Rite aid kellogg road new hartford

Monsters Chapter 77: Blood and Booze (Or, two paladins have a fistfight in a gay bar)

2023.06.06 17:03 LordIlthari Monsters Chapter 77: Blood and Booze (Or, two paladins have a fistfight in a gay bar)

I am The Bard, who taught men their first magics, which to this day endure when all others have. It is written into the blood and bones of all you have built, and so I shall never die.
I did not teach you how to dream. I only taught how to tell a dream to another who you would never know.
The phone rang. Karna didn’t bother to pick it up. The message machine clicked for a moment, tape starting to turn backwards as new words were written onto it. It clicked again, stopping dead. Karna didn’t look up from his meal of leftover takeout. He finished his noodles, checked again to see if there was any shrimp left, and sighed as he threw the box at the bin. It bounced off the others already filling it up.
He sighed, rubbing his head and eyes. Healing magic could cure a hangover. It couldn’t do anything about dehydration. He needed to get up and get a drink. He went over to his cabinet and looked around for a glass. When he didn’t find a clean one, he grabbed a coffee mug instead. It was the last one. He was also out of coffee. Irritating. No matter how much of it he drank, he was still tired. It just meant he couldn’t sleep.
Sex helped, a bit, but when it didn’t, things were worse. Lying alone in his own bed, at least he could toss and turn and work his sheets into tangles trying to find some position that would let him finally fall asleep. He could slip out of bed for a nightcap, a strong one, to try and help. With another, there was nothing to do but lie there, still and silent, trying not to wake the man or woman next to him.
Trying not to think.
Impossible to sleep, then suddenly too much sleep. Blink and it was three-thirty in the afternoon. He stood at the sink, filling up the mug and draining it repeatedly. The call was probably from work. Worse, it might be his mother.
”Karna, what the fuck are you doing with your life you useless bastard. You’re not immortal, it’s all slipping away, one day, one minute at a time, and here you are doing nothing with it.” He said to himself. “Because you’re too tired to anything and still can’t sleep.” Of course, he knew why. His mind, treacherous as a serpent, betrayed him then, in the dark, in the solitude. Every wound he had suffered, every scar erased by healing magic, those were nothing. He was a paladin, the training had gotten him used to the sight of his own blood a long time ago.
”Practice for healing magic. Isn’t that what the old sister called it?” He wondered aloud. “Tch. She was kind of a bitch. Still is. I wonder if she’s calling me to yell at me too? Of course, I suppose I deserve it. I-“Then he stopped himself, and slammed the mug down, forcefully. It hit one of the plates in the sink, and it cracked. Karna swore and picked up the mess, picking the shards of metal out of his sink and throwing them in the boxes in the bin.
He sat back down in the one seat he used at his four-person table. It was covered in books, loose change, an unopened letter from some survey, a candle, a mug, miscellaneous bits of stationary, a comically large six sided die with red and black patterns, and off directly to his left a stick of deodorant and bottle of cologne. Those last two were the only things he’d used on this table in a while.
He sat back in his chair and sighed. “Yeah, you know exactly what you’re doing with your life. Nothing of any use to anyone. Well. Useless is better than detrimental, so hey, at least there’s that improvement.”
He hit the button to play back the latest message from his telephone, and picked it up, placing the receiver to his ear. At least he could listen to his messages. That would be something for the day.
”Hey, Karna. It’s Bas.” Karna’s head slumped forwards. He hadn’t expected him to be calling to call him an idiot. “I’ve tried coming by your place a couple of times to visit, seem to have missed you both times.” Or he was asleep, or drunk, or otherwise being a bad cousin. “So, I figured I’d give you a call and leave you a message. Just checking in to see how you’re doing. I know… things have been rough, for all of us, and I know you were taking things hard.” I know you’re weak. “I hope you’re doing well, and hope you understand, if you’re not, then, well, you’ve got my number, and you know where I live. Even though my apartment’s not exactly stellar.” I know you could reach out. But you won’t. You’ve been given everything, inherited power, your house, your money, and you still do nothing with it. I have nothing our society considers important, but I am still a better man than you. “Hope to talk to you soon. Adonai watch over you.”
That last bit was a bit odd. Adonai. The old invisible god, or God, as those that believed in such a thing insisted. Karna wasn’t entirely certain that this wasn’t just a clever way of disguising atheism, given that philosophy’s associations. Why in the world would Basil mention it now? As far as he knew… well he really actually didn’t know anything about Basil’s beliefs. He presumed, given his training, he was a follower of the western philosophies, which were philosophies more so than religions. They were fairly popular these days, a sort of secular spirituality, a substitute for the holes growing in Ordani religious life.
When you’ve fought and killed a god in living memory, it becomes harder to worship them. Beyond that, the old rites simply that, old rites. A series of rituals nobody really believed in anymore. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen a cleric. He paused. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen a cleric he hadn’t been fighting to the death with. The gods really didn’t seem to have much of a place in a modern society. It was probably arrogant, but part of the point of the gods was meant to be that they were something so much bigger than oneself, that there was nothing that could compare. They were monumental figures, but when the monuments can be torn down by mere men, was it a monument worth believing in?
It was that way then. Some people turned to the western philosophies, realizing that their religious needs, the desire for mystery, for reverence, for prayer, meditation, moral laws and sacred communities were met there, without gods. Some, Basil included, turned their gaze towards an invisible, supposedly omnipotent, God. Well, the gods were supposed to be omnipotent, but if nobody could even prove your God existed, well, then there wasn’t any fear that anyone could kill Him. And then, there was the other kind. The kind which were kind of a bad joke.
He remembered his days in the warm sun, under the abbot’s orchard in Hearthfire Abbey, amid the warm red walls, the golden light of the day filtering through the green leaves, the bright red apples highlighted against a blue sky. Quite literally simpler times. He remembered the grave beneath the tree. Senket Zarathustra. Of course, that wasn’t really where she was. She was a few miles up the road, in a chapel nobody paid any mind to, next to six other graves, two empty. How much a contrast that was, compared with what was in the abbey. Her image, glaring down from tapestry, immortalized in statuary, and everywhere revered. Saint, they called her, but what was the difference between a saint and a god, when you treated one like the other.
They had made gods for themselves, gods born of and midwives to, their own people. A god that was distant enough to be worshipped, but near enough to be known. Something understood, something relatable, and something that had bested other gods before. Gods borne of the people of godslayers, for what else could they be? Of course, every pantheon needed its devil, its fallen angel. And now here he stood, a useless bastard, but also the same kind of thing as their gods and their devil. What a bad joke.
But at the same time, a joke they had believed in. A joke he felt the obligation to make a truth. A joke he had failed to make true. Up on a pedestal, and down in the dirt. That was what paladin of Order Undivided meant now. A hero, until people had no more need of them. Good, he wasn’t even a hero in the first place.
He shook his head. It was going to be a few hours before any clubs opened. He was going back to bed until then. It didn’t do him any good to sit awake stewing.
Basil was getting worried. He’d tried paying visits and making calls, but there was no contact. He quietly sat through office hours, grading the first assignments of the year. He was starting to regret assigning an essay, particularly to his 101 class. Fortunately, it was early in the year, so he was able to work through his office hours without being further disturbed. He finished his last paper, capped the red pen, and stood up. It wasn’t that far out of his way to visit Karna again, and this time he wouldn’t be ignored.
He made his way through the city, until he came to the Red Street. It had another name, but people remembered not what was given, but what was done. Fifty years ago, the blood of black and red lions flowed, as Elsior faced down her old mentor during the height of the black rebellion. The street’s architecture was eclectic, a mix of the old buildings which had survived the battle, and newer designs built up out of the ruins left from a clash of titans.
There were alleys off the street where you could still see the gashes left in the ground by arcane blades. It was a street where history lay heavy in the mortar and the air. It was also a decently affordable neighborhood, as the old houses, while historical, were also old, small, and lacked modern amenities. He was still never going to afford any of them on a teacher’s salary, even with his stipend as a paladin. Of course, Karna would have had a bitch of a time paying for his house as well, but he had simply inherited it.
Basil shook his head, as if to throw the jealous thought out of his mind. “You’re a grey-eyed monster already. Let’s not add green to the mix.” He growled at himself, as he kept walking up to Karna’s door and knocked. No response. He sighed, looking through the door. Only two of his eyes saw the normal spectrum of light. The others varied from arcane, ultraviolet, infrared, and a curious ability to see electrical signals. The end result was an overlapping view of information, an in-depth view of the world that saw the surface and the depths of everything. It had been a bit of a rude surprise for his parents to find out their son saw their brains at the same time he saw their faces. The practical upshot of this at the moment was that he saw Karna was clearly not at home, and had left a trail of lingering celestial energy behind him.
Well, Karna or another aasimar, but they were fairly rare. Even with the increasing numbers of extraplanar citizens in the union, there weren’t many descended from angels. Basil wryly considered that it might be the former keeping out the later. Baatorites weren’t strictly speaking enemies with most angels, but the distaste between the two species was deep, ancient, and mutual. As such, there was only one trail to follow.
Basil sighed when he found the end of the trail. It was a club, and of a particular sort. He didn’t need his enhanced vision to tell that. Technically speaking, strip clubs and even prostitution were legal. Practically speaking, everyone in any of them used pseudonyms. He sighed and headed for the entrance. The bouncer at the door, a towering ogre, raised a hand. “If you’re carrying, head around to the side entrance. They’ll check your swords there. No weapons in the club.”
”Not planning on starting a fight. Just looking to meet someone.”
”Yeah, well check em anyway. We’ve had boyfriends throwing hands with one another because they were looking at the guy on stage a little too hard, we don’t want em doing it with swords. That’s the kind of domestic dispute that doesn’t just get the cops involved, it’s also a bitch to get out of the floors.”
”Well, I’ll keep that in mind.” Basil replied, and headed around the side. He stepped in, greeted by another bouncer, a dragonborn. He always found it amusing how it was always one of the larger races as a bouncer. Given their job, it made a certain degree of sense, but it occurred to him he’d never seen a gnome as a bouncer. Then again, he didn’t go to many clubs. He checked his sword in, and left a pseudonym.
The dragonborn looked down at the paper, and narrowed his eyes slightly. “What’s the T.D. stand for, Mr. Law?” He asked curiously.
Basil shrugged. “Hells if I know, it’s an alias, same as everyone else is using here. I mean, look at the guy above me on that list, when was the last time you ever met somebody actually named Flamingo?”
”The guy kinda looked like a flamingo. Aasimar type, maybe his wings are pink.” The bouncer replied.
”If he’s the person I’m thinking of, no. Let’s hope they don’t start changing.” Basil replied.
”Ah, ex-boyfriend?”
”Cousin, and why’d you assume ex?”
”The only people I’ve seen who’ve been drinking that much and going home with that many different blokes are the ones going through breakups, and you’re the only person I’ve seen go looking for him, so I know he’s not a whore.”
”Nah, just a dumbass. Thanks for the info. Here’s hoping you have a quiet night.”
”Yeah, try to keep it that way for me.”
”I’ll do my best. Believe it or not, I hate fighting.” Basil replied, and headed past the dragonborn into the club proper.
To give the club some credit, they had a pretty decent band going. A small number, playing as much with style as they did skill. That was to say, a decent if unspectacular amount. The rolling tones of the lead singer washed over an atmosphere of casual conversation and lewd humor. Basil cocked an ear at the sound. He would have sworn he’d heard the woman on the radio at least once. He watched her closely for a moment, along with the rest of the band, but didn’t recognize them. Then again, he didn’t go to many concerts.
As the double bass thrummed, the piano crooned, and the saxophone danced center stage, he made his way through smoke and other scents towards the bar. A teifling danced a lurid show in the center of the building, sweat glistening on blue skin from the lights. One of Basil’s eyes kept a lock on the man, tracing the electrical signals running under his skin to enact their sensual motions. It wasn’t exactly something he was looking to copy, but it was an interesting interplay to watch. Dancing wasn’t something often done alone, done for the show. It was interesting to compare the flow of signals of this to more traditional forms.
He kept most of his eyes forwards through. He had a job to do, and he preferred white to blue anyways. A brief thought entertained his mind of what Zeal might look like in such an outfit. He snapped it off immediately, jaw snapping shut in anger at himself. That was wrong, and a bad place to go. He couldn’t allow himself to think of her, think of anyone, that way, but especially her.
He focused himself. He had a job to do, and he was going to die alone. The only thing anyone would ever love of him would be an illusion. Any intimacy would have to be built on lies. Throw those thoughts out of his mind. They would only bring distraction, and disappointment.
He centered himself, and took a seat next to Karna, as the aasimar knocked back what was looking like probably the sixth shot tonight. How the hell was he even paying for all this? He rapped the bar twice with his knuckles. “First time here, got mezcal?” He asked.
”Mezcal coming up, though I can’t say it’s gonna be quite as good as home’s.” The barkeep replied.
”I am home, just grew up away from it.” Basil replied. For all his illusions, he always forgot to cover his chultan accent. Then again, recognizing his voice was part of the point for the man next to him.
”Basil?” Karna asked, turning slightly. “You’re straight, well, nearest to it, the fuck are you doing here?”
”Checking on you, and about to drink a theoretically decent mezcal.” Basil replied. “I’m worried about you.”
”Well fuck off, you don’t need to be.” Karna replied. “Another.” He requested. Another shot of strong absinthe filled his cup.
”Might want to slow down there hoss.” The barkeep warned. “The kind you’ve been having is a hundred thirty proof.”
”That so? Huh. Would have thought it was about a hundred twenty. Guess I’m getting better at drinking. Stands to reason, it’s all I’m good at or good for.” Karna replied, clearly about as drunk as someone on their seventh shot of one hundred thirty proof absinthe should be.
”Politely, bullshit.” Basil replied. “Though you are going to manage to be the first paladin to ever give yourself liver cirrhosis at the rate you’re going.”
”Paladin. What a bad joke.” Karna spat. “Paladins are heroes, we, we’re not fucking heroes. You got closer, and you’re, well, you. Me. I’m just a fool. So what if I ruin my liver. I’ve ruined everything else.”
Karna went for his glass, but Basil put his hand over it, stopping him. He looked his cousin in the eye, gentle, pitying, but firm. “Karna, we should go. Let’s find somewhere, a park or something, and talk.”
”We should, as in you should get your hand off my drink, and then pull that pole out of your ass. Dancer might need a spare.” Karna spat back. “I don’t need to talk, I need a damn drink.”
Basil didn’t move. “Cut the crap and calm down. You’re drunk already, and clearly not in a good place. If you’re going to be this way, at least we can do it at a safe distance from anyone else.”
”Oh fuck right off.” Karna replied. “What, am I embarrassing you? More so that I already have? I know I’m a fucking disgrace okay. I saw it with my own two eyes and can’t stop seeing it. The least you could let me do is drink myself to death in peace so I stop being a bother for all of you.”
The bartender was steadily shifting away, looking towards the bouncer who sighed and began to approach. He briefly made eye contact with Basil, who tried to give him an apologetic smile and flicked his eyes back towards Karna. The bouncer nodded. This wasn’t the first time he’d seen this.
Karna continued. “But no, you can’t do that. Can’t just let me be a failure in peace. You’re not content just being the better man than me, being better in every way but looks than me. You have to prove it, have to rub it in. I already you’re better, okay, don’t need to slam my nose in it with this stupid pity schtick.”
”When did I say anything about that? I’m the weakest member of our party!” Basil protested. “And what the hells does that have to do with any of that. You’re my cousin, my family, and beyond that my friend. You clearly need help, so of course I’m going to try and help you.”
”I don’t need help.” Karna snarled back, green eyes glinting red with a dangerous, gleaming light. “LEAST OF ALL FROM YOU!” He roared. The red light flared. Basil flinched, covering his eyes as the roar slammed into his mind and ears at the same time. He focused, piercing through the growing crimson fog.
The music kept playing, a hidden tape rolling, but the band pretending to sing had stopped. The club had gone silent, save for that. The patron’s idle gossip and chatter was muted. The bar was silent, patrons slumped over on their chairs, the bartender and bouncer were on the ground, foaming at the mouth. Karna and Basil were the only two people conscious in that building.
Karna stared in stunned silence, quiet horror at the scene. Some part of him processed exactly what he had just done, rationality quietly ticking away behind a fog of alcohol and badly managed emotional issues. It only intensified the later, a combination of terror and guilt forming into a blossoming rage. Then he saw Basil’s face, saw realization peeling back and something shifting in how he looked at him, saw a cold fury, a hatred, spreading across his face.
Basil looked himself, horrified at what had just occurred, and mind flashing to the street in front of Zeal’s home. This was the exact same scene. The same power as Alexander, but now being used instinctually. He had no idea what had actually happened to these people, if Karna had meant it or not. One thing he did know for certain. He had to stop this. If Karna was out of control there was no telling how many people could be hurt so he had to end this now.
Karna opened his mouth, but it was too late. Basil whirled, placing a palm on the bar to leverage himself from a sitting position into a whirling kick. His heel hit Karna squarely in the face, with every ounce of strength he could muster. A sucker punch, meant to be a knockout blow so he could take the aasimar down, end this spell, and get him out of here before anything else went wrong.
Karna snapped back out of his chair, it tumbled to the ground, and the back of his head hit the floor hard. His headache roared, but he rolled over coming back up to his feet, coming to a ready stance. He might have been depressed and drunk, but he was still a paladin, better trained than most and tougher than pretty much everybody. It was going to take more than that to knock him out.
Basil kicked him squarely in the nuts.
Karna doubled over in pain, and Basil kicked him in the face again. Basil had trained under paladins and monks alike. His skill with his own limbs was on par with his swordsmanship. His training under the paladins in the tradition of Jort made him an expert at sneak attacks, sucker punches, and practical, dirty fighting. In other words, he was effectively an expert at kicking people in the nuts. He went for a chop to the throat, trying to finish the fight right then and there.
Karna caught his hand, and broke it by squeezing his fingers. He looked up, bloody eyed and berserk. “Ah. Fuck.” Basil swore. Then Karna threw him. Basil went flying, arm broken, and hit the wall shelves, covered in a hundred forms of expensive booze. The impact shattered his collar bone, and he kept going until he hit the solid wall on the other side of the bar. He landed hard on his face, shirt torn to ribbons and bleeding freely.
His hand and shoulder reset themselves, and shirt tore entirely as he burst his extra limbs out of it, and slammed them down to pick himself up. He drew in a breath, and Karna threw a chair at him. Basil dodged upwards, onto the ceiling as the chair smashed a hole in the wall behind him. He rushed his cousin, gathering shards of broken glass with his spare limbs and a bottle into either hand. He flung the glass before him, forcing Karna to cover his face. Then he hit him on top of the head with both bottles, dropped them, and hit him on both sides of the throat with a chop.
Karna struggled to breathe, nearly blacking out from the impact, and but threw a wild, blind punch. Basil evaded most of hit, but even a glancing hit was enough to send him flying. He caught his momentum on a support pillar, swinging around it with his tendrils. His ankle hit the side of a table and shattered. He wheezed in pain, falling to a knee on top of the table to mend it.
Karna roared and charged like a bull, giving Basil scant time. He palmed a lighter from one of the unconscious men lying next to him, and jumped clear. Karna smashed the table into splinters beneath his fists, tearing skin and breaking bone, but healing them just as quickly as he damaged them. Basil flicked the lighter open, and threw it. The expensive alcohol covering Karna caught light, stunning and blinding him as Basil set him ablaze!
He hit the flaming angel with everything he had before the fire burned away. Fists, feet, elbows, knees, tendrils. A devastating combination of every move he knew to put a man on the ground flew out of him. He hadn’t really trained to get into a bar fight, but damn if it wasn’t coming in handy. He finished with a powerful drop kick in the aasimar’s solar plexus, sending him staggering back against the bar, breath torn from his lungs.
Basil breathed heavily, as his cousin slumped, then swore as Karna got his feet under him, and pulled his head up still more than ready to go. He swore louder as Karna gripped the sides of the bar, and tore the granite countertop off of it, swinging it at Basil like an improvised weapon.
Basil leapt, running along the side of the countertop as it smashed through everything it came across. Fortunately, it was swung high, missing the unconscious clubgoers, and shattered when it hit a load bearing column, though that cracked ominously. Basil landed on his cousin, spines biting into him and wrapping around bones to anchor the assassin. He’d seen a similar technique used by velociraptors when they hunted, using their massive claws to hook onto larger dinosaurs. Once attached, the smaller reptiles would begin to eat their prey alive. He wasn’t planning on biting Karna though, instead he raised up his boot and began to stomp his cousin’s face, over and over and over again, desperately trying to bring the berserk paladin down before he brought down the building!
Karna flared his wings and soared upwards, slamming both himself and Basil into the ceiling. Basil fell off, and Karna grabbed him by the face. He slammed them both down into the floor, smashing Basil’s head into the ground once, twice, three times, then threw him with enough force to scatter blood across the entire club and snap the assassin’s neck. He watched as Basil hit the pole the dancer had been, ahem, performing with, and his illusion vanished.
Horror overtook him as he saw Basil’s true form break in two, snaped apart by the force of the impact, and fall like so much meat onto the stage. He rushed forwards, hands shaking as he realized what he’d just done. He reached for Basil’s head, bloodied and broken. But his hands went through him. His emotional pain was then matched by physical pain, as he felt a steel stripper pole strike him directly between the legs.
Basil didn’t let up, as he dropped the illusion and his invisibility, and beat his cousin into the ground with the broken pole. He went for joints, broke ribs, hit below the belt with every opportunity and he did not stop. He didn’t know what it was going to take to put Karna down but he did know that if Karna got back up, he was actually going to die. It was nothing but the good fortune of his unusual anatomy that had kept him breathing with a broken neck, and his healing magic to allow him to ever get up again. He wasn’t going to get another chance, and so he beat down his cousin until the pole was bent beyond all recognition and the stage was slick with golden blood.
When he finally stopped, Karna was finally, mercifully, down. Basil knelt by his side, mending him enough to make sure he could be moved safely, though not enough to bring him back into consciousness. The patrons were beginning to stir to consciousness. With a grunt, he picked up his friend, hoisting him over his shoulder, and covered both of them with a spell of invisibility.
Slowly, shakily, he retrieved his and Karna’s weapons, erased both their names from the registry, and slipped away as people began to regain consciousness and the police arrived. Then, he began the slow, tired business of carrying Karna back to his house. He grumbled as he went. “You are far too skinny to be this heavy, and put up way too much of a fight for me to need the extra weight of lugging your ass out of here. You stupid overpowered twink.”
Karna woke up with a splitting headache, and a slightly less splitting everything-else-ache. Paladin healing factors worked wonders, but if you took a beating that was going to make you ache for a week, you were going to ache for a week. He remembered what happened, and started to wish he didn’t. “Oh fuck. I nearly killed Bas. And… yeah, the rest of the club. I’m not going to be allowed back there.”
He rolled off his couch and got a drink, of water this time. He looked at his liquor cabinet, walked over, opened it, and grabbed a bottle. He emptied it into the sink. Then he emptied the rest. He looked down at the drain, drew in a deep breath, and focused himself. “I need to apologize. I need to talk. I need help. And I need to get my life back on track.” He resolved. “I can’t let that happen again.”
He clenched his fists, and opened them again, hands still shaking. There was a knock at the door. His first thought was that it might be Basil checking on him. The next though was that it was the police. His third thought was that it was Basil, and the police. Well, either way. Apologies would be made, he might just also need to call a really, really good lawyer, and probably a bank to take out a loan to pay all that property damage.
He opened it, and saw another aasimar looking back at him.
”Hello Karna.” Alexander replied. “I heard you had something of a rough night, powers going out of control, a rather ugly bar fight, that sort of thing?”
”Yes. How long am I going to be in jail for?” Karna asked.
”Not at all, I’ve covered the damages and fortunately, nobody has any memory of last evening. Dominion Flare has that useful side effect.”
”Dominion Flare? What I did has a name?”
”Of course. It is your inheritance after all.” Alexander mused. “Though, you might be the first one to awaken it while drunk, though you’re not the first to cause some degree of damage with it. These things happen, it simply requires training.” He looked Karna squarely in the eye. “And beyond that, I strongly suspect you may be looking for some help getting yourself back on track.”

