturday (June 3) events, from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. the City of Toledo will host another public meeting at St. Martin de Porres Community Center (1119 Bancroft St.) for stakeholders to plan future development at the Swayne Field Shopping Center at Monroe Street and Detroit Avenue. • The East Toledo Family Center will host a Storybook Festival on Saturday (June 3) from 11 a.m. to 2 p.,. at Waite High School (301 Morrison Dr.). The entirely free event will include activities, raffles, a meet and greet with Spiderman, music, and prizes to promote literacy for children. • The Multicultural Twilight Market will take place on Saturday (June 3) from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Toledo Farmer's Market (525 Market St.). Shops operated by women, immigrants, and people of color will be present. There is no cost to attend. • Next Wednesday (June 7) at 12 p.m., the Toledo-Lucas County Public Library will launch its free Summer Music Series with a performance by Kerry Patrick Clark & Robbie Clark on the north lawn of the Main Branch Library (325 N. Michigan St.). Concerts will continue every Wednesday at 12 p.m. through August 8. • Also next Wednesday (June 7) from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., City of Toledo District 1 Councilman John Hobbs will host a public town hall meeting at the Eleanor Kahle Senior Center (1315 Hillcrest Ave.). For more information, call 419-245-1611. • Next Thursday (June 8) from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., the 18th annual Lunch at Levis series will kick off at Levis Square Park (St. Clair St. and Madison Ave.) in downtown Toledo with a free concert by Kyle White. Each Thursday through September 21, free music, food trucks, and activities will be present at the park. • You can receive This Week in Toledo via e-mail by subscribing at https://toledo.substack.com/subscribe. You can also receive updates on Facebook by liking the official page at https://www.facebook.com/thisweekintoledo. News sources: The Blade, 13ABC |
2023.06.03 14:12 Prof_Procrastinus world-map navigation
In many areas of the game, it can be extremely difficult to obtain location/map-context information while not actively staring at the full-screen world map. The map is mostly monochrome blobs with binary information; traversable or not. The mini-map also often feels claustrophobic.
I do appreciate the desire to create a desperate/personal/survival experience by limiting this type of information to a point/distance from the player but we're starved for info here. I haven't directly compared the amount of information conveyed by the mini-map in D3 but I hardly ever struggled there - it wasn't great but it was enough to not drive me mad.
Nearly all the directional information we get from the map is based entirely on PoI icons. While we're away from any icons on the map, the mini-map becomes practically useless.
The only compensation Blizz added for the reduction in information compared to D3 (dimming the environment/vignette/color-palette etc.) is the auto-pathing waypoint. It works for medium-long journeys but isn't useful for momentary decisions and is still hampered by having to set it in the full-screen map.
There's excellent contextual information in the portions of map that transition from one color to the next, based on ground color (snow/dirt/red sand etc.). Sadly that information only exists at the transition and there aren't that many in the world.
However it's accomplished, the solution should provide the player with quickly recognizable awareness of their location in the world, simultaneously on large (zone) and small (path/route) scales.
The first idea that comes to mind is utilizing the negative space on the map to provide more context without affecting the area we travel through. There are dozens of simple ways to do this and perhaps combining multiple techniques would provide substantial awareness. I'll go over some methods now.
The negative space must never be confused with the positive, so it can't simply be the texture of the environment or it would all blend together. Perhaps simply using additional colors/gradients to convey relative zone coordinates/portions, similar to the snow/dirt transition.
You could also try conveying general x/y coordinates using colors/icons to recognize at a glance along the bordeperimeter of the mini-map. It's hard to imagine how accurate/useful this would be overall.
I also hold the opinion overlay maps detract from the overall game by redirecting focus from the game world to the map for easy recognition/efficiency. This behavior effectively turns it into a 2-dimensional game with a dot (you) running between the lines. I'd much rather be navigating and appreciating the artful environment/enemies, while tracking threats more carefully. Despite that, I'd prefer overlay maps to the emergent behavior of spamming the map button between actions, sometimes 3-6 times in a few seconds. Hopefully, overlays aren't necessary.
I was disgusted by this experience when I played during the server slam but didn't spend the time evaluating why it was so offensive to me until today. All the early-access players I've seen, behave the same way and I've heard the same complaint repeatedly. Perhaps the first time I heard it vaguely referenced by someone other than myself, was in Rhykker's review. He acknowledged that he relied on opening the world map considerably more than in D3 and he speculated it could be a result of the mini-map being smaller.
Without giving my opinion on the level of effort that went in to the current map texture, *cough*, I do wager Blizzard created dozens of iterations of map textures. They might even already have one that accomplishes everything I described but instead they implemented the most minimal one they could agree upon to avoid overstimulating/confusing new players, particularly because almost everyone is currently a new player. It's generally the Blizzard way, to start low and offer more in reaction.
3rd-party modders are probably trying everything they can to replace/add maps/navigation functions and Blizzard might just unofficially let them handle it. However, anyone who's familiar with D3 modding already knows where that leads... It's not very competition-friendly to say the least.
I still haven't heard anyone discuss why this behavioexperience is emerging through play so I figured I'd suggest myself. There are many more important aspects of the game to improve in my opinion but there's a disturbing lack of awareness about this issue everywhere I look. Even if nothing I've typed accomplishes change, at least someone in the community will have gained an understanding.
submitted by Prof_Procrastinus to diablo4 [link] [comments]
I do appreciate the desire to create a desperate/personal/survival experience by limiting this type of information to a point/distance from the player but we're starved for info here. I haven't directly compared the amount of information conveyed by the mini-map in D3 but I hardly ever struggled there - it wasn't great but it was enough to not drive me mad.
Nearly all the directional information we get from the map is based entirely on PoI icons. While we're away from any icons on the map, the mini-map becomes practically useless.
The only compensation Blizz added for the reduction in information compared to D3 (dimming the environment/vignette/color-palette etc.) is the auto-pathing waypoint. It works for medium-long journeys but isn't useful for momentary decisions and is still hampered by having to set it in the full-screen map.
There's excellent contextual information in the portions of map that transition from one color to the next, based on ground color (snow/dirt/red sand etc.). Sadly that information only exists at the transition and there aren't that many in the world.
However it's accomplished, the solution should provide the player with quickly recognizable awareness of their location in the world, simultaneously on large (zone) and small (path/route) scales.
Solutions
I believe it would go far enough, without upsetting any players, to negate the problem by "simply" (expertly) improving the map texture. If the colotexture/appearance of the map could provide more contextual information it would improve every situation. The mini-map would be far more useful relative to the full-screen map.The first idea that comes to mind is utilizing the negative space on the map to provide more context without affecting the area we travel through. There are dozens of simple ways to do this and perhaps combining multiple techniques would provide substantial awareness. I'll go over some methods now.
The negative space must never be confused with the positive, so it can't simply be the texture of the environment or it would all blend together. Perhaps simply using additional colors/gradients to convey relative zone coordinates/portions, similar to the snow/dirt transition.
You could also try conveying general x/y coordinates using colors/icons to recognize at a glance along the bordeperimeter of the mini-map. It's hard to imagine how accurate/useful this would be overall.
I also hold the opinion overlay maps detract from the overall game by redirecting focus from the game world to the map for easy recognition/efficiency. This behavior effectively turns it into a 2-dimensional game with a dot (you) running between the lines. I'd much rather be navigating and appreciating the artful environment/enemies, while tracking threats more carefully. Despite that, I'd prefer overlay maps to the emergent behavior of spamming the map button between actions, sometimes 3-6 times in a few seconds. Hopefully, overlays aren't necessary.
Anecdotes and additional considerations
With enough movement speed in D3, (combined with the lack of fear of dying on the given difficulty) I always resorted to staring directly at the mini-map which provides less information than the game world but at a much greater distance from the character (?double?). This turned D3 into a monochrome 2-D game of avoiding walls and finding doors, at a fraction of the screen space. I rarely played this way, relative to my total play time, but It was certainly faster and more efficient. This should be avoided but it's not necessarily bad if it happens at the extremes - preferentially less often than D3 and others. The world map flickering meta is a horrible experience. Players didn't need to check so frequently in D3 because the cartoonish lighting and tile-sets were easier to navigate. Fans cried for darkness and now we can't read where to go on the fly. It's all the more irritating that opening the map prevents character movements/actions, sometimes resulting in truly jarring stutter-step behavior, especially while approaching forks in paths. It's harmful to the experience but also intentional behavior compensating for rudimentary navigational tools.I was disgusted by this experience when I played during the server slam but didn't spend the time evaluating why it was so offensive to me until today. All the early-access players I've seen, behave the same way and I've heard the same complaint repeatedly. Perhaps the first time I heard it vaguely referenced by someone other than myself, was in Rhykker's review. He acknowledged that he relied on opening the world map considerably more than in D3 and he speculated it could be a result of the mini-map being smaller.
Without giving my opinion on the level of effort that went in to the current map texture, *cough*, I do wager Blizzard created dozens of iterations of map textures. They might even already have one that accomplishes everything I described but instead they implemented the most minimal one they could agree upon to avoid overstimulating/confusing new players, particularly because almost everyone is currently a new player. It's generally the Blizzard way, to start low and offer more in reaction.
3rd-party modders are probably trying everything they can to replace/add maps/navigation functions and Blizzard might just unofficially let them handle it. However, anyone who's familiar with D3 modding already knows where that leads... It's not very competition-friendly to say the least.
I still haven't heard anyone discuss why this behavioexperience is emerging through play so I figured I'd suggest myself. There are many more important aspects of the game to improve in my opinion but there's a disturbing lack of awareness about this issue everywhere I look. Even if nothing I've typed accomplishes change, at least someone in the community will have gained an understanding.
2023.06.03 12:38 gunpoliticsny Mayor Evans, County Executive Bello Proclaim June 2-4 Gun Violence Awareness Day and Wear Orange Weekend
https://www.cityofrochester.gov/article.aspx?id=21474852307
City of Rochester News Release
(Friday, June 2, 2023) – Mayor Malik D. Evans and County Executive Adam Bello proclaimed today through Sunday as Gun Violence Awareness Day and Wear Orange Weekend in Rochester and Monroe County, joining a national movement to associate gun violence with the color hunters wear to protect human life.
City and County leaders joined dozens of orange-clad members of the Rochester Peace Collective and the Roc Against Gun Violence Coalition Friday to read the joint proclamation and announce activities taking place throughout the month of June to enhance community collaboration in the fight against gun violence.
“The City of Rochester and County of Monroe are committed to ending gun violence with the support of law enforcement agencies at the local, state and federal levels; and a host of community partners, including the ROC Against Gun Violence Coalition and the Rochester Peace Collective,” the Mayor and County Executive stated in the joint City-County Proclamation. “We call on the people of Rochester and Monroe County to Wear Orange and come together as one community to heal, offer comfort and support, and join the movement to make gun violence a thing of the past.”
The wear-orange movement was initially conceived by the classmates of 15-year-old Hadiya Pendelton of Chicago, who was shot and killed on a school playground one week after marching in President Barack Obama’s inauguration parade.
Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, a national grass-roots advocacy agency with a chapter in Monroe County has since played a leading role to promote the message across the country. Hadiya would have been 26 today. Now, Gun Violence Awareness Day and Wear Orange Weekend takes place on the first Friday and weekend of June.
Members of the ROC Against Gun Violence Coalition and the Rochester Peace Collective are hosting a series of events throughout the month of June.
They include: • Cameron Community 9th Annual Peace Walk: Friday, June 2 from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Meet at the Cameron Teen Center, 48 Cameron St. • Center for Youth Fashion Week: Friday, June 2 at 7 p.m., City of Rochester Public Market, 280 N. Union St. • In-Person Faith Leaders Summit on Gun Violence: Tuesday, June 13 from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. • Pathways to Peace BBQs: Friday, June 16, 5 to 8 p.m., corner of Jefferson Avenue and Iceland Park; Friday June 30, 5 to 8 p.m., corner of Joseph Avenue and Wilkins Terrace. • Fatherhood Connection Father’s Day Breakfast: Sunday, June 18, 10 a.m. to noon, Ark of Jesus Ministries, 63 Hebard St. • Hope Initiatives Workforce Trainee: Friday, June 23, 9 to 5 p.m., 506 W. Broad St.
The ROC Against Gun Violence Coalition seeks to end gun violence in Rochester by bringing attention to the causes and effects of gun violence and promoting quality of life in Rochester's neighborhoods. The Coalition is made up of community partners and stakeholders who are already working to end gun violence using three unified tools: to educate, advocate and eradicate.
The Rochester Peace Collective guides investments in innovative and proven programs that work to prevent violent crime by collaborating with community-based organizations and agencies working in the fields of re-entry and violence prevention.
###
News Media: For more information, contact Communications Director Barbara Pierce at [email protected].
submitted by gunpoliticsny to NYguns [link] [comments]
City of Rochester News Release
(Friday, June 2, 2023) – Mayor Malik D. Evans and County Executive Adam Bello proclaimed today through Sunday as Gun Violence Awareness Day and Wear Orange Weekend in Rochester and Monroe County, joining a national movement to associate gun violence with the color hunters wear to protect human life.
City and County leaders joined dozens of orange-clad members of the Rochester Peace Collective and the Roc Against Gun Violence Coalition Friday to read the joint proclamation and announce activities taking place throughout the month of June to enhance community collaboration in the fight against gun violence.
“The City of Rochester and County of Monroe are committed to ending gun violence with the support of law enforcement agencies at the local, state and federal levels; and a host of community partners, including the ROC Against Gun Violence Coalition and the Rochester Peace Collective,” the Mayor and County Executive stated in the joint City-County Proclamation. “We call on the people of Rochester and Monroe County to Wear Orange and come together as one community to heal, offer comfort and support, and join the movement to make gun violence a thing of the past.”
The wear-orange movement was initially conceived by the classmates of 15-year-old Hadiya Pendelton of Chicago, who was shot and killed on a school playground one week after marching in President Barack Obama’s inauguration parade.
Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, a national grass-roots advocacy agency with a chapter in Monroe County has since played a leading role to promote the message across the country. Hadiya would have been 26 today. Now, Gun Violence Awareness Day and Wear Orange Weekend takes place on the first Friday and weekend of June.
