In loving memory quotes for tattoos

Preying Mantis: Ambushing Creeps Online

2018.03.08 11:23 monathemantis Preying Mantis: Ambushing Creeps Online

The hunted becomes the hunter! Or is it the other way around...? This is the place to share your counter-creeping experiences, turning their creepy PMs right against them! -In loving memory of Mona the Mantis.-
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2015.02.27 22:42 apotero Support for those with nasty, cruel, toxic, abusive MILs & moms

A place to post about your MIL or Mother who is just the *worst*. Come for support, come for advice, or just to vent and get it all out. That's what we're here for. Discussion often contains adult themes and language.
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2015.12.25 04:47 PM_ME_URGOT_HENTAI TRAITOR!

Star Wars Episode VII: TR-8R worship. He died for our spins.
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2024.05.20 02:23 NotSoSlimShady1001 The Spirit of a Predator - Chapter 25: An Open Door

[ First / Previous ]
Memory Transcription Subject: Hileen, Krakotl Fugitive Recovery Agent
Date [standardized human time]: November 28th, 2136
It'd been a while since I sat in Marlig's office for a talk face-to-face. Given the agency's secluded location at the edge of the downtown region, it was a chore to drop by when it wasn't for business, but I'd deemed the matter at hand to be worth my time.
I passed by Nampi at her desk on my way to the door and she gave me a coy glare as I carried on. Trying to ignore her risible ear waggle, I turned the corner to the door with my boss’s name painted on the glass panel where I could hear the frantic crumpling of paper.
Quietly, I entered Marlig's office without prompt as I knew he hated to be spooked by knocking. My mentor was surprisingly spry for a bird at his age, sorting through papers with one wing and an eye while using his talons with the other to set away the papers he had splayed out.
“Hileen!” he chirped. “Glad you could make it in today. I was just finishing up my paperwork. Take a seat.”
It was always nice to hear him drop the professional motif for a more grandfatherly attitude when speaking in person. I did as he suggested and took a seat while he grumbled to himself over the sorting. My eye caught a few of the old contracts he was rifling through and saw that some dated back to his days as an agent.
Eventually, he left some sitting out as he sequestered the rest back into their files, sorted by a dichotomy that only he and Nampi could comprehend fully. He motioned with a wing for me to peruse and I turned the first one to face me to find it was my first contract, signed by me in a sloppy fashion. “This takes me back a couple of years.”
“Slick bastard thought he could get away on a forklift but you showed him! Certainly more exciting than my first day!”
“Mm-hmm. And it was when I nearly got impaled that you had the idea to commission all of us utility vests.”
He chuckled, “I really should’ve done so sooner. Cuts and scratches were already a risk, but a forklift was a new one!”
I flipped through the pages of each report, finding that Marlig's notes were filled with praises of my work. There were highs and lows, but I was flattered to find that the grizzled krakotl held my performance in such high regard.
Flawless interception!” read one footnote about me catching a runner. “Couldn't have done it better myself!
Marlig waited patiently as I browsed quickly through each page, realizing more and more how the notes also marked improvements in my work. How I found it easier to talk down a rowdy client, or apprehend them in the case that they were beyond helping on my part. Flowery language plastered most pages with him fawning over my work as a doting father would to his prodigal child.
The trend took a sharp turn as the notes became fewer and more critical the closer the dates reached to the present. I brushed the others aside with a wing to peruse the final paper. “And this…”
“Is Tac. Your latest contract. The most recent in a line of declining performance since the interview. This has become a pattern, Hileen, and its consequences are beginning to reach beyond yourself. Paji and Vesek resigned recently for personal reasons, which leaves us even less hands on deck than before. That's four people to cover the entire municipal region, and maybe even beyond, should needs arise. Three, if we include this little probation I have you on.”
“What was I supposed to do? Marlig, these ‘jobs’ you've got us working on overstep the contracts we were signed on with. Our job is to make sure people obey their court-mandated duties, not drag them off to the facilities ourselves!”
“... So the trip we took to the facilities did bother you.”
