So I took the Cladery Heart up the big red river, got the Touch of the South, suffered the consequences, and now I'm stuck. The ship isn't on the display. I move left (west) or right (east), but never back north. I can "move" onto land this way, so I got a good view of the inland parts of Varchas, which is cool. But how do I get back to zee? Exiting and restarting with Continue just gets me back to my last port. I'm using Steam/Mac OS, with Zubmariner and Sunless Stories mods.

Hi all, I have a question or more so looking for some guidance to help me with an activity.
​
I am working as a system engineer for a team delivering an embedded controlleapplication that has decided to incorporate an Embedded Switch to its functionality. One of the biggest concerns I am trying to work through and mitigate is how to quantity the limits my processor can handle w/respect to Ethernet Traffic while still running its application.

• The CPU is a Cobra55 is the NXP MPC5777C microprocessor w/4MB of memory
• Embedded 7 port switch with 256kb of buffer
  • Ports 1-6 will share will the buffer space if needed
  • While port 7 will be the CPU facing port, that will have ring buffers attached to for CPU
    • Currently 80 Buffers ~ 256 bytes per buffer
• We are running a OFF-the-Self Real Time OS-RTAS

What would like to know is what is the best approach to quantity the capabilities of my controller w/respect to Total amount of "connection (or sockets)"

1. How can one quantify the total number of sockets my controller can support
   1. I understand this has a lot to do with the size of payload of the traffic, but let say i can estimate packets size and interval

​
My plan of attack to understand how much memory my application are taken,

1. I will then see how much memory is left,
   1. I will reserve X percent for future growth
   2. The rest i can use to adjust the configuration of my ring buffer to help me with this task
      1. I can increase the size and/or amount of the buffers

​
Any and help is appreciated :)

Everything in my inventory is up for trade. The most valuable items are listed here, the rest you can find in My Inventory

Feel free to Add Me or even better send a Trade Offer. Open for any suggestions: upgrades, downgrades / knives, gloves, skins / stickers, patterns, floats.

All Buyouts are listed in cash value.