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2023.06.06 16:14 ayechicalones Beginner seeking advice

Hey guys, I’m pretty new to sliding my car around, and I need some advice from you more experienced (than me lol) guys.
I’m having trouble trusting myself and my car when it comes to staying in the slide. I had a few too many bad experiences when I was younger trying to slide cars, that I have a bit of ptsd lol. These bad (and costly) experiences were me as a dumbass kid trying to slide my open diff 135i in the rain on public roads and completely spinning my car into curbs several times.
Now I have a 22’ BRZ and maybe I’m just imagining this, but having an LSD has been a game changer. In the wet, I can effectively do a rolling “burnout” through third gear and control the back end swaying side to side.
My question is- with an LSD, since it limits the slip, once you’ve induced oversteer, should you just stay in it? I’m having a hard time trusting myself to stay on the gas and I’m finding the the car will almost violently snap back to straightening out when I chicken out and let off. Obviously I’d like to avoid this and have a more smooth and intentional transition to straighten out. Part of me thinks it’s because the car doesnt make much torque, and as soon as you let out a little, it straightens.
I’ve heard others with the BRZ/GR86 suggest that you should get an alignment with the most negative camber possible to aide in staying in the slide.
Any advice or suggestions are greatly appreciated!
(Before anyone asks, I’m practicing in my friend’s lot in an industrial park. Not the biggest, but enough room to practice without paying for a trackday or hitting curbs ;))

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2023.06.06 15:01 Brief_Climate_579 Any takers???

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2023.06.06 14:42 Johnny_Boy398 Africa Rework Proposal: Bêafrîka, Katanga, and the Mercenary Kingdoms of Africa

(This is part of a continuing series, links to which will be provided in the comments below)
Bêafrîka State: Bob Denard, Jean-Bédel Bokassa and the mercenary state.
The term “warlord” has been abused by many as a catch all term for any armed african group. It brings to mind images of a barbaric, violent oaf seeking to enrich themselves with trinkets and money off the back of their military extortion: an example of the primitive and bloodthirsty nature of the african. This is certainly the purpose of the term for the Germans, who seek to paint all native armed resistance in this light in order to justify their own return to the continent. But despite this abuse of the term, and its unjust application, it is not made up out of whole cloth: bandits, criminal gangs and short sighted thugs do exist among the africans as they do in all people, and the chaos of the German collapse has given these characters the opportunity of a lifetime. In the former RK Zentralafrika this is seen most clearly in the “mercenary state” of Bêafrîka.
Borders of a successful Bêafrîka. Many post-colonial African nations are accused of being artificial: random lines drawn on a map for the convenience of foreigners, and thus doomed to be either failures or exploitive facades. The truth of this statement is debatable: what makes a nation “organic”, is it truly critical that one be so? Are the struggles of new African nations so easily encapsulated? The argument goes on but all will agree on this: Bêafrîka is an utterly artificial and extractive state which can only begrudgingly be called a nation at all.
The north-west of Zentralafrika has always been something of a hodgepodge. The initial conquest of the area from the Free French meant the roll back of any “nation building” expenditures in favor of reverting back to the old company rule. Corvee slavery, plantations and almost non-existent infrastructure was the rule even under the French, and as such the transition to German ownership was almost seamless. If the average native african noticed a difference at all it was in the flags and helmets of the whites who terrorized them: their managers and guards stayed essentially the same. As such the region was seen by independence agitators as ripe for their own movements to grow in. Though such resistance was kept on a tight leash by the Germans it finally burst forth in the northern incursion of 1954. Supported by Nigeria and with the German forces drawn thin by the ongoing Wester Russian War, socialist militants made a lightning strike southward in the hopes of toppling Zentralafrika. For a moment it seemed as if they would do it: the road to Leopoldville was only lightly guarded and the rebel numbers were, in theory, vast. But it was not to be: poor command structures and infighting slowed the rebel advance for long enough that Kommissar Krogmann and Seigfreid Muller were able to reorganize and counterattack with the aid of a new breed of soldier: the Mercenary.
Though having been present in the role of corporate security for years this war was the instance when the Congo Mercenaries truly became a force to be reckoned with. Restrictions on who could hold a gun were dropped and the ranks of mercs swollen with Europeans, Asians and Africans. Though typically small groups and far more independent than Krogmann would have liked, they were all well acquainted with their trade and often brought along their own equipment. They could move fast, hit hard, and there was no reason to suspect their siding with the revolutionaries. With the aid of mercenaries and the cash of selling off vast tracts of land to private holders the revolutionaries were pushed back, and the long guerilla war began. Some areas of Zentralafrika were essentially passive, or had other security solutions. But in the north it was the mercenaries and the garrison which enforced the German order. Names of these men would soon become minor celebrities to the military minded, and their benefactor Seigfreid Muller got a promotion. But for our story only three names matter: the French “mercenary king” Bob Denard, “black Napoleon” Jean-Bédel Bokassa, and “the tiger” Alexandre Banza.
Though it is the armed men who hold real power in their hands, the counter-revolutionary forces are not all German and French soldiers of fortune. The APL’s anti-clerical excesses and radical nativism also alienated the thin class of native collaborators and most of all the catholic church. Barthelemy Boganda was one such native conservative, being a native priest who has tried to act through the church to both reform and aid his flock. After the death of his mentor Marcel Grandin Boganda has become a leading figure of pro-native reform without resorting to violence or leftist radicalism.
With the alliance of French and German landowners paying for their protection the mercenaries, though still technically led by Europeans, became the foremost armed presence in the north. Battling against resistance internal and external by 1962 they have become a hated and envied force, and one which Krogmann is eager to bring into line. But the South Africa War will get in the way of any reforms, with mercenaries once again being called on to shoulder the burden of warfare and internal suppression. By the end of the conflict, no matter how it ends, the mercenaries will have become an even more entrenched force in Zentralafrika. Of course when Huttig takes over this will no longer be tolerated. Having already been humiliated by Muller before, Huttig will take great pleasure in dismissing and rounding up the mercenaries, forcing them to join his forces as regular conscripts without any special privileges. Or rather he would, if he had been fast enough to catch them. When news came of Krogmann’s death and Huttig’s assumption of control the mercenaries did not wait for the order to come: they fled if they were able, and if not they seamlessly transitioned from paid agents of the state to new warlords out for their own survival and enrichment. And more than anyone they congregated around the new king of the mercenaries: Bob Denard.
For the year Huttig’s reign lasts the gangs of former mercenaries will be yet another thorn in his side: raiding, bribing and leading his forces on goose chases. And thanks to Huttig’s destruction of any boats or airplanes he could not gain control over these same former mercenaries had nothing else they could do, unless they cared to gamble trekking all the way to Free France. But Huttig’s flailing attempts to bring them to heel was only one of many threats: in this same area socialist militants and petty warlords also sprung up, and sought to destroy the hated mercenaries themselves. When Huttig dies and the German forces retreat to Leopoldville all pretense will be dropped: the Pan-africans, Fang Gabonese and Cameroonian revolutionaries will all attempt to proclaim new states and to expel the gangsters of German capitalism for good. But with their attention divided and the mercenaries still possessing skill, fire power, and all the money the old landowners could scrap together the attempt will only be half successful. Right between the three of them the new Bêafrîka State will be proclaimed.
Born in 1929 Bob Denard first got the taste for battle during the French State’s failed expeditions against De Gaulle in the late 40s. Deciding that there was better pay and better leadership to be had in Zentralafrika he was one of the first mercenaries brought in through the “King of the Mercs” Siegfried Müller. Though he has little patience for the Reich’s racial code he is a brave commander and an ardent anti-communist. After Müller’s disappearance upon Hüttig’s ascension the stranded mercenaries looked to those bold and skilled enough to lead them, and found it in Denard.
Under the nominal presidency of Boganda, who was practically kidnaped to take the role, the new state is in perhaps the most precarious position of all post-independence states.Their domestic support rests on a incredibly thin strata of white landlords, a handful of native conservatives and a mercenary army which is already looking for a way out the back door. And opposing them is a very dedicated coalition of native nationalists and revolutionaries. It would be the most natural thing in the world for this ramshackle “state” to disintegrate. But there is one thing which can unite them, and can make them all take the risk of fighting it out: Money. Specifically diamonds, gold, and other precious metals which can be sold high on the global market. The mercenaries, native or foreign, have struck for fame in Bêafrîka with the process of becoming more than the lap dogs of the wealthy, but instead to be the wealthy themselves. Baganda hates this of course, but no one asked: the guns call the shots here. And besides, the APL has already branded him a traitor to the people: in the mercenaries' eyes he should be thankful that he still has his head. And so it is decided, the mercenaries would make their own little heaven, and all they had to do to keep it was win the war for it.
Against them stands the APL, their long-time adversary. When the war begins these Pan-africanists, supported by Cameroon and Nigeria, will take the fight to Bêafrîka. This would probably be a death sentence if it were not for the fact the APL is fighting a two front war with the Nationalists to their east. If the mercenary state should still fail it will be dismantled, with the surrounding states taking over its former territory. But if it should win this first war the gamble will have, for now, paid off. Bob, Bokassa and the rest will be able to begin bringing in the money as they use outright criminal methods to both extract and then sell the bounty of the land. The people, of course, hate this as does the nominal “president”. And within the mercenary ranks new fissures will soon begin to show. When faced with a united enemy these men were willing to work together, but now that the threat of death no longer hands quite so close the question of dividing the spoils has quickly turned into a feeding frenzy: it seems to be every mercenary clique for itself trying to carve out its own privileged fiefdom. And it is here that the reformists, such as they are, spy an opportunity.
Alexandre Banza, born 1932 to the Gbaya people, is one of the very few high ranking officers who have a ethnic connection to the land they now rule. His story is much the same as the rest of the black mercenaries: born to a poor family he saw mercenary service as a path to excitement, respect and advancement he would never get on his own. Intelligent, ambitious, and unscrupulous he would rise to become a commander of his own group before the Huttig takeover, and should he take power will rename his state the Bêafrîka Republic, embarking on a cynical campaign of “reform”.
The continued presence of white mercenaries is especially resented by the people, and none more so than commander of the presidential guard and de facto leader of the Bêafrîka State Bob Denard. As such soon after the emergency of war has passed Denard will be dismissed from his position and the two most prominent native warlords Alexandre Banza and Jean-Bédel Bokassa will be invited in to take command. Denard of course has no interest in leaving, and will arrest the president in his own residence, but not before word of the new decree leaked to the streets and the other mercenaries. So it is that the fate of Bêafrîka will be decided the only way a state built on mercenaries could be: with a shootout for control of the president. On one side is Denard: he has already made overtures to Free France and the OFN, as well as criminal contacts in Europe. By leveraging these contacts, and with the aid of the remaining white mercenaries who see his removal as the precursor to their own, he may be able to fight his way out and rise to power over the bodies of his rival warlords.
If Bob Denard and his presidential guard emerges victorious president Boganda’s days will be numbered. Unceremoniously removing and replacing him with a more compliant puppet who I will not even bother you with the name of, any promised elections will be delayed, and then delayed indefinitely. In the end even the facade of democracy will be left behind as the government instead relies on various emergency decrees and under the table deals, as well as outright coercion to cement its power. This is the true mercenary state, in which the armed and powerful take what they want from the weak and destitute: the state will see its revenues come from precious minerals and eventually oil, but just as much from the underground world of smuggling, arms trading, mercenary contracts on behalf of any who will pay, and even (if rumors are to be believed) human trafficking. Denard himself is not so unsophisticated as many of his henchmen: he portrays himself and his state as anti-communist crusaders who are willing to go to the ends of the earth to protect the people from the bolshevik menace. But it makes no difference to the people and to his neighborhood: unless those friendly to him such as the Free French and the Belgian regionalists are victorious both Denard and his state will find themselves facing external invasion sooner or later. When that happens, surrounded by disciplined enemies and facing ever increasing internal revolts, Denard will do what mercenaries do best: he will gather what valuables and guns he can before fleeing. But if this should not happen: if the Congo should remain shattered, and Nigerian ambitions fail, who knows how long the dream may last?
Living as they do in a half criminal status all mercenaries are well acquainted with the underworld. Under Bob however the state itself will come to resemble a crime syndicate, with Bob acting as the Mafia boss. More than any other single resource diamonds are the breadwinner for the “White King of Bêafrîka”, but taking a page out of Manchuria’s playbook drug production and trafficking are increasingly filling the ledger as well. The diplomatic denouncements are nothing: there are always back doors which money can open.
But all this is only if Bob and his people should win the battle for President Boganda. For the first time having the full backing of the streets and with a larger manpower pool to draw from it is likely that the native warlords Alexandre Banza and Jean-Bédel Bokassa will become the victors, chasing out the (competition) colonizers in favor of their own rule. They shall of course be rewarded by the eternally thankful president for their good deeds: Bokassa will take over as the new head of the presidential guard, while Banza will become minister of finance and foreign minister. But just as inevitably there is no throne on earth big enough for two people and so the former allies will soon look for a way to oust the other. The hope of the civilians lay in the victory of the Alexandre Banza clique. If he should succeed in arresting and disappearing his rivals Banza will seek to somewhat moderate the state. Rather than rely on naked coercion he will enforce the most basic of social contracts: in return for the country's obedience he will provide protection. Though the basic facts of the Bêafrîka State shall remain: a thriving underground, an economy based on raw export, and a army of criminals, the worst aspects of this rule will be softened and the “civilianization” of government give cosmetic reform to the regime, and finally permit the nominal president a level of dignity, even being allowed to push some of his catholic inspired social reforms. Though not much more than swapping a military uniform for a business suit this will go some way to providing a sense of normalcy, and allow the state to take a non-aligned stance rather than become the plaything of some foreign power.
On the other hand is the favorite of the soldiers Jean-Bédel Bokassa. You know him as the “mad” emperor of the C.A.R. otl, but there was always a method to his madness: one cannot remain in power for over a decade by being stupid. Where Banza seeks to normalize his regime and to be seen as a developmental junta rather than a warlord, Bokassa will lean into his reputation as a warlord, adding esoteric elements to bolster his rule over strangers. Under Bokassa the new system will be entirely personal: he will take the already weak state apparatus and effectively dismantle it, instead relying on personalized dependents to govern the capital city, and leaving the remainder of the country to its own devices so long as it bent the knee when ordered. No longer able to convincingly portray himself as a benign figure to a people who are mostly foreigners to him, he will instead tap into local superstitions to appear as the master of the occult, ruling as a man to be feared even beyond the grave and allegedly indulging in cannibalism. Perhaps even more importantly however he will make a hard switch from western backing to eastern, seeking the protection and the money of Japan. In this at least he will be fairly competent: negotiating the relationship with Japan through a mixture of bribery, utility, and threatened confiscations to wring out as much foreign aid and diplomatic backing as he can. Beyond this his rule will be one of chaos and decline with the people seeing their standard of living decrease yet further to a near subsistence level. But it will be a chaos which Bokassa alone is the ruler of.
Jean-Bédel Bokassa has been fighting longer than most: volunteering for the Free French during WW2, he was captured and ultimately released during the German conquest of Gabon. From there he drifted as a menial laborer until the northern insurrection forced the Reichskommissar to bend, and Bokassa was called up by an old french commander. From there he rose to be the de-facto head of his own suit by 1962, and now the undisputed leader of his own fiefdom. The extreme personalism and close relation with Japan will eventually result in his coronation as the sovereign of the Central African Empire.
Whether it be cynical pragmatism or esoteric terror the Bêafrîka State will remain a pariah among their fellow african nations. Cameroon and Gabon will consistently attempt to undermine and take over their territory for themselves, while even the Germans will see any government as traitors and rebels. Though its military may find a backer and its people may become cowed, the incredibly fragile state will come to an end sooner than later, unless they get very lucky. Any Nigerian victory will be a disaster, but a successful unifyer to the south and east would be a great threat as well. They were already founded in the war against one of those potential unifiers and all contenders for power recognize that a united Congo is a dangerous Congo. So, either through direct aid in the case of Denard or cheering from the sidelines Bêafrîka must hope for the victory of the regionalists and Jean Schramme.
Katanga, the Regional Alliance, and “The Belgian”.
For the Pan-Africans, the Republicans, the Nationalists and even the Germans survival is not enough: they wish to reunite the old Belgian colony under their vision of the future, and perhaps even seek expansion beyond that. But not all “congolese” feel this way: in particular the province of Katanga sees no reason why it should not be free to plot its own course. Wealthy in its own right with economic ties to the south the elite of the mining provence see no reason why they should be chained to a central government, and are at least partially supported in this by the people. Just what future this “independence” takes is is still up for grabs, but in the chaotic aftermath of Huttings death Moïse Tshombe, Albert Kalonji and Jean Schramme will form a triumvirate to lead the Regional Alliance.
Élisabethville slum. Katanga is the richest province in the Congo, as well as the one with the highest concentration of Belgians, and as such has seen the beginning of a modern city develop in its capital. It has also been the prime region for victims of the Congo Dam to migrate into, on account of its relative stability and high labor demand. This has all combined to put a great deal of pressure on those populating the land south of the lake and the development of modern slums alongside the growing city.
Katanga is, in 1962, the last remnant of Belgian colonial rule left after the German takeover. Not formally of course, that had been swept away along with Belgum itself in the 50s. But just beneath the German surface the old colonial trinity of church, company and stick still held true, and mostly under Belgian control. In the aftermath of WW2 and the establishment of Burgundy many Belgians had chosen to migrate into their old colonial territory, either for political or economic reasons. Their numbers would soon fill out the officer ranks of the Force Publique, the managerial posts of various new mines and plantations, and the pews of the catholic church. But it would not be the end of their difficulties: the old trinity clashed with Krogmann’s designs for the colony and after formally absorbing it in 1955 the contest began. Where the catholic church once held near total control over healthcare and education, not to mention religious life, Krogmann favored secularism for the european and promoted dechristianization for the native. His hopes for dissolving the FP and for removing french and dutch from the lexicon would be similarly resisted. By 1962 this contest of wills has continued to grind on, with the steady advance of germanization being constantly interrupted by economic and political expediency. The Belgian Katangaians find themselves stuck uncomfortably between German pressure from above and Native pressure from below.
This native pressure is on one hand from the educated evoles, always looking to improve the lot of themselves and sometime of their kin. But it also increasingly comes from the restless masses who have come under pressure from the fallout of the Congo Dam. As the Belgian congo moderately prospered the cities began to grow as well, with the colonial authorities making tentative attempts to accommodate the influx. But after the Congo dam and the German takeover both of these trends changed. Millions of refugees fled the great flood into the wealthiest regions they could go: Leopoldville and Katanga. The population of the cities exploded, and the subsistence agriculture still practiced by most Congolese came under incredible pressure as migrants and squatters proliferated. The Belgian authorities meanwhile were left without the resources needed to truly accommodate this change, and were left with only the Force Publique to try and keep the “indigenes” separate from the new “foreigners”. It was in this context that regionalist associations with the goal of protecting specific people, such as the Lula or Lunda, came to dominate the native political scene, such as it was. Both of these movements discovered that they had similar enemies: both resented German power and feared the “national” native resistance. But this did not yet mean they became allies.
Moïse Tshombe, the nominal head of Katanga. Born to a noble lineage and always wealthy, his desire to be liked and his lack of spin have made him into an ideal puppet for other interests. His current sponsor is the remnants of the old Belgian Union Minière, which comprise much of Katanga’s economy. Though not hated by any “his” government is in reality more beholden to his lieutenants such as Godefroid Munongo.
Katanga had lived in an atmosphere of tension even before the rise of Huttig and the advent of the “Afrikareich” did nothing to alleviate this tension. As part of Huttig’s program to fully disarm the natives and bring all armed forces under SS command he attempted to disarm the Force Publique and Belgian mercenaries, rolling them into its own armed forces. Prominent civilian Belgians were arrested and replaced with SS men, leaving both the Belgians and the natives angered. Under this new pressure some decided to give it up: the new regime could not be bargained with as the prior one was, and any resistance clearly meant death. But enterprising elements were not willing to take death laying down: most prominently this included Godefroid Munongo and Jean Schramme. Using their own wealthy connections and estates as payment they would form small resistance groups, and would be the first formal alliance between the Belgians and the regionalists. To cut a long story short when Huttig dies and the Germans retreat to Leopoldville, those SS governors who do not flee will find their lifespans much shorter than expected, and those brave or desperate enough to resist Huttig will return to power. In the face of nationalist calls to reunite the congo however, the regionalists will move first. With the lavish bribery of local mining conglomerates and the justification of “popular will”, the Belgian community led by Schramme and localist leaders will form the first concret result of their ad-hoc alliance: The State of Katanga.
In its first years Katanga is a divided and unsettled place, forced into unity by the common fear of external subjugation but beholden to competing political camps. The state itself is at least nominally led by Moïse Tshombe, descendant of the kings of the Lunda people and scion to one of the last wealthy native families. He is the figurehead of a poorly organized class of native elites and collaborators, most often independently wealthy and committed just as much to their own economic privileges as they are to the cause of regionalism itself. But despite this Tshombe heads the closest thing to a “popular movement” in the new state: the "Confédération des associations tribales du Katanga" (CONAKAT). Formed in the interest of protecting the livelihoods of the Lunda against the encroaching migrants it is through this party that the people are mobilized for war. Relying on traditional authority and elite connections in the name of a tribalism has been effective in at least countering the partisans of the republicans and nationalists which contest the provence. Just as in the other contenders the war is as much a mater of internal division as it is defeating external challenges. But in order to meet those external enemies the party has been obliged to do so with the aid of their “ally”, the Belgians.
Jean Schramme, despite his official profession, is less of a mercenary and more of a Belgian “contractor” who has a reputation for getting things done and resisting German encroachment. Coming to Africa soon after the end of WW2 he is part of a new breed of Belgians who consider Zentralafrika, or more accurately Katanga, as their true home and embrace the ideal of a paternal ruler of their “primitive” neighbors. Being a successful entrepreneur as well as part time leader of the “Leopard Battalion” Jean has become a prominent part of the Belgian expat community. But though he no longer wishes to return to Europe do not think he has forgotten what the Nazi’s did: the old motherland is dead by German hands, and he has not forgiven them.
Just as on the native side the Belgians are divided internally: German policy was frustrating and insulting, but it was also relatively stable and offered a protection against the natives surrounding them. To forgo this protection and risk battle with the world's superpowers in the name of an uncertain independence requires a boldness uncommon in men. But since when did the meek make history? Returning from his armed exile Schremme will find the FP and Belgian police in disarray, and take it upon himself to topple the last of the SS governors. In his mind there is no question: in order for the Belgians to be free and prosperous they must take the risk of rebellion against Germany and carve out their own state in the chaos. But despite his personal exploits he is unable to do this on his own, and so despite his personal distaste for allying with the native regionalists his own backers in the belgian mining and administrative class have forced him to make common cause with “their” evolese. Regardless Schremme has become the critical belgian commander in this rebelion, bringing the remainder of the belgian community with him whether they like it or not. He leads in a mercenary style, never far from the front lines and with a greater emphasis on personal bravery than more mundane things like logistics.
Though Katanga is the heart of the Regionalist Alliance it is still only one part of that alliance: to the eastern flank is Sud-Kasaï, led by Albert Kalonji as the vanguard state of the Luba secessionist movement. Both Kalonji and Tshombe claim to be protecting their people (Luba and Lunda respectively) from becoming minorities within their own land and from becoming the playthings of another foreign power, whether that be Germania, Washington or any other place. They are also both from prominent and wealthy local families, who have cooperated with the belgian colonizers for generations and have every personal incentive to resist foreign acquisition. As such their support is not primarily from the people, but from the oligarchs and the army. These are two significant advantages however: While other factions are scrambling to put together a military, a state, and to pay for it all, Katanga and her allies are able to fall back on the old colonial power structures, expanding the FP and leveraging oligarchical ties to slap together an army faster than their rivals. With the mix of audacious leadership, money and the Schramme loyalist mercenaries/formed FP officers the alliance may be able to snatch its independence despite the lack of international backing.
Map of regionalist victory, Azandeland acts as a placeholder for local authority (or lack thereof), Sud-Kasai is the Luba Empire. The immediate issue facing the regionalists will be export access: the states survival depends on the revenue from its extensive mining operations, and if that material cannot be exported it is worthless. For this Katanga must either negotiate a trade deal with the German remnants, or seek a detente with the self proclaimed frontline of liberation Zambia. Neither is eager to do this, but the world calls for what Katanga can provide, most of all Uranium. Eventually the market will win out, and one side will decide it is better to compromise principle than give the other an opportunity to gain access to the Katanga bounty.
IF VICTORIOUS the Regionalist Alliance will comprise an expanded State of Katanga, the Luba Empire, and a number of minor eastern powers propped up by Katanga. For the Luba and the Eastern chiefs the question of post war politics is an easy one: tribal traditionalism shall prevail as Albert Kalonji names himself king and the local chiefs are either bribed or threatened into compliance with the new order. While some may make efforts to modernize and advance their domains it will only be done under the watchful and occasionally helpful eye of Katanga. The only question remaining is who will be in control of Katanga itself. Jean Schramme is not a reasonable man, or at least not a moderate one: if he feels that he and the Belgians are not granted their proper place he may well try to overthrow Moïse Tshombe and install himself as the leader of the new state. The natives are less than satisfied as well: though free of foreign control it is clear to them that the old order is no longer acceptable: the people who fought and won the war for independence demand that their sacrifice be rewarded in some meaningful way. And most of all the question of race can no longer be papered over: The Belgians and Europeans remain on top, the migrants have been savaged, and the land and jobs available are not enough to satisfy them all.
To reconcile these internal difficulties a conference shall be held between the Belgian leadership of the army and company's one on hand, and the native oligarchs and officers on the other to see if a viable solution can be worked out. On the Belgian side the question is that of security and property: they wish to maintain the full roster of legal rights granted to them by belgian law, to keep their property and company concessions, and for a Belgian “veto” in the national government to ensure that Belgian rights are not trampled by some future populist government. On the CONAKAT side is a desire to renegotiate the terms of the “social contract”: to ensure a majority native voice in government which cannot be overruled by Belgian privilege, greater native ownership of property and the full abolition of any legal barriers to their advancement. However both sides are united in seeking stability and in their distrust of the congolese “masses”. Those masses are not without a voice themselves: through labor unions, dissident political parties and new officer associations the experience of warfare has made the people politically aware. If the result of the conference does not give some bones to the people it may find that its support is far too narrow to be stable.
Union Minière, once the undisputed master of the Katanga economy, has declined somewhat under German overlordship. With a majority of its shares owned by the Belgian state and its former leadership fleeing to America after the end of the war its foundations were shaky. When Krogmann began the great sell off and rescinded the Belgian Congo’s autonomy the company found itself in yet more hot water. Transitioning to a locally owned company within Zentralafrika itself the Union has been forced to cut back on its paternalistic spending to make ends meet. Beyond the typical demands for labor rights and wage increases the Kantaga people also wish for a return to the housing, education and social protection once afforded by the leviathan. With its place in Katanga once again secure this may just be possible.
A successful conference will be one of compromise. For the people a number of social protections and laws will be promised: greater state funding to education, hospitals, and housing will be promised, along with a hike in wages. In order to afford this the belgians will need to accept their privileged economic position comes with a responsibility to fund the state which protects it: though direct taxes may be a bridge too far a system of expected “gifts” and an expansion of the old paternalism into state guided policy may work out. In return for their material contributions the Belgians will receive legal autonomy, organizing their own political parties and keeping their land. The native oligarchs meanwhile would take the national stage, being granted privileged places within the Katanga economy as well as using CONAKAT as their vehicle for political dominance. Concessions and compromises such as these require that all parties trust the other to keep up their end of the bargain, and not simply alter the deal when they feel they are able. And in the aftermath of a brutal civil war and a political culture of corruption such trust is very hard to come by. But if these difficulties are overcome, and Jean Schramme is kept mollified, the new State of Katanga will be ruled as a collaborative oligarchy, keeping real representation out of the hands of the people and wealth in the hands of a few, but also a relatively stable and moderate government which is willing to compromise when need be. Unless it is a question of distrusted ethnic groups attempting to secede from the state or restart Congolese unification, in which case the Katanga Gendarmerie will be the only answer given.
But what if this conference does not succeed? What if the protests outside become too large, or the sides are too inflexible, or if Jean Schramme believes the rights of Belgians are being sold too cheaply? Then the Rule of Fire will come back and those with the force to crush their opposition will prevail. And in Katanga that can only mean one thing: Schramme and his allies will stage a coup, placing themselves in charge once again as an emergency government. Those unwilling to ally with him will be dismissed, replaced with those who are. The new mission of the state is the protection of “Belgian civilization” in Katanga, with Schramme attempting to revive the old trinity of Church, State and Company under his guiding hand. He never truly wanted to be in this position: he would much rather simply go back to his plantation and be master of his own little world. But he belives that his new homeland calls out for leadership and guts it seems only he can provide, and so he will seek to lead it into the future he envisions. One where the Congo natives are grateful and subservient to their betters, where all the structures of the trinity are led by Europeans to the benefit of all. Of course most of the natives have very different ideas about what the future should look like, and so Schremma’s Katanga will immediately be thrown into a bush war as the old civil war factions reform as guerrilla movements seeking to topple his dictatorship. The profits of Katanga are vast, especially if one is willing to sell uranium to anyone willing to buy, but how long will money and determination be able to hold against the will of the people?
At a stretch the white population of Katanga is 100,000, while the total african population is somewhere north of 1.5 million. This is before one considers the increasing populations of the Luba Empire and the eternal frontier of the Eastern Congo. And then there is the highly likely presence of hostile regimes on the borders: all the money in the world cannot win Schramme this Bush War, and he will either need to swallow his pride and accept democratization for the natives or accept the return of the Reich as suzerain. And even that may not be enough to avoid the rage of a people betrayed.