A sigh clicked in my throat as he reminded me. “Is that what happens to the people we take in, Marlig? Is that what would've happened to your wife?”
His feathers ruffled.
“That's what happens to those who are too dangerous to the general public to be left roaming free. Not everyone we deal with winds up there, but everyone can be subject to it. Miskela sued for her exoneration and proved in court that she was not diseased. I brought you there to show you how it helps the people, but I see now that it was a mistake. I understand why you were so perturbed, really, but it's how things have been for centuries. It's how we've protected ourselves from the dangers out there.”
“You were willing to let Barsul be interned there, too.”
Marlig flinched and sighed as he swept the papers towards himself once I'd signaled I was done. He turned one eye to me while he sorted them.
“There's no room for favoritism, girl. I negotiated for him to be allowed to walk free, and look where that got me. That boy - your neighbor - suffered the consequences of my nepotism. So too would the girl, had nobody intervened.”
“Like Richard.”
“The human, yes. Or you. Or the police. Where does this sudden obsession with humans come from, anyway? I get notifications of you talking about the acceptance of them all the time on forums.”
“Does it even need explaining?”
“Well, I guess not, no, but it's certainly an about-face from the way you used to talk about them with me beforehand.”
“People can change, for better or worse. Which one I fall under remains to be seen.”
Marlig stroked at the plumage on his neck as he finished his sorting. “I hope it's the former, for your sake. Was there any reason you came to talk, or were you just checking that I hadn't gone senile?”
“Well, I was hoping to borrow your secretary for the evening.”
He perked up while his eyes narrowed and he laced his fingers together with curiosity. “You… want to spend an evening with Nampi?”
“It's not what you're insinuating, but yes.”
“I was insinuating nothing,” he warbled coyly. “Go ahead and take her, and make sure to split the bill at dinner.”
“Pain-in-the-ass geezer. I'll keep in touch if your friend causes any more trouble.”
“Keep in touch regardless. Miskela and I get lonely in our old age,” he called back. “Take care.”
I stepped out into the hallway and turned toward the desk where I could hear the secretary's claws tapping furtively at her keyboard. Nampi sat silently with her ears and tail in a relaxed position that implied a bored demeanor. There was barely any response as I stood before her, waiting politely for her acknowledgment that never came.
Hesitantly, I cleared my throat.
An ear raised in acknowledgement, but her focus remained on the screen of her computer. “Mhm?”
“Do you…?”
Her ear rotated toward me, though she still maintained a passive attitude as she continued to glare mindlessly at the monitor.
“Are you free this evening?”
“Well, I'm quite booked, I believe. Why do you ask?”
I was surprised at her curt, dry tone. She hadn't spoken with me like this since we first got to know one another.
“Well,” I started. “I realized something. Every time we went out, whether it was clubbing, or dinner, or even walking around the parks, you always footed the bill. And so…”
Slowly, her other ear perked up and I saw her keystrokes slow down as she listened in.
“I wanted to return the favor?”
Her lips smacked as she opened her mouth, though paused before she spoke. “How could you possibly do that?”
“With a little gesture of friendship.”
Nampi's horizontal pupil turned up toward me and her tail twitched.
I continued, “So that belt you're wearing? It's the same belt you've worn since we first met. And I know you're the pragmatic type who'd never spend a credit more than she needs to, except for all the times you do"- her ears twitched in indignance -"I wanted to see about getting you a little something… extra?”
Her paws raised from the keyboard and she leaned in, resting her snout on her palms. “Go on.”
The bubbly venlil's tail sold out her collected facade as it twitched with anticipation. She was cornered and she didn't even know it yet.
“Well, I found just the place on the other side of town where we can start. It's a place almost as rich and indulgent as yourself.”
“The Platinum Paw? I mean3”
Her ears folded back in embarrassment as she cracked. She wasn't cut out for acting anyway.
“So that's what it's called! Jeez, I couldn't for the life of me figure out what it was called. Now what do you say? We go over there and find you something nice—”
I hadn’t even finished my thought before Nampi had grabbed her bag and was out the door, giving me a playful tail flick that said come and get me.

