#done with the not so smart smartphone so don’t judge

[lowlifc]

MEET SHARPSKIN

SharpSkin is a punk-rock band from Hampshire, UK. The band was formed in 2018 and consists of four people: The drummer Roxanne, guitarist Billy, bassist Nelson and lead vocalist Sid. They are currently touring the USA, playing in various clubs and pubs with their new album CHAINED DOWN.

#don’t mind me posting that #i need it for another edit and i don’t want to lose them #so i might as well post them here #done with the not so smart smartphone so don’t judge #*mine: edits

[devil666lovesblog]

The story of the girl taboo rose

A few days ago I helped a friend to organize a singing concrete and beauty pageant for those who are older than 50. That day is a chaotic day since the printer goes haywire and refuses to print after the first few pages, and normally those proceedings and questions and score forms should be done before today. I don't know what had happened when the organizer Lee had asked a blue ribbon(Pro police in the Occupation Movement in 2014) to help out in this part. She is not very good at using Ms Excel thereby I do my best in assisting her. I have been using computers since 1988 so I figure them out quickly and readily. I could imagine the chaos if I wasn't there to help her, however, with my friend next there really is nothing indecent I can do in the public. I merely tap her shoulder and touch her back with her clothes. What aroused me is she being really thin, and she said she was even thinner a few years ago. I never fuck any girl which is that thin. My dick is half-harden all day long and dying for the opportunity to be alone with her in a private room. In this sense the printer has done a beautiful job when it refuses to print, we have to use the restaurant's own computer and printer to print, and they are working out beautifully with my presence. 

The next critical element for this story is that girl being really smart, when I move my hand on her back then go down to where her ass is, she gave me a look which acknowledged my intention. What I guess is she thinks if she complained to the organizer and there would be one less capable person to do all the chores. I said in a really low tone that I don't get any payment today and all is volunteer, I would help her as long as she lets me have some fun with her body, and there really isn't much I can do to her in this situation. Later when all was done and ready to print I was alone with her in that small room to help out. That room is extremely close to where the judges of today's beauty contest is, along with a lot of sound equipment. So for any indecent things I can do to her it must be done with a thin door separating me and the organizer. I am glad that I do have such a chance, or maybe she is really stressed out so she needs some sexual stimulation to relax (Probably she had not been touched by her bf for the last weeks when the nail shop she worked at is really busy). It is when she needs to write out some Chinese names and she is doing so very slowly. The 00 Generation is so used to using computer keyboard to type and some begin to forget the complex strokes when writing Chinese characters. I haven't handwritten Chinese for quite a long time but nevertheless I am writing much faster than her(maybe my brain is faster and its network is connected more efficiently after I start practicing meditation.) And she only has a limit of 15 minutes to complete this task before another task comes. So my right hand quickly went through her cloth in the front and grasped one of her breasts and I whispered in her left ear: Your breast felt good on me, now gave me a blow job then I will complete all that in five minutes. You must make me cum in ten minutes either in your womb or in your mouth while I am working on that part. She thinks for a few seconds then goes and closes the door, hands me the paper to write on with her Android smartphone, then she proceeds to kneel and bent down her head, and she unzips my pants and gently takes out my manhood. Her eyes braze with amazement to see how big it is, I said it is so big because I really want to fuck you and it is even bigger than when I took my ex-girlfriend's virginity, your body is so attractive then my dick is extended to match your beautiful body. She responds with a devilish smile then uses her left hand to encircle my dick and right hand to gently massage my balls, she first kisses my dickhead and her tongue is slowly circling my dick when her red lips engulf all. She then pretends her mouth to be her little hole and uses my dick as a pivot to rotate her hand while slowly moving her head back and forth. It is a real challenge when one has to write while enjoying a girl's blow job, I use my left hand to write and the right hand to control the rhythm of her sucking. It is like I am stimulating the beats from the music playing loudly outside by tapping her hair when her tongue is working hard on pleasing my dick. As she sucked faster and faster my dick became even bigger, guess she never sucked this big. (And little she told me her boyfriend don't have such a huge dick and was not that excited in fucking her, it is more like he working on a boring and repeating homework, she can tell from the way he make love to her that he is less interested in her body.) It does sound like her blowjob is her part of survival skills, and I believe she could suck dick to avoid being raped and gangbang in an emergency unless those guys could desensitize their dicks so much as me do. I don't feel much of a thing just like when my ex-gf is giving her first blowjob of her life until Rose girl had her throat to massage my dickhead, I knew I would almost run out of time if I am not reaching climax soon enough. So I command her to suck faster for me to cum, and if she likes me to help her out in the future for anything, I want her to eat my cum. Now I use her throat and mouth just like the birth canal, she ceases her hand job and uses her hands to support her upper body while I vigorously thrust into her mouth back and forth. She could never guess I have such a strength with my lower body when fucking her mouth. Since my dick obstruct her passage to nasal cavity she have some difficult to breath, I don't fucking care when my dickhead is hitting her throat twenty times a second then thirty then forty and finally when it reach almost 100 I felt the muscle in the dick relax in wave. I knew that is the time to cum so my instinct cause to push deep in her throat just like what I would do with fucking her at the pussy, I would push my dick to go inside her cervix when ready to shoot cum. I slow down a bit and let my dick release all the sperms in her throat till her mouth. That is also the time I almost finish writing out the names. As my dick retard from her wet mouth, some of my cum even spread to her lips; I said take them all and they are nutritious. Don't disrespect me. So she opened her mouth and let me see all the cum then quickly swallow everything and clean the cum in her lip while I handed her the papers. As she helped herself in cleaning my face, I said: Go to the toilet and l will bang till you drop(with extra cash). Don't you come to cum today, slut cum-eater? 

[datesexdating668]

Educated Singles Over 50

Educated Singles Over 45

Educated Singles Over 50 Years

People usually don’t blink an eye over single men who are over 50. In fact, George Clooney—known as an eternal bachelor before falling in love with Amal— was in his early 50s when he tied the knot. But, there are plenty of reasons why a man in his 50s may be on his own. It’s possible he went through a divorce, separation, or the unfortunate death of a spouse. So, before you judge a man by his age, you should also look at the big picture.

If you’re dating single men over 50, there are a few common traits it helps to know about:

At the editorial board of The Educated Singles Club, we think it is totally unfair. We want to do something about it. We want to celebrate 50 entrepreneurs over 50 years old. And we want you to help us find them, nominate them and tell their story. We Have been discussing what the criteria should be for becoming nominated. The criteria are.

Singles over 50 should be encouraged by studies which have found that finding romance can improve one’s overall quality of life both physically and psychologically. Not only can a healthy sex life increase happiness levels, decrease stress and provide a decent workout but beyond the physical there are numerous other benefits.

They’ll be stuck in their ways. You’ve probably heard the phrase, “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks,” before. Men over 50 aren’t old dogs, but they can be harder to change. And that’s part of why you love them! They know who they are, what they want, and don’t have any problem telling you. But that can be good and bad. It’s great to have a guy who’s confident in himself, but you still want someone who can compromise and meet you halfway. If the man you’re with has been a smoker for the past 20 years, even a brand new romance with you probably won’t change that. And if he’s used to going to bed at 10:00 p.m. every night, you shouldn’t expect him to stay out until 11:00 instead. Respect that he knows his own mind, but don’t give him a pass on the things that are important to you.

Match.com is a quality-driven dating site that has been around the. At the editorial board of The Educated Singles Club, we think it is totally unfair. We want to do something about it. We want to celebrate 50 entrepreneurs over 50 years old. And we want you to help us find them, nominate them and tell their story. We Have been discussing what the criteria should be for becoming nominated. The criteria are.

They won’t be into mind games. You won’t have to worry about whether or a man over 50 likes you—he’ll let you know. There are always a few outliers, but by the time a man reaches the age of 50, he’s over the mind games and done playing coy. He just wants to quickly know if he should start forming an emotional attachment to you. If he’s the type to date around, he’ll be more likely to let you know that too. Sure, if he’s only looking for something casual it might not be what you want, but you’ll at least appreciate his honesty and be able to focus your time on energy on someone else who can give you what you want.

In fact, their way of flirting may be a little old-fashioned. Men in their 50s are all young enough that they know how basic computers and smartphones work. But, it doesn’t mean they necessarily love them. A guy in his 50s will be more likely to send a bouquet of flowers than a guy in his 20s and he may be more apt to pick you up or open your doors. Thus, their technique to win your heart will be a little classier.

Educated Singles Over 45

Older men value intelligence. There’s nothing better than a smart woman—everyone can agree on that. But, older single men appreciate intellect even more. The online dating site Zoosk even found that while describing what they want in a woman, men increasingly mention intelligence the older they get. Older men won’t be turned off by an educated partner, and even value the fact that they’ll be challenged on occasion. They also like the fact that intelligence means their future partner likely has a career and is capable of taking care of herself financially if necessary.

They also don’t like unnecessary baggage. Everyone has something—when you’re in your 50s, both your romantic and family history may read more like a soap opera. But men in their 50s and beyond aren’t into gossip. They don’t want to be involved in a fight with an ex-husband or hear their partner talk negatively about their feud with their sister for hours on end. Really, they just want to keep things simple and easygoing.

They really love to be appreciated. Men, in general, like to be appreciated—just like women, they need to feel valued and important. The truth is, you should always tell someone when they go above and beyond to help you with something. But for older men, it’s almost vital to show them that you’ve noticed something nice or helpful they did.

They often have a hard time admitting they aren’t right about something. Many men feel as if they know all there is to know, and they’re terribly mistaken. The world is filled with teachable moments, and it’s possible to truly learn something new every day. Men over 50 like to believe they’re always right. It doesn’t matter if it’s over a historical fact or when, exactly, the cafe up the street opens. Try to have a sense of humor about all of it, and don’t be afraid to challenge the man you’re with. Chances are, you may think you know everything too. Part of a relationship is challenging each other, just make sure you do it about things that counts. If you’re always countering everything he says with sentences that start with, “Well, actually…” you may want to tone it back a bit.

They often have big hearts. If they’re fathers, they’ve gained a new appreciation for people in general. If they lost a wife, they understand how limited time really is. And if they’ve just spent their years observing the world, they know the true importance of kindness and generosity. Men over 50 still have years before they fall into the “grumpy old man” category. Perhaps with your influence, they’ll never have to reach that stage.

Single men over 50 have their own set of challenges, but if you’re interested in dating or maintaining a good friendship with someone who fits the bill, it’ll likely be one of the most genuine connections you’ll have.

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Educated Singles Over 50 Years

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[younganonymus]

Some serious questions!!!

Go ahead. Ask as much as you want:

Most favorite activity?

Least favorite one?

One activity you really hate?

Kind of meal you really appreciate?

One disgusting meal in your eyes?

Do you have any idols?

Person you really hate?

Favorite music genre?

Did you ever learn how to play an instrument?

If so, did you appreciate it? If not, which one would you like to learn?

Which kind of animal are you most afraid of?

Which type of people do you hate/are afraid of?

A job you can't do yourself but admire people who do?

Do you think there's a higher species than us humans?

Do you believe in ghosts?

If so, how do you imagine them? If not, is it just because you don't want to make contact with them?

If there are aliens in outer space, what do you think they'd be like?

What do you think time traveling would be like?

If you have the chance to spectate unseen and unnoticed any moment of history, what would you be choosing?

Something that makes your life easier? Smth you're glad about?

Political decision you would make if you were in charge?

Movie you can't stop cheering up for?

Best ingredients for a pizza?

Do you have a green thumb? (are good with plants?)

Can you dance? Is there any dance you want to learn someday?

Are you a crafty person? If so, which type of material?

Do you see yourself as a member of pirate's, wizard's or medieval age's fan base?

Which age of human past fascinates you the most?

Good memory from your childhood you keep remembering?

Are you happy with your life as it is right now?

Do you regret something you haven't done but whish you did?

Seven years ago, did you expect your life would be like this right now?

Where do you see yourself in seven years from now if everything goes as planned?

Are you thankful for the experiences you made so far?

If you could gain any ability for giving up one, which one would you pay and which one achieve?

What's a bad habit of yours you would like to get rid off?

Some good thing people tell about you?

Do you agree with most of being-a-vegetarian arguments?

What are you mostly in the mood for the whole day?

Is there any TV Show or movie that thrilled you as a kid and while you were growing up?

Which film scenes still affect you? (horror movies for example)

Which kind of childish behavior you can't get rid off?

Which part of a human body do you inspect first?

Are you good with animals?

Are you good with human babies?

Would you rather call yourself a people person or a animal person?

What's your religion or belief?

What do you think about black/dark magic?

If you are/were into drugs, would you rather do green/natural based ones or chemical ones?

What's your opinion on alcohol and alcohol abuse?

If you were to choose to live wherever you want to or stay right where you are, what would you do?

Do you think there are some breathing beings on earth contained behind ceilings or walking amongst us somehow with special abilities or powers? (as in most sci-fi and fantasy books, comics, movies)

Were you a smart kid at school?

Did you pick any particular role at school? (clown, big brain, dumba*s, bully,...)

Do you like your hometown?

Are you good at cooking/baking?

Do you play video games?

What burdens you most with your local school system? (What would you change?)

Some political matter you're mad about?

If you would have the money to donate what would you donate for?

Are you more into stand-alone movies or collections? (such as Pirates of the Caribbean or Lord of the rings)

What would you be most ashamed or afraid of to tell your next/future girlfriend or were at the beginning? (How did it turn out?)

On your opinion, what should people do about climate change?

Can you give us one reason for flat-earth theory? (fun or not)

What's your most important meal of the day?

In your eyes, what makes a child worthy enough to have his own smartphone?

Are you for team Marvel or team DC?

Team (were-)wolves or vampires?

Witches or hunters?

What do you think human kind spends too much money on?

Are you more interested in space or deep waters?

Are you a person others get easy attracted to?

Do you do any sports and if so which ones?

What's your dresscode? What makes you choose the clothes you're wearing? (on different occasions)

From seven times a week, how often would you choose to go out with somebody instead of staying inside with them? (actually doing something instead of watching something together)

What's the most romantic thing you ever have done for someone?

Can you imagine something pretty romantic you would like your/a partner to do for you?

At what point do you think a relationship is being actually one?

Is it risky to ask you whether you are a honest person or not?

Are you proud of the way you look?

If a genie grants you three wishes, what would you wish for?

Do you/Would you like having children someday?

What's your point of view with military service?

Are you into candies?

Which offers can you barely reject?

Are you still best/good friends with someone from your childhood?

What is or would be the perfect job for you?

Do you prefer using earphones, in-ears, on-ears or over-ear headphones?

Would you call yourself a chatty person or more a silent one?