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2023.06.06 14:09 ABI_RESOURCES_CT_TBI The Fun and Joy of Starting Slow in Exercise

https://reddit.com/link/142e06g/video/nh40j9c52e4b1/player

The Fun and Joy of Starting Slow in Exercise

The Fun and Joy of Starting Slow in Exercise
Isn't it amazing how the smallest actions can bring about the most significant transformations? This is especially true when it comes to our physical health and well-being.
Embarking on a journey to a more active, healthier life doesn't mean having to run a marathon on your first day. In fact, the beauty of exercise lies in starting slow and gradually building up. This way, your body can adapt and grow stronger over time without being overwhelmed.
One way to kickstart this journey is as simple as going for a 15-minute walk around your block while listening to your favorite music. Create a playlist that energizes you and lifts your spirits; let the rhythm guide your steps. As you move to the beat, you will not only be strengthening your body but also filling your mind with positive energy.
Now, imagine doing this every day. Over time, these little walks could become jogs, then runs. Before you know it, you will be seeing and feeling the incredible effects of regular exercise on your body and mind - better sleep, higher energy levels, improved mood, and so much more.
However, it's important to remember that every body is unique. Before starting any new exercise routine, please consult with your healthcare and therapeutic providers. They can guide you to make sure your new routine is both safe and effective for your specific needs.

What kind of physical activities do I enjoy? (Answer: Identifying what you love will motivate you to be consistent in your exercise routine.)
How can I make exercise a fun part of my daily routine? (Answer: Create a playlist, invite a friend to join you, or reward yourself after each session.)
What small, achievable fitness goal can I set for myself this week? (Answer: Consistency beats intensity. Start with a goal as simple as a daily 15-minute walk.)
How will I feel when I achieve my fitness goal? (Answer: Accomplishing a goal brings a sense of satisfaction, confidence, and motivation for further challenges.)
What positive changes can I expect from regular exercise? (Answer: Regular exercise can improve your mood, sleep, energy levels, and overall health.)

Starting an exercise routine doesn't require you to jump into intense workouts right away. It's about taking small, enjoyable steps that can lead to big changes. Start slow, make it fun, and gradually increase your effort. You'll soon start experiencing the many benefits of regular physical activity. But remember, always consult your healthcare and therapeutic providers before starting a new exercise routine.
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Discover how starting slow and making small changes can lead to big transformations in your health and wellbeing.
https://www.ctbraininjury.com/post/starting-slow
📷
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Unleash Your Potential: The Power of Starting Slow in Exercise
Discover the Joy of Exercise: Small Steps, Big Transformations
The Road to Better Health: Embracing Slow and Steady Exercise
Your Fun Fitness Journey: Embrace Small Actions for Big Changes
Walking to the Beat: Making Exercise Fun with Music
Building a Healthier You: The Joy of Starting Slow
Little Steps to Big Victories: Your Guide to Starting Exercise
Exercise Made Easy: Start Small, Dream Big
Small Steps, Giant Leaps: The Power of Gradual Exercise
Tune Into Health: How Music and Walking Can Kickstart Your Fitness Journey

How can slow-starting exercise help in recovery from a brain injury?
How can ABI resources guide a safe exercise routine post-brain injury?
Consult with your healthcare provider before starting an exercise routine after a TBI.
Regular, gentle exercise can aid brain health and recovery after a TBI.
Have you considered consulting ABI resources for suitable exercises post-brain injury?
Exercise can be an important part of your recovery journey after a brain injury.
ABI resources can provide guidance and support for starting slow in exercise after a TBI.
What kind of low-impact exercises are recommended for individuals recovering from a TBI?
How can ABI resources help design a safe and effective exercise routine after a brain injury?
Utilizing TBI and ABI resources can help guide your exercise journey post-brain injury.
Safe to exercise after a TBI? Always consult with ABI resources and healthcare providers.
The role of exercise in aiding cognitive function recovery after a brain injury.
How can music and light walking aid emotional wellbeing after a TBI?
Discover the power of slow, steady exercises as part of TBI recovery.
ABI resources can help tailor an exercise program to your needs after a brain injury.
Why is starting slow and steady in exercise important after a TBI?
How can consistent, gentle exercise improve quality of life after a brain injury?
What exercises are recommended by ABI resources for individuals with a TBI?
ABI resources emphasize the importance of a gradual increase in physical activity after a TBI.
Remember to consult ABI resources when planning your exercise routine post-TBI.
Learn about the benefits of regular, gentle exercise for brain injury recovery from TBI and ABI resources.
Incorporating slow-starting exercise into your lifestyle can contribute to a successful recovery after a TBI.
The role of TBI and ABI resources in guiding a safe and effective exercise routine post-brain injury.
Can starting slow with exercises enhance cognitive and physical recovery from a TBI?
ABI resources can provide valuable information on how to safely start exercising after a TBI.
Discover the power of music and slow-paced exercise in managing mood and emotions after a TBI.
How can ABI resources support your journey towards a healthier lifestyle post-TBI?
Small steps in exercise can lead to big changes in your recovery journey from a brain injury.
Understanding the impact of regular, light exercise on mental health post-TBI.
Why is it crucial to consult TBI and ABI resources before starting any exercise routine after a brain injury?
Explore the benefits of starting slow with exercise during TBI recovery with ABI resources.
The positive impact of daily walks on physical and cognitive health after a TBI.
How can light, regular exercise aid in managing symptoms post-TBI?
TBI and ABI resources can provide helpful tips on making exercise enjoyable and effective.
Learn how to build a safe and effective exercise routine post-TBI with ABI resources.
Starting slow with exercise can have profound benefits on your recovery journey post-TBI.
ABI resources can guide you in setting achievable fitness goals after a TBI.
Regular, low-impact exercise can significantly aid in cognitive function recovery post-TBI.
How can ABI resources help you understand the benefits of regular, gentle exercise after a brain injury?
Simple actions in exercise can bring significant changes in your journey to recovery from a TBI.
Light, regular exercise is an important component of a comprehensive TBI recovery plan.
TBI and ABI resources can provide valuable guidance in maintaining consistency in exercise post-brain injury.
Discover how small, achievable fitness goals can impact your TBI recovery positively.
ABI resources emphasize the importance of exercise in supporting both physical and mental health post-TBI.
Make exercise a fun part of your recovery journey post-TBI with the help of ABI resources.
How can consistent, gentle exercise help in managing mood and emotions after a brain injury?
Understanding the role of regular, low-impact exercise in TBI recovery with the help of ABI resources.
Exercise is a powerful tool that can aid your journey to recovery post-TBI.
How can ABI resources guide you to make exercise a positive and fun part of your life post-brain injury?
Regular, gentle exercise can make a big difference in your overall well-being post-TBI.
ABI Resources is a reputable organization that provides care for individuals and families in collaboration with various government agencies and community service providers, including the Connecticut Department of Social Services DSS, COU Community Options, the Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services DMHAS, Connecticut Community Care CCC CCCI Southwestern Connecticut Area on Aging SWCAA, Western Connecticut Area on Aging WCAAA, Allied Community Resources ACR, Access Health, and United Services. ABI Resources collaborates care with renowned institutions such as HFSC, Gaylord, UCONN, Yale, and Hartford. As a community care and supported living provider, ABI Resources is dedicated to offering high-quality and personalized care to enhance the lives of those it serves. Medicaid MFP Money Follows the person program / ABI Waiver Program / PCA waiver.

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2023.06.06 12:37 boutell New US CHAdeMO chargers in May 2023

Here are all of the new US CHAdeMO (Leaf fast-charging) stations that rolled out in May 2023, according to the U.S. Department of Energy.
There were 124 "new" CHAdeMOs added in May. To put it in perspective, there were 112 CHAdeMO chargers added in April. I think the pace of CHAdeMO rollout has stabilized, while the pace of CCS rollout is still increasing. This makes sense given that only Nissan still makes a CHAdeMO car.
Some of these chargepoints will be "refreshes," e.g. the provider replaced them with faster chargers etc. Some may be incorrect. This report is only as good as the Alternative Fuels Data Center data.
We all know that CHAdeMO is a legacy format and will eventually go away, but clearly Nissan and their partners are continuing to support it for the time being. This shouldn't be surprising. After all, you can still buy a new Leaf.
If you'd like to know about new chargers along your routes right away, or reading these monthly reports is just frustrating in your state, I've set up a free service that provides email notifications only when new stations actually open. You can sign up at evpov.com. I built it to help EV owners like myself (especially my fellow Leaf owners). You can pick other plug types as well.
To streamline this post, multi-chargepoint locations are listed with the number of chargepoints first, so that's why the post is shorter than in previous months.

