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peekbackstage · 3 years

Note

I noticed in one of your responses that you speculated that Xiao Zhan is currently the #1 star in china and his agent is probably not inclined to request talent buyers but rather command top pruce. Can you expand a bit on your thought process? I always feel like without the usual modes of exposure through various high end endorsements and appearances in shows and stage, he has lost a lot of influence and power. Granted he finally has The Wold air, and attended two live events, but rest of the year he has has no new endorsements, shows or appearances. Is it just the various ranking charts that would lend him his influence? How do talent buyers figure out the ‘pull’ any actor would have??

Disclaimer: The following response includes both facts and speculation that is informed by my 10+ year career in the music industry.

“Xiao Zhan is currently the #1 star in China” is probably not what many fans would expect to hear after the year Xiao Zhan has had. In fact, it wasn’t too long ago that I also did not believe this, but quite a number of factors have moved my assessment.

There are a few factors that determines how a talent buyer might assess an artist. These factors include:

HARD DATA

Social media following

Sales and streaming figures

Viewership

TV rankings

Awards rankings

Brand deals

Media reach

SOFT DATA

Internal projections

“Hype”

Overall marketability

Market sentiment

Media sentiment

All of this culminates in a general assessment that helps to determine how much an artist is “worth.” Essentially, you might as well call all of these key performance indicators (KPIs).

If you consider that artists are a brand, and all brands can either appreciate or depreciate in value depending on market sentiment, you might be able to get a better understanding of how artists are evaluated.

To provide a concrete example that might help everyone understand how this works a little better, think for a moment about how public companies increase in value and how stock prices rise and fall. If a company reports solid earnings (hard data) and announces that they will be releasing a new line of highly anticipated products (hype), this increases market sentiment, which then results in a direct increase in positive price action for their stock. Conversely, companies that have bad earnings reports and lackluster product offerings might see a sell-off that results in a drop in price (and therefore, in value) when information hits the news cycles.

Like companies, artists are evaluated much the same way. Consider that Xiao Zhan was, prior to the 227 Incident, at the very top of the game in China. He held a huge amount of brand deals and was highly sought after, especially after his popularity skyrocketed due to the international acclaim he received from The Untamed. All of this created an intrinsic “value” that translated to a specific guarantee price.

(Guarantee: the price a talent buyer guarantees an artist when they are booked for a performance.)

The 227 Incident for Xiao Zhan is what we would call a “Black Swan” event. Another Black Swan event is COVID-19, which decimated the stock market in March 2020. Over 90% of companies listed on the S&P 500 had “distributed large negative returns.” Did this catastrophic event mean that it was the end for all of these companies? Absolutely not. Was 227 the end for Xiao Zhan? Absolutely not.

These are basic fundamentals that talent buyers understand, especially if an artist hasn’t been blackballed or been subjected to a career death. Sometimes, artists have scandals. Some have a hard time coming back from them, but Xiao Zhan’s enduring popularity has not waned, even if he did lose brand deals and has not really been in the spotlight.

The following KPIs are what a talent agent would notice for Xiao Zhan:

#1 selling single in 2020 - 光点 (Spotlight) sold over 40.9 million copies with pretty much no promotion, which is actually insane. (This actually qualifies him for an RIAA diamond certification!!! There are only 44 other singles that have earned this ranking.)

The Wolf became the #1 streaming show in China the moment it was released, entirely because of Xiao Zhan’s popularity. It immediately led to a significant amount of positive media coverage, both domestically and worldwide.

TV viewership surged dramatically when Xiao Zhan appeared on December 5 as a surprise guest. (I forgot the exact figure, but I think I read it was 17 million? Please correct me if I am wrong.) This positive statistic is another solid green check mark for talent agents.

Xiao Zhan’s Red Sea was a top trending topic and had massive media coverage. This is essentially what agents are looking for when they book artists. It means HYPE HYPE HYPE, and HYPE means MONEY MONEY MONEY

Positive media coverage over Xiao Zhan’s fans cleaning up the entire arena

Massive award sweep - In 2020, Xiao Zhan won every single major award he was nominated for, and took #1 in pretty much all other smaller media award lists, except for 2. Here is the list: Jinri Toutiao Awards - Most Noticed Male Celebrity Weibo Awards - Hot Figure of the Year - The Untamed Weibo Awards - Weibo King China Literature Awards - Actor of the Year - The Untamed, Jade Dynasty China Literature Awards - Heartthrob Actor - Jade Dynasty China Screen Award - New Actor of the Year - Jade Dynasty 27th ERC Chinese Top Ten Awards - Top Ten Songs “Unrestrained” with Wang Yibo 27th ERC Chinese Top Ten Awards - Top Ten Songs “Remaining Years” Weibo TV Series Awards - Most Popular Actor - The Wolf Tencent Entertainment White Paper - Male Singer of the Year - “Spotlight” Tencent Entertainment White Paper - Star Power of the Year Tencent Video All Star Awards - VIP Star WeTV 2020 Awards - Best Wuxia Drama - The Untamed WeTV 2020 Awards - Best Male Lead TCC Asia The 100 Most Influential Faces of 2020 - #1 TCC Asia The Most Handsome Faces of Asia - #1 Weibo The Most Beautiful Charity Ambassador in 2020 - #1 Starmometer The 100 Sexiest Men in the World 2020 - #1 TCC Asia The 100 Most Handsome Face in Asia Pacific 2020 - #1 Top Beauty World The 100 Most Handsome Men in the World 2020 - #1 WeChat 2020’s Top 10 Handsome Idols - #3 TC Candler The 100 Most Handsome Faces in the World 2020 - #7 Yes, even despite everything that happened in 2020, Xiao Zhan still took home quite a lot of awards! Note that a number of these awards were won after the 227 Incident, notably, the Weibo TV Series Awards, the WeTV 2020 Awards, and Tencent Video All Star Awards.

Changing market sentiment - Overall market sentiment with Xiao Zhan is trending more positive than negative. Essentially, if Xiao Zhan were a company, they would describe this as a “bullish crossover” and a “bull trend.”

In general, all of the above helps to form a talent buyer’s assessment of the intrinsic value of an artist. And this is largely why I personally believe and would assess Xiao Zhan to be China’s #1 star that will provide any stakeholder with the #1 ROI, which has already been statistically proven by the strength of his sales and continued award wins.

Of course, I can’t say with absolutely certainty whether or not Chinese talent buyers absolutely, positively see it this way, but this is more or less how most talent buyers evaluate talent. If Xiao Zhan were to be evaluated as an asset at this very moment, he would essentially be rated as asset that is in the process of “mooning.” (I.e. Going [back up] to the moon. Breakout positive trend! It’s raining money again!)

I have a very hard time imagining that any talent buyer worth their salt would somehow miss the clear indicators that show the tides are changing and a trend crossover has occurred.

I have strong faith in a full comeback for Xiao Zhan. I believe that he will soar once more - not only in popularity, but also in success. While he will always have antis who will try to dim his shine, I fully believe that there is nothing that can stop the brightest star in the sky from ascending to new heights.

I only see blue skies above.

#xiao zhan #talent buyers #artist valuation #music industry #industry speculation #Anonymous #ask #peek answers

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monster-or-man · 5 years

Text

Monster or Man (working title) -Chapter 1

Hi all. So I’ve decided to post the first chapter of the first draft of my book that I’ve been working on for a long time. This is the first draft so it’s mostly just to get my ideas down, but I am looking for some feedback. If you enjoy it, please let me know. If you think there are improvements that need to be done, also let me know. Thanks!

She kept looking over her shoulder out of fear of being caught. What she was about to do would be considered treason, not only to the facility she was currently studying in but to the whole country. Dr Myrah Liang, in this place, her name wasn’t important, she was just one of many genetic scientists that were forced to work within these walls, however, soon she will be known all around the world. Thankfully, her outfit allowed her to blend in, the white long buttoned lab coat with the brown pants. It was the standard uniform for the genetic scientists, no one really batted an eye when they witnessed her standing at one of the various metal doors in the long hall. Reaching into her front pocket, an ID card was presented and pressed against the security keypad, little whispers slipped through her bright red lips. “Please, please, please.” Genetic scientists only had level one access, which only really opened up most of the labs and research quarters. To her surprise, the little red light on the keypad turned green and a small click notified her that the door unlocked. The lights flickered to life as she entered the room, revealing cabinets as tall as the walls themselves. Jackpot. Closing the door slowly behind her, Dr Liang’s eyes stared in amazement before rushing over to one of the shelves. Her fingers flipped through the folders, she had to find something, something that could expose this whole operation. Each file was labelled; December 17th 2001 – Afghanistan December 18th 2011 – Iraq March 16th 2004 - Pakistan April 27th 2018 – North Korea

Grabbing each file folder, Dr Liang thought that this might be enough evidence to get the media to pounce onto the people running this hellhole. However, she grabbed one more file as as a precaution. It had no date and the folder itself was completely blank. The scientist was so engrossed in looking at the files, she failed to realize that a security camera had been recording the whole time. Her head poked up from the stacks of papers and she began shuffling out. The plan to look as normal as possible was completely chucked out of the window, she just wanted to get out of there quickly before anyone noticed what she was doing.