KNIVES

★ Butterfly Knife Freehand FN #1, B/O: $2500

★ Butterfly Knife Ultraviolet FT, B/O: $822

★ Butterfly Knife Scorched FT, B/O: $616

⎯

★ Bayonet Tiger Tooth MW #1, B/O: $1300

★ Bayonet Autotronic FN, B/O: $1050

★ Bayonet Tiger Tooth MW, B/O: $629

★ Bayonet Bright Water FT, B/O: $326

★ Bayonet Safari Mesh BS, B/O: $233

⎯

★ Karambit Lore FT, B/O: $1110

★ Karambit Damascus Steel FT, B/O: $840

★ Karambit Freehand MW, B/O: $784

★ Karambit Bright Water MW, B/O: $759

⎯

★ M9 Bayonet Fade FN, B/O: $1801

★ M9 Bayonet Fade FN, B/O: $1801

★ M9 Bayonet Damascus Steel FN, B/O: $751

⎯

★ Nomad Knife Fade FN, B/O: $1156

★ Nomad Knife Slaughter MW, B/O: $544

★ Nomad Knife Blue Steel WW, B/O: $318

⎯

★ Flip Knife Marble Fade FN, B/O: $646

★ Flip Knife Doppler (Phase 4) FN, B/O: $574

★ Flip Knife Gamma Doppler (Phase 1) MW, B/O: $552

★ Flip Knife Case Hardened FT, B/O: $257

★ Flip Knife Freehand FT, B/O: $255

★ StatTrak™ Flip Knife Bright Water FN, B/O: $287

⎯

★ Huntsman Knife Lore FN, B/O: $461

★ Huntsman Knife Gamma Doppler (Phase 4) FN, B/O: $436

★ Huntsman Knife Doppler (Phase 3) FN, B/O: $353

★ Huntsman Knife Autotronic FT, B/O: $212

★ Huntsman Knife Bright Water FT, B/O: $129

★ Huntsman Knife Forest DDPAT MW, B/O: $129

★ Huntsman Knife Forest DDPAT BS, B/O: $123

★ StatTrak™ Huntsman Knife Rust Coat BS, B/O: $127

⎯

★ Bowie Knife Gamma Doppler (Phase 2) FN, B/O: $375

★ Bowie Knife Gamma Doppler (Phase 1) FN, B/O: $363

★ Bowie Knife Tiger Tooth FN, B/O: $269

★ Bowie Knife Crimson Web WW, B/O: $192

★ Bowie Knife Bright Water FN, B/O: $159

★ Bowie Knife Ultraviolet FT, B/O: $126

⎯

★ Stiletto Knife Slaughter FN, B/O: $616

★ Stiletto Knife Crimson Web FT, B/O: $412

★ StatTrak™ Stiletto Knife Night Stripe FT, B/O: $227

⎯

★ Falchion Knife Lore FT, B/O: $214

★ Falchion Knife Autotronic FT, B/O: $192

★ Falchion Knife Scorched WW, B/O: $105

⎯

★ Survival Knife Crimson Web BS, B/O: $216

★ Survival Knife Case Hardened FT, B/O: $198

★ Survival Knife Scorched FT, B/O: $111

⎯

★ Shadow Daggers Fade FN, B/O: $368

★ Shadow Daggers Doppler (Phase 3) FN, B/O: $228

★ Shadow Daggers, B/O: $201

★ Shadow Daggers Damascus Steel FT, B/O: $108

★ Shadow Daggers Ultraviolet FT, B/O: $105

★ Shadow Daggers Black Laminate FT, B/O: $99

★ Shadow Daggers Forest DDPAT FT, B/O: $85

⎯

★ Gut Knife Doppler (Sapphire) MW #1, B/O: $1700

★ Gut Knife Gamma Doppler (Phase 1) FN, B/O: $223

★ Gut Knife Marble Fade FN, B/O: $203

★ Gut Knife Doppler (Phase 2) FN, B/O: $191

★ Gut Knife Case Hardened BS, B/O: $127

⎯

★ Navaja Knife Doppler (Phase 4) FN, B/O: $199

★ Navaja Knife Doppler (Phase 4) FN, B/O: $199

★ Navaja Knife, B/O: $138

★ Navaja Knife Damascus Steel FN, B/O: $111

⎯

★ Classic Knife Urban Masked FT, B/O: $146

★ StatTrak™ Classic Knife Stained BS, B/O: $168

⎯

★ Ursus Knife Doppler (Phase 3) FN, B/O: $476

★ Ursus Knife, B/O: $375

⎯

★ Skeleton Knife, B/O: $1137

★ Talon Knife, B/O: $608

★ Paracord Knife, B/O: $305

★ Survival Knife Forest DDPAT FT, B/O: $97

GLOVES

★ Moto Gloves Transport MW, B/O: $204

★ Moto Gloves Polygon BS, B/O: $142

★ Moto Gloves Blood Pressure BS, B/O: $84

★ Moto Gloves Blood Pressure BS, B/O: $84

★ Moto Gloves 3rd Commando Company BS, B/O: $63

★ Moto Gloves 3rd Commando Company BS, B/O: $63

⎯

★ Specialist Gloves Crimson Kimono WW, B/O: $1215

★ Specialist Gloves Tiger Strike FT, B/O: $672

★ Specialist Gloves Lt. Commander FT, B/O: $305

★ Specialist Gloves Lt. Commander BS, B/O: $140

★ Specialist Gloves Crimson Web BS, B/O: $137

★ Specialist Gloves Buckshot FT, B/O: $75

⎯

★ Driver Gloves Crimson Weave FT, B/O: $359

★ Driver Gloves Imperial Plaid BS, B/O: $229

★ Driver Gloves Overtake BS, B/O: $77

★ Driver Gloves Racing Green FT, B/O: $48

⎯

★ Sport Gloves Omega FT, B/O: $739

★ Sport Gloves Amphibious BS #2, B/O: $733

★ Sport Gloves Arid BS, B/O: $292

⎯

★ Hand Wraps Giraffe MW, B/O: $212

★ Hand Wraps Leather FT, B/O: $160

★ Hand Wraps Desert Shamagh MW, B/O: $101

⎯

★ Broken Fang Gloves Yellow-banded MW, B/O: $185

★ Broken Fang Gloves Needle Point FT, B/O: $67

★ Broken Fang Gloves Needle Point WW, B/O: $59

⎯

★ Hydra Gloves Case Hardened BS, B/O: $65

★ Hydra Gloves Emerald FT, B/O: $65

★ Hydra Gloves Emerald BS, B/O: $62

WEAPONS

AK-47 Case Hardened BS, B/O: $130

AK-47 Bloodsport MW, B/O: $79

AK-47 Fuel Injector BS, B/O: $76

AK-47 Fuel Injector BS, B/O: $76

AK-47 Bloodsport FT, B/O: $70

AK-47 Neon Rider MW, B/O: $60

StatTrak™ AK-47 Aquamarine Revenge FT, B/O: $72

⎯

AWP Fade FN, B/O: $1039

AWP Asiimov FT, B/O: $139

AWP Asiimov FT, B/O: $139

AWP Wildfire MW, B/O: $95

AWP BOOM MW, B/O: $93

AWP BOOM MW, B/O: $93

AWP Duality FN, B/O: $81

AWP Asiimov BS, B/O: $79

AWP Asiimov BS, B/O: $79

AWP Chromatic Aberration FN, B/O: $60

StatTrak™ AWP Hyper Beast FT, B/O: $68

StatTrak™ AWP Hyper Beast FT, B/O: $68

StatTrak™ AWP Electric Hive FT, B/O: $55

⎯

Desert Eagle Blaze FN, B/O: $623

Desert Eagle Emerald Jörmungandr FN, B/O: $241

Desert Eagle Cobalt Disruption FN, B/O: $81

Desert Eagle Cobalt Disruption FN, B/O: $81

Desert Eagle Cobalt Disruption FN, B/O: $81

Desert Eagle Printstream FT, B/O: $54

⎯

M4A1-S Blue Phosphor FN, B/O: $434

StatTrak™ M4A1-S Bright Water MW, B/O: $55

⎯

M4A4 Poseidon FN, B/O: $1465

M4A4 Asiimov BS, B/O: $55

M4A4 Hellfire MW, B/O: $50

⎯

USP-S Kill Confirmed MW, B/O: $72

USP-S Printstream FT, B/O: $69

StatTrak™ USP-S Kill Confirmed FT, B/O: $139

⎯

AUG Flame Jörmungandr FN, B/O: $234

P90 Run and Hide FT, B/O: $147

Five-SeveN Candy Apple FN, B/O: $61

Trade Offer Link - Steam Profile Link - My Inventory

Knives - Bowie Knife, Butterfly Knife, Falchion Knife, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Huntsman Knife, M9 Bayonet, Bayonet, Karambit, Shadow Daggers, Stiletto Knife, Ursus Knife, Navaja Knife, Talon Knife, Classic Knife, Paracord Knife, Survival Knife, Nomad Knife, Skeleton Knife, Patterns - Gamma Doppler, Doppler (Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, Phase 4, Black Pearl, Sapphire, Ruby, Emerald), Crimson Web, Lore, Fade, Ultraviolet, Night, Marble Fade (Fire & Ice, Fake FI), Case Hardened (Blue Gem), Autotronic, Slaughter, Black Laminate, Tiger Tooth, Boreal Forest, Scorched, Blue Steel, Vanilla, Damascus Steel, Forest DDPAT, Urban Masked, Freehand, Stained, Bright Water, Safari Mesh, Rust Coat, Gloves - Bloodhound Gloves (Charred, Snakebite, Guerrilla, Bronzed), Driver Gloves (Snow Leopard, King Snake, Crimson Weave, Imperial Plaid, Black Tie, Lunar Weave, Diamondback, Rezan the Red, Overtake, Queen Jaguar, Convoy, Racing Green), Hand Wraps (Cobalt Skulls, CAUTION!, Overprint, Slaughter, Leather, Giraffe, Badlands, Spruce DDPAT, Arboreal, Constrictor, Desert Shamagh, Duct Tape), Moto Gloves (Spearmint, POW!, Cool Mint, Smoke Out, Finish Line, Polygon, Blood Pressure, Turtle, Boom!, Eclipse, 3rd Commando Company, Transport), Specialist Gloves (Crimson Kimono, Tiger Strike, Emerald Web, Field Agent, Marble Fade, Fade, Foundation, Lt. Commander, Crimson Web, Mogul, Forest DDPAT, Buckshot), Sport Gloves (Pandora's Box, Superconductor, Hedge Maze, Vice, Amphibious, Slingshot, Omega, Arid, Big Game, Nocts, Scarlet Shamagh, Bronze Morph), Hydra Gloves (Case Hardened, Emerald, Rattler, Mangrove), Broken Fang Gloves (Jade, Yellow-banded, Unhinged, Needle Point), Pistols - P2000 (Wicked Sick, Ocean Foam, Fire Element, Amber Fade, Corticera, Chainmail, Imperial Dragon, Obsidian, Scorpion, Handgun, Acid Etched), USP-S (Printstream, Kill Confirmed, Whiteout, Road Rash, Owergrowth, The Traitor, Neo-Noir, Dark Water, Orion, Blueprint, Stainless, Caiman, Serum, Monster Mashup, Royal Blue, Ancient Visions, Cortex, Orange Anolis, Ticket To Hell, Black Lotus, Cyrex, Check Engine, Guardian, Purple DDPAT, Torque, Blood Tiger, Flashback, Business Class, Pathfinder, Para Green), Lead Conduit, Glock-18 (Umbral Rabbit, Fade, Candy Apple, Bullet Queen, Synth Leaf, Neo-Noir, Nuclear Garden, Dragon Tatto, Reactor, Pink DDPAT, Twilight Galaxy, Sand Dune, Groundwater, Blue Fissure, Snack Attack, Water Elemental, Brass, Wasteland Rebel, Vogue, Franklin, Royal Legion, Gamma Doppler, Weasel, Steel Disruption, Ironwork, Grinder, High Beam, Moonrise, Oxide Blaze, Bunsen Burner, Clear Polymer, Bunsen Burner, Night), P250 (Re.built, Nuclear Threat, Modern Hunter, Splash, Whiteout, Vino Primo, Mehndi, Asiimov, Visions, Undertow, Cartel, See Ya Later, Gunsmoke, Splash, Digital Architect, Muertos, Red Rock, Bengal Tiger, Crimson Kimono, Wingshot, Metallic DDPAT, Hive, Dark Filigree, Mint Kimono), Five-Seven (Neon Kimono, Berries And Cherries, Fall Hazard, Crimson Blossom, Hyper Beast, Nitro, Fairy Tale, Case Hardened, Copper Galaxy, Angry Mob, Monkey Business, Fowl Play, Anodized Gunmetal, Hot Shot, Retrobution, Boost Protocol), CZ75-Auto (Chalice, Crimson Web, Emerald Quartz, The Fuschia is Now, Nitro, Xiangliu, Yellow Jacket, Victoria, Poison Dart, Syndicate, Eco, Hexane, Pole, Tigris), Tec-9 (Rebel, Terrace, Nuclear Threat, Hades, Rust Leaf, Decimator, Blast From, Orange Murano, Toxic, Fuel Injector, Remote Control, Bamboo Forest, Isaac, Avalanche, Brother, Re-Entry, Blue Titanium, Bamboozle), R8 Revolver (Banana Cannon, Fade, Blaze, Crimson Web, Liama Cannon, Crazy 8, Reboot, Canal Spray, Night, Amber Fade), Desert Eagle (Blaze, Hand Cannon, Fennec Fox, Sunset Storm, Emerald Jörmungandr, Pilot, Hypnotic, Golden Koi, Printstream, Cobalt Disruption, Code Red, Ocean Drive, Midnight Storm, Kumicho Dragon, Crimson Web, Heirloom, Night Heist, Mecha Industries, Night, Conspiracy, Trigger Discipline, Naga, Directive, Light Rail), Dual Berettas (Flora Carnivora, Duelist, Cobra Strike, Black Limba, Emerald, Hemoglobin, Twin Turbo, Marina, Melondrama, Pyre, Retribution, Briar, Dezastre, Royal Consorts, Urban Shock, Dualing Dragons, Panther, Balance), Rifles - Galil (Aqua Terrace, Winter Forest, Chatterbox, Sugar Rush, Pheonix Blacklight, CAUTION!, Orange DDPAT, Cerberus, Dusk Ruins, Eco, Chromatic Aberration, Stone Cold, Tuxedo, Sandstorm, Shattered, Urban Rubble, Rocket Pop, Kami, Crimson Tsunami, Connexion), SCAR-20 (Fragments, Brass, Cyrex, Palm, Splash Jam, Cardiac, Emerald, Crimson Web, Magna Carta, Stone Mosaico, Bloodsport, Enforcer), AWP (Duality, Gungnir, Dragon Lore, Prince, Medusa, Desert Hydra, Fade, Lightning Strike, Oni Taiji, Silk Tiger, Graphite, Chromatic Aberration, Asiimov, Snake Camo, Boom, Containment Breach, Wildfire, Redline, Electric Hive, Hyper Beast, Neo-Noir, Man-o'-war, Pink DDPAT, Corticera, Sun in Leo, Elite Build, Fever Dream, Atheris, Mortis, PAW, Exoskeleton, Worm God, POP AWP, Phobos, Acheron, Pit Viper, Capillary, Safari Mesh), AK-47 (Head Shot, Wild Lotus, Gold Arabesque, X-Ray, Fire Serpent, Hydroponic, Panthera Onca, Case Hardened, Vulcan, Jet Set, Fuel Injector, Bloodsport, Nightwish, First Class, Neon Rider, Asiimov, Red Laminate, Aquamarine Revenge, The Empress, Wasteland Rebel, Jaguar, Black Laminate, Leet Museo, Neon Revolution, Redline, Frontside Misty, Predator, Legion of Anubis, Point Disarray, Orbit Mk01, Blue Laminate, Green Laminate, Emerald Pinstripe, Cartel, Phantom Disruptor, Jungle Spray, Safety Net, Rat Rod, Baroque Purple, Slate, Elite Build, Uncharted, Safari Mesh), FAMAS (Sundown, Prime Conspiracy, Afterimage, Commemoration, Dark Water, Spitfire, Pulse, Eye of Athena, Meltdown, Rapid Eye Move, Roll Cage, Styx, Mecha Industrie, Djinn, ZX Spectron, Valence, Neural Net, Night Borre, Hexne), M4A4 (Temukau, Howl, Poseidon, Asiimov, Daybreak, Hellfire, Zirka, Red DDPAT, Radiation Hazard, Modern Hunter, The Emperor, The Coalition, Bullet Rain, Cyber Security, X-Ray, Dark Blossom, Buzz Kill, In Living Color, Neo-Noir, Desolate Space, 龍王 (Dragon King), Royal Paladin, The Battlestar, Global Offensive, Tooth Fairy, Desert-Strike, Griffin, Evil Daimyo, Spider Lily, Converter), M4A1-S (Emphorosaur-S, Welcome to the Jungle, Imminent Danger, Knight, Hot Rod, Icarus Fell, Blue Phosphor, Printstream, Master Piece, Dark Water, Golden Coil, Bright Water, Player Two, Atomic Alloy, Guardian, Chantico's Fire, Hyper Beast, Mecha Industries, Cyrex, Control Panel, Moss Quartz, Nightmare, Decimator, Leaded Glass, Basilisk, Blood Tiger, Briefing, Night Terror, Nitro, VariCamo, Flashback), SG 553 (Cyberforce, Hazard Pay, Bulldozer, Integrale, Dragon Tech, Ultraviolet, Colony IV, Hypnotic, Cyrex, Candy Apple, Barricade, Pulse), SSG 08 (Death Strike, Sea Calico, Blood in the Water, Orange Filigree, Dragonfire, Big Iron, Bloodshot, Detour, Turbo Peek, Red Stone), AUG (Akihabara Accept, Flame Jörmungandr, Hot Rod, Midnight Lily, Sand Storm, Carved Jade, Wings, Anodized Navy, Death by Puppy, Torque, Bengal Tiger, Chameleon, Fleet Flock, Random Access, Momentum, Syd Mead, Stymphalian, Arctic Wolf, Aristocrat, Navy Murano), G3SG1 (Chronos, Violet Murano, Flux, Demeter, Orange Kimono, The Executioner, Green Apple, Arctic Polar Camo, Contractor), SMGs - P90 (Neoqueen, Astral Jörmungandr, Run and Hide, Emerald Dragon, Cold Blooded, Death by Kitty, Baroque Red, Vent Rush, Blind Spot, Asiimov, Trigon, Sunset Lily, Death Grip, Leather, Nostalgia, Fallout Warning, Tiger Pit, Schermatic, Virus, Shapewood, Glacier Mesh, Shallow Grave, Chopper, Desert Warfare), MAC-10 (Sakkaku, Hot Snakes, Copper Borre, Red Filigree, Gold Brick, Graven, Case Hardened, Stalker, Amber Fade, Neon Rider, Tatter, Curse, Propaganda, Nuclear Garden, Disco Tech, Toybox, Heat, Indigo), UMP-45 (Wild Child, Fade, Blaze, Day Lily, Minotaur's Labyrinth, Crime Scene, Caramel, Bone Pile, Momentum, Primal Saber), MP7 (Teal Blossom, Fade, Nemesis, Whiteout, Asterion, Bloosport, Abyssal Apparition, Full Stop, Special Delivery, Neon Ply, Asterion, Ocean Foam, Powercore, Scorched, Impire), PP-Bizon (Modern Hunter, Rust Coat, Forest Leaves, Antique, High Roller, Blue Streak, Seabird, Judgement of Anubis, Bamboo Print, Embargo, Chemical Green, Coblat Halftone, Fuel Rod, Photic Zone, Irradiated Alert, Carbon Fiber), MP9 (Featherweight, Wild Lily, Pandora's Box, Stained Glass, Bulldozer, Dark Age, Hot Rod, Hypnotic, Hydra, Rose Iron, Music Box, Setting Sun, Food Chain, Airlock, Mount Fuji, Starlight Protector, Ruby Poison Dart, Deadly Poison), MP5-SD (Liquidation, Oxide Oasis, Phosphor, Nitro, Agent, Autumn Twilly), Shotguns, Machineguns - Sawed-Off (Kiss♥Love, First Class, Orange DDPAT, Rust Coat, The Kraken, Devourer, Mosaico, Wasteland Princess, Bamboo Shadow, Copper, Serenity, Limelight, Apocalypto), XM1014 (Frost Borre, Ancient Lore, Red Leather, Elegant Vines, Banana Leaf, Jungle, Urban Perforated, Grassland, Blaze Orange, Heaven Guard, VariCamo Blue, Entombed, XOXO, Seasons, Tranquility, Bone Machine, Incinegator, Teclu Burner, Black Tie, Zombie Offensive, Watchdog), Nova (Baroque Orange, Hyper Beast, Green Apple, Antique, Modern Hunter, Walnut, Forest Leaves, Graphite, Blaze Orange, Rising Skull, Tempest, Bloomstick, Interlock, Quick Sand, Moon in Libra, Clean Polymer, Red Quartz, Toy Soldier), MAG-7 (Insomnia, Cinqueda, Counter Terrace, Prism Terrace, Memento, Chainmail, Hazard, Justice, Bulldozer, Silver, Core Breach, Firestarter, Praetorian, Heat, Hard Water, Monster Call, BI83 Spectrum, SWAG-7), M249 (Humidor, Shipping Forecast, Blizzard Marbleized, Downtown, Jungle DDPAT, Nebula Crusader, Impact Drill, Emerald Poison Dart), Negev (Mjölnir, Anodized Navy, Palm, Power Loader, Bratatat, CaliCamo, Phoenix Stencil, Infrastructure, Boroque Sand), Wear - Factory New (FN), Minimal Wear (MW), Field-Tested (FT), Well-Worn (WW), Battle-Scarred (BS), Stickers Holo/Foil/Gold - Katowice 2014, Krakow 2017, Howling Dawn, Katowice 2015, Crown, London 2018, Cologne 2014, Boston 2018, Atlanta 2017, Cluj-Napoca 2015, DreamHack 2014, King on the Field, Harp of War, Winged Difuser, Cologne 2016, Cologne 2015, MLG Columbus 2016, Katowice 2019, Berlin 2019, RMR 2020, Stockholm 2021, Antwerp 2022, Swag Foil, Flammable foil, Others - Souvenirs, Agents, Pins, Passes, Gifts, Music Kits, Cases, Keys, Capsules, Packages, Patches