➡ CA (1) Fairfield Inn & Suites 8700 Spectrum Pkwy Bakersfield, CA 93308 (1) MOSSY CDJR DC 1 1875 Auto Park Ave Chula Vista, CA 91911 (3) DC CORRIDOR CHEVRON C DC 2 25032 W Dorris Ave Coalinga, CA 93210 (1) South Coast Collection (SoCo) 3303 Hyland Ave Costa Mesa, CA 92626 (1) SCPPA SCPPA CPE200T 1160 Nicole Ct Glendora, CA 91740 (1) Mojave Air & Spaceport (Building 1) 16922 Airport Blvd Mojave, CA 93501 (1) Albertsons 1345 (Morro Bay, CA) 730 Quintana Road Morro City, CA 93442 (1) CircleK - Palm Desert, CA 78005 Country Club Dr Palm Desert, CA 92211 (1) Hilton Garden Inn 20 Advantage Ct Sacramento, CA 95834 (1) BoA Hillcrest CA0-120 (San Diego, CA) 737 UNIVERSITY AVE San Diego, CA 92103 (1) WinCo Foods - Vacaville #60 855 Davis St Vacaville, CA 95687 ➡ CO (1) CITY OF ASPEN RIO GRANDE L3 427 Rio Grande Pl Aspen, CO 81611 (4) CSG EV BOULDER PL4 1500 Pearl St Boulder, CO 80302 (1) CircleK - Colorado City, CA 8950 S Interstate 25 Colorado City, CO 81004 (2) GPM INVESTMENTS 4590 DC1 8105 N Academy Blvd Colorado Springs, CO 80920 (2) KUM & GO CRAIG PL2 700 East Victory Way Craig, CO 81625 (1) DINO WELCOME DINOSAUR PL1 101 Stegosaurus Freeway Dinosaur, CO 81610 (2) PIKES PK CHARGE BA.CA.MI LLC #2 11027 US-24 Divide, CO 80814 (3) ANNEX SITE GEORGETOWN PL2 1120 Argentine Street Georgetown, CO 80444 (4) KUM & GO RIFLE PL4 705 Taugenbaugh Boulevard Rifle, CO 81650 (2) KUM & GO SB SPRINGS PL2 80 Anglers Drive Steamboat Springs, CO 80487 ➡ FL (1) JNKNS JACKSONVI DC FAST 2 11107 Atlantic Blvd Jacksonville, FL 32225 (1) Starbucks 9200 FL-228 Macclenny, FL 32063 (1) Ocean Cadillac 17800 Ipco Road Miami, FL 33162 (1) Sun Plaza 6339 W Colonial Dr Orlando, FL 32818 (1) BHY CHARGER 1 9915 E Adamo Dr Tampa, FL 33619 (1) Chase Bank - 5601 Red Bug Lake Rd 5601 Red Bug Lake Rd Winter Springs, FL 32708 ➡ GA (1) GEORGIA POWER EPICENTER DC1 135 riverside parkway SW Austell, GA 30168 (1) JACKSON EMC GAINESVILLE 1000 Dawsonville Highway Gainesville, GA 30501 ➡ IN (1) AVON HYUNDAI SALES 8775 E 36 Avon, IN 46123 (1) HOC CHARGERS CHARGER #1 4200 E 96th St Indianapolis, IN 46240 ➡ KS (1) HATCHETT FRONT_WEST 11200 E Central Ave Wichita, KS 67206 (1) HATCHETT BACK EAST 11330 E Central Ave Wichita, KS 67206 ➡ KY (1) JEFF WYLER FH EXPRESS 250 949 Burlington Pike Florence, KY 41042 ➡ MA (6) MASSPORT TNC 4 226 Porter St Boston, MA 02128 (2) MASSPORT TAXI 4 56 Harborside Dr Boston, MA 02128 ➡ MD (2) POTOMAC EDISON ROCKY GAP DC1 16701 Lakeview Rd NE Flintstone, MD 21530 ➡ ME (1) DARLINGS HYUNDA SALES CHARGER 2 439 Western Ave Augusta, ME 04330 (2) IRVINGOIL ME-FFLD-L3-0001 206 Center Rd Fairfield, ME 04937 (1) MOBIL ONTHEWAY STATION 1 1930 Lisbon Street Lewiston, ME 04240 (1) MOBIL ONTHEWAY STATION 2 1938 Lisbon St Lewiston, ME 04240 ➡ MI (1) Belle Isle DC Fast Charge 176 Lakeside Dr Detroit, MI 48207 (1) Evergetic Charging Spa 330 South Martin Luther King Junior Boulevard Lansing, MI 48915 ➡ MN (1) WINNER GAS BROOKDALE DR 1500 Brookdale Dr Minneapolis, MN 55444 ➡ NC (1) CAPE HATTERAS AVON PIER DCFC2 41001 North Carolina Hwy 12 Avon, NC 27915 (1) AEMC- AEMC HQ FAST 125 Cooperative Way Hertford, NC 27944 (1) Chestnut Arbor 2925 Weddington Matthews Rd Matthews, NC 28105 ➡ NE (1) ERNST CHARGER 1 EAC CHARGER 615 23rd St E Columbus, NE 68601 ➡ NJ (1) ShopRite Carteret - Wakefern #511 801 Roosevelt Ave Carteret, NJ 07008 (2) FREEHOLDHYUNDAI VERIZON 1 4075 9 Freehold Township, NJ 07728 (2) CLASS 3 CHARGER HYUNDAI-2 250 Rte 4 Paramus, NJ 07652 (1) CIRCLEAUTOGROUP CH- CPE250 1 641 Shrewsbury Ave Shrewsbury, NJ 07702 (1) ROUTE 1 HYUNDAI CPE-250-02 3905 US 1 South Brunswick Township, NJ 08852 (1) ROUTE 1 HYUNDAI RT1-01 3913 US-1 South Brunswick Township, NJ 08852 ➡ NY (1) AAA WESTCENTRAL DC FAST CHARGER 100 International Dr Amherst, NY 14221 (2) KEELER STATION 6 1111 Troy Schenectady Rd Latham, NY 12110 (1) LEXUSMIDDLETOWN STATION 1 3496 US-6 Middletown, NY 10940 (3) BOB JOHNSON BOB JOHNSON KIA 3817 W Henrietta Rd Rochester, NY 14623 ➡ OH (2) CRESTMONT DRIVECRESTMONT2 2961 Center Rd Brunswick, OH 44212 (1) Hampton Inn - Canton 5256 Broadmoor Cir NW Canton, OH 44709 (1) JEFF WYLER EXPRESS 250 Loop @ Far Hills Centerville, OH 45459 (1) DONWOODAUTO DW CHEVY 2 12916 OH-664 Logan, OH 43138 (1) JEFF WYLER CORP 4- DC FAST 401 Milford Pkwy Milford, OH 45150 (1) Friendship Kitchen 70 3800 E. State Rd. Port Clinton, OH 43452 (1) Friendship Kitchen 83 4024 Hayes Ave. Sandusky, OH 44870 ➡ OK (1) EDMOND HYUNDAI EDMOND 4 14137 N Broadway Ext Edmond, OK 73013 ➡ OR (1) PGE IBEW 48 15937 NE Airport Way Portland, OR 97230 ➡ PA (1) DOYLESTOWN 024B1000008033 4465 W Swamp Rd Doylestown, PA 18902 (2) LIBERTY CHARWASH PL 2 2595 Maryland Road Willow Grove, PA 19090 ➡ PR (2) BMW AUTOGERMANA CPE 250 PKNG 2 106 Calle Acuarela Guaynabo, PR 00969 (2) BMW AUTOGERMANA FTZ120KW-2 1086 Ave. Muñoz Rivera San Juan, PR 00919 ➡ SC (1) Travelers Rest Municipal Complex 125 Trailblazer Dr Travelers Rest, SC 29690 ➡ TN (4) I24 EXIT11 STATION 1 (LL) 701 Sango Road Clarksville, TN 37043 (2) DISTRICT 2 STATION 1 (L) 28 S Park Ave Hohenwald, TN 38462 (2) LAWRENCEBURG STATION 2 (R) 2347 Hwy 43 N Leoma, TN 38468 (1) MB OF MEMPHIS STATION 1 5401 Poplar Ave Memphis, TN 38119 ➡ TX (1) Plaza de Oro 4450 W Jefferson Blvd Dallas, TX 75211 ➡ UT (2) VOLVO CAR USA SANDY DC 2 56 W 9000 S Sandy, UT 84070 ➡ VA (2) KOONS HYUNDAI STATION 1 1880 Opitz Blvd Woodbridge, VA 22191 ➡ WA (2) HANSON MOTORS HM3 QUICKCHARGE 2300 Carriage Loop SW Olympia, WA 98502 (1) Walmart 2539 - Spokane Valley, WA 15727 E Broadway Ave Spokane Valley, WA 99037 (1) 7054 -Vancouver, WA 98664 (10314 SE Mill Plain Road) 13014 SE Mill Plain Rd Vancouver, WA 98684 ➡ WI (1) BERG HYUNDAI VLI-L3-PDI-4 2900 N Victory Ln Appleton, WI 54913 (1) Wheelers Chevrolet of Coloma 1978 Charles Way Coloma, WI 54930 (1) Wheelers Chevrolet GMC of Marshfield 2701 S. Maple Ave Marshfield, WI 54449

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2023.06.06 12:32 boutell New US CCS chargers report for May 2023

Here are all of the new US CCS (Level 3 fast-charging) stations that rolled out in May 2023, according to the Department of Energy. These chargers are suitable for most new EVs on the market, except for:

Tesla drivers who haven't bought the official CCS adapter yet. Certain older Teslas need additional work done to accept the adapter.
Leaf owners like me, and some owners of older cars that also use CHAdeMO. If you drive a Leaf, or an older CHAdeMO car, see my matching post in leaf.

Some of these chargepoints will be "refreshes," e.g. the provider replaced them with faster chargers etc. Some may be incorrect. This report is only as good as the Alternative Fuels Data Center data.
There were 222 CCS charge points added or refreshed in May 2023, which is up from 171 in April. For comparison, there were only 74 new CCS charge points in May 2022. Things are speeding up.
"What about CCS charging at Tesla superchargers?" Tesla is in the process of rolling out their "magic dock" for non-Tesla cars, but so far in very few locations. If they start doing this at scale and reporting it to the Alternative Fuels Data Center then it will be reflected here.
"What about Ford vehicles with NACS (Tesla) plugs?" They are not on sale yet. Current-generation Ford vehicles have CCS plugs. The next generation will have NACS (Tesla) plugs, but will also support CCS via an adapter.
If you'd like to know about new chargers along your routes right away, or just prefer not to check this list monthly when new openings are rare in your area, I've set up a free service that provides email notifications as soon as they open. You can sign up at evpov.com. Or not! I don't really have a business plan here, I built it to help EV owners like myself.
To streamline this post, multi-chargepoint locations are listed with the number of chargepoints first, so that's why the post is shorter than in previous months.

➡ AR (1) Franklin's Charging Little Rock 724 Woodrow St Little Rock, AR 72205 ➡ AZ (6) 942 E Parma Street (US-CMK-NVL-2A) 942 E Parma Street Gila Bend, AZ 85337 (1) Kroger Frys 62 (Mesa, AZ) 554 W Baseline Rd Mesa, AZ 85210 ➡ CA (1) Fairfield Inn & Suites 8700 Spectrum Pkwy Bakersfield, CA 93308 (1) MOSSY CDJR DC 1 1875 Auto Park Ave Chula Vista, CA 91911 (3) DC CORRIDOR CHEVRON C DC 2 25032 W Dorris Ave Coalinga, CA 93210 (1) South Coast Collection (SoCo) 3303 Hyland Ave Costa Mesa, CA 92626 (1) SCPPA SCPPA CPE200T 1160 Nicole Ct Glendora, CA 91740 (1) Chase Bank - 925 N Hacienda Blvd 925 N Hacienda Blvd La Puente, CA 91744 (1) WOODLANDHILLS ABB 24KW 01 22006 Erwin Street Los Angeles, CA 91367 (1) 7071 - Merced, CA (2020 Childs Ave) 2020 Childs Ave Merced, CA 95341 (1) Mojave Air & Spaceport (Building 1) 16922 Airport Blvd Mojave, CA 93501 (1) BMW MONROVIA OFF NETWORK 01 1425 Mountain Ave Monrovia, CA 91016 (1) Albertsons 1345 (Morro Bay, CA) 730 Quintana Road Morro City, CA 93442 (1) 3333 Fruitvale Ave 3333 Fruitvale Ave Oakland, CA 94602 (1) 7126 - Oakley, CA (5540 Bridgehead Road) 5540 Bridgehead Road Oakley, CA 94561 (1) CircleK - Palm Desert, CA 78005 Country Club Dr Palm Desert, CA 92211 (1) Hilton Garden Inn 20 Advantage Ct Sacramento, CA 95834 (1) BoA Hillcrest CA0-120 (San Diego, CA) 737 UNIVERSITY AVE San Diego, CA 92103 (1) WinCo Foods - Vacaville #60 855 Davis St Vacaville, CA 95687 ➡ CO (1) CITY OF ASPEN RIO GRANDE L3 427 Rio Grande Pl Aspen, CO 81611 (4) CSG EV BOULDER PL4 1500 Pearl St Boulder, CO 80302 (5) 1 Flatiron Crossing (US-ME8-73R-2B) 1 Flatiron Crossing Broomfield, CO 80021 (1) CircleK - Colorado City, CA 8950 S Interstate 25 Colorado City, CO 81004 (2) GPM INVESTMENTS 4590 DC1 8105 N Academy Blvd Colorado Springs, CO 80920 (2) KUM & GO CRAIG PL2 700 East Victory Way Craig, CO 81625 (1) DINO WELCOME DINOSAUR PL1 101 Stegosaurus Freeway Dinosaur, CO 81610 (2) PIKES PK CHARGE BA.CA.MI LLC #2 11027 US-24 Divide, CO 80814 (4) ANNEX SITE GEORGETOWN PL4 1120 Argentine Street Georgetown, CO 80444 (4) KUM & GO RIFLE PL4 705 Taugenbaugh Boulevard Rifle, CO 81650 (2) KUM & GO SB SPRINGS PL2 80 Anglers Drive Steamboat Springs, CO 80487 ➡ CT (1) BOA East Hartford CT2-120 (Hartford, CT) 805 E Main Street East Hartford, CT 06108 (1) HARTFORD BMW ABB OUTSIDE 1 Weston Park Rd Hartford, CT 06120 ➡ DE (1) First State Chevrolet 22694 DUPONT BLVD GEORGETOWN, DE 19947 ➡ FL (1) JNKNS JACKSONVI DC FAST 2 11107 Atlantic Blvd Jacksonville, FL 32225 (1) Simon Tampa Premium Outlets (Lutz, FL) 2300 Grand Cypress Dr Lutz, FL 33559 (1) Starbucks 9200 FL-228 Macclenny, FL 32063 (1) Ocean Cadillac 17800 Ipco Road Miami, FL 33162 (1) Sun Plaza 6339 W Colonial Dr Orlando, FL 32818 (1) Simon Orlando Vineland (Orlando, FL) 8200 Vineland Ave Orlando, FL 32821 (1) Simon Tyrone Square (St Petersburg, FL) 6901 22nd Ave N Peterburg, FL 33710 (1) BHY CHARGER 1 9915 E Adamo Dr Tampa, FL 33619 (1) Chase Bank - 5601 Red Bug Lake Rd 5601 Red Bug Lake Rd Winter Springs, FL 32708 ➡ GA (1) GEORGIA POWER EPICENTER DC1 135 riverside parkway SW Austell, GA 30168 (1) JACKSON EMC GAINESVILLE 1000 Dawsonville Highway Gainesville, GA 30501 ➡ IL (1) Castle Chevrolet North 175 N Arlington Heights Rd Elk Grove Village, IL 60007 (1) Sunrise Chevrolet 414 E N Ave Glendale Heights, IL 60139 ➡ IN (1) AVON HYUNDAI SALES 8775 E 36 Avon, IN 46123 (1) SHRM CHRG MERCEDESBENZFW 7227 W Jefferson Blvd Fort Wayne, IN 46804 (1) HOC CHARGERS CHARGER #1 4200 E 96th St Indianapolis, IN 46240 (1) Sullivan Cadillac 4040 SW College Rd Ocala, IN 34474 ➡ KS (1) HATCHETT FRONT_WEST 11200 E Central Ave Wichita, KS 67206 (1) HATCHETT BACK EAST 11330 E Central Ave Wichita, KS 67206 ➡ KY (1) JEFF WYLER FH EXPRESS 250 949 Burlington Pike Florence, KY 41042 ➡ LA (1) All Star Automotive 12730 Airline Highway Baton Rouge, LA 70817 (1) Target T1469 (Monroe, LA) 4103 Pecanland Mall Dr Monroe, LA 71203 ➡ MA (6) MASSPORT TNC 4 226 Porter St Boston, MA 02128 (2) MASSPORT TAXI 4 56 Harborside Dr Boston, MA 02128 (1) Littleton Electric Light & Water Department 39 Ayer Road Littleton, MA 01460 ➡ MD (2) POTOMAC EDISON ROCKY GAP DC1 16701 Lakeview Rd NE Flintstone, MD 21530 ➡ ME (1) DARLINGS HYUNDA SALES CHARGER 2 439 Western Ave Augusta, ME 04330 (2) IRVINGOIL ME-FFLD-L3-0001 206 Center Rd Fairfield, ME 04937 (1) MOBIL ONTHEWAY STATION 1 1930 Lisbon Street Lewiston, ME 04240 (1) MOBIL ONTHEWAY STATION 2 1938 Lisbon St Lewiston, ME 04240 ➡ MI (1) Belle Isle DC Fast Charge 176 Lakeside Dr Detroit, MI 48207 (1) Meijer 254 (Hudsonville, MI) 4075 32nd Ave Hudsonville, MI 49426 (1) Evergetic Charging Spa 330 South Martin Luther King Junior Boulevard Lansing, MI 48915 (1) Genesis Cadillac 19900 E Nine Mile Road St Clair Shores, MI 48080 (1) MBSTL ENTRANCE ABB 1048 Hampton Avenue St. Louis, MI 63139 (1) Range USA Ypsilanti 660 James L Hart Pkwy Ypsilanti, MI 48197 ➡ MN (1) WINNER GAS BROOKDALE DR 1500 Brookdale Dr Minneapolis, MN 55444 ➡ MO (1) GM - Allen Christian Buick GMC Inc 724 W Business US Highway 60, Dexter, MO 63841 (1) Store 290 Joplin - 2101 S. Prigmore &I44 2101 S Prigmore Joplin, MO 64804 ➡ MS (1) 1685 High St 1685 High St Jackson, MS 39202 ➡ NC (1) CAPE HATTERAS AVON PIER DCFC2 41001 North Carolina Hwy 12 Avon, NC 27915 (1) Westcott Buick GMC 2410 S CHURCH ST BURLINGTON, NC 27215 (1) 9960 Poplar Tent Rd 9960 Poplar Tent Rd Concord, NC 28027 (1) AEMC- AEMC HQ FAST 125 Cooperative Way Hertford, NC 27944 (1) Capital Hyundai of Jacksonville 2325 N Marine Blvd Jacksonville, NC 28546 (1) Chestnut Arbor 2925 Weddington Matthews Rd Matthews, NC 28105 ➡ NE (1) ERNST CHARGER 1 EAC CHARGER 615 23rd St E Columbus, NE 68601 ➡ NH (1) Berlin City Chevrolet 545 MAIN STREET GORHAM, NH 03581 (2) Tanger Tilton Under Armour 06-07 120 Laconia Road Tilton, NH 03256 ➡ NJ (1) ShopRite Carteret - Wakefern #511 801 Roosevelt Ave Carteret, NJ 07008 (1) Lester Glenn Freehold 3712 Rte 9 Freehold, NJ 07728 (2) FREEHOLDHYUNDAI VERIZON 1 4075 9 Freehold Township, NJ 07728 (2) CLASS 3 CHARGER HYUNDAI-2 250 Rte 4 Paramus, NJ 07652 (1) CIRCLEAUTOGROUP CH- CPE250 1 641 Shrewsbury Ave Shrewsbury, NJ 07702 (1) ROUTE 1 HYUNDAI CPE-250-02 3905 US 1 South Brunswick Township, NJ 08852 (1) ROUTE 1 HYUNDAI RT1-01 3913 US-1 South Brunswick Township, NJ 08852 (1) Lester Glenn Buick-GMC 230 RTE 37 E TOMS RIVER, NJ 08753 (1) Lester Glenn Chevrolet 398 Rt 37 Toms River, NJ 08753 ➡ NY (1) AAA WESTCENTRAL DC FAST CHARGER 100 International Dr Amherst, NY 14221 (2) KEELER STATION 6 1111 Troy Schenectady Rd Latham, NY 12110 (1) LEXUSMIDDLETOWN STATION 1 3496 US-6 Middletown, NY 10940 (1) Lerner NYC Station Plaza (Port Jefferson Station, NY) 5145 Nesconset Highway Port Jefferson Station, NY 11776 (3) BOB JOHNSON BOB JOHNSON KIA 3817 W Henrietta Rd Rochester, NY 14623 (1) Burr Truck Level 3 DC Fast Charge 2901 Vestal Rd Vestal, NY 13850 ➡ OH (1) Serra Chevrolet 3281 S Arlington Rd Akron, OH 44312 (1) Tim Lally Chevrolet 24999 Miles Rd Bedford Heights, OH 44128 (2) CRESTMONT DRIVECRESTMONT2 2961 Center Rd Brunswick, OH 44212 (1) Lambert Buick GMC 2409 FRONT ST CUYAHOGA FALLS, OH 44221 (1) Hampton Inn - Canton 5256 Broadmoor Cir NW Canton, OH 44709 (1) JEFF WYLER EXPRESS 250 Loop @ Far Hills Centerville, OH 45459 (1) DONWOODAUTO DW CHEVY 2 12916 OH-664 Logan, OH 43138 (2) WAG ABB STATION 1 8457 N Springboro Pike Miamisburg, OH 45342 (1) JEFF WYLER CORP 4- DC FAST 401 Milford Pkwy Milford, OH 45150 (1) Friendship Kitchen 70 3800 E. State Rd. Port Clinton, OH 43452 (1) Friendship Kitchen 83 4024 Hayes Ave. Sandusky, OH 44870 (1) Serpentini Chevrolet of Strongsville 15303 Royalton Rd Strongsville, OH 44136 (1) Don's Automotive Group 720 N SHOOP AVE WAUSEON, OH 43567 (1) Bush Auto Place 1850 Rombach Avenue Wilmington, OH 45177 ➡ OK (1) EDMOND HYUNDAI EDMOND 4 14137 N Broadway Ext Edmond, OK 73013 ➡ OR (6) 12000 SE 82nd Ave (US-H8H-UM5-2A) 12000 SE 82nd Ave Happy Valley, OR 97086 (1) PGE IBEW 48 15937 NE Airport Way Portland, OR 97230 ➡ PA (1) DOYLESTOWN 024B1000008033 4465 W Swamp Rd Doylestown, PA 18902 (2) LIBERTY CHARWASH PL 2 2595 Maryland Road Willow Grove, PA 19090 (1) Bergeys Inc 518 RTE 309 colmar, PA 18915 ➡ PR (2) BMW AUTOGERMANA CPE 250 PKNG 2 106 Calle Acuarela Guaynabo, PR 00969 (2) BMW AUTOGERMANA FTZ120KW-2 1086 Ave. Muñoz Rivera San Juan, PR 00919 ➡ RI (1) Paul Masse Chevrolet 1111 Taunton Ave East Providence, RI 02914 ➡ SC (1) Travelers Rest Municipal Complex 125 Trailblazer Dr Travelers Rest, SC 29690 ➡ TN (4) I24 EXIT11 STATION 1 (LL) 701 Sango Road Clarksville, TN 37043 (2) DISTRICT 2 STATION 1 (L) 28 S Park Ave Hohenwald, TN 38462 (2) LAWRENCEBURG STATION 2 (R) 2347 Hwy 43 N Leoma, TN 38468 (1) MB OF MEMPHIS STATION 1 5401 Poplar Ave Memphis, TN 38119 ➡ TX (1) Friendly Chevrolet 2754 North Stemmons Way Dallas, TX 75207 (1) Plaza de Oro 4450 W Jefferson Blvd Dallas, TX 75211 (1) Shell 3302 S Eastman Rd Longview, TX 75602 (1) 3220 Gulf Fwy 3220 Gulf Fwy Texas City, TX 77591 ➡ UT (2) VOLVO CAR USA SANDY DC 2 56 W 9000 S Sandy, UT 84070 ➡ VA (1) BLACKWELL D1 4874 Riverside Dr Danville, VA 24541 (1) Fleet Management Site (For Testing Purpose Only) 512 Herndon Pkwy Herndon, VA 20170 (6) 2577 Jeb Stuart Highway (US-TDM-SCC-1C) 2577 Jeb Stuart Highway Meadows of Dan, VA 24120 (5) 2203 Franklin Road Southwest (US-TUJ-L2K-2C) 2203 Franklin Road Southwest Roanoke, VA 24014 (6) 437 Tiffany Drive (US-CHT-WF7-2C) 437 Tiffany Drive Waynesboro, VA 22980 (2) KOONS HYUNDAI STATION 1 1880 Opitz Blvd Woodbridge, VA 22191 ➡ VT (1) Cody Chevrolet 364 RIVER ST MONTPELIER, VT 05602 ➡ WA (1) 7112 - Bellevue WA (12903 NE 20th Street) 12903 NE 20th Bellevue, WA 98005 (1) 7060 - Burlington, WA (1790 South Burlington Blvd) 1790 South Burlington Blvd Burlington, WA 98233 (1) 5507 - Everett, WA (901 Casino Road) 901 Casino Road Everett, WA 98204 (1) 7025 - Everett, WA (13131 Bothell Everett Hwy) 13131 Bothell Everett Hwy Everett, WA 98208 (1) 4397 - Kelso, WA (1700 Allen Street) 1700 Allen Street Kelso, WA 98626 (1) 7063 - Olympia, WA (1725 Evergreen Park Drive SW) 1725 Evergreen Park Drive SW Olympia, WA 98502 (2) HANSON MOTORS HM3 QUICKCHARGE 2300 Carriage Loop SW Olympia, WA 98502 (1) 7096 - Sequim, WA (51 Carlsborg Road) 51 Carlsborg Road Sequim, WA 98382 (1) Walmart 2539 - Spokane Valley, WA 15727 E Broadway Ave Spokane Valley, WA 99037 (1) 7054 -Vancouver, WA 98664 (10314 SE Mill Plain Road) 13014 SE Mill Plain Rd Vancouver, WA 98684 (1) 7059 - Woodinville, WA (13023 NE 175th St) 13023 NE 175th St Woodinville, WA 98072 ➡ WI (1) BERG HYUNDAI VLI-L3-PDI-4 2900 N Victory Ln Appleton, WI 54913 (1) Wheelers Chevrolet of Coloma 1978 Charles Way Coloma, WI 54930 (1) Wheelers Chevrolet GMC of Marshfield 2701 S. Maple Ave Marshfield, WI 54449