The place I suggested was in a shopping center on the opposite side of town, though easily accessible because of its proximity to the transport rails. Nampi had insisted on grabbing something to eat beforehand and so now gleefully bit into a bundle of stalks that had been “grilled” as explained from the food truck we'd stopped at.
Her tail flicked back and forth with her usual enthusiasm as we entered the massive complex of stores. The roofless plan allowed the natural, orange sun to flood the upper levels while artificial lighting illuminated the ground level wherever the light couldn't reach.
The place was built in the last decade by the previous City Magister in a bid for popularity, though ultimately for naught as he would lose the vote following a scandal involving an iftali priestess and a carved bar of soap. I had to say that despite being sick in the head, he sure had a great sense of decor.
Nampi snacked away, joining me in admiring the scenery as we continued to the place I’d planned out for us. Aimless chatter all melded together into a single, thrumming murmur as pedestrians navigated the many levels and stores offered in the place.
A troupe of children passed by us, held in a chain of tails and arms as they were escorted by a pair of venlil who I assumed were students and teachers on a school trip. I caught a whiff of a sweet, aromatic breeze and found it to come from a perfume shop on the same level as us; naturally, venlil were not to be found inside.
We passed a fountain where a couple sat on the edge, their tails twined together as they giggled and flirted. I turned and caught Nampi watching them as well, though she awkwardly returned to sucking the remains of her meal from her claws when we made eye contact. Her ears lifted when I raised a wing to signal to the store we were going to stop at first.
Platinum Paw, The Greatest Fashion Emporium For Everyone!
The title alone was painfully cliche, taken to the tenth power by the brightly lit store taking up three department slots. Despite the flashy exterior, though, it was the best place to shop for belts, brooches, and bracelets alike. Customers who looked like they earned my yearly salary in a week browsed the higher end brands while I brought my friend to the section I wanted to show her.
Her ears were held up as we stood together next to a shelf chock full of fashionable bags and bandoliers of every variety.
“Pick one,” I told her.
Nampi's ears shot to a straight pose in surprise, “Any?”
“Within reason. I've got a few extra credits to blow and I know nobody better to spend it on.”
With an inviting headtilt, I let Nampi peruse the shelves at her leisure. Her lips pursed together and her tail flicked with glee as she fingered at every piece that caught her eye. I chuckled at her outburst of enthusiasm while turning to find my own items to gloss over.
A breeze from outside nipped at my beak while I considered what I’d like to purchase. The place dripped with an atmosphere of faux hospitality, from the bright blue-stained floorboards to the radio prattling off advertisements in a sickeningly sweet tone to the faint, fruity aroma of scented cleaner. It was oppressive as only a fissan-owned company could be to the senses.
What I wouldn’t pay to see how a human would fare in such an environment.
I knew they were social creatures at least, but I had no doubt that the predatory senses of a human, so honed to hunting, would get overstimulated in this center of gaudy indulgence. Knowing I was something of a predator myself made me sympathize provided that even I had to squint to keep the pale lights inside from searing my eyes. I could only imagine how the arboreal eyes of a Terran would fare. I was so lost in thought imagining how lost the Terrans would be that I could almost ignore the obnoxious giggling and metallic rattling coming from behind me.
Risking a peek at the source, into my sight came a pair of venlil, one a male carrying a pair of bags as well as a couple more strapped to his belt. The bored expression in his eyes was not one of a man who was in high spirits. The other venlil was a woman who was the source of the noise.
Her mottled gray pelt was accented by a tasteful belt design, free of almost any practical functions but not flashy or excessive in garnishment either. At least, that’s what I would say, were it not for the braid of beads that dangled on the belt, jingling with each bounce of the lively woman’s stride. It was clear that such a gaudy accessory was intended to draw attention to her, though why was a mystery. Certainly, the shiny braids seemed designed as decoration first and practical second.
She turned about and I faced back to my browsing before she could catch me staring. Nampi was nowhere in sight, though I figured she was somewhere behind the shelf, sifting through every accessory on the section I'd suggested.
Clink.
Something pelted to my immediate right. I tilted my head to spot a tree nut shell clattering to the floor. Without being able to guess where it came from, I had to wonder what could've launched it over this way. Even with my keen eyesight, nobody in the crowd seemed to be a suspect.
Clink.