If you know your go-to person currently has time, do you still text them, call them or leave a voice message?

What anniversaries are worth celebrating in a relationship on your opinion?

Do you judge people by their outward appearance on purpose?

If there actually would be a zombie outbreak somewhere near you, what would you do?

If you see someone getting beaten up right around the corner would you get in there trying to save that person? (as in he's already bleeding very bad)

What's something you really want to do some day with your/a partner?

What five songs you can't get enough of these days?

Worst catchy song you ever heard?

Do you prefer living in a (big) city or in a (countryside) rural area?

Does it matter to you there is no 100th question in here?

#fragen #ask me anything #questions #my asks #asks and answers

[idreamofthemeparks]

My idea for an ATLA theme park

Disclaimer: I just finished watching ATLA for the first time the other day, and I haven’t interacted with its fandom at all. If these ideas were already thought of by someone else, it wasn’t intentional. I haven’t watched Korra yet, so I apologize if I get anything terribly wrong.

The park overall

-The setting is 20 or 30 years after the events of ATLA, when the war’s fallout has been (mostly) taken care of and things are generally peaceful in the world.

-The park is in a hub-and-spoke layout, with four themed lands (one for each of the four nations) making up the spokes.

-Each kingdom has an entry gate; these gates are all giant indoor rooms, which open into their respective kingdoms after their brief introduction shows. These introduction shows consist of a master of that kingdom’s respective element (original characters, in the form of animatronics) giving you a brief rundown of that kingdom’s history, and getting you excited for the attractions within. These are mandatory for entering the park at rope drop, but after that, they’re optional for kingdom access. Bonus-- the masters are walk-around characters, and they’ll teach you some bending moves if you meet them in their kingdoms.

-The center of the park is themed like a giant, permanent festival, celebrating unity through all four elements. There’s cultural exhibitions (dances, street food, murals) from all four nations. A couple of times during the day, there’s a “Bending Showcase” show, where master benders from all four nations show off their skills.

-Since this is the current year, there would be a tie-in technology or smartphone app. This would enable guests to interact with the world by “learning bending”; you’d have a smart watch of some kind, or just an app, which allowed you to “bend” to interact with parts of the world, learn from walk-around characters, duel others, etc. Some parts of the world would use this differently than others; in the Water Kingdom you’d primarily use it for controlling water features, but in the Fire Kingdom you’d use it for fighting. You can choose one element to bend per day, and you have the option to reset your choice upon each visit. (And you can mix and match-- what happens if you’re a firebender in the Water Kingdom?)

The Earth Kingdom

-Each of the four kingdom areas is aimed towards a slightly different mood. The Earth Kingdom has a little something for everyone-- you can relax and shop, have an adventure, or go on a thrill ride.

-This kingdom is set almost entirely in Ba Sing Se. You can visit more famous locations from the show (like Iroh’s tea shop, or the expensive table-service Earth King’s Palace restaurant) or you can walk through the streets and find your own adventure.

-Here, you can use the bending system to move rocks and sweep aside the earth to discover all kinds of cool secrets. What’s behind that huge boulder? Is there something in that sand pit? Find out!

-The rides in Ba Sing Se itself aren’t too thrilling, but everyone can enjoy them. The monorail gives scenic views of the whole city. The Tales of Ba Sing Se dark ride is full of fun scenes that we didn’t get to see in the ATLA show.

-Outside of Ba Sing Se is an Omashu area. There, you can ride the Omashu Postal Service coaster, or play in the highly-interactive Bumi’s Challenges play area.

The Water Kingdom

-The mood of this area is a lot more relaxed, and it caters more to adults.

-The setting is the Northern Water Tribe. If the whole park isn’t indoors, then at least this kingdom is; the dome ceiling is made up of screens. It’s pleasantly chilly, all of the structures look like they’re made of ice, and there’s a lot of little fountains and water features.

-This kingdom has no thrill rides, but it has two boat rides. The first is a retelling of the Northern Water Tribe’s history; like a big ride-through storybook, it would show the tribe’s story from its founding to its role in the defeat of the Fire Nation. The premise of the other ride is that you’re the judges of a waterbending festival; you’d watch several scenes of animatronic benders performing amazing feats, and you’d press a button in your boat towards the end of the ride, voting to determine who wins and which ending scene you get.

-The main restaurant and its corresponding bar are made entirely of ice. A “hole in the ice” in the restaurant is filled with a sparkling blue “spirit water” soda, and for the cost of a glass, you can drink as much as you want.

-At night, the sky lights up with the Northern Lights. Every night is a full moon, and just before the park closes, Princess Yue comes out of the moon to wish you a good night.

The Fire Kingdom

-This area is more fast-paced, and it’s geared toward teenagers and the thrill-seeking crowd.

-Rather than one large area, this kingdom is segmented and has a few different places to visit. It’s made up of the Sun Warriors’ ancient city, the outskirts of Royal Caldera City, and a new location: Obsidian Ridge.

-Obsidian Ridge is a town that’s on the very outskirts of the Nation’s volcanic archipelago. It’s a beautiful little town that’s filled with traditional Japanese Fire Nation architecture, but it has a dark underbelly: people here aren’t too happy about Ozai being overthrown, and they still want to carry out his plan to conquer the world. They bide their time, training and trying to recruit people.

-Obsidian Ridge is where the bending system is primarily used for fighting; you can duel other benders (other guests and characters alike) throughout the whole world, but this is where you go if you’ve got an itchy trigger finger. The townfolk and its militia will try to convince you to fight with them, and they tend to challenge people to duels when they disagree. There’s even an Agni Kai stage, where duels happen on an even bigger scale. You can duel the local Ozai or Azula impersonator! (Or you can lay low and just go to the live-fire restaurant.)

-The outskirts of Royal Caldera City are just fancy enough that you can go to nice restaurants and buy expensive art, but not so much that you’ll see the palace from up close. Firelord Zuko’s royal caravan parades through the town square once or twice a day. If you stand in the right places at the edge of town, you can hear Ozai and Azula, complaining in their prison cells.

-Instead of the palace, there’s an ornately-themed and very tall drop tower with a dark ride portion at the top; it’s called Sozin’s Revenge. The story is that you’re going up into the royal astronomy tower to look at Sozin’s Comet and chart its course. When you get to the top, you find that the comet is much closer than anyone thought, and Sozin’s angry spirit uses the comet’s power to come back-- and fling you straight down at 72 mph.

-The Sun Warriors’ city has a cool pyramid and some shops, but it mostly exists to host the Dragon Dance coaster. This flagship attraction has two (red and blue) intertwining tracks. The tracks stretch out over the whole area, so you can see the whole kingdom from up high. No this isn’t a Dueling Dragons clone, I don’t know what you’re talking about.

The Air Kingdom

-This area is fun and playful, and it’s geared primarily towards younger kids.

-This is primarily made up of the Eastern Air Temple; the Northern Air Temple takes up a smaller but significant portion.

-The Northern Air Temple is a huge, intricately themed play area. (Think of Fortress Explorations at Tokyo Disneysea.) Its art and structures have mostly been restored to their former glory, but some of the machinist’s modifications are still there. Maybe you can solve a puzzle on a wall to open a secret door, or turn some gears to make a mechanical air bison move along the ceiling.

-The machinist’s workshop is open, and not only is there a museum of his best inventions (and a mechanical diorama that tells the story of how they fought off the Fire Nation), but plenty of his cool devices can be played with.

-You can fly (zip-line) between the two temples.

-The Eastern Air Temple has the rides and restaurants, which are primarily located in an open courtyard. There aren’t many shops, because the air nomads weren’t very materialistic. You can get an arrow tattoo done in face-paint, though!

-There’s a Dumbo-style ride where you can choose and ride a flying bison. The flagship attraction is a dark ride called Aang’s Animal Adventure, where you fly across the world with Aang to discover all different kinds of fauna. This could be a gentler version of the Harry Potter and the Forbidden Journey ride system; you could soar through the air and dive under the sea, and it could end with you coming face-to-face with a lion turtle.

-The bending system would primarily be used in the Northern Air Temple to activate certain features, and it could also be used for interaction with flying bison. There could be a few bison located throughout the kingdom (in both animatronic and screen form), and you could make friends with them if you could airbend for them. (If you buy a bison plush, there’s a ceremony where it “chooses you”. Like Ollivander’s but cuter.) You could probably also “airbend” to get a boost on the zip-line or the bison ride.

Special events

-For one month every year, there would be a festival celebrating the end of the Hundred Year War. There would be re-enactments in every kingdom, and a big parade would go through all four kingdoms every day. You can imagine how the people of Obsidian Ridge would feel about this.

-Every kingdom has its own New Year celebration, set apart by a couple of months. The regular New Year would be celebrated in the central hub.

-The Earth Kingdom would have its own Avatar Day, complete with Aang, Korra, Roku and Kiyoshi impersonators.

-All throughout December, fake snow would fall throughout the park. Each morning, there’d be a ceremony where a group of waterbenders gathered to “summon” the snow.

Bonus

Since I like extinct theme park attractions, here’s how the park would deteriorate/ be replaced, when management inevitably decided it wasn’t pulling enough profit:

-The Water Kingdom would get an ill-thought-out water park.

-Obsidian Ridge would be re-themed to Ember Island. This would probably coincide with the point when the combat/ bending system broke down or lost its novelty. This area would probably also get a water park.

-Speaking of the bending system, people would complain that they could only bend in one kingdom at a time. The park would eventually offer an Avatar upgrade (for a high upcharge) so that you could bend all four elements. This would take away the incentive for a lot of people to visit for more than one day, and ironically, that would further contribute to the park’s downfall.

-Eventually, once the park was more or less dead, it’d be demolished-- that is, except for the Water Kingdom. That would meet the same fate that everything else in Central Florida eventually will. It’d become a Frozen attraction.

#avatar the last airbender #atla #theme park concept #avatar aang #fire nation #air nation #water nation #earth nation

[s-ultry]

i’m speaking to your boss - joe mazzello imagine

[ CEO!Joe ]

A/N: heyo my fellow bad bitchesss, so yeah here’s one i’ve been desperate on writing and completing. + its my bday so like why not bless yall with this fucking dADDY. hope you guys enjoy! REQUESTS ARE OPEN!

WARNINGS: JUST YOU BEING A TOTAL BADDIE! + teasing lol why not.

SUMMARY: Your boss has been nonstop bothering you about your work methods, and your late (but in reality early) arrivals. Joe noticed your stress and decided to talk to your boss, your boss not knowing you’re actually married. ;)

It was yet another morning of torture, you had just arrived to your desk when you heard your boss scream your name from her office. Her voice was loud, as your desk was a hallway away from her luxurious office. 

You scrambled to her office with her morning ginger and espresso shots, which was a very weird mixture right at the break of day. Being an assistant wasn’t very easy, especially Mrs. Cordelia. Your dream was to be a fashion magazine art director, for your name to be known for your hard work and creativity.

But, you were stuck with an assistant job.

“Y/N?!?! Where have you been! I have been waiting all day!” The blond haired lady frantically screamed at you as she was typing on her smartphone. 

“Mrs. Cordelia I-,” you tried to explain, but she cut you off. “No, Y/N. Save it! I am too nice to you by letting you come in at 10! Be here tomorrow at 9:30! I have a visitor and I want to make the best impression, do you understand?”

“Yes, Mrs. Cordelia.”

“And buy some new work clothes, the black button up makes you look fatter, which is impossible cause the colour black makes you skinnier,” she sternly judged glancing at your normal work outfit.

“I’ll get right on it, madam.” You internally huffed closing her office door behind you. 

After what felt like a light year, you were finally done with work and decided to head to the mall to get some new clothes for Mrs. Cruella De Vil. You bought new shirts, which were white and made of silk with a matching black pencil skirt.

You drove to your shared house with your husband, Joe. After the success with his recent movies with his 3 best friends, Joe built an empire and is now the CEO of a fashion company. 

Of course, he offered you a job. But, you wanted to earn your spot rather than get it out of pity. You finally drove up to your driveway and thanked the universe for getting away from the epitome of the devil, you couldn’t wait to change out of your clothes and cuddle with Joe.

Your shared home wasn’t too big, but it was the perfect size. You had a small library connected to the office, an underground gym, and two floors. It was perfect for a family, which you were hoping to consider soon.

You removed and placed your heels by Joe’s loafers, running up the stairs you rushed to your room and kept the bags on your grey couch that was in front of your king sized bed. 

You promptly entered your walk in closet and changed into an oversized knit sweater with matching knee high socks. Those pants were unbearable, so you decided to let your legs breathe without wearing anything.

You headed to Joe’s office where you can hear his fingers tapping quickly on the designated letters, you lightly knocked letting yourself in. He looked up and saw the tired look on your face, without any words, he ushered you to sit with him. Well, on him.

“What’s wrong, my love,” your husband weakly smiled combing his fingers through your hair. Joe then pulled you closer to him, with your legs draping across his thighs. 

“Mrs. Cordelia,” you huffed as you snuggled into his neck. His scent intoxicating you, you whined as his hands smothered your body with love and affection.

“It’s okay, kitten. She’ll be better,” he whispered into your ear as his hand trailed closer and closer to your inner thigh. Your whimpered as his hand past by his most prized possession, making its way to your neck. 

Joe gently grasped your throat forcing your gaze to meet his, you knew that he was going to say something that’ll make you orgasm on the spot. The way his eyes were hooded with lust and dominance, he was a CEO after all.

“No one overworks you, sugar. Only I do,” he growled. Your breathing got heavy, you loved it when he teased. But, you were an absolute mess above and under him. 

He then gently grabbed you closer, placing his plump lips against yours. Yes, it’s year 2 of your marriage, but damn you always had explosives in your stomach when he placed his lips against yours.

“Go sleep, my love. You’ll be needing your energy for another day with her,” Joe sincerely announced carrying you to your shared room. 

“It’s only 10!” You squealed as he tickled your sides when you were gently put onto your bed. The brunette then tucked you in lovingly, placing a kiss onto your forehead.

“Goodnight, babygirl,” his words ran down his lips with warmth, making your heart flutter as he turned off the lights. Your sleepiness then made its attack as your eyes closed quickly making you fall into a dreamless slumber.

It’s the next morning, and you wake up groaning into your pillow. It was 7, and Mrs. Cordelia demanded you to bring coffee for her and her visitor, apparently they booked for an early meeting.

Glancing to your side, you realised that your lover was not snoring lightly like he always does. But, a note was there instead.

Had to go to an early meeting, see you when I get home. I love you.

- Joe

You read the words a loud, you smiled in content because he knew how much you worried about his departures. Especially when he got to work from home, which was most of the time. 

