I am moving away short story

Thank you for this universe!
And many thanks to for being a full co-writer on this project!
Kaeden and Vichee belongs to and I thank them so much for working with us! It was an honor!
Sven belongs to Bjorn the Copper Paladin from Discord. I hope to do more with them in the future, and have tons of fun!
And don’t you worry about that final in the title! We have some news at the end!
[First]- [Prev]- {Next Story!!}

{Is the reason that everything happened to Tarlim in the first place?}

{Only up to the ramps, mostly. Trying to impress upon people the importance of accessibility for those with extenuating circumstances. At least according to the records I have access to.}

{The average person knows as much about his friends as they do about Mike Collins.}
<...Who?>
{Exactly. 20th century human spaceman, was there for their first lunar landing. Didn’t get to put boots on the ground, and nobody remembers his name now.}

{Hell, I didn’t even know about him until I put in a search query of niche historical figures just to give you an example. Yeesh…}

(Program Selected.)
(Resume Selected Media? [Y])
(Playing…)
Archived Closed Circuit Security Video - Establishment: Exterminator’s Office - Dawn Creek Division - Subbasement - Date Recorded (ST): OCT 31, 2136 - Timeframe (ST): 11:42 - 11:45
The parking bay is silent. Vans are parked neatly in their spots which frame the hallway to the armory and fuel storage for the camera. A ding is heard and something moves in the hallway. Five fully suited Venlil and a Zurulian step out of an elevator and run towards a van. The sound of a door slamming open comes from the hall roughly 6 seconds later. A stream of Exterminators pour out into the hall from the stairwell.
Their voices are indecipherable as they speak over each other. A Sulian runs into the armory and reappears with a huge flamer tank on their back. Another Zurulian can be seen with an extinguisher tank, but a Venlil bleats at them and tosses it aside. They drag the quadrupedal alien quickly into the parking garage before physically throwing them into the back of a van.
From the back of the hallway, a fluid can be seen spreading across the ground. A trio of Venlil back out of a room while holding their flamers up. They are unlit, instead spewing fuel out of their nozzles. The trio twirl around in an overly animated manner as they walk down the hall to the parking garage. A van pulls out of its spot with windows down so the passengers could let out a cheer.
A black-suited Venlil runs up to the spraying trio while waving their arms to get them out into the garage. The microphone just barely manages to catch him saying, “We need to save some for the predators!” One of the other Venlil replies, “Yes sir, Mafchi!” A short flurry of curses is heard as the gathered exterminators pile into the three other visible vans. Two of the vans speed out of the garage, forcing some other Venlil exterminators to dive out of the way in the process.
The black-suited Mafchi picks up a fuel canister that had been dropped and twists off its cap. He slings it under his shoulder and pours a line of fuel. He marches straight to the final van and hops up into the open rear. The van backs itself up to turn out of the garage. The fuel canister clatters to the ground as it pulls away. Before it clears the view of the camera, the Black-suited Venlil is seen standing in its open back. He is holding what appears to be a flare gun.
The flare sails through the air shortly after the van leaves the frame and impacts the ground. It bounces and rolls until it touches the fuel and ignites it in an instant. A small wall of fire proceeds down the provided trail into the hallway, igniting more fuel as time passes. The hallway is quickly engulfed in vividly red fire. Thick black smoke begins to pour out into the garage as the fire inches closer to the primary fuel tank.
Movement can be seen in the hallway between the flickering flames. The silver form of a Venlil Exterminator is seen rushing out of the stairwell and fighting to head towards the fuel storage room. Before they reach, a white flash fills the screen. The feed goes dead, the error code consistent with electrical interruption.
(Specified Media Concluded.)

{Who was what? Mafchi?}

{Hmmm, there aren’t any tags embedded for them. The suits do a rather good job at making the officers anonymous. Let me see…oh.}

{The, uh… the employment records for that Office were…terminated.}

{It looks like…yes, here. Record wipe in 2497. Media with less than 1 bistandannual visit were removed to save space on the university’s central server. It’s…they’re gone, gone gone.}