Alarms echoed through the pearly white halls as the scientist bolted towards one of the many doors surrounding her. In her grasp were a stack grey coloured file folders, some of which had fallen out of her hands and onto the ground below. She didn’t bother stop and pick them up as the sound of heavy boots grew ever closer. With panicked breaths, the scientist slammed her body against the two large metal doors that separated her from her freedom. Her fist punched the enlarged elevator buttons but a voice stopped her dead in her tracks.

“And what exactly do yae plan on doing with those?”

That familiar Scottish accented, cold toned voice. She couldn’t help but swallow the lump of fear that built up in the back of her throat realising just exactly who was standing behind her. Much akin to a scared puppy, the woman’s head slowly turned, eyes widened and her body quaking. It was her boss, Dr Achim Lankanotvitch, dressed in a long black lab coat that was buttoned on his chest. His black short hair held was held together with enough wax that it looked like it could stab ones fingers if they were to touch it. The most eye catching feature which separated him from the rest of the scientists in the facility was the large metal arm that had completely replaced his normal limb. Large round glasses with reflective lenses covered his eyes, which made it difficult to read what emotion his face was portraying. However, judging by his straight posture and authoritative stance, he was not happy that this situation was occurring. “Your operation has to end. Too many innocent people are dying!” She shouted with the files hugged to her chest. “A shame really, I had such high hopes for yae.” Achim brushed off her statement, it meant nothing to him. “Leak those files and the whole world will spiral into a panic, wars will be started and a lot more lives will be lost.” He held out his blue gloved hand while his fingers twitched, demanding that she hand over the stack of papers. A ding from the elevator rang through both of their ears causing both of their heads to twitch. The rouge scientist moved to the opening doors, hunched over the files so no more would fall. “I’m going to put a stop to this, it’s time the world discovers your crime against humanity.” As soon as she said that, Achim almost leapt forward, attempting to grab her arm as she shuffled through the doors. He barely missed, but that didn’t stop the woman from hyperventilating in panic. She knew what would have happened if she got caught, a punishment so severe that she wouldn’t want to wish it upon anyone. Thankfully, getting to the elevator was the hardest part. Achim remained in his spot as the elevator went up. His left eye was twitching from the sudden stress that washed over him. Behind, several heavily armed security came to a halt. “Sir… someone is escaping with some sensitive material.” The scientist’s head turned slowly to face the soldier who spoke, his glare only darkened. “I KNOW!” That sudden outburst caused the entire facility around them to fall silent even the chatter from down the hall stopped. “Yae there… put him in the feeder… I need a drink.” “No! No!” The other soldiers were quick to listen to their boss’s demand, wrapping their arms around him as they dragged him away. Achim on the other hand made his way back down the hall. Luckily his private office wasn’t too far away.

As the boss walked down the hallway, his hands were linked behind his back. The Test Centre of Classified Somatology, usually known as the TCCS amongst the employees. Thirty years of blood, sweat and tears went into this place, sadly, for it’s creator, it had to remain hidden to the rest of the world. He approached his office slowly, nodding to the two soldiers who always stood guard at the door. They saluted back in a sign of respect as Achim entered. The room itself was large, but the office only took up a quarter of the space while the rest was used as living quarters for himself. In the right hand corner laid a messy double bed with the covers thrown over the side. Making his way to a large wooden cabinet, his metal fingers brushed against glass bottles, most of which were unopened bottles of whisky and wine, while others appeared to be almost empty.

“Hitting the drink already? It’s not even five o’clock.” A woman spoke from the door, Achim didn’t even hear her come in. She was dressed similar to him, a black long lab coat, but unlike her boss, she kept hers unbuttoned.. Her striking white long hair bounced as she walked before she slapped another batch of files on his desk. Being a much much older woman, she had been apart of the facility for many years, almost the same amount of time as Achim. There was no surprise that she would soon find herself second in command. “Leave me alone, I’ve had a rough day.” Achim snarked back at her comment while he poured himself a nice tall glass of Malt Scotch Whisky, the events from earlier today called for one of the more expensive drinks in his collection. “What’s this?” “Paperwork for that soldier you sentenced to death. Come on, you know the drill.” Her nail pressed against the file folder, tapping it. “Do you really need this right this second Karolinne?” “Yes, and don’t call me that while we’re on the job… I don’t want the rest of the employees to start…” She retorted with a small huff, still standing her ground in front of his desk. “I heard about the rouge scientist… What are you going to do about her?” Upon that question being asked, Achim stood up, whisky cup in hand as he made his way to the large window that was one of his walls. Behind the glass were fake trees, which rustled slightly as if something was moving. “It depends on how she plays her cards, if she goes to the media, we can shut it down before anybody gets a chance to see them. Head into parliament, she’d get shot on the spot. I’ll put out a nation wide warrant for her arrest.” Karolinne followed him, her eyes peering down to the area below. “I think you are being way to relaxed about this.” She looked at him before returning her gaze. “You under estimate her, don’t you?”

“I’m surprised, you more than anybody should know how many people have tried to put a stop to my operation, what is it now? Five? Six?” Achim took another sip of his expensive whisky, not giving her the time of day. She had nothing but respect for him, so when he gave her the cold shoulder, she went silent on the subject. “The president is going to get wind of this sooner or later.” Only then did the scientist react, shuffling in his spot ever so slightly but it was noticeable to her. On that note, Karolinne made her way to the door. “Get that paperwork done as soon as possible.” No response. Achim had become lost in his own thoughts. The TCCS had so much potential, however layers of red tape had constricted his ideas and expanding his operation was not possible anymore. Trees rustled below him once more, snapping him out of his thoughts. He slowly walked back to his desk and basically flopped into his chair, starting his paperwork.

Days had passed since the files were stolen, nothing had really come from it which was rather surprising to Achim. He half expected half of the world to be furious with him but it was all radio silence. The scientist was in his office, observing some of the security footage from that day, when his desk lit up. On the screen below his files, the face of the President himself showed up on the incoming call button. Great. He tapped the green answer square as if he was using a normal cell phone. Shortly after a holographic screen appeared in front of him with live feed from the Oval Office. “So nice to see yae mister President.” Achim attempted to clean his desk by just shoving papers back into the file folder, he’ll sort it later. The President of the United States, a man that held tremendous power over many countries around the globe. Personally, Achim felt like he was wasting it. There were so many missed opportunities that would have benefited the country greatly. “Achim! Why are you killing your own men again!?” He didn’t flinch despite the fact that his boss was yelling at the top of his lungs, clearly furious at him. “First of all, don’t yell at me like that… secondly, that man was incompetent, if you would assign me some people that could in fact do their job, then I’d be more than happy not to send them to the pit.” That didn’t stop the president from still screaming his head off. “That’s no excuse! We have people asking questions!” Achim held his tongue. As much as he wanted to scream back at the top of his lungs about how that soldier decided to make the smart ass remark, he knew that it would only lead to more arguing. The president continued. “We have an investor interested in helping you fund your operations, she will be arriving in the next forty-eight hours, get your act together and make sure you’re ready to show her your best work.” That new piece of information really put Achim on edge. His stance shifted while his arms were suddenly crossed at the chest, he couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “An investor? I told yae… we were getting more orders coming in, people have been paying.” “We’re running out of money, even with their contributions. You and I both know that we cannot turn down any interested parties at this point.”

The scientist rubbed his chin, disapproving by this sudden turn of events. “Fine, we will show her around.” “Good, now don’t mess this up.” On that note, the screen shut off with a faint clicking sound. Achim moved from rubbing his chin to rubbing his temple. Karolinne stood on the side of his desk, she looked rather amused with her wide grin. “On days like this I’m kind of glad you’re the one that has to deal with him and not me.” “It’s not like I had a choice in the matter.” He sighed deeply, expelling the pent up rage that had been slowly boiling up to the surface. “Either way, I want this place in pristine condition, a little extra funding would go a long way.” “Yes sir.”