Members of the ROC Against Gun Violence Coalition and the Rochester Peace Collective are hosting a series of events throughout the month of June.
They include: • Cameron Community 9th Annual Peace Walk: Friday, June 2 from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Meet at the Cameron Teen Center, 48 Cameron St. • Center for Youth Fashion Week: Friday, June 2 at 7 p.m., City of Rochester Public Market, 280 N. Union St. • In-Person Faith Leaders Summit on Gun Violence: Tuesday, June 13 from 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. • Pathways to Peace BBQs: Friday, June 16, 5 to 8 p.m., corner of Jefferson Avenue and Iceland Park; Friday June 30, 5 to 8 p.m., corner of Joseph Avenue and Wilkins Terrace. • Fatherhood Connection Father’s Day Breakfast: Sunday, June 18, 10 a.m. to noon, Ark of Jesus Ministries, 63 Hebard St. • Hope Initiatives Workforce Trainee: Friday, June 23, 9 to 5 p.m., 506 W. Broad St.
The ROC Against Gun Violence Coalition seeks to end gun violence in Rochester by bringing attention to the causes and effects of gun violence and promoting quality of life in Rochester's neighborhoods. The Coalition is made up of community partners and stakeholders who are already working to end gun violence using three unified tools: to educate, advocate and eradicate.
The Rochester Peace Collective guides investments in innovative and proven programs that work to prevent violent crime by collaborating with community-based organizations and agencies working in the fields of re-entry and violence prevention.
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News Media: For more information, contact Communications Director Barbara Pierce at [email protected].
2023.06.03 11:42 kittehgoesmeow What A Day: Border To Tears by Julia Claire & Crooked Media (06/02/23)
"A couple very good guys wrote an article today, the tobacco king, you the tobacco king..." - Disgraced former president Donald Trump doing some classic word salad during his Fox News town hall with Sean Hannity
Plus, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to Crooked’s Fuck Bans fund, which supports organizations working to protect vulnerable people on the ground in states that are banning care and targeting trans youth. You get the thrill of supporting organizers combined with the thrill of buying something online. It’s a win-win.
Head to https://crooked.com/store to check out the whole Pride collection.
The U.S. Senate passed the bipartisan ransom note to suspend the debt limit, averting what would have been the nation’s first-ever default. The bill now heads to President Biden’s desk for signature.
The Senate voted to rescind President Biden’s student-loan forgiveness program, a measure the president is (obviously) expected to veto.
YouTube will reverse its election-integrity policy, and allow election-denial videos on the platform. Great! I love when corporations sacrifice democracy to extract just a little bit more profit.
Disgraced former president Donald Trump’s lawyers have informed the DOJ that they can’t find the classified document about military operations in Iran that Trump was recorded referencing. Very likely story!
The Justice Department will not seek charges against former Vice President Mike Pence for his possession of potentially classified government documents, and the investigation has been closed.
The Fulton County, GA, District Attorney’s investigation of disgraced former president Donald Trump and his efforts to overturn the 2020 election has expanded to include activities in Washington, DC, and several other states.
More than 800 million trees have been cut down in the Amazon rainforest in just the past six years to meet global beef demand.
Gov. Bill Lee (R-TN) accused the National Rifle Association of seeking to use involuntary commitment laws “to round up mentally ill people and deprive them of other liberties,” a rare criticism of the NRA from a Republican.
An investigation into child sexual-abuse claims in Spain’s Catholic Church found 728 abusers among members of the clergy and non-clerical staff and 927 victims since the 1940’s.
A 19-year-old in the United Kingdom who converted to extremist Islam during the pandemic and planned to carry out a terrorist attack was given six years in prison.
The Canadian province of Nova Scotia is experiencing its worst-ever wildfire season, with more than 200 so far this year.
Maev® hasn’t created dog texting yet, but they have formulated a human-grade, high-protein raw food diet to improve your dog’s health and longevity.
Maev Raw Food supports benefits you can smell, feel, and see — from better breath and reduced itching/ shedding to regular bowel movements and maintaining a healthy weight. Most dog parents see results in 28 days or less.
Plus, it’s just as easy as kibble. There’s no mess, no prep, no thawing. Just open, pour, and serve.
Go raw today. Maev is offering our readers 20% off your first order, no minimum required. To claim, visit https://meetmaev.com/CROOKED and the discount will be automatically applied at checkout.
(Offer expires 6/30/23)
Fort Bragg, the major military base in North Carolina named after General Braxton Bragg—a Confederate general who owned slaves—was renamed Fort Liberty. Not sure why anyone thought it was a good idea to name a base after a guy who lost so many battles and is “widely regarded among historians as a poor leader who did not have the respect of his troops” in the first place!
Roberto Minuta, a member of the far-right Oath Keepers who was part of the security detail for longtime Trump adviseThe Riddler Roger Stone, was sentenced to more than four years in prison for seditious conspiracy related to his involvement in the January 6 insurrection.
submitted by kittehgoesmeow to FriendsofthePod [link] [comments]
Law And Border
Some variation on “CHAOS AT THE BORDER” is a staple phrase in the Fox News chyron. But the source of that chaos is not who they want you to think it is.- The Trump-era policy known as Title 42—which allowed American border agents to rapidly expel many migrants to Mexico or other countries to request asylum—expired in May, and conservative media whipped its viewership into a frenzy anticipating a huge increase in illegal crossings at the Southern border. That hasn’t happened. What has happened is a crisis of a different kind.
- An internal Border Patrol investigation found that medical staff “declined” (refused) to review the file of an eight-year-old girl with a chronic heart condition and a rare blood disorder before she had a fatal seizure on her ninth day in custody. Her parents had shared her medical history with authorities the second day the family was in custody. Anadith Alvarez was the daughter of Honduran immigrants, born with a congenital heart defect that required surgery three years ago. The day before she died, the girl had a fever of almost 105 degrees.
- The video surveillance system where the girl’s family was detained in Harlingen, TX, had been out of service for over one month, a violation of federal law that prevented authorities from collecting evidence, but interviews with Border Patrol agents and medical personnel there raised enough troubling questions to trigger an investigation into the girl’s nine days in custody. The agency’s own limit to detain migrants is 72 hours. The Office of Professional Responsibility (which is like Border Patrol’s office of internal affairs) reported that despite the girl’s rapidly deteriorating condition, her mothers concerns, “and the series of treatments required to manage her condition, contracted medical personnel did not transfer her to a hospital for higher-level care.”
- Adding to the unstable conditions at the border, the head of the U.S. Border Patrol, Chief Raul Ortiz, announced his retirement Tuesday night, which will take effect on June 30. It is unclear who will replace him. Ortiz oversaw Border Patrol’s nearly 20,000 agents during the pandemic and through the implementation of Title 42 after beginning his tenure in August 2021 following the ouster of MAGA-head Rodney Scott, who fully embraced Trump’s policies including #BuildTheWall. But the malpractice plainly did not end with Scott’s removal.
- During the Biden administration, agents have continued to engage in “unnecessary use of force” against non-threatening Haitian migrants. Biden’s own DOJ defended the continuation of Trump’s family-separation policy in court, despite his past criticisms of the policy as “criminal.” Since taking office, Biden has tightened standards for asylum seekers at the border to the degree that some argue he has all but eliminated the right to seek asylum on American soil. Seeking asylum is an internationally protected right, so it doesn’t feel particularly radical to criticize the policy choices that led to this.
Look No Further Than Crooked Media
It’s Pride month, and the Crooked Store has a whole collection of merch to help you celebrate and fight back against the total freaks obsessed with what we wear and where we put it. The collection has everything from tees to bags, so you can stock up. I’m not going to tell you how to celebrate Pride, but I will say that if you don’t ruin at least one article of clothing this month, you could be doing more. So grab an extra tee.Plus, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to Crooked’s Fuck Bans fund, which supports organizations working to protect vulnerable people on the ground in states that are banning care and targeting trans youth. You get the thrill of supporting organizers combined with the thrill of buying something online. It’s a win-win.
Head to https://crooked.com/store to check out the whole Pride collection.
Under The Radar
A series of investigations found that Allina Health System, a “nonprofit” that runs more than 100 hospitals and clinics in Minnesota and Wisconsin has repeatedly withheld care from patients who have unpaid medical bills as a draconian bill-collecting tactic. The network rakes in over $4 billion in annual revenue. In the for-profit American healthcare system, many hospitals are known to take aggressive measures to collect medical debt, including taking patients to court, garnishing their wages, or even seizing their tax refunds. Allina Health System, on the other hand, has an explicit policy to completely shut off non-emergency health services for patients with at least $4,500 in unpaid medical debt, and not allow them to resume receiving treatment until it’s paid off in full. At point, the electronic health-records system locks so that staff cannot schedule future appointments for those patients, even ones with chronic conditions requiring regular attention like diabetes and cancer. That confronts those patients with a choice between getting a loan approved through the hospital or filing for bankruptcy. Anyone in this country who has ever been on the wrong side of a health-insurance dispute knows how easy it is to rack up $4,500 in medical debt. Almost one-in-three Americans have medical debt, which accounts for about half of all outstanding debt in this country. Because Allina Health System is a “nonprofit” it was able to avoid $266 million in state, local, and federal taxes in 2020 alone. Another perfect day in the American health-care industrial complex!What Else?
The Department of Labor’s monthly jobs report showed the 29th straight month of strong job growth, with employers adding 339,000 jobs in May.The U.S. Senate passed the bipartisan ransom note to suspend the debt limit, averting what would have been the nation’s first-ever default. The bill now heads to President Biden’s desk for signature.
The Senate voted to rescind President Biden’s student-loan forgiveness program, a measure the president is (obviously) expected to veto.
YouTube will reverse its election-integrity policy, and allow election-denial videos on the platform. Great! I love when corporations sacrifice democracy to extract just a little bit more profit.
Disgraced former president Donald Trump’s lawyers have informed the DOJ that they can’t find the classified document about military operations in Iran that Trump was recorded referencing. Very likely story!
The Justice Department will not seek charges against former Vice President Mike Pence for his possession of potentially classified government documents, and the investigation has been closed.
The Fulton County, GA, District Attorney’s investigation of disgraced former president Donald Trump and his efforts to overturn the 2020 election has expanded to include activities in Washington, DC, and several other states.
More than 800 million trees have been cut down in the Amazon rainforest in just the past six years to meet global beef demand.
Gov. Bill Lee (R-TN) accused the National Rifle Association of seeking to use involuntary commitment laws “to round up mentally ill people and deprive them of other liberties,” a rare criticism of the NRA from a Republican.
An investigation into child sexual-abuse claims in Spain’s Catholic Church found 728 abusers among members of the clergy and non-clerical staff and 927 victims since the 1940’s.
A 19-year-old in the United Kingdom who converted to extremist Islam during the pandemic and planned to carry out a terrorist attack was given six years in prison.
The Canadian province of Nova Scotia is experiencing its worst-ever wildfire season, with more than 200 so far this year.
Be Smarter
The Discord disclosures of highly classified national security documents by former Massacheusetts Air National Guardsman/racist freak Jack Teixeira contain one particularly startling revelation: Iran, according to U.S. intelligence, plan to enlist militants in Syria to step up roadside attacks against U.S. military personnel, including through the use of armor-piercing munitions. The escalation is reportedly part of a broader strategic effort between Iran and Russia to drive the U.S. from the region (don’t threaten us with a good time!) but could also lead to escalating hostilities between the U.S. and Iran—and just in time for the Republican presidential primary, which will be chockablock with bloodthirsty war hawks who would happily exploit carnage in the region to revamp the GOP push for war.What A Sponsor
Don’t you wish you could talk to your dog sometimes? Maybe you’d ask them how their day was, tell them how much you love them, and ask how they’re feeling. But, we usually don’t know how they’re feeling or if something is wrong until, well, something is wrong.Maev® hasn’t created dog texting yet, but they have formulated a human-grade, high-protein raw food diet to improve your dog’s health and longevity.
Maev Raw Food supports benefits you can smell, feel, and see — from better breath and reduced itching/ shedding to regular bowel movements and maintaining a healthy weight. Most dog parents see results in 28 days or less.
Plus, it’s just as easy as kibble. There’s no mess, no prep, no thawing. Just open, pour, and serve.
Go raw today. Maev is offering our readers 20% off your first order, no minimum required. To claim, visit https://meetmaev.com/CROOKED and the discount will be automatically applied at checkout.
(Offer expires 6/30/23)
Light At The End Of The Email
A Baltimore couple, both nurses, saved a fellow passenger’s life on their flight back from a Florida vacation.Fort Bragg, the major military base in North Carolina named after General Braxton Bragg—a Confederate general who owned slaves—was renamed Fort Liberty. Not sure why anyone thought it was a good idea to name a base after a guy who lost so many battles and is “widely regarded among historians as a poor leader who did not have the respect of his troops” in the first place!
Roberto Minuta, a member of the far-right Oath Keepers who was part of the security detail for longtime Trump adviseThe Riddler Roger Stone, was sentenced to more than four years in prison for seditious conspiracy related to his involvement in the January 6 insurrection.
Enjoy
paige on Twitter: "My 11 month-old son saw the pride merchandise in our local Target- immediately said “mama, I am woke and gay now” and then he did the worm"
2023.06.03 10:26 mndtravels A Comprehensive Guide to Planning Your Spiritual Journey to Yamunotri Dham & Its Surrounding Areas
Embarking on a spiritual journey can be a transformative and enlightening experience. One such destination that holds immense spiritual significance is Yamunotri Dham and its surrounding areas. Nestled in the breathtaking Garhwal Himalayas in Uttarakhand, India, Yamunotri Dham is considered one of the holiest sites for devout Hindus. This comprehensive guide will take you through the essential aspects of planning your spiritual journey to Yamunotri Dham, including the best time to visit, transportation options, accommodations, and the must-visit attractions in the surrounding areas.
During the winter months, Yamunotri Dham is covered in a blanket of snow, making it inaccessible for most travelers. It is advisable to avoid the monsoon season, as heavy rainfall can lead to landslides and road blockages, making the journey challenging and unsafe.
Q1: Can I visit Yamunotri Dham with my family?
Absolutely! Yamunotri Dham is a family-friendly destination and welcomes visitors of all ages. It is a great opportunity to embark on a spiritual journey with your loved ones and create lasting memories together.