Some items on the list may no longer be available or are still locked, visit My Inventory for more details.

Send a Trade Offer for fastest response. I consider all offers.

Add me for discuss if there is a serious offer that needs to be discussed.

Hi!
Not really expecting a fix for this but one can always hope...
My old machine: MacBook Pro 15" mid-2015. New machine: MacBook Pro 16" 2023 M2 Pro. Network with AirPort Time Capsule (802.11ac, 2016) with 1TB hard disk (Time Machine).
I've been using my old mid-2015 MBP happily and using the Time Capsule to run my backups using Time Machine. I attempted to upgrade the machine into Ventura using OpenCore Legacy Pather (formatted disk during install). While this did work Ok, I still couldn't run a piece of software I had hoped I could, so I wanted to revert back to Monterey.
I re-installed Monterey and attempted to use Migration Assistant to restore my old backup. However every single time the restore halts around the same point: the number of files migrated does not increase and slowly the estimated time to finish keeps rising and rising. I've attempted this several time overnight and once let it run for two days, but it's always the same 4-6 hours that it goes on and then fails around the same file count. It's always during the migration of user files.
I have tried to:

• Archive the backup from the Time Capsule onto a USB disk but that fails every time around 180,25 GB
• Fix the volume using Disk Utility after mounting it on Finder: it run for hours and said the volume was ok and didn't list any repairs.
• Attempted to copy the .sparsebundle elsewhere manually on Finder. This halted at some point but did continue by itself. At the very end Finder complained it didn't have privileges to access it and failed.
• Attempting to copy my old profile directory manually from within the .sparsebundle the disk unmounted itself at some point and the copy failed.

The backup history on the Capsule was around year or two, as I have once or twice received the error that the backups were not Ok and I should start it anew. Since the last fresh start it had been running for moths just fine and never complained about backups' not being Ok.
I can mount the .sparsebundle and access the backups in Finder and copy single files manually. I also had a separate backup of my main stuff on my User folder (Desktop, Documents) so I have not dramatically lost anything. But it will take ages to set up every little thing and app again and I am very disappointed at the Time Machine for appearing to work totally fine and then failing so bluntly without even confessing that something is wrong!
I have now bought a new machine (it was anyway due to anytime soon). Migration assistant had stopped during the night I left it running; it said it was trying to re-connect (the machine was connected with both WiFi and wireless gb ethernet). Again, *something* happens at around a certain point in the backup which causes the process to halt and never finish.
Now that I have the new MBP I can attempt leaving the old machine doing the migration and let it run longer - just in case it would magically get over with it. But I am not really having high hopes, it feels like there is something wrong within the backup and it just drops it at that point.
Would there be any help if I were to disassemble the Time Capsule and try reading the disk over a USB-SATA interface? I'd expect this be at least faster than over network and I could dismiss it being a problem with the Time Capsule itself (again, never seen any and even the logs under AirPort Utility do not show anything unusual - also it confirms that the fan is working). If I run (and cancel) the Migration Assistant, will there be any system logs that would give any pointers on where it fails?
Tl:dr: I am attempting to restore from a Time Machine backup with Migration Assistant but the restore halts around the same file count every time and never finishes.

Here is my new PC case configuration:
CPU INTEL Core i9-13900K 16 cores/24 threadsMainboard ASUS TUF Z690 Plus D4DDR4 PNY 16GB/3200SSD Samsung PM983 NVMe - 1.88TB GEN3x4HDD Seagate Exos 8TB EnterpriseVGA Asus TUF RTX 4080 16GB OC
I cannot install Proxmox version 7.4 on this configuration. On the error screen like the picture I sent below.
I have the same case as above, only replacing 2 Colorful RTX 3060 NB 12GB OC VGA cards, I can still successfully install Proxmox 7.4 as usual.
Hope you guys can help me fix the error. I can only install Proxmox from 7.1 and up.
​
https://preview.redd.it/u6vnab5s983b1.jpg?width=960&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=fae67a5159ea6ab5cbc1db90f12ef4ff78439883

Im a simple man I just want a few things from this game and I’ll be happy!

1. Randomly rolled stats on every car! Cars shouldn’t intrinsically be rare or legendary, but every car should drop with random stats with only the boost being static! This lets every car be viable, while incentivizing players to grind for a better and better role of the car they want to play. And by having the boost, weight, and shape of the car be pre set by devs this also keeps the cars feeling unique! It also makes the loot boxes more fun because there are really valuable rewards and I actually think loot boxes work well with this implementation especially if paired with a way to spend significantly more currency to buy a car directly!
   
2. Weapons and Abilities! Like rockets and guns from hot wheels beat that or accelechargers from… well you know!
   
3. Crossplay and cross save support! Also a port to Apple Silicon for Mac and iPad would be perfect if its ported fully to iPad it would be the best selling game on App Store I’m certain!
   
4. Full live service treatment no more sequels just expansions! I like the idea of having seasons with and annual expansions!
   
5. Better customization of cars! Like being able to customize the wheels or say the surfboards on the Diora II
   
6. Track customization! So basically for this I want their to be multiple track variants with different decals like how we see in acceleracers!
   
7. More fantasy environments! IE the something like the racing realms or world race or hell even the monster truck dlc having a toy table was perfect!
   
8. ACCELERACERS! Like if I hadn’t hinted it enough I desperately want every car from acceleracers and hot wheels world race in game!
   