You then walked into your bathroom getting ready for yet another gruesome day, basically everyday. You decided to elegantly curl your hair, seeing that you have the time in the world. 

You mainly focused on your eyes with makeup, just winged eyeliner and a light brown eyeshadow shade. With your face, you always went for a glowy look, but not too obvious. 

You were done with getting ready, and now it was time to get changed. You were going to go for the set that you recently purchased, but thought about a black turtleneck with the black pencil skirt paired with red heels. A chic yet not too vibrant look.

You ran downstairs when you came to the realisation that it was 5 minutes to 9, and the coffee shop was far from the office. You saw that your husband made a to go bag, and you couldn’t be more blessed with this man. 

You hurdled to your car, racing out you made your way to the coffee shop to get your boss and her guest two macchiatos. You speeded your way through the cars and into the parking garage, you ran to the elevator and prayed that you weren’t even a minute late.

9:29 AM

You basically fell over your desk with the coffee cups in both of your hands, you also got scones because you knew she’d scream at you if you didn’t get her guest “something to eat”.

Your alarm buzzed as the time struck 9:30 AM, you sighed in relief as you made your way through the cold hall towards a cold blooded snake. 

You faintly knocked on the door, hearing her reply for you to enter, you made your way to her large meeting table and placed the order down. Looking down, you didn’t realise the visitor until he coughed loudly.

You glimpsed at the man with the black suit, his white dress shirt unbuttoned to buttons down revealing skin. His brown hair fluffly tossed around. his cufflinks shining as the sun hit it, and his extremely large hands. 

Hands that you were oh so familiar with. There he sat, your husband in all his glory as he glanced back at you. Your cheeks were greeted with a deep red tint as you stood by Mrs. Cordelia.

“Oh, Mr. Mazzello, I forgot to introduce you to my assistant,” the blond announced staring daggers into you to introduce yourself.

“Hi, Mr. Mazzello. I’m Ms. Y/F/N,” you smirked shaking his hand. Joe knew the exact game you were playing, using your maiden name instead of your shared one. And, you definitely knew you were going to get punished for this, but who cares, right?

“Nice to meet you, Ms. Y/F/N,” the CEO weakly smiled at you. “Oh, you’re so kind. Joe,” your boss laughed touching your husband’s arm, stroking it gently.

This is when you were furious, no one could touch your husband. Well, Ben can cause they’re stuck together like glue, but other than him. No one. 

Your heart escalated, Joe knew exactly what you were going to do, and he didn’t mind watching a show. 

“Y/N, get me next week’s issue so I show Mr. Mazzello a sneak peak,” she fakely smiled at you demanding you to get her the files. The desk wasn’t that far from the meeting table, so you could hear their conversation.

“Mrs. Cordelia, I’m flattered. But, I have a wife,” your husband spoke sophisticatedly. 

“I don’t see your wife around,” Mrs. Cordelia seductively teased. This is when you sharply turned, you growled as you saw your boss’ hand riding up Joe’s thigh. 

You then strutted to the meeting table, throwing the files onto the table you slapped her hand off of your property.  

“How rude, Y/N! Hitting your own boss in front of her guest! Would you want me to fire you,” she shouted grasping her hand as though she was hurt.

“Why are you touching him, he has a wife!”

“Why do you care so much, huh? She’s not around! I bet she’ll love talking to me about her creative, sexy, and smart husband,” Mrs. Cordelia smirked standing up to reach your height.

“I don’t think she will,” you hissed crossing your arms so you wouldn’t throw a punch at her jaw.

“And why is that?” Your boss cackled as she stepped closer to you.

“Because,” you smirked evilly as you pushed her hair back gently. Your lips made their way up to her ear, the silence spoke louder than the both of you.

“You’re talking to the wife,” you whispered with venom laced around your words, and a smirk plastered Joe’s lips as he saw you dominate someone else who’s twice your size.

“Sit down, Cordelia,” you spat making her sit down. She wasn’t scared at all, which made your blood boil even more.

“Listen up, bitch. I get that my husband is creative, sexy, and smart. But, the last time I checked, I have the rock on my finger. You’re too fucking blind to notice my last name is Mazzello, and not Y/F/N,” you then moved to tower her fragile little body that you broke with just your eyes.

“Plus, you were touching MY property. Oh! I totally forgot! You have a husband right? What if I told you that you made a move on his ally, ruining his company and making ours strive higher.”

“Y/N, I can fire you. Well, you’re already fired for threatening your boss,” she smugly replied crossing her legs.

“That’s a threat to you? I feel sorry for your enemies, that’s a threat? Let me tell you a threat. Lay a finger on my man again, and trust me the only thing that’ll be going down that throat of yours is your last paycheck,” you growled as you felt a hand wrap around your waist.

“And, Cordelia. I talked with your bosses, as of now, I bought the whole company. Don’t you dare insult my wife, ever, you understand,” his voice now deep and dominant.

You couldn’t help but squeeze your legs together, your arousal to his voice created a knot in your whole body.

“Leave my office, and don’t think about your stuff. We’ll have someone send it for you, with your paycheck wrapped around a tiny dildo, maybe that’ll make you cum faster,” you barked as Joe’s grip grew tighter onto your waist.

“Behave, little girl,” your husband huskily growled in your ear as your former boss left the room in tears. She deserved it, after years of torture, you finally got your revenge. 

“What if I don’t want to?”

“Then, I’ll have you over my lap with your perky ass up in the air for me. You’ll get spanked so hard that you won’t be able to walk into your new office that I just got for you, or wear that tight little skirt that you’re wearing right now,” he placed both of his hands on your waist and slapped your ass lightly.

You whined as you glanced up at him with your innocent eyes, you pecked his lips and fluttered your eyelashes.

“Take me home, and fuck me.”

“What’s the magic word, baby.”

“Please, Joe,” you whimpered as his breath fanned over your clothed neck.

“Your wish is my command, doll. But, you’re getting punished for being a bad girl,” he whispered in your ear as you made your way out of the office.

And that was when you couldn’t wait to go home.

#brian may imagine #brian may smut #roger taylor #roger taylor smut #roger taylor x reader #john deacon #brian may #john deacon smut #john deacon x reader #freddie mercury #queen band #queen imagines #gwilym lee #gwilym lee x reader #gwilym lee imagine #gwilym lee smut #joe mazzello #joe mazzello x reader #joe mazzello imagine #joe mazzello smut #rami malek #rami malek imagine #rami malek smut #rami malek x reader #ben hardy #ben hardy imagine #ben hardy smut #ben hardy x reader #queen

[surfacat]

It was a scorching hot day in Texas and Mrs. Hardhat is cranky as usual throwing a hissy fit.

For crying out loud chad how am I supposed to correct your work when you write this messy? Like what is this a Chinese letter!

Chad with his feet up shrugs trying to hold it together watching the laser pointer shining on Mrs. Hardhats forehead.

All of a sudden the person shining the laser accidentally shines it into her eye and she began to go bananas.

“YOU CHILDREN ARE THE WORST CLASS I HAVE EVER DEALT WITH! NO ONE LISTENS TO ME AND YOU RUN AROUND THROWING THINGS LIKE WE ARE IN GYM CLASS!

You must follow rules. I repeat must follow rules. That means do not break the rules.

If I see you having fun that means you’re not going to graduate school and if you don’t graduate how are you planning on paying your bills and all sorts of crap for your kids!

I didn’t sign up to be a teacher in a god damn zoo I am going to get the principal I do not deserve this, I’m done.

A while after she left the room the Vice principal arrived, an old cowboy hillbilly type of guy. Like imagine a guy driving in his vehicle holding a gun out the window trying to kill the sky, and this is the guy we are talking about.

He walks into the classroom to see what appears to be everyone celebrating the last day of school one month early, one kid was making a fort out of the desks and 2 other kids were skateboarding around in the teachers chair.

And you can see on the cowboys face he is perfectly fine with it. In fact he found it humorous.

He walks to the front of the room and says ok now I have a list of things to do from your teacher.

But It ain’t lookin so fun so I think we will skip all that.

Hey who knows how to run this high tech chalkboard here let’s get some football on this screen.

You kids should have seen it. Me and the family were taking care of an alligator invasion last week! I had to rear naked choke the son of a gun unconscious for him to let go of my buddy’s leg. The thing didn’t want to let go of him! We were beating it with sticks and rocks and it still wasn’t letting go so I just hopped on its back and started rollin around with the thing.

While I was daydreaming of wrestling an alligator it occurred to me just how strange and amazing the imagination is. Like for an example any creation or idea in this world first came from the mind. So when you imagine something you’re basically creating at the first stage or ground zero.

And i began to feel like my thoughts were trying to communicate with me. I asked “who are you?”

And I got the response “I am you.”

I started to think I am just going crazy talking to myself and then my thoughts tell me

“what’s wrong don’t you trust yourself?”

I began to ignore the voice thinking to myself “you are not real you’re just in my head.”

Then I clued in how the imagination is the beginning for anything that is real.

And I asked how do I get to know you better?

And the voice said follow me and forget about judging what is real or not.

I followed myself up a spiral staircase made of light wrapping around a giant spinal column. As I reached the top of the staircase I saw what appeared to be a representation of heaven in the shape of a brain. I got the impression that it would be the place where all the questions can be answered.

All of a sudden my smartphone falls out of my pocket, and you know everyone’s natural instinct is try to stop it from landing on the ground. And my smart phone ended up falling down every last 33 vertebrae on this spine in a ridiculous way making me do front flip face plants trying to catch this thing so I can get back to business.

But by the time I finished inspecting my cracked up phone I had completely forgotten what I was doing and I’m sucked into my phone world.

My higher self comes to see that I am wearing an iPhone shaped box covering my head and begins to knock on my head like a door “hello anybody in there?”

I even pulled the box back over my head as soon as it was removed by force because I wasn’t done checking my messages and likes.

My higher self waiting very patiently never left my side and continued to try to send me different thoughts and voices attempting to get my attention once again.

And then I awaken in my bed

“Wow that was some dream”

And I immediately reach to grab my...

#art #funny #gaming #music #spirituality #critical role #wonho #instagram story #still2gether #comedy

[theladyofdeath]

Friday Night Lights {ACOTAR}

Chapter 2

Summary: Inspired by the series Friday Night Lights. In a town that is obsessed with football, a group of teenagers are glorified for what they bring to the field. But what the people of Velaris don’t realize is that there is a lot more to life than football, and it’s not always pretty.

Revolves around Cassian, Nesta, Elain, Lucien, Azriel, Morrigan, Amren, Feyre, and Rhysand.

*Warning: This fic deals with sensitive material.

*Note: A chapter will be posted every Wednesday.

Click here for previous chapters.

Author’s Note: Hey, guys. I have surgery planned for Wednesday, so I’m going to post this wonderful (debatable) chapter today. Also, I’ve had a few of you ask about being tagged, and I’m sorry to say that I will no longer be doing tags in my fics. With Castaway, they hardly ever worked and I had a few readers get mad because of it. Instead, I have (and will be) tagging every chapter with “TACMC FNL” for your convenience! Anyway, I hope you enjoy! And, as always, i would love to know what you think. :)

Shout out to @throne-of-ashes-and-beauty for helping me with details! <3

Cassian hoped Rhys picked up Alana without a problem.

He had called Velaris Elementary and told them Rhysand Lunasa would be picking her up, although the Lunasas were already on her emergency release form.

And yet, his leg was shaking uncontrollably as he sat in his homeroom classroom to serve his first detention.

In typical Helion fashion, he was late. Even those who ran detention didn’t want to be in detention.

On top of that, their first game was Friday night and Velaris High School’s starting fullback was missing most of practice.

Coach B said he would have to put in extra hours during his afternoon free period to make up for lost time.

Mondays.

He didn’t regret it, though. In fact, every time he thought back to punching Eris in the face, his soul became a little lighter. The dick got what he deserved. Cassian had hoped the news traveled to Mor, he hadn’t seen her since homeroom. She wouldn’t be mad. He wasn’t even sure why she stayed with Eris, after all the shitty things he had done to her. But she was capable of making her own decisions, so Cassian stayed out of it.

Well, mostly. At least on her end.

A small smile tugged on the corner of his lips as the door swung open, and to Cassian’s surprise, it wasn’t Mr. Spellcleaver who walked in.

She was tall, at least she carried herself that way. She wore a heather grey pencil skirt with a white button down and a crimson red scarf, her long golden-brown waves hanging limply down her sides.

But her eyes were what caught Cassian’s attention.

They were like the calm before the storm, lingering over the ocean. Grey-blue, and staring negatively into Cassian’s.

Surely, she couldn’t be in detention. She looked to stuck-up. Too snooty. Too good for that shit.

“Name?” she asked, as she walked to Helion’s desk and sat down.

Cassian looked around the classroom, although they were the only two in there. “Uh, Cassian Nazari? Who the hell are you?”

She looked up from her apparent list, eyes narrowed. “Ms. Archeron. I’ll be overseeing detention, and that sort of language will not be tolerated.”

Cassian blinked. “Archeron? Are you Elain’s sister?”

The girl’s pencil froze from whatever she was writing on her sheet. “Yes.”

“Are you new, too? I didn’t see you today. Are you -“

“I’m not a student here.”

“Ah,” Cassian sighed, leaning back in his chair, as realization hit him. “You’re one of the new aids from the University.”

The aids from Velaris University came every year, although they typically looked older than the girl sitting in front of him. He quirked an eyebrow, which only seemed to annoy her more.

When she didn’t answer, Cassian grinned. “Well, since you’re not a teacher, and apparently we’re going to be spending some time together, don’t you think we should be on a first name basis?”

She put down her pencil and folded her hands on top of the desk. “Do you think that’s something to be proud of? Detention?”

“Are you going to council me, Ms. Archeron?”

The tone in which he spoke her name had her scowling. “No. We can stay quiet, if you wish.”

“Oh, no, I would love to talk to you. How did Elain like her first day?”

She didn’t answer.

“You coming to the game on Friday night?” he tried, again.

“I don’t waste my time at football games.”

“You should,” Cassian said. “If you’re going to be a part of Velaris High –“

“We shouldn’t be speaking,” she interrupted. “This is meant to be punishment, a time for you to do homework.”

Cassian grinned, catching sight of her nametag. Nesta.

“Well, Nesta,” he began, and she scowled at the sound of her name from his lips. “It’s the first day of school. I don’t have homework. And I shouldn’t be punished. My so-called crime is perfectly justified.”

“If you’re trying to get under my skin, it’s not working. Now be quiet.”

“How old are you, anyway?” Cassian asked, not bothering to take a hint. Taking hints when people were annoyed with him was not his style. “You look younger than me. Are you one of those freakishly smart kids that graduated high school at, like, fourteen?”