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2023.06.06 12:28 mlmmalaysia01 MLM Based E-commerce Business

For More Details Please Contact
Call / Whatsapp: +60-164998736
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https://preview.redd.it/k5ianqx3kd4b1.jpg?width=1024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=807cdd08e688bbdfd34e3291d62dd6c4b7350096

MLM Based E-commerce Business

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Magento
BigCommerce
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Shopify
Squarespace
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Opencart
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submitted by mlmmalaysia01 to u/mlmmalaysia01 [link] [comments]

2023.06.06 08:19 CSINATECH402025 #JINAN-MACHINERY camions miniers hors route énergétiques (energy off road mining trucks)

(...) qu'ils soient en thermique, en électrique pur ou bien encore en hybride thermique-électrique les camions miniers hors route du constructeur se distinguent par leurs performances leur longévité comme par leur taux de disponibilité(...) mais pour respecter les nouvelles normes internationales sur entre autres les émissions polluantes comme pour respecter les récentes et strictes normes environnementales Chinoises il a revu l'intégralité de conception de ses véhicules. Certes de nouveaux moteurs à haute efficacité énergétique et très basse consommation, certes de nouvelles batteries encore moins gourmandes pour toujours plus d'autonomie mais pas seulement car l'industriel a développé de nouveaux systèmes brevetés dont celui de récupération et redistribution de l'énergie de freinage mais il a poussé plus loin encore ses objectifs. Ainsi ses nouveaux camions miniers adoptent un nouvel acier domestique allégé ultra résistant abaissant ainsi le poids de ces derniers avec pour point fort l'augmentation de la charge de transport, ils adoptent aussi un centre de gravité abaissé pour plus de stabilité et qui engendre de fait une réduction de la consommation énergétique et incluant de fait une modification de conception du cadre-châssis. Un ensemble de nouveautés associé aux aides numériques embarquées à la conduite pour une gestion économique du fonctionnement global des camions miniers. Une nouvelle avancée et pas des moindres pour le fabricant (...) (447824)
CHINA-CSINATECH4.02025
vidéo JINAN-LGMG/CIRTtech
vidéo JINAN-LGMG/CIRTtech
(google translation)
(...) whether they are thermal, pure electric or even thermal-electric hybrid, the manufacturer's off-road mining trucks are distinguished by their performance, their longevity and their availability rate (...) but for to comply with new international standards on, among other things, polluting emissions as well as to comply with recent and strict Chinese environmental standards, it has reviewed the entire design of its vehicles. Certainly new motors with high energy efficiency and very low consumption, certainly new batteries that consume less energy for even more autonomy, but not only because the manufacturer has developed new patented systems, including that of recovery and redistribution of energy from braking but he pushed his objectives even further. Thus its new mining trucks adopt a new lightened ultra-resistant domestic steel thus lowering the weight of the latter with the strong point of the increase in the transport load, they also adopt a lowered center of gravity for more stability and which in fact generates a reduction in energy consumption and including in fact a modification of the design of the frame-chassis. A set of new features associated with on-board digital driving aids for economical management of the overall operation of mining trucks. A new advance and not the least for the manufacturer (...)

submitted by CSINATECH402025 to CHINACIRTtech [link] [comments]

2023.06.06 08:06 TerribleSell2997 Automotive Axle Market to Witness Astonishing Growth by 2029

Automotive axle market is anticipated to grow at a CAGR of 1.5% during the forecast period. The growing trend of vehicle electrification and innovation continues for drive axle coupled with electric powertrain is a key factor contributing to the market growth. Environment protection is a key challenge in this market. To meet the greenhouse emission regulations, downsizing, weight reduction, and torque-carrying qualities have been prioritized in drive and steer axle development. Drive axles are developed to have faster ratios to handle bigger axle input torques caused by lowering engine revolutions per minute at highway speeds to aid engine down speeding for line-haul logistics vehicles by road transportation.
Get Free Sample link @ https://www.omrglobal.com/request-sample/automotive-axle-market
Furthermore, key players are also developing lightweight, fuel-efficient axles that can carry heavy cargo loads. Manufacturers are focusing on developing faster axles with lower ratios, which will help the engines operate at a slower speed. Many axles are now also including modular motor design, which provides easy service and maintenance accessibility and is scalable due to their motor interchanging capability. Such developments are contributing to the market growth. In 2021, electric car sales more than double to 6.6 million, representing close to 9.0% of the global car market and more than tripling their market share from two years earlier. Hence, owing to its broader application and rising demand for an electric car is expected to boom the growth of the global automotive axle market.
full report of Automotive Axle Market available @ https://www.omrglobal.com/industry-reports/automotive-axle-market
· Market Coverage
· Market number available for – 2023-2029
· Base year- 2022
· Forecast period- 2023-2029
· Segment Covered- By Source, By Product Type, By Applications
· Competitive Landscape- Archer Daniels Midland Co., Ingredion Inc., Kerry Group Plc, Cargill
· Inc., and others
Market Segmentation
Global Automotive Axle Market by Type
o Drive
o Dead
o Lift
Global Automotive Axle Markey by Application
o Front
o Rear
Global Automotive Axle Market by Vehicle Type
o Passenger Cars
o Light Commercial Vehicle (LCV)
o Heavy Commercial Vehicle (HCV)
Regional Analysis
o North America
o United States
o Canada
o Europe
o UK
o Germany
o Italy
o Spain
o France
o Rest of Europe
o Asia-Pacific
o China
o India
o Japan
o South Korea
o Rest of Asia-Pacific
o Rest of the World
Company Profiles
o American Axle & Manufacturing, Inc.
o Daimler AG
o Dana Inc.
o GNA Group
o Melrose Industries PLC
o Meritor Inc.
o Talbros Engineering Ltd.
o ZF Friedrichshafen AG
The Report Covers

Market value data analysis of 2022 and forecast to 2030.
Annualized market revenues ($ million) for each market segment.
Country-wise analysis of major geographical regions.
Key companies operating in the global automotive axle market. Based on the availability of data, information related to new product launches, and relevant news is also available in the report.
Analysis of business strategies by identifying the key market segments positioned for strong growth in the future.
Analysis of market-entry and market expansion strategies.
Competitive strategies by identifying ‘who-stands-where’ in the market.

For More Customized Data, Request for Report Customization @ https://www.omrglobal.com/report-customization/automotive-axle-market
About Orion Market Research Orion Market Research (OMR) is a market research and consulting company known for its crisp and concise reports. The company is equipped with an experienced team of analysts and consultants. OMR offers quality syndicated research reports, customized research reports, consulting and other research-based services. The company also offer Digital Marketing services through its subsidiary OMR Digital and Software development and Consulting Services through another subsidiary Encanto Technologies.
Media Contact:
Company Name: Orion Market Research
Contact Person: Mr. Anurag Tiwari
Email: [email protected]
Contact no: +91 780-304-0404

submitted by TerribleSell2997 to Nim2908 [link] [comments]

2023.06.06 08:06 TerribleSell2997 Automotive Axle Market to see Rapid Growth by 2029

Market value data analysis of 2022 and forecast to 2030.
Annualized market revenues ($ million) for each market segment.
Country-wise analysis of major geographical regions.
Key companies operating in the global automotive axle market. Based on the availability of data, information related to new product launches, and relevant news is also available in the report.
Analysis of business strategies by identifying the key market segments positioned for strong growth in the future.
Analysis of market-entry and market expansion strategies.
Competitive strategies by identifying ‘who-stands-where’ in the market.

submitted by TerribleSell2997 to Nim2908 [link] [comments]

2023.06.06 06:13 MountainBuffalo17 Race Report: Steamboat Marathon - when everything goes right

Race Information

Name: Steamboat Marathon
Date: June 4, 2023
Distance: 26.2 miles
Location: Steamboat Springs, CO
Website: https://www.steamboatchamber.com/events/annual-events/steamboat-marathon/
Time: 3:55:50

Goals

Goal	Description	Completed?
A	No Injuries	Yes
B	PR (4:06)	Yes
C	4:00	Yes

Splits

Mile	Time
1	8:58
2	8:52
3	9:37
4	9:08
5	8:33
6	8:38
7	8:57
8	8:55
9	8:51
10	8:57
11	8:55
12	8:59
13	8:58
14	9:24
15	8:59
16	8:59
17	8:53
18	9:09
19	9:00
20	8:42
21	9:10
22	8:58
23	9:08
24	8:28
25	8:42
26	8:54
27	2:51

Training

The story behind this race really starts a year ago. I ran the Colfax Marathon in Downton Denver, and fell short of the 4-hour goal. Many things went wrong, between injuring myself with some nasty tendonitis around my shin 2 weeks pre-race, a poor fueling/hydration plan, and my fitness not quite being where I thought. I crashed hard at mile 20 at Colfax, and watched the 4 hours slip away slowly walking up the hill on 17th St. That had been my first road marathon (I've ran the Pikes Peak Marathon, but the strategy and approach to that race is wildly different), and I learned a lot to prepare for redemption in 2023.
The ultimate goal this year is to run my first ultramarathon, a 55k in the mountains of Colorado in July. In planning my training, I decided to use a road marathon as a tune-up and fitness check-in for the month of June. I did some searching for good Springs marathons close to home (Front Range), vowing not to repeat Colfax, and was quickly entranced by the beauty advertised by the Steamboat Marathon. Since Steamboat Springs is one of my favorite Colorado locations, it was an easy sell! It fit the bill, so I booked the hotel, signed up, and got to work training. Since this is a tune-up race for the ultra, the principle goal was to survive a marathon training block injury-free.
I used the TrainAsOne app for training - and have mixed feelings about it. I found it consistently under-loaded my weekly milage vs what I expected from other plans; so I took a lot of liberty in extending the long runs to hit the milage I wanted. Aside from being a bit short on volume though, I think the plan did an excellent job of planning tempo, interval, and threshold runs. I was challenged, and found the balance of workout types well structured. I plan to keep using the app, but will happily extend the volume if I'm not happy with it.
As smooth as training went for the most part, I did start getting some calf pain about a month before the race. Off to PT I went, worried for the worst, to be diagnosed with only a minor calf strain. Lots of calf raises, some dry needling, and continuing to run healed the problem swiftly, and I didn't miss a beat. Training goal accomplished....but not without a good scare! A smooth taper brought my confidently into race weekend.

Pre-race

My wife and I drove up the day before on Saturday, June 3 and checked into the Nordic Lodge. I can't recommend this lodge enough for runners; it was easy walking distance from the pick-up point and finish line, they let us check-in early since the room was ready, and let us check out late so I had time to shower after the race before the 3 hour drive home. The day before, I didn't run, but enjoyed a 2 mile walk around the town, and loaded up on carbs at Mazzola's, the local Italian restaurant. As usual, I slept terribly before the race; there's something about the pre-race jitters that makes sleeping impossible, between the performance anxiety and the terror of missing the morning alarm.
The hydration plan was pretty simple: Carry 1L of water with my vest (practice for the ultra-run), which works out even better since aid stations are ~3 miles apart on this race. I took water and gatorade at every aid station, and sipped on my 1L as needed. I had just about finished it by the finish line. For fuel, I took in 1 honey stinger waffle every 10k. Those waffles are like candy for me, and I swear I can feel the immediate kick from taking one in.
Race morning was tremendously smooth; props to Steamboat for putting on a smooth race! The weather was a runner's dream; ~45 and cloudy at the start. It was a 5 minute walk to the bus pickup point, where marathoners were picked up and driven 26.2 miles to the start line. Anytime you're bussed to the other end of a point-to-point race, it really hits home just how far a marathon is! We were dropped off around 6:45 for the 7:30 start, and had some time to warm up, use the porta-pot(twice), and line-up. The start is nestled in a quaint historic mining village up at 8,200 ft. Given my home at 5500 and training on trails frequently, I wasn't concerned about the altitude. I didn't really feel major nerves for the race until about 5 minutes before the start, when the race called everyone to lineup.

Race

Miles 1-6: The first miles always fly by. Lesson from Colfax: Do NOT start faster to try and bank time. Terrible idea. This time around, I started intentionally slower than I felt I could, taking the rolling hills at the start of the race at a modest 9 minute pace. Once the downhill opened up at mile 5, I let myself go a bit faster, very carefully managing the heart rate. The start of the course is easily the most beautiful, with big gorgeous mountains on both sides and Colorado's best Spring in years on full display. The race field was around 300, which is a wonderful sweet spot for a race to feel populated but never crowded. No corrals at the start, but at the cost of dramatically fewer spectators. The course feels tremendously rural, but that only adds to the beauty and charm! At mile 6, I improvised and took a gel pack from the aid station in addition to the 10k honey stinger to stay ahead of fueling, and it worked out great.
Miles 7-13: This part of the race is steadily downhill, but I wanted to keep managing the pace. I settled in and chatted with a few other racers, distracting my mind from the downhill quad-pounding. At the halfway point, we hit the half-marathon start line, and the season was literally changing as we lost elevation, from trees that were just beginning to bloom to rolling meadows of brilliant purple flowers. The race had a fantastic team of cyclists to provide both encouragement and safety to the course and they really made a difference.
Miles 13-20: More steady downhill, and this is where the long miles really start to pile up. What mile am I on? 17, or 18? My heart rate through these miles was bouncing around the 140's, and that was my first clue that this race would be very different than Colfax. Everything was going right; I felt like I was keeping a foot on the brake at all times going down this endless hill and was actually looking forward to the infamous 3 mile climb. This was a lonelier stretch, and the views closed in as we hit the course bottom in a small canyon with a raging creek.
Miles 20-26: Here it is; the thing everyone seems to talk about with this race: the 3 mile climb. The course profile starting with some rollers, plunges down in miles 5 and 6, casually keeps going down from 7 thru 20, and then slowly but surely rises nearly 200 feet in 3 miles towards town. And I somehow crushed it! I guess all that training in my hilly neighborhood and on the trails in the foothills really paid off. I had little trouble maintaining my 9 minute pace, felt empowered from the 30k honey stinger, and invigorated by the increasing spectator support as we drew close to town. Miles 24 and 25 were my least favorite of the course; too much traffic on the road, and not quite close enough to the end. I had the energy still to step on the gas and power through these annoying miles. The final turn onto Lincoln Avenue is a huge relief, as the last half mile offers a continuous view of the finish! While I may not have had energy for a sprint to the finish, I still felt strong at my target pace. Words cannot capture the feeling of not just surviving, but thriving in a marathon! I survived the onslaught in Colfax, but I thrived in Steamboat. I passed my dad, wife, and dogs as I passed Mile 26 with nothing but smiles as I rolled into the finish!

Post-race

Another lesson from Colfax: STRETCH. WALK. Do these things after a race and stave off a lot of soreness. I took 15 minutes to stretch it out, and grabbed my free beer and burrito. Neither sounded even the least bit appetizing, so right into the cooler they went for Monday. Are there people out there who can pound down a beer and breakfast burrito after a marathon??? I had to somewhat hustle back to the hotel for a shower to fit the late checkout time cutoff (12:30), but was still comfortable since I finished before 11:30. We walked another mile or two around town, and then the 1/4 mile hike to Fish Creek Falls, and settled in for the ride home.
Everything went right this race. As I write this on Monday, making it a priority to walk another couple miles around home today, my body feels fantastic and ready to jump back into training after an easy week. It's hard to tackle a first marathon; there's a lot of lessons to be learned that can't be learned until you've tried it. Miles 20-26 are simply a different animal from the first 20. To those who learn from those lessons, the second marathon is an entire world of difference. For me, that was smarter training to avoid injury, proper fueling and hydration, and a whole lot of stretching!
Maybe next year I'll do the Colorado Marathon to continue working through my local marathons and see what is possible for a third marathon! Thanks for reading!
Made with a new race report generator created by herumph.

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2023.06.06 03:43 ShadowDragon88 I've Been Reincarnated as a Bunny Girl?! Ch. 5

Hey there, readers! Here's chapter five for your reading pleasure! Please consider leaving a comment or review as those really do just pick me right up!
I've Been Reincarnated as a Bunny Girl?! (Chapter 5)
by
ShadowDragon88
A fine drizzle was coming down on the town of Starlight Rose. A familiar wolf-kin beasta in red robes that appeared to be shimmering despite the cloudy gloom of the day was walking along the main road. In his right hand, he held a long polished oak staff, topped with a red glowing gemstone the size of his fist. In his left hand, held away from his body, was a tan leather satchel, the drawstring tied in a knot. It appeared full, and seemed to shudder and wriggle. Felixin smiled and nodded to passing villagers.

"Hey there, Felixin," came the rumbling voice of Earl Shatterknuckle. The blonde dwarf, presently wearing just simple brown leather trousers, fell in step beside his taller friend. Felixin looked down at the dwarf, whose smaller frame was bulging with muscles, with blue and gold glowing tattoos tracing intricate spider-web-like symbols across his chest and arms, smiling back.

"Good day to you, Earl," the wolf said. There was a spitting-chittering sound coming from the bag, making Felixin pause and frown before giving the satchel a good whack with his magical staff. "Quiet, you!" he hissed at it.

"Caught yourself another evil spirit, eh?" Earl said with a smirk.

"Oh yes, and this one was quite the nasty piece of work. I'm on my way back to my lab to properly dispose of it. I think it's from some destroyed remnant of Eld technology, one of the ones that gained sentience, or at least some spiritual semblance to it," Felixin said as he gave the bag another whack when it started to make some electronic beeping sounds.

"Oh?" Earl asked, curious. "I remember more than once we had some nasty run-ins with Eld-tech back when we were adventurers."

"I remember you and Melthi being the ones to turn the blasted machines on, both times when cautioned not to," Felixin said pointedly, making the dwarf chuckle.

"What can I say? We're both curious by nature!"

"Yes, that's one word for it," Felixin said with a smile, remembering his adventuring days and the party of friends he would regularly travel with. "Anyways. For some reason, about six years ago, they suddenly became much more prevalent. Thankfully, their numbers have been dropping back down over the years."

"What makes you think this one is from Eld tech?"

"It kept saying 'Does not compute!' over and over again, while also identifying some kind of rabbit threat." Felixin's mood seemed to shift and his ears laid back on his head, while his tail dipped, almost long enough to drag on the ground behind him. "And when it mentioned rabbits, it made me think of my little princess."

Earl rolled his eyes as he reached up and clapped the town wizard on the back. "Ah, Kiana'll be back to visit before you know it."

"I know... it's just, one minute she was this little delicate baby girl, and the next minute, she was this amazing young woman, all ready to up and go out."

"Didn't Kiana kick down a couple of brick walls when she was a baby?" Earl asked, scratching his head. Felixin waved a dismissive paw at that.

"Pure coincidences. Those walls were clearly unsound and improperly constructed, so much so that when she was having one of her tantrums just a little punch or kick was enough to send them tumbling down. We're lucky she wasn't hurt or scared, just confused and curious more than anything. Anyways, I just get so worried when I think of her, out there on the open road. Just so... vulnerable. Thankfully I made sure to instill in her a proper sense of caution." Earl snorted at that.

Meanwhile...

Kiana let out a roar of fury as her trusted tetsubo connected with the raised steel shield of the bandit before her. The metal dented and warped just as the bandit, shield and all, became airborne. They traveled in an arc straight towards a stone tower connected to an old run-down fort the bandits had holed up in. The screaming man smashed into the top of the tower, crumbling it, his screams instantly going silent.