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Varsity Tutors	Online Series 7 Tutor	Boise
Appen	Freelancer	Garden City
WEX	Marketing Intern	Inkom
Varsity Tutors	Online Tutor	Rigby
Loyal Source Government Services	Nurse Practitioner	Boise
Jobot	RN Hospice Case Manager	Boise
Veterans Aministration Hospital Boise	Registered Nurse	Boise
Forefront Telecare	PMHNP - Psych Nurse Practitioner - Idaho	Boise
Core Medicine of Idaho	Nurse Practitioner	Caldwell
Seasoned Recruitment	Registered Nurse	Coeur Dalene
Canyon Home Care and Hospice	Rn/lpn	Fruitland
Jobot	Licensed Practical Nurse - Sign-On Bonus!	Hazelton
Jobot	Registered Nurse	Hazelton
Behavioral Health Solutions	Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner - (PMHNP)	Idaho Falls
Hospice and Palliative Care of the Wood River Valley	Palliative Care RNs and LPNs	Ketchum
The Healthcare Staffers	Registered Nurse (RN) - Operating Room	Lewiston
Actriv Healthcare	Rn/lpn/cna	Lewiston
Topside Talent	Registered Nurse (RN) - Operating Room	Lewiston
Behavioral Health Solutions	Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner - (PMHNP)	Mccall
The Karlfeldt Center	Registered Nurse/Paramedic	Meridian
Senior Lifestyle	Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN) - Part Time $250 Sign On Bonus*	Meridian
Idaho Urologic Institute	Medical Assistant (MA) or Licensed Practical Nurse (LPN)	Meridian

Hey guys, here are some recent job openings in id. Feel free to comment here or send me a private message if you have any questions, I'm at the community's disposal! If you encounter any problems with any of these job openings please let me know that I will modify the table accordingly. Thanks!

I have read the mod description multiple times now but I just wanted to make sure.
The mod description says it takes around 30s to swap characters but as I am making this post I have been waiting for 30min to swap to my previous character. I had no issues creating a new character but even that took several minutes.
Also, it seems Proteus starts lagging after i've used a player module feature. Now even when I want to select the player module from the wheel it takes a few minutes to show me the menu.
Has anyone else experienced this issue? According to my google search there are very few problems with proteus and those mainly center around player appearence. Regardless I figured I should try my luck here.
Edit: Here's my modlist as demanded by the rules:
Bashed Patch 3 Legacy of the Dragonborn Patches (Official) kryptopyr's Automated Patches Hearthfires Extended and Creation Club Fishing Patch Landscape Fixes For Grass Mods - Alternate strat patch Ordinator Beyond Skyrim Patch UVCPC - Umgak's Vokrii Compatibility Patch Compendium Summermyst - WACCF Patch Project AHO - Skytest Patch (Fix Invisible Mudcrabs) - ESPFE Unofficial Moonpath to Elsweyr Patch eFPS - Official Patch Hub Deadly Dragons SE Patches Relationship Dialogue Overhaul - Update and MCM Odin - Ordinator Compatibility Patch Mysticism 2 - Vokrii Compatibility Patch Odin - Vokrii Compatibility Patch Apothecary - Saints and Seducers Patch Apothecary - Wyrmstooth Patch Apothecary - Rare Curios Patch Apothecary - Food and Drink Addon - USSEP Patch Apothecary - Food and Drink Addon - Survival Mode Patch Apothecary - Fishing Patch Apothecary - Bruma Patch identity crisis - Beyond Skyrim - Bruma Patch Helgen Reborn Patch - landscape fixes for grass mods Immersive Citizens Patch - landscape fixes for grass mods Immersive Wenches -KS hairs- Patch_SE (KS hairs 1.61f) Immersive Wenches -Immersive Citizens - AI Overhaul- Patch Legacy of the Dragonborn - Creation Club Patch Hub Summermyst X Immersive Jewelry Beyond Skyrim - DLC Integration Patch 1.6.2 Armor and Clothing Extension - Spell Perk Item Distributor (SPID) Patch Skyrim Reputation - Sacrosanct Patch Skyrim Reputation - Growl Patch
PROTEUS Souls Do Things 2 Simply Order Summons Unequip Quiver SE Remote Interactions YASTM - Yet Another Soul Trap Manager Purchaseable Store-Display-Items Nether's Follower Framework Crosshair-aligned Crossbow AH Hotkeys - Skyrim Hotkey Manager SSE Talkative Dragons Stones of Barenziah Quest Markers Remember Lockpick Angle - Updated Rich Skyrim Merchants Loading Screens With Extra Sarcasm SE - ESL Flagged Lore-Based Loading Screens Formation with Followers Realistic Torch Light NPC's Run and Walk at Your Pace Extended Carryweight Dead NPC Body Cleaner Remover
RAID Weathers Lux Orbis Lux Lux Via
Folkvangr - Grass and Landscape Overhaul The Wheels of Lull Retexture SE Footprints Immersive Armors Retexture and Mesh Fixes SE RUSTIC CLOTHING - Special Edition SkySight Skins - Ultra HD Male Textures and Real Feet Meshes (4K2K HIGH) Skyrim Textures Redone Enhanced Night Sky The Eyes of Beauty - Vampire Eyes SE The Eyes Of Beauty SSE Blended Roads Enhanced Blood Textures Better Dynamic Snow SE Realistic Water Two SE Tempered Skins for Females Salt and Wind - Rough Hair for KS Hairdos SE Dirt and Blood - Dynamic Visual Effects Eye Normal Map Fix SSE Superior Lore-Friendly Hair - HD textures Vanilla Body with UNP Textures Moonpath To Elsweyr Retexture SE Sensible Bribes - Based on Speechcraft Not Level Soaking Wet - Character Wetness Effect Face Discoloration Fix Nordic Snow RUSTIC SOULGEMS - Special Edition Cleaned Skyrim SE Textures - Performance Optimized
Skyrim Extended Cut - Saints and Seducers Legacy of the Dragonborn Moonpath to Elsweyr SSE Carved Brink Identity Crisis Helgen Reborn The Gray Cowl of Nocturnal SE Project AHO The Wheels of Lull SE Wyrmstooth Beyond Skyrim - Bruma SE Beyond Skyrim - Assets Nilheim - Misc Quest Expansion The Only Cure - Quest Expansion College of Winterhold - Quest Expansion Paarthurnax - Quest Expansion House of Horrors - Quest Expansion The Whispering Door - Quest Expansion The Innocence Lost - Quest Expansion
Armor Variants Expansion Proper Crossbow Integration Royal Armory - New Artifacts Heavy Armory - New Weapons Immersive Weapons Immersive Armors Armor and Clothing Extension Guards Armor Replacer SSE Immersive Jewelry 1.06a Immersive Jewelry SSE
Taunt Your Enemies - Taunting Matters Immersive Speechcraft SE Arcanum - A New Age of Magic (Fixed) Ordinator - Combat Styles - ESL Path of Sorcery - Magic Perk Overhaul SPERG - Skyrim Perk Enhancements and Rebalanced Gameplay SSE Port Adamant - A Perk Overhaul Mysticism - A Magic Overhaul Vokrii - Minimalistic Perks of Skyrim Vokriinator - Choice Cuts Mannaz - Integrated Races of Skyrim VioLens - A Killmove Mod SE Valravn - Integrated Combat of Skyrim Chapter II - Jeremy Soule Inspired Music Take a Peek - New Stealth Mechanic Apothecary - Food and Drink Addon Apothecary - An Alchemy Overhaul Vitrium Hunterborn Sojourn Over Signposts - Witcher-Style Fast Travel Alternative Archery Gameplay Overhaul SE Relationship Dialogue Overhaul - RDO SE Last Seed Campfire and Frostfall - Unofficial SSE Update Complete Crafting Overhaul Remastered Summermyst - Enchantments of Skyrim Skyrim Reputation Improved Skyrim Reputation - Fixed and Patched Skyrim Reputation Growl - Werebeasts of Skyrim Ordinator - Perks of Skyrim Odin - Skyrim Magic Overhaul Sacrosanct - Vampires of Skyrim Arcanum - A New Age of Magic 4.0.1 Bugfix Arcanum - A New Age of Magic Andromeda - Unique Standing Stones of Skyrim Wintersun - Faiths of Skyrim Realistic AI Detection (RAID) Predator Vision - Night Eye and Thermal Vision Overhaul PapyrusUtil SE - Modders Scripting Utility Functions Frostfall - Hypothermia Camping Survival Wet and Cold SE Campfire - Complete Camping System (Supports Skyrim VR)
NPCs React To Invisibility Civil War Lines Expansion Carriages and Stables Dialogue Bundle Forsworn and Thalmor Lines Expansion Orc Addon for Vampire Lines Expansion Vampire Lines Expansion Guard Dialogue Overhaul SE Xelzaz - Custom Fully Voiced Argonian Telvanni Follower Immersive World Encounters SE Immersive Patrols SE AE Diverse Werewolves Collection SE Skyrim Skill Uncapper for SE and AE Deadly Dragons and Splendor Dragon Variants SE (PATCH) Splendor - Dragon Variants SE Diverse Dragons Collection SE (DDCse) Deadly Dragons Immersive Wenches SkyTEST Integration Project SE SkyTEST - Realistic Animals and Predators SE INIGO Immersive Citizens - AI Overhaul Sleeping Expanded - Animations and NPC reactions NPCs React To Necromancy (And More) Interesting NPCs SE (3DNPC) Interesting NPCs 3DNPC SE Alternative Locations - ESL Flag OBIS SE - Organized Bandits In Skyrim Special Edition DIVERSE SKYRIM SSE
Cage of Clavicus SE Skyrim Landscape and Water Fixes Skyrim Project Optimization SE eFPS - Exterior FPS boost Point The Way Lightened Skyrim Hearthfire Extended Artifacts - The Ice Blade of the Monarch [SSE] Artifacts - The Tournament of the Ten Bloods [SSE] Grass FPS Booster New Beginnings - Live Another Life Extension SSE Alternate Start - Live Another Life - SSE Gildergreen Regrown Landscape Fixes For Grass Mods eFPS - AnniversaryEditionFreeCC
Hvergelmir's Aesthetics - Beards KS Hairdos SSE Weapons Armor Clothing and Clutter Fixes Ruins Clutter Improved SE Flickering Meshes Fix Static Mesh Improvement Mod
Dual Casting Fix ConsolePlusPlus Unofficial Skyrim Modder's Patch - USMP SE Precision Creatures Precision Vanilla Script (micro)Optimizations Dynamic Collision Adjustment Scrambled Bugs Payload Interpreter Optimised Scripts for SPERG PAPER Customizable Camera moreHUD SE moreHUD Inventory Edition Immersive HUD - iHUD Special Edition Heels Fix Dynamic Animation Casting - NG Better Combat Escape - SSE Whose Quest Is It Anyway Scaleform Translation Plus Plus MCM Recorder Menu Maid 2 - MCM manager Recipe Auto-Learn To Your Face SE - AE - VR B.O.O.B.I.E.S (aka Immersive Icons) Keyword Item Distributor Inventory Interface Information Injector MergeMapper Armor Rating Rescaled SKSE Remake Constructible Object Custom Keyword System UIExtensions ConsoleUtilSSE Notification Filter - Remove unwanted notifications Compass Navigation Overhaul Infinity UI Run For Your Lives Favorite Things - Extended Favorites Menu for SkyUI SkyUI Weapons Pack SE Dynamic Animation Replacer More Informative Console Better Jumping SE iWant Widgets Immersive Sounds - Compendium A Quality World Map First Person Camera Height Fix Player Rotation in ShowRaceMenu RaceMenu Lazy Renamer No Spinning Death Animation SE Fuz Ro D-oh - Silent Voice Better MessageBox Controls Better Dialogue Controls Clean Menu Animation Motion Revolution MCM Helper Spell Perk Item Distributor SkyUI Item Card Fixes Fix Note icon for SkyUI (SKSE64 plugin) powerofthree's Papyrus Extender Wider MCM Menu for SkyUI SkyUI - Ghost Item Bug Fix SkyUI SE - Flashing Savegames Fix Complete Widescreen Fix for Vanilla and SkyUI 2.2 and 5.2 SE SkyUI JContainersGOG SSE Display Tweaks powerofthree's Tweaks Bug Fixes SSE SSE Engine Fixes (skse64 plugin) Skyrim Priority SE AE - skse plugin Address Library for SKSE Plugins Realistic Ragdolls and Force Nemesis Creature Behaivour - WereWolf Addon Nemesis Creatures BEHAVIOUR compatibility Project New Reign - Nemesis Unlimited Behavior Engine Unofficial Skyrim Special Edition Patch
*Creation Club: ccBGSSSE025-AdvDSGS *Creation Club: ccBGSSSE037-Curios *Creation Club: ccBGSSSE001-Fish *Creation Club: ccQDRSSE001-SurvivalMode *DLC: Dawnguard *DLC: Dragonborn *DLC: HearthFires