She didn’t answer. Instead, Nesta’s cheeks began to burn as she turned her attention back to her clipboard.

Cassian chuckled as he pulled the phone out of his pocket and flipped it open. He used to get embarrassed of his phone, because it was all he could afford. It wasn’t the latest iPhone, or whatever other smartphone every else had. His model was made ten years ago and only cost twenty dollars a month to keep activated.

Alana okay? He sent to Rhys.

He replied less than a minute later. Yup. She’s sitting by Coach B on the bleachers while we get ready. She had a good day. : ) She’s excited to tell you about it.

Cassian let out a breath. Good. She had a good day. That was a good sign.

He glanced at the clock.

Five minutes.

He had only been in detention for five minutes.

  “What’s your name?”

Elain blinked down at the little girl beside her. She hadn’t even realized she was there.

Her tanned skin was kissed by the sun, as if she had spent all Summer playing outdoors, and her long, curly brown hair was just as lovely as her hazel eyes.

“Elain,” she laughed, quietly. “What’s yours?”

“Alana,” she grinned, her two front teeth missing. “I’m five. My brother plays football. Does yours?”

“No,” Elain sighed. “No, I have no brothers. I do have sisters, though. One of them wants to be a teacher, and the other likes to paint.”

“Do you like to paint?” she asked, curiously. “I do.”

“Do you? I’m sure you’re a beautiful painter.”

The young girl smiled again as a tall, blonde girl approached them.

Elain recognized her immediately from a few of her classes.

“Mor!” Alana beamed, jumping to her feet and running into the arms of the blonde.

Mor smiled and brushed back her hair. “Hey, pretty girl. How was school?”

“Great! Are you gonna do cheerleading?”

“Yes,” Mor said, finding Elain. “I see you already met our new cheerleader. Elain?”

“Yep,” she said, rising to her feet and brushing down her gym shorts – a nervous habit. “I, um, have never done this before. Our last school was too small to form a squad, but I’ve always wanted to try it. I’m sorry if I’m awful, but I’ll do my best not to be. Oh my god, I’m sorry, I’m babbling –“

Mor just laughed, keeping Alana close to her side. “It’s okay. I’m captain, and what I say goes. And I say that you are more than welcome on the squad, and if you’re struggling, I’ll be more than happy to help you in any way I can. There’s no need to be nervous.”

Elain froze. It’s not that she expected Mor to be mean, but…..well, no that was it. And she felt awful for judging.

“Where’s Cass, Mor?” Alana asked, breaking the silence. “He said he was going to get me from school, but he didn’t.”

Mor crouched down to Alana’s height, and brushed a curly black lock behind her ear. “He’ll be here soon. He was naughty today.”

Alana rolled her eyes. “Again?”

Mor chuckled. “Yeah, what can you do? Boys.”

Alana giggled then held out her hand to Elain, which she amusingly shook. “It was nice to meet you, Elain. You will make a fine cheerleader.”

Then, she walked onto the football field and sat down on the bench, by a man that Elain assumed was the coach.

“She sure has a way with words for someone so young,” Elain said.

Mor smiled, wistfully. “Yeah, she does. That girl is special.” Then, as if she noticed Elain’s curious glance, Mor cleared her throat. “Well, come with me. Let me introduce you to the girls. I think you’re going to have fun.”

As they were walking to the sidelines, a tall boy with red hair came up behind them and smacked Mor on the ass. Mor didn’t even look back, she simply rolled her eyes. “Don’t mind him. That’s Eris. He’s a dick, but I don’t feel like making a scene right now. Not in front of Alana.”

Elain glanced nervously at the boy, with his broad shoulders and throbbing veins. “Does he…..do that kind of stuff to everyone?”

Mor quirked a brow before realizing what she was actually asking. “Oh, no, don’t worry about him. He won’t touch you. He’s my…..my boyfriend.”

Elain caught herself from asking why she stuttered, but she simply nodded her head and continued with the rest of their walk in silence.

“Good afternoon, ladies!” Mor called out once they reached the group that was gathering, placing her hands on her hips. “This is Elain, she is the newest member of our squad. It’s her first time cheering, so I expect you all to be helpful and encouraging.”

To Elain’s surprise, she was greeted with clapping and cheers. They all gave her a smile, except for the one on the end. Noticing where she was looking, Mor chuckled. “That’s Amren. Don’t let her fool you, she’s cheery inside.”

Elain quickly looked away from the small, black-haired female before their eyes could connect. “She doesn’t seem like the….”

“Cheerleader type?” Mor laughed, finishing her question. “No, she doesn’t. But her form is great, and she’s our flyer. She’s into gymnastics, but since Velaris doesn’t offer gymnastics, she joined the squad in hopes to stay in the same line of work. As close as she could get, anyway. Don’t judge too fast, though. She’ll surprise you.”

Elain, panicked, began to tell Mor that she wasn’t trying to judge, but got cut off.

“Mor?”

The two girls spun around, and Elain stopped.

So did the boy who was walking toward them, dressed in football pads and carrying his helmet by the facemask.

Mor’s grin turned wicked as she glanced between Azriel and Elain, as the two stared at one another in timid silence.

Azriel showed no emotion – none except for the crimson patches on his tanned cheeks.

He was in all of Elain’s classes but one, which was yearbook, which she excitedly decided to take thanks to Lucien’s recommendation.

Azriel always sat on the opposite end of the room as she did, but she caught him watching her a few times throughout the day.

And couldn’t stop the tingly sensation that sat in the pit of her stomach when she did.

“Sorry,” Azriel cleared his throat, at last, and looked to Mor as he raked a scarred hand through his dark hair.  Elain couldn’t help but stare at the scars, at the way they completely ruined and mutilated his flesh. And yet, she didn’t stare because it was horrifying. She just simply couldn’t look away. “Um, Rhys wants to take us all out for pizza after practice. Wanna come?”

She looked to Azriel, then Elain saw her look further down the field – at Eris. “Yeah, sure, that would be great.”

Azriel looked to Elain, and cleared his throat, again. “Uh, would you like to come?”

“Oh,” Elain stopped, and she knew she was blushing. “No, that’s okay. I – my sisters will be expecting me. We just moved, and we’re still settling in. I don’t want to – no, that’s – I don’t want to impose.”

Azriel’s lips flattened as he pursed them, and nodded. He didn’t say anything else as he tugged on his helmet and jogged to the middle of the field.

Mor turned to Elain and raised her brows. “He was flirting with you.”

“He was?” Elain asked, incredulously. “He kinda looked like he wanted to set me on fire.”

“Trust me, I’ve known Az a long time,” Mor grinned. “He was flirting with you.”

And with that, she turned to the group, and practice began.

Elain tried to focus on what she had to learn, but she couldn’t get his face out of her mind.

And the shadows that seemed to linger over his shoulders.

 Feyre sat high up on the bleachers, doodling in her notebook as practices were in full bloom on the field below.

She hated football. Football players were always stuck up and conceited, and she thought it was better to just stay away.

But Elain wanted to cheer, and Feyre supported whatever she did, so it looked like Feyre would be spending quite a bit of time by that damned field.

Nesta plopped down next to Feyre and sighed, forcing her to stop her pencil from moving and look at her sister. “Bad day?”

“No,” Nesta sighed. “No, it was okay. Mr. Collins is making me watch over detentions, though, and it’s just…..strange. I’m supposed to be in charge, but I’m only a year older than the seniors. It feels.....I don’t know. I feel like a child. Like a fake.”

Nesta had graduated early, thanks to her mass knowledge in pretty much every subject. She was halfway through University at nineteen, and Feyre had always admired her for such things.

“Someone already got detention?” Feyre chuckled. “It’s the first day of school.”

Nesta rolled her eyes. “Yes, one of the football players. Cassian Nazari. And his mouth is filthy. And I swear he was trying to flirt with me, which is extremely inappropriate.”

“You’re only a year older,” Feyre reminded her.

“But I work here,” Nesta rolled her eyes.

Feyre couldn’t help but laugh at Nesta’s fit. “Well, I’m sure he can’t stay in detention forever. Then you can move on.”

Nesta didn’t answer, she simply looked out onto the field where a boy was just now coming out of the locker room. “There he is. The little prick.”

Feyre smirked, but there was nothing little about him. He was huge. Fit. Beautiful, if Feyre had to admit. Even though the fact of his attraction was completely obvious.

She saw him run to number 16, which she recognized as Rhysand, the douche from gym, and slap him on the back before taking his place on the field.

“Wait – why are you scowling?” Nesta asked, genuinely curious.

“Speaking of pricks,” Feyre muttered before shaking her head. “I had a hell of a day.”

“Bad?” Nesta asked, her shoulders becoming tense.

Nesta had a tendency to come off like she didn’t care, although she had come a long way since their mother died. But it was little things like that, like the tensing up of her upper body, that made Feyre remember just how much their elder sister cared.

Nesta did take her and Elain out of their father’s home. If she didn’t care, she wouldn’t have moved them ninety miles away – to Velaris.

“Not bad,” Feyre sighed. “Just…..I don’t know. New, I guess.”

Nesta nodded, as if she understood but wasn’t sure what to say.

“I’m sure it will get better though,” Feyre continued. “Looks like Elain is enjoying herself, at least.”

Elain was in the middle of a line of cheerleaders, her blue and black pom-poms up in a high V.

“She deserves it,” Nesta said, eyeing Elain on the field below. “She’s too kind to have lived the life we have so far.”

Feyre agreed. If anyone of them deserved a better life, it was Elain.

Elain had been the one to try and take the spot of “mother” after theirs had passed away, even though she was only a year older than Feyre, and a year younger than Nesta. It was in her blood, the love and care that only people like Elain could show.

Yet, she suffered the same as the rest of them. But she looked happy, with her arms in the air, chanting whatever foolishness she was chanting. And she was smiling.

And that was enough for Feyre, at least for now.

If Elain could find happiness in this starlit hell, perhaps she could, too.

#tacmc fnl #short chapter #i didn't want to make too many scenes tho #sorry #acotar #friday night lights #fanfic #fanfiction

[mikegranich87]

Hitting the Books: How a radio telescope cost this West Virginia town its modernity

Deep in the heart of Appalachia, modern science and America's bucolic past meet at a unique crossroad of scientific discovery and luddite lifestyles. The Quiet Zone, by journalist Stephen Kurczy, is the story of a sleepy small town that hosts the Green Bank radio telescope. But the presence of this installation comes at a price: due to the telescope's exceeding sensitivity, virtually every device and appliance that emits radio waves, Wi-Fi signals, or microwave radiation is banned for square miles around. That means that Green Bank, West Virginia has about as much tech today as it did in the 1950's (maybe even a little less) — and some people very much like it that way. But not everybody. In the excerpt below, Pocahontas County attorney, Robert Martin, recounts the challenges of attempting to modernize the region without loosing a horde of gentrifiers upon it as well.        

Harper Collins

Excerpted from the book THE QUIET ZONE: Unraveling the Mystery of a Town Suspended in Silence by Stephen Kurczy. Copyright © 2021 by Stephen Kurczy. From Dey Street Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers. Reprinted by permission.

For every electrosensitive who wanted radio quiet, there were probably one hundred residents who wanted WiFi and cell service, and they elected the county’s officials. In early 2018, the Pocahontas County Commission passed a resolution in support of cell service throughout the county, a challenge to the very notion of a Quiet Zone. The commission assigned its attorney, Robert Martin, to contact all major telecommunications providers asking them to invest in Pocahontas.

“I’m doing my level best to get another company in here,” Martin told me in the spring of 2018. He’d invited me to his house to discuss the new cell service ordinance, and we were swigging Bud Lights at his kitchen table.

“How many cell companies have you written to?” I asked.

“All of them,” he said. “I promised the companies that we’ll get everybody in the damn county to sign up with them. I’ll sign up first! . . . I wrote a letter to everybody and said, ‘We have shit for cellphone service here, we want you to come in here, we’ll partner with you, we’ll help you however we can. Come in here.’”

At our feet were two boxers and a basset hound. In the adjacent mudroom was a 250-pound Vietnamese potbellied pig named Pig, who was snoring. Pig knew how to open the front door and pull a blanket over himself. “I’m the true image of West Virginia, aren’t I?” Martin laughed. “I got a pig living in the house.” Despite his home literally being a pigsty, Martin was always the best dressed at county meetings, usually wearing tight designer jeans, leather boots, and a crisp dress shirt, top buttons undone and a few chest hairs curling out. A blustery guy, Martin was once jailed in Marlinton for contempt of court for arguing with a circuit judge. He had a history of getting into fights at West Virginia University football games. For years, he’d also operated a hotel in Belize, paying “tens of thousands of dollars in bribes” and putting the payments on his tax returns so the U.S. government could see the corruption he was dealing with (even if he was admitting to violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act). Martin came across as a dogged lawyer who knew how to get things done. And he wanted cell service.

“You seen that commercial saying Verizon has more coverage than anyone else?” he asked me. “Pause and look at it real closely, and you’ll see right where Pocahontas County is because almost the entire Eastern Seaboard is all yellow [signifying cell coverage] and right there in southeastern West Virginia there’s this hunk about this big—it’s Poca-fucking-hontas County. I swear to God. Right fucking there we are on Verizon’s commercials.”

Martin knew well what connectivity was like outside the Quiet Zone. He had earned his law degree from West Virginia University in 1979, married a girl from Marlinton, and started his career in Pocahontas County before becoming a well-heeled insurance defense lawyer in Charleston. He’d gotten his first cellphone in 1986—it was the size of a beer bottle, with a three-foot-long antenna, and it went to bed with him every night. That attachment ended in 2012 when he moved back to Pocahontas, where he only carried an iPhone so he could listen to music in his truck. I asked if he was concerned about the impact of cell service on the electrosensitives.

“Wackos that are afraid of their brains getting fried and all that?” he responded. “Yeah, I know about them.”

“They see Green Bank as a haven,” I said.

“So? So?” He said he wasn’t going to let the electrosensitives keep Pocahontas “behind the curve” for cell service.

“But I’m here because you’re behind the curve,” I said. “That makes this place unique.”

“You think we want to deal with stone knives and axes for the rest of our existence? You’re like these fucking people who move in here and don’t want it to change, that it? We have people who have moved here in the last five to ten years and they don’t want anything to change. They’ve ‘discovered’ Pocahontas County and now nothing can change. Well, fuck, that ain’t the way of the world. We have limitations because of the observatory, because of our topography, because of our insignificant population. But we need to do what we can as government entities to make things available to people.”

“Of course,” Martin added, the cell service would have to comply with the Quiet Zone.