#oc story #book draft #chapter 1 #monster or man #Any feedback would be great!#writing #written draft #writer

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mydreamzoneme-blog · 6 years

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TCC WALLET CREATE PROBLEM II Solution

#tcc #tcc exchange #tcc landing wallet #tcc white paper #the champcoin #tcc 2018 #india tcc #mahesh varma tcc

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admin-cock-creations · 5 years

Text

A Worthy Investment

Support Me on Ko-fi || Become a Patron!

Fandom: N/A Pairing: Achim Lankanotvitch [OC] / Taryn Nargarian [OC] Summary: Achim goes down to see if his latest investment has been worth it or not, and Taryn has quite the surprise to show him. Length: 1,760 words Warnings: N/A Other Locations: AO3

A little treat for my wonderful gf @achim-and-bruce and her amazing OC <3

The nip of November chill had begun to seep into the TCCS facility, reminding the infamous Achim Lankanotvitch of the fact that he should have a better AC unit installed soon before the place grew any colder. Time had seemed to fly by the past few months leading up to that point. Usually, the dark-haired man was used to running the facility alone and doing most important tasks by himself, but with the recent hiring of the woman he used to call his enemy, there was no longer a massive stack of work constantly looming over his shoulder.

The latest addition to the facility – a woman by the name of Taryn Nargarian – seemed rather eager to please from day one and had taken every job she was assigned without a word of discontent. Even when there was still an air of distrust between her and her boss, she was nothing less than over productive in her work. She’d quickly risen through the ranks and had even approached her boss for permission to have her own section added to the facility recently. It was no secret that she was one of – if not the top—best robot builder around. She’d had original funding from a rather prestigious company and learned from the best, so it took little thought from Achim to agree and quickly have a robotics laboratory and the required workers prepared for his latest apprentice.

Speaking of the woman, he couldn’t recall a time in the past few months when he’d seen her for more than a few moments when she was getting paperwork signed or dropping off something.

A look of thought caused the man’s brows to furrow a bit, tapping his pen against the notes he’d been quickly writing down on his prized experiment. Truthfully, even with her addition to the facility, Taryn had been busy as ever and kept almost everything off Achim’s shoulders, so he wasn’t busy, and he had yet to see the robotics lab for himself. Perhaps it was time to take a trip down there and see what the madwoman was up to.

The two soldiers who stood guard outside the office overlooking the center enclosure were quick to snap to attention as the doors slid open, prepared to escort their boss until he wordlessly motioned for them to stay put. The elevator was just down the corridor, and surely there was at least one guard downstairs with all the important equipment Taryn used for her work. He rarely came down to the lower levels of the facility, most of the jobs done there were for the soldiers and lesser workers, and he almost felt bad for having the lab built there.

Almost.

With a soft ding, the doors to the elevator slid open, revealing a pristine corridor lined with six guards and a large steel door at the end. The only sound was of the man’s shoes tapping against the floor until he reached the door, pulling a card from his coat pocket and swiping it past the scanner to his right. There was a distinct beep, and a red light above the door went blue before the heavy sound of machinery whirring began. The British woman must have designed the door. It certainly wasn’t something he would have installed himself but the mechanics behind it seemed quite impressive. There were a few minutes of gears grinding and latches being undone before the heavy doors opened, revealing the bustle of people and hum of work in the robotics section.

Brows lifting slightly and blinking once, Achim couldn’t help but stand there with his arms folded behind his back, taking in the expansive setup his apprentice led. Machines tirelessly worked on melting metal and forming it into unique parts, dozens of workers bustled about with materials and papers that he could only guess contained plans for current and future projects, and a few screens on the walls ran statistics and data by so quickly the man couldn’t catch a single bit of information.

He must have looked clearly out of place as he stood there in front of the security door because a worker who appeared to be a little higher ranking soon approached with a clipboard, speaking hesitantly to him with a soft voice.

“Mr. Lankanotvitch, are you here to speak with Ms. Nargarian?”

Achim snapped his attention to the worker, brows lowering again as he spoke in a firm tone.

“Speak up, you. I can barely hear over all this machinery.”

The worker was a little shaken but cleared their throat and spoke up quickly.

“I’ll take you to Ms. Nargarian’s office, sir. She’s been waiting for you.”

Waiting for him? How did she know he was coming?

He said nothing further, instead focusing his attention back on the work around them as he was led to a quieter section of the laboratory. Here workers spoke in hushed tones and looked over mountains of paperwork, a few speaking over phones in different languages. In the very back was a large office, and the worker knocked gently before speaking up.

“Ms. Nargarian, Mr. Lankanotvitch is here to see you.”

There was a pause of silence before the woman’s voice rang out.

“Thank you. Leave us be now.”

It was clear now this person was something akin to an assistant, and they bowed quickly before leaving the man alone in front of the door, allowing him to open it and enter the unknown space of Taryn’s private office.

The room was much emptier than his own office. Pure white walls were empty, filing cabinets with open drawers had yet to be filled entirely, and even though the lab had been around for a few months now, the woman still was without a proper desk and was working diligently at a makeshift workbench with a simple wooden chair. Once he entered, however, her attention snapped to him, and she stood with a small smile.

“Good day, sir. I was hoping you’d make your way down to the lab sometime soon.”

Achim pretended to look around the room some more, eyes focusing on everything except her as he spoke calmly and lowly.

“Is that so? You speak as if you have something to show, aside from the mediocre entourage you’re in charge of. I merely came down to see what that large chunk of July’s budget was spent on.”

The redhead nodded silently, accepting her boss’ characteristically harsh words without a complaint. Clasping her hands behind her back, she drew up what confidence she had at the moment and spoke openly.

“Well, I do have something more to show you, sir. That is, if you don’t mind a short trip up to the loading docks. Unfortunately, the space in the lab wasn’t big enough to house the final model of the prototype I was designing for you.”

That piqued his curiosity. Although he wasn’t about to admit or show it in his expression, he did finally look at the woman properly, arching his brow a bit and staring her down until he sighed heavily.

“I suppose a short trip couldn’t hurt. But make it quick. I don’t want to be standing out in the cold for too long, there’s already a nip upstairs.”

A pleased smile briefly crossed the Brit’s lips, and she slipped on her matching onyx lab coat before leading him back into the corridor. Walking down a smaller hallway, the pair entered another elevator and began their ride to the surface. The air steadily got colder, and Achim huffed a bit as he buttoned his lab coat the rest of the way, at least to preserve a little warmth. His apprentice, however, kept her coat open and a satisfied smile on her lips, even as they finally reached the loading docks and unfiltered November wind hit them directly in the face. With a heavy, shivering breath, her boss shoved his hands under each arm, desperately keeping in as much warmth as he could and speaking harshly to her once more as they walked towards the nearest hangar.

“This had better be good, Nargarian! I’m already questioning giving you that laboratory.”

Rushing ahead of him, the woman pulled a lever to get the hangar door to slowly groan open, a smile still on her face as she back up towards him once more. Not another word was spoken from her end, and she stopped a few feet in front of him, facing the pitch blackness of the inside of the building as the cold wind whipped her fiery hair and lab coat about. Lifting a single hand, she snapped once, crisp and clear.

Then the only sound was the wind.

Achim was quickly growing irritated, and as his lips parted to yell at Taryn he was interrupted by a loud mechanical hum.

Inside the darkness of the hangar, three distinct sets of glowing eyes appeared. One yellow, one orange, and one blood red. The hum grew louder, and the ground began to tremble slightly as the man spoke in an unsure, slightly panicked tone.

“What the hell is that?”

Instead of the redhead answering, his response was given in the form of a massive paw stepping out from the darkness and crushing into the asphalt. Slowly but fluidly, three terrifyingly massive mechanical wolves emerged from the hangar, jaws snapping and unearthly growls rumbling in their synthetic bodies.

The dark-haired man couldn’t stop himself from taking a few steps back out of shock, jaw dropping as he gazed between the robots and the woman standing proudly before them. Never before had he experienced fear of her, but now, as he looked upon how she stood before her monstrous creations and imagined how she looked as her army of robots destroyed her past boss and company, Achim felt a pang of fear for what this woman was capable of.