Bit of background context:I (26M) struggled with addiction from the age of 18 to 25. I'd call myself a high functioning addict - got myself a chemical engineering degree, taught myself programming and changed careers to land well-paid jobs as a software engineer. Wasted thousands of pounds, even more hours and self esteem with my addiction. I've tried counselling and addressing the root of my addiction (childhood trauma) but no luck there. I tried taking my life once by attempting to overdose on pills in hopes of putting the addiction to an end. Sounds crazy, I know. Maybe it was just my competitive nature or that I was growing tired and hopeless of relapsing. Wouldn't consider myself completely in the clear (will I ever be?) but had a massive breakthrough and thought it was worth sharing in hopes that it could help others. It's the only meaning I can find in this struggle.
Problem with current solutions:They all rely a bit too much on willpower. Eventually some people make it through on willpower; but of the few that do, they relapse a lot and often lose a lot in the process. Addiction starts with a thought that becomes an intention and then an action. Relying on willpower alone intercepts the thought becoming an intention. But if it fails, there's nothing much to stop the intention becoming an action. I can't speak for everyone but an addict relying on willpower doesn't seem like the most effective solution. Meetings, therapy, etc. are practical steps forward but they still rely too much on willpower. Rehab is quite effective but the cost and stigma will stop a lot of people from going. Also, once they're out of that temporary environment, it's back to relying on willpower.
My solution that's worked wonders for me so far:I can't rely on my mental strength to get me through this anytime soon so I need to put physical/practical barriers in place. Barriers that will make it impossible or extremely difficult to access the addiction or the money required to sustain it. The steps below should work for gambling, drug, prostitution and porn addiction.

1. Whether you have Mac or Windows, create a new admin account on all of your laptops. Write down an extremely long password (I'm talking 50-60+ characters long of letters, numbers and symbols) on a small piece of paper. If you have a Mac, you'll need to create a new Apple ID (you should still set the password to the password you wrote down) and also set your own personal Apple ID's password to this password.
2. Downgrade every other account to non-admin. The non-admin accounts can have whatever password they wish.
3. With the non-admin account, access the hosts file for your machine. See this article on how to access the file for different machines: https://www.howtogeek.com/27350/beginner-geek-how-to-edit-your-hosts-file/.
4. Add your own URLs or copy and paste the ones from the file in this link (includes 1000+ URLs for proxies, UK banking websites, social media, etc.) to the bottom of the hosts file. It takes time to build a comprehensive list - took me over a year of relapses (before I implemented step 9) to build that fairly exhaustive list for my addiction. You might go through a similar process with yours. Save your changes. Log out of the admin account.
5. If you have an iPhone, delete all VPNs and banking apps. Now enable Screen Time and set browsing to use a whitelist. URLs added to this list will be allowed, everything else will be blocked. Within Screen Time you can also block the installation of apps and the deletion of apps - definitely do the former. Once you do this, the App Store will disappear. There's some other settings in there that might be worth restricting. Get someone to set a Screen Time passcode and not tell you what it is. You'll be asked to provide an Apple ID - provide one that's not the iPhone's current Apple ID and make sure the password is the long password. Not sure of the steps for an Android phone but it should be possible. If it isn't, I think buying an iPhone and enforcing what I mentioned previously outweighs suffering consequences of your addiction.
6. Do similar things for your broadband or mobile phone contract if you wish i.e. set up new accounts or emails with the long password, add in your restrictions and log out.
7. Check out www.heyfocus.com (can block apps and keywords in URLs e.g. any URL or google search that contains particular letters can be blocked) and Sophos Home for additional security - well worth it. Both Focus and Sophos can be locked using the long password.
8. With the long password you wrote down, rip it into 2 or 3 pieces. Find the most complicated item you have and unscrew it (should take you longer than 30 minutes but the longer the better). Store 1 piece of the password here. Store the other pieces somewhere away from where you stay or other items that require unscrewing. You've now made it really difficult for yourself to access your online addictions or the digital money required to sustain your addictions. The stronger your addiction, the more difficult you should make it to retrieve that password.
9. The knockout blow is purchasing a small timed safe (around £200). You can buy a safe box (£40) and a timed padlock (£20) instead if you wish. Put your cards and your cash in and set it to open once a week or once a month when your temptations to relapse are lowest e.g. weekday morning before work. Make sure your direct debits are in order and only carry £40 cash per week. Fill up your car with fuel whenever the safe opens.
10. The steps outlined above should have you covered but if you really want to put the final nail in the coffin, ask someone to help you - they can hold on to the admin passwords for you or help monitor your finances. If it's difficult for you to admit what you're addiction is to someone you trust, then tell them you have a gambling addiction. It has less stigma attached to it than others in my opinion.

With these physical barriers in place, you now have the time and space to work on your willpower. You only need to be strong for that short window when the safe opens. After that, it doesn't matter if your willpower isn't strong enough. No money, no relapse.
Note:If you somehow find a loophole in the solution I've mentioned, keep it to yourself. No need to be a smartass here. This works for me and I'm sure it'll work for a lot of others.