Another shell pelted my vicinity, ricocheting off of the floor and hitting the shelf I was standing next to. I ruffled my feathers in frustration - clearly, someone was trying to get my attention, though I couldn't make out who it was. Out of the corner of my vision, the woman from before eyed me curiously as I looked about, though I wasn't interested in engaging with her.
Thwack.
One more shell came flying and, unfortunately, the aim on this one was true, nailing me on the beak. Irritated, I stormed out of the store to find the source of the instigator. I scanned over the bodies to find anyone who could've been responsible for this indignity, eventually concluding that it came from the dining area across the walkway.
Whoever was responsible was in for an earful and I was already structuring which of the offender's family members would be acceptable as fodder for stray words. As I approached, I found the tables were mostly empty save for one, which made my heart begin to drop as I met eyes with the only occupant. Suddenly, I was much less inclined to hurl insults.
“Oh, hi there!” Qitel called out in a sickly sweet tone. “Come, take a seat! We have much to discuss!”
The Exterminator clutched a bag of tree nuts in his claws, a pile of discarded shells already gathered on the table next to him. He grabbed another as I approached, effortlessly prying the shell in half between two claws and tossed the contents into his mouth. “Good protein, these,” he commented as I sat down.
“Must be for that good arm you've got there,” I mumbled. I caught sight of a couple of bags beneath his chair, seemingly from one of the tech stores contained within the center.
“Bah, it's guesswork. So how are you? I haven't heard from you since we worked together!”
“I was just spending time with a friend, shopping and enjoying my time off.”
“Your time off? Oh, am I interrupting something?”
His snide tone irked me, though now wasn’t the time for interjections. “You are, Qitel,” I replied with no shortage of vitriol in my tone. “But I see no harm in chatting for a bit.”
“Good, because I have some merchandise”- he reached into his belt pocket and deposited a couple of items onto the table -“and you’re just the person to look into it, human sympathizer.”
I drew a terse breath in shock, but my worries were quelled when I considered that if Qitel had the power to do anything about it, he would’ve done so instead of approaching me so discreetly. A glance down at the item on the table showed that he was presenting what looked to be a tracker as well as a personal drive. “Found in the garbage,” he told me.
“The guild resorts to dumpster diving when they already have such a bloated budget now?”
“No, featherbrain, I have decided to keep this for myself. These items were found together, sealed in a plastic pouch, and placed in a garbage bin. The city has bans against electronics being placed into public bins, and so I was curious why this wound up in there. Managed to get my coworker, a techie, to crack it open and…”
Qitel reached into his belt again, glowering at me with the same condescending gaze he’d given me when I first saw his face. He seemed to revel in digging for the item as slowly as possible to waste my time. Finally, he found whatever he was looking for and revealed it as a printed piece of paper, folded into eighths. The snobby yotul threw the unfurled paper on the table and rolled it toward me.
I craned my neck to look at the parchment, though I was immediately perplexed by the text on it; it appeared to be some sort of form, going by the boxes with words on the inside, followed by blank lines. “Found on the drive, here,” Qitel told me, jabbing a claw to the storage. “Translator shows it as Terran writing.”
Drawing my holopad from my satchel, I held it over the paper with the translator to get an understanding. Surely enough, the language on it came up positive as a variant of Terran writing and I was affirmed in it being a form of some sort based on the wording of the text. The boxes seemed like an odd sort of job application, asking for the typical name, contacts, and prior work experiences, but quickly took a strange turn as it began asking for where their home on Earth was prior to arrival, what family they had on Venlil Prime if any, and where they worked, implying that they were seeking individuals who were already employed.
I knew little about human employment methods, but I didn’t imagine that sourcing individuals from other jobs was the most efficient way to gain a workforce. Terran service industries already dotted the planet while many humans also found work in local environments. So what was the angle that the creator of this application was going for?
Most concerningly was that the paper had no insignia, identifying marks, or noted address to return the form to. “And where did you find it again?”
“In the garbage, alongside this intact tracker that was activated at the time of recovery. Y’know, when I was dumpster diving. Text on the document showed it was addressed to one ‘Choctaw Nexus’.”
“A pseudonym of some sort?”
“Clearly. Short sorting through the archives shows the first name traces back to the group out east - perhaps you've heard about them. How the name and the items we have here are connected is beyond my understanding, but-”
“Well, this has been an absolutely riveting discussion about your collection of trash, Qitel,” I