The robotic wolves continued stepping closer until they were before their creator, the center beast lowering its large metal head to allow the tiny woman to press her hand to its snout as it huffed. She was clearly pleased with her work, and she pat the robot without fear before turning to face her boss, a wild look in her eyes that matched the wildness of her windblown hair.

“Well… what do you think, sir?”

Achim gawked in pure silence, having totally forgotten the chill of the air as his gaze flicked back and forth between the three massive robots and his apprentice until he finally spoke.

“I think you’ve got great potential here at TCCS.”

#acc #My words #original character #long post

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shittyshittyshitty · 2 years

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Genesys, The Most Ambitious Odyssey Deck Now on Kickstarter

Feel The Universe Card Co. in collaboration with TCC Playing Card Co. launched on Kickstarter, the most ambitious Odyssey Playing Cards ever! For this campaign, there are 3 different Odyssey editions- Black & Silver, White & Gold, and Holo Edition.

Odyssey Genesys is inspired by high minimal shapes with futuristic design elements. The luxury is presented with impressive materials and tonalities like gold, silver, and holographic. According to the campaign page,

This is not just a foiled deck of cards... this is again a totally different way to Feel The Universe but keep the essence of our brand.

The fully custom decks feature the iconic diagonal stripe line on the tuck case and card backs. The new diagonal line looks bold and futuristic in tier respective foil colorway. The courts have been updated and they look impressive.

Combining futuristic touches with the minimal design, metallic plates conforms to the armor and weapons of the royals. The classic ace design has also been updated with Genesys aesthetics.

Genesys has maybe the most impressive case design ever created for an Odyssey deck. The elegant tuck case showcases a Gold and Silver foil combo on black and white matte paper, making the tuck a piece of art on its own. Simple but sophisticated.

Printed by TCC PLAYING CARDS Company and available now on Kickstarter for $16. Add-ons such as the limited edition (of 500) gilded Prime500 collector set, uncut sheets, and trainers are available during the campaign. Don't miss out! [post_ad]

from Kardify - Playing Cards, Card Games, and Cardistry Reviews https://ift.tt/3yYENN6

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zyynnaaa · 2 years

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Genesys, The Most Ambitious Odyssey Deck Now on Kickstarter

This is not just a foiled deck of cards... this is again a totally different way to Feel The Universe but keep the essence of our brand.

Combining futuristic touches with the minimal design, metallic plates conforms to the armor and weapons of the royals. The classic ace design has also been updated with Genesys aesthetics.

from Kardify - Playing Cards, Card Games, and Cardistry Reviews https://ift.tt/3yYENN6

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tianbaiwanginteractivityht21 · 3 years

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Introduction + Decisive constraints paper

Tianbai Wang

8.30

Today we held an Introduction lecture on Module 1: Point Point lights and Expressivity Within Constraints. We were introduced to the hardware we will use: Arduino microcontrollers and LED. By using LED, the design space is narrowed to use only two factors: brightness/duration.

I’m surprised: is it contradictory to use only a single LED as the output and try to create an expressive interface at the same time? With this question, I went to read—Michael Mose Biskjaer & Kim Halskov (2014) Decisive constraints as a creative resource in interaction design, Digital Creativity.

I think the paper explains why constraints can be good, in the word Boden (2010)(as cited in Michael Mose Biskjaer et al, 2010, p. 37) : "Constraints on thinking do not merely constrain, but also make certain thoughts – certain mental structures – possible”. As Michael Mose Biskjaer et al (2010) further pointed out, although adding constraints may seem like an unfavourable behaviour, it can actually be transformed into productive constraints that can bring productivity and resourcefulness to the design process.

In our case, by using a single LED as our main material to achieve output during the design process, instead of more common output sources (such as screens or radios), I think it corresponds the examples mentioned in the Michael Mose Biskjaer et al’s (2010) paper- “director’s decision to shoot a (contemporary) movie in black and white”(p. 34), as Michael Mose Biskjaer et al (2010) explained, it is a self-imposed constraint created by the designer voluntarily, which is actually a radical decision-making process in which the designer opposes the simple and universal approach as a solution.

However, this paper also reminds us that constraints may not lead to better results, but it may also lead to unexpected results and cause a dead end in the creative process. In order to avoid this kind of dead end, inspired by a series of experiments and investigations conducted by Michael Mose Biskjaer et al (2010) in the process of using innovative technology TCC regarding its limitation, we first listed the constraints we are facing now and the possible solutions that we can coping with in our future work to open the design space.

(constraints & possible solutions)

References:

Mose Biskjaer, M., & Halskov, K. (2014). Decisive constraints as a creative resource in interaction design. Digital Creativity, 25(1), 27–61. https://doi.org/10.1080/14626268.2013.855239

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emperorbigdaddydrip · 1 year

Video

The News of The People - Episode #138: "HCC Has Two Events Today and This Saturday!!!"

Here's a word from The Haitian Cultural Club on their first event:

"🫵🏾 You Asked So We Answered 🤩‼️The Haitian Cultural Club 🇭🇹is having its first Kreyol Klass of the year 📚 this Thursday, January 19, 2023 at 7pm. Bring a paper 📝 and pen 🖊️ because this is a Klass you just don’t 🚫 want to miss 💙❤️ . . . #hcc #segwokoze #fsu #famu #tcc #haitiancreole #creoleclass #languageclass #youdontwanttomissthis"

And here's more from HCC on their second event, too:

"The Haitian Cultural Club 🇭🇹 will be having our annual 🌎 Beat the Quake Benefit Concert 💙❤️on January 21st, 2023 at 7:00pm. . . This concert is to commemorate all the lives that were affected by the 2010 earthquake. We are currently accepting donations and are looking for talents to participate in this event. This is an opportunity to raise awareness on the issues that Haiti faces 🫂. . . . #hcc #segwokoze #beatthequake2k23 #haiti #haitianawareness #weneedyourhelp #acceptingdonations #soyouthinkyoucandance #famu #fsu #tcc"

You guys please make sure that you tuning in to the show over to get more details because over here "THE JUICE NEVER STOPS DRIPPING"!!!

Social Media Links:

Facebook - Zachariah White Link: https://www.facebook.com/NerdySuperman/

Twitter - @PS3XBOX360Game1 Link: https://twitter.com/PS3XBOX360Game1

NEW Instagram - KingBigDaddyDrip Link: https://www.instagram.com/kingbigdaddydrip/

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Anchor - Zachariah White or "The Royal High Table" Link: https://anchor.fm/zachariah-white

#zachariahwhite #ZachariahTrevonWhite #BlueEmpire #TheBlueEmpire #BigDaddyDrip #KingBigDaddyDrip #ProfessorWhite #TheNewsOfThePeople #TNOTP #tnotp #TheJuiceNeverStopsDripping

#zachariahwhite #zachariahtrevonwhite #bigdaddydrip #kingbigdaddydrip #👑🤴bigdaddydrip💦💦💦#blueempire #theblueempire #professorwhite #thenewsofthepeople #tnotp #thejuiceneverstopsdripping

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odderancyart · 7 years

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The Cherry Chronicles pt. 7

First Last Epilogue

AO3

Summary: Another Sans appears in Underfell. The only problem, except getting him home, is that this one’s showing signs of abuse, and is terrified of Papyrus.

Warnings: The same as always for TCC. Abuse, violence, PTSD, I might've missed something

Papyrus stepped to the side to avoid bones thrown at him by his counterpart. He summoned bones of his own, letting them float in the air behind him. A slight, sinister smirk crept onto his face as he readied his attack. He’d make this Papyrus suffer for what he did to his brother.

“VERY WELL,” he said, and Boss frowned at him for dodging. “SANS, ATTACK.”

“aye, boss,” Sans replied. He threw up an arm, summoning bones through the floor. Boss’ sockets widened as he threw himself to the side, barely avoiding being impaled. Papyrus could see the exact moment the other decided that they were dangerous, and to go full out.

A wall of bones flew toward him, and his soul beat hard but levelly as he snapped his fingers. A Blaster appeared, and with a flashing light the wall dissipated.

“WHO ARE YOU?!” Boss yelled. He had yet another expression of shock on his face as he saw the Gaster Blaster. The brothers only smirked, and Red threw bone spears on the other, who quickly fended them off.