Since freshman year I’ve been in and out of trouble, often getting myself in all kinds of nasty situations. It was around that time my grades started to drop and my parents got more complaints from my teachers. I hung with the wrong crowds and would often get suspended. Over the years things got worse. My problems left school and became minor offenses with the law. Everything from shoplifting to vandalism. I can’t even count the amount of times I’ve been dragged home in a squad car, only to be snatched in and scolded by my dad.
In the middle of senior year not much had changed. My grades were overall still piss poor and I almost got busted for selling prescription pills. At that point I had messed up so much that my parents finally decided that they’ve had enough. They gave me an ultimatum. I had just turned eighteen, so they told me either I got my shit together, or they were going to let me go - one more mishap and I was out of the house.
Honestly, I’ve been wanting to move out and get away from my parents for a while anyways. My “unruly” and rebellious acts in high school was a result of their constant bickering and attempts at controlling every aspect of my life. I’ve become more and more annoyed with them as time passed.
After our talk I became determined to stay out of trouble. I still needed somewhere to stay before leaving, and I didn’t want to get thrown out before I found a way to support myself. I was motivated to turn my life around. But I had to start somewhere, and it was in an industry I knew I’d hate working in.
Fast food.
I found a position at a burger joint. After a few weeks of faithfully punching the clock after school, and fulfilling my duty as a cashier, I really was off to a good start. That was until I decided I needed a car. Although my job was only a few blocks away, I thought I would need some reliable transportation for myself in the future.
Obviously I had no money to purchase a new car, so I planned on buying a used one. One day after school I made a trip to the nearest dealership and searched for a used vehicle with a low price. I wanted to get the car as soon as possible, but I had no credit and I couldn’t pay the full price up front. I searched for other solutions.
An old acquaintance told me about a guy called Bucky-Mac. He told me this guy would loan me the money for the car no matter what my credit was like. From what I've heard, Bucky-Mac was primarily a drug dealer, but he also lent money to desperate people on the side.
Apparently he's been around for years, so I found it odd that I've never heard of this guy before. The fact that this guy was pretty much a loan shark did very little to deter me at the time. My sudden enthusiasm and hope that came with finally wanting to get my life together and taking my future seriously kind of clouded my judgment.
I went to the guy that my old friend had informed me of. Bucky-Mac spent a lot of time in a spot located on the other side of town. It was in a wooded area, at the end of a long dirt road deep into a labyrinth of trees. I rode my bike over there that day, so it took me about ten minutes to travel down the dirt road and reach the small wooden house with boarded up windows.
There were four black trucks parked on the property, with a few men hanging out and standing here and there. One guy smoking a cigarette turned and spotted me coming his way. He stopped in the middle of taking another swig and stared at me as I came closer. The other guys nearby spotted me soon after. I rode closer to the guy with the cigarette and hopped off my bike. All the eyes glued on me made me feel uneasy, so I was slow about speaking. After seconds of awkward silence the cigarette smoking guy says,
“Who are you?”
The curious men that surrounded him looked as if they also wanted to know.
“I-I’m Jake. I’m here to talk to Bucky-Mac,” I said.
He nodded his head in approval before flicking his still lit cigarette away. Then he gestured for me to follow him. I was led into the nearly dilapidated house, as many of the other guys had their gaze locked on me as I entered.
The place was mostly dark inside. But there were a few dimly lit areas, many of which were occupied with boxes and blocks of a suspicious substance heavily wrapped in tape. There was a guy inside hauling many of the blocks into the boxes as he taped them up. The house also reeked of marijuana. The scent was so strong I was surprised it didn’t hit me while I was outside.
We made a turn down a hall which had a closed door at the end. The guy in front of me knocked twice when we reached it. The door swung open in seconds, revealing a middle aged man standing in the doorway. He was smiling. He glanced at me quickly then laid eyes back on the guy in front of me.
“Who is this?” he asked.
The guy in front me shrugged his shoulders.
The middle aged man’s smile grew wider. He had one gold tooth. His hair was slicked back, and it shined in the sunlight beaming in through the window behind him.
“How’s it going?” He said, still smiling.
“I’m fine, man. You?” I replied.
Although I felt a little uneasy, I tried to present myself as confident and just as friendly as this guy appeared to be so far.
“Why don’t you come into my office?” He said, stepping back and giving way for me and the other guy to enter.
We walked in then the middle aged man closed the door behind us. There were two chairs sitting in front of a decorative desk, which had a revolver and a half consumed glass of liquor near it. I took a seat in one of the chairs, as the man came and sat behind his desk. The other guy stood by the door.
“So, what’s up? "
“You are Bucky-Mac, right?” I asked.
He picked up the glass of liquor and gulped down what remained before saying,
“Of course, mate! All day everyday.”
I looked behind me and saw the guy by the door grinning. Then I spun back around only to see Bucky-Mac still smiling.
I sighed.
“I need to borrow some cash,” I said.
From there I explained my situation. I told him that I just turned eighteen and was about to graduate high school in a few months. I informed him of my bumpy years of high school, why I wanted to turn my life around after graduating, and how the money would allow me to buy a car, which would be convenient during the job hunting process.
“Hmm, I see,” Bucky-Mac mumbled, staring at his desk, “You seem to be a man of good intent. You made some mistakes, and now you wanna do better. I can respect that.”
He pulled a bottle of booze from behind his desk and started to refill the glass in front of him.
“You know, most people would find this hard to believe. But sometimes I wish I did the same when I was your age,” Bucky-Mac continued, “If I had thought the same as you earlier on, I’d have a much more stable life right now.”
I heard the guy by the door chuckle, as if he disagreed with Bucky-Mac’s statement.
“Thanks, man,” I said.
He offered me a drink, but I kindly turned it down.
“No worries, pal. You have my support,” Bucky-Mac assured, “So how much we lookin’ at?”
The second I left Bucky-Mac’s spot I headed straight for the dealership and purchased the car I’ve had my eye on. Then on the following day I pulled up to school in it. Some of the kids standing in the crowd in front of the school building noticed me as soon as I pulled into the parking lot. A few of them were my friends, and I often walked to school with them everyday.
They were surprised to see me suddenly pull up to school driving a car, and no longer walking with them. I must say, it felt good to drive around in a vehicle that I could say was mine. Although it was only a cheap used one, it was still my first car.
Among some of the kids in the crowd was a girl. She was standing in an area alone by the front doors. She was really tall, towering over most of the boys that stood in a group not too far away from her. Her eyes were locked on me as I drove by.
Abatha is her name. I’ve known her since first grade. No, we weren’t quite friends. If anything we were the opposite. Abatha has been a total bitch to me ever since the first day we met as small children.
It all started in second grade. Abatha snatched a toy from me. Then she proceeded to push me down and go crying to the teacher, saying I was the one that took the toy from her. The teacher believed her, and I was put in time out. I remember seven year old Abatha teasing me for the rest of the day after that.
This small childish incident led to non-stop feuding between us, year after year, well into our high school years. Most of it was initiated by her.
Often Abatha would taunt and harass me every chance she got. It became worse at the beginning of high school when my years of delinquency began. She had many field days laughing and making fun of me the second she found out I’d gotten into some trouble.
Her harassment was never anything more than verbal. Abatha never physically assaulted me, or displayed a desire to do so. I found this odd, as she very well could've, and inflicted some damage due to her large size. She’s always been a larger girl. Even when we were younger she had always been taller than me. By the time junior year came around she was 6’4.
As I pulled into a parking spot I saw Abatha grin before turning and entering the school building.
Two hundred fifty dollar payments a week. That was the deal. I told Bucky-Mac about my job as a cashier and he was willing to work with me. I expected close to half of my check to be gone every time I got paid for the next few months, but it was for a good cause.
I returned to Bucky-Mac’s spot one afternoon after leaving work, to pay him his share. The first week of paying was a piece of cake. Easy in, easy out. But it was when I went back the following week I realized I may have made a grave mistake.
He wanted double of what was paid the previous week. Five hundred dollars.
When he told me that, my stomach dropped. During our negotiation he specifically said two hundred fifty dollars per week. I was confused as to why he was changing the terms and conditions.
“I forgot to mention a little something called…interest,” Bucky-Mac explained, “Look at it this way. You’re helping me, help you.” Bucky-Mac said.
That friendly smile he once had when I first met him had turned into something else.
I already knew there would be some interest involved, because otherwise he wouldn’t make any profit lending money. But I didn’t expect it to be that much. Fortunately I was able to make the payment, as I could work more hours than most high schoolers who were restricted by child labor laws. But I barely had any money left afterwards.
When I went back the third week he wanted a thousand dollars.
One thousand dollars.
I mean, there was just no way he could expect me to pull that kind of cash on the spot. Especially after I told him about my low paying occupation.
I told him I couldn’t pay him that week. Then that’s when the shit hit the fan, and the guy beneath that friendly façade came to surface. Bucky-Mac’s smile faded completely, then he abruptly gained an expression of pure rage.
“We had a deal,” he said, standing up out of his seat.
That same guy from before was standing by the door, but the second Bucky-Mac stood up out of his seat, he moved in closer to me.
With my heart now racing, I mumble, “You didn’t say anything about interest rates this high -”
“We had a deal!” Bucky-Mac shouted.
“Dude, I get that. But w-we agreed to something totally different!” I said, now starting to get even more nervous.
I glanced behind me once more and saw that the other guy was almost leaning right up on me, still glaring. At this point I wanted to just run out of the room.
As Bucky-Mac walked from behind his desk the guy behind me wrapped his arm around my neck, locking me in a tight choke hold. I struggled to break free but the guy was too strong.
“What the fuck is thi - “ I started.
Before I could finish my sentence, Bucky-Mac came and punched me in the stomach. I grunted in pain then coughed multiple times. Then he kneeled down to look me right in the eye, as the guy behind me still had a hold on me.
“Now I’m gonna tell you this, Jake. I don’t like being ripped off,” Bucky-Mac said.
I felt the guy's arm slightly constrict around my neck tighter.
Bucky-Mac searched my pockets then pulled out all the cash I was carrying, which wasn’t very much.
“You’re short on payment,” he continued, “From now on, I want full payments every single week, starting next week. By then, I expect two thousand dollars sitting on my desk….no excuses. Or we’re gonna have some serious problems, Jake.”
Bucky-Mac delivered a few more punches to my gut before the guy behind me finally released me, letting me fall to the floor as I held my stomach.
“You can leave my office now,” Bucky-Mac mumbled, drawing a cigar from the inside of his suit.
After that incident I hadn’t returned to Bucky-Mac’s spot for two whole weeks. Bucky-Mac called my phone constantly during that time. I ignored. Every time my phone rang and I saw his number my heart would instantly leap. I didn’t know what I was going to do. But I had to think of something quick.
In the meantime, everyone at school was already excited about prom. I wasn’t. I had gotten myself caught up in some debt. Prom was the last thing I cared about.
During the next few weeks that’s all everyone at school discussed. My parents even brought it up to me, expressing how they hoped I planned on going to the last prom of high school. At first I disregarded their suggestion and didn’t plan on going. I had no one to take. I was pretty sure anyone I asked would’ve turned me down anyways. But to my surprise, someone asked me to prom instead.
A girl named Alexis. This was odd because I hadn’t interacted with her much over the years, and I barely knew her. But she told me she had no one to take to prom and she’s been checking me out for some time. So reluctantly, I agreed to go to prom with her. Afterwards, we spent some time hanging out and dating off and on. Some mornings I’d even pick her up and give her rides to school in my car.
One morning Abatha caught Alexis and I getting out of my car and heading to the school building. Abatha was standing alone once again. This time she was scrolling away on her phone. She spotted us out in the parking lot, then waited for us to approach her. Another mischievous grin plastered her face.
“Looks like the troublemaker caught himself another fish,” Abatha said as we passed by.
When I didn’t reply, Abatha stepped out in front of us and blocked our way.
I sighed.
“Abatha, not today”.
I had to look up to her as I spoke.
“I don’t wanna get into it with you right now. Please move,” I continued.
I took Alexis by the hand and tried to move around her but she just blocked me again.
Abatha did this often. I’ve had many girlfriends throughout high school. Every time Abatha saw me with a new girl she’d come and embarrass me in front of my date.
Every time.
I sighed again. Abatha chuckled.
“What’s wrong, Jakey boy?...still feelin’ butterflies?” Abatha taunted.
She glanced at Alexis.
“Let me ask you something,” Abatha continued, stepping closer to Alexis, “Does he often get…jittery, when you’re alone?”
“I don’t think that’s any of your busine - “ Alexis started.
“Does he scream when you see him with his pants down?” Abatha interrupted, “Only asking because he did it before. When I pulled his pants down back in sixth grade…..wait, have you seen him with his pants down yet?”
Agitated, Alexis took me by the hand and made her way around Abatha, pulling me along with her. As we trotted along, I glanced back and saw Abatha frowning. I smirked at her as we walked further away. Abatha rolled her eyes in frustration before turning around and going in the opposite direction.
I was just getting off work on one Saturday night, as my shift had just ended. My manager was counting the till and I just cleaned the last table in the restaurant. While I waited by the door for the manager to lock up for the night, I saw a black truck pull into the parking lot outside. The truck parked right beside my car. My guess was a last minute customer. Evidently my manager thought the same because he told me to tell whoever was in the truck that we were closed. When they came to the door, that is. But no one ever did get out of the truck. About ten minutes had passed by and they were still sitting there letting the engine run.
My manager and I stepped outside after he had set the alarm and finished the till. Then the both of us went our separate ways in the parking lot, after the manager had locked the restaurant doors.
When I got to my car I tried to sneak a peek into the truck that was parked beside me but the windows were tinted very dark.
Go figure.
I heard the manager start the engine on his car and pull out of the parking lot. That’s when a door on the mysterious black truck suddenly shot open. A large man hopped out of the back seat and grabbed me from behind, hauling me into the truck afterwards.
As soon as the large man threw me into the back seat, I was reminded that I had told Bucky-Mac where I worked when we first met. I told him part of my schedule, and gave some specifics on times. I had also informed him of some other things I couldn’t recall at the moment. I know I may have told him a little too much but the guy seemed so friendly at first I thought I could trust him.
The guy that hauled me in pushed me further across the seat, before getting back in himself and closing the door. Someone else in the truck flipped on a light. Then I could clearly see Bucky-Mac sitting right beside me. He didn’t look happy.
“Sup, Jake?” He said.
He stared at me with cold and menacing eyes.
There were two guys in the front. They were looking back at me, holding expressions similar to Bucky-Mac’s.
“You’ve missed some payments, and it better be for good reason. Now, I hope you have cash to cover these couple weeks you’ve decided to skedaddle,” Bucky-Mac said.