“We believe in the observatory, we don’t want to fuck with them,” he said. “Right now, as you and I are sitting here bullshitting, they’re up there looking for fucking E.T. And I want to give them every opportunity to do that. But I’ve got emergency services I’ve got to render in this county.”

In addition to trying to bring in cell service, Martin was assisting the county’s emergency services director, Michael O’Brien, to improve communications. The 911 center in Marlinton had difficulty broadcasting any emergency radio communications toward the northern end of the county, where Green Bank was located. O’Brien found a partial solution by installing an internet-controlled radio system just north of Green Bank in the town of Durbin, but it had minimal range and failed altogether when internet or electricity went down. Pocahontas was also one of the only counties in the state unable to adopt a “smart radio system” that integrated radios with smartphones.

On the off chance that someone made an emergency 911 call from one of the county’s few pockets of limited cell service, authorities had an especially hard time pinpointing the person’s location. “We had a dispatcher spend two and a half hours on the phone one night with a lady that was trapped in her car in a creek,” O’Brien told me. “She didn’t know where she was or how she got there. We were just keeping her calm while we sent the department to look in all the areas that had cell service.”

ACCORDING TO DELOIT TE, a 10 percent increase in mobile penetration increases total factor productivity—a key component of economic growth modeling—by 4.2 percentage points over the long run. In Pocahontas, businesspeople like Kenneth “Buster” Varner felt they needed all the help they could get to keep the county’s economy puttering along, which meant bringing in cell service.

I first met Varner in early 2017, while eating breakfast at the counter at Station 2. A heavy, jowly man, he had leaned over and asked, “Do you think the gravy is too salty?” As we shoveled down heaping plates of biscuits and sausage gravy, he told me about his various businesses. Aside from owning Station 2, he operated a half dozen enterprises involved in logging, excavation, towing, septic pumping, and auto repair. He was also a fire chief. I told him that I imagined a lot of headaches trying to manage all those things within the restrictions of the Quiet Zone.

“You have to realize that we never had cellphone service when everybody else had it, so it wasn’t anything to us,” Varner said. “It’d be more convenient, of course, if it was so you could use your cellphones all the time. But it’s a unique place to live where you don’t have them, and we take a little pride in that.” He noted how the observatory provided jobs and shared its resources, such as lending one of its diesel generators to a funeral home during a recent power outage. “That to me means a lot,” Varner said. “And having the largest telescope in the world out your back door, that’s a pretty neat conversation piece.”

“People can get ahold of me the old-fashioned way,” he added. “Call me on the landline or come look for me.”

Spending more time with Varner, however, I realized that he was hardly a Luddite. When we met again months later in his cluttered office, I found it hard to keep his attention. He kept glancing down at his iPhone to check texts and alerts he was receiving over WiFi. When he took a call, I was left to stare at a poster of a busty woman in a red bikini and firefighter helmet. When he finally put down the iPhone, I told him I was confused. Hadn’t he said he took pride in not using a cellphone?

“I thought it was rude to have a smartphone,” Varner said of his “old” perspective, apparently from just a few months earlier. “I do a lot of business on that phone, more than I ever thought in my wildest dreams that I would do.” I asked if he could ever go back to living without one. “Wouldn’t want to. It’s so handy.”

Varner had an AT&T data plan. He used Siri. He wished all his employees and volunteer firefighters could always be connected through smartphones. Instead, because of the Quiet Zone, he’d invested more than $30,000 in a specially approved radio repeater system to allow his workers to communicate via low-band radio. “I don’t want the observatory to close and for people to lose their jobs,” he said, “but it’d be more convenient for everybody.”

from Mike Granich https://www.engadget.com/hitting-the-books-the-quiet-zone-stephen-kurczy-harper-collins-153030420.html?src=rss

[20straveling]

Anotha One (List of Activities that are C19 Safe!)

I can count on both hands, and some toes, the number of COVID19 emails and articles I’ve seen talking about all the things to do during our current global situation. Their lists (yes, from the marketing people) have been:

- subscribe to this new service ($$$)

- shop our online sale! ($$$)

- sign up for this service to read articles for “free” ($$$)

And I was pretty disappointed by most of the emails I was reading...but there were a few that warmed my heart a little.

- free delivery and no service fee when you order from local restaurants

- all proceeds of ____ sale are going toward helping homeless or those in poverty receive the supplies that are currently unavailable to them

and so on, and so forth. These are the companies and groups that I was happy to see in my inbox, knowing that someone was doing something to help the world.

But, we’re human, and we can only do so much for our community and our global family. That’s just reality. And that’s okay!! If you spend the whole time giving, and no time taking care of yourself, then you’ll have nothing left to give.

So, with that in mind: here are some ideas for social distancing and quarantine activities!

At Home Activities:

- Photography! The majority of us have a smart phone and it’s got one (or two, shoutout 11 pro peeps) cameras on it — use that sucker!! Take silly photos with your family (fuzzy or otherwise), snap pics of your plants or collections of things, or even take photos of random stuff in your house (I know you’re bored enough to).

- Editing these photos is also a good pastime, with lots of free apps on smartphones, and online editing software like PicMonkey and similar — have fun playing with filters and stickers and all kinds of creative adjustments

- Online, Virtual Tours! This is such a cool resource that has been taking root in the last few years as accessibility and outreach have been gaining prominence! Many museums and national parks have posted online tours (similar to Google Street View) of their amazing spaces for online viewers around to globe to interact with. Get out there (online), and explore some amazing works of art and nature, alone or with the whole family through a TV!

- Share the love online and talk about the new things you’re discovering to encourage others to take advantage of these great online-passes to some of the worlds best views (on walls or outdoors).

- Read - yep, the easy one. Whether its new blogs from people online, the book that’s collecting dust on your “to read” shelf, or something like Audible where you can listen to a book and still get something else done - feed your brain!

- A good follow-up to reading is writing! Head online for good writing prompts, or even silly games where you can write a story with the help of the whole family, sentence by sentence!

- Online Concerts! Many artists are doing online tours, and you can enjoy some “live”music from the comfort of your own couch!

- I personally love Tessa Violet, and she has created her “Something to Look Forward To” Tour, where she plays her music, and has dance breaks to engage her audience and take polls of what song she should play next

- ReThink a Space: this one’s a little more broad, but if you have an area of your home or outdoor space that feels as stale as the air you’re breathing while staying inside all the time, REDO IT! Now is the time to start that obnoxious project that takes too long! Some of the most obvious spots are:

- Bedroom/bedroom closet - change out winter for spring!

- Guest room closets (because who knows what’s lost in there)

- Office spaces/playrooms (equally busy, equally disorganized!)

- Bookshelves/display areas

- Crafting: now, I know we can’t all run out to a Michelle’s or a Hobby Lobby, but I can almost guarantee that most of us have some form of markers/pens, and maybe a printer (but if not, have faith!)

- Checkout online tutorials for drawing or calligraphy, and get those hands moving! There are plenty of studies about how calming coloring is, and stimulating the brain with simple things like learning calligraphy are perfect for indoor or outdoor activities solo, or with family

- Pictionary! Or the like. There are online prompts if you don’t have the physical game in your house, and websites like Jackbox have online versions so you can play with your friends, without being in the same room!

- Collaging/crafting with outdoor objects: take a hint from the children that keep wanting to bring home spikey balls or a pretty leaf! Sometimes those objects are silly but can create a fun craft! Using some thread or string, and a stick or two from outside, make a hanging wall decor piece or mobile with the things you are collecting on your walks!

- Video games!! Although it’s not an option for everyone, video games are a great time to have some competitive fun between members of the household, and also help to connect online with other friends who are also playing the game

- Steam and Origin are the two main gaming platforms I know of, and The Sims, and other games, are on sale right now to help offer entertainment and connect people digitally!

- Cleaning, which I’m sure we’ve all done a bit of at this point (not judging if you haven’t but here’s your list of ideas!)

- Starting from top to bottom, now is a great time to get that deep “Spring Clean” that everyone talks about this time of year! Dust of the tops of things that you forget about, like picture frames or door frames, and go down from there, wiping down surfaces, cleaning that gross space between your window pane and the screen (it’s disgusting but if the windows are open, you get to breath all that funk), and continue on to dusting baseboards and sweeping/vacuuming/mopping floors

- And disclaimer: I have not done all these things, but I’m still on the “Rethink a Space” part, so there’s stuff all over the things I want to clean...

- Don’t forget to Clorox those popular surfaces we forget about, like light switches, cabinet knobs/handles, and the power buttons for things like a Keurig or other small tech

- write snail mail for family and friends you’re unable to see at the moment! Yeah, technology exists, but there is always something special about hand-writing some fun messages to send to your loved ones!

- If you think ahead, you can make some fun art, and send that along with your letters, as a bit of cheer to spread along to others!

- Find something to research: whether it’s how video games are made, how to grow new plants, the sound in space, or what that cool movie you just watched mentioned! There’s a million resources online, and even in your local library (using Libby, an online library source for e-books, and more!

- Checkout online resources for your everyday habits: gym or yoga studio’s facebook or YouTube, university resources for free classes/access to databases, educational resources for children (often found on library sites)

You may notice that cooking is missing from this list. I realize that grocery shopping is difficult at this time, so I’ve tried to think of ideas that involve resources you already have in your homes/yards. If cooking is your thing, or you’d like to take it up during this time, please, do so!! It’s such a great way to feed your brain and your body at the same time! Checkout online channels like “Binging with Babish” and other food related YouTubers or Bloggers to find new recipes or content. If you need to go out and grocery shop, just remember to be courteous of other’s and take hand sanitizer or Clorox mini-wipes to get those surfaces like cart handles and self-checkout/checkout screens and surfaces.

My brain is tapped out for ideas at this point, as I’m mainly doing the things mentioned above because they fit with my personal lifestyle and interested, but if you guys have thought of or done some things that might interest others, please list them below!! And those with kids: PLEASE, link a Pinterest board of ideas, educational (and FUN) websites you’ve found, or even just some good games/crafts/activities you’ve been trying out! I heard a coworker talking about a scavenger hunt they created that involves the kids texting/collaborating online to complete the outdoor hunt!

Get creative, do the most mundane thing in a new way, and hang in there! And if anyone wants a FT date, or more help researching things, please, let me know! I’m happy to dive deeper or even chat in general to help alleviate some of the adjustments and isolations going on right now - please don’t hesitate to reach out.

List of Links for Interactions/Ideas:

- Kelsey Ramirez (art-based ideas): https://www.kesslerramirez.com/blog/things-to-do-while-social-distancing

- Threads of Fate (wholesome naturalistic community): https://www.thethreadsoffate.com/pages/community-journey-taking-action?mc_cid=1ca95a65b0&mc_eid=3d56a629ef

- Harry Potter Alliance (yes, it’s a real thing, and yes, I’m a member) is hosting an online convention for conversations and events to bring us all together online: https://secure.everyaction.com/BEWi3AjhpEyWzUCDG-V7xw2?emci=21658d3b-0a6b-ea11-a94c-00155d03b5dd&emdi=96ab3eea-876b-ea11-a94c-00155d03b5dd&ceid=2470797

- All Online Libraries, By State: https://www.lib-web.org/united-states/public-libraries/

- Good Housekeeping’s Virtual Tour List (includes Zoos! I didn’t even realize!): 30 Amazing Virtual Tours of Museums, Zoos, and Theme ...www.goodhousekeeping.com › life › travel › best-virtual-tours

- Mashed’s List of Cooking YouTubers (I haven’t watched all, but enjoy most): https://www.mashed.com/146555/ranking-the-most-popular-cooking-channels-on-youtube-from-best-to-worst/

#social distancing #at home activities #stay home #safety first #covid19 ideas #wfh hacks #bla bla bla

[ouncewater4-blog]

12-15 Tips to Buy Applied Smartphone Without Spending Major

eighteen Tips to Buy Employed Touch screen phone Without Spending Major

smartphones If you are planning to obtain a smartphone but have a small price range throughout your tight pocket, then you might want to pick right up a used mobile phone alternatively of a new a single. However , buying a employed smartphone could be a bit tough if you don't possess just about any experience whatsoever in relation to this "field". You cannot just go up at this time there to the smartphone shop and also a random invest in without checking the total condition of that will cell phone thoroughly. And if you have the wrong device, this might come to be a bane for you. You will get a good looking used cell phone with a perfect scenario protect without any scuff marks on it, but the truth is received no clue that maybe its internal equipment as well as its screen screen may well not work anytime rapidly because there have been some crucial damages on the inside of the phone a result of the previous owners. That's why, it is certainly important regarding you to avoid such a smartphone for your very own good. smartphones Talking about used smartphones, most people feel that made use of smartphones mostly draw simply for the sake actually second hand smartphones. Well, the truth is, not all made use of smartphones that you find all around the market a few broken phones that have a tendency job anymore. In fact, a number of this type of smartphone still performs just as great as completely new just one. So it's irrelevant nowadays to say that often the quality regarding second hand smartphones will be in which horrible. Well, if anyone have created the closing decision and are completely sure that this is the right time that you can buy your first ever utilized smartphone, then these types of are 12-15 useful ideas that with luck , can possibly be your first guidance each and every time you're planning to obtain used touch screen phones in typically the future. 1. Run some sort of Quick Scan on often the Case Cover The initially thing to notice coming from a smart phone is absolutely its case include. As a result, every time you connect with a few used smartphones upon just about any store, make positive that you always run a thorough scan of the particular system. Try to find if the device offers any physical defect or maybe scratch around the system of in which device. This particular must be done in buy to know more regarding what this device offers been through before whenever it was still used by the previous owners. two. Make Sure that the Case Cover is Original Applied smartphones are usually affected while using perception that their very own event covers will explain to you the whole matter of these condition. Well, this is so wrong. You actually cannot judge the overall level of quality of used smartphones merely by looking at exactly how sleek its chassis as well as precisely how flawless its tv screen. There is also a huge possibility that will the retailer already masks them develop some brand new 3rd party situation covers that obviously is likely to make them look like new devices, right? Therefore, as the smart customer, always supply yourself with the frame of mind that the sellers may always replace the original but damaged case handle a number of new 3rd party chassis create sales. 3. Make Sure that All of the Physical Buttons Work Completely Physical buttons always end up being the fragile element on almost any smartphone that tends for you to be broken easily in case they have been pushed so many times simply by the owners. For this reason, whenever checking out any made use of smartphone on the retail store, big event all the actual physical buttons, bear in mind, all associated with them, can work properly, with no hiccup. The ideal thing to do which through pressing each physical switch over and over again. If you view that there is certainly any press button that gives some sort of vulnerable or delay result (sometimes it works, sometimes the idea doesn't) or even will not work at all once you press it, then the particular best 4. Always Look at the Display Sensitivity along with the User Interface The following thing to check from some sort of used cell phone is typically the screen surface plus the sensitivity of its User Interface. Within this process, always run a thorough scan if at this time there is just about any scratch close to the screen and make sure this the touch screen still is effective perfectly. Test typically the contact response from each area of the screen until the middle spot. Do some mixed and also random gestures on the particular display over and around again, from:

[learnleadgeneration-blog]

18 Tips to Buy Used Mobile phone Without Spending Big

18 Tips to Buy Used Smart phone Without Spending Huge

Howsea If you are arranging to obtain a smartphone but possess a small spending budget in your tight pocket, then you can want to pick up a used mobile phone alternatively of a new 1. Still buying a employed smartphone might be a bit tricky if you don't have got just about any experience whatsoever concerning this "field". You can not just go up right now there to the smartphone retail store and create a random buy without checking the whole condition of this cell phone thoroughly. And if you still have the wrong device, that might develop into a problem for you. You will get some sort of good looking used touch screen phone with a perfect scenario handle without any scrapes on it, but the truth is acquired no clue that perhaps its internal equipment or even its screen program may well not work anytime rapidly because there have been some crucial damages inside of the phone attributable to the previous owners. Which why, it is important regarding you to avoid this sort of smartphone for your unique good. Howsea Referring to used smartphones on the market, most people believe that utilized smartphones mostly blaster just for the sake likely second hand smartphones. Very well, the reality is, not all applied smartphones that you just find all around the market are a couple of harmed phones that don't do the job anymore. In fact, wide variety this type of mobile phone still operates just because great as completely new a single. So it's irrelevant anymore to say that the actual quality involving second hand smartphones will be which horrible. Well, if an individual have created the closing decision and are completely sure that this is actually the right time for you to buy your first ever previously utilized smartphone, then these kinds of are eighteen useful suggestions that with any luck , can be your first guidance each and every time you're planning to purchase used cell phones in the actual future. 1. Run a Fast Scan on the particular Case Handle The initially thing to notice coming from a cell phone is surely its case cover. As a result, every time you meet many used smartphones about almost any store, make confident that you always any thorough scan of often the gadget. Try to observe if the device offers any physical defect or even scratch around the physique of in which device. That must be done in buy to know more about what that will device has been through during the past any time it was still employed by the previous owners. 3. Make Sure that the situation Cover is Original Utilized smartphones are usually beset while using perception that their very own event covers will inform you the whole point about their condition. Well, in which is and so wrong. A person cannot judge the actual good quality of used smartphones on the market just simply by looking at exactly how polished its chassis or maybe how flawless its tv screen. We have a huge possibility in which the vendor already addresses them plan some fresh 3rd party case comforters that obviously could make these individuals look like new mobile phones, right? Therefore, as some sort of sensible customer, always render yourself with the actual way of thinking that the sellers might always replace the first although damaged case cover with some new 3rd celebration chassis in order to make sales. three. Make Sure that Every one of the Physical Buttons Work Properly Physical buttons always end up being the fragile element on almost any smartphone that tends to be damaged easily in case they have been clicked so many times by the owners. Narrow models look great, any time checking out any employed smartphone on the shop, always make sure that all the bodily buttons, keep in mind, all of them, can work completely, without the hiccup. The ideal thing to do which through pressing each physical button over and more than again. If you notice that there is any option that gives a new weak or delay result (sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn't) or even won't work at all when you press it, then typically the very best 4. Always Look at the Screen Sensitivity having the User Interface The following point to check from some sort of used mobile phone is typically the screen surface along with the tenderness of its Ui. Inside this process, always run a thorough scan if there is virtually any scratch all around the screen and ensure this the touch screen nevertheless works perfectly. Test the touching response from every nook of the tv screen until the middle location. Do some mixed in addition to random gestures on often the screen over and around again, from:

[slashbeats2-blog]

eighteen Tips to Buy Utilized Mobile phone Without Spending Major

fifteen Tips to Buy Applied Mobile phone Without Spending Huge

BV9900 If you are arranging to get a smartphone but get a small price range inside your tight pocket, you might want to pick way up a used mobile phone as an alternative of a new one particular. Nevertheless , buying a applied smartphone might be a bit complicated if you don't include almost any experience whatsoever regarding this "field". You are unable to just go up presently there to the smartphone retail outlet create a random invest in without checking the entire condition of that cellphone thoroughly. And if you still have the wrong device, that might become a problem for you. You might get the good looking used smart phone with a perfect situation cover without any scuff marks on it, however, you obtained no clue this perhaps its internal hardware or perhaps its screen user interface may not work anytime rapidly because there have recently been some critical damages inside of of the phone due to the previous owners. Gowns why, this is important to get you to avoid this kind of smartphone for your unique good. smartphones Dealing with used smartphones, most people believe that utilized smartphones mostly blaster only for the sake that they are second hand smartphones. Effectively, the truth is, not all utilized smartphones that you just find about the market a few broken phones that may perform anymore. In fact, some of this type of mobile phone still functions just because great as new a single. So it's irrelevant any longer to say that typically the quality involving second side smartphones will be this horrible. Well, if you actually have made the ultimate decision and are perfectly sure that this is actually the right time that you can buy your first actually utilized smartphone, then these types of are 15 useful hints that ideally can end up being your first guidance every time you're planning to get used smartphones in the future. 1. Run a Quick Scan on typically the Case Deal with The first thing to notice through a touch screen phone is absolutely its case handle. For that reason, every time you connect with a few used smartphones about just about any store, make confident that you always the thorough scan of typically the device. Try to view if the device possesses any physical defect or even scratch around the entire body of that device. That must be done in order to know more concerning what which device offers been through in past times when it was still utilized by the last owners. two. Make Sure that the truth Cover is Original Applied smartphones are usually plagued with the perception that their very own event covers will explain to you the whole issue of the condition. Well, that will is thus wrong. You cannot judge the general high quality of used mobile phones simply by looking at precisely how glossy its chassis or just how flawless its monitor. You will find a huge possibility that the retailer already masks them together with some completely new 3rd party event handles that obviously can certainly make these people look like new mobile phones, right? Therefore, as some sort of intelligent customer, always equip yourself with the frame of mind that the sellers could possibly always replace the authentic although damaged case cover do some simple new 3rd gathering chassis help to make sales. three. Make Sure that All of the Physical Buttons Work Flawlessly Physical buttons always become the fragile element on almost any smartphone that tends to help be damaged easily if they have been pushed so many times by the owners. Therefore, if checking out any utilized smartphone on the shop, ensure that all the actual buttons, take into account, all connected with them, can work flawlessly, without the hiccup. The finest thing to do that is by pressing each actual physical switch over and over again. If you observe that there is any press button that gives a weakened or delay response (sometimes it works, sometimes the item doesn't) or even will not work at all whenever you press it, then the actual very best 4. Always Verify the Monitor Sensitivity along with the User Interface The following thing to check from any used smartphone is typically the screen surface plus the sensitivity of its Ui. Inside this process, always attempt a thorough scan if right now there is any scratch about the screen and make sure which the touch screen nonetheless functions perfectly. Test often the contact response from every single area of the display until the middle location. Do some mixed as well as random gestures on typically the display over and over again, from:

[neuroticfishbish]

Everyone I know is broken-hearted

All the genuinely smart, talented, funny people I know seem to be miserable these days. You feel it on Tumblr more than Facebook, because Facebook is where you go to do your performance art where you pretend to be a hip, urban person with the most awesomest friends and the best relationships and the very best lunches ever. Facebook is surface; Tumblr is subtext, and judging by what I’ve seen, the subtext is aching sadness. I’m not immune to this. I don’t remember ever feeling this miserable and depressed in my life, this sense of futility that makes you wish you’d simply go numb and not care anymore. I think a lot about killing myself these days. Don’t worry, I’m not going to do it and this isn’t a cry for help. But I wake up and think: fuck, more of this? Really? How much more? And is it really worth it? In my case, much of it stems from my childhood experiences and the collapse of the many relationships I had. But that’s not really the cause I think that those relationships were bulwarks, charms against the dark I’ve felt growing in this world for a long time now. When I was in love, the world outside didn’t matter so much. But without it, there is nothing keeping the wolf from the door. It's not to say I do not have good or kind people in my life, because I do. More than I deserve. It always used to be like this. Life sucked when I was young and I was unhappy then too. But there was always the sense that it was just a temporary thing, that if I stuck it out eventually the world was going to get better — become awesome, in fact. But here I am, and things aren't getting better I'm just getting older. I became an adolescent at the time Music was ushering in a decade of “slacker” ideology, as the pundits liked to put it. But the reality is that I didn’t know a whole lot of actual slackers in the until my early 20's I did know a lot of people who found themselves disillusioned with the materialism of the 1990s and what we saw as the failed rhetoric of the Sixties generation, who were all about peace and love right until the time they put on suits and ties and figured out how to divide up the world. I knew a lot of people who weren’t very interested in that path. The joke, of course, is that every generation kills the thing they love. The hippies became yuppies; Gen X talked a lot about the revolution, and then went and got themselves some venture capital and started laying into place the oversaturated, paranoid world we live in now. A lot of them tried to tell themselves they were still punk as fuck, but it’s hard to morally reconcile the thing where you listen to Fugazi on the way to your job where you help find new ways to trick people into giving up their data to advertisers. Most people don’t even bother. They just compartmentalize. And then the World Trade Center went down. And all of a sudden calling yourself an “anticapitalist terrorist” was no longer a cool posture to psych yourself up for protest. It became something you might go to jail for — or worse, to one of the Black Camps on some shithole island somewhere. Corporate capitalism became conflated somehow with patriotism. And the idea that the things you own end up defining you became quaint, as ridiculous spoken aloud as “tune in, turn on, drop out”. In fact, it became a positive: if you bought the right laptop, the right smartphone, the right backpack, exciting strangers would want to have sex with you! It’s no wonder that Gen X began seeking the largely mythological stability of their forebearers; to stop fucking around and eating mushrooms at the Rage Against The Machine show, and to try and root yourself. Get a decent car — something you can pass off as utilitarian — and a solid career. Put your babies in Black Flag onesies, but make sure their stroller is more high tech than anything mankind ever took to the Moon, because that wolf is always at the door. And buy yourself a house, because property is always valuable. Even if you don’t have the credit, because there’s this thing called a “subprime mortgage” you can get now! But the world changed again. And kept changing. So now you’ve got this degree that’s worth fuck-all, a house that’s worth more as scrap lumber than as a substantial investment, and you’re either going to lose your job or have to do the work of two people, because there’s a recession on. Except they keep saying the recession ended, so why are you still working twice as hard for the same amount of money? We started two wars, only one of them even marginally justifiable, and thousands and thousands of people died. Some of them were Americans, most of them weren’t. The world hated us again. It’s psychically oppressive to realize you’re the bad guy. Of course, for a lot of the world, America had always been the bad guy…but we didn’t really know that before, because we didn’t have the Internet in our pocket, to be pulled out at every lunch break and before the meal came and when the episode of Scrubs on TV dragged a little, and before bed. We were encouraged to immerse ourselves in the endless flow of information, to become better informed, because knowing more about the world made us better people. And maybe it did, but it also made us haunted people. Yesterday morning, when I woke up, I clicked on a video in my Tumblr feed that showed mutilated children being dragged from the streets of Gaza. And I started sobbing — just sobbing, sitting there in my bed with the covers around my waist, saying “Fuck, fuck, fuck,” over and over to the empty room. Dead children, torn to bits. And then it was time for…what? Get up, eat my cereal, go about my day? Every day? So you’re haunted, and you’re outraged, and you go on Twitter and you go on Facebook and you change your avatar or your profile picture to a slogan somebody thoughtfully made for you, so that you can show the world that you’re watching, that you care, that it matters. But if you’re at all observant, you begin to realize after a while that it doesn’t matter; that your opinion matters for very little in the world. You voted for Obama, because Obama was about hope and change; except he seems to be mostly about hope and change for rich people, and not about hope at all for the people who are killed by American drones or who are locked away without trial in American internment camps or who are prosecuted because they stand up and tell the truth about their employers. There does seem to be a lot of hope and change in Fort Meade and Langley, though, where the NSA and CIA are given more and more leeway to spy on everyone in the world, including American citizens, not for what they’ve done but what they might do. And the rest of the world? They keep making more dead children. They slaughter each other in the streets of Baghdad and Libya and Gaza and Tel Aviv; they slaughter each other in the hills of Syria; and, increasingly, they slaughter each other in American schools and movie theaters and college campuses. And when you speak up about that — when you write to your Congressperson to say that you believe in, say, stricter control on the purchase of assault weapons, or limiting the rights of corporations to do astonishing environmental damage, or not sending billions of dollars to the kind of people who think it’s funny to launch missiles filled with flechette rounds into the middle of schools where children huddle together — you’re told that, no, you’re the fascist: that people have the right to defend themselves and make money, and that those rights trump your right to not be killed by some fucking lunatic when you’re waiting in line at Chipotle to grab a chicken burrito, and your right to not be able to light your tapwater on fire with a Zippo because of the chemicals in it, or not to end up in a grainy YouTube video while some demented religious fanatic hacks your head off with a rusty bayonet because your country — not you, but who’s counting — is the Great Satan. And the music sucks. Dear God, the music sucks. Witless, vapid bullshit that makes the worst airheaded wannabe profundities of the grunge era look like the collected works of Thomas Locke. Half the songs on the radio aren’t anything more than a looped 808 beat and some dude grunting and occasionally talking about how he likes to fuck bitches in the ass. The other half are grown-ass adults singing about their stunted, adolescent romantic ideals and playing a goddamn washtub while dressed like extras from The Waltons. The music sucks. The movies suck — I mean, they didn’t suck the first time they came out, in the 1980s, but the remakes and gritty reboots and decades-past-their-sell-by-date sequels suck. Indiana Jones is awesome, but nobody needs to see a geriatric Harrison Ford, lured out of retirement by the promise of building another mansion onto his mansion, running around with fucking Shia LeBeouf in the jungle. And besides, we’re all media experts now; we can spot the merchandising nods from the trailer all the way to the final credits. There’s no magic left. It’s just another company figuring out a way to suck the very last molecules of profit out of the things we cherish, because that’s what corporations do. Everything is branded. Even people. People are “personal brands”, despite the fact that, by and large, you can’t figure out what most of them are actually even good for. They just exist to be snarky and post selfies and demand that you buy something, anything, with their picture on it. You actually know who Kim Kardashian is. In an ideal world, you’d be as unaware of her existence as you are of the names of the Chinese kids who made the futurephone or featherweight laptop you’re almost certainly reading this on. In an ideal world, Kim Kardashian would have spent her life getting sport-fucked anonymously by hip-hop stars in some Bel Air mansion, ran a salon, and either died of a coke overdose or Botox poisoning. There is no reason that her face and her life and her tits and her deathless thoughts needed to be foisted upon the world outside of the 90210 ZIP code. Except that somebody figured out that you could make money off showing people the car accident in slow motion, that people would watch that. Sure they will. People love to watch stupid people do stupid things. It makes them feel less stupid. And the Internet. We built this thing — and was part of the generation who took to the new medium like water and have made the majority of our adult lives creating it, to a greater or lesser degree — because we believed it would make things better for everyone. We believed it would give voice to the voiceless, hope to the hopeless, bring us all together, help us to understand and empathize and share with one another. We believed it could tear down the walls. And in a lot of ways it has. But in just as many ways, it has driven us all insane. There’s an old story — I have no idea if it’s true — about monkeys who had the pleasure centers of their brains wired up to a button. Push it, Mr. Monkey, and you have an orgasm. And the monkeys did. They pushed the button and they pushed the button, until they forgot about eating and they forgot about drinking and sleeping and simply fell down and died. What do you do when you first wake up? What do you do as soon as you get into work? After work? Before bed? Hell, some of us wake up in the night and check our feeds, terrified that we’ve missed out on something. We do it because we are given that reward, that stimulus that tells us oooh, a new shiny! It’s the fourteenth Guardians Of The Galaxy trailer, with 200% more Rocket Raccoon! Some fucking null node in Portland made a portrait of every single character from Adventure Time out of bacon and Legos! And, maybe most poisonous, maybe most soul-crushing: somebody said something I don’t like that makes me feel frightened and threatened! It’s time to put on my superhero costume and forward unto battle! Except it doesn’t matter. Because you’re not really changing anybody’s mind. How often does that little skirmish end with anybody changing their mind at all, even a little bit? Or does it just end with one of you invariably either blocking the other or saying something like “You know what, I’m going to stop now, because this is getting out of hand.” Getting out of hand? Everything they told you about how to live in the world when you were a kid is a lie. Education doesn’t matter, not even on paper. Being ethical doesn’t matter. Being a good person doesn’t matter. What matters now is that you’re endlessly capable of the hustle, of bringing in that long green, of being entertaining to enough people that somebody will want to give you money or fuck you or fund your startup. We’re all sharks now; if we stop swimming for just a little too long, we die. We lose followers. We’re lame. We’re not worth funding, or fucking. Because all that matters is the endless churn, the endless parade, the endless cycle of buying and trying to sell and being bought and sold by people who tell you that they’re your friends, man, not like those others. Microsoft is evil and Google is not evil, except when they are, but that’s not really important, and if you decide that maybe you’re tired of being reduced to nothing more than a potential lead for a sales pitch, like something out of a fucking David Mamet play, then you’re a hater and irrelevant and a Luddite. And besides, what would you do with yourself if you weren’t checking Facebook or playing Candy Crush Saga or watching some teenage dumbass smash his genitals on the side of a pool on YouTube? What the fuck would you even do, bro? The comedian Bill Hicks used to do a bit where he invited the advertisers and marketers in his audience to kill themselves. He imagined them turning it into an ad campaign: “Oh, the righteous indignation dollar, that’s a good dollar, Bill’s smart to do that.” He laid out the futility of trying to escape: “I’m just caught in a fucking web,” he’d say. And that’s where we are. You, me, we’re trapped, between being nothing more than consumers, every aspect of our lives quantified and turned into demographic data, or being fucking Amish cavemen drifting into increasing irrelevancy. Because it really does feel like there’s no middle ground anymore, doesn’t it? There’s no way to stay an active, informed citizen of the world without some motherfucker figuring out a way to squirm into your life to try and get a dollar out of you. Only fools expect something for free, and only bigger fools believe they’re anything other than a consumable or a consumer. We didn’t get the William Gibson future where you can live like a stainless steel rat in the walls between the corporate enclaves, tearing at the system from within with your anarchy and your superior knowledge of Unix command lines. Now it’s just pissed off teenagers who blame you because their lives are going to suck a cock and billionaire thugs trying to sell you headphones and handbags, all to a soundtrack of some waterhead muttering “Bubble butt, bubble bubble bubble butt” over and over while a shite beat thumps in the background. I know a lot of people who privately long for an apocalypse of some kind, a breakdown of the ancient Western code, because then they’d either be dead or free. How fucking horrifying is that? But nobody pulls that trigger, because now we’ve all seen what apocalypses look like. We saw Manhattan in 2001 and New Orleans in 2005 and Thailand in 2004 and the Middle East pretty much any given day. Nobody wants to hate, because we’re pummeled with hate every day, by people who are too fucking stupid to understand that the world has passed them by as much as it’s passed by the dude in the Soundgarden t-shirt who still drives around singing along to “Fuck you, I won’t do what you tell me!” on his way to his dead-end job. The best lack all conviction, and the people who are full of passionate intensity? Fuck them. We’re all sick of their shit anyway. And that’s where we are, and is it any goddamn wonder at all that the most profitable drugs sold in America for like a decade running have been antipsychotics? The world seems psychotic. I feel like I need to figure this out, like figuring all of this out and finding new ways to live has become the most important thing I could possibly do, not just for myself and the people I love but for the entire human race. I don’t mean me alone — I’m far too self-loathing to have a messiah complex — but I feel like, for me, this is the best use of my time. Because the world is making me crazy and sad and wanting to just put a gun in my mouth, and it’s doing the same thing to a lot of people who shouldn’t have to feel this way. I don’t believe anymore that the answer lies in more or better tech, or even awareness. I think the only thing that can save us is us. I think we need to find ways to tribe up again, to find each other and put our arms around each other and make that charm against the dark. I don’t mean in any hateful or exclusionary way, of course. But I think like minds need to pull together and pool our resources and rage against the dying of the light. And I do think rage is a component that’s necessary here: a final fundamental fed-up-ness with the bullshit and an unwillingness to give any more ground to the things that are doing us in. To stop being reasonable. To stop being well-behaved. Not to hate those who are hurting us with their greed and psychopathic self-interest, but to simply stop letting them do it. The best way to defeat an enemy is not to destroy them, but to make them irrelevant. I don’t have the answers. I don’t know some truth that I can reveal to everyone. All I can do is hurt, and try to stop hurting, and try to help other people stop hurting. Maybe that’s all any of us can do. But isn’t that something worth devoting yourself to, more than building another retarded app that just puts more nonsense and bullshit into the world? Just finding people to love, and healing each other? I think it is. Until I know more, I’ll just keep holding on. I won’t put the gun in my mouth. Because all of this sadness is worth it if there’s still hope. And I want to still have hope so badly. I still want to believe, in myself, and in you.