"Fire!" Kiana heard a deep voice shout. There were several blasts and, thanks to Kiana's speed, she watched as five cannonballs headed in her direction. To the ordinary person, the black metallic spheres were probably nearly impossible to follow. To Kiana, it looked as though they were moving incredibly slow. She simply stepped aside from four of them, letting them explode into the nearby hillside. As the fifth one hurtled her way, she crouched slightly, raising her tetsubo like a baseball bat. She swung and smacked the cannonball, her tetsubo making a loud DING, and sent it flying right back where it had come from. The two bandits manning the cannon were obliterated along with the weapon itself, as well as a good chunk of the fort wall.

"She's some kind of demon!" one of the bandits cried. The man, really more of a boy, no older than Kiana, leapt down from the fort wall onto a carriage they had recently stolen from some traveling aristocrats. He then leapt onto the ground and sprinted out into the forest, stripping off the black cloak with the red eye in the center.

"DAMMIT!" the bandit leader cursed, pulling off his tricorn hat and dabbing his bald sweaty head with a handkerchief. While the remaining men were busy barring the windows or reloading and firing the cannons, he was gnashing his teeth. After a moment's hesitation, he pointed to a nearby subordinate. "You! Follow me. We'll unleash the troll on her."

The other bandit paled, audibly gulping. "Th-the troll? Are you sure th-that's wise?" Just as he finished asking that, another cannonball destroyed another cannon, making the entire structure shudder.

"We don't have any other options. Hopefully, after it kills her, it'll be injured enough for us to finish it off... or the other way around if she kills it." The other bandit grimaced at the options laid before them, but nodded solemnly. Outside, Kiana smacked another cannonball back at the cannon that fired it, being careful not to send it flying towards the base of the tower. According to one of the kidnapped merchants that had managed to escape and make it all the way to town, the cells where the bandits were holding their ransom victims were all on the ground floor. Kiana stopped when she heard a loud guttural roar, followed by a rapid series of loud BOOMs. Bandits ran by the windows and open holes of the fort, while the front gate slowly opened.

Out stumbled a massive creature. Its flesh was a dark brown, and had a texture not unlike tree bark. Its long arms and legs were thicker than the old oak trees in the forest near Starlight Rose. Its gnarled hands, with thick thorn-like protrusions sticking from the knuckles, balled into fists, fists that were as big as Kiana was tall. Its barrel-chest heaved, with white criss-crossing scars in its bark-flesh. It didn't have much in the way of a neck, and its head looked just like a tree stump, complete with root-like tendrils wriggling back and forth. It's mouth was partially concealed by the tendrils, until it reared back and opened its gaping maw, revealing rows of broken yellow teeth, to let out a bellow that shook the ground. From the top of its head grew two slightly spiraling branch-like horns.

"These idiots somehow managed to get a forest troll?" Kiana asked out loud, a smirk appearing on her face. "And this was only a gold-ranked quest? Something tells me I'm in for a sweet bonus."

The beast stopped as its knot-like eyes, of which there were at least seven, caught sight of the bunny girl. Up above from the second story windows and holes and from on the roof, the remaining bandits, many of them injured, looked down. Most were smirking, some of the more foolish ones shouted out taunts. The bandit leader stood there, looking grim-faced, but taking some satisfaction in knowing that despite their losses today, the annoying source of their problems was about to end, one way or another.

Kiana stuck the end of her tetsubo into the dirt, large and surprisingly quick thudding steps shaking the ground. The beast was lumbering towards Kiana, who didn't look the least bit afraid. While not intelligent enough to be truly sentient, the troll did have enough sense to know that its prey should be running. And the fact that it was just calmly standing there, staring at it, only angered it further. With a final roar, the forest troll charged forward. It balled up a massive fist, and swung straight for Kiana. Kiana swung her own fist, the two colliding.

There was a very loud, sickening crunch and pop. The bandits looked down in shock and horror as where the now screaming troll's fist and forearm had been, there was a bloody and jagged stump that ended just above the right elbow. The troll screeched and lunged at Kiana, hoping to impale her on its horns. But the bunny girl simply kicked, knocking the head clean off the rest of its body. The head bounced off a tree and rolled for a bit, settling in the dirt, a look of surprise on the stump-like face. The rest of the body tumbled over three times before coming to a rest near the make-shift stables, where the carriages and horses of the abducted nobles were kept. Kiana looked back up at the fort, making the majority of the bandits shrink back and shudder. A few of them began to wave white tablecloths hastily tied to sticks and tree branches.

A short time later the bandits, now in shackles, were being marched to the mechanical cart as the local sheriff and his deputies led them. Except for the severely injured ones, who were shackled to stretchers and loaded up into a seperate mechanical carriage. Kiana looked on as bodies were checked for possible survivors, there being very few to find, as the merchants and a few nobles were led by deputies out from the fort. Kiana smiled at them and nodded to their looks of awe, some of them having gotten a good look at the show of force the petite bunny girl had demonstrated. Ignoring the ones who shrank back away from her in fright, Kiana spotted the sheriff, a large older man in his mid-fifties with salt and pepper close-cropped hair and a matching mustache. He was wearing the classic green cloak, directing his deputies. He turned to face her as she approached.

"I think that's all cleared up," Kiana said, her voice chipper, belaying the fact she had a smattering of blood and gore staining her fur.

"I'd have to agree with you, young lady," Sheriff Tonsol said, his voice even. In truth, he had tried to avoid enlisting the aid of any adventurers until pressure from various merchants and nobility forced his hand. And even then he had expected it to involve a large party and, more than likely, some lives lost from the hostages. He was a little surprised when the girl reached into her satchel to produce a clipboard with a form on it, as well as an ink pen.

"In that case, would you mind signing this form indicating that I completed the job satisfactorily?" Tonsol looked at the form for a minute, and then his mouth curved upwards. He let out a chuckle and signed his name on the indicated line, writing in the date as well.

"Satisfactorily is putting it lightly, miss," he said, handing the clipboard and pen back to the bunny girl. "I had no idea that they had a forest troll in their possession. I went ahead and bumped up the reward."

"Oh wow, thank you, sir!" Kiana said, looking excited.

Tonsol smiled, something his deputies claimed to be a rare sight to behold. "Well, you earned it. I'm just glad you were able to get them to surrender without harming any hostages. Well, without them harming any more than the ones they did last time someone came out here to free them."

"I'm glad I could help!" Kiana said, bowing a little. "Now, I'm going to head back into town." She spread her arms wide and indicated to herself. "I'm really in need of a bath at this point."

"If you don't mind waiting a minute, you can ride back to town with us. It's faster than walking."

"Oh, thanks for the offer, but I'm good." Kiana waved, before jogging back to where she'd left her tetsubo and pack, Mirabelle coiled around it protectively. She grabbed the items up, quickly looking through the travel pack to make sure she still had everything, and nodded to herself, satisfied. She slipped the pack onto her back, then scooped her pet snake into her arms, and started to jog down the road in the direction of the town of Hengecliffe. Picking up speed, she rapidly became a blur, and in just a few seconds she was coming to a sliding stop in front of the town gates, startling a couple of bored-looking guards.

She greeted them and let Mirabelle down before they let her inside. They stared at the snake with the big pink ribbon around its neck slithering obediently behind the bunny girl. She stopped off at the local guild hall to drop off the signed paperwork and collect her now even heftier reward. She noticed a few stares in her general direction, and some unhappy grumbling from some fellow adventurers, but otherwise no one said anything.

Kiana then headed to the town inn where she still had a room for another night. Thankful again that this world had indoor plumbing, with hot water to boot, Kiana wasted no time in stripping off her gore-coated clothes, which she would wash in the laundry room down the hall, and enjoyed a nice steamy shower. She didn't have to worry about possible intruders, as Mirabelle sat coiled on the bed, ever vigilant.

"Today was a good day," Kiana said, stepping out of the shower and drying herself off, a feat that took several minutes with a towel. This left her gray and white fur all fluffed-out, which led to her brushing it out. Kiana had grown accustomed to the care and maintenance of her fur, taking pride in keeping it clean. She then donned her underwear and a cream-colored sundress from her pack, carefully putting her dirty clothes in the laundry sack in her pack. She smiled and stroked Mirabelle's head, the snake letting out a contented purr-like hiss.

"I'm going to go out and enjoy the rest of the afternoon in town. You stay here and guard the pack, okay?" she asked, slipping her mithril knuckles into her dress pockets, along with a small money pouch. Mirabelle hissed, thumping her tail on the bed in response, curling up tighter around Kiana's belongings.

"Good girl," she praised, before heading out, locking the door behind herself for good measure. Kiana smiled as she stepped out onto the paved sidewalk, carriages passing by on the street. Hengecliffe was much larger than Starlight Rose, with paved streets and even streetlights. Centrally located in a region of plains, it served as a trading hub. Kiana walked along, noticing a few men and women looking her over. Some seemed to do so with distaste, more than likely not enjoying the sight of a beasta. But most seemed to be pleasant people observing a new face.

"Well now, if my eyes are not deceiving me, it seems that an angel from the heavens has decided to grace us mere mortals with her presence." Kiana's ears twitched at the sound of the male voice. She paused and turned, looking down an alley, where a man leaning up against the side of a building stood, looking her over. He was wearing brown leather trousers, a white linen shirt, and a belt with a large buckle which, matching the large buckles on his boots, made him look a bit like a pirate. The goatee and the cutlass sheathed at his side were also not helping.

"Hello, beautiful," he said, giving Kiana a wink. Kiana rolled her eyes, and moved to keep walking, only to find a squat bald man standing in her way, grinning sinisterly. Kiana checked behind herself and saw another man, a larger one with a completely shaved head, arms crossed with a club under one arm. "Now, how about we all go somewhere more... private," the pirate-looking moron asked, giving Kiana a smug wink.

"Wow, you idiots have no idea just how badly you messed up," Kiana said, walking into the alley, the two guys following right behind her. The men chuckled. Passersby stopped when they heard three loud thuds coming from the alley, all of which made the nearby buildings shudder. They saw a bunny beasta girl walking out, brushing some dust off her sundress. She smiled and waved and continued on her way, leaving behind three broken figures. Two were lying in craters in the pavement of the alley, while the third, this one with a cutlass laying at his booted feet, was standing... his head laying all the way back in a hole in the brick wall right behind him.

Later that evening...

Kiana was sitting just outside the town walls on a hill, watching the stars come out. After sixteen years, it still mystified her to look up at the night sky, and not see any of the old constellations. She smiled as a shooting star streaked its way across the sky. Suddenly, Kiana felt a surge of energy just course through her. Her eyes faintly started to glow with the blue light, and she felt a strange pulsing in her chest. Looking around, she felt a strange magnetic pull coming from the south.

Starting as a jog, Kiana soon found herself sprinting outright across the countryside. She ran, as a blur, following the pull, her eyes gradually glowing brighter and brighter, shining with the crackling blue energy. Then, she came to a stop. She stood at the foot of a mountain, itself part of a larger range. Looking up at the mass of rock and ice, she could see broiling clouds up over it, flashes of lightning briefly illuminating the rocky and snowy peaks. With one such flash, Kiana saw something move. Something big. Kiana's glowing eyes went wide.

"Oh wooooooooow," she said, her jaw hanging open. There were rumbles as the giant coiled mass shifted. Several avalanches were caused by the serpentine body, buried under tons and tons of snow. At the very peak of the mountain, a gargantuan head rose.

"Is that a giant... cobra?" Kiana asked under her breath. Indeed, that was what the creature that seemed to dwarf the Spire appeared to be. In the light of the lightning, she saw that its scales were a deep blue, almost purple. There were stripes running down its back, but they were glowing a bright bioluminescent blue. That same glow radiated from the creature's reptilian eyes, and the inside of its hood. The same glowing blue as Kiana's eyes.

"What... are you?" Kiana asked, quietly.

I can ask the same of you, little one, a deep female voice hissed in Kiana's head. She winced and looked around. She then looked back up at the creature, her veins flooded with adrenaline. There was another flash of lightning, and in that very instant, the creature's head was bent down low, right in front of her. Kiana almost jumped back, but stopped herself. As the snake-entity looked her over with an eye that was twice as tall as she was, Kiana felt a sense of calm overtake her.

"Are you... a storm dragon? A real storm dragon?" Kiana asked, reaching out and touching the creature's cheek with her hand. It flicked out a blood red tongue, its mouth curling up a little at the corners.

That is something that little ones like to call my kind, she said. Kiana figured right then and there that this was a female.

"A monk said that... my spirit is like one of yours," Kiana said, breathlessly.

Your soulsong feels similar to one of our kind, little one, she said, turning her head and gently nuzzling the top of Kiana's head, making her ears lay flat. The storm dragon's head was almost as large as the entirety of her hometown.

"My... soulsong?" Kiana asked. The monk she had met hadn't said anything about them.

The song of your innermost being. It stands out from the loud and noisy cacophony that happens when most little ones gather together in large groups. Yours is beautiful, and a little... fluttery. The dragon gave her a wink. She reared up and opened her mouth. Electricity danced between the dragon's fangs, before she shot out a sonic boom. The raging storm above abated, the clouds dispersing, leaving only a crystal clear night sky for miles and miles around. She then turned and looked down at Kiana. The bunny girl felt the storm dragon's gaze. She felt a radiating warmth coming from her. It reminded Kiana of her mother.

It was so nice to meet you, little one. It was quite the pleasant surprise to awaken to. She let out a proud roar, and her body began to undulate. Sections of the mountain range began to crumble as large sections of mountain were crushed and smashed by the body slamming into them. The body of the dragon rose into the air, beginning to gracefully slither about. Levitating there, partially coiled, the sheer size of the storm dragon just boggled the bunny girl's mind.

"Will I see you again?" Kiana asked, feeling a little sad. She had just met this beautiful and amazing being, and already they were leaving.

Of course, little one, the mental voice in her mind chuckled warmly. I have listened to your beautiful soulsong, and I have shared my soulsong with you.

"I... I don't understand what that means," Kiana said, confused.

You will, little one, she said, you are still young, but my soulsong has resonated within you. When you stop and listen, it will become easier and easier to hear it. And thus, the bond has begun to form. In time, you shall understand. With a flick of the creature's tail, there was a flash of lightning that radiated from within the hood, and she was gone. Kiana stood there, her eyes readjusting to the dark.

"This world is so awesome," she said, a smile on her face, as she began to job back towards town. She figured that if the town gates were closed and locked, she could just jump over the wall.

Meanwhile...

The lone figure stood in the dark, staring at where the great serpent had been levitating. They were sitting on a log in a small clearing, where they had set up camp. The individual in question was polishing their armor when a gray blur had shot right past them. And then, where it had been heading, the giant serpent, an actual storm dragon, arose. They sat there in stunned silence. They knew right then and there, that it had been a sign from the gods. As they unsheathed their katana, it began to thrum with magical energy, the blade becoming engulfed in bright purple flames.

The light of the purple flames illuminated his green face, glinting off his polished tusks. "Soon, the war shall begin," said the orc, sheathing the blade and cutting off its purple light. The same purple light shone from his eyes.

Name: Kiana

Species: Beasta (Rabbit-Kin)

Age: 16

Skills: Sibling Wrangler, Babysitter, Puppy-Dog Eyes, Master Martial Arts, Brawling, Heavy Weapon Proficiency, Sarcasm Mastery, Eyerolling Mastery, Beast Taming Level 3

Class: (Official) Master-Level Dragon Monk: Storm Dragon School, Storm Dragon Hatchling.

Str: 141
Int: 12
Dex: 140
Cha: 12
Wis: 10
Con: 172
Languages: Common, Draconic

Equipment: Adventurer's Pack, Steelwood Tetsubo, Mastercraft Mithril Knuckles (x2), Rope (25 Ft.), Canteen (Full), Road Rations, Spare Clothes, Bedroll, Health Potion (x2), Books (x3)
I really hope that you enjoyed the new chapter! Thank you for reading so far!
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submitted by ShadowDragon88 to HFY [link] [comments]

2023.06.06 03:11 MrNature73 [FNV] TTW Having FPS issues, can't figure out why

I'm getting weird FPS drops during gameplay despite my rig being solid for what I'm running. If anyone could help me figure this out that'd be absolutely fantastic. Trying to figure it out before I get too deep into a playthrough so if I have to restart it's not too awful.
SPECS
CPU: Ryzen 5 1600x
GPU: AMD RX480 8GB
RAM: 16G

PLUGINS

FalloutNV.esm
DeadMoney.esm
HonestHearts.esm
OldWorldBlues.esm
LonesomeRoad.esm
GunRunnersArsenal.esm
Fallout3.esm
Anchorage.esm
ThePitt.esm
BrokenSteel.esm
PointLookout.esm
Zeta.esm
CaravanPack.esm
ClassicPack.esm
MercenaryPack.esm
TribalPack.esm
TaleOfTwoWastelands.esm
YUPTTW.esm
TTW 3.3.2 Hotfix.esp
Main And Pause Menus Overhaul.esm
Tale of Bi Wastelands.esm
TTW Reputations.esm
TTW New Vegas Speech Checks.esm
MTB.esm
Functional Post Game Ending.esm
Functional Post Game Ending - TTW Patch.esm
TLD_Travelers.esm
SomeguySeries.esm
NewVegasBounties.esm
Badmothafucka.esm
NewVegasKiller.esm
A Trail of Crumbs.esm
AnotherInteriorMod.esm
Regulators.esm
Functional Post Game Ending - Uncut Wasteland And Extra Collection Patch.esm
WashingtonsMalevolence.esm
SpringvaleGarage.esm
DynamicWeaponDisplays.esm
Cyberware.esm
Rebuild the Capital.esm
The Mod Configuration Menu.esp
AidUI.esp
FOVSlider.esp
Tutorial Killer.esp
Casino Exchange All.esp
Root 'n Loot.esp
Stash Organizer.esp
JIP Companions Command & Control.esp
JustAssortedMods.esp
TTWZetaRewards.esp
S6S Perks.esp
TTWTransportalponderEx.esp
NewVegasBountiesTTW.esp
BMF_TTW.esp
NewVegasKiller - TTW.esp
MTB Megaton Mover.esp
DWD-New Vegas Pack.esp
DWD - TTW Pack.esp
DWD-Springville Garage.esp
Benny Humbles You and Steals Your Stuff.esp
BLEED TTW - TTW Patch.esp
CyberJAM.esp
Cyberware OWB.esp
Cyberware TTW.esp
Rebuild the Capital - No Pony Express Boxes.esp
RTC-SpringvaleGarageTerminal.esp
WeaponRequirementSystem.esp
Weapon Requirements System - TTW Patch.esp
PAVE_NV_TTW.esp
B42Inertia.esp
DNWeathers.esp
3DNPC_HopeLies.esp
AK112.esp
AK50.esp
Alton, IL.esm
AnchorageSkip.esp
Atmospheric Lighting Tweaks.esp
Automag.esp
AWO - BAR.esp
AWO - Norinco.esp
AWO - TommyGun.esp
AWO - TrenchRepeater.esp
AWO_Enfield.esp
AWO_Musket.esp
AWorldOfPain(Preview).esm
AWorldOfPainFO3.esm
B42Bows.esp
B42Descriptions.esp
B42Dropmag.esp
B42Inspect.esp
B42Retrievables.esp
BHPM1935.esp
BittercupRedux.esp
Breakdown that surplus ammo.esp
BT87.esp
CarlZeeWeaponPack.esp
Casino Crowds.esp
Chill Companions.esp
ClaimtheMojave.esm
ClaimtheMojaveFPGE.esp
ClaimtheMojaveFrontier.esp
ClaimtheMojaveRebuildtheCapital.esp
ClaimtheMojaveTLD.esp
ClaimtheMojaveUncutWasteland.esp
Classic Tactics Inspired Plasma Rifle.esp
Colt2k33.esp
Crossbow.esp
CynthiasArmory.esp
DC Arsenal 2.esp
DEagle.esp
DLC Followers All-In-One.esp
Drug Synthesizer Rebuild the Capital.esp
DWD-AWOP.esp
DWD-Frontier.esp
DWD-L38Reloadedv5.esp
DynamicWeaponSpread.esp
FaceGen Tint Fix.esp
FafnirUniqueTTWOverhaul.esp
Fallout 2 combat armor (remastered) replacer b nonaddon.esp
Fallout 2 combat armor MK2 (remastered) replacer.esp
FAMAS.esp
FN FAL SA58.esp
FNV Anim Set - Schofield Revolver.esp
Follower Home Marker TTW.esp
FollowerAmata.esm
Functional Post Game Ending - AWOP Patch.esm
Functional Post Game Ending - Outside Bets Patch.esp
Functional Post Game Ending - Uncut Wasteland Patch.esp
Functional Post Game Ending - YUP Patch.esm
Galil.esp
GRA version (replacer).esp
HeinzNCRWeaponExpansionHH.esp
ImmersiveRecoil.esp
JIP MiniMap.esp
KP31.esp
LaserWeaponIronSights.esp
LewisGun.esp
Little More Lamplight.esp
Lucky38Reloadedv5.esp
Lucky38Reloadedv5_YUP_Patch.esp
Lucky38RevolutionsTTW.esp
M16K.esp
M1905.esp
Malorian Arms 3516.esp
MCMetalArmor.esp
MMTV_MTB_Sorting_Addon.esm
Molerat.esm
MothershipZetaRehaul.esm
Nevada Arsenal TTW Patch.esp
Nevada Arsenal.esp
NewVegasTrueScopes.esp
NoDLC version.esp
NS Finnish Weapons Pack TTW - Script Version.esm
NS MP40 TTW - Script Version.esp
NVRA - Uzi.esp
outsidebets.esp
PAVE_NV.esp
Pernach.esp
PKM.esp
PlasmaWeaponIronSights.esp
QSupplementaryWeaponPack.esp
QSWP - TTW Patch.esp
Radar.esp
Rainier AK.esp
REDP.esp
RG Colt 6520.esp
Russell.esp
Scottmack Weapons Redone.esm
Serbu.esp
Sierra Madre Penthouse.esm
Simple Open Strip.esm
SSTRemasteredQuarries.esp
SunnyCompanion.esp
SupportRifle.esp
Survivalist Rifle Mods.esp
SVU.esp
Sydney Follower.esm
TacticsM16.esp
TFHotfixes.esp
The Dreadnought.esp
The Frontier.esm
The Megaton Walkway - TTW.esm
The Skorpion.esp
The Storyteller.esp
TheFrontierReCut - Map.esp
Titans of The New West - Power Armor Sprint JAM.esp
Titans of The New West - Power Armor Sprint JVS.esp
Titans of The New West.esp
ToDoList.esp
TOZ66.esp
TTW - Energy Visuals Plus.esp
TTW Actually Viable Brotherhood Armory.esp
TTW3.3 Project Nevada Super Mutant Fix.esp
TTW_AWOP4FO3_-_No_Starter_Terminal.esp
TTWQuestFix.esp
Uncut Wasteland.esp
USAS12.esp
Vault 19 Poseidon Pit Stop.esm
Vault 19 Poseidon Pit Stop.esp
VICE.esm
VM_Recoil.esp
Vz61 Ver1.1.esp
walther mpk.esp
Weapons of Our Millenia.esm
WMVM.esm
WWP AMR.esp
Break down more ammo types.esp
All Weapon Sounds Overhaul .esp
Universal Pip-Boy Customization.esp
MCPipBoy2000MK6.esp
pipboy2500_edisleado.esp
FPSCounter.esp
Weapon Retexture Project.esp

submitted by MrNature73 to FalloutMods [link] [comments]