He continued to glare at me, waiting for a response.
“I-I’ve been trying to get the money. What do you think I’m at this restaurant for?” I stammered.
He snickered then covered his face with his hand.
“Now, that’s a good one!.....But it’s still unacceptable. You haven’t been paying, and you’ve been ignoring my calls,” he snarled.
He elbowed me in the face, striking me right in my nose. My nose began to gush blood.
One of the guys up front lit a cigarette, then that’s when Bucky-Mac and the large guy sitting on my other side started to viciously beat me. They kicked my ass in that back seat for minutes, then the large guy opened the door again before shoving me outside on the ground.
The black truck backed up and took off, leaving me behind in the moonlit parking lot.
My entire body was aching like hell, and one of my eyes throbbed non-stop. I touched my bottom lip. It was swollen, and felt slightly enlarged. I could barely stand up straight heading to my car, as the pain had caused my body to beg for rest.
As I opened my car door, I heard something from a distance. A strange sound. Like a howl. It was echoing out into the night, and it went on for seconds. I turned in all directions making several attempts at finding the source.
I found nothing.
I even glanced at the sky. There was nothing there but the half moon.
I had dug myself deeper into the debt hole by not visiting Bucky-Mac for those two weeks. He increased my debt even more, and accounted for the times I didn’t show up. As expected, he doubled the amount for each week. This meant I owed him a total of eight thousand dollars as of the night in the parking lot.
After that I made sure I stopped by Bucky-Mac’s spot and paid him as much as I could for the following few weeks after, even though it was nowhere near enough. As a result of the low payments, I received more beatings everytime I went. But I had to keep going and pay him what I could, otherwise he’d do something worse if I didn’t show up at all.
But what was I kidding. I was never going to pay off this debt. At this point I realized that’s exactly how Bucky-Mac wanted things. He wanted a constant flow of cash that never ended. Even if I showed up to his office one day and paid what I owed in full, he’d just double the debt and kick my ass again.
The beatings were getting unbearable. I couldn’t take it anymore. So I felt I had to skip out on him for a couple more weeks as a way to catch a break from getting my ass kicked. Again I ignored his calls when he hit up my cell phone. After that I just anticipated the black truck waiting for me outside of my job.
Bucky-Mac didn’t show up at my job anymore. He came to my school instead. After the bell rang and the school day came to an end, fear showered me when I walked outside and saw the black truck parked across the street.
I planned on giving Alexis a ride home that day, so she was by my side as I tried to ease my way to my car. Unfortunately I was spotted as I crawled into the driver’s seat. The backdoor on the black truck swung open, then that same large guy from before came trotting across the street. When the guy approached my car, he swung my door back open then gently pulled me out of the driver’s seat.
“Jake, where are you going?” Alexis said, “Who is this?”
The guy held his arm on my shoulder as he walked me across the street to the black truck. He faked a smile and pretended to be an acquaintance to avoid drawing the attention of the nearby students around us. We got to the truck then the guy shoved me into the back seat once again.
I met Bucky-Mac with an unsettled gaze the second I was thrown in. I could hear Alexis constantly shouting my name outside.
“I thought I wouldn’t have to tell you again,” Bucky-Mac mumbled, “But it looks like you’re a pretty terrible listener!”
With that, the guy up front started to slowly drive away from the school. I glanced out the window and saw Alexis jogging on the sidewalk to keep up with us. The truck made a stop after a block of cruising. They parked near a curb closeby.
Another beating was initiated, and I can tell you this was the worst one yet. They gave me double the amount of blows to my body. I received so many strikes to the face I was surprised I could see at all when it was over.
Alexis peeped through the window with her hands cupped around her eyes, yelling for them to stop.
“Stop it, you’re gonna hurt him!” she cried.
They kept going, punching and elbowing me for minutes. I could feel blood elevating my throat.
Bucky-Mac drew a knife and held it to my pupil.
“Listen here you little shit. The next time you screw me over, not only are we gonna beat you twice as worse and twice as longer, but I’m gonna take my blade…and pluck one of your eyes,” He threatened.
He brought the blade even closer to my eye. Almost to the point where I could almost feel the tip touching my eyeball.
“You can’t afford to test me again, Jake.”
I was shoved out of the truck once more, only to be meant with Alexis crying on the sidewalk. The panic on her face grew more intense when she saw my nose dripping with blood.
“Jake, what’s going on?” she sobbed.
I didn’t answer.
Someone else was walking towards us on the sidewalk. It was Abatha. She saw Alexis crying, then glanced at me. As soon as she saw my battered face there was an expression of concern.
Abatha wasn’t smiling.
Alexis broke up with me the next day. She got spooked by the incident and decided she didn’t want much to do with me anymore. Our plans to go to prom together were also canceled. The incident had given Alexis the wrong impression - that I was still engaging in pathological behavior. She complained of not being able to be around me anymore, saying,
“So these are the kind of people you deal with?!...If that’s the case, then I’m afraid we’re not gonna work.”
She walked away then barely spoke to me anymore after that. Then of course Abatha just had to be nearby to witness and overhear everything. Abatha was already holding her usual grin when I glanced at her.
“Looks like you messed up again, Jakey boy!” She teased, “Your fish unhooked itself and swam away?”
I glared at her angrily, then brushed past her to enter the school building.
It was pretty disappointing for our plans to be canceled. But hell, my whole ideal ending for my senior year had been canceled as far as I knew. Just when I was starting to grow more enthusiastic about senior prom all hope was taken away. Prom was just a month and a half away and I no longer had a date to take. To make matters worse, Alexis had already found another prom date within days after splitting up with me.
Abatha wouldn’t shut up about that. She rubbed it in face for days.
“Well that was quick. We’ll see how fast you can find another date…if at all,” she said before trailing away, giggling.
I lifted a middle finger at her as she walked.
At this point in time I no longer cared about the car. I wished I could return it and take back everything. I just wanted out of this debt with Bucky-Mac, and for senior year to just end already. I was giving up on all hopes for my plans for the future. As a matter of fact, after being too afraid to face Bucky-Mac once again and skipping out on meeting him for another three weeks, I decided that I’d contact the police and inform them of the situation I’d gotten myself in soon. Then let my parents know what was going on.
I was sure my parents would definitely kick me out after finding out I made a deal with a loan shark. But I didn’t care. Keeping a secret wasn’t worth my life. Or in this case - my eye.
Unfortunately I made the fatal mistake of not acting on those thoughts soon enough, as I ended another night shift at work with the black truck waiting for me out in the parking lot. My heart leaped instantly as I felt my body run cold. I wanted badly to just tell my manager everything and beg him to call the police for me. But instead all he did was activate the security system and lock the doors as usual. Then he pulled out of the parking lot, leaving me to endure what was to come.
The black truck pulled out of its parking spot and made its way over to me. That same large guy hopped out and started to haul me into the truck.
“Get his ass in here!!” I heard Bucky-Mac hiss.
We all heard something. Then the large guy holding me paused.
It was the same howling sound I heard before. Again it echoed out into the night, and got louder the longer it went on.
“What the hell is that?” The large guy said.
“Who gives a shit?!! Get him in!” Bucky-Mac demanded.
The large guy did just that.
This time instead of giving me the usual beating quickie, they pulled off as soon as I was hauled into the truck and drove me back to Bucky-Mac’s spot. The truck halted at a stop upon arriving at the small raggedy house.
This was my first time at the spot during the night, and it looked a bit different. There was no kind of artificial light in this wooded area so it was a lot darker than usual. But the light from the full moon above provided enough to see around the dark pit that surrounded us.
The men shoved me out of the truck and started their beating ritual. The other two men joined in this time, punching and kicking me, barely giving me a chance to breathe. In the middle of all this was the sound of the howling again.
The large guy was the only one to acknowledge it. He paused, but Bucky-Mac and the other two continued to beat me.
After minutes of receiving many more blows, they all stopped. The large guy positioned my body to lean against the back tire of the truck. Then Bucky-Mac drew his pocket knife and kneeled down to face me.
I moaned and groaned from the painful sensations moving throughout my body.
"I tried," Bucky-Mac started, "I've really tried to work with you. But it's obvious you're a fraud."
He had some nerve. The loan shark, calling me a fraud.
"I think you get a kick out of not giving me what I want…what I deserve.”
He opened the blade on the knife and brought the point to my eye.
“Now I’m gonna take something away you desperately want….and don’t deserve,” he continued.
I swore I could feel the tip of the blade slightly drive into my sclera. Before it could go any deeper, we all heard that howl for the third time that night. Except it sounded very close this time. So close no one could ignore it. Not even Bucky-Mac. He lowered the knife then glanced behind him, as that’s where it seemed the howling came from.
There was nothing there but a patch of darkness resting between the trees.
“What the - ?” Bucky-mac whispered.
As we all stared at the patch of darkness, two glowing dots emerged in front of our eyes.
Two yellow glowing dots.
Behind the yellow dots came another howl, along with some deep and beastly growls.
The dots started to come closer, then continued until whatever was hiding in the shadows came out into view, and was exposed beneath the moonlight.
The sight of the creature we were looking at had caught us all off guard. Bucky-Mac dropped the knife then all five of us began backing away.
In front of us was some kind of tall and fury beast. The creature stood upright just like a human, and had to be no less than seven feet tall. Its muscles were so defined they practically rippled through its black and shiny coat of fur. Turns out the yellow dots were the creature’s eyes. Those beady eyes were locked on us, as we backed away even further.
The creature opened its long snout full of pointed teeth, dripping with saliva, and let out a deafening, monstrous sound.
"Bucky, what the hell is going on?!" One of the other guys shouted.
"H-how the fuck should I know?" Bucky-Mac yelled.
I could hear the fear and concern in their voices.
The creature let out several smaller growls, then suddenly began sprinting towards us on all fours. Bucky-Mac and his guys drew pistols and began firing multiple shots at the hairy beast.
I turned to run but instantly tripped and fell on my stomach. The sharp pain in my stomach left me stagnant for seconds.
Bullets struck the creature in several areas on its muscular body. The gunfire seemed to do little to no damage, but it was enough to keep the creature temporarily distant. The beast backed off then started to crawl up the walls of Bucky-Mac’s small drug house. The men continued to fire at the creature until it reached the roof.
“Come on, kill this fuckin’ thing!” Bucky-Mac shouted, firing away with his revolver.
With many bullets still striking its body, the creature took a huge leap off the building. It jumped so high I could see the full moon behind it’s body as it accelerated through the air - towards us. It landed right on top of the guy who drove the truck, crushing his puny human body and taking a huge bite out of his head afterwards. Blood sprayed from the exposed brains in his skull, dousing his partner in the face nearby and preventing him from seeing where he was shooting.
The guy screamed and tried to flee the area. He could barely turn around before the creature took one of its paws and ran its razor sharp claws across his face, slicing one of his eyes in the process and leaving three gruesome gashes behind.
Shocked, Bucky-Mac dropped his gun and watched the creature lift his disfigured partner off the ground and pull one his arms clean off his body. The guy screamed in agony as his stump cascaded with blood and fell to the ground like a waterfall. He wiggled and twitched in pain, making several feeble attempts at breaking free of the creature’s grasp.
Bucky-Mac turned and started to flee. The big guy followed behind him, dashing right past me, and leaving me alone with the beast.
The creature turned and started to stare at me with those yellow eyes, still holding Bucky-Mac’s mangled partner in its hand. The fear and terror left me paralyzed. I couldn’t move.
I started to feel a little light headed, and keeping my eyes open became difficult.
The last thing I remembered before I passed out, was those glowing eyes and those sharp canines dripping with crimson.
When I woke up I couldn’t tell how much time had passed. I stood up and scanned the area, only to see the truck still beside me. The mangled bodies of the driver and passenger of the truck were laid out not too far away. But Bucky-Mac and the large guy were nowhere to be found.
The creature had disappeared too.
I wasted no time. Right away I started to run, trying to make my way out of that neck of the woods. While darting through the trees, I came across two more bodies, one slumped on its side and the other on its back.
I ran to one of the bodies and rolled it over using my foot. I almost screamed when I saw the face. It was Bucky-Mac, and he was unrecognizable. His face had been completely torn away, leaving nothing behind but his exposed and bleeding face muscles. His mouth was slightly open. Opened wide enough for me to see his one gold tooth.
The large guy’s torso had been torn open, his body sprawled out, eyes staring out into nothing but the darkness that surrounded him. Dried blood was caked all over his face and neck.
I heard some growls.
This caused me to start running again. I got a glimpse of a pair of yellow eyes hiding in the middle of some trees as I passed by. I ran faster. Then I heard multiple footsteps behind me.
It was following me.
I made it out of the woods and reached a street light out on the road, where I sat down on the curb and took some time to catch my breath. I didn’t hear the footsteps anymore so I assumed I was safe. I also glanced behind me again and saw nothing pursuing me.
That thing had all the time in the world to maul me to bits. It could’ve easily caught me while I was running…so why didn’t it?
For some reason I still felt a bit light headed. I rested my head on my hand. But while doing so I felt a rough substance on my forehead. I brought my finger to my face to see what I had touched. Something blue and dry.
Lipstick.
Someone kissed me.
My parents wondered where I was and wanted to know why I was getting home so late that night. I lied and said I went to a party after work. They were a bit upset that I didn't call and let them know what was going on. I was fine with that. I was just glad to be alive, and for the first time since forever I was happy to see them.
It was that night I realized I would be just fine staying with my parents for a while longer. I also decided that I had no problem working at the burger joint until I figured out what I really wanted out of life, and college just may be a possibility in the future.
I continued to faithfully show up to work and complete my shifts, and wait patiently for my senior year to come to an end.
Meanwhile, the authorities found Bucky-Mac and his men. Then they raided his drug house. No one could identify the cause of their deaths, or tell whether another animal or human was responsible. The story was all over the news, and it had people in town shook. Everyone kept talking about the gruesome killings until the end of the school year. Who or what might have done it was always up for debate.
To this day, no one knows that I was there to see it all. I always got uneasy overhearing someone at school talk about it.
Two weeks before prom I opened my locker to see a pink envelope lying on top of my books. I picked it up and saw Abatha's name written across the front. While tearing open the envelope I sighed and rolled my eyes, expecting to see something crude and belligerent.
There was a folded letter inside, and upon opening it my eyes went wide. My heart started racing, and I was shocked to my core. At the very top of the page was an imprint of lips with…
Blue lipstick.
Below that was a lengthy letter from Abatha, explaining how she really felt about me. How she's felt for a long time. In the last paragraph was something else that left me perplexed.
She was asking me out, and she wanted to be my girlfriend.
She..she also wanted to take me to prom.