Bones flew over the room. Papyrus noticed that Sans was dodging like crazy. His brother was basically throwing himself from the bones. A searing pain blossomed up in his shoulder and he gasped. A bone had hit him while he was paying attention to Sans. Boss let out a triumphant laugh, and Papyrus scowled. It was only a scratch, but it hurt like hell. The bone was pounding as he raised the arm again. A couple Blasters immediately fired.

The same moment as they did that, Papyrus had to duck out of the way again. Therefore, he couldn’t see what happened, but as his thoughts was able to focus on more than him falling, he could hear swearing. He dared to glance up, and smirked. His counterpart’s arm was scorched.

Well on his legs again, Papyrus summoned a bone into his arms and went on the offensive. Closing in on the other, he swept out with the bone. The other was forced to back, almost stumbling over the charred couch, which had fallen into pieces.

“go, boss!” Red whooped in the background. Papyrus grinned. His counterpart summoned up a bone as well, and they clashed. Boss was looking furious, and it would probably have been frightening if Papyrus hadn’t seen that exact expression on his own face multiple times. He locked gaze with the others as he parried another attack, and somersaulted out of the way from the bones rising from the dirty carpet.

With a growl, he allowed bones to solidify in the air, and they shot at the other. Boss let out a short scream as one of them hit him. The others were avoided. Suddenly, a Blaster appeared behind him and Papyrus hurried out of the way. Just as Sans fired, his counterpart realized that Papyrus had disappeared.

He turned his head, and his eye sockets widened as he saw the gaping maw of the Blaster. Papyrus recognized the well-hidden fear on his face as he stared at it. Papyrus grinned.

In the very last moment, Boss braced himself and threw himself toward the side, straight into the wall. He let out a shriek as the Blaster hit his leg, burning away the leather boots he was wearing. Red swore loudly.

Boss hunched up next to the wall, clutching his leg. He was spitting curses so fast that Papyrus couldn’t even hear half of them. His socket blazed as Papyrus stepped forward. More bones materialized, floating in the air, but they were shaking. Papyrus didn’t even grin as he summoned a new sharpened bone to do the last strike.

He lifted the sword, and readied himself to pierce his counterpart’s soul. There was a ripple in space and a scream.

“no!”

Papyrus stared in shock at Cherry, who was now standing between the two Papyruses and blocking the path of his bone sword. The shorter was trembling violently and there were tears in his sockets. Yet Cherry held out his arms in an act of protectiveness and staring Papyrus straight into his blazing red sockets. He looked desperate.

“th’ hell are ya doin’?” Red called. He sounded confused and slightly mad. “he ain’t deservin’ o’ yer help.”

Papyrus had to agree as he stared down at the other’s shaking body. Nevertheless, he lowered his sword. Never took his sockets of other him, though, in case he’d try to attack again. Cherry opened his mouth, trying to form words. He swallowed. Papyrus waited patiently, despite wanting nothing more than to turn Boss into dust. Especially as the other looked extremely smug once he had processed that his Sans was there.

“please,” Cherry said with quivering voice. ”i understand. ‘m bein’ abused. ‘m not gonna stay, if ya’ll let me-“ at that, Boss’ face fell. He looked both aghast and anger began to fill his face again. “-move in with ya. but please don’ dust my baby brother. ‘t’s my fault he turned out like this. i couldn’ protect ‘im. i don’ want ‘im to die. he's my baby brother…”

Papyrus felt his face soften as Cherry’s voice cracked at those last words. He nodded, and Cherry seemed to relax slightly.

“ALRIGHT. IT IS ULTIMATELY YOUR CHOICE. IF YOU WANT ME TO SPARE HIM, THEN I WILL,” he told the shorter. Just as he finished the last word, Boss’ face distorted in rage and he threw himself toward Cherry, despite his damaged leg.

”YOU TRAITOR,” he shouted, raising a fist. Boss’ voice sounded damaged. Cherry twisted around, and froze. “DON’T YOU FUCKING DARE LEAVE ME!”

Cherry didn’t move, so Papyrus stepped forward to stop him. Before he could move, though, Sans was standing in between the native ‘brothers’. His eye was blazing and while Papyrus only could see his back he could tell he was furious.

“d o n’ y a f u c k i n g d a r e,” Sans growled, and bones shot from the ground, knocking Boss into the wall again. Hard. He slumped to the ground, unconscious. Yet obviously alive, since he didn’t dust.

Cherry let out an “eep” but sighed in relief as he saw his ‘brother’ was okay. He turned to the other two. Both brothers waited silently for him to speak.

“thanks,” he mumbled, sounding embarrassed. Sans grinned, immediately in a better mood again, and threw his arm over his counterpart’s shoulders.

“no problems.”

“DO YOU WANT TO GET ANYTHING FROM HERE BEFORE WE GO HOME AGAIN? I DON’T THINK HE’LL WAKE UP ANYTIME SOON,” Papyrus asked as he watched the other two. He felt his soul grow warm. With a small smile, he realized he had really began to care for Cherry these last days, almost as much as for Sans.

Cherry shook his head. There was nothing here he could take. It all belonged to Boss, and-

His sockets widened, and with a blip he was in his room. It looked just like he had left it; almost clinically clean except for the old marrow which had dried into the bare wooden floor, and furnished only with a mattress on the floor and an old chest of drawers.

With a few quick steps, he was standing in front the chest of drawers. Cherry took a deep breath, and open it. After removing the first plank, he reached the hidden compartment in it and picked up the only thing in it. His most treasured property. He smiled.

It was an old photo, depicting him and his brother. It was many years ago, when Boss still was Papyrus. When he still smiled a smile filled with bright hope and longing for what he had been sure was a wonderful future. Before everything happened, and Boss grew cruel to protect them in this even crueller world of theirs. Cherry hugged the wrinkled paper close.

He sat down on the floor, and tears had begun to fall as he picked out a pen from his inventory. He let them. After turning the photo, he studied the white backside. There was a smudged date there. A date from many, many years ago. Otherwise it was empty.

Without another thought, Cherry began to write.

Sans studied the other Papyrus as the brothers waited for Cherry to get back. They had worried slightly when he just disappeared, but as they heard noise from the bedroom they’d understood where he went.

Boss was still passed out, luckily. It was… an interesting sensation to look at him. Especially since Sans’ own Papyrus was standing right behind him, with a hand on his shoulder. They looked so alike. Especially now when he was passed out. When there wasn’t so much sadistic glee or anger on his face. Instead he almost looked like he was in pain.

With a scar exactly like Papyrus’ over his right eye socket, identical teeth and the same armour it would have been impossible for anyone but Sans to distinguish the two of them. At least if it hadn’t been for the tens of other small, painful looking scars all over Boss’ body. It was bad. He had obviously been through Hell and back, even more than Sans and Papyrus.

Not as much as Cherry, though. Not even near.

Frowning, Sans turned away. He would have felt sorrow for what this Papyrus must’ve gone through. He would have, if he hadn’t been severely abusing Cherry, who must’ve gone through something similar. Sans exchanged a gaze with Papyrus. His brother had a hard-set look on his face.

The door to the bedroom opened. Cherry peered out, looking a bit nervous as always. There were tear steaks on his face but he was also smiling slightly. Without words, the brothers agreed not to mention the fact that the other had been crying. Cherry walked down the stairs and up to Boss. He put something down – it looked like a photo – next to his abuser. Then he turned to Sans and his brother. He was hunching, as always, but looked oddly relaxed despite it.

“’m r-ready ta go,” he said. With another exchanged gaze, Sans nodded. Papyrus made his way toward the basement, and the shorter skeletons followed him. Luckily, the rift-thingy was still there. Sans let out a sigh of relief at that. Things would’ve gotten a lot more complicated if it hadn’t.

Cherry took a deep breath, and threw a gaze toward the stairs. For a moment, Sans thought he’d refuse. Then he closed his sockets for a few moments before stepping through the rift. The brothers quickly came after.

As soon as the dizziness of multiversal travel had disappeared, Sans watched for Cherry. The door to the Machine was open. Outside, Cherry was standing. He trembled. Papyrus took a step forward, but Cherry shook his head, making him pause.

“m-may i…” he began, trailing off. Papyrus nodded encouragingly. “may i b-b-be alone? i- i need t-ta…”

“OF COURSE,” Papyrus replied. “TAKE AS MUCH TIME AS YOU NEED. I’M SURE YOU CAN STAY IN SANS’ ROOM?”

Sans nodded.

“’course. if ya need ‘t overnight i’ll sleep in boss’ room.”