[rowanstories-blog]

Something Beautiful

The TV's murmur filled the room as Ronald Swint, known to others by names like Ron, Daddy, Asshole, and That Guy from the Street Corner, fiddled with a scratched and mildly broken smartphone. More like a dumb phone, Ron thought as he checked to see whether the shattered corner of the screen could still detect his touch. He never understood the appeal of a phone that was easier to break and harder to use than one with twelve buttons and a speaker. He didn't grumble too much about that, though; someone would put a lot of value on what he thought of as literal garbage. The saying 'one man's trash is another's treasure' couldn't have rang more true.

"Daddy!" The shout came through the open window, repeating as it moved closer to the front door.

Ron looked up from the phone as the door swung open and a young child, his only son, rushed into the room, grinning from ear to ear.

"Daddy, I sold so much lemonade! Look at how full my bag is!" He shook a small felt bag with unhindered enthusiasm, temporarily drowning out the TV's mumble with the sound of clattering coins.

Ron slid the phone back into his pocket, careful to not let the cracked side rip his pants any more than they already were, and took the coin bag from his son. "You're right, this is so heavy. Must have sold a lot." He forced a smile. "I'm gonna go in the kitchen and count this up for you, so you know how much you made."

"Can I help this time? Miss Evergreen says I'm a good counter."

"I'll let you count once I check it first, okay?"

His son grumbled a bit, but didn't continue his protest. His attention turned to the TV, now showing a commercial for a movie filled with explosions and cars. The rapid lights and scene changes put the child into a wordless trance, and he seated himself on the floor against the couch, fully invested in the flickering screen.

With a deep breath and a strong heave, Ron forced himself off the sagging couch, feeling several limbs crack in the process. As he walked toward the nearby kitchen, he felt his bones sag with the pull of gravity, reminding him with each step just how badly his body reacted to the passage of time. He did have one thing going for him, though; he didn't have any scraggly white hairs growing like weeds on his head. His early onset baldness had made sure of that.

With a swing of his arm that he thought looked like a no-funny-business mobster, but in reality looked more like the flail of an inflatable tube man dancing in front of a gas station, he knocked a pile of beer cans off a section of the table, sending them clattering across a floor that hadn't been swept in the better part of a decade. He poured out the coins from the felt bag and began counting the cents. After the first few coins he realized he'd need some mental energy to continue, so he grabbed a few of the remaining beer cans from the table until he felt one with liquid still inside. He took a sip with each coin he counted, a room-temperature and slightly stale reward for such a tedious task.

"That's three bucks, that's three fifty," he mumbled as he sorted the coins. "Ugh, who pays for lemonade with dimes and pennies? And this- what, an arcade token, seriously?"

He grabbed the gold-looking coin from the pile and gave it a closer look. Upon closer inspection, it appeared to be a reworking of an old golden dollar. but some things were off about it. For one thing, the face on the front wasn't Lady Liberty, or anyone recognizable, for that matter. It looked like a face rendered from what his son could draw; the eye was a bit too far from the front, the nose a bit too large and pointed, the mouth extended too far across the cheek. From its features he couldn't even tell if it was meant to depict a man or woman. The stars around the face, or what were supposed to be stars on the regular golden dollar, were instead various types of music notes. On the back he saw the recognizable laurel wreath, but where he expected to find the words "United States of America" and "One Dollar," he instead saw only symbols and glyphs that looked nothing like letters he recognized. He rubbed his thumb across the material as he held it in his fingers, assuming it to be some kind of plastic. To his surprise, it felt just like a real coin.

"Damn immigrants, bringing their freaky rip-off money here," he grumbled, flicking the odd coin back into his son's bag.

Once he determined that his son's labor had brought in exactly $21.47, he began putting coins back into the bag. Not every coin, of course. For each coin he put away, he moved two to the side, under the old newspaper just in arm's reach.

"All done," Ron called as he returned to the living room, seeing his son still glued to the TV. "There's $6.34 in here, and it's all yours."

His son's attention snapped away from the mumbling box and he ran up to his dad, grabbing the bag. "$6.34? Wow, that's like five candy bars!"

"That it is. Now go clean up the front yard, your mom will be here soon." Ron tried not to wince as he brought up his ex-wife.

His son nodded enthusiastically and ran out the front door, using more energy in a moment than Ron had stored for the entire day. He let himself fall onto the couch, resuming his investigation of his sidewalk phone find.

Several minutes later, he heard a sound all too familiar to him: the sputter and stop of an older pickup truck in his driveway. Through the open window he heard his ex-wife and ex-father-in-law speaking with his son, cooing over how good the lemonade stand looked and what a good businessman he was finding something to sell. Ron rolled his eyes. Tacking a sign to a tree and making lemonade on an old refrigerator box wasn't something to be impressed by; it was the oldest way for kids to make money in the book.

"Ron?" he heard his ex-father-in-law call. "We're picking up Max." No reply. "You awake in there? It's only 4pm, don't tell me you're already out for the day."

Ron scoffed. "I'm awake, old man. Do what you like."

He could hear his ex-wife speaking hushed frustrations with his ex-father-in-law, but he focused on fiddling with the phone until he heard the old pickup's engine sputter and groan as they drove away.

Once he was sure they had left, he got up from the couch and returned to the kitchen, dumping the hidden coins into his pocket. There hadn't been need to hide them this time since they hadn't come inside or had him stand up, but it was better to be safe than risk them hearing the clatter of coins in his pocket and try to pick yet another fight.

---

"Three cases of beer? Why not two, you only got two hands." The cashier chuckled with a polite smile.

Despite her trying to package it as a joke, Ron knew she meant that as a serious observation of his buying habits. He didn't often come in for buying on a Wednesday afternoon when she worked, but he didn't doubt for a second that the cashiers all spoke to each other about the regulars in the liquor store, especially those who also spent some time on the streets around it.

He long ago lost the anger he used to feel from being judged by such people, but that didn't mean he had the patience to put up with their 'jokes.' "So how much is it?"

Her smile momentarily fell into what he assumed was disappointment, but returned just as quickly. "That's $14.96. Cash or card?"

"Cash," he mumbled as he tossed the coins from his pocket onto the checkout counter. He could see the cashier's eyes gloss over in frustration, but her job required her to say nothing to him, which he very much liked. He let her count up the scattered change, watching to make sure she did it correctly, until all was accounted for.

"Have a nice day," she said, wishing for the exact opposite.

He grabbed up his change, glancing down at his hand. Something felt missing, though he knew she hadn't made a mistake with the math. He shook his hand a bit, checking to see if that would help him feel better. It didn't.

He grabbed the beers and quickly made his way out of the store. The feeling of something missing still gnawed at him, but it was nothing a nice drink wouldn't fix.

---

Ron collapsed into his bed, letting the empty beer can in his hand fall wherever the laws of physics sent it. The clock on his desk lit the room with a bright 1:56AM. The red numbers hurt his eyes to look at, so he closed them, trying not to succumb to the feeling of the room spinning around him.

The drinking had not, as he thought, filled the increasingly noticeable feeling that something was missing from his person. With every drink the feeling seemed to grow, and he kept checking his pockets: keys, phone (the 'smart' one he planned to sell), phone (the one he owned that actually made sense), wallet, change, receipts. He looked through the receipts in case one had become separated somehow. He even looked around the house in case something was off. He didn't clean, since that would be far too much effort for a drunk man, but he did move the mess around a bit, checking to make sure his few belongings of mild value remained in their spots. They did.

He gave a big sigh into his bed, blowing some crumbs and hairs on his sheets into the darkness. Perhaps, he considered, it was simply one of those days. Sleep would help the feeling pass.

As his body relaxed for sleep, he felt a weight between his fingers. Something small, cold, with a bit of texture. He rubbed his thumb on it. He felt a warmth in his chest well up, spreading slowly through his veins to his aching joints. The dull pain he always felt washed away with the warmth. It had been so long since he felt so at ease; even drinking couldn't compare to such calm and warmth. He felt his mind drifting further and further from his body, until he fell fully asleep.