{Maybe, but that’ll do us no good if we don’t know their name. And because of the chaos of that incident, nobody has been able to accurately reconstruct where every individual was in that office. We’d have to already know who they were to find them.}
<...I guess that’s another person I’ll have to remember then, huh?>
{...Guess so. Speaking of remembering, perhaps you should check out Tarlim’s view again? Seeing how we were just talking about him.}
<...Sure. At least people remember his name, right?>
(Command: [exitprogram])
(Are you sure? [Y])
…
{-Program Selected-}
{-Restart From Last Playback Point? Y/(N)-}
{-[USERID-11229KMD]: procViewHist -}
{-Retrieving Transcription Viewing History…-}
{-List Retrieved - Select Desired Subject: (Tarlim)-}
{-Restart From Last Playback Point? (Y)/N-}
{-Playing…-}
Memory Transcription Subject: Tarlim, the Venbig. Date [Standardized Human Time] October 31st, 2136
No matter how much Sven and Anso griped about it, having them leave and return with the trailer was a great idea. The humans who had gone with them the first time were, to my dismay, excited to try and ride in the back. I had at least been able to impress on those four that I couldn’t let anyone else ride like that, and that they were to help with rigging a trailer with some seats.
I had to admit; they did a good job!
Several couches sat bolted to the floor of the covered trailer and even had some ropes that could be hooked across the armrests as impromptu belts. It wasn’t perfect by any means, but it would work as well as any bus or short train ride! Certainly superior to jumping in the bed of a truck.
I strode out into the parking road and swayed my ears to greet Anso. Sven had stayed behind here to meet with the humans and entertain the kids, a job which he was slightly less unenthusiastic about compared to last time. “Greetings, Anso! Have you made the necessary preparations for the humans to leave with you?”
The Yotul hopped out of the truck bed and bounced to me. “We have! I have to say those humans were great workers to have helped get this whipped up so quickly! I hope Sven has been behaving himself?”
I let my tail wag behind me remembering my last glimpse of him. He should really secure his sheath straps! “He has! Been entertaining the refugees while I made sure they all had their belongings ready to go. Come on inside, let’s go gather them.”
I guided him with a wave of my arm as we turned back to the door. To be truthful, I hadn’t expected Sven to win the humans over as quickly as he did. Needless to say, his primitive attire seemed to spark joy within them, a joy sorely needed amidst the sadness of recency.
As we entered the building I noticed something, or rather, the lack of something. When I had exited only a few [minutes] prior, the building had been full of life and noise. Now, it was almost dead quiet, save for the sounds of a holovision coming from the lobby. Rather heated sounds, at that.
“I didn’t think it was already main rest claw,” Anso mused as he, too, recognized the aggravated voices coming from the lobby. “And what are they watching in there? Sounds…angry.”
“Yeah…” I trailed off as I followed the noises. As I approached the lobby, the sound of what I assumed was a Gojid yelling. “You know nothing about my family. TALK, JUST FUCKING TALK, NOW!” My ears pinned back at the foul language at play, hoping that Sven and the children were somewhere else.
As I entered the room, I saw that I was only half right. The children were thankfully nowhere to be found, but Sven was obviously present, as was most of the facility staff. I was about to ask what was going on before another voice drew my attention to the holovision, the same as everyone else. The voice of none other than Chief Nikonus.
“There were three of us who laid out the groundwork for the Federation. When Kolshian explorers came in contact with the Farsul, more than a thousand years ago, the galaxy was young. We were the first in this sector to escape our gravity well. You know about the founding of this institution, but I reiterate it just in case.”
“The Krakotl were the third,” another voice piped up from behind the camera. I thought it might’ve been another Gojid, but the voice was far too breathy. Harchen, maybe? I wasn’t given a chance to consider it further as Nikonus continued. “Yes, they were a problem from the start; aggressive, disagreeable. We tried to identify the problem, and why they were so ill-equipped for spacefaring.”
“We learned they were scavengers, who would occasionally go for fish as well.”
His next line was rendered inaudible by the shocked gasps of both the refugees and residents in the room. I was no different, drawing in a sharp breath at the abrupt admission. I remembered that Arvi had said some aliens were revealed to have eaten meat in the past, but was this the way it was decided to be revealed? With such abject callousness?
Nikonus continued to speak, looking not just proud, but smug with his words. He went on about how the Federation had saved these aliens with their manipulations, but the entirety of his body language seemed to indicate he reveled in how devastating this information would be to the people he was speaking to. How they manipulated an entire culture, a RELIGION!
What if they did the same to ours?
That horrifying thought struck through my mind like a derailing train. I had relied upon the Tenets in some of my darkest moments. Found comfort in them when there was none elsewhere to be found. To have such a comfort revealed as a lie in its entirety, used only for some other group to control you…
The voice of Nikonus hit my ears again. “Oh Sovlin, I already told you. For the small minority of species who don’t find herbivory alone, we teach them the right way. Doesn’t the religion against predators sound familiar?”
The Kolshian was insufferably proud of those words. There was no doubt in my mind now; this was mocking. Mocking a Gojid for following The Protector. For being a predator. For being different, but expecting to still be treated as a person. The Gojid were predators, they couldn’t help it, and they were already being mocked for it.
What might happen to all the other species?
I shifted my focus away from the screen to the crowd, searching for one in particular. Vichee, a Krakotl already so different from everyone else, and now my concerns for them were multiplied with every word that fell from Nikonus’ mouth. Were they okay? They had come in here to see Sven, I had seen them. Where are-
I spotted Kaeden in the corner of the room. Next to him, slumped against the wall, was Vichee. The dual colored Krakotl’s eyes were glazed over as they stared at nothing. I strode over quickly, my instincts wanting to comfort them. Kaeden was simply standing there, it was confusing that he didn’t seem to be comforting Vichee at all. As I got closer, their head tilted up to me, regarding me with an unfocused eye.
“He was right.” They said quietly. My implant almost didn’t pick it up over the sounds of the lobby. “Kaeden had asked me soon after our first meeting if Krakotl had once been meat eaters. Said it was the shape of our beaks. ‘More suited to capturing small wriggling prey than filtering algae’. He told me. I nearly flew away right then… If I had, I would have been alone with this news.”I listened, kneeling down to be closer to their level. “You’re not alone, your herd is here. Right Kaeden?”
He looked over at me and nodded. “Vichee was there with me when Earth was attacked. I’m here for them now. Kaabra and Venik are… together, elsewhere at the moment. But they will be here too.”
I flicked my ears in understanding. “Then I hope they may help in hugging Vichee until their tears are dry.” I turned an eye to Vichee. “Please, I just want you to know that you are still you. What your body does has no effect on your personhood.”
Vichee still sat, their mind still likely whirling with the new information. They lifted their differently colored wings. “I’m well aware. This lesson I already learned. But thank you, I understand what you mean.” Kaeden nodded slowly and Vichee returned to their thoughts.
“There’s going to be trouble soon, Tarlim,” Kaeden stated gravely. “News like this? Nothing good will come of it. I can already tell this won’t go over well. Keep your eyes open.”
As if in response to his words, the sound of clanking metal hits my ears. They shoot up, pivoting to locate its source. There, dashing towards the door, was the armored figure of Sven. I didn’t know him enough to know how this broadcast would affect him, but running was never the best sign. I flicked my ears goodbye to my friends and rose, following after the metal man. In my periphery, I saw the television screen had shifted to show Rolem moving onto the stage. I would have to miss whatever it was he had to say, so ducked through the doors and continued to follow the sound of metal.
As I exited, I saw that I wasn’t the only one to see Sven’s actions. Anso was bounding behind him, shouting something I couldn’t hear. Sven didn’t seem to either as he kept running, but his gait wasn’t one of fear. He looked purposeful, sprinting in a straight line. A line pointed right towards-
Towards the observing Exterminator Van.
The metal Venlil didn’t even hesitate at the presence of the fence. He leapt up in a display of strength and agility, vaulting over the barrier and continuing his beeline into the van. It was like phased through the doors with how fast he moved. There were sounds of commotion that followed his entry, and soon two Exterminators fell out of the van. One Venlil…and one Krakotl. I wonder how Kalek is taking things.
I, too, cleared the fence with only a high step and reached the van, peering in to see Sven at the controls. “Sven! What are you doing?” I asked, the Krakotl officer shivering on the ground in my periphery.
“They got my girl!” He huffed, “She’s a Gojid, they got her, I can’t let them do anything worse to her!” He tried to activate the vehicle to no avail, but his words brought up something that I hadn’t thought much over. I remember hearing about temporary emplacements that were being set up. Paly had texted me about exterminators bringing people there. Her too. And that would mean-
-THOOOOOOOMMMMM-
The wind hit me like a truck and rocked the van I was standing next to. Sven even stopped trying to fiddle with the controls to see what had just happened. In the distance, near the center of town, an enormous black cloud rose into the air, the vestiges of fire still burning in the suspended embers. I couldn’t look away from it as my mind raced with horrible possibilities as my mind tripped over itself trying to concoct a plan of action.
I wasn’t given long to think before the radio in the van crackled to life, startling both Sven and myself. “Attention all True Exterminators! The truth has come out about the taint in our midst! For too long we have lived with its danger in our presence! If any of you still hold the safety of The Herd in your hearts, come join us so we may burn ALL the predator taint from this District! Rendezvous at Vulen’s apartment complex, we shall start our cleansing there!”
The name of one of my landlords sparked familiarity in my mind. They had been working to build a series of new apartments to add to his old, and if I remembered, had agreed to house the Gojid refugees. The Gojid! Paly was housed with them!!
In an instant, I reached into the van and grabbed Sven by the arm. He tried to pull away, but my grip was too strong. “Sven! They’re gonna kill the Gojid! They’re gonna burn Paly!”
He finally managed to shake himself free as my paws became jittery from stress. “I gotta save my girlfriend! She’s in a facility! I gotta save her!”
“But they’re gonna burn people here!” I protested, “we have to do something! We need- We need People who can fight them! Kaeden! I need to get Kaeden! We can save them!”
I pulled myself away from the van and spotted Anso nearby. He must have had to go through the gate, but this was good timing. I pointed a claw at him. “Do Not Let Him drive off before I get back!”
I didn’t give him, nor the Exterminators who had recovered from their shock, time to ask questions. Paly was in danger, as were who knew how many others. I faintly heard my data pad chime from within my shoulder bag, the signal my heart was beating too fast, but I couldn’t deal with it right now. I could get the heart rate under control during the drive. Right now I needed Kaeden, he knew how to fight! How to save people when others were trying to kill them!
My paws guided me and I was back in the cafeteria before I knew it. Some of the crowd had dissipated, but Kaeden and Vichee were still in the same corner I had left them in, but with their Venlil friends now joined. Without leaving time for protest, I grabbed Kaeden’s arm and pulled him away. I heard Vichee squawk behind me, but I was in too much of a hurry. I can’t let her get hurt. I Won’t.
Kaeden started to slap my arm as I dragged the soldier across the lobby. “Tarlim! What the fuck are you doing?? What’s going on?”
“No time, they’re going to burn everyone,” I breathlessly said as I burst the facility doors open to get him to the van.
“What? Who?” Kaeden questioned, still resisting my pull. I could hear a tinge of worry in his voice, and I knew he would understand. Anso looked back from his position as he heard my approach, and upon seeing me dragging Kaeden along, he grew visibly concerned.
“On the radio, something about True Exterminators,” I attempted to explain to him as we neared the gate doors. This time, I simply spread them apart with my free paw, metal screeching against itself as the gate was forced open. “They’re going to burn every cured species they can find, and That Means Paly. I Won’t Let Them.”
Kaeden had stopped struggling as I explained the bare essentials to him, and once we approached the van, he finally had enough sense to ask the right questions. “So what exactly is the plan to stop them? We’re strong, sure, I could probably take most of them. But just two of us against a wall of those flamers?”
“Not two,” I corrected, letting go of his arm and throwing open the back doors of the van. Still seated in the drivers side was Sven, who looked back once he heard me permit entrance into the back. “We have him too.”
“Wh- the LARPer??” Kaeden asked incredulously. I wasn’t familiar with the term he used, but his tone told us all we needed to know. Sven’s eyes narrowed at the perceived insult, but Kaeden continued. “Do either of you have any formal military training?? Rushing down there is only going to get you both killed along with the others! For fucks sake, slow down! We need a plan!”
“T-There won’t be t-time f-for one,” a voice peeped in from behind us. We all turned to face the source, and we found it was the Venlil Exterminator. They recoiled under the sudden gaze of our entire party, but they managed to continue. “I-I recognized the v-voice. It w-was one of the n-new recruits. They m-might as well be Y-Yulpa. If you w-want to stop them, it’s now or n-never.”
We all stared at them for a moment in disbelief that they’d willingly hand over that information to us. They were Exterminators, weren’t they? They should be allied with the voice on the radio! Kaeden, after considering the information, gave voice to my confusion. “And why are you telling us this? You’re an exterminator, shouldn’t you be trying to help them?”
“M-My husband is the Krakotl that was in the van with me!” They yelled back, stamping their footpaw on the ground in agitation. “I-I don’t care what his ancestors did a t-thousand years ago, I will not stand for those zealots burning who knows how many people! We’re not all the same, h-human!”
I was taken aback by their words. I had given up hope that there were any redeemable souls amongst the ranks of those silver-suited brahkasses, but living proof of the contrary stood before us. Their breathing was only matched by mine as my pad continued to chime in my pack. Maybe there’s hope after all.
Kaeden started frantically looking all around, his focused gaze falling on the facility, the exterminator in front of us, and the rising smoke in the distance. After a moment's hesitation, he growled to himself and shook his head. “Fine! Fucking- if you want to prove you’re different, you and your partner stand guard at the gate! They’ll probably try to send a division here, so keep on guard! And for the love of God, go ask for help if that happens!”
My tail wagged behind me as I interpreted what that meant. “So you’ll help us, Kaeden?”
He paused for a second, an agonizing second as he fully took in the situation in his mind. But ultimately, he nodded. “Let’s go, we can figure things out along the way.”
Seizing the moment, Anso quickly jumped into the van and pushed Sven out of the driver's seat, much to their visible frustration. Kaeden quickly hopped into the passenger seat, leaving me with the problem of finding a space that would fit me. I stepped over to the back of the van and threw the doors open.
The flamers and their fuel tanks were useless to us, easy to toss all three sets out onto the ground behind me. I made sure that the flamers were disabled first, of course. Just had to snap the pilot lighters and slice a hose with my claw. Even if these two said they weren’t like these “True Exterminators” I didn’t trust them one bit. I crawled inside the cramped vehicle and wiggled myself to close the doors behind me.
As I got myself settled, I watched as the Venlil Exterminator started to inspect the destroyed remains of their weapons. I squinted a glare at them and positioned myself so they couldn’t enter with me. “You two aren’t coming,” I hissed. “You know why you’re not. Try anything with the humans, and they will stop you.”
I slammed the doors shut as their expressions fell, just in time for Anso to get the van into gear. I curled myself up against the wall of the van, watching out the back window as we sped down the road. We were on our way now. On our way to save Paly and all the people gathered because their ancestors ate meat. My heart hammered in my chest, but I would need to control it for what we were about to do. I needed to focus. I needed to breathe. I needed to be calm.
Focus. Breathe. Calm
Focus.
Breathe.
Calm…
{-ALERT: Automatic Annotation Detected - Switching Transcription Subject-}
{-Loading…Playback Ready-}
{-Playing…-}
Memory Transcription Subject: Sol-Vah, Fleeing Predator. Date [Standardized Human Time] October 31st, 2136
My legs couldn’t carry me anymore. I had to keep going, but I didn’t have the strength. My pants became wheezes as my body struggled to keep up with the physical exertion of running almost halfway through town. I hadn’t even looked up before now, at least with eyes not blinded by tears. The pain of Mute’s rejection still stung in my soul, a pain so visceral it threatened to rip me apart worse than any Arxur. Protector, what did I do to deserve this? Is there even a Protector, or did the Federation just- just make that up?
I didn’t have time to think about that now, I needed to get to the office. From what little I caught of the broadcast, Nikonus had said they saved us before. I knew what it likely was, but…I was desperate. I just wanted to go back home and have him embrace me like he did before. The safety and love I had felt from him was still fresh in my mind, and if there was any chance I had to get it back?
I’ll happily take it.
As I approached the office, however, something seemed off. I could smell soot in the air, but not the kind of soot that came from our flamers. This was- was…dirtier smelling, as if the fuel had been impure. Upon looking up, however, I saw something that made my stomach drop. A huge plume of smoke, billowing up into the sky. It shadowed the sun itself with its immensity and hate. Did the Exterminators burn more drugs? Or…or…
I felt a renewed vigor as I started to run towards the plume, hoping against hope that I was wrong. As soon as I turned the corner, though, my worst fears were realized. Where the office once stood now sat a burning stack of glorified rubble, every single window in sight shattered and multiple holes in the outer walls. The building was split, it was as if a giant knife had come down and sloppily sliced off its front half to spill flaming debris everywhere.
I stood in front of the building I had once called my home, surrounded by screams and the awful sound of flames roaring. I knew now there was no hope of salvation, no way this could ever be undone. I would never be able to go back to the way things were, never feel the happiness I had for that brief time. I was doomed to this life, abandoned by my love, and forced to live as an abomination devoid of a home.
I suppose that’s all a predator like me deserves.
[First]- [Prev]- {Next Story!!}
You read it right: This is going to be the final chapter of "Of Giants and Journalists." With the conclusion of Sharnet and Vekna's adventure, we will now take the time to show how this announcement has affected our characters and the galaxy at large. We're excited to announce our new series, Nature of a Giant: Aftermath! This series will not be quite as in-depth temporally as Of Giants and Journalists was, mainly because not as much will be happening in as short of a time. Rest assured, though, there will still be plenty of action across the board! You just won't have to deal with over half the story only covering a week of time!
In that vein, we are also excited to announce we are working on another bonus series, one that was teased a long time ago, Venric Lawven: Legal Legend! It will be filling the gap for content while we work on the first few chapters of Aftermath to make sure the scenes are as quality as they deserve, but will have a reduced upload schedule to once a week to accommodate for writing two series at once. On behalf of both of myself and , we'd like to thank all of our readers for sticking with us on this journey. It's hard to believe this series has been going on for over a year in one form or another, but I wouldn't have it any other way! Thank you all again for your continued support, and we look forward to seeing you again with Legal Legends! And then...
The Aftermath!!