I have a MacBook Air with the M1 Apple Silicon chip. It is running on Ventura 13.4. I downloaded the Imperialism port for Porting Kit, and the resolution is too small. Changing the resolution on my MacBook Air did not work because the lowest resolution it goes to is 800x600.
I wonder if it is an issue with macOS Ventura. I have the game in another MacBook Air that runs on macOS Monterey, and the resolution automatically changes to 640x480. If I go in the game, and I click on the lower right hand corner (Preferences), there is an option to switch to game resolution when starting the game. In my MacBook Air that runs on macOS Ventura, I get an error message saying that the game is unable to switch to game resolution, and it asks me to do it manually. However, in my MacBook Air that runs on macOS Monterey, there is no error message.

Ok, I asked for refund because of port forwarding getting retired. Got refund for 2 months of service even though I've been using it for over a month.
Felt really bad about it, given how nice the guys are. After it, I've subbed to ProtonVPN to only discover later, they don't offer port forwarding on the native MacOS app. And what they have is a workaround with OpenVPN and Tunnelblick.
The other hiccup is the killswitch implementation. It blocks the access to localhost completely. Meaning if I do local development, but prefer to stay connected to the VPN I either turn the killswitch off completely or I have to disable VPN. I don't really care about the rationale, but compomising on this isn't an option for the money.
I won't mention the bugs for the iOS app I encountered, because it seems to be a well known set of problems.
Overall, my question is: is there a reasonable alternative for Mullvad that will have it's connectivity speed, robustness, apps with simple UI, local service discovery while on VPN with killswitch enabled and port forwarding.
Because, at this moment, I feel that I've been spoiled by the QoS Mullvad gives for the money. And compromising with port forwarding may be an easier solution…
UPD and notice.
If you have ever used Proton Mail Plus and got a refund, be advised that if ProtonVPN would not satisfy your needs, they will try to block money back guarantee citing same user can request refund only once.
So in reality, ProtonVPN doesn't abide by the money back guarantee under certain conditions they fail to list clearly.
TOS here https://protonvpn.com/terms-and-conditions

I store my plex library on a set of 4TB and 8TB drives contained in a powered, 4-bay external USB ORICO enclosure. I'm on an M2 Mac Mini, running Ventura 13.3.1.
When I had only 3 drives (2x4TB + 1x8TB), everything seemed to be fine. I added a 2nd 8TB drive which I combined with one of the empty 4TB drives in a JBOD RAID. Ever since I did that, I've started getting the dreaded "Disk not ejected properly" notification and waking up to all of my items being "Unavailable" in plex. But it's for _all_ of the drives, not just the RAID set.
After the first night, I started a cron job that updates the timestamp on a file called `heartbeat.txt` every minute, and so I know exactly when the drive became unavailable. I have the Plex Media Server logs, but they don't show anything around that time.
All "sleep" has been disabled, except for the display. I haven't tried Caffeinated yet, which is supposed to _really_ keep your Mac awake, but that's a possibility.
I've also removed all other drives from this bus (I had a external SSD plugged into the other USB-A port), which has caused issues with bus-powered drives before (although this enclosure has its own 150W power supply). I'll see if it stays connected through the night tonight.
I'll run the Console logger tonight, which should hopefully give me some more information. In the meantime, does anyone here have experience troubleshooting this kind of thing? What logs could I check? What mitigation strategies have worked?