Q2: Are there any medical facilities available in Yamunotri Dham?
While Yamunotri Dham is a remote location, there are basic medical facilities available in nearby towns like Hanuman Chatti and Janki Chatti. It is advisable to carry any necessary medications with you and consult a healthcare professional before your trip.
Q3: Is photography allowed in Yamunotri Dham?
Yes, photography is allowed in Yamunotri Dham. However, it is important to respect the religious sanctity of the place and be mindful of others’ privacy. Avoid using flash photography inside the temple and follow any guidelines provided by the temple authorities.
Q4: Can I visit Yamunotri Dham during the monsoon season?
It is not recommended to visit Yamunotri Dham during the monsoon season (July to August) due to heavy rainfall and the increased risk of landslides. The terrain becomes challenging and unsafe, making it difficult to undertake the trek. It is best to plan your visit during the peak season from May to June or September to November.
Q5: Are there any restrictions or dress codes for visiting the temple?
Yes, there are certain dress codes and restrictions to be followed when visiting the temple. Both men and women are required to dress modestly, covering their shoulders and legs. It is advisable to carry a shawl or scarf to cover your head as a sign of respect. Footwear should be removed before entering the temple premises.
Q6: Can I hire a guide for the trek to Yamunotri Dham?
Yes, if you prefer assistance and guidance during the trek, you can hire a local guide. They can provide valuable information about the route, share interesting facts about the place, and ensure your safety throughout the journey. Hiring a guide can enhance your overall experience and make the trek more enjoyable.
source : Chardham Yatra, CharDham yatra package by Helicopter 2023, char dham yatra from haridwar, char dham yatra from Delhi, Chardham package tour, spiritual journey to Yamunotri Dham
submitted by mndtravels to u/mndtravels [link] [comments]
The Importance of Yamunotri Dham
Before delving into the details of planning your journey, let’s understand the significance of Yamunotri Dham. It is believed to be the source of the sacred Yamuna River, which holds great religious importance in Hindu mythology. According to legend, Yamuna is the sister of Yama, the god of death. Taking a dip in the holy waters of Yamunotri is said to cleanse one’s sins and provide spiritual liberation.Best Time to Visit Yamunotri Dham
Choosing the right time to visit Yamunotri Dham is crucial to make the most of your spiritual journey. The temple and surrounding areas remain open to devotees from May to November, with the peak season being from May to June and September to November. The weather during these months is pleasant, with temperatures ranging from 10 to 20 degrees Celsius.During the winter months, Yamunotri Dham is covered in a blanket of snow, making it inaccessible for most travelers. It is advisable to avoid the monsoon season, as heavy rainfall can lead to landslides and road blockages, making the journey challenging and unsafe.
How to Reach Yamunotri Dham
Planning your travel logistics is essential for a hassle-free journey. Here are the transportation options to consider when heading to Yamunotri Dham:- By Air: The nearest airport to Yamunotri Dham is Jolly Grant Airport in Dehradun, approximately 210 kilometers away. From the airport, you can hire a taxi or take a shared cab to reach the town of Hanuman Chatti, the base for the trek to Yamunotri.
- By Train: The closest railway station to Yamunotri Dham is Rishikesh Railway Station, which is well-connected to major cities in India. From Rishikesh, you can hire a taxi or take a bus to Hanuman Chatti.
- By Road: If you prefer to travel by road, you can drive or take a bus from major cities like Delhi or Dehradun to Hanuman Chatti. Regular bus services operate from these cities to Hanuman Chatti, making it a convenient option for many travelers.
Accommodations in Yamunotri Dham
Finding suitable accommodations during your spiritual journey is essential for a comfortable stay. Here are some options to consider in and around Yamunotri Dham:- Hotels and Guesthouses: There are several budget and mid-range hotels and guesthouses available in the town of Hanuman Chatti and nearby areas. These accommodations offer basic amenities and are ideal for those seeking a comfortable yet affordable stay.
- Yatri Niwas: The Yamunotri Temple Committee operates Yatri Niwas, which provides simple and clean rooms for pilgrims. It is advisable to make prior bookings, especially during the peak season.
- Camps and Tents: For an adventurous experience, you can opt for camping or staying in tents near Yamunotri Dham. There are camping facilities available in locations like Janki Chatti and Hanuman Chatti. These camps offer a unique opportunity to immerse yourself in nature and enjoy the serene surroundings.
- Dharamshalas: There are also Dharamshala (pilgrim rest houses) available in Yamunotri Dham, providing basic accommodations at affordable rates. These are maintained by local authorities and are a popular choice for pilgrims seeking a spiritual and budget-friendly stay.
Step 1: Research and Prepare
Before embarking on your spiritual journey, it is important to conduct thorough research and gather all the necessary information. This includes understanding the religious significance of Yamunotri Dham, learning about the local customs and traditions, and familiarizing yourself with the dos and don’ts of the pilgrimage.Step 2: Plan Your Itinerary
Once you have gathered the necessary information, it’s time to plan your itinerary. Consider the duration of your trip, the time required for the trek, and the places you want to explore in the surrounding areas. It is recommended to allocate at least 2–3 days for your visit to Yamunotri Dham to fully absorb the spiritual atmosphere.Step 3: Pack Essentials
Make a checklist of essential items to pack for your journey. This includes appropriate clothing for the weather conditions, comfortable walking shoes, personal hygiene products, medications, and any religious items or offerings you may want to carry for your visit to the temple.Step 4: Stay Hydrated and Nourished
During the trek to Yamunotri Dham, it is essential to stay hydrated and nourished. Carry an adequate supply of water, energy bars, and snacks to keep your energy levels up throughout the journey. It is also advisable to carry a reusable water bottle and refill it at designated points to minimize plastic waste.Step 5: Trekking Tips and Safety Measures
Trekking to Yamunotri Dham requires physical endurance and stamina. Here are some important tips to keep in mind:- Start your trek early in the morning to avoid the heat and crowds.
- Pace yourself and take regular breaks to rest and acclimatize to the altitude.
- Follow the designated trekking path and avoid taking shortcuts.
- Carry a first aid kit and basic medication for emergencies.
- Respect the environment and do not litter. Dispose of waste responsibly.
Step 6: Immerse Yourself in Spirituality
Once you reach Yamunotri Dham, take the time to immerse yourself in the spiritual atmosphere. Participate in religious rituals, offer prayers at the temple, and take a dip in the holy waters of the Yamuna River. Engage in self-reflection and meditation to connect with your inner self and experience the serenity of your surroundings.Step 7: Explore the Surrounding Areas
Yamunotri Dham is not just about the temple; it offers stunning natural beauty and picturesque landscapes. Take the opportunity to explore the nearby attractions, such as Surya Kund, Divya Shila, and the scenic trek to Saptrishi Kund. These places offer breathtaking views and are perfect for nature lovers and photography enthusiasts.Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Here are some frequently asked questions about planning a spiritual journey to Yamunotri Dham and their answers:Q1: Can I visit Yamunotri Dham with my family?
Absolutely! Yamunotri Dham is a family-friendly destination and welcomes visitors of all ages. It is a great opportunity to embark on a spiritual journey with your loved ones and create lasting memories together.
Q2: Are there any medical facilities available in Yamunotri Dham?
While Yamunotri Dham is a remote location, there are basic medical facilities available in nearby towns like Hanuman Chatti and Janki Chatti. It is advisable to carry any necessary medications with you and consult a healthcare professional before your trip.
Q3: Is photography allowed in Yamunotri Dham?
Yes, photography is allowed in Yamunotri Dham. However, it is important to respect the religious sanctity of the place and be mindful of others’ privacy. Avoid using flash photography inside the temple and follow any guidelines provided by the temple authorities.
Q4: Can I visit Yamunotri Dham during the monsoon season?
It is not recommended to visit Yamunotri Dham during the monsoon season (July to August) due to heavy rainfall and the increased risk of landslides. The terrain becomes challenging and unsafe, making it difficult to undertake the trek. It is best to plan your visit during the peak season from May to June or September to November.
Q5: Are there any restrictions or dress codes for visiting the temple?
Yes, there are certain dress codes and restrictions to be followed when visiting the temple. Both men and women are required to dress modestly, covering their shoulders and legs. It is advisable to carry a shawl or scarf to cover your head as a sign of respect. Footwear should be removed before entering the temple premises.
Q6: Can I hire a guide for the trek to Yamunotri Dham?
Yes, if you prefer assistance and guidance during the trek, you can hire a local guide. They can provide valuable information about the route, share interesting facts about the place, and ensure your safety throughout the journey. Hiring a guide can enhance your overall experience and make the trek more enjoyable.
Conclusion
Embarking on a spiritual journey to Yamunotri Dham and its surrounding areas is a truly enriching experience. From the religious significance of the place to the breathtaking natural beauty, every aspect of this destination is bound to leave a lasting impression on your mind and soul. By following this comprehensive guide and planning your trip effectively, you can ensure a smooth and fulfilling pilgrimage to Yamunotri Dham, connecting with the divine and finding inner peace amidst the Himalayan serenity.source : Chardham Yatra, CharDham yatra package by Helicopter 2023, char dham yatra from haridwar, char dham yatra from Delhi, Chardham package tour, spiritual journey to Yamunotri Dham
2023.06.03 04:45 Mountain-Share-6623 I’m a bad person who’s only recently changed
For context, I’m 20 years old. I’m not a good person and I’ve come to accept this, not as an excuse to not try to be better, I always want to try to be, but just as a fact of who I am as what I’ve done could only be a result of that fact. When I was six years old my parents got the family 2 dogs because me and my brother wanted some from seeing them on tv. I now recognize that the way I treated those dogs was almost assuredly abusive. We didn’t ever hit them for than flick on the nose, but we shouldn’t have done that at all. I also didn’t take care for their needs well at all. They were fed and watered but not walked at all consistently. They also were played with only sometimes. For the most part they hung out in our backyard. They also only got vet visits when they were sick or hurt. Alongside this my family got 2 rabbits when I was 13 who mostly hung out inside of a fairly large cage all day with water and food. I remember one of them having bruises from the other. I recognize that I I also engaged in abusive behavior towards them. My family eventually moved to another state and we gave away the rabbits to a no kill shelter and we took the dogs with us.Still I engaged in clearly abusive behavior like sometimes when I wanted to hang out at someone’s house or fire works going off we would put the dogs in the utility room with water and while this room wasn’t tiny this was clearly me neglecting my duties for my own satisfaction. At the start of the new year I began to recognize my abuse and started trying to take better care of them, by taking them for a daily walk and giving them more affection. Unfortunately I still engaged in sub par care cause I would do things like take them for walks through snow without checking the temperature. Luckily neither ever caught frostbite but still the degree of irresponsibly I engaged in is bad. Honestly it bothers me that they still loved me, they let me pet their belly’s, when I put my hand on ones belly she would put her paw on my arm to pet me back. Despite everything I had done they still loved me. Three months into this year one the two dogs passed, ironically the younger and healthier one. It happened in one day, she suddenly fell ill. My parents set up a vet visit for her and I thought she would be okay as the symptoms had only set in that day so I went about my day normally. I later came out to visit her and watched over her for a while before work. She at one point passed blood and I called my parents to tell them I wanted to take her to the emergency vet. They told me to not panic and that it was possibly just mucous. I eventually left for my job cause I knew my parents would be home in twenty minutes to take care of her. I kissed her on the head and pet her before I left. This was the last time I ever saw her, my mom got home and she said she was doing okay till her condition deteriorated and my mom tried to get her to the vet but she passed before they got there. I wont forgive myself for not being there when she passed, she was probably scared and in pain and I wasn’t there to comfort her. After her passing this I began to realize that my care still wasn’t good enough and that even in my other dogs last couple months I wasn’t doing a good job, and for that I will always carry regrets. As with the other dog I began to recognize some of the worse medical problems he has and still does, he doesn’t have very great teeth cause he never got regular dental and even the most recent trip to the vet the vet recommended against a teeth cleaning as he stated that while my dogs teeth were dirty they were structurally sound and that he thought the heightened risk of anesthesia was too high despite his blood levels looking fine. He also noted that by virtue of being an old dog he had some arthritis and while he didn’t recommend us any pain meds at least not yet, I’ve been doing my best to get him vitamin supplements to help him. I’ve been trying to give him more care and affection since he’s also in his later years, he gets a daily 30 minute walk where he gets to go at his own pace and sniff around. It makes me happy but also frustrated that despite everything he still likes me, at least most days he still seems happy. I also try to spend at least two hours of my day with him when I can. I won’t claim I’m always good, I’ve had an incident where I took him for a walk when it was too hot out and while he didn’t burn his paws I was irresponsible again. There were times where actions I took accidentally got him to slip down some stairs, and even though he never limped, I regret this. Even just today I accidentally over-walked him in an attempt to help with him being slightly overweight and he wasn’t hurt but tired. I’m saying this emphasize I know I still have a lot of growing to do and I’m sorry deeply when I make these mistakes. It also been difficult cause my family recently got a new puppy who somewhat bothers the older dog, and the old dog has even recently taken to sleeping in my parents bathroom, which they allow. He’s a good little guy and I’m gonna do my best to not make the same mistakes I made the first time. Also once my older dog does pass, I’m going to try and donate my time to an animal rescue shelter at least once a week. I already donate 25 dollars to a bunny charity once a week to hopefully start making up for what I did the poor rabbits. I recognize that I’ve engaged with terrible behavior and some of this behavior lingers. I know I could use excuses like “I was just young and didn’t know better” or “I was focused on things like my education”. I don’t want to use those though, I recognize those are ways of me pushing the blame off of myself when it’s weight and gnawing is what I should rightfully feel. Even now I feel like I’m lying to my friends, while I talk about some of this with them, as I don’t talk about it all. It’s also hard to now as I’m kinda lying to you all because I’m too cowardly to put a name to this post. I sometimes do wonder if I just fear the social consequences of what I’ve done. I will say one thing I hate about myself with this situation is me being an infinite baby about it. Despite knowing I don’t deserve it I still want empathy from others, even now I want empathy but I know I don’t deserve it. My parents have decided to let me see a counselor about some of these feelings, my first session was yesterday. He was a very nice man but I don’t know how much distance he’ll make with me, I’m still as I said before a bad person fundamentally. I know writing this that I’m still a coward, I’m not willing to put a name to this post cause it fills my stomach with a sinking pit. I won’t lie some days it’s still pretty hard to keep up with cause I’ve lost a lot of time for hobbys and to be honest engaging with them now, kinda makes me feel guilty, like I’m being neglectful again. If you’ve read this whole post thank you for letting me air things out
submitted by Mountain-Share-6623 to offmychest [link] [comments]
2023.06.03 04:17 der_schone_begleiter Anyone know what's going on? Army aircraft AC 130j ghostrider doing circles and Ary helicopter heading that way. Between catiz and steubenville oh around US22
 | submitted by der_schone_begleiter to Ohio [link] [comments] |
2023.06.03 02:12 Omansurver The second part of the fourth section of a certain super well-made-like-oh-my-god-this-is-so-good literary piece of media that was inspired by a animated piece of media, or the second part of the fourth chapter.