Cherry nodded, and snapped his fingers. He was gone.

Sans turned to his brother and threw his arm over his shoulders. It was a little too high to be comfortable, but Papyrus smiled down at him. Seemed like he appreciated the sentiment.

“well? what do ya wanna do now, boss?”

“I NEED TO GO TO WORK,” Papyrus replied, throwing a socket on the clock on the wall. “AND SO DO YOU, BROTHER. YOU HAVE A PASS IN TWENTY MINUTES.”

Sans groaned loudly.

“but i don’ wanna go ta work. ‘m tired.”

“YOU’RE ALWAYS TIRED.”

Papyrus groaned. His head hurt, and so did his entire body. He blinked, realizing he had been passed out by the wall. What? He hadn’t been drinking-

With a furious growl, he flew to his feet as the memories came back, only to wince and stumble as the pain doubled. Where was those doppelgängers? And where was his brother? That traitor. He studied the room, seeing no trace of them. Nothing seemed out of place except for the obvious battle scars the room had gotten. Everything was like normal, except…

Frowning, he bowed down to take up the paper on the ground. His sockets widened as he examined it. A photography. From a long time ago. He couldn’t remember the last time he had smiled like that, and certainly not when Sans had looked so happy.

Mechanically, he turned the paper around. Something seemed to be written on it. Frowning, he began to read.

Hi, Boss.

I just wanted to say goodbye. I couldn’t do that when you were awake, because… well. You would have attacked.

I also wanted to tell you I’m sorry. I’m sorry I couldn’t protect you. I’m sorry I allowed this world to poison you like it did. I’m sorry our universe is so awful. I’m sorry for a lot of things. Most of all I’m sorry our relationship turned out like it did.

Remember when we took this photo? You probably don’t, it was a long time ago. You were so young. I wouldn’t either if I hadn’t been saving it for all these years. You were so happy. Had just been allowed to learn how to fight. So excited. You were such a bright, joyful kid. I miss those days, despite how much pain they could bring. I miss them so much sometimes. It’s a physical pain.

Anyway.

I need to tell you this. I’m leaving, and I’m not coming back. I’ve realized that staying with you isn’t good for me, and it’s possible I don’t deserve your treatment of me. I don’t know. Perhaps I do. But I’m going to try to figure it out, and I can’t do that when I’m with you. I’m sorry.

Perhaps you won’t miss me at all. You’ve told me for years I’m a burden and a waste of space. That you’d kill me if we weren’t related. Perhaps you’ll be happy to get rid of me. Perhaps I hope you will. That way this won’t hurt you. Perhaps I want it to hurt you, because that’d mean you did care, in your own way.

I guess what I’m trying to say is; I love you. I have always loved you and I always will. More than anything. But perhaps it’s time I start prioritizing myself too? That’s another thing I don’t know. The past days have been confusing. I hope one day I won’t be confused anymore.

I’m sorry. I love you. I’m sorry. I love you. I love you.

Sans

Papyrus stared at the paper. His soul pounded in his chest. He couldn’t believe it. Sans had left him. His big brother had left him, despite promising to never do that. He crumpled the paper in his fist, and felt magic rush through his bones.

With a scream of pain and fury, he punched the wall. It cracked.

“YOU PROMISED!” Papyrus cried out into the empty room. How dared he? A sob forced its way out, and he screamed again. Outside, he heard someone run away. Sans was his. He wasn’t allowed to leave, they were supposed to be together.

As he tightened his fist again, the paper made a noise. Reflexively, he lightened his grip on it. Despite every instinct telling him not to, Papyrus carefully flattened it again. He studied it again, and felt his stomach tighten.

He had a vague memory of this time.

It hurt to think about. So he wouldn’t.

He threw the paper on the floor, and stormed upstairs. He moved his action figures around a bit, which he used to study battle techniques, but then stood up. Without another word, he went downstairs again. He picked up the photo and quietly put it on the fridge. Papyrus didn’t look at it as he left the house.

Undyne better be up for some sparring or he couldn’t be held responsible for any deaths the next couple hours.

#the cherry chronicles #cherry #cherry pt. 7 #abuse #violence #ptsd #underfell #uf sans #uf papyrus #undertale multiverse #my writing #this is the second last chapter #only the epilogue left #that's kind of sad #this has been fun

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gracesade-blog · 5 years

Text

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sweetlifetownsville · 5 years

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Hard Going Getting On Top Of The Hill: The Mayor's Magnificent Mount Louisa Make-Over Might Stumble At The First Jump

And Jenny knows about the problem, but is blithely telling us its all go, when it may well be all stop. The Pie shares a most interesting email. The old bird can reveal that Mayor Jenny Hill IS under investigation by Brisbane authorities for possible misconduct and watching all the fumbling inanities coming over the next 12 months in the run-up to local council elections is going to be more fun than watching a blind man trying to get out of a door knob factory. To that end, The Pie this week introduces a new occasional award, The Codswallop Cup. No shortage of contenders. Also, our new white ele sorry, stadium, has hit more turbulence as it rises from the mud and Lozza Lancini will not be a happy chappy. Bentley has a say on George Pells new lifestyle And our regular gallery from Trumpistan. First, Hot Of The Rumour Mill

The most interesting rumour has just floated into the Nest. Its unverified (well duh, thats why its called a rumour) so well have to wait until the Astonisher plays catchup sometime this week. The Pie hears that the only two tenderers for the new stadiums ultra-lucrative catering contract , one being the incumbent Spotless and one being the Cowboys Leagues Club, have both been excluded for non compliant tenders to do with not paying award wages. So back to square one for the new stadium and where does that leave Spotless in the current stadium? For the answer, check the Astonisher around oh, say, next Friday, by when Lozza Lancini will have told iditor Jenna Cairney what she can say about this. Pell Mell Nothing has been quite as spectacular in the annals of fallen high flyers than that of George Pell, who has swapped his glittering Mardi Gras cardinals robes for prison drab, after being sent to chokey for six years (to serve 3 years and 8 months before eligible for parole) for what only be described as the most brazen, power-deluded child abuse imaginable. Indeed so brazen as to leave lingering doubts among some observers whether such things couldve happened as described, but an appeal will sort that out, after all, the jury knows things that we do not. Now Georgy Boy faces another biased jury his fellow inmates, a class of folk not known for their strict adherence to jurisprudence rules and who exercise their own summary justice according to their own morals and mythology. And Bentley reckons you never know who youre going to bump in in the Yard.

And The Pie says to those who say the term is not enough, rest assured, for a man of Pells pomposity, ego and age, he has been handed a life sentence of one sort or another. One imagines there is one person who will give Judge Peter Kidd the thumbs up.

Shifty Business Delivering on promises is a tricky business, especially when our mayor is in campaign mode. Today, we were offered this little bit of click bait.

But when we went through to the story, what we got was this

Uncanny how this is so ambiguous, like the Castle Hill upgrade itself. Now this is media sleight of hand at its clumsiest, making a highly speculative project sound like solid fact. Interesting because it simply that the TCC will start drawing up plans for what it would like to see at Mt Louisa and crucially for mayor Mullet is the quote: with construction expected by the end of the year. Community engagement started this week and will continue until the end of April. The Pie thought, well thats a nice idea, if conveniently timed to become a re-election boast, but hey, good for the huffnpuff crowd. Then this morning, (Sat) an email fluttered into the Nest. From Angela Sacilotto Councillor Jenny Hills grand plan for Mt Louisa is another political stunt with council elections due in March 2020. TCC do not own all of Mt Louisa. I own a 8 ha block right across the middle of the hill. I have told TCC I do not want to sell. Havent been able to verify Ms Sacilottos information, but she volunteered her contact details and phone number if The Pie wanted a chat about the matter (which for reasons well known to regular readers, is not a viable option since the recent operation.) But The Pie would guess there will be whole lot more to the meaning of community engagement when Mayor Mullet reads this. it is known that Jenny Hill does not like being crossed by people with legal rights who stand in the way of her grand visions, so this community engagement with Ms Sacilotto could involve nipple clamps, a car battery and wet towels . But That May Be The Least Of Her Problems Cant reveal too much at the moment, but our mayor is being officially investigated possible misconduct over her Adani links, particularly arising out of her trip to India. This will not be a revelation on her, because she has been informed of the issue by the Brisbane based investigating body, and what is officially termed overt inquiries are underway. Perhaps no biggy (but then again ) but not a great look for someone who once expressed her admiration for Ipswich Mayor Pisasale. What Dreams May Come, As Willy Shakespeare Once Said All this has led to The Magpie being told that Jenny, a Hitchcock fan, recently watched his classic The Birds, but when she went to bed, she had an horrific dream.