Hi,
I recently moved to Germany (Berlin). I am currently in a short-term rental.
The Internet speed that is provided by the landlord is very bad. It's connected via Cable.
I see there is an option for me to take out an Internet subscription without having to have it for 2 years (cancellable monthly).
Can I take out such a subscription without affecting the subscription that's already in-house provided by the landlord?
I don't know how cable works, but in Sweden I could do that normally.
Thanks very much.

Hello all!
I was wrongfully deactivated from the Hinge dating app. I have never acted inappropriately or violated any of their terms as far as I am aware of. When I requested an appeal I was denied and never told the reason why I was banned or why my appeal was denied. My best guess was I made my profile after a sour breakup, and my vindictive ex might’ve seen my profile and reported it to get revenge.
I kinda just shook it off and moved on to another app but then I saw this story of a person who I suing Lyft in small claims for wrongful deactivation, so it kind of reminded me of this.
I think the reason it bothers me the most is that it was a false allegation that I want to be exonerated from. Also, as a 27 year old in a major city, people don’t meet new people in person as often anymore. I am a social person and do occasionally have those experiences, but I miss having the option of Hinge as well.
My question for y’all is this: could I file a case in small claims to get hinge to review my profile again? What kind of damages could I claim and what grounds do I have? I have paid for memberships with the app in the past, but I don’t remember if I had an active membership at the time of deactivation. Would sending a demand letter be a better option? Is this even feasible?
Constructive criticism is appreciated, please don’t be a dick. Ty in advance!

I am a highly motivated and experienced game developedesigner with a passion for crafting engaging and immersive gaming experiences. I possess a diverse skillset spanning various game development disciplines, including:
Programming:
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• Proficient in Unreal Engine, Unity Engine, and Godot.
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Rate: Negotiable based on project scope and complexity.
Contact: PM

I posted recently about my potential rebalance and was shred to pieces so I'm going to elaborate on a few more details, most of the criticism was fair and I'm trying to alter my approach but I felt a few were not fair however I didn't provide enough details so here goes. 33 years old martial arts fighter and coach hoping work reduced hours by the time I am 45+
I started in around 2017, Contributions were:
2018 ISA 20,000 2019 ISA 20,000 2020 ISA 9,100 2021 ISA 13,200 2022 ISA 5,500 2023 ISA 600 2024 ISA 2000 Total £68,400
Value Today £101,000
Portfolio is now 100k as of this morning, the reason for the small drop off between 2021 and 2023 without going in too to much details was just pure depression. I am self employed so I essentially just stopped earning as much during those years and this year I've decided to book my ideas up
I basically did no tinkering from 2017 to 2021
Fundsmith
SMT
7IAM Adventurous Fund
Baillie Gifford American
Vanguard Life Strat 100%
I foolishly tinkered in 2022, trying to switch from funds to etfs and IT's as I am with Hargreaves Lansdown
I kept Fundsmith SMT and sold the rest, I sold Baillie Gifford at a massive profit but then bought the equivalent in the IT USA version (bad move in hindsight) but my thinking was I liked the fund (which I still do) but I wanted the IT for less fees. I used some of the profits from the fund sale to buy EWI. Same situations as BGUSA just terrible timing and they are my only two red on the portfolio but the fund would of gone massively anyway so it doesn't really matter tbh.
I put the rest in ETFs
Mainly VUSA (NO VUAG), VWRP, EQSG, SSIT, HRI,
Then I bought some thematic ETFs, which are doing okay but, I've made my portfolio so complicated right now with a lot of overlap and what not.
So I'm looking to really try and condense my portfolio and also rebalance because SMT and Fundsmith are so high now as I have literally not touched them for years.
I'm toying with going back to the original funds I had for simplicity but I really want to employ a core satellite approach, and have written a short reason why as one of the posters previously stated to look at my portfolio and ask justify to my self why
70% Core 40% S+P VUAG 10% S+P Quality Factor UBC99 - Quality Factor compares well in terms of low correlation with small cap (as can be seen on MSCI website on risk/return/key exposures) 10% S+P Small Cap ETF - As mentioned above 10% Wisdom Tree USA Quality Div Growth - Quality Factor DGRG
or essentially the same thinking as above but global
70% Core 40% SWDA 10% iShares Core World - Quality Factor 10% World Small Cap ETF 10% Wisdom Tree World Quality Div Growth -GGRG
Core would be something like (not thought about it too deeply yet but generally jist)
10% Tech
10% Healthcare
10% Consumer Staples
but I'm more interested in getting my Core down and being on the right track and to avoid disaster!
Any advice, am I at least on the right idea in terms of thinking or am I totally out of my depth here. Really open to criticism but also keen to hear if what I've said is just totally whacky and not at all in line with smart investing because the way I was shred to pieces has really made me think I have no clue what I'm doing yet I see the results and so the cognitive dissonance is running strong, perhaps was I lucky to get to this point?
Kind Regards!