2023.06.06 02:19 henrys1996 (Race Report) Rock 'n' Roll San Diego Half Marathon

Race Information

Name: Rock 'n' Roll San Diego Half Marathon
Date: June 4, 2023
Distance: 13.1 miles
Location: San Diego, California
Time: 1:42:16

Goals

Goal	Description	Completed?
A	Sub 1:45	Yes
B	Negative split	Yes

Splits

Mile	Time
1	7:58
2	7:54
3	7:46
4	7:40
5	7:38
6	7:34
7	7:32
8	7:33
9	7:37
10	7:37
11	7:58
12	7:46
13	7:59
0.1 (was 0.2 on my watch, typical)	1:40

Training

This race coincided with my training cycle for the San Francisco Marathon (in late July) and was the last of three half marathons I had planned before zeroing in on building the miles. While I'm still a fairly new runner (running consistently only since the Santa Monica Classic 10K last September), I took on quite a fair amount of distances (and races) and finishing the LA Marathon back in March. I spent a lot of time figuring out what to do, how to train, and it wasn't until late January (about seven weeks prior to the marathon) that I adopted easy running and long runs and I started seeing some breakthroughs: sub-25:00 in the 5K, sub-55:00 in the 10K, and sub-2:00:00 in the half marathon, all in that month. I got the racing bug and signed up for what was definitely too many races after the marathon was done.
Fast forward to after the marathon, I met and spoke with a running coach and got a training plan from her for the San Francisco Marathon, which I jumped into 2 weeks after the LA Marathon. Training started well, setting a PR at the Carlsbad 5000 with a new 5K PR of 22:53 and base building looked good: the long runs went from 8 miles the first week up to 14 by Week 4. My first major test was at the OC 5K followed by the OC Half Marathon the very next day: I had pushed a bit too hard in the 5K (ran 22:54) and it showed in the half - I had set a goal of 1:45 and a combination of weaving, hills, and fatigue kept me from achieving that, finishing in 1:46:18.
In the weeks that followed, I kept up with at least one run over 10 miles: 6 days later, I ran the Santa Barbara Wine Country Half Marathon going at my usual long run pace with a fast finish, and followed that up with an 11 mile long run and then a 15 mile long run. I also snagged a 10K PR on Memorial Day (with a 44:55) on the back of a 45-mile week. I also decided it would be fun to go on a trail run the day before the Rock n' Roll Half, but that was a quick 5K with a big uphill. In hindsight, I definitely should have rested the Saturday before the race as well, but these are the things we learn on the road to improvement.

Pre-Race

I took the Friday before the race off from running and physical activity altogether, so I was feeling rather good; I drove down to San Diego the day before the race to pick up my bib and shirt. The legs felt fine despite the rather high mileage and lack of a taper for this race. I had a good lunch at a nice taco place near Petco Park and a pizza dinner, checked into my hotel and was asleep around 9:30pm to be up a bit before 4am to get ready for the race. Race morning was more or less as planned: got up early, made myself a coffee in the room, drove out to park by the finish line about an hour before the start, and walked about 20 minutes to the start line to drop off my gear. When I approached the start line, I got into my race shoes, dropped off my gear, had my caffeine gummies, and warmed up for 10-15 minutes.

Race

Miles 1-3: I looked for the 3:30 marathon pacer and just tried to stick with him, running just quicker than 8:00/mile. This section was also mostly uphill so I used that as a reminder to hold off on the pace and to trust the pacing. I started with the 2nd corral so I did question if I was going too slow when a few people started passing me and zooming by, but I shrugged them off as late starters. At that point, the pace felt easy, calm, and collected, and I crossed the 5K timing mat in just under 24:30.
Miles 4-6: By this point, I knew the hills would turn into flat, and this was a good opportunity for me to settle into a rhythm and keep good form. I also reminded myself that my first gel would come at mile 5, and it was a little awkward getting it out of my back pocket - but luckily I had practiced that in training. Still, I sped up the pace a little bit to see how I would fare, and I crossed the 10K timing mat in just under 49 minutes.
Miles 7-10: This was where I felt I could use the downhills in my favor. I sped up to 7:35ish pace and it felt comfortable - the half marathoners also split from the full marathoners just after mile 8, and this was where I wondered if I'd be able to push any further. Before hitting 15K, there was quite a steep downhill and my quads definitely felt it: it was a precursor to what I'd feel in the coming miles.
Miles 11-13: There was a steep uphill right after crossing the mile 10 marker and after a few miles of downhill, it was a total shock to the system and my legs really started to feel heavy and I was on the struggle bus to the finish. The course also turned into slight rolling hills (with more downhill than uphill) and the race really turned into a mental battle, but surprisingly, the pace did not significantly slip. The mental battle turned even more difficult as I saw more and more runners peeling off to the side and slowing down to a walk. As I reached Mile 12, however, I really felt my breathing going heavy and being really thirsty so I took some water and Gatorade at the last aid station before the finish. I told myself to just go at the pace of my previous splits and I knew I would PR by a wide margin and not obsess over the sprint finish or lack thereof, so that was what I did. To my surprise, I still managed to keep the pace quicker than 8:00 miles even when I was hurting after Mile 10.

Post-race

It felt like a massive milestone to go below 1:45, after missing out by just over a minute 4 weeks ago and it came to show how far I've come in just 9 months of my running journey. But more than that, I was surprised by how much the race more or less went to plan, despite slowing down a little in miles 11-13. I met a first-timer when I was getting back my gear and lining up for pictures and we shared about our races and running experiences. My next race is the San Francisco Marathon, so I'll be de-loading this week and then building the mileage up to a peak of around 60 miles and doing a two-week taper before the marathon. My next half marathon is in October, where I'll be running the Long Beach Half Marathon: I've learned my lesson to not schedule more than 2 races in a calendar month. Maybe someday, I'll learn my lesson to properly taper for a week before a half marathon.

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2023.06.05 23:30 khoafraelich789 2023 Toyota Sequoia TRD Pro: How Well Does the SUV Tow?

https://preview.redd.it/n3fdjeflry2b1.png?width=1200&format=png&auto=webp&s=449c1b32645c08ea77fea76c9b4fd131556acb6b
The redesigned 2023 Toyota Sequoia shares the same platform as the Tundra, and just like its pickup truck sibling, it’s equipped with a solid rear axle, which unfortunately sacrifices interior space for more articulation, towing stability and durability. The SUV now comes with a hybrid powertrain that combines a twin-turbo 3.5-liter V-6 engine with an electric motor for a total of 437 horsepower and 583 pounds-feet of torque; standard are a 10-speed automatic transmission and, on the TRD Pro variant, four-wheel drive. This sounds like good news for towing, so we tested how well the Sequoia’s new setup performs while hauling a trailer.

Towing With the 2023 Sequoia TRD Pro

For the 2023 model year, Toyota has changed pretty much everything in the Sequoia. Rather than going toward a unibody design for better use of space and efficiency, the automaker opted for a body-on-frame construction and a solid rear axle. This layout allows Toyota to keep the independent front suspension and precise rack and pinion steering while adding significant stability for towing and hauling heavier loads.

With a towing capacity of 9,020 pounds, the 2023 Sequoia TRD Pro sits pretty high on the list of full-size SUVs. This variant of the SUV also comes equipped with a receiver hitch, four- and seven-pin wiring connectors, and a trailer brake controller. Toyota requires that a weight-distribution hitch be used for loads over 5,000 pounds; it also recommends 100% front-axle load restoration. For more information, check out the owner’s manual or our guide.

The Trailer
For this test, I towed a twin-axle flatbed trailer loaded with a modified 1999 Jeep Cherokee that resulted in a total weight of 7,850 pounds. The trailer sits quite low, but adding the Jeep raised the center of gravity significantly, making the trailer less stable and therefore better for a towing test.

Tow Route
The route started at roughly 4,500 feet of elevation and, with some steep climbs, peaked at just over 6,200 feet. The route included a short freeway section, and the remainder mostly consisted of four-lane roads with 45 mph to 55 mph speed limits and grades approaching 10%.

How Well Does the 2023 Sequoia TRD Pro Tow?

Connecting the Trailer
While I do have access to a weight-distribution hitch with built-in sway control, I prefer to do towing tests without. (For my day job, I am a product engineer for Progress Mfg. Inc. in Utah, makers of the Equal-i-zer hitch and Fastway Flash ball mounts.) Using a standard ball mount provides more feedback on how well the tow vehicle can tow without additional anti-sway aids. In this case, I used a Fastway Flash Scale ball mount to get a proper tongue weight when loading the Jeep onto the trailer. I ended up with 800 pounds of tongue weight, which was a little more than 10% of the total weight.

Hooking the Sequoia to a trailer was easier than with a Lexus LX 600. The Sequoia’s hitch cover simply pulls off without having to undo any push pins or hand screws, and though the receiver design is the same as the Lexus’, the body cladding is such that access to the hitch-pin hole is much easier. Also, the Sequoia’s 2-inch receiver requires a long-span hitch pin, and the width it must span is actually larger than the width of Ford’s 3-inch receiver. Additionally, the wiring only required connecting the 7-pin plug and performing a simple light and brake check; everything worked perfectly.

Towing Performance
Entering the freeway via an uphill on-ramp posed no problems for the Sequoia. Its 583 pounds-feet of torque comes on strong at low rpm, which makes the drive feel effortless, and the 10-speed automatic shifts smoothly and finds the right gear without a fuss. Over expansion joints, the Sequoia remains planted.

On crowded divided highways, the Sequoia has no problem keeping up with traffic, and the brakes are strong. The suspension certainly feels stiffer than the previous generation’s, but this leads to a more stable ride when towing. Much like entering the freeway, climbing steep grades posed no issues. While I was testing in cold weather, it was still nice to have a full set of gauges that included oil pressure, oil temperature and transmission temperature.

Heading back down the grade was fairly easy, as well. The transmission downshifts to provide engine braking with light pressure on the brake pedal. When using cruise control, the vehicle is more aggressive with the engine braking. I did, however, smell the brakes and stop midway down the grade to let them cool for a few minutes. As the Sequoia had less than 5,000 miles on the odometer, this could still be part of the break-in process, but I wasn’t expecting the brakes to heat up that much.

Final Thoughts

Toyota claims that the hybrid system is optimized for performance and that fuel mileage is just an added benefit; that is definitely the vibe I had while testing. Power always seems to be on-hand when needed, and I observed 12.6 mpg over 220 miles of driving, with about 40 miles towing and 180 miles mixed city/highway driving.

Even with the Sequoia’s body-on-frame construction and solid rear axle, there are trade-offs. The SUV has a rougher ride on the road when hauling an empty trailer, and the solid axle sometimes has a noticeable sideways movement over bumps and dips. However, if you’re in the market for an SUV that can seat up to eight and tow a good-sized camper or boat, then the 2023 Sequoia just might be what you’re looking for.

Source: cars

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2023.06.05 20:38 4ShotBot My Roommate is Slenderman: Part 26

Part 25: https://www.reddit.com/Viidith22/comments/13yj6jh/my_roommate_is_slenderman_part_25_revised/
(Joseph)
The slush sloshed under my feet with each step, giving the dead streets some much-needed sound. As I made my way to the house, a sense of regret took hold. Along with a desire, a desire to have the last bit of my memories come back. Despite everything, the only set of memories I still lacked was where Scott had taken me on the day that started everything.
“Damn Terry, why couldn’t you have just been home?” I grimaced, rubbing my arm at the statement. A quick flash of the USPM Commander knocking me out shook my head. “Why couldn’t I have just…” I sighed, “No…”
I gazed up, snow clouds still looming overhead. I took in a deep breath, releasing it slowly, hearing nothing but the crunching of snow under my feet, reminding me of snapping bones. The thought made my mouth water, “When I finally get out of here, I needa see Rachel.”
“God, this asshole better be home.” I knocked to no response. Twisting the knob, I pushed the door open. Taking a deep breath, I tried to ease my nerves. Focusing on my ears, it didn’t take long for me to hear my heartbeat, then my nervous system, and just before I stepped in, there was a third thing, a writhing inside me.
I pushed the door open, keeping my eyes shut, I listened for any subtle change as I shut the door behind me. I could feel the vibration of the air in my ear canals bringing them to a ring. I took a breath, stepping further in. I side-stepped into the kitchen, flinging my eyelids open. A man stood, holding an extendable baton that made a clicking sound when he pressed a button. Next to him on the counter, a knife block.
Opening a drawer behind me, I pulled out the first thing I touched right as he lunged at me. I blocked the rubber-gripped metal spatula I’d pulled out, “Oh you’ve gotta be fucking kidding me.” I backed into the living room as the man pulled out a second baton.
Then I heard something behind me, I rolled over the couch, getting both men in my line of sight. The throbbing in my side returned, not painful this time, it was invigorating, “Come at me!” The second man pulled out a short sword and I couldn’t help but notice they didn’t have guns.
They charged me from both sides, I held up my left arm to the guy with the short sword, hitting the second guy’s batons to the side and kicking him back. The short sword guy was reeling back for another swing. I lunged back over the couch running to the kitchen, dropping the spatula and ripping a bread and chef’s knife from the knife block. The short sword plunged into my back and I whipped around, slicing the guy with my chef’s knife, slicing open his cheek.
Then, a tasing in my left arm, and I swung, but he knocked the bread knife away with a baton. He reeled back for another shot at me when I swung the chef’s knife as hard as I could down at his left baton. It made a crackling sound and he dropped it, hitting me in the neck with the good one. I fell to a knee, reaching and pulling the sword out of my back. The unarmed man tried to punch me in the face, but I swung the sword wildly and he fell back, waiting for an opening.
The baton guy staggered back just long enough for me to stand back up. I dropped the Chef knife, the pain in my forearm growing too strong as it went through the healing process. I swung at the man with the baton, he jumped back, blocking the blade with his shock stick, which bent before frying just like the last one. He took a couple steps back before turning and running out the door. I turned back, the other man was trying to book it too. I chased him out of the kitchen and tackled him to the floor.
“Look buddy, I’ve had to deal with assholes like you since I got here, so I hope it’s not too much trouble for you to give me just a tad bit of information.” He seized in response, flopping under me like a goldfish. Flipping him over, he was frothing from the mouth, pupils dilated, “God damnit.”
The man convulsed as I pulled his wallet and cell phone from his pockets. Turning the phone on revealed I needed a four-digit pin code, “I hope you were an idiot when you were alive.” I flipped open his wallet, sure enough, his social security card was in there. I checked for the last four digits and dialed them into the phone, unlocking it. “Wow man, wow.” I dropped his wallet on him and staggered to my feet, feeling the hunger take hold again. But looking down at the dead man on the floor, I didn’t wanna take any chances, so I left him be, promising myself I’d get some food soon.
I scrolled through notes, then texts, eventually finding myself at emails. One had stood out to me while scrolling, an exchange with a guy he called, ‘The Jack' from a couple weeks before. They were talking about the revolution, and that, “the men need to be ready in three weeks.”
There was an address that felt vaguely familiar, as well as a bunch of other details about everyone in the rebellion. Basically, a bunch of stuff to make sure there wouldn’t be the issue of a revolution anymore. The wordplay and deceptive speech patterns were just way too familiar, “Make that five, asshole.” I headed out the door, and as I walked, I couldn’t help but notice the car that pulled around a corner a few blocks behind me.
I never looked back, but my ears were too in tune to not notice the consistent crunching of snow and pistons firing. They were quiet for sure, but my paranoia was quieter. I heard them inching ever closer. With each foot gained, I could sense where they were that slight bit better. Every second pumped me with more adrenaline, and when I could see the bumper out of the corner of my eye, I readied myself, that’s when the window rolled down.
“Ahhhh, Joseph, care to take a ride?” The question flung me through a wall.
“Huh?” I looked over, metaphor man held a gun at me.
“It’s been a little while, I thought since you were in the neighborhood, you wouldn’t mind riding around with me for a bit. You know, since you so graciously took me where I needed to go last time.”
I swallowed, “Those aren’t normal bullets.”
He smiled, “Would you like to get in the car?”
I opened the door, sitting patiently, biding my time, until a wide barrel pressed against my neck, angled up. “It’s been a bit, how are you?”
“I’m doing quite well, how’s my spark plug doing?”
“Seen better days.” The suppressor shoved into my neck, “Look, I was kidnapped by Scott.”
“Yes, I’m well aware, but that mess you made, that was far too close of a call, and you didn’t even call us. While you staying alive is important, you aren’t necessary. What about our mystery man?”
“How am I gonna–” The barrel stabbed me, “Sorry, I just, wanted to know who I was. I haven’t figured out who that guy is yet. I thought maybe my memories could give me some insight.” I almost blew a raspberry out of surprise, I couldn’t believe how quickly I came up with it.
“I see, well?”
“Sorry, nothing yet, but I’m sure–”
“How was Scott? Anything you feel you should tell us?”
“It sounds like he’s in with a bunch of other groups in town. Also, any time he’s around, I’m calm, not intentionally or anything though, I just can’t get pissed at him.”
“We’re aware of a couple of other organizations he’s a part of, how many can you be certain of?”
“He told me four when I was locked up, but there’s also this phone.” I pulled it out, typing in the password and pulling up the email, “Sounds like–”
“Hand it back, he’ll look over it.” Doing as he said, we sat in silence for a few minutes.
Then the voice behind me sounded, “Yeah, big raid on the rebellion.” He handed the phone back to me.
“That would be nice for us, if only so many of them weren’t such big parts of this town.” Metaphor man paused, then said, “You were headed there when we picked you up.”
“What of it?”
“I have a proposition. You find a way to end this farce, and you will gain access to the file on your friend, Terry.”
“That’s one hell of a trust violation. How about I just follow through on what I already planned on doing?”
“Call it a hunch. It sounds like you want to get out of this town, whether it be stubbornness or knowing you’ll die the moment you leave, you’ve decided to stay in town despite regaining your memories. How about we leave it at that, you get the revolution you want, as well as some information you need.” He pulled over.
“I can just not read it.”
“I never said you had to, it’s a gift is all.”
“Okay fuckfa–” The barrel hit me so hard my vision faded for a moment.
“Please, we’re all friends here now. Let Joseph go.”
I opened the door, stepping onto the slushy sidewalk.
“Oh, right, before you’re off, be careful with Scott.” I turned to face him as I grabbed the door, “He can pacify people if their emotions aren’t strong enough, so get pissed at him or something along those lines before going down there.” He drove off, leaving the door to slam shut with the speed.
I watched as they turned a corner, nearly skidding out on the slurpie-covered road. Then I looked around, trying to figure out where they’d dropped me off. Soon enough, I noticed the wall, and the vaguely familiar building beside me, everything cleared, and I stomped into the building, keeping everything Scott had done to me at the forefront.
“WHERE’S SCOTT!?” Everyone stopped what they were doing, turning to me.
“Who’s asking?” The man behind the bar counter asked, with a vague sense of familiarity.
“JOSEPH, I was in here the other day! You guys have a snake down here, and I need to have a talk with it!”
“I don’t know a Joseph, but you oughtta be out of here if you’re gonna claim something like that!”
Some of the people nearby stood, approaching me, “I have evidence! Each one of you can look it over while I beat the shit out of Scott if you need!”
“Quiet down.” It pierced through every other sound, like a dog whistle, bypassing everyone’s voices, and silencing them. From the back of the room, I saw the older woman from before coming out from the back room. “Come with me, we should discuss this in private.” Her voice was so crisp, I almost followed her on instinct. Taking a breath, I made my way to her.
The back room wreaked of vodka and body odor. Heading through another door, I found the source of it. Scott sat chained to a table, and they’d apparently given him a bottle of cheap liquor to go to town on, which lay empty beside him.
“What the hell?”
“We can’t get anything out of him, we thought some alcohol would loosen him up, make him more willing to talk. But not even a 5th was enough.”
“So you already know about the raid?”
“Excuse me?”
I looked at Scott, “He goes by ‘The Jack.” I saw Scott’s giggly face falter ever so slightly as he rolled his head around the table. “Said their team needed to be ready in three weeks, that was two weeks ago. Any idea on that?”
“No… We’re all set to leave in two…” She stared hard at Scott, “You will die for this.” Turning back to me, she asked, “How can you be sure it was Scott if they never used his name?”
“Here, just read some of these messages, sounds like a certain fuckhead if you ask me.”
Taking the phone, she scrolled a bit, backing out a few more times to scroll some more. I could see the moment she got to THE email, something behind her eyes cracked, along with the phone. She dropped the now broken phone on the table. “We need to speed up our plans. While we appreciate your help, Joseph, we can take it from here.”
“No.”
She looked at me, indignant, “Oh?”
“I didn’t come to sit on the sidelines, I want out of this shit town too.”
“I’m afraid you can’t help us. Everyone you met the other day has already forgotten who you are, as per you not joining us.”
“Hold the fuck up! What!?”
“I advise you be on your way.” My muscles twitched at the suggestion, “Now!” My body turned to leave.
“You killing him? He’s my brother you know.”
“You want us to let him go?”
“No, I’d rather be sure he’s gone. Not to be a dick, but I don’t think I can take you at your word.”
“We have other intentions, his abilities are too useful to kill him outright.”
“Do you mind giving me a moment then?”
“I’m staying here, but if you want to say goodbye go ahead.”
I walked over to my brother, looking him up and down, “God you’re pathetic. But maybe the next time around, you’ll have a better go of it. Must’ve been hard being raised here by yourself.” I reached into his shirt, ripping the crystal off his neck and pocketing it. “That doesn’t mean you’re not still the worst kind of person.” I turned to leave, “Do whatever you want with him, make sure he regrets his existence for me if you can.
As I stepped out the door, she stopped me, “Hold on. What was that?”
“Family heirloom.”
“Let me see it.”
I took a step back in, holding the glowing crystal out, “Nothing special.”
“Alright, get going then.”
I put the necklace back in my pocket, “When can I expect the revolution? I wanna slip out in the chaos.”
“Four days, if you see any of us fighting anyone, just ignore it, leave town, I don’t want any debts.”
I walked out, muttering to myself, “Could just get the memory of the debt erased.”
I pushed open the door, wiped. Locking it, I made my way through every room, locking every window. Pulling my pillow and blanket into the bathroom and dropping them in the tub, I locked the bathroom door and quickly passed out. The only dreams I had were reforming memories, things like the giant dildo attack, the fight against Takeo, the name that pissed Terry off so much. What happened back then? Why was it such a sore spot?
I shot up, already in fight or flight, looking around, I was still in my bathroom. I let out a sigh, allowing myself to relax. Getting out of the tub, I rubbed my aching side, throwing the pillow and blanket to the side. After some time, I’d thrown them into the wash from all the dried blood I’d rubbed into them, then took a shower, and went to the store for a meal.
Once I’d had some food, the daze I didn’t know I was in passed. I was about halfway home when my brain seemed to boot back up. “How long was I out?” The question made me reach for my phone, only to remember I didn’t have one anymore. “Great, can’t even message metaphor man and tell him I took care of it.” I walked in silence for a few moments, “Why would I want to?”
Turning the corner, my house came into view, and I noticed something weird. My car was parked in front of the house. I sped up, splashing the slushy concrete under me, soaking my shoes. When I got to it, I pulled out my keys, pressed the unlock button on my fob, and sure enough, the lights flashed. I opened it, a phone sat atop an envelope. I picked them up, looking around me, but no one was in sight. I checked behind the Camry, but while there were light tracks, snow from the night before had faintly covered them.
Looking around one more time, I hurried into the house, locking my car with the key fob. My socks and shoes flopped to the floor as I made my way to the couch.
I emptied the contents onto my coffee table. A flash drive, a few hundred bucks, and a note, “We appreciate you going through with your decision to aid us, and in such a timely manner. As thanks, we have left you with your friend ‘Terry’s’ file. As well as a few other items, including your car, we hope for a long-lasting relationship. Don’t forget what you owe us. -The Mechanics”
I threw the money in my wallet, staring at the note, occasionally glancing down at the drive. “Yeah, what I owe you… assholes.” I crumpled the note, tossing it in the trash as I entered the kitchen. I twirled the flash drive in my fingers, leaning against the counter, nothing occupying my mind. I stared at the opposing wall as if it held some deep secret to the universe.
Some time passed with me sitting on the couch, watching tv. At some point, I’d reached into my pocket, feeling the smooth plastic on my fingers. I spun it around in my pocket for an episode or two before standing and heading to my office.
Slipping the drive into the back of my computer, I turned it on and opened the storage device.
There were two folders. One marked Terry, and one named Tresca. I hesitated and clicked on Terry’s folder. There were hundreds of pages, on the main document. I didn’t read all of them, but there were parts I did go through in depth. His history with Maerod, the contract association, the people he’d left behind, the names he’d dropped before starting new lives. Most notably, his past with a woman named “Tresca.”
It didn’t say what she was; but made it very clear she had an extremely fragile soul, even weaker than a human. He took her in one day, and eventually, grew a fondness for her. Some time passed and he decided to give up contract killing for her. But when he confronted Maerod to tell her he was giving it up, she warped his memories, twisting his love into hatred of Tresca. She’d used an ability not unlike Smudge’s to do it.
When he came home later that day, he put a tentacle through Tresca’s head and threw her body outside where it got ravaged by wolves later that night. Over time, and with him choosing to live secluded from the world, keeping to himself in the cabin he’d made in the woods, the memories would return to him. He’d remember all the happiness he’d held with Tresca, and eventually moved into civilization, using some of the contacts he’d made previously to move into an apartment and eventually make enough money to buy the entire complex.
A few years later, he picked up a new name and decided to settle down. But when he didn’t have anything to do, his mind would return to the person he shouldn’t have killed. He used every possible thing to distract himself, from drinking to hobbies, when he wasn’t capturing atypicals for FetchQuest, he was doing what he could to forget. Eventually, he picked up drawing, taking to the art style of his favorite medium of entertainment. This eventually led to painting, but for a reason unspecified, he gave up art as a whole not long after.
That’s around where I came into the picture, so that’s where I stopped. I sat there afterward, processing the details I’d gleamed. I shook my head in disgust with myself. But there was still that tinge of curiosity perched in the center of my mind. “What about Tresca’s side?”
After grabbing a glass of water, I sat back down, closed Terry’s document, and hit back on the folder. I stared at the second name. Double-clicking the folder revealed several documents. I leaned back, sipping from my glass, mind empty. I swirled the water around, staring at the blank ceiling.
“What haven’t I done yet?” A dry chuckle pushed out of me. Leaning forward, I downed the glass of water, grabbed a bottle of whiskey, and opened the document.
I avoided all the pages that didn’t involve Terry, it felt the least disrespectful between that and reading everything. But in all honesty, it’s because I didn’t really care about her, I wanted to know why the file was on the drive.
She’d come across his cabin one day, apparently running from something that I didn’t have the context for. She hid there, and when the people showed up, Terry, or Kenet at the time, came home shortly thereafter. They were disposed of when they attacked him, and soon enough Terry found the woman hiding out. They talked about what she’d been through and he offered to let her stay with him until everyone thought she was dead. Terry never really minded people, but he had to eat human children to survive, so he was despised by any people that knew about him.
The strange thing was, she never minded that aspect of him, and she never went insane. He wasn’t sure why, but eventually, it passed him by. As time went on, they forgot about their deal and she stayed with him on a permanent basis, learning to hunt and survive on her own when he went on his trips, a word he used so she wouldn’t know he was killing people. She found out one day while cleaning the cabin when she found his pile of contracts stashed away. But it didn’t change anything, and she never told him.
She read books in her spare time, going into the city to buy new ones every so often when she ran out of stuff to do. Eventually, Terry started reading some of them. They’d discuss the stories day in and day out, and Terry progressively took fewer and fewer contracts, thinking up countless ways to spend more time with her. They ended up getting into board games and even manage to jimmy rig a tv using a generator and a VCR. They’d spend days with each other, and when the time came, Kenet gave up his old name and told Maerod he was giving up contract killing. Which is where her story ended.
By the time I’d finished reading, the bottle of whiskey was empty beside me. I rubbed my temples. My brain holding loose connections it didn’t know what to do with. I wanted to see Terry again, but something made me nervous. It wasn’t the murders, not even killing Tresca, but I couldn’t tell what. Something about her felt… familiar to an extent.
I stood from my seat, crossed my arms, and looked around, “Guess I should start packing?” I shut my computer off, pulled the drive out of my computer, and took it to the kitchen where I smashed it to fragments with a meat tenderizer.
The day of the revolution had come, and I was squeezing the last of my stuff into the trunk. Heading back into the house for the last time, I looked back at my car, cringing when I saw my pc in the back seat.
I looked around, seeing if I’d missed anything I wanted to keep around, my eyes eventually falling on the business card on the ground. Walking over to it, I picked it up, “The Remnants of the Crystal Age.” I flipped it in my hand a few times, sliding it into my overflowing wallet.
“Maybe later.”
I walked about, just kinda looking at everything. My eyes passed over the painting I’d seen one night. Despite all the memories that had returned, I could only remember seeing the three figures in that office one other time, the night I was kidnapped, which started this whole crazy shitshow. I smirked to myself, a tear forming. “This really is it huh? I don’t even know how things are gonna go down when I see him again. Will he even be home?” I rubbed the wall, “Maybe I’ll have to take another road.” I turned my head around, staring at the door.
Leaving the house behind, I pulled the key from my chain, looking down at it, then into the sky as I tossed it off to my side.
Snow had already started falling, “Damn.”
Sitting in my car, I checked my phone, “8:13 pm.” An explosion triggered the first siren. I took a deep breath, backing out of the driveway.
Finale/Epilogue: Coming Very Soon!