Serves her right for throwing darts at a much loved and protected Australian species. THIS WEEKS CONTENDERS FOR THE CODSWALLOP CUP Its a crowded field. Cmon, Really? Cmon now, seriously Jenna Cairney? Is this all youve got?

Listen, me dear old haggis-head, getting shocked by a menu may apply to a Korean doggy delicacy, a Vietnamese cockroach kebab or the price of a pie at the footy, but because this mob is adding burgers bloody good old Aussie burgers we Aussie snowflakes should be shocked? Do you not understand how insulting this advertorial pap is? One seriously has to question whether the decision makers who publish this clap trap have an IQ above room temperature. A Group Effort Where to start with this one, the inanity is of such magnitude that The Pie is tempted to inaugurate the Clusterfuck Cup as a separate category.

This mind-blowing little corker of an idea is called the Palmer Street Precinct Activation project, and involves wait for it a bit of new lighting along the street, and a new sign saying hang on again Palmer Street.

The plan was obviously to give re-election hopefuls a bit of sorely needed publicity (youd think on recent photographic evidence, Messagebank Walker and Ann-Maree Greaney are going steady). But for other reasons, the story raised both an eyebrow and a guffaw at the same time. Chef/restaurateur Matt Merrin, normally a sensible and successful man, made a right goof of himself when he (reportedly) told the paper the changes would transform Palmer Street into a world class destination. It will be something that visitors to Townsville can Instagram, take photos of and sell the message to the world. Its going to bring new investment back to Palmer Street (question: how does new investment come back?) Weve had many restaurants close over the last 12 months, this will inspire new restaurant owners and people to come back into Palmer Street and be part of the precinct it once was. A world class destination? Matt, a message from The Magpie, mate lay off the cooking sherry and exotic herbs before talking to the Astonisher (FFS, mate, youre even holding your glass crooked.) The story also informs us The dining strip received some upgrades during the preparations for the Commonwealth Games last year. Oh did it? Very similar upgrades in scale to the ones now proposed , as The Pie remembers. So in the year since that spruce up, two Palmer Street nose-baggeries have gone belly-up. But somehow, this one is going to usher in a new era? Hows that? But heres the best bit in the original story, Ann-Maree Greaney said the lighting would keep people, particularly women, safer that apparent admission that the council has allowed Palmer Street to operate without adequately safe lighting for years has now been removed from the story. What fucking planet are you from, you lot? Reporter Chris Lees, have you no dignity? Or sober judgement? Did TCC media gopfer Simpo Templeton have anything to do with this, its about his speed? Well, anyway Anthony, unlike the when at the Astonisher, at least in your TCC role you dont have to put your name to your cock-ups. 3. Off The Rails Then on Thursday, we had this little bit of fluffy irrelevancy.

But no sooner had this flimsy kite taken to the sky, than the Astonisher itself cut the string on Friday with this:

What city rail plan? There wasnt any, the original story was a campaigning thought-fart from the desperate Clr Jacob. Clever though, isnt it write bullshit one day and call it out as bullshit the next. Gotta luv the ol Astonisher. A Miscellaneous Magpie Whinge The Magpie is deliberately not talking about or seeking comment on the massacre in New Zealand, he has no words, certainly none that would contribute positively to this dark deed of pure evil. But coverage does prompt The Pie to vent about a favourite piece of nanny state demeaning idiocy can we please move away from the rubber-faced sign language person standing next to officials who are often making statements about deeply disturbing matters. Often signing involves grotesque and to the uninitiated completely inappropriate comical facial expressions. This presents the twin problems of distraction for the general audience and indignity for the subject of the media conference.The Pie doesnt know what the average deaf audience would be at any given time not many one would guess and yes, there are times like bushfire and flood updates where this information should be conveyed in this manner. But shit folks, heres a newsflash for more 60 years now, real time lower screen captioning has been available, or as all sports directors so slickly employ technology for a smaller, less distracting vision box to one corner. To currently give such a minority a so distracting and undignified presence is not necessary and lacks dignity, and disturbs concentration on what can be vital messages. Of course, nanny staters wont agree. Speaking Of The Nanny State Our evolving language, not always for the better, now features the term woke, as in are you woke to climate change? or any number of other social issues. It means are you alert to, but as so often happens, we too readily adopt the argot of the ill-educated as some sort expression of being cool and identifying with a group one wouldnt normally break bread with. The lovely thing about this nonsensical use of substitute language leaves it wide open for hysterically funny skewering and in this classic piss take Are You Woke? from a fed up Tracey Ullman. The Clock Is A-Ticking The Brexit imbroglio is increasingly hard to follow (or for The Pie, to care much about) but one of the cleverest pictorial comments the predicament of Theresa (dis)May(ed) comes from the Guardians Steve Bell.

And More Of The Same From Trumpistan A lot of attention continues to surround the tumble of democrats eager to take on President Trumpet at the polls next year. And the interest has been heightened by someone not running.

. The ducking, weaving and hilarity of the comments section runs 24/7, so give us of your best, folks. And if you like the blog, you can show your appreciation with some sorely needed financial support, the how to donate button is below. http://www.townsvillemagpie.com.au/hard-going-getting-on-top-of-the-hill-the-mayors-magnificent-mount-louisa-make-over-might-stumble-at-the-first-jump/

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ouram123451aa-blog · 6 years

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African Tours

Ghana offers a railway system which links the main towns of Accra, Kumasi and Takoradi, and encompasses an land area that was frequently known as the Golden Triangular. The name didn't reflect Ghana's colonial name: The Gold Coast, but the truth that the majority of Ghana's cacao was grown within, or near to, the embrace from the railway. In colonial occasions, The Gold Coast was the earth's largest producer of cacao and even though Ghana inherited this title on gaining independence in 1957, neglect of the profession through the government of Dr Kwame Nkrumah eventually led to losing this pre-eminence. Subsequent regimes searched for to bring back producing cacao but Ghana hasn't yet obtained the dominant position that they occupied within the 1950s and early 1960s. For more information on gambia tours, visit our website today!

Cacao beans are reputed to possess been introduced away from the Portuguese island of Fernando Po around 1876 by Tetteh Quarshie, a local of Akwapem, found on a ridge of hillsides north of Accra. The very first beans were grown at Mampong in Akwapem. Tetteh Quashie is considered like a national hero and that he includes a large traffic interchange named after him at Achimota close to the campus from the College of Ghana. The Akwapem tribe performed a significant role in exploiting cacao by purchasing land and creating farms over the south of Ghana, taking advantage of the strong support of missionaries and also the colonial government. Within the 1920s the railways were built to assist transport the quickly growing cacao output towards the port of Takoradi.

Tales from the insightful the cacao maqui berry farmers in colonial occasions are nearly beyond belief. It's stated they competed spectacularly to demonstrate their quickly acquired affluence. After exhausting the options of conspicuous consumption, they required to getting their large traditional Kente cloths embroidered with British five pound notes stitched to the fabric. The climax came once they resorted to money burning competitions where the champion was the one who heaped probably the most sterling paper currency to the fire.

Cacao maqui berry farmers were considered to be relatively very wealthy, so that as independence contacted Kwame Nkrumah searched for recognition by promising to accept insightful the cacao maqui berry farmers and create it for the country. So it's not surprising that on gaining power the federal government stored low the cost of cacao compensated towards the maqui berry farmers and added a higher tax to improve national revenues. Maqui berry farmers started to get rid of curiosity about cacao production so that as less new trees were grown output fell.

Nkrumah found recognise the need for cacao exports and devised an agenda to try and control the fluctuating world cost. In the new port of Tema he built four gigantic silos to keep cacao beans. Once the cost was low he'd store once the cost was high he'd sell. Regrettably, no cacao was ever kept in the silos and falling production resulted in Ghana wasn't any longer capable of exercise charge of the marketplace. After Nkrumah's overthrow in 1966 it had been his legacy of having to pay a minimal cost towards the maqui berry farmers that blighted Ghana's economy for the following 2 decades.