So yeah, second part. I forgot to say the page count last time of this chapter last time, so I'll say it now. Chapter four is about fifty pages long, so it fits the bill when it comes to these things. Not much else to say, so enjoy.
* * *
Jacob pondered.
On what exactly? Oh fine, I’ll tell you.
Jacob had just received what was, hopefully, a relatively unfiltered version of the recent events and situation on the planet. After about an hour of explanation, A had finished on the arrival of the disassembly drones, and the subsequent widespread assault on the worker drones. When Jacob had asked for the specific story of A’s squad, A had skirted around it, only lightly touching upon the subject. It was slightly suspicious, but Jacob didn’t plan on doing anything about it.
However, if it was the truth, it only raised more questions than answers. The fact that a company was willing to exterminate the entirety of what was probably a massive investment was just baffling. Jacob could only come up with two explanations, one of which was rather worrying to think about. The first was that of changing times; perhaps the company was so rich, and technology so advanced, that the worker drones could be replaced with the ease of buying another shipload of tissues. If you threw away an entire box of tissues, it would be annoying to say the least, but it wouldn’t cost a lot to just get another one.
But, it just didn’t make sense to Jacob that that would be the case. The United States military in the time of Jacob had heaps, thousands of missiles, and could afford to replace them as they were used. But if they all disappeared at once? It would take lots of time, money, and effort to replace each and every single last one of the lost payloads, and not to mention the logistical nightmare it would be.
So, that led Jacob to his other solution, one that insinuated a scenario far more confusing and sinister. If the company decided to just annihilate every worker drone, which is a very radical and illogical decision by a galaxy-spanning megacorporation, then it would line up with certain other decisions made by other people in the past.
During the Second World War, the U.S. government was fearful of a potential Japanese invasion. They believed that, if they did land boots on American soil, that the Japanese-Americans would rise up, taking the side of the invaders. And so, Roosevelt made the Executive Order 9066, ordering over one hundred and twenty thousand Japanese-Americans to be interned in concentration camps, where they would remain until near the end of the war.
This was an apt example for how even the most level-headed of individuals could make bad decisions under the influence of fear. If Jacob assumed that the same was true for this day and age, then perhaps the administration at the company had sent machines to kill the entire worker drone populace due some or maybe even all of them being much more dangerous than what was being let on. It was a bit far-fetched, but was the one of the only viable solutions at the moment, aside from his theory that nothing was real and they were all figments of the imagination of a being so complex they were nothing but fiction to it, but the chances of that were little to none.
Right?
Jacob’s pondering was interrupted by someone waving their hand in front of his face.
“Ugh, hello?” A snapped his fingers twice. “You there?”
Jacob blinked, refocusing on his present company. “Uh yeah, just processing.”
A scoffed. “Processing what? I thought humans were superior or something?”
Jacob smacked A’s hand out of his face. “Me too.”
A raised an LED eyebrow.
“Doesn’t matter.” Jacob waved hand in a dismissive way. “What now?”
“I dunno. That's all I had.” A shrugged.
“Nothing else you’re hiding?” Jacob questioned.
“No. There isn’t.” A glared at Jacob. “Now drop it.”
Jacob held up his hands in surrender. “Okay, jeez man, calm down. I just don’t wanna be bored for however long I’m stuck here.”
“Yeah well, that's not really my problem.” A stated.
Jacob didn’t reply, only sighing, before standing and getting up out of his seat.
A startled. “Wait, where are you going?”
“Out.” Jacob simply replied.
“Why?” A inquired.
Jacob shrugged. “Bored.”
A got to his feet as well. “Fine then. I guess I’m going as well.”
“You’re coming with?” Jacob asked incredulously.
“Yeah. I can’t have you running off and getting yourself killed.” A reasoned.
“They kept saying that too.” Jacob grumbled.
“Who said that?” A tilted his head.
“K and X.” Jacob answered. “Also, why don’t y’all have normal names? Why just letters?”
“I dunno.” A non-committedly replied.
“Huh.” Jacob took that as a cue to leave, turning to the ladder.
A followed closely behind, waiting until Jacob had gone through the small exit to ascend himself.
Jacob didn’t bother to use the ladder on the way down, buckling his knees and dropping the last few feet, hearing the snow crunch beneath him. He had been prepared to absorb the impact, but it seemed like whatever advanced mechanics his suit possessed had done the job all by itself, which was pretty nice. He made a mental note to test out the capabilities later on, just to get a general sense of the limits and what would be a danger to him.
Jacob heard a similar crunching noise behind him, causing him to look backwards, seeing A just awkwardly standing there.
“Just gonna follow me? Really?” Jacob was slightly annoyed.
“Yeah. I’ve gotta keep you safe until someone else takes you off my hands, or else I’ll-” A cut himself off.
Jacob took note of that, inferring what he might have been about to say. It only served to confirm his notion that he was sort of a VIP on the planet. He was to be protected at all costs, which was pretty nice for Jacob.
“So, you gonna do anything?” A asked.
* * *
The sound of snow crunching filled the empty room as the pair walked into it.
“Can we go back already?” X complained.
“No, and be quiet.” K scolded him. “It’s too echoey in this room, it’s annoying.”
X scoffed. “Pff, it’s fine. Nobody’s around for miles, we’re all good. Now when can we go back?”
K rolled her eyes. “We can go back when we find something, You heard what he said.”
“What who said?” X inquired.
“You idiot, our squad leader!? Our boss that we’ve spent who knows how long with!?” K cried out.
“Calm down, just messing around.” X leaned against the wall.
“Whatever, you know what A said. We can’t come back until we’ve found water.” K reminded X.
“Why do we even need it? I’m sure he’ll be fine.” X waved off the issue.
“He’ll die.” K deadpanned.
“He can walk it off.” X waved off the issue again.
“I don’t care, just get off the wall, we’ve gotta search every building.” K gestured for X to follow.
“How can we even find anything in here? Everywhere else we’ve checked has been empty.” X took his place next to K.
“You never know, now get to it.” K kicked over a rock, exposing a small marble.
X trotted over to a dented metal counter on one side of the room, peering underneath it.
“Nothing here, this is useless.” X whined.
“Shut up.” K called out.
X surprisingly obliged, kneeling down and searching the small cabinets that were connected to the counter. After finding nothing but a small skeleton huddled inside one of them, X sighed heavily, before making his way over to a large metal box. It might’ve been taller than him if it wasn’t tipped over on its side, with an assortment of power cords snaking out from an outlet on the back of it. Seeing a small handle on the front, X tugged on it, the slight rust giving way to superior strength.
However, X’s eyes went wide with shock, which changed to glee.
“Hey, look what I’ve found!” X called out to K.
K’s head whipped up, staring at the prize that X was brandishing. “You found- what is that?”
If the two had any idea what warm food was, they would’ve recognized the lumpy frozen good that X had in his hands as a perfectly preserved rotisserie chicken. If they had any sort of reheating device, and if they had proper taste buds, they might have been able to enjoy the sweet experience of a Thanksgiving dinner. However, they were ignorant robots who were about as smart as a middle schooler, so the only reaction that they, or at least one of them had, was confusion.
“I dunno, but it says chicken on the side!” X proudly exclaimed.
“What’s chicken?” K questioned.
“I’m . . . not sure . . . but I’m pretty sure it's food.” X’s LED eyebrows furrowed in thought.
“How do you know that?” K asked.
“Uh, I don't?” X seemed more confused than ecstatic now.
K shook her head. “Did you find anything useful?”
“Well I found this clear thing, but it only says something called ‘Dasani’ on the side.” X held up a clear plastic bottle, putting his finger in quotation marks when he said it.
“Give me that!” K dashed across the room, snatching the item out of X’s hands.
“Wha- hey!” X tried to grab at it, but K held it out of his reach.
“Back up!” K swatted X in the face, inciting a squawk of surprise.
“I found it first, give it back!” X shot back, tackling K, causing the bottle to roll across the ground.
The two began slugging at each other, scrabbling across the ground for dominance over a goddamn bottle, like a gang of the aforementioned middle schoolers. Nearly crushing the contested item multiple times, the two spent a good thirty seconds duking it out. And after K finally managed to curl into a ball around the bottle, X tried to no avail to recapture his former possession.
“You motherfu-” X was cut off by a noise from the door that led deeper into the building
The two highly professional disassembly drones shot to their feet, their gazes snapping to the origin of the sound. Standing there was a figure, about the same height as K and X, with familiar black plating and armor, kneeling down to grab a small blue marble that was on the floor. It appears as though the idiot had been trying to be sneaky to avoid capturing the attention of the killer robots, which clearly didn’t go as planned.
“Uh, hi.” The drone said after a moment of silence.
Even more silence.
The military drone took that as a cue to scoop up the marble, before dashing out of the room.
K and X instantly took chase, with K pocketing the small bottle for later. The military drone wasn’t quite fast, but it did make use of its head start well. The unnamed drone disappeared behind the corner, with the pair of disassembly drones right on his heels. However, when K turned around the edge, a bullet tore through the air, finding its home in her head. Completely unprepared, she fell to the ground.
X, contrary to what some might do, didn’t stop to assist her, instead just simply vaulting over her body, speeding onward. He was rapidly closing the distance between him and the military drone, when his prey suddenly whipped around with a pistol in its hand. X, unlike his comrade, was prepared for this inevitability, turning to the side and out of the path of the trio of bullets as they flew by him. X followed up on this by diving down onto the hapless drone, trying to skewer it on gleaming metal claws.
The drone didn’t have a chance to fight, but unknown to X, he did have time to press the small panic button on its jawline, or where the jawline would be if it was a human. If anyone on this planet was familiar with standard police or even military practice, they would recognize the small button as the useful yet annoying panic button.
For a bit of context, the panic button is usually represented as a small and easy-to-access device that, when activated, sends out an emergency distress signal that would notify the proper authorities of the panic button’s location and a dire situation. The panic button is common in the military, police personnel, elderly homes, schools, corporate buildings, apartment buildings, and basically everywhere else that isn’t a ghetto.
The drone, however, proved to be much smarter than his predecessors, much to the dismay of X. It dove to the side, dropping down and through a weakened rusty grate. As X’s claws scraped against the wall, the fleeing drone tossed a metal panel that was blocking the way out to his side, before dashing through the door. X jumped down to the lower floor, before continuing his chase.
A flurry of bullets ripped towards him, but X brought his arm up, letting his forearm absorb the projectiles that hit, and most missed. The drone ran down a comically long flight of stairs, taking three steps at a time. The stairs continued downward, eventually opening up to a basement with a gaping hole in the wall, which led straight into darkness. The drone nearly fell into the hole from the momentum of jumping down the stairs. But, it just managed to skid to a stop at the edge.
X landed at the foot of the stairs, crouching to absorb the impact. X’s gaze focused on the drone that was pointing the pistol at X, sights drawing a solid bead on his head. However, when it pulled the trigger, it was only met with a slight clicking sound. The drone gaze jerked down to the pistol, then straight back up to X, who was now diving towards it, claws outstretched.
The drone jumped backwards, losing his balance. Its foot slipped off the edge, and while the sudden space between it and X saved its life for the time being, it did have to contend with gravity, which was now pulling on the drone by a considerable amount.
X watched as the drone tumbled down the pit, hitting the sides. However, the sides of the pit were both sloped and slick with a thin sheet of ice, causing the drone to slide down to the bottom. The drone slammed against a large rusty metal pipe, which was a solid indicator of the pit’s identity as a sewer.
The drone scrambled to its feet, caving the skull in of a skeleton that appeared to have been a former inspector when one took into account the corpse’s clipboard and tattered clothes. X slammed down onto the large pipe, causing it to resonate like a gong. The drone snatched up a small length of rusty metal rebar that had impaled itself on the ground, the edge of the steel surprisingly sharp. The drone adopted a fighting stance, pointing the business end towards X.
The robotic predator didn’t care, however, just simply stabbing his prey with his own pointy stick, the sharp end of his nanite acid tail. The sharp tool stuck itself in the drone’s shoulder, causing it to drop the bar and curse. X took the opportunity to grip the drone by the head, while digging the claws of his other hand in its chest. X then looked into the opaque black visor of the military drone, before pulling in two opposite directions.
The effects were made known quickly, with the head of the military drone migrating away from its home connected to the body. Oil splashed down onto X, who took the opportunity to feed. X dropped the head, letting it hit the ground with a clang, dropping the body as well.
X stood over the fallen corpse, claws gleaming with oil. K landed next to him, retracting her wings.
“So you got it?” K asked.
“No I didn’t, he got away. This body right here is just a random pigeon, and you’re just hallucinating.” X replied sarcastically. “Also, how the hell did you get here so fast?”
K rolled her eyes. “Oh, be quiet. I’m just making sure, because knowing you, you would probably let him go for the funny.” She ignored his latter question.
“Well now that you mention it . . .” X looked sorrowfully at the body.
K punched him in the arm. “Whatever, we gotta go. I seriously doubt that he was alone-”
She was cut off yet again by a loud crash that originated from the hole up on the wall. The duo whipped around, only to see several guns pointed straight at them.
“Sup.” X nodded at the intruders.
* * *
The sound of conversation could be audibly heard from the lit tent.
The tent had been designated as the de facto headquarters for the former facility personnel, with a smaller offshoot serving as a meeting room for the leadership. The offshoot tent in question was currently being used for its purpose, with an emergency meeting being called. Not because of the discovery of a dead body, but for a different matter entirely.