Tl;Dr:
My best friend got engaged to someone she knew in high school and hasn't talkd to in years who is long distance in just 5 months. I can't really tell her my honest opinions without it coming off as jealousy. How do I help her, or do I just let her do this?
The meaty version:
I met my best friend years ago. I used to do makeup effects for movies/TV, but when I started I took gigs for basic makeup for various things. She was a model, 19, just starting out. We got along way more than we should and hooked up after the shoot. We went out own ways and life took us in a weird loop back to each other, seven years later.
We met again at my new job. It was hard to stay in the business, so I had to make ends meet with Trader Joe's. That's where I saw her again, and we clicked like we did back then. It was just friends at first. We had both been out of bad relationships and I just wanted to better, so we hung out a lot as friends. After a year, she wanted more and I very hesitantly complied. She broke up with me about a year and a half later, and it broke my heart. I really tried to hate her and not talk to her, and it was easy because at that point she moved stores for other reasons, so I thought I'd never see her again. She understood, too, and left me alone, but checked in on me.
We somehow reconnected a couple months later. I don't even understand how, honestly. We just gravitate to each other. And we became close friends again, and have been for the last 5 or 6 years. She is my best friend, and I care about her a lot. We hang out all the time. If not physically, via text or mostly Discord. We do everything together when not at work.
It's been fine for years. I am demisexual, so dating is usually not a priority to me, but I have dated a bit. Usually friends, all know about my friendship with my Bestie, and nobody has really cared. She is bi and leans way more towards women, and it's pretty evident lol. She's told me I was the only guy she's dated as an adult and she's not usually interested in men. But I was struggling a while back with feeling those feelings for her and as I was going to come out to her, she told me she had been dating someone.
I know she had been to Florida a couple months back, and according to her and her timeline of events she met up with this guy she had a crush on in high school. They both liked each other back then, but both never acted on it and they lost contact. And apparently on this trip, they met and he just started his transition and they met up and things happened. She has gone to Florida twice, for only a week at a time, and around Balentines day he proposed. Five months later. She said she didn't tell me because she felt like she started to suspect I had feelings for her and she didn't want to hurt me, or lose me as a friend.
We were fine after. We had a big talk, I told her my feelings, and look. I get it. It's weird. But she's still my favorite person, so I was in. And being demi, you get feelings for friends and only friends, lol. Would I want more? Absolutely. Do I need it? Absolutely not. My love doesn't end at sexual interest or lack of. I did take some space, though, and we eventually got back into our usual groove.
The timing of everything is already weird, but then I could see little things. The guy got her a gift. I was there when she opened it, and she didnt like it. It was a shirt she'd never wear, and she complained about how he does that often. She complains about him a lot for different things. Usually I try to be devils advocate, I dont want to rag on the guy, but most of the time in my head I'm thinking he doesn't know her at all. How could they? They barely know each other. They've lived whole lives. Hell, he went from being a woman to a man and she didn't even know.
Meanwhile, we go out and I get her. I know her drink, I know her go to food order from any spot, we finish each other's sentences, our characters compliment the other. I'm not saying I want her. I'm just saying that her and this guy don't know what they're doing and they're moving way too fast. And I don't know how to tell her any of this. I'm not fighting for her, I'm just worried she's setting herself up for failure. What if she moves all the way over there?! Away from her family and friends and then this thing implodes. She's going to be alone and too proud to ask for help. Or, I could be wrong and they work.

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I posted recently about my potential rebalance and was shred to pieces so I'm going to elaborate on a few more details, most of the criticism was fair and I'm trying to alter my approach but I felt a few were not fair however I didn't provide enough details so here goes. 33 years old martial arts fighter and coach hoping work reduced hours by the time I am 45+
I started in around 2017, Contributions were:
2018 ISA 20K 2019 ISA 20K 2020 ISA 9,100 2021 IA 13,200 2022 ISA 5,500 2023 ISA 600 2024 ISA 2000 Total £68,400
Value £101,000
Portfolio is now 100k as of this morning, the reason for the small drop off between 2021 and 2023 without going in too to much details was just pure depression. I am self employed so I essentially just stopped earning as much during those years and this year I've decided to book my ideas up
I basically did no tinkering from 2017 to 2021
Fundsmith
SMT
7IAM Adventurous Fund
Baillie Gifford American
Vanguard Life Strat 100%
I foolishly tinkered in 2022, trying to switch from funds to etfs as I am with Hargreaves Lansdown
I kept Fundsmith SMT and sold the rest, I sold Baillie Gifford at a massive profit but then bought the equivalent in the IT USA version (bad move in hindsight) but my thinking was I liked the fund (which I still do) but I wanted the IT for less fees. I used some of the profits from the fund sale to buy EWI. Same situations as BGUSA just terrible timing and they are my only two red on the portfolio but the fund would of gone massively anyway so it doesn't really matter tbh.
I Put the rest in ETFs
Mainly VUSA (NO VUAG), VWRP, EQSG, SSIT, HRI,
Then I bought some thematic ETFs, which are doing okay but, I've made my portfolio so complicated right now with a lot of overlap and what not.
So I'm looking to really try and condense my portfolio and also rebalance because SMT and Fundsmith are so high now as I have literally not touched them for years.
I'm toying with going back to the original funds I had for simplicity but I really want to employ a core satellite approach, and have written a short reason why as one of the posters previously stated to look at my portfolio and ask justify to my self why
70% Core 40% S+P VUAG 10% S+P Quality Factor UBC99 - Quality Factor compares well in terms of low correlation with small cap (as can be seen on MSCI website on risk/return/key exposures) 10% S+P Small Cap ETF - As mentioned above 10% Wisdom Tree USA Quality Div Growth - Quality Factor DGRG
or essentially the same thinking as above but global
70% Core 40% SWDA 10% iShares Core World - Quality Factor 10% World Small Cap ETF 10% Wisdom Tree World Quality Div Growth -GGRG
Any advice, am I at least on the right idea in terms of thinking or am I totally out of my depth here. Core would be something like
10% Tech
10% Healthcare
10% Consumer Staples
but I'm more interested in getting my Core down and being on the right track and to avoid disaster!
Kind Regards!