The military government that required over from Nkrumah faced grave economic problems also it was the democratically elected government of Dr Kofi Busia (1969 to The month of january 1972) that attempted to bring back the cacao industry. Farming extension officials were hired to tour the forest areas encouraging maqui berry farmers to plant more cacao trees. The response was under passionate because the maqui berry farmers complained that cacao trees take 4 years to deal with fruit and so the returns could be modest. They chosen over plant annual crops or to purchase oil palm plantations to benefit from a scarcity of palm oil which was forcing up local prices.

Really conscious of the lack of palm oil for soap making, we've got the technology Consultancy Center (TCC) from the Kwame Nkrumah College of Science (KNUST), Kumasi, started within the 1970s to test out alternative recycleables. One of several in your area-available fatty substances investigated was second grade cacao butter: produce not judged fit for chocolate manufacture or export. Regrettably, soap produced from cacao butter smelled like chocolate and thus could not be utilized commercially for anxiety about children mistaking the soap for white-colored confectionary.

The Busia government was short resided after Colonel I K Acheampong required in The month of january 1972 the insurance policy of exploiting the cacao maqui berry farmers endured. In 4 decades ago a departing British High Commissioner was requested at Accra Worldwide Airport terminal about Ghana's economic plight. He stated he often see no improvement as lengthy because the cacao player was compensated for his product under the price of production. By now countries for example Cote d'Ivoire, Malaysia and South america were major cacao producers and also the world cost was stored low with this abundance. It had been to become greater than another decade before serious support was again provided to cacao production. Ghana's output rose again however in the 1990s it had been still no more than half the height manufacture of 557,000 tons achieved in 1964-65. Want to know more about togo tours? Visit our website for more information.

Through the 1990s there is much talk of giving primary producers a good cost for his or her produce and interest was roused to find methods to increase the value of fundamental recycleables. The TCC again grew to become associated with cacao if this aided a significant British chocolate manufacturer to organize a programme to help small cacao maqui berry farmers to extract then sell cacao butter instead of raw beans. By such means the fair trade movement helps cacao maqui berry farmers to affluence, but it's doubtful or no will grow wealthy enough to rival their ancestors who have been the immediate heirs of Tetteh Quarshie.

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shittyshittyshitty · 2 years

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Deck View: Fluid Art (Standard Edition) Playing Cards

Art. Abstract. Flow. Fluid Art Playing Cards by TCC Playing Cards embodies motion, flow, and design which draws inspiration from fluid paintings. The Standard Edition features a blue colorway with standard card faces and retains the standard Ace through King design. The eye-catching and visually striking combo of orange and blue complementary colors permeates every facet of the playing cards. With crisp narrow white borders and a simple fresh design, the Standard edition can be defined as Art. The Fluid Art Playing Cards are printed in Taiwan with exclusive paper stock, aptly named, Fluid stock. It is the combination of imported German black core paper stock + Fluid Stock finish.

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from Kardify - Playing Cards, Card Games, and Cardistry Reviews https://ift.tt/3ESN1Il

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zyynnaaa · 2 years

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Deck View: Fluid Art (Standard Edition) Playing Cards

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from Kardify - Playing Cards, Card Games, and Cardistry Reviews https://ift.tt/3ESN1Il

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tacomawanews-blog · 7 years

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TCC’s first lecture was by Michael Benitez (pictured).

Tacoma Community College Lecturer Calls Our President “Orange Head”

by Tami Jackson

The Artist & Lecture Series has just begun at Tacoma Community College (TCC) and this year’s very first speaker filled the assembly room at the Student Center with a lot of emotion. Michael Benitez Jr., the dean for diversity and inclusion at the University of Puget Sound, refuses to acknowledge President Donald Trump by name. Instead, Benitez repeatedly referred to our Commander in Chief as “Orange Head.”

During his lecture, Benitez also expressed indignation over some event where he claimed Trump had wadded up napkins and threw proverbial “baskets” at Puerto Ricans. Benitez said he didn’t know if he was more upset at the president or more incensed that those Puerto Ricans responded by being happy and clapping at the president. Benitez said that kind of behavior plays into the way we as a nation prescribe certain practices as belonging to certain groups of people.

Meanwhile, this reporter was not able to find documentation of the particular incident Benitez described. Was he misstating what happened when, in response to Hurricane Maria, President Trump tossed brand new rolls of paper towels into a crowd during a larger effort to circulate supplies at Calvary Chapel? That event happened on October 3, 2017, in Guaynabo, Puerto Rico. If that was the case, it still sounds like it was a disastrous play on the President’s part, all the same. Judging by television footage, some Puerto Ricans caught those rolls of paper towels but some let them fall to the ground, seemingly offended. Certainly, the Mayor of Puerto Rico’s capital, San Juan, Carmen Yulin Cruz was chafed by that incident. She is recorded by BBC News as describing Donald Trump’s visit as “insulting” and called him a “miscommunicator-in-chief.” (Source: bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-41504165)

Meanwhile, back inside the TCC lecture hall, Benitez said: “Look. The world has a lot of fowl nations, that we’re at the top of that foulness, in many respects, or definitely at the top by way of our practices? Definitely!” Then the lecturer admitted he doesn’t exactly have perfectly clean hands himself. He said our government, Japan and other leading nations have invaded regions in Africa, which are rich in minerals, to colonize and take the land’s resources for building wireless technology and all things high tech. Benitez said that because he carries a cellular phone, he participates in that hypocrisy. “How do we hold on to tension and be at peace with the tension that is the human hypocrisy?” he asked the audience. “We are complicit in the very system that exploits women and children, for at least the imperialistic family of society.”

Earlier in his lecture, Benitez had given the TCC audience a critical look at multiculturalism in the U.S. and he presented white privilege as the villain that exploits minority racial groups. Yet that’s when the lecture turned controversial; even more so than typical conversations about climate change and global warming.

It was just after Benitez had shown a video that used an animated cruise ship as a metaphor for society. In that film, the upper (privileged) deck was drawn to be inhabited exclusively by white cartoon individuals and the lower (steerage) deck only held darker skinned characters, symbolizing their disadvantage. After the film ended is when a long-haired individual from the audience interrupted Benitez. He felt that since America is a free country, people who want out of steerage should just save up some cash to move up the proverbial social ladder.

That’s where it became like a verbal boxing match until Benitez ended up saying he respected the man for voicing his thoughts. Too many people are fearful about discussing their true feelings, Benitez said. Meanwhile, a handful of folks had already risen out of their chairs and left the lecture hall.

Then another member of the audience interrupted to say if the privileged white people don’t start giving Americans-of-color a financial leg up, racial minorities will just take what they want by force. Sadly, Benitez failed to discourage that sentiment. He did not communicate that theft is one of many reasons why underprivileged Americans end up in the already too crowded prison system.

Instead, Benitez spoke of accumulated wealth as the direct result of free labor and slavery. He contrasted how a child growing up from white privilege has far more opportunities to advance themselves than someone who grows up in poverty and gave legitimate examples for how having access to better schools and technological tools for learning dramatically impacts how much earning potential someone will have when they grow up.

Beyond working for diversity and inclusion at the University of Puget Sound, Benitez has contributed to documentaries, written articles and chapters for books on topics of identity, ethnic and cultural studies, critical praxis and pedagogy in higher education. His lecture was the first of the TCC series. Below is a list of the speakers yet to come.

Upcoming presenters for Tacoma Community College’s Artist & Lecture Series:

Tues., Oct. 17, 12:30 p.m. Artist & Lecture Series: Aaliyah Jihad: “I am Not a Costume” at Tacoma Community College, Building 11 – Student Center. Free and open to the public.

Fri., Oct. 20, noon – 1 p.m. Artist & Lecture Series: Jennifer Adams: Motivation Beyond Limitations at Tacoma Community College, Building 11 – Student Center. Free and open to the public

Mon., Nov. 20, 12:30 – 1:30 p.m. Artist & Lecture Series: Ty Defoe: A Walk in My Moccasins. At Tacoma Community College, Building 11 Student Center. Free and open to the public.

Thurs., Nov. 30, 11:30 a.m. – 4 p.m. Artist & Lecture Series: Jordan Chaney: Waking Up Woke, at Tacoma Community College, Building 11 – Student Center. Free and open to the public.

Dec. 1, 6 – 9 p.m. “I Am Me” Open Mic Poetry with Jordan Chaney at Tacoma Community College, Building 11 – Student Center. Free and open to the public.

Tacoma WA News is a brand new website. WATCH US GROW! Follow us on Facebook!

#TacomaLectures MichaelBenitez TacomaSpeaker

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