“Can anyone at least tell me how this happened?” The Lead Engineer leaned on the table.
One of the data officers stepped forward. “We believe that when we were evacuating the facility, an error occurred that declassified the file.” They answered.
“An error did this.” The General wasn’t convinced.
“Well, yes. The computers had been degrading for a while now, and we had noticed that several of our autonomous programs were misbehaving, or just outright not working at all.” The data officer replied.
“And we did nothing about this?” The General glared at the trio of data officers that had joined them.
“We actually were doing all we could, but we didn’t have the materials to make a complete fix.” The Lead Engineer interjected.
“Why didn’t you tell me then!?” The General exclaimed.
“I did. You probably just forgot again.” The Lead Engineer suggested.
“What? I have the best memory here.” The General puffed out his chest proudly.
“Alright then, what were we just talking about?” The Lead Engineer inquired.
The General frowned. “We were talking?”
The Lead Engineer facepalmed. “Goddamn idiot.”
One of the data officers stepped up. “Uh, sir? There is still the matter of the ones who discovered the information.”
“Oh yeah, uh, dump them off the eastern bridge.” The Lead Engineer waved off the issue.
With a simple nod, the data officers left, accompanied by a few guards as well. The Lead Engineer sat back in his chair, before steepling his fingers on the desk. He looked back and forth between the assembled leadership, before the General spoke up.
“So, are we gonna continue or what?” He crossed his arms.
“Yes, sorry.” The Lead Engineer motioned to one of his ministers. “You take the lead, Kane.”
Kane got up, walking to the front of the tent, dragging a projector on a cart with him. When he arrived, he pulled down the white screen, securing the hook on a latch on the bottom. He then adjusted the cart, facing the lens towards the screen. He then attached a laptop to the projector, pressing a few buttons and fiddling with a few switches, cursing once. Finally, the projector flickered to life, shining an image onto the screen.
Kane cleared his throat. “Ahem, so. What you are seeing here is the first page of the document in question. As you can see here, it appears to be warning against a drone viewing whatever the contents of this file is.” Kane flicked to the next slide. “It continues to vehemently express this multiple times, not really differing in its warning at all.”
One of the military ministers, Alicia, raised her hand. “Uh, question?”
Kane paused. “What is it?”
“Its warning against drones? She asked.
“Yes, it is. I’ll explain this later on, so save your questions for the end please.” Kane looked back to the projection, skipping through the slides until he landed on the first one without a warning.
“Ah, here we go. So, as you can see here, this appears to be a logo for JCJenson-'' Kane was interrupted by a faint, “In Spaaaaacee!” from an unknown source. “Uh, anyway, as all of you know, JCJenson was the company that owned this planet, and the one that provided the drones that the government were using in their facility, which was us.” Kane flicked to the next slide.
“Here we can see a title for a project, along with several bits of accompanying information, like locations, associates, page number, references, you get the picture.” Kane then produced a long ruler from what seemed like thin air, before pointing the end at one of the words. “Pay attention to this one here ‘AbsoSolv’ as it’ll come up several times later on.” Going to the next slide, Kane cleared his throat yet again.
“This page is more confusing, as it appears to be mentioning several unit serial numbers that don’t match up with standard format, which are mixed in with several other ones that are in different format, like this one here,” Kane pointed his stick at a random one from the line. “This one says, S-010011X01, which I believe has a main identifying letter instead of a string of numbers based on time of construction.”
“Additionally, while some of these feature the normal serial numbers that worker drones use, they have another identifier after it, separated by a dash.” Kane flipped to the next slide.
“This one is more straightforward, as it appears to be featuring a set of technical designs of a modified worker drone with the serial number and other associated information listed at the top. The notes on the side are observations on the modifications that can be seen in the designs. Some of the original worker drone parts can be seen, but a majority of the inner and outer mass seem to have been altered or replaced with a substance that is described as ‘fleshy’. You can see at the very bottom a signature of an unknown human administrator, and a notice that marks the drone for ‘disassembly’ as an addendum can be seen that marks whatever this is as a failure, and a recommendation to request more data from their source.”
Kane took a breath, before going to the next slide. “This is essentially the same as the last one, and this continues for a few slides. Nothing of note can be found in them, save for a few different serial numbers that were listed in one of the prior slides.”
Kane flicked to the next slide. “This one has two addendums, which I will say in a moment. The image is different as well, with noticeably less random mutations and more of a form taking place. This one was supposedly much more successful than the others, and while it was still marked as a failure, the first addendum said that the team working on the project should strip the data from the drone in as best a condition as they could. The second one simply noted they were naming the specific strain of code they were using to ‘Absolute Solver’. The addendum does not mention any reason or motive behind the name, only noting the fact that their shareholders would be pleased.”
“The next one is the first apparent success in the line of experiments that JCJenson seemed to be doing. A single growth can be seen protruding from the back of the spinal transmitter, and several other growths have sprouted inside. However, it is noted that the drone survived the process, and remained somewhat coherent for a period of time afterwards, which seems to be an outlier when considering the others. There isn’t an addendum on this one, only a request from the team for more extensive data from their source to compare to this experiment.”
“This trend continues for a good while, so I’ll just summarize the important bits for all of you.” Kane stated. “Each version continued to show more and more productive attributes and traits, as is par the standard course. Throughout the notes, requests, and addendums, whoever was typing up the document repeatedly noted some things that I will review later, such as Absolute Solver, the ‘source’, Camp 98.7, Cabin Fever Labs, and disassembly drones.”
Kane flicked to the final slide. “This is the final page, with some items to note. It appears to be a reiteration of the specifics of the agreement between the government and JCJenson, with a few additional key things. It includes the standard formalities and the usual junk that we all know, but something else as well. When mentioning the exchange of data that came from the asset-” Kane paused as the room underwent an uncomfortable shuffle in their seats. “They mention a clear correlation between this project that JCJenson is, or was, working on, and the asset. They also instructed the government contacts that any unauthorized personnel, which included government agents, were now barred from entering Camp 98.7 due to ‘hazardous environmental conditions’ and that this was nonnegotiable.”
Kane turned away from the projector, clasping his hands in front of himself. “And now to explain.”
“From what me and the team I assigned could gather, we deduced the meanings and purposes behind several items that were mentioned in this file. The first and most obvious, the ‘source’ that is mentioned. They are receiving data from this source, which seems to be essential to the development of what they were working on. Based on their words, we figured that the source is likely the asset, and yes, the same asset that we are all familiar with.” Kane paused, seemingly to let his words sink in.
“Continuing on, we began to dissect what Camp 98.7 was. It was very clearly a location of sorts, but where it was and what it was used for was more complicated. While we never arrived at a solid conclusion, we believed that the most likely avenue was that Camp 98.7 might have been an outpost of sorts, perhaps used in conjunction with these Cabin Fever Labs.”
“On the matter of the Cabin Fever Labs, we can clearly assume that research and development of this Absolute Solver was being conducted there, and perhaps Camp 98.7 was a sort of staging ground or other type of location related to the lab. We believe that the location of one or both of these sites are hidden within another file.”
“And perhaps the most intriguing and complex matter of them all, Absolute Solver. We figured that it was likely that this Absolute Solver was instrumental in whatever experiments they were doing, or even being one of the subjects of the experiments themselves. From what we gather, Absolute Solver is something, maybe a piece of alien machinery, some sort of unknown lifeform, an experimental strain of cutting-edge code, one of those things, but whatever it is, it is not something that is ‘normal’. It appears to have a unique effect on those it hosts or comes into contact with, rapidly generating new organic material, with sometimes uncontrolled effects. While the file only shows the experiments that used drones, we don’t know if any humans or other organic lifeforms were included either. Likely not, considering the legality of the situation, but it's open to discussion.”
Kane took a large breath, before continuing.
“And finally, the disassembly drones. They seem simple, but my team believed it to be heavily related to our current situation. They aren’t mentioned very often, but they appear to be a direct result of their experiments or related to one. From what we could gather, they are meant to, well, disassemble. Drones on par with military-grade ones that are capable of a variety of things, like bullet fire, rocket launching, melee combat, flight, digital warfare, and regeneration.” Kane watched as his words dawned upon his audience, expressions filling with shock.
“Yes, those drones. The disassembly drones that we read about are likely some variant of the unknown assailants that attacked the facility, and stole the asset in the process.”
The General sputtered. “B-but that would be a severe political incident! If those drones were under the command of JCJenson, and they stole GOVERNMENT property, then they would be liable for retaliation!”
Kane tried to calm the room. “Now, hold on, I’m not done-”
The Lead Engineer also appeared to be shocked. “Why didn’t you tell me this earlier!?”
“You told me to wait for the meeting!” Kane exclaimed.
The room erupted into disarray.
“We need to mobilize, hunt down those damn traitors!”
“What's their last known location!?”
“Where is the nearest transmitter, send out a request for retaliatory action!”
Suddenly, a drone burst into the room, knocking over the projector cart in the process. Everyone turned to look at him, ceasing the chaos for a moment.
“Er, uh, sirs?” The drone asked.
“Yes?” The General and the Lead Engineer stood up at the same time.
“I, uh,” The drone looked back and forth between the two administrators. “Well, we received a panic signal from one of our scouts.”
The General scoffed. “Why would that be enough to warrant our intervention? He probably just tripped on a conveniently placed banana peel.”
The messenger fidgeted nervously. “Well, his partner reported moments before the signal came in that he heard gunshots.”
The administrative drones shared a collective uneasy look.
“What did you do?” The General asked slowly.
“The officers who received the signal first sent in two of the patrol squads that were nearby at the time.” The messenger answered.
The drones in assembly all either looked down in disappointment or facepalmed.
The General spoke up after a moment. “Send in a squad as fast as you can to their last known location. Only veterans, and outfit them with heavy weaponry and explosive ordnance.” The General paused, before adding an afterthought. “And give them some cutting equipment too.”
The messenger blinked in surprise. “Wait, sir, are you sure-”
“Just tell the officers already!” The General slammed his fist down onto the cheap plastic table, which formed a crack.
The messenger saluted quickly, before dashing out of the room.
The Lead Engineer took a cursory look at the assembled drones, before he sighed.
“We’re screwed.”
* * *
“Are you going back anytime soon?”
Jacob looked back at his unwanted companion.
“No.” He answered simply, before resuming his casual trot.
“We’re getting too far away from the spire, and the sun is coming up in an hour or two. I for one don’t want to get caught out.” A insisted.
“Well I don’t die from a bit of sunlight, so too bad.” Jacob stepped over a tire rim.
“I’m not sure that’s your choice.” A stated.
Jacob paused and looked backward. “Oh, so you’re bossing me around now?”
“Maybe, if you keep on making dumb decisions like this.” A stopped as well.
“Pff, I’ll be fine.” Jacob waved his hand in the air to emphasize his point.
“You won’t last ten minutes.” A dead-panned.
“Nah, I’ll speedrun this stuff, I’ll be off-planet in an hour.” Jacob proudly said.
A shook his head and sighed. “Whatever you say.”
Jacob didn’t answer.
Jacob then looked around. “Wait, where are we? I wasn’t keeping track.”
“And you said that you would- whatever, we’re like, three miles away from the base.” A replied.
“Huh, went that far?” Jacob asked.
A frowned. “Three miles isn’t that far-”
A was interrupted by a rather loud crack that resonated through the landscape.
Jacob blinked. “Uh, ok then-”
Jacob was also interrupted by a trio of cracks and bangs, sounding slightly familiar.
“Are those-” Jacob was, yet again, interrupted by even more bangs.
“-gunshots?” He finished.
“I wouldn’t worry, those idiots are probably either messing around, or they found a worker drone to kill.” A nonchalantly answered.
“Shouldn’t we go check it out though?” Jacob inquired.
“It isn’t a problem.” A said, annoyed.
“Well it would give me something to do.” Jacob insisted.
A checked the time, before looking at the horizon for signs of sunlight.
“Eh, fine. Wouldn’t hurt, I guess.” A shrugged.
“Nice.” Jacob grinned underneath his ballistic visor.
* * *
K sliced through the head of the last desperate drone, before spitting out a bullet.
“You done?” K called out to X.
“Yeah, I guess. By the way, do you still have my Dasani thing?” X looked at K hopefully.
“Yes, I do. And besides, it isn’t yours, it's for Jacob.” K answered.
“What? Why is he getting it? Why not me?” X exclaimed.
“Because it's water, idiot. An uncontaminated source, like A told us, remember?” K glared at X.
“I guess, but that's water?” X asked.
“Yes, it is. It matches the description.” K replied
“Description?” X questioned.
“Yeah, the description. You know what description means, right?” K seemed even more annoyed.
“I know what it means.” X snapped. “But how do you know what water looks like?”
K just shrugged, before turning towards the exit.
“Come on, we gotta get back soon.” She flew upwards, landing on the ledge.
X followed suit, tracing their steps back through the building. X looked back up at the rusty grate that the drone had fallen through, which he now identified as being part of a weirdly placed catwalk. Scanning the environment, X found that the only entrance to the small alcove would be the hole in the catwalk. The basement that the small room was connected to didn’t have an entrance either, only having the gaping hole in the side of the room, which likely wasn't intended. That would mean that a person would have to chop through the sewer wall to get into the basement and adjoining alcove, or jump off the catwalk. Both of those options didn’t make any sort of sense at all. In fact, the catwalk wasn’t even needed, someone could have just removed the entire basement-and-alcove plan entirely, which also removed the necessity for a catwalk. All in all, whoever designed the building was either high off of some crazy drugs, an idiot, or both.
But, none of these thoughts went through X’s head, as he was only thinking about the devastating loss of his cool plastic bottle.
K hefted herself up onto the rusty catwalk, with X following close behind. K went through the doorway, only for a rather eventful event to stop her momentarily.
A rocket screamed through the air, smacking K straight in the chest. The resulting explosion blew X backwards and K apart, with oil splashing onto the ground in the process. With a clatter, X hit the ground, slightly dazed. He looked to his left to see what looked like the arm of K, twitching slightly. X tried to get up, only to fall again, after he put his weight on a hand that wasn’t there.