"I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty."
Rev. 1:8
"I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. In order for someone to be the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end, he would have to know every little thing from eternity, and also every little thing from eternity. the future, including eternity, who can know such a thing but God? Of course, someone could say that it is, but that would be a lie and it would not be true and only God can claim: "I am the Alpha and the Omega the Beginning and the End" because:
God is omniscient
“Lord! You taste me and know when I sit down and when I stand up; You know my thoughts from afar; When I walk and when I rest, You are around me, and you see all my ways on my tongue, but You, Lord, see, You have already covered me behind and in front and placed Your hand on me. Your knowledge is strange to me, I cannot understand from Your spirit, and where would I flee from Your face, You are there. To descend into hell, to rise on the wings of the dawn, and to move to the end of the sea: And there your hand will lead me, and your right hand will hold me darkness hides me; but even the night is like light around me. Even the darkness will not be eclipsed by you, and the night is as bright as the day: darkness is like light, you created me in my mother's womb, that I am wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful, and not a single bone of mine hid from You, although I was woven in the depths of the earth, she saw my embryo all written, and the days were recorded, when they were not yet, how unfathomable are Your thoughts, God! How great are their numbers”
Psalm 139:1-17
In this psalm we see how many facts God knows about us, but that is only a small part because God has far more knowledge about us, but it is practically impossible to express it in words, and here we see that God knows when we sit down, when we stand up, what we do, how we work, he knows all our ways, all our words that we have spoken, he writes that he knows even our thoughts, we can further see that God knows the past, present and future, knows everything about us even before our birth, etc. This clearly indicates that we cannot do anything without God's knowledge, and this applies only to us humans, who are only a small part of God's omniscience.
Here are a few examples that are close to us from life, something that everyone can understand because not all people are scientists or academic citizens, there are far more "ordinary" people, especially throughout history, and the Bible is written in simple understandable language so that everyone can understand him.
And from this it is clearly seen and everyone can understand that God is omniscient.
"There is none holy like the Lord; for there is none other than Thee; and there is no rock like our God. Speak no more haughtily, and let it not come out of your haughty mouth. for the Lord is God who knows everything, and he executes the purposes."
1 Sam.2:2-3
Here, these verses confirm again that the Omniscient God had a practical lesson here, a friendly advice from God, and it applies to our life, it applies to what we do, how we do and what we say, because God knows everything he does to me, so if we persist, we refuse to live according to the will of God, it is our own fault and one day we will bear the consequences for it. Of course, God does not want to force us to do something, it is our choice, but it is great wisdom to listen to the advice that God gives us because God does not want us to perish so that all may live, and that is the meaning of the word "repentance" from 2 Peter.
"The Lord is not late with His promise, as some think He is late, but He is patient with us, because He does not want anyone to perish, but for all to come to repentance.
2 Peter 3:9
God is present everywhere
We said that God is not limited by earthly laws, nor can the essence of God be fathomed. creation, knowledge, giving, forgiveness, salvation, etc.
"But will God really live on earth? Here, the sky and the heavens above the heavens cannot contain You, let alone this home that I am building".
1 Kings 8:27
"For His eyes are turned to the ways of men and He sees all their steps. There is no darkness or shadow of death where those who do iniquity can hide."
Job 34:21-22
"Where would I go from Your spirit, and where would I flee from Your face? If I go to heaven, You are there. To go down to hell, there you are. To rise on the wings of the dawn, and move to the end of the sea: And there Your hand will lead me, and Your right hand will hold me. To say: Yes if the darkness hides me; but the night is also like light around me. Even the darkness will not be darkened by You, and the night is as bright as the day: darkness is like light. For You created what is in me, you formed me in my mother's womb. I praise You, that I am wonderfully made. Your works are wonderful, and my soul knows it well. Not a single bone of mine has hid from You, even though I was created in secret, woven in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw my embryo, in Your book it was all written, and the days were recorded, when there were none of them yet."
Ps. 139:7-16
"The eyes of the Lord are everywhere, seeing the bad and the good."
Proverbs 15:3
"Am I God from near, says the Lord, and am I not God from afar?" Can someone hide in a secret place so I don't see them? Speaks the Lord; do I not fill heaven and earth? Speaks the Lord.”
Jer. 23:23-24
"If they bury themselves in the lowest part of the earth, from there my hand will take them; and if they go up to heaven, I will take them down from there; And if they hide on the top of Carmel, I will find them and take them from there; and to hide before my eyes at the bottom of the sea, there I will command the serpent to bite them"
Amos 9:2-3
"And there is no substance unknown before Him, but everything is naked and exposed before the eyes of the One to whom we speak."
Hebrews 4:13
God is almighty
In the Bible, we find through different time periods and different manifestations of God's omnipotence, so we will mention some.
We see from the Bible that Abraham was 99 years old, but that he had no offspring, and on one occasion God appeared to Abraham and said:
"And when Abraham was ninety-nine years old, the Lord appeared to him and said to him: I am God Almighty, live according to my will, and be honest. And I will make a covenant between me and you, and I will greatly multiply you. And Abraham fell prostrate. And the Lord spoke to him again and said: From me here is my covenant with you that you will be the father of many nations."
Gen.17:1-4
We further see that Avram was not really sure about that, so he thought that he would never have children with his wife Sarah
"Then Abraham fell on his face and laughed, saying in his heart: When will a son be born to a man of a hundred years? And Sarah? Will a ninety-year-old woman give birth?"
Gen.17:17
And here we can see God's omnipotence, because he told Abraham something that was not very clear to the human mind, but it was very clear to God, that's why he said it to Abraham. We later see from the Bible that this promise was fulfilled, and it was fulfilled because God is omnipotent because He possesses all the knowledge and then it is no problem to fulfill the given promise. This or a similar promise can only be given by God because he is omnipotent, and let's imagine that now we humans make a promise about something that will happen in the future. That promise may happen by chance, or only one part of it may come true, or it may not happen at all, we don't know, but God is omniscient and omnipotent, and when he makes promises, he fulfills them.
We can see the fulfillment through the Bible, but here is just one verse.
"The tribe of Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham"
Mtt. 1:1
Next we have the event when the Lord sent Moses to Egypt to lead the people of Israel out of slavery.
Here we can see that God appears to Moses as God Almighty and not under some other name.
"God is still speaking to Moses and said to him: I am the Lord. And I appeared to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob by the name God Almighty, but by my own name, Lord, I would not be known to them."
Exod.6:2-3
The next example is from John's revelation, where we have a scene in heaven where four living beings praise the Almighty God, and in order for someone to be omnipotent, he must possess the power that sustains everything, and such power is possessed only by the Almighty God.
"And after this I heard a great voice of many people in heaven saying: Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power to our Lord;
Rev. 19:1
,, And I heard as the voice of many people, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of strong thunders, saying: Hallelujah! For the Lord God Almighty reigns."
Rev. 19:6
It says that the Lord God is glorified in heaven, who is omnipotent and who reigns, and in the Gospel of Luke we can see from where the Lord reigns.
"The Son of Man will sit at the right hand of the power of God."
Luke 22:69
Therefore, the Lord is on the right side of the power of God and reigns from there, it is written about this:
"...All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me."
Matt. 28:18
The Lord reigns because He is El Shaddai or God Almighty. God possesses infinite power or power that is eternal and has no end, and the part of the prayer "Our Father" reminds us of this.
,,...Because Your kingdom, power, and glory are yours forever. Amen"
Matt. 6:13
God can use this force at his discretion without any trouble or difficulty to create something as in the past when he created the earth and everything living on it or as he is creating today or as he will create in the future.
"Ah, Lord, Lord! Behold, You created the heavens and the earth with Your great power and Your uplifted arm; nothing is difficult for You."
Jer. 32:17
,,He made the earth by his power, established the world with his wisdom, and scattered the heavens with his understanding; When he utters his voice, the waters roar in the heavens, he raises steam from the ends of the earth, he sends lightnings with rain, and he brings forth the wind from his stables."
Jer. 10:12-13
Humans are very intelligent beings and practically they can create anything they want up to certain limits, but in creation we read that God used only a word and it was created, he did not need any material like we need to create something and there is another proof that God is almighty.
,, And God said: Let there be light. And there would be light"
Gen.1:3
"By the word of the Lord the heavens were created, and by the spirit of His mouth all their hosts"
Psalm 33:6
In the Gospel according to Matthew, we read about how only the word of God is needed to heal a person and the disease is defeated, God does not need to be
,,.And the captain answered and said: Lord! I am not worthy that you enter under my roof; but just say the word, and my servant will be healed"
Matt. 8:8
Although God with his power has unlimited possibilities, he will never use his power in such a way as to be in conflict with other attributes of God. We have an example in the confrontation of the Lord Jesus with the cross where Jesus could only say a word and angels would be there who could destroy the whole world and not just the enemies who nailed him to the cross.
"Or do you think that I cannot now beg my Father to send me more than twelve legions of angels?"
Mtt. 26:53
If it had happened that way, it would have contradicted the Father's will and the intention with which the Lord Jesus came to earth, and then Jesus would not have been able to say:
"I glorified You on earth; I've done the job you gave me to do"
John 17:4
Here we see that God uses his almighty power for his glory to fulfill God's plan because what he intended must be and nothing but the will of God can change that plan.
"The Lord of hosts swore, saying: Indeed, it will be as I have planned, and as I have planned it will be done."
Isaiah 14:24
God has planned in advance how the nations will receive the Word of God and it is written about in the Acts of the Apostles where it is said that the evangelizers will receive the power of the Holy Spirit and then practically no one will be able to stop them in that work until they fulfill the activities that God has planned.
"But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit descends on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria and there to the ends of the earth."
Acts 1:8
And finally, let's mention something that hasn't happened yet, but it will happen when the Almighty God will say the Word again and it will be what is written in the revelation and after that what we read in Isaiah.
"And out of His mouth came a sharp sword, to slay the Gentiles with it; and He will strike them down with a rod of iron; and He treads on the cauldron of wine and hearts and the wrath of God Almighty."
Rev. 19:15
"For, behold, I will create new heavens and a new earth,"
Isa. 65:17
Let us also mention that with this power the Lord Jesus defeated Satan in the desert
"Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil. And after fasting for forty days and forty nights, he finally got hungry. And the tempter approached Him and said: If You are the Son of God, say that these stones become bread. And He answered and said: It is written: Man does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God. Then the devil took Him to the holy city and placed Him on top of the church; So he said to him: If you are the Son of God, jump down, because it is written that he will command his angels for you, and he will take you in his hands, so that you do not trip over a stone with your foot. And Jesus said to him: But it is also written: Do not tempt the Lord your God. Again the devil took Him and took Him to a very high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of this world and their glory; And he said to him: I will give you all this if you fall down and worship me. Then Jesus said to him: Get away from me, Satan; because it is written: Worship the Lord your God and serve Him alone. Then the devil left Him, and behold, the angels approached and served Him."
Mtt. 4:1-11
Finally, here are a few more verses that confirm that God is almighty:
,, And God said to him: I am God Almighty; grow and multiply; a nation and many nations will become of you, and kings will come from your loins."
Gen.35:11
"For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, a great, mighty and terrible God, who does not look at who is who, nor does he accept gifts;"
Deut.10:17
,,And said, O LORD God of our fathers, art not thou God in heaven? and rulest not thou over all the kingdoms of the heathen? and in thine hand is there not power and might, so that none is able to withstand thee?"
2 Chron. 20:6
"From the north it comes like gold; but in God there is a more terrible glory. He is Almighty, we cannot reach Him; he is of great power, but with judgment and great justice he does not torment anyone"
Job 37:22-23
"Look, I am the Lord God of all flesh, is there anything difficult for me?"
Jer. 32:27
"And Jesus looked at them and said to them: With men this is impossible, but with God all things are possible."
Matt. 19:26
,,And Jesus looked at them and said: With men it is impossible, but not with God: for all things are possible with God."
Mark 10:27
"Because with God everything is possible that he says."
Luke 1:37
We have seen several examples of God's qualities that confirm the verses that the Lord Jesus gave John to write down. The only "Someone" who possesses the qualities that we have studied can say that he is the Almighty, and that is God, the Lord Jesus Christ.
"I am Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, says the Lord, Who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty."
Rev. 1:8
The verses we have studied should strengthen us in our faith because if God promises something, He surely fulfills it, and in this case it refers to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ in glory.
God reveals the fulfillment to us in 21 chapters where he says:
,, And he said to me: It is finished. I am Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End. I will give the thirsty from the spring of living water forever."
Rev. 21:6

okay so long story short..yesterday i went to a cafe and right beside me there was this very cute couple and i couldn't stop going "awww" uk they looked super cute together! I After a while I felt like going to washroom so i stood up and was just making my way to the café restroom but something got over me and all of a sudden i told the couple that they looked adorable together and i hoped that their relationship would last forever. The man gave me an ankward smile and thanked me but the woman gave me a very dirty look that said "stay away from my man". So i ran and then went to the washroom. I couldn't feeling bad about it all day long omg- after that i just left the café. Was i the a-hole here?