---

When Ron awoke, all the pain and aches he came to expect from waking up, especially after a night of drinking, hit him without mercy. He got up and mindlessly began his morning routine, grabbing a beer from the table nearby to take the edge of his hangover off. When he grabbed it, his hand jolted with pain, and he dropped the can.

He looked down at his fingers, and through the haze of his half-conscious mind, he realized that the tips of his first two fingers and thumb were a bright red, the skin rubbed raw. As he looked, he felt the distant memory of a warmness in his dreams, but his mind refused to be any more clear than that.

He shrugged it off as yet another drunken injury, picked up the can with his opposite hand, and continued his routine, doing his best to ignore the nagging feeling of something missing, something empty, from the day before, and the new feeling of something forgotten from his sleep.

Several hours later, Ron ambled outside of the nearby tavern, waiting for happy hour to begin. His success at selling the phone he found on the sidewalk deserved a little bit of celebration, he thought with a smile. He could spare to use a few extra dollars on some good hard liquor before returning to his beer stash at home.

Some of his street friends watched him, coming up to ask what the occasion for going to the tavern was. Some asked if something special happened with his son, like getting into a sports league or winning a spelling be. He wouldn't answer, pretending to put on an air of mystery. In all truth, he had no idea if his son had done anything of note for quite some time. That wasn't their relationship, and he was perfectly okay with that. His son didn't seem to mind, so why should he? It's not like six year olds were off winning awards anyway.

Once the nearby church bells chimed for 4pm, he darted into the bar, reminding himself that he would have one nice drink, nothing more.

He had his drink in minutes, and it was gone in several more. The thought of leaving occurred to him, but that gnawing feeling of emptiness, which lingered through the day as a whisper, returned with a vengeance as he looked at the change he tossed on the counter for his drink. He found himself ordering another drink, and another, each time staring at the coins and bills he tossed on the bar to pay for longer than he had ever before.

The sun fell outside, and the nightlife regulars began to take their usual seats in the bar. A woman sat near Ron, and he couldn't help but stare. At first he only focused on her feminine assets, but when she looked over to him, he couldn't look away from her face. It was unlike any he had ever seen. One of her eyes sat further out on her face than the other, and her long pointed nose sat just off center of her face. As he stared, she smiled with a long grin, stretching into her cheeks. She spoke to him, her words undecipherable but spoken in a voice that sounded exactly like music. The musical sounds filled his ears, his head, his whole being with a calm and relaxing warmth. Beautiful, simply beautiful.

He felt his mouth and body moving in response to her, but all of his conscious attention was on the face, a sight that dulled the feeling of emptiness within him. 

---

Ron jolted awake, quickly darting his eyes around the room to see where he ended up the night before. Somehow, despite his alcohol-induced loss of memory, he made it back to his house. As he tried to create a sequence of events in his mind, his hand bumped into something in his bed. No, a someone. His memory sparked. The woman, the beautiful woman from the bar! He hadn’t had a night filled with such wonder and beauty in all of his life.

The woman stirred, and slowly rose, back to Ron. She looked around, then looked back at him with a smile. "Hey sexy," she whispered.

Ron's heart fell. This was not the beautiful woman he remembered from the bar. Her eyes sat evenly apart, and her tiny nose matched the shortness of her mouth. Her voice had no song quality; it spoke just the same as all other voices in his life. His heart ached with the feeling of loss, ripped deeper than he ever felt before.

"Get out," he whispered.

"What was that?" the woman asked.

Her voice, the hoarseness of each syllable clashing with each other, ripped at his ears. Her ugly face could make only sound, not wonderful music. "Get out!" He grabbed beer cans, pillows, whatever he could, and threw them at the woman as she grabbed her skirt from the floor and darted out of the room in horrified tears.

As he prepared to throw a final can at the door as a well-deserved 'fuck you' to the woman for her deception, he noticed the drops of red that now spattered the room. His gaze locked onto his two fingers and thumb, now bloody at the tips and throbbing with a dull pain. Without thinking, he rubbed them together. He expected a jolt of pain, like he felt when they touched other things, but instead the pain subsided, and with it some of the emptiness inside of him dulled too.

With that motion, he remembered. The coin. The one from his son's lemonade stand. It had the face of beauty on it, and his dreams of rubbing it made him feel so warm, so healthy, so complete. He had something magical, something divine, in his own fingers! And now, it was gone. His heart fell, and the emptiness returned.

No. He wouldn't let something so precious go so easily. It had only been two days, and no store would take a coin like that as currency. His son still had the coin, he was sure of it. He would just need to go to his ex-wife's house and get it back.

A part of him nagged him to jump in the shower, or at least put on some new underwear, but the rest of his being couldn't wait. Every second he wasted could potentially be the second that his son dropped the coin down a drain, or threw it in a pond, or any number of other ways a young child could lose something as small as a coin. His head pounded with the thoughts. The shower could wait. He may not even need a shower once he got the coin back; it made all things beautiful, and beautiful things would never become so impure that they'd need showers. He would be able to drink to his heart's content in a world of music, and wake up the next morning just as fresh as the day before!

He shook the cobwebs off his bike and rode off into the streets, cursing under his breath about his impounded car and revoked license.

---

It took longer than Ron would have liked, but by noon he arrived at the sidewalk in front of his ex-wife's house. He hated the little garden out in front of the light blue walls, he hated the welcome mat covered with suns and umbrellas out on the tiny porch, and he especially hated the lawn gnomes hiding under the flowers and bushes. He did his best to avoid looking at their creepy faces as he knocked on the front door.

His ex-wife answered the door. "Ron?" She didn't hide her disgust. "What the hell are you doing here? It's my time with Max, you know." Her face turned from a disgust at him to an entirely different revulsion. "My God, did you shit your pants or something? What's wrong with you?"

The words of her voice throbbed in his ears like the sound of scratching metal, but he fought through the feeling. "The coin," he stammered, struggling to focus. He felt his fingers and thumb rub together, and the words came to him. "The kid took a coin from my collection, and I need it back." A perfectly viable excuse, he thought.

"Since when do you keep any coin instead of spending it on booze?"

"This one's different. Valuable." He stopped himself from revealing any more.

"Well," his ex-wife said with a bit of a smile, "in that case, maybe I'll sell it to make up for all that child support you owe."

He felt a bullet shoot through his heart from her words. The coin, his precious coin, sold off to god-knows-who! As he stared at her, the anger he felt that morning surged back. He hated hearing her uneven, un-melodic voice saying such horrid things, saying anything at all! And her face, her even eyes and centered nose, only served to enrage him further. The corners of her small mouth continued to smile, and he couldn't hold it in any longer.

"I'm getting it myself!" he declared, forcing his way into the house. His body, while worn down from the passage of time and overworking of his liver, still had enough strength left to push his ex-wife aside and rush into the house, making a line for his son's room.

He burst in to see his son sitting on the floor with some coloring books. His felt bag, his favorite storage item, sat next to him.

"Daddy?" his son asked, confused. "Why are you back in Mommy's house?"

Ron didn't answer as he grabbed the felt bag and poured its contents on the floor, shuffling through the coins, crayons, and other contents. Not a single item he saw glinted with the gold he longed for. "The coin," he said pointedly, staring down at the pile of junk before him.

"W-what?"

The word echoed in Ron's mind, ripping at his insides, making the emptiness inside him intolerable. He grabbed the child, throwing him against the wall, holding his ugly even face in a single clenching hand. "The coin! The golden coin I left in your bag! What the hell did you do with it, boy?"

The child began crying, his face even uglier than before, the sobs and cries tearing Ron's mind apart. He continued screaming, demanding answers, shaking the obstacle between him and his coin against the wall with each word. He heard yelling and footsteps behind him, but he couldn't worry about that. He needed the coin. No one would stop him from having that divine, wonderful-

Something smashed into Ron's head, sending a single jolt of pain before everything cut to darkness.

---

Ron's eyes slowly opened to bright white light all around him. He heard an even beeping in the distance. He tried to get up, to look around, to do anything at all, but his body refused to respond.

He heard a tune ring out nearby. His eyes darted to the most beautiful doctor he had ever seen, his long gaping mouth opening and closing to create the tune. The doctor gestured at his papers, pointing at a nearby IV drip from time to time. The movements lined up with the tune from the doctor's mouth like a rehearsed performance.

A nurse came into the room, her uneven eyes meeting his, and their two beautiful faces performed a wondrous duet for Ron. The doctor pointed at the neck of the nurse, miming her being struck. The nurse let her body go a bit limp from the acted blow. The two continued their song as they moved, the sights and sounds filling Ron with a warmth unmatched by any he felt before.

The performance ended, and the two waited for Ron's response. He wished to applaud, to praise their wonderful features, but his body refused. The two left the room, heads fallen. Ron hated to let their wonder go unmentioned, but he couldn't imagine they didn't know how beautiful they were already.

His eyes glanced around the room, clearly in a hospital, and then to himself. He noticed his arm rested on his stomach, though he couldn't entirely feel it. On his arm laid a note, propped for him to read.

"Ron: You're lucky my dad didn't kill you. I'm getting sole custody of Max. Burn in hell with your damn coin."

His eyes wandered to his hand. Between his fingers and thumb rested a small circle of gold. His thumb rubbed slowly and continuously, and while Ron couldn't feel the movement of his thumb or the texture of the coin, he felt the warmth and wonder that the coin possessed flowing into him, filling the emptiness and longing inside of him with something absolutely beautiful.

#short story #horror #spooky

[ayyponine]

good teaching practise experiences pt 2:

+ every member of staff just being /so nice/... including the cleaning staff and ladies at the reception desk holla

+ but yeah especially both my mentors they were so supportive and kind and good people

+ shoutout to the one guy in my seventh yrs class who was super cooperative and good@ english bc on my first day id had to teach 4th-8th period and at the end of that fifth hr i was pretty drained (esp bc a teacher frm my own school had been there for the last two hrs to judge my performance) and he came up to me afterwards to explicitly tell me id done a good job despite his classmates being “kinda rowdy and stupid”

+ also i thanked him bc he had been shushing them fr me

+ then my class of first years who all passed their test on plural nouns (in dutch it’s pretty much like aight you just add an en or s to make it plural.....unless you don’t.....good luck)

+ even the one kid in the back who was like no im too stupid this isn’t right i think he got like a 12/15 and he missed a huge part of the lesson like?? believe in yrself buddy

+ i told them to at least fill in something bc leaving it blank means no points all the same and they all tried and got it right after all so go kids!! even the teacher herself was surprised bc it wasn’t like i had made the test too easy or anything

+ also this tiny quiet girl who on the third day on the way to class walked next to me. didnt say a thing. i could see her looking frm the corner of my eye but whenever i looked over twas eyes back to the front

+ my super smart boys who got bored and started talking when i was coaching others im sorry yall i shouldve gotten you extra, more challenging exercises

+ thats a recurring thing btw like kids being too smart and just bored during class so they’re “bothersome” and “uncooperative”. in this other class a kid like that questioned smth i said and actually had some valid input on the subject like ofc i was right but he had made a v smart remark anyway and when after having explained it i said “thank you for pointing that out” he was just like ”?? !! :)”

+ tiny adhd kid who was like ma’am whats your name. how many lessons are you gonna teach us. is class almost over. whatre we gonna do next. is this your only job

+ my seventh years again like aight they were kinda unfocused at times but we had a good connection i feel

+ to my second years who were the rowdiest and most excited of all my groups but then calmed down when i a) played some soothing music while they worked b) brought a star projector so they were all just like *o* and c) read a text myself when the audio files were malfunctioning (you could hear a pin DROP i was NOT expecting that)

+ our last activity was memory but with synonyms on lil green cards and it went super well. and then i handed out antonyms on red cards to add to the game and the teacher afterwards was like....youre not gonna bin these right?? and she kept them all in a lil envelope so she could use em as well fr another group B)

+ apparently i got a kid that barely ever raises his hand to do so and answer a question so thats pretty fukn neat

+ also shoutout to my own poker face bc apparently it’s better than i thought. one recurring comment that kept coming back on the reviews was like “you’re so calm all the time” meanwhile i was hecka stressing and/or thinking like lord send help.... trying to keep a class under control can be hard man. at one point a kid farted and it was complete mayhem

+ btw it feels so good to sit yr ass down on a desk...... the mentor said it only added to my chill presence and natural spontaneous connection with the pupils so i just thought like aight imma keep doing it then thanks B)

+ i had taught a culture class on holidays to two classes of seventh yrs and it started with a picture of jack skellington opening the christmas door so i could be like ok who recognises this, whats going on. we’re gonna do the same and explore some holidays so whip out yr smartphones yall we’re gonna do some research

+ but then the day i taught it to my 4th years we had some major computer issues all day so i solved it (at last....my years of being a fan of this film paid off...) by saying aight... im gonna draw my best friend in the world on the board, let’s see if you recognise him and by the time i had done the head and a long neck i could already hear like “jack skellington!!!” behind me and that was before the like collar thing i was so relieved could you IMAGINE if everyone had just been like????? and then afterwards on my review page i could see the teacher had put a “+++” on there bc it was a creative solution to not having the computer and bc the kids were intrigued and immediately hecka involved bc of those drawing skills. getting the extremely shy kid to participate only got me two pluses

+ comuter problems were still there the next day so i couldnt teach the lesson i had prepared :)) teacher was just like well! *leafing through a pupil’s course* just do this reading comprehension instead ok. luckily the entire unit was based on this one murder within a bigger crime theme (vocab on some diff crimes, listening exercise was summarising the interrogation of a suspect, past simple and past perfect simple to describe events in further past as written in the police report, how to voice a guess (might/may/could) or a definite certainty (must/can’t) when reviewing evidence etc etc.....) anyway this reading comprehension was on AC Doyle and my nerdass fukn saved my lesson once again, listing the diff modern adaptations to get kids involved (maybe youve seen the movies with rdj? or the bbc series with that one dude whos into that new marvel movie and the other is the hobbit *no reaction* ......whos seen the disney film with the mice) and giving extra info on the strand magazine, that Reichenbach is a waterfall, abt normalised opium dens and the meaning of the “V.R.” Holmes shot into the wall like. the teacher was like wow it’s a real bonus you could give all these extra lil trivia facts that was really impressive and added to yr lesson i was just :)))) yep

+ the pupils barely said shit though so i ended the class with some free communication letting them talk in smaller groups abt their favourite crime/thriller/horror movies/series/games and like both hot fuzz and mission impossible popped up so i just B))))) yea it was a p good lesson considering i hadnt been able to do shit in preparation

+ both mentors took the time to sit w me afterwards and go through the general review of my teaching practise and i was ready to cry it was so positive they said the nicest things. i really needed a good teaching practise to get me out of the danger zone fr that course and i think i might be good now. i just need to make sure the third one is positive as well and then im aight B)