X, seeing the failure of Operation: GTFU, adjusted his position so that he could get up with his other hand only, which was thankfully still there. Investigating his left arm, he could see that everything down from the elbow had been separated from himself in the blast. He didn’t have time to look for it or go get it, so he simply let the matter go.
Standing up, X stared through the smoke, before diving back down onto the ground when another rocket came streaking past him. It scratched his face, sending small sparks up, before heading down the other hallway. X pointed his own rocket launcher into the fog, before firing off a flurry of shots. He heard explosions, but wasn’t rewarded with screams or grunts of pain. Problematic, to say the least.
X took the opportunity to kick K’s assorted dismembered body parts down into the lower alcove, where she should eventually reassemble herself. She was really taking a beating recently, and she would probably be frustrated about that when X was all done, but that wasn’t his problem-
X nearly met the same fate as K when another rocket flew from the open doorway, the fog starting to clear up. X jumped up and over the RPG, letting it fly into the unexplored depths of the building. He couldn’t do this dance forever, so he made the executive decision to charge into the unknown.
* * *
Anyway, I'll be posting the next part tomorrow, so hang on tight for the singular person that made it to the end. No need to like, this is purely for my own benefit. See ya.
submitted by Omansurver to MurderDrones [link] [comments]
* * *
Jacob pondered.
On what exactly? Oh fine, I’ll tell you.
Jacob had just received what was, hopefully, a relatively unfiltered version of the recent events and situation on the planet. After about an hour of explanation, A had finished on the arrival of the disassembly drones, and the subsequent widespread assault on the worker drones. When Jacob had asked for the specific story of A’s squad, A had skirted around it, only lightly touching upon the subject. It was slightly suspicious, but Jacob didn’t plan on doing anything about it.
However, if it was the truth, it only raised more questions than answers. The fact that a company was willing to exterminate the entirety of what was probably a massive investment was just baffling. Jacob could only come up with two explanations, one of which was rather worrying to think about. The first was that of changing times; perhaps the company was so rich, and technology so advanced, that the worker drones could be replaced with the ease of buying another shipload of tissues. If you threw away an entire box of tissues, it would be annoying to say the least, but it wouldn’t cost a lot to just get another one.
But, it just didn’t make sense to Jacob that that would be the case. The United States military in the time of Jacob had heaps, thousands of missiles, and could afford to replace them as they were used. But if they all disappeared at once? It would take lots of time, money, and effort to replace each and every single last one of the lost payloads, and not to mention the logistical nightmare it would be.
So, that led Jacob to his other solution, one that insinuated a scenario far more confusing and sinister. If the company decided to just annihilate every worker drone, which is a very radical and illogical decision by a galaxy-spanning megacorporation, then it would line up with certain other decisions made by other people in the past.
During the Second World War, the U.S. government was fearful of a potential Japanese invasion. They believed that, if they did land boots on American soil, that the Japanese-Americans would rise up, taking the side of the invaders. And so, Roosevelt made the Executive Order 9066, ordering over one hundred and twenty thousand Japanese-Americans to be interned in concentration camps, where they would remain until near the end of the war.
This was an apt example for how even the most level-headed of individuals could make bad decisions under the influence of fear. If Jacob assumed that the same was true for this day and age, then perhaps the administration at the company had sent machines to kill the entire worker drone populace due some or maybe even all of them being much more dangerous than what was being let on. It was a bit far-fetched, but was the one of the only viable solutions at the moment, aside from his theory that nothing was real and they were all figments of the imagination of a being so complex they were nothing but fiction to it, but the chances of that were little to none.
Right?
Jacob’s pondering was interrupted by someone waving their hand in front of his face.
“Ugh, hello?” A snapped his fingers twice. “You there?”
Jacob blinked, refocusing on his present company. “Uh yeah, just processing.”
A scoffed. “Processing what? I thought humans were superior or something?”
Jacob smacked A’s hand out of his face. “Me too.”
A raised an LED eyebrow.
“Doesn’t matter.” Jacob waved hand in a dismissive way. “What now?”
“I dunno. That's all I had.” A shrugged.
“Nothing else you’re hiding?” Jacob questioned.
“No. There isn’t.” A glared at Jacob. “Now drop it.”
Jacob held up his hands in surrender. “Okay, jeez man, calm down. I just don’t wanna be bored for however long I’m stuck here.”
“Yeah well, that's not really my problem.” A stated.
Jacob didn’t reply, only sighing, before standing and getting up out of his seat.
A startled. “Wait, where are you going?”
“Out.” Jacob simply replied.
“Why?” A inquired.
Jacob shrugged. “Bored.”
A got to his feet as well. “Fine then. I guess I’m going as well.”
“You’re coming with?” Jacob asked incredulously.
“Yeah. I can’t have you running off and getting yourself killed.” A reasoned.
“They kept saying that too.” Jacob grumbled.
“Who said that?” A tilted his head.
“K and X.” Jacob answered. “Also, why don’t y’all have normal names? Why just letters?”
“I dunno.” A non-committedly replied.
“Huh.” Jacob took that as a cue to leave, turning to the ladder.
A followed closely behind, waiting until Jacob had gone through the small exit to ascend himself.
Jacob didn’t bother to use the ladder on the way down, buckling his knees and dropping the last few feet, hearing the snow crunch beneath him. He had been prepared to absorb the impact, but it seemed like whatever advanced mechanics his suit possessed had done the job all by itself, which was pretty nice. He made a mental note to test out the capabilities later on, just to get a general sense of the limits and what would be a danger to him.
Jacob heard a similar crunching noise behind him, causing him to look backwards, seeing A just awkwardly standing there.
“Just gonna follow me? Really?” Jacob was slightly annoyed.
“Yeah. I’ve gotta keep you safe until someone else takes you off my hands, or else I’ll-” A cut himself off.
Jacob took note of that, inferring what he might have been about to say. It only served to confirm his notion that he was sort of a VIP on the planet. He was to be protected at all costs, which was pretty nice for Jacob.
“So, you gonna do anything?” A asked.
* * *
The sound of snow crunching filled the empty room as the pair walked into it.
“Can we go back already?” X complained.
“No, and be quiet.” K scolded him. “It’s too echoey in this room, it’s annoying.”
X scoffed. “Pff, it’s fine. Nobody’s around for miles, we’re all good. Now when can we go back?”
K rolled her eyes. “We can go back when we find something, You heard what he said.”
“What who said?” X inquired.
“You idiot, our squad leader!? Our boss that we’ve spent who knows how long with!?” K cried out.
“Calm down, just messing around.” X leaned against the wall.
“Whatever, you know what A said. We can’t come back until we’ve found water.” K reminded X.
“Why do we even need it? I’m sure he’ll be fine.” X waved off the issue.
“He’ll die.” K deadpanned.
“He can walk it off.” X waved off the issue again.
“I don’t care, just get off the wall, we’ve gotta search every building.” K gestured for X to follow.
“How can we even find anything in here? Everywhere else we’ve checked has been empty.” X took his place next to K.
“You never know, now get to it.” K kicked over a rock, exposing a small marble.
X trotted over to a dented metal counter on one side of the room, peering underneath it.
“Nothing here, this is useless.” X whined.
“Shut up.” K called out.
X surprisingly obliged, kneeling down and searching the small cabinets that were connected to the counter. After finding nothing but a small skeleton huddled inside one of them, X sighed heavily, before making his way over to a large metal box. It might’ve been taller than him if it wasn’t tipped over on its side, with an assortment of power cords snaking out from an outlet on the back of it. Seeing a small handle on the front, X tugged on it, the slight rust giving way to superior strength.
However, X’s eyes went wide with shock, which changed to glee.
“Hey, look what I’ve found!” X called out to K.
K’s head whipped up, staring at the prize that X was brandishing. “You found- what is that?”
If the two had any idea what warm food was, they would’ve recognized the lumpy frozen good that X had in his hands as a perfectly preserved rotisserie chicken. If they had any sort of reheating device, and if they had proper taste buds, they might have been able to enjoy the sweet experience of a Thanksgiving dinner. However, they were ignorant robots who were about as smart as a middle schooler, so the only reaction that they, or at least one of them had, was confusion.
“I dunno, but it says chicken on the side!” X proudly exclaimed.
“What’s chicken?” K questioned.
“I’m . . . not sure . . . but I’m pretty sure it's food.” X’s LED eyebrows furrowed in thought.
“How do you know that?” K asked.
“Uh, I don't?” X seemed more confused than ecstatic now.
K shook her head. “Did you find anything useful?”
“Well I found this clear thing, but it only says something called ‘Dasani’ on the side.” X held up a clear plastic bottle, putting his finger in quotation marks when he said it.
“Give me that!” K dashed across the room, snatching the item out of X’s hands.
“Wha- hey!” X tried to grab at it, but K held it out of his reach.
“Back up!” K swatted X in the face, inciting a squawk of surprise.
“I found it first, give it back!” X shot back, tackling K, causing the bottle to roll across the ground.
The two began slugging at each other, scrabbling across the ground for dominance over a goddamn bottle, like a gang of the aforementioned middle schoolers. Nearly crushing the contested item multiple times, the two spent a good thirty seconds duking it out. And after K finally managed to curl into a ball around the bottle, X tried to no avail to recapture his former possession.
“You motherfu-” X was cut off by a noise from the door that led deeper into the building
The two highly professional disassembly drones shot to their feet, their gazes snapping to the origin of the sound. Standing there was a figure, about the same height as K and X, with familiar black plating and armor, kneeling down to grab a small blue marble that was on the floor. It appears as though the idiot had been trying to be sneaky to avoid capturing the attention of the killer robots, which clearly didn’t go as planned.
“Uh, hi.” The drone said after a moment of silence.
Even more silence.
The military drone took that as a cue to scoop up the marble, before dashing out of the room.
K and X instantly took chase, with K pocketing the small bottle for later. The military drone wasn’t quite fast, but it did make use of its head start well. The unnamed drone disappeared behind the corner, with the pair of disassembly drones right on his heels. However, when K turned around the edge, a bullet tore through the air, finding its home in her head. Completely unprepared, she fell to the ground.
X, contrary to what some might do, didn’t stop to assist her, instead just simply vaulting over her body, speeding onward. He was rapidly closing the distance between him and the military drone, when his prey suddenly whipped around with a pistol in its hand. X, unlike his comrade, was prepared for this inevitability, turning to the side and out of the path of the trio of bullets as they flew by him. X followed up on this by diving down onto the hapless drone, trying to skewer it on gleaming metal claws.
The drone didn’t have a chance to fight, but unknown to X, he did have time to press the small panic button on its jawline, or where the jawline would be if it was a human. If anyone on this planet was familiar with standard police or even military practice, they would recognize the small button as the useful yet annoying panic button.
For a bit of context, the panic button is usually represented as a small and easy-to-access device that, when activated, sends out an emergency distress signal that would notify the proper authorities of the panic button’s location and a dire situation. The panic button is common in the military, police personnel, elderly homes, schools, corporate buildings, apartment buildings, and basically everywhere else that isn’t a ghetto.
The drone, however, proved to be much smarter than his predecessors, much to the dismay of X. It dove to the side, dropping down and through a weakened rusty grate. As X’s claws scraped against the wall, the fleeing drone tossed a metal panel that was blocking the way out to his side, before dashing through the door. X jumped down to the lower floor, before continuing his chase.
A flurry of bullets ripped towards him, but X brought his arm up, letting his forearm absorb the projectiles that hit, and most missed. The drone ran down a comically long flight of stairs, taking three steps at a time. The stairs continued downward, eventually opening up to a basement with a gaping hole in the wall, which led straight into darkness. The drone nearly fell into the hole from the momentum of jumping down the stairs. But, it just managed to skid to a stop at the edge.
X landed at the foot of the stairs, crouching to absorb the impact. X’s gaze focused on the drone that was pointing the pistol at X, sights drawing a solid bead on his head. However, when it pulled the trigger, it was only met with a slight clicking sound. The drone gaze jerked down to the pistol, then straight back up to X, who was now diving towards it, claws outstretched.
The drone jumped backwards, losing his balance. Its foot slipped off the edge, and while the sudden space between it and X saved its life for the time being, it did have to contend with gravity, which was now pulling on the drone by a considerable amount.
X watched as the drone tumbled down the pit, hitting the sides. However, the sides of the pit were both sloped and slick with a thin sheet of ice, causing the drone to slide down to the bottom. The drone slammed against a large rusty metal pipe, which was a solid indicator of the pit’s identity as a sewer.
The drone scrambled to its feet, caving the skull in of a skeleton that appeared to have been a former inspector when one took into account the corpse’s clipboard and tattered clothes. X slammed down onto the large pipe, causing it to resonate like a gong. The drone snatched up a small length of rusty metal rebar that had impaled itself on the ground, the edge of the steel surprisingly sharp. The drone adopted a fighting stance, pointing the business end towards X.
The robotic predator didn’t care, however, just simply stabbing his prey with his own pointy stick, the sharp end of his nanite acid tail. The sharp tool stuck itself in the drone’s shoulder, causing it to drop the bar and curse. X took the opportunity to grip the drone by the head, while digging the claws of his other hand in its chest. X then looked into the opaque black visor of the military drone, before pulling in two opposite directions.
The effects were made known quickly, with the head of the military drone migrating away from its home connected to the body. Oil splashed down onto X, who took the opportunity to feed. X dropped the head, letting it hit the ground with a clang, dropping the body as well.
X stood over the fallen corpse, claws gleaming with oil. K landed next to him, retracting her wings.
“So you got it?” K asked.
“No I didn’t, he got away. This body right here is just a random pigeon, and you’re just hallucinating.” X replied sarcastically. “Also, how the hell did you get here so fast?”
K rolled her eyes. “Oh, be quiet. I’m just making sure, because knowing you, you would probably let him go for the funny.” She ignored his latter question.
“Well now that you mention it . . .” X looked sorrowfully at the body.
K punched him in the arm. “Whatever, we gotta go. I seriously doubt that he was alone-”
She was cut off yet again by a loud crash that originated from the hole up on the wall. The duo whipped around, only to see several guns pointed straight at them.
“Sup.” X nodded at the intruders.
* * *
The sound of conversation could be audibly heard from the lit tent.