TW: maybe sorta neglect if you really squint
I am in a little bit of a pickle with my PEM. The best treatment is of course to avoid it altogether, which I've been doing to the greatest extent possible--I've reduced my activities, I pace myself, I try to rest in between heavy activities (ie. I plan my life around opportunities to sit down and rest), and I take breaks when I start to feel malaise-y.
However, when I do get PEM, which is unfortunately unavoidable, I can't take one or more days off to just lay in bed and rest. I'm still living with my mom and going to school, and (a) my mom very much will not let me, and (b) my school has begun to get strict with attendance, punishing people for being absent, and I'm already up to about 10 days absent out of the semester because of this. I'm still in the very early stages of diagnosis/medical help (I've dealt with this for about two years now, but only just seeing my doctor about it now), meaning I can't get a doctor's note or anything quite yet. No matter how much I should stay home and rest, I literally cannot.
I've been trying to get around this by napping during my commute when I feel it coming on, by bringing my hot pack and a giant bottle of Advil with me wherever I go, and going to bed early/sleeping in a half hour later, but it's just not really enough. I'm still relatively mild, where I'm not totally bedbound (if I wasn't actively forced to move despite feeling like death, I would however be housebound), but it still really impacts my life and I know I need to treat PEM as soon as I can to avoid getting worse.
So, my question to you is: alongside resting/staying in bed, what else do you do to treat your PEM? Is there anything you do to improve your rest that I could do (no increasing quantity, but at least quality)? I'm about one bad day away from getting a power wheelchair (or manual wheelchair with power assist, because I'm relatively lucky with how good mine is) to really prevent PEM, but I'm not totally sure how to go about asking my doctor--and what else I can do to treat it when it does come on.
Thanks :)

Hello from NYC! Finally had time for a vacation at end of June and am mad for cricket. So I’m obviously coming to Barbados. I am traveling solo and got my ticket for the Party Stand. I’ve heard it is a lot of fun, and you can move around and stand or sit general admission style. Anyone able to give me a bit of a better description?
Am really looking forward to it. Have hotel accommodations 10km or so away from the stadium and just am hoping the Windies prosper and make it. Would love to see Shamar taking a five-fer! Is the event much anticipated in Barbados? I’ll be going to pool play games here. No Windies, but India v Pakistan should be crazy atmosphere. Very excited to visit and thanks in advance for any information.

Doing a quick write-up after 2,134.8 hours of playtime. I play strictly solo and have parked AMS/Sunderers in my spare time since 2004. I’m alright at the game (just ~1.4 KDR solo), but am more so just a casual Planetmans enjoyer. I've also been gone for about a year, and only came back to “check on just how bad things were” [sic]. So, notwithstanding the fact that the current patch implementation is blatantly out of whack, I’d like to emphasize the following:
Point Defense and Reactive Armor, despite everything, have been huge improvements to PlanetSide 2’s core gameplay loop. It directly addresses one of PS2’s biggest issues: that Sunderers– intended to be a slow, predictable, avoidable mainstay for spawn logistics– have been a joke since launch. Ask any Outfit Wars or Lane Smasher how often they rely on Sunderers as their primary spawn option and I’m willing to bet they’ll laugh in your face. They’re slow, they’re frail, they’re wimpy, and they’re not even effective as spawn points. Between squad beacons, Logistics Specialist, routers, Anvils and good old Join Combat, Sunderers are by far the slowest, least reliable way to establish spawns.
This patch changed that, and much more. A moving Sunderer remains slow and non-threatening, but a parked Sunderer? It can actually defend itself, and it won’t die in the presence of a brisk wind. This is the first time I’ve ever seen Sunderers able to hold their ground in the presence of solo Harassers, Lightnings, MBTs, ESFs, Liberators, or wily C4 Light Assaults. We finally have actual, defensible spawns. Honestly, it kind of blows my mind that this is the first time it’s ever been able to do its freaking job. Why did it take so long?-- but I digress.
A Sunderer that cannot spontaneously die is a fight that cannot be prematurely ended by a single jackass Light Assault. A Sunderer that can kill you is a fight that IvI players can actually enjoy, a fight that can actually self-police itself against A2G farmers and anchored Prowlers perched two hexes away. And the best part? If you do defend the base, you don’t even have to spend time killing enemy Sunderers; they're slow as shit. You go around them, you start the cap at the next base, and they’re forced to respond.
So, for those short on patience, consider where we want the patch to take us:

• A balanced Sunderer should be slow. It’s still slow; always has been.
  
• A balanced Sunderer should be beefy, particularly when parked. Reactive Armor makes it tankier than ever before– at least, when an Engineer is present to handle attrition damage.
  
• A balanced Sunderer should be a glaring, ominous threat against solo attackers once deployed. Point Defense is exactly that. No more of that “deterrence” shit. You fuck around with a Sunderer all by yourself? You die.
  
• A balanced Sunderer should be a mainstay on the battlefield; and now, after God knows how many years it’s been, it finally is. It’s not just a fat router, repair bus or rearm pole on wheels, and it’s not just a cert piñata. It’s putting in work, and doing a damn fine job at it too.
  
• A balanced Sunderer should, despite all of the above, have a counter. And guess what? Even now, we have one. It’s called turning around and going the other way.
  

So yes, I completely understand that making Sunderers relevant does not justify also making Sunderers unstoppable-- yet ironically, stationary-- killing machines that wholly obsolete the Colossus, let alone everything else. Should 3-man Sunderers be the go-to most effective anti-armor platform in PS2? Probably not. But riddle me this: should zero nanite, single pilot ESFs be the go-to most effective A2G platform in PS2? Definitely not! So if a choice is to be made between coddling entitled flyboys for another decade or going a little overboard in the pursuit of making Sunderers meta for once, all I ask is that you be more willing to take the cure– warts and all.
This is the ideal Sunderer experience. Enjoy it while it lasts.

Life is so much different from when my (35m) SO (42f) and I were dating to now. We've been together for going on 3 years now, and sometimes I am a little disappointed where it is now.
When we met and were dating, her son (9) was still as much work as he is now but things were still fun. I understand that now that we have moved in together, there's more things on my plate, but jfc it's not what i thought.
There isn't a day that's gone by when he's with us where her son has not gotten in trouble and has not thrown a tantrum and done something rude or mean.
I try to take time and appreciate my SO, help her out, and take things off her shoulders, but she's still just always so tired and irritated because of him. At home, and on the weekends, her idea of having fun is now taking naps and everyone leaving her alone, and her enjoying her son being away with his dad for 1.5 days. There've been weekends where she woke up, had coffee, we did our team house cleaning, and then she takes an edible and is gone napping the entire rest of the day.
My intimacy attempts get shut down, my date ideas get shut down, my stay-home date ideas get shut down. The most I can get accepted is watching a movie together, and she just goes to sleep a quarter of the way in.
I think my happiness started declining not long after we moved in together a year ago.
I know it's a lot of blame to place on a kid, but jesus he's really taken a toll on our relationship. I don't think I can stand being around them anymore.

Hi all, hope everyone is well. All my friends have either gotten married, had kids, moved away, got new friendship groups etc, which is fine and I'm happy for them, but I feel sort of left behind.
Anyway, thus I am turning to the internet in the hopes of finding good friends.
I'm into loads of stuff, but my main passions would be ; - Cooking - Film - Music - Art - Motorcycles / Cars - Gardening (Indoor and outdoor) - Travel
I'm not going to pretend like I'm ultra interesting, but I would consider myself a decent and kind person. You don't have to have anything at all in common with me as far as interests go, but as long as you are half decent yourself then that's good enough for me.
If you wanted to know anything else or if you wanted to chat, whether you feel similar to me or not, then I'd love to. If not, then no worries and take care! :)
(Thank you for taking the time to read this too)