submitted by 4ShotBot to Viidith22 [link] [comments]

2023.06.05 20:05 Toomin3 Republican would be everyone's party if they changed some things about themselves.

Image - Someone who will do what the republicans say they will do - balance the budget and actually make progress into paying down the deficit. It's not fair to our kids to make them pay our debt with compounded interest. They should also be very tolerant as far as social policies go, but not to the point where it feels like they are forcing you to agree with opinions or basically anything that isn't proven science. Tolerance will be emphasized but acceptance will not be required.
Next, they will eliminate wasteful government spending. They will tax the top 1% the most and eliminate loopholes for large corporations and more heavily regulate big banks. They will instead give all of the tax breaks to the smaller companies in order to break up monopolies and foster competition for a change. The government will look to downsize what it does, as much as possible, in order to work on paying down our debt to strengthen the dollar and truly stop inflation. Also, Outsourcing will be allowed but it will be taxed to at the very least meet or exceed a reasonable salary expectation for the position. Taxes will be strategically used to keep jobs in the U.S at any cost.
They will eliminate public assistance and in its place will be government work available for anyone. This can include things as simple as cleaning trash up on the highway, green projects, helping with education, roads and infrastructure, helping with foster children, the list goes on and on. Nobody will be rejected and the only people unable to get a job and still claim assistance will be people with proven disabilities that can't do anything; a much shorter list. Society will now see a return for the money spent on these programs while at the same time we will virtually eliminate unemployment.
Medical monopolies will be broken up. There will be no universal health care or non disabled Medicaid BUT laws will be put into place capping the maximum amount a person can pay for healthcare to be 5% of their monthly income. Companies will once again have to compete for business, as it should always be.
Education shall be focused on making the individual successful at working and earning a high salary. Basic tax and business principals will now be taught. Parents may allow children to take things related to liberal arts as electives, but students will now have the option to skip anything that won't give them a marketable skill. The first two years of college or trade school will now be included. This will be one of the few concessions we will allow our government to tax us for, since it will pay for itself over the long run.
We will continue to send older weapons and money to allies willing to put that in writing; Ukraine, for example, will continue to receive money to continue their efforts as well as our older unused weaponry. However, we will no longer be the aggressors or the world police, under any circumstances. Ukraine will serve as an example of our foreign policy for future generations; help our allies help themselves! We will cut R&D into new weaponry as well as manufacture of new weapons of war, at least until the time our deficit is paid back. We will maintain what we have now and continue to have our military on standby, just in case. Hopefully, we can cut the military budget by at least 75% with this strategy, using the money to either pay down the deficit or create even more government sponsored jobs.
The wall will be finished and migrants will be allowed legal processes to get into this country. Nobody who enters illegally will be allowed to stay now. If we don't respect our own laws why would the rest of the world?
Once our deficit has been paid in full we can go back to lots of R&D for weaponry / medical research. Also, infrastructure beyond just the bare minimum. We can create more jobs at the same time doing this. There will eventually be so many jobs Wage growth will create the job market we so desperately need. We will also begin to send aid to countries that need it.
We will have a government that actually does very little, instead mostly just facilitating the creation of jobs and maintenance of the status quo. This candidate will have a lot of work in front of him; his/her priority will be to make a positive impact on as many peoples lives as he/she possibly can.
Feel free to comment on what you agree/disagree with. This is sort of what I'd like to see from my party, and what I feel like they say they want to do.

submitted by Toomin3 to TrueUnpopularOpinion [link] [comments]

2023.06.05 19:50 Toomin3 My ideal candidate!

Someone who will do what the republicans say they will do - balance the budget and actually make progress into paying down the deficit. It's not fair to our kids to make them pay our debt with compounded interest. They should also be very tolerant as far as social policies go, but not to the point where it feels like they are forcing you to agree with opinions or basically anything that isn't proven science. Tolerance will be emphasized but acceptance will not be required.
Next, they will eliminate wasteful government spending. They will tax the top 1% the most and eliminate loopholes for large corporations and more heavily regulate big banks. They will instead give all of the tax breaks to the smaller companies in order to break up monopolies and foster competition for a change. The government will look to downsize what it does, as much as possible, in order to work on paying down our debt to strengthen the dollar and truly stop inflation. Also, Outsourcing will be allowed but it will be taxed to at the very least meet or exceed a reasonable salary expectation for the position. Taxes will be strategically used to keep jobs in the U.S at any cost.
They will eliminate public assistance and in its place will be government work available for anyone. This can include things as simple as cleaning trash up on the highway, green projects, helping with education, roads and infrastructure, helping with foster children, the list goes on and on. Nobody will be rejected and the only people unable to get a job and still claim assistance will be people with proven disabilities that can't do anything; a much shorter list. Society will now see a return for the money spent on these programs while at the same time we will virtually eliminate unemployment.
Medical monopolies will be broken up. There will be no universal health care or non disabled Medicaid BUT laws will be put into place capping the maximum amount a person can pay for healthcare to be 5% of their monthly income. Companies will once again have to compete for business, as it should always be.
Education shall be focused on making the individual successful at working and earning a high salary. Basic tax and business principals will now be taught. Parents may allow children to take things related to liberal arts as electives, but students will now have the option to skip anything that won't give them a marketable skill. The first two years of college or trade school will now be included. This will be one of the few concessions we will allow our government to tax us for, since it will pay for itself over the long run.
We will continue to send older weapons and money to allies willing to put that in writing; Ukraine, for example, will continue to receive money to continue their efforts as well as our older unused weaponry. However, we will no longer be the aggressors or the world police, under any circumstances. Ukraine will serve as an example of our foreign policy for future generations; help our allies help themselves! We will cut R&D into new weaponry as well as manufacture of new weapons of war, at least until the time our deficit is paid back. We will maintain what we have now and continue to have our military on standby, just in case. Hopefully, we can cut the military budget by at least 75% with this strategy, using the money to either pay down the deficit or create even more government sponsored jobs.
The wall will be finished and migrants will be allowed legal processes to get into this country. Nobody who enters illegally will be allowed to stay now. If we don't respect our own laws why would the rest of the world?
Once our deficit has been paid in full we can go back to lots of R&D for weaponry / medical research. Also, infrastructure beyond just the bare minimum. We can create more jobs at the same time doing this. There will eventually be so many jobs Wage growth will create the job market we so desperately need. We will also begin to send aid to countries that need it.
We will have a government that actually does very little, instead mostly just facilitating the creation of jobs and maintenance of the status quo. This candidate will have a lot of work in front of him; his/her priority will be to make a positive impact on as many peoples lives as he/she possibly can.
Feel free to comment on what you agree/disagree with. This is sort of what I'd like to see from my party.

submitted by Toomin3 to moderaterepublicans [link] [comments]

2023.06.05 19:23 Toomin3 What would a progressive Republican candidate look like?

submitted by Toomin3 to ProgressiveDemocrats [link] [comments]

2023.06.05 19:21 Toomin3 Our ideal candidate

submitted by Toomin3 to progressiverepublican [link] [comments]

2023.06.05 16:59 Icy-Wrongdoer-1670 The Role and Purpose of Symbolism in Dreams

In the realm of dreams, there exists a cosmos of symbolism that is as intriguing as it is enigmatic. Dreams, and the symbolism they carry, often blur the boundary between the conscious and unconscious mind, opening a unique window into our internal landscape. But what is the purpose of this surreal symbolism? What role does it play in our psyche?
The Language of the Unconscious
Dreams, by their very nature, are primarily visual and experiential. They employ a distinct language, a complex system of symbols, which is vastly different from the spoken or written word. We usually dream in pictures, and these pictures, or symbols, are not randomly chosen (Rarely, we dream in tastes, scents, textures and emotions. Although some do). Instead, they are meticulously selected by our unconscious mind to represent thoughts, feelings, and experiences that are not easily conveyed through language.
A Bridge Between Conscious and Unconscious
One of the most critical roles of symbolism in dreams is to create a bridge between our conscious and unconscious mind. Symbolism serves as a form of communication that allows the unconscious mind to express what the conscious mind may not yet understand or acknowledge.
For instance, if you dream of a locked door, it might symbolize an inaccessible opportunity or a problem you are unable to resolve. This symbolism can reveal your subconscious feelings of frustration, restriction, or a longing for change.
An Emotional Outlet
Dream symbolism often provides an outlet for emotions that we may suppress or are unable to articulate in our waking lives. The imagery that pops up in our dreams, be it of turbulent seas or peaceful meadows, can reflect the emotional state of our inner selves.
Dreams and their symbolism offer a safe space for us to explore these emotions. They can help us acknowledge feelings of anger, sadness, or fear that we might not confront directly in our waking lives.
A Catalyst for Self-Reflection and Growth
Symbolism in dreams can prompt self-reflection and personal growth. These symbolic images and scenarios can compel us to evaluate our values, relationships, and personal circumstances. For instance, dreaming of a road can symbolize life's journey and the direction we're heading. The road's condition can represent the challenges and obstacles we face.
The consistent exploration of these symbols can foster an understanding of our fears, aspirations, and personal dynamics, aiding in personal development.
A Tool for Problem-Solving
Interestingly, symbolism in dreams can also play a role in problem-solving. Many scientific breakthroughs, inventions, and creative insights have been born in dreams. Nobel laureate Otto Loewi, for example, dreamt of the experiment that would prove his theory of chemical transmission of nerve impulses, revolutionizing our understanding of the nervous system.
How did this occur? Our subconscious mind continues to work on problems even while we sleep, and it communicates the solutions or insights through symbols. These dream symbols can represent complex concepts in a digestible and intuitive form.
Unraveling the Symbolism
Dream symbolism is subjective, personal, and heavily influenced by our individual experiences and cultural backgrounds. It is, therefore, necessary to interpret the symbolism in our dreams within the context of our own lives. Approaches such as psychoanalysis and cognitive therapy can aid in this process, helping us understand our subconscious thoughts and feelings better.
Remember, Symbolism in dreams is a subjective and multifaceted phenomenon. While we can seek guidance from dream dictionaries and theories, ultimately, the most profound insights come from our personal interpretations and understandings.
Symbolism in dreams serves as a vibrant, visual language that helps us navigate the labyrinth of our subconscious mind. It enables the conscious and unconscious mind to converse, offers emotional release, propels self-reflection, and aids in problem-solving. Hence, paying attention to our dream symbolism can provide valuable insights into our internal landscapes, facilitating personal growth and psychological well being.
Promoting Health and Healing
Dream symbolism is not just a tool for introspection and understanding. It can also play a crucial role in promoting health and healing. Dreams may symbolize physical health issues before they become apparent in waking life. For example, a dream of losing teeth may symbolize anxiety, but it might also indicate a need for dental checkup or reflect concerns about physical appearance and self-image.
Furthermore, by providing an outlet for suppressed emotions and a means for self-reflection, dreams can contribute to overall psychological health. The process of identifying, interpreting, and coming to terms with the symbolism in our dreams can be therapeutic, aiding in resolving internal conflicts, reducing stress, and promoting emotional healing.
Cultural and Universal Symbolism
While much of dream symbolism is unique to the individual, certain symbols and themes seem to crop up in the dreams of people across different cultures and periods, suggesting the existence of universal symbols. Such symbols might be rooted in shared human experiences or collective unconscious, as proposed by Carl Jung.
For instance, water is often seen as a symbol of the unconscious mind and emotions, while animals may represent basic drives and instincts. Understanding these universal symbols can provide another layer of depth to dream interpretation.
Innovation and Creativity
As we've touched on earlier, the symbolism in dreams can lead to major breakthroughs, and it can also inspire creativity. Artists, writers, and musicians often draw on their dreams for inspiration. Surrealist artist Salvador Dalí, for instance, used his dream imagery as direct inspiration for his paintings.
The symbols and scenarios that arise in dreams can be uniquely novel and creative, offering a rich source of material for creative endeavors. They can help us think outside the box and see things from new perspectives.
In conclusion, the symbolism in dreams serves many roles and purposes. From revealing hidden emotions and desires, aiding in problem solving, to fueling creativity, these symbols are the language of our unconscious mind. They provide a unique window into our inner world, one that we can learn to understand and appreciate.
By attending to these dream symbols and making an effort to decipher their meanings, we can unlock the wisdom of our unconscious mind, leading to greater self-understanding, personal growth, and psychological well being. After all, as Sigmund Freud stated, "Dreams are the royal road to the unconscious." And this road is paved with a rich tapestry of symbols, waiting to be explored and understood.
Interested in symbolism? Read about animal symbolism HERE
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submitted by Icy-Wrongdoer-1670 to developingspirit [link] [comments]