The tent had been designated as the de facto headquarters for the former facility personnel, with a smaller offshoot serving as a meeting room for the leadership. The offshoot tent in question was currently being used for its purpose, with an emergency meeting being called. Not because of the discovery of a dead body, but for a different matter entirely.
“Can anyone at least tell me how this happened?” The Lead Engineer leaned on the table.
One of the data officers stepped forward. “We believe that when we were evacuating the facility, an error occurred that declassified the file.” They answered.
“An error did this.” The General wasn’t convinced.
“Well, yes. The computers had been degrading for a while now, and we had noticed that several of our autonomous programs were misbehaving, or just outright not working at all.” The data officer replied.
“And we did nothing about this?” The General glared at the trio of data officers that had joined them.
“We actually were doing all we could, but we didn’t have the materials to make a complete fix.” The Lead Engineer interjected.
“Why didn’t you tell me then!?” The General exclaimed.
“I did. You probably just forgot again.” The Lead Engineer suggested.
“What? I have the best memory here.” The General puffed out his chest proudly.
“Alright then, what were we just talking about?” The Lead Engineer inquired.
The General frowned. “We were talking?”
The Lead Engineer facepalmed. “Goddamn idiot.”
One of the data officers stepped up. “Uh, sir? There is still the matter of the ones who discovered the information.”
“Oh yeah, uh, dump them off the eastern bridge.” The Lead Engineer waved off the issue.
With a simple nod, the data officers left, accompanied by a few guards as well. The Lead Engineer sat back in his chair, before steepling his fingers on the desk. He looked back and forth between the assembled leadership, before the General spoke up.
“So, are we gonna continue or what?” He crossed his arms.
“Yes, sorry.” The Lead Engineer motioned to one of his ministers. “You take the lead, Kane.”
Kane got up, walking to the front of the tent, dragging a projector on a cart with him. When he arrived, he pulled down the white screen, securing the hook on a latch on the bottom. He then adjusted the cart, facing the lens towards the screen. He then attached a laptop to the projector, pressing a few buttons and fiddling with a few switches, cursing once. Finally, the projector flickered to life, shining an image onto the screen.
Kane cleared his throat. “Ahem, so. What you are seeing here is the first page of the document in question. As you can see here, it appears to be warning against a drone viewing whatever the contents of this file is.” Kane flicked to the next slide. “It continues to vehemently express this multiple times, not really differing in its warning at all.”
One of the military ministers, Alicia, raised her hand. “Uh, question?”
Kane paused. “What is it?”
“Its warning against drones? She asked.
“Yes, it is. I’ll explain this later on, so save your questions for the end please.” Kane looked back to the projection, skipping through the slides until he landed on the first one without a warning.
“Ah, here we go. So, as you can see here, this appears to be a logo for JCJenson-'' Kane was interrupted by a faint, “In Spaaaaacee!” from an unknown source. “Uh, anyway, as all of you know, JCJenson was the company that owned this planet, and the one that provided the drones that the government were using in their facility, which was us.” Kane flicked to the next slide.
“Here we can see a title for a project, along with several bits of accompanying information, like locations, associates, page number, references, you get the picture.” Kane then produced a long ruler from what seemed like thin air, before pointing the end at one of the words. “Pay attention to this one here ‘AbsoSolv’ as it’ll come up several times later on.” Going to the next slide, Kane cleared his throat yet again.
“This page is more confusing, as it appears to be mentioning several unit serial numbers that don’t match up with standard format, which are mixed in with several other ones that are in different format, like this one here,” Kane pointed his stick at a random one from the line. “This one says, S-010011X01, which I believe has a main identifying letter instead of a string of numbers based on time of construction.”
“Additionally, while some of these feature the normal serial numbers that worker drones use, they have another identifier after it, separated by a dash.” Kane flipped to the next slide.
“This one is more straightforward, as it appears to be featuring a set of technical designs of a modified worker drone with the serial number and other associated information listed at the top. The notes on the side are observations on the modifications that can be seen in the designs. Some of the original worker drone parts can be seen, but a majority of the inner and outer mass seem to have been altered or replaced with a substance that is described as ‘fleshy’. You can see at the very bottom a signature of an unknown human administrator, and a notice that marks the drone for ‘disassembly’ as an addendum can be seen that marks whatever this is as a failure, and a recommendation to request more data from their source.”
Kane took a breath, before going to the next slide. “This is essentially the same as the last one, and this continues for a few slides. Nothing of note can be found in them, save for a few different serial numbers that were listed in one of the prior slides.”
Kane flicked to the next slide. “This one has two addendums, which I will say in a moment. The image is different as well, with noticeably less random mutations and more of a form taking place. This one was supposedly much more successful than the others, and while it was still marked as a failure, the first addendum said that the team working on the project should strip the data from the drone in as best a condition as they could. The second one simply noted they were naming the specific strain of code they were using to ‘Absolute Solver’. The addendum does not mention any reason or motive behind the name, only noting the fact that their shareholders would be pleased.”
“The next one is the first apparent success in the line of experiments that JCJenson seemed to be doing. A single growth can be seen protruding from the back of the spinal transmitter, and several other growths have sprouted inside. However, it is noted that the drone survived the process, and remained somewhat coherent for a period of time afterwards, which seems to be an outlier when considering the others. There isn’t an addendum on this one, only a request from the team for more extensive data from their source to compare to this experiment.”
“This trend continues for a good while, so I’ll just summarize the important bits for all of you.” Kane stated. “Each version continued to show more and more productive attributes and traits, as is par the standard course. Throughout the notes, requests, and addendums, whoever was typing up the document repeatedly noted some things that I will review later, such as Absolute Solver, the ‘source’, Camp 98.7, Cabin Fever Labs, and disassembly drones.”
Kane flicked to the final slide. “This is the final page, with some items to note. It appears to be a reiteration of the specifics of the agreement between the government and JCJenson, with a few additional key things. It includes the standard formalities and the usual junk that we all know, but something else as well. When mentioning the exchange of data that came from the asset-” Kane paused as the room underwent an uncomfortable shuffle in their seats. “They mention a clear correlation between this project that JCJenson is, or was, working on, and the asset. They also instructed the government contacts that any unauthorized personnel, which included government agents, were now barred from entering Camp 98.7 due to ‘hazardous environmental conditions’ and that this was nonnegotiable.”
Kane turned away from the projector, clasping his hands in front of himself. “And now to explain.”
“From what me and the team I assigned could gather, we deduced the meanings and purposes behind several items that were mentioned in this file. The first and most obvious, the ‘source’ that is mentioned. They are receiving data from this source, which seems to be essential to the development of what they were working on. Based on their words, we figured that the source is likely the asset, and yes, the same asset that we are all familiar with.” Kane paused, seemingly to let his words sink in.
“Continuing on, we began to dissect what Camp 98.7 was. It was very clearly a location of sorts, but where it was and what it was used for was more complicated. While we never arrived at a solid conclusion, we believed that the most likely avenue was that Camp 98.7 might have been an outpost of sorts, perhaps used in conjunction with these Cabin Fever Labs.”
“On the matter of the Cabin Fever Labs, we can clearly assume that research and development of this Absolute Solver was being conducted there, and perhaps Camp 98.7 was a sort of staging ground or other type of location related to the lab. We believe that the location of one or both of these sites are hidden within another file.”
“And perhaps the most intriguing and complex matter of them all, Absolute Solver. We figured that it was likely that this Absolute Solver was instrumental in whatever experiments they were doing, or even being one of the subjects of the experiments themselves. From what we gather, Absolute Solver is something, maybe a piece of alien machinery, some sort of unknown lifeform, an experimental strain of cutting-edge code, one of those things, but whatever it is, it is not something that is ‘normal’. It appears to have a unique effect on those it hosts or comes into contact with, rapidly generating new organic material, with sometimes uncontrolled effects. While the file only shows the experiments that used drones, we don’t know if any humans or other organic lifeforms were included either. Likely not, considering the legality of the situation, but it's open to discussion.”
Kane took a large breath, before continuing.
“And finally, the disassembly drones. They seem simple, but my team believed it to be heavily related to our current situation. They aren’t mentioned very often, but they appear to be a direct result of their experiments or related to one. From what we could gather, they are meant to, well, disassemble. Drones on par with military-grade ones that are capable of a variety of things, like bullet fire, rocket launching, melee combat, flight, digital warfare, and regeneration.” Kane watched as his words dawned upon his audience, expressions filling with shock.
“Yes, those drones. The disassembly drones that we read about are likely some variant of the unknown assailants that attacked the facility, and stole the asset in the process.”
The General sputtered. “B-but that would be a severe political incident! If those drones were under the command of JCJenson, and they stole GOVERNMENT property, then they would be liable for retaliation!”
Kane tried to calm the room. “Now, hold on, I’m not done-”
The Lead Engineer also appeared to be shocked. “Why didn’t you tell me this earlier!?”
“You told me to wait for the meeting!” Kane exclaimed.
The room erupted into disarray.
“We need to mobilize, hunt down those damn traitors!”
“What's their last known location!?”
“Where is the nearest transmitter, send out a request for retaliatory action!”
Suddenly, a drone burst into the room, knocking over the projector cart in the process. Everyone turned to look at him, ceasing the chaos for a moment.
“Er, uh, sirs?” The drone asked.
“Yes?” The General and the Lead Engineer stood up at the same time.
“I, uh,” The drone looked back and forth between the two administrators. “Well, we received a panic signal from one of our scouts.”
The General scoffed. “Why would that be enough to warrant our intervention? He probably just tripped on a conveniently placed banana peel.”
The messenger fidgeted nervously. “Well, his partner reported moments before the signal came in that he heard gunshots.”
The administrative drones shared a collective uneasy look.
“What did you do?” The General asked slowly.
“The officers who received the signal first sent in two of the patrol squads that were nearby at the time.” The messenger answered.
The drones in assembly all either looked down in disappointment or facepalmed.
The General spoke up after a moment. “Send in a squad as fast as you can to their last known location. Only veterans, and outfit them with heavy weaponry and explosive ordnance.” The General paused, before adding an afterthought. “And give them some cutting equipment too.”
The messenger blinked in surprise. “Wait, sir, are you sure-”
“Just tell the officers already!” The General slammed his fist down onto the cheap plastic table, which formed a crack.
The messenger saluted quickly, before dashing out of the room.
The Lead Engineer took a cursory look at the assembled drones, before he sighed.
“We’re screwed.”
* * *
“Are you going back anytime soon?”
Jacob looked back at his unwanted companion.
“No.” He answered simply, before resuming his casual trot.
“We’re getting too far away from the spire, and the sun is coming up in an hour or two. I for one don’t want to get caught out.” A insisted.
“Well I don’t die from a bit of sunlight, so too bad.” Jacob stepped over a tire rim.
“I’m not sure that’s your choice.” A stated.
Jacob paused and looked backward. “Oh, so you’re bossing me around now?”
“Maybe, if you keep on making dumb decisions like this.” A stopped as well.
“Pff, I’ll be fine.” Jacob waved his hand in the air to emphasize his point.
“You won’t last ten minutes.” A dead-panned.
“Nah, I’ll speedrun this stuff, I’ll be off-planet in an hour.” Jacob proudly said.
A shook his head and sighed. “Whatever you say.”
Jacob didn’t answer.
Jacob then looked around. “Wait, where are we? I wasn’t keeping track.”
“And you said that you would- whatever, we’re like, three miles away from the base.” A replied.
“Huh, went that far?” Jacob asked.
A frowned. “Three miles isn’t that far-”
A was interrupted by a rather loud crack that resonated through the landscape.
Jacob blinked. “Uh, ok then-”
Jacob was also interrupted by a trio of cracks and bangs, sounding slightly familiar.
“Are those-” Jacob was, yet again, interrupted by even more bangs.
“-gunshots?” He finished.
“I wouldn’t worry, those idiots are probably either messing around, or they found a worker drone to kill.” A nonchalantly answered.
“Shouldn’t we go check it out though?” Jacob inquired.
“It isn’t a problem.” A said, annoyed.
“Well it would give me something to do.” Jacob insisted.
A checked the time, before looking at the horizon for signs of sunlight.
“Eh, fine. Wouldn’t hurt, I guess.” A shrugged.
“Nice.” Jacob grinned underneath his ballistic visor.
* * *
K sliced through the head of the last desperate drone, before spitting out a bullet.
“You done?” K called out to X.
“Yeah, I guess. By the way, do you still have my Dasani thing?” X looked at K hopefully.
“Yes, I do. And besides, it isn’t yours, it's for Jacob.” K answered.
“What? Why is he getting it? Why not me?” X exclaimed.
“Because it's water, idiot. An uncontaminated source, like A told us, remember?” K glared at X.
“I guess, but that's water?” X asked.
“Yes, it is. It matches the description.” K replied
“Description?” X questioned.
“Yeah, the description. You know what description means, right?” K seemed even more annoyed.
“I know what it means.” X snapped. “But how do you know what water looks like?”
K just shrugged, before turning towards the exit.
“Come on, we gotta get back soon.” She flew upwards, landing on the ledge.
X followed suit, tracing their steps back through the building. X looked back up at the rusty grate that the drone had fallen through, which he now identified as being part of a weirdly placed catwalk. Scanning the environment, X found that the only entrance to the small alcove would be the hole in the catwalk. The basement that the small room was connected to didn’t have an entrance either, only having the gaping hole in the side of the room, which likely wasn't intended. That would mean that a person would have to chop through the sewer wall to get into the basement and adjoining alcove, or jump off the catwalk. Both of those options didn’t make any sort of sense at all. In fact, the catwalk wasn’t even needed, someone could have just removed the entire basement-and-alcove plan entirely, which also removed the necessity for a catwalk. All in all, whoever designed the building was either high off of some crazy drugs, an idiot, or both.
But, none of these thoughts went through X’s head, as he was only thinking about the devastating loss of his cool plastic bottle.
K hefted herself up onto the rusty catwalk, with X following close behind. K went through the doorway, only for a rather eventful event to stop her momentarily.
A rocket screamed through the air, smacking K straight in the chest. The resulting explosion blew X backwards and K apart, with oil splashing onto the ground in the process. With a clatter, X hit the ground, slightly dazed. He looked to his left to see what looked like the arm of K, twitching slightly. X tried to get up, only to fall again, after he put his weight on a hand that wasn’t there.