Would I be the AH for cutting my mum off?
Sorry but it's a long one I'm a 25 year old female and I don't know what to do in my situation with my mum, I've been going over this in my head and idk what to think I'm wondering if it's the right choice to do it or not so let me know
When I had my daughter my mum was(and still is) a very controlling, manipulative and narcissistic person. My partner and I told both of our parents that they have 1 chance with our daughter and if they messed up they'd be cut off from our lives ( both of us didn't have the best upbringing and had people in and out of our lives and we don't want that for our child)
Now onto the story
My partner (26M) and I have been together for 9 years and when my MIL (his mum) passed away we got a bit of money in an inheritance (not saying how much) now my mum wanted to borrow a big amount of money to buy a car and we said that she could but she'd have to pay it back as it was for our child (8F) future schooling fees or for whatever she needs for school in the future. Now my mum(47 yr old) said she'd take full responsibility for paying it in full as she borrowed it when she was married to my step dad (64M), now she's trying to back pedal and say that both her and my step dad are responsible for paying back the amount by going halfs in it but when we told her that she took it and said she'd be the one to pay it back as she borrowed it (from me and my partner) my mum than bought a car off FB market place anyway when mum split from my step dad she kicked him out of the house and kept the car for herself as it was in her name and her responsibility. She wouldn't let my step dad borrow the car at all as she said it was hers not "theirs" so she said no to him but now she's not even paying back the "loan" that we gave to buy said car she's paid a very small amount in 2 years not the point but still it was a lot of money that we gave her. About 18 months ago she told me she had sold the car for $1,800 cause of the transmission or something other and she couldn't afford to fix it so my mum sold the car and kept the money for herself (didn't give money to start paying my partner and I back) than took the money and moved to another state to be with her new boyfriend and his kids didn't tell anyone where she was for 1 month eventually she only told her kids (myself and 2 of my siblings) where she was cause we said we'd call the cops so mum told us. Anyway when I try to talk to her about paying us back she says that she is going to pay for half of the "loan" and my step dad would have to pay back the other half, mum only caused myself and my family distress when she said this now I'm trying to get her to understand that she needs to start paying more often and not just $20 every 4 months. I've tried to tell her that it's unacceptable and mum won't accept the fact that my partner and I aren't going to be pushovers and take her crap anymore so she threatened us with lawyers to try to get out of paying it. Mum is acting like an absolute child and not even having an adult conversation with me about the "loan" and acts like she has all the time in the world to pay it back but it's not the case it's been 2 years and we've received maybe $350 off her. I'm not one to post about my crap on social media but the pain and hurt that mum has cause not only me and my partner but our daughter over the years isn't on.
I'm trying to act like an adult in this situation but she's not making it easy on me so I've decided to cut her off from our lives (but kept her on messenger so she can tell me when she's paid) but hasn't been acting like the mum I grew up with. Mum is a different person and acting very selfish and I don't want that in my daughters life it's heartbreaking to see my mum act like this. Mum went on a rant calling me selfish, self-centred and stagnant in the way I'm acting towards her but I'm trying to be civil and be an adult about this whole thing but mums not making it easy.
So I'm wondering if I'm the AH for cutting her out of our lives and wanting nothing to do with her and her new "family"?

I 32 M like my coworker 35F - we have been colleagues for a couple of years but recently I developed feelings for her. We are good friends and have good rapport as well. After much deliberation I gathered the courage and did shoot my shot. Not surprisingly, I got turned down.
She said it's her and not me and that she isn't ready for a relationship (she got out of one 2 years ago) and has lot of baggage. She also said she cares about me and anyone will be lucky to have me.
Obviously, I think she was just softening the blow and for me if it's a No it's a No. I didn't push her and asked her to not justify her decision , she however continued talking about her past and how great guy I am blah blah blah.
I thanked her for her time and for not taking it negatively. I told her I will always care for her and my last act showing care for her would be to let her go. She said she would love to be friends and want me to be part of her life - basically friendzoned me. I said yes only because we work together, else I would have blocked her and moved on.
Now this is where the problem comes in - we work together and I have been so far (2-3 weeks) able to keep things professional and mentally feel.a bit better when I'm away for her and WFH. However the moment I see her (we see each other 3 times a week) it puts me.off my game and I spiral back into depression.
I have been trying to ignore her - work wise I don't, but I stopped initiating things like asking for coffee during break, lunch together etc. We had drinks the other day with others and I ignored her and she later asked me if everything is okay as I seemed silent. Well how can I be okay when I see her happy and see her that my feelings don't affect her anyway at all. That hurts me
I can't seem to move.on and I'm in depression and she is enjoying her life. How do I deal with this and get better. I can't change team or jobs so the situation is what it is.
TL DR Coworker rejected me and seems happy. I am in depression and if I feel better - I see her in the office and all my strength is lost and I become sad again knowing I'll never have her. How do I deal with her as changing job/team is not possible and I want to feel better.
Please help out your brother.

Summary of Domestic Violence lies
My gf of 1.5 yr whom I referred to as my wife has lied to police about Domestic violence and had me arrested multiple times and is now throwing my stuff out/ selling it/ destroying it / converting it.
There is no contact order and she filed a restraining order with hearing coming up soon
I had to take a plea deal to get out of jail so how do I sue her if I plead guilty to some fucking lies 😪😪😪
i want to sue her for ruining many incomes I had, emotional turmoil for having another man immediately in my home and bed and making me experience these events, and physical harm from having to live homeless with extreme fibromyalgia pain with no property or access to my finances. I have to prove that she is mentally unwell and how she caused equal if not more damage to the property. She cuts herself since 12 years old and then makes me look like the aggressor when I have to be worried about her and keep checking on her because she’s hurt her self before via pills or cuttingand hitting things in an emotional stupor to the point where her hands are numb and bruised. fetalpositioning in the bathroom for hours for example. She does that so often and puts me in a strange position to where I can’t feel comfortable with her being alone. We could be out doing laundry or grocery shopping and she’s so quick to jump out the car as if I’m threatening her and I’m put in a position where all I want is for her to just get in and we can go home and be calm. She’s fetal positioned in the snow, mid drive and laid there in the snow where any nearby residents can easily call 911 and I’d be getting arrested there for no reason as well. She incomplete called 911 at least 4 times during our relationship. She has zero initiative or perception of building a life. She’s quit jobs for no reason at all, missed days and blamed me for that. She would skip work whenever she felt like and even quit jobs for no reason like Walmart for example. June 20 - August 9 2023 When I went to Dominican Republic for an emergency trip to get help with my fibromyalgia, she felt the need to quit her job then as well with little regard for the financial situation, she had a guy come over then as well at least 3 times. She was going to strip clubs doing who knows what while I was away and aware that she was out to such venues. Upon my arrival, I was forced to lose my crypto investment valued at $4000.00 approximately to keep us from eviction which would now be worth about $15,000.00 and was once valued at over $70,000.00. She had little regard for the things I was doing to build a life. Clearly she was not on a progressing mindset with me. She spoke to me about having my children and marriage because we loved each other whole heartedly but then lies to the state of IN and states what we were simply dating or have dated when we had a very serious, intimate, sexual relationship that I 1000% was intent on creating a life for us. I should have seen the red flags 🚩. I have been taken for granted and my life and liberties are not to be infringed upon like this. She lied to police and now I have a record and have to refund $1000+ from my Etsy business. Not only that but she has all my property meaning I cannot sign into my email and do very basic things such as access to my debit card balance or logging into anything at all . She has access to my personal phone and laptop, and has probably tampered with critical evidence that I need to prove that I am not abusing that woman. She has destroyed some or all of my property by throwing it outside for anyone to steal or whether to destroy. I have at least $4000.00 worth of property in the house that she may or may not have destroyed. A no contact order does not give the “victim” the right to convert / destroy or sell my belongings. If she was so “terrified” of me, she would not have paid over $2000.00 to bail me out when she had me tased and arrested in January 2024. Only to cry wolf again 2 more times in April 2024. I need Justice and I need it Now. You think you’re on the same page as someone, building a life with them, and they disregard your entire life as if it means nothing. She has trauma from her past but putting me in jail and ruining my life was nowhere near necessary. I was saving my money to move into my own place when she got me arrested. I never intentionally hurt her, only restrained her or even self defense after taking more than 10 hits from her. Please help.
List of Suffering
Destruction of property (my lock box was broken into. I found my old ponytail from when I cut my hair in 2013 Junior year in Dominican Republic) Unable to change clothes after jail because I only have one outfit Needlessly tased (heart felt like it was going to stop) Unnecessary U-Haul arrangements Pain from having to sleep on hard, urine, soaked concrete benches while in Marion county booking (26 hours to get me processed on April 19, 2024) Being threatened by inmates (violent offender, said he bite my nose off randomly) About $80 unnecessarily spent on commissary in Marion county ADC jail Neglect of my health (no meds from outside jail, fibromyalgia, pain, 10 out of 10, no glasses for my astigmatism, unable to go to my urology appointment for my suspicious lump, my EBT has been canceled and I am unable to eat freely, not eating well in Marion county, adult detention center(jail) , can’t maintain my Maryland bridge implant (tooth) , hindrance of my disability claim with Atticus, homeless now with no property while in intense pain (was writhing in PAIN at ADC ) Extreme, L5, S1, spine and nerve pain midsection and up to neck and arms April 22 to April 23 if jail footage is available unsanitary conditions, reusing dirty towels, and clothes gave me rashes in Marion county adult detention center jail Stress of losing my valuable possessions Stress of having to focus, my limited energy to battle against Madeline Christine Fenwick, who is a loved, beloved part of me, legal or not. (not anymore obviously) Stress of life, ending life, changing false claims and unjust charges leading to extreme loss of wages, due to improper investigation Lies and slander on my name and record Time wasted Money, wasted, and lost Brain rotting in jail, more than once Disorientation of date and time while in Marion county adult detention center jail Drinking unsafe, water inside Marion county, adult detention center jail Eating and forcing myself to eat disgusting tasteless food in Marion county adult detention center jail Neck pain from uncomfortable sleeping conditions in Marion county adult detention center jail Having to eat other peoples food scraps, inviting unknown bacteria into my body in Marion county, adult detention center jail because they don’t feed you enough Humiliation from having to shower or use bathroom and presence of approximately 60+ men Having to make makeshift tools, such as a basic pen No access to basic Internet Life uprooted for no justifiable reason Extreme boredom, anxiety and resentment, for no justifiable reason well in Marion county, adult detention center jail No money or help from the outside(my only contact was Madeline whom I cannot contact due to unjust NCO) no access to my property or belongings or home via unlawful protection order Cannot take care of my hair inside Marion county Adult Detention Center, jail Having to hoard food and unsafe temperatures only to still go hungry in Marion county, adult detention center jail Had a fight in jail and scraped my elbow pretty bad inviting who knows if the carpet in there has ever been cleaned thoroughly Mouth and oral sanitation. Difficult to maintain in Marion county adult detention center jail No access to my personal business with income hindered unjustly by Madeline Christine Fenwick, while in Marion county adult detention center jail and afterword as I am homeless now Very little sleep well in Marion county adult detention center jail Having to hand wash clothes that is three times my size as that is what I was given in Marion county Adult Detention Center, jail Another man’s bodily fluids on my bed (she already has someone else in my home from her new job)

I just read an article about chronic disease or illness fakers. I am thoroughly disgusted that even more people are more ignorant than I thought possible beyond my immediate family.
Right before the age of 40 I passed out waiting for a table at a nice restaurant, slowly drinking a beer. Luckily I had not been a heavy, medium, or even light drinker for almost 10 years. All I really had physically wrong with me at that time was testosterone therapy, come shoulder surgeries, and chronic,sometimes horrible pain. Oh, I was also told I had a great, really great bronze California tan.
After that incident right before age 40 I had every test I could have done to explain what happened. Witnesses said, im 6'3 195+ lbs, I just turned white, became instantly soaking wet, and fell straight backwards like a 2x4.
After all the tests were completed I discovered my Iron(its really called ferratin) was at a level of 3,900 (normal safe levels are 50 to 200 roughly. I was given a genetic test for hemachromatosis, which is pretty common, and not a super big deal when treated early. In fact, anyone with hemachromatosis cam firmly state that we people,all people, black, while, whatever are related. Black people have a genetic disease called sickle cell disease. If not treated and allowed to run rampart sickle cell turns into hemachromatosis. Nuff said.
The main treatment for hemachromatosis is bloodletting, the amount of blood you need to get out of your body and how much at a time and how often is usually dictated by the level of your ferritin in your blood at time of diagnosis. Most people, fortunately, get detected and treated by 700 to 1500 level of Ferratin. The body is basically killing itself, "rusting away" to say at levels if 1,000 plus of ferritin.
Now five leads later, testosterone implants every 3 months or so, bloodletting (phlebotomy) treatment 4 times a year now ( I started giving over 550 grams of blood 2 times a week for 4 months, and then once a week 4 or 5 months, and so on and on. I have had a pretty extensive cervical neck surgery, cages, holes drilled in arthritic areas and nerve openings opened up, both hips totally replaced, a knee replacement on left knee coming up soon, always a pain in my ass,, literally,, lol. There's other things, I have to get liver biopsies every year, heart tests performed every year, no alcohol, low Vtamin C diet, no more liver and onions, and reduced use of cast iron and other high iron cooking and eating utensils.
Thing is,, if you see me just see me, you'll see a big, strong, agile, balanced man. But what you dont see is how hard it is for me to just get up and drink a cup of coffee some mornings, or how bad both legs ache, hurt, throb, and sometimes especially feel totally exhausted 2 hours after I wake up. Or a serious neck, nerve issue that I just keep massaging and turning my head.
I don't take opiates, except after surgeries, I can't take much Tylenol or ibuprofen and related. Mostly ice pack/machine, heat pads, hot hot bath soaks, stretching (carefully), keeping moving, and pushing myself everyday or at least 6 days a week harder than the day before.
I have half siblings, 17+ years older than me, with bone spurs, maybe knee replacement, obesity related issues, lack of movement/ exercise issues, and on and on.
I'd happily trade places with them, but keep my age, and very few people I imagine get what I'm about to say next . I decided after the first 6 months of diagnosis I was going to "break and fall apart before I rusted and rotted away".
Do you get that? Understand ? I am happy, no I get exited and thrilled inside when I see people with obvious issues, obesity, laziness, bad diet, drinking, etc struggle, not do, or unwilling to do things they should do, much less want to do to make this life more,, make this life better for themselves. I say F' u all those ignorant dumb lazy scared people that say things, think things, act differently when they interact with you, not knowing you closely and really knowing you, when they see this person that looks, moves, and does lots of physical things better than they can,, and they think your faking or putting on or playing poor pity party me,,, no screw you guys,, try, literally walking 10,000 or more steps in my shoes each day and more, yet sometimes not able to even crawl or move for 2 or 3 hours after 4 or 5 or less some days just living life.
Anyone else have similar stories ? Or experiences? I still can't get over the fact that had a been a normal,, or whatever you call a person who drinks a six pack a week, alcoholic drinker I would definitely for sure have had cirrhosis or liver cancer by now for sure and probably be dead. Anyway,, let me know thanks.
P

I dont want to give a ling drawn out sob story. For christmas, i bought my 8 year old son and I his 1st concert tickets to see his favorite artist. The concert is this tuesday 5/21 and is 3 hours away. I was allowing him to miss school the next day. Its become a "big thing" and its all he has been talking about. He is super excited and this mom is freaking out. I unexpectedly had some car issues last week which cost me over $500. Now im beyond short of pulling through with $$ for gas to get us there and back along with a hotel to spend the night. I dont want to let my little man down. Any help would be super appreciated.
Paypal.me/kris3783

Hi, my husband cheated on me, going on 3 years ago now and I stayed. I would like to preface this with letting everyone know I didn’t find anything bad. I stopped going through his phone a long long time ago. We have each other’s passwords and we have an open device rule which I just don’t often feel the need to use anymore. For some reason I had a feeling I should check. I found a conversation that he had a couple weeks ago where he confessed his affair to someone and honestly it helped confirm my decision to stay. He said he would rather die than hurt me like that again. He talked about how he almost lost me and how he wouldn’t know what to do if he had. He said it was the biggest mistake of his life. I read through lines and lines of all of the things we’ve built together and been through. I know he was thinking about it because I had brought it up around that time. I have stayed but I am still processing it piece by piece. I honestly feel at peace in my marriage right now, I love him and I’m glad staying has worked for us. (Note: staying is NOT the right decision for everyone, please do not take this as a sign to stay in a continuous toxic situation. We have done therapy, moved away for a fresh start, and basically reset our entire lives to work through this. If you are in a position where it is safe and you are thinking about staying, it can work if your partner works with you. Please don’t respond if you are going to be mean, I just really wanted a safe outlet where I could share this because I am experiencing many big emotions right now.)

Hi guys , i am new to this community and there is something that has been troubling me for so long.
I am from india and i am 19F . I struggled so much thinking about this. i desperately need your help.
sooo there is a guy that i had a crush on from 4th grade. then the feelings i had for him grew even stronger from eighth grade onwards till now. It entirely became unrequited by 12th grade. i tried avoiding him but i wasn't able to . he came to school by his bicycle and i would often get the chance to see him cycling, and god he is soo handsome doing that. he is tall, pale, wears glasses, has beautiful black eyes, his eyebrows are bushy .he has long , beautiful fingers and great hair too.
whenever classes end i would always look for him in the subtle ways. he was shy and he maintained a low profile at school. not really active on social media either. BUT
he never looked at me the way i looked at him . he looked away whenever he noticed that i saw him cycling his way home. gave me mixed signs. never ever talked to me and i didn't either. i last saw him at my high school graduation . i did not look back at him.
our school was very conservative and so are our parents. girls aren't supposed to talk with boys alone at all .the reason i ask for the internet to help is simply that MY parents don't like that.
the minute they know that i have feelings for a boy they will kill me. it is not really comfortable to talk about that either to them at all. my mom told me that these feelings are normal but you will have to avoid them at all costs. it is hard to talk to indian parents about love. they hate it when kids go against their rules regarding love or marriage. well in my family love marriage is a one way ticket to heaven. parents will disown you for life. I am talking about strict parents like mine here. i really wish there was someone to talk about this.
i realized that it was limerence. i still have thoughts, dreams about him quite often. it hurts my feelings that he didn't realize my feelings. it hurts that he may have looked down on me. it hurts that he ignored me and that i felt insecure with him.
even though i have feelings for him, i want to move on and heal . i want to unlove him . idek what to do anymore. i feel like crying. i feel as if it is unhealthy for me to obsess over someone who didn't even care about my existence. i really want to let go of him , to actually let go of this guy whom i was not with physically or mentally.
the question is: is it the right thing to let him go? will i ever meet someone who will love me back? will I be able to love someone even more than my crush?
thx for reading stay safe out there loves bye
tl;dr: this is all about my unrequited love that needs help.