X, seeing the failure of Operation: GTFU, adjusted his position so that he could get up with his other hand only, which was thankfully still there. Investigating his left arm, he could see that everything down from the elbow had been separated from himself in the blast. He didn’t have time to look for it or go get it, so he simply let the matter go.
Standing up, X stared through the smoke, before diving back down onto the ground when another rocket came streaking past him. It scratched his face, sending small sparks up, before heading down the other hallway. X pointed his own rocket launcher into the fog, before firing off a flurry of shots. He heard explosions, but wasn’t rewarded with screams or grunts of pain. Problematic, to say the least.
X took the opportunity to kick K’s assorted dismembered body parts down into the lower alcove, where she should eventually reassemble herself. She was really taking a beating recently, and she would probably be frustrated about that when X was all done, but that wasn’t his problem-
X nearly met the same fate as K when another rocket flew from the open doorway, the fog starting to clear up. X jumped up and over the RPG, letting it fly into the unexplored depths of the building. He couldn’t do this dance forever, so he made the executive decision to charge into the unknown.
* * *
Anyway, I'll be posting the next part tomorrow, so hang on tight for the singular person that made it to the end. No need to like, this is purely for my own benefit. See ya.
2023.06.02 23:39 Ok-Supermarket4492 Introducing Seattle City Council Newsletter
Hi Reddit! My name is Sharon, and I am a college student interested in civic engagement and politics. I have been working on a project with some other students to make the Seattle City Council meetings more accessible by putting them into short summaries. I have put an example from last week below, though the real thing has a bit more formatting that doesn't translate into Reddit.
This project is relatively new, so we would really appreciate any feedback you may have and hope to make it as informative and accessible as possible! If you're interested in getting these newsletters every week, please click here: https://forms.gle/Yxo5fevVhVWmwcB78.
Example newsletter:
Seattle City Council Meeting Summaries - Week of May 22
Council Briefing 5/22/2023 (Duration: 1h50min)
submitted by Ok-Supermarket4492 to Belltown [link] [comments]
This project is relatively new, so we would really appreciate any feedback you may have and hope to make it as informative and accessible as possible! If you're interested in getting these newsletters every week, please click here: https://forms.gle/Yxo5fevVhVWmwcB78.
Example newsletter:
Seattle City Council Meeting Summaries - Week of May 22
Council Briefing 5/22/2023 (Duration: 1h50min)
- 6 Present - Council President Debora Juarez, Councilmembers Andrew Lewis and Kshama Sawant are absent and excused, and Councilmember Sara Nelson arrived late.
- 7 Present - Council President Debora Juarez and Councilmember Kshama Sawant are absent and excused.
- Councilmember Lisa Herbold: District 1
- There is no item from the Public Safety and Human Services Committee for the full council meeting on Tuesday.
- The next committee meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, May 23rd.
- They will receive a briefing on overdose trends and harm reduction approaches from Public Health Seattle & King County and a panel of community-based overdose prevention program grantees.
- Will hear an overview of the proposed Council Bill 120580 regarding app-based workers' deactivation rights.
- Met with Chief Diaz, Southwest Precinct Captain Rivera, Director Betts of the Office of Police Accountability, Fire Chief Scoggins, and the leadership of the Community Police Commission individually.
- The Harbor Patrol unit is ready for the summer increase in calls for marine-related law enforcement and assistance.
- There will be a fire day on the 124th anniversary of the Great Seattle Fire at MOHAI at South Lake Union.
- Remind that the Seattle Emergency Hubs will be hosting disaster preparedness training on June 11th.
- Provided public comment to the King County Flood Control District in support of funding to address the river-topping flood in South Park.
- Will receive a tour and do a helpline listening shift at Crisis Connections next Wednesday.
- Councilmember Tammy Morales: District 2
- The Arts and Civil Rights Committee meeting from last week was canceled due to the holiday weekend, and the next meeting is scheduled for June 9th.
- The first meeting of the new Social Housing Developer Board is scheduled for May 23rd.
- Attended a neighborhood safety meeting with organizations in Seattle's Chinatown-International District (CID) and Social Housing Public Development Authority (PDA).
- Attended a workshop with SDOT and Sound Transit to discuss some issues in the Othello neighborhood and Rainier Beach neighborhoods.
- Attended the Evergreen Treatment Services’ 50-year anniversary, the One Seattle Day of Service, and an event for the African Cultural Arts Center.
- Spoke at the Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander Celebration hosted by the Department of Neighborhoods and the Seattle AAPI Caucus.
- Councilmember Alex Pedersen: District 4
- There are twelve items from the Transportation and Seattle Public Utilities Committee for the full council meeting on Tuesday.
- Will present ten appointments, Council Bill 120557, and Council Bill 120574.
- The next Transportation and Seattle Public Utilities Committee meeting is scheduled for June 6th.
- Participated in the One Seattle Day of Service last Saturday.
- There are twelve items from the Transportation and Seattle Public Utilities Committee for the full council meeting on Tuesday.
- Councilmember Dan Strauss: District 6
- There are two items from the Land Use Committee for the full council meeting on Tuesday.
- Will present Council Bill 120534, which is a tree protection bill, and Council Bill 120535, which is a tree protection budget bill.
- Passed the Tree Protection Ordinance after making 50 amendments.
- The bill will be presented to the full council meeting on May 23rd for public comments and votes.
- Welcomed all city council members to attend the Land Use Committee meeting.
- Set the deadline for submitting amendments to Wednesday, May 17th.
- There will be a public hearing on May 24.
- The city council will vote on the passage of the bill on June 20th.
- There are two items from the Land Use Committee for the full council meeting on Tuesday.
- Councilmember Teresa Mosqueda: Citywide
- There are three items from the Finance and Housing Committee for the full council meeting on Tuesday
- Will present Council Bill 120572, which approves the 2022 budget increases.
- Will present Council Bill 120573, which requests approval for a 2023 budget increase, and Council Bill.
- Heard the April forecast report from the Office of Economic and Revenue forecast last week.
- The next Housing Levy Committee will meet on May 31st to prepare the introduction of the Housing Levy Proposal.
- The Committee will meet again on June 7th to vote on any amendments before being presented to the full council.
- The Finance and Housing Committee will meet again in early July to discuss the revenue situation.
- Recognize the opening of a Community Field sponsored by the Seattle Housing Authority, the Rave Foundation, and Sounders FC.
- There are three items from the Finance and Housing Committee for the full council meeting on Tuesday
- Councilmember Sara Nelson: Citywide
- There are two items from the Economic Development, Technology, and City Light Committee for the full council meeting on Tuesday.
- Will present Council Bill 120576, which is a distribution easement ordinance.
- Will present Council Bill 120576, which is a platted easement ordinance.
- Release legislation that makes the use of illegal drugs in public spaces a simple misdemeanor with Councilmember Pedersen last week.
- Updated the original bill to align with the state law. The updated bill will be presented to the full council on June 6th.
- Joined King County Councilmember Reagan Dunn, State Representative Lauren Davis, and King County Department of Community and Human Services Leo Flor for the King County’s 2023 Conference on Substance Disorder on Thursday, May 11.
- Attended the 49th Seattle International Film Festival, the Port of Seattle’s annual Maritime Day breakfast.
- Participated in the mid-authorization of a bill passed by the Metropolitan Improvement District with the Mayor, Councilmember Andrew Lewis, and the downtown community.
- Met with the new CEO of MoPOP, Michelle Smith.
- There are two items from the Economic Development, Technology, and City Light Committee for the full council meeting on Tuesday.
- Council Bill 120578: AN ORDINANCE relating to City employment, commonly referred to as the Second Quarter 2023 Employment Ordinance; returning positions to the civil service system; exempting positions from the civil service system; and amending Section 4.13.010 of the Seattle Municipal Code; all by a 2/3 vote of the City Council.
- Sponsored by Council President Debora Juarez; presented by Councilmember Alex Pedersen
- 7 Yes
- Council Bill 120534: AN ORDINANCE relating to tree protection; balancing the need for housing production and increasing tree protections; and amending Sections 23.44.020, 23.47A.016, 23.48.055, 23.76.004, 23.76.006, and Chapter 25.11 of the Seattle Municipal Code.
- Sponsored by Councilmember Daniel Strauss
- Councilmember Pedersen made a motion to postpone the vote to June 22nd.
- 2 Yes (Councilmember Herbold and Pedersen) and 5 No
- 6 Yes and 1 No (Councilmember Pedersen)
- Council Bill 120535: AN ORDINANCE amending Ordinance 126725, which adopted the 2023 Budget; changing appropriations for various departments and budget control levels, and from various funds; and creating positions; all by a 3/4 vote of the City Council.
- Sponsored by Councilmember Daniel Strauss
- 7 Yes
- Council Bill 120572: AN ORDINANCE amending Ordinance 126490, which adopted the 2022 Budget, including the 2022-2027 Capital Improvement Program (CIP); changing appropriations to various departments and budget control levels, and from various funds in the Budget; and ratifying and confirming certain prior acts; all by a 3/4 vote of the City Council.
- Sponsored by Councilmember Teresa Masqueda
- 7 Yes
- Council Bill 120573: AN ORDINANCE amending Ordinance 126725, which adopted the 2023 Budget, including the 2023-2028 Capital Improvement Program (CIP); changing appropriations to various departments and budget control levels, and from various funds in the Budget; and ratifying and confirming certain prior acts; all by a 3/4 vote of the City Council.
- Sponsored by Councilmember Daniel Strauss
- 7 Yes
- Council Bill 120563: AN ORDINANCE relating to historic preservation; imposing controls upon Madison Middle School, a landmark designated by the Landmarks Preservation Board under Chapter 25.12 of the Seattle Municipal Code, and adding it to the Table of Historical Landmarks contained in Chapter 25.32 of the Seattle Municipal Code.
- Sponsored by Councilmember Tammy Morales
- 7 Yes
- Council Bill 120564: AN ORDINANCE relating to historic preservation; imposing controls upon Magnolia Elementary School, a landmark designated by the Landmarks Preservation Board under Chapter 25.12 of the Seattle Municipal Code, and adding it to the Table of Historical Landmarks contained in Chapter 25.32 of the Seattle Municipal Code.
- Sponsored by Councilmember Tammy Morales
- 7 Yes
- Council Bill 120565: AN ORDINANCE relating to historic preservation; imposing controls upon Daniel Bagley Elementary School, a landmark designated by the Landmarks Preservation Board under Chapter 25.12 of the Seattle Municipal Code, and adding it to the Table of Historical Landmarks contained in Chapter 25.32 of the Seattle Municipal Code.
- Sponsored by Councilmember Tammy Morales
- 7 Yes
- Council Bill 120566: AN ORDINANCE relating to historic preservation; imposing controls upon West Seattle High School, a landmark designated by the Landmarks Preservation Board under Chapter 25.12 of the Seattle Municipal Code, and adding it to the Table of Historical Landmarks contained in Chapter 25.32 of the Seattle Municipal Code.
- Sponsored by Councilmember Tammy Morales
- 7 Yes
- Council Bill 120557: AN ORDINANCE relating to the Department of Transportation's Hazard Mitigation Program; authorizing the Director of the Department of Transportation to acquire, accept, and record, on behalf of The City of Seattle, a Catchment Wall Easement from Paul Tan and Ly Ngoc Tan, a married couple, located in a portion of Lot 7, Block 35, Rainier Beach, and a Catchment Wall Easement from Gracie Lee Young, located in a portion of Lot 8, Block 35, Rainier Beach; for the purpose of extending the protection of the adjacent roadway of superficial surface erosion of the adjacent slopes along a portion of Rainier Avenue South; placing the real property rights under the jurisdiction of the Seattle Department of Transportation; and ratifying and confirming certain prior acts.
- Sponsored by Councilmember Alex Pedersen
- 7 Yes
- Council Bill 120574: AN ORDINANCE relating to Seattle Public Utilities; declaring certain real property rights at the Foy Pump Station property (500 NE 145th St) as being surplus to the City's municipal utility needs; authorizing the sale of 451 square feet of King County Parcel 756870-0780 and 460 square feet of King County Parcel 756870-0775, and granting 1,201 square feet and 453 square feet on the same respective parcels for 3-year term temporary construction easements to the City of Shoreline for the purposes of the 145th Street and I-5 Interchange Project; directing the proceeds therefrom to Seattle Public Utilities' Water Fund; and ratifying and confirming certain prior acts.
- Sponsored by Councilmember Alex Pedersen
- 7 Yes
- Here are links to some of the bills: Senate Bill 5144, House Bill 1181, House Bill 1216, Senate Bill 5165, House Bill 1329, Senate Bill 5082, House Bill 1155, House Bill 1340, House Bill 1469, Senate Bill 5242, House Bill 1134, Senate Bill 5120, House Bill 1110, House Bill 1042, House Bill 1293, Senate Bill 5412, House Bill 1474, House Bill 1074, Senate Bill 5080, Senate Bill 5236, Senate Bill 5217, House Bill 1240, House Bill 1143, Senate Bill 5078, Senate Bill 5352, Senate Bill 5087, House Bill 1324, Senate Bill 5440, Senate Bill 5536, House Bill 1238, House Bill 1436.
- Recognizing June 2nd as the Gun Violence Awareness Day
- Co-sponsored by Councilmember Daniel Strauss and Council President Pro Tempore Lisa Herbold
- 6 signature affixed
- Recognizing May 27, 2023, as Eritrean Independence Day
- Sponsored by Councilmember Tammy Morales
- 6 signature affixed
- Recognizing June 2023, as LGBTQ Month
- Sponsored by Councilmember Tammy Morales
- 6 signature affixed
- Recognizing May 28th as Pride Asia Day
- Sponsored by Councilmember Tammy Morales
- 6 signature affixed
- Many commenters spoke in support of the tree ordinance, arguing it is balanced and a necessary compromise.
- Many commenters spoke against the tree ordinance, commenting it disproportionately benefits developers at the expense of environmental health, affordable housing, and social equity.
- Many commenters urged the council to delay voting on the tree protection bill to further consult stakeholders.
- If you have any questions or feedback, please email us at [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]), and we will get the answers to your questions from the city council.
- Sign up here to receive this letter after every city council meeting.
- Go to https://www.purplely.org/ to get to know all the candidates in this year’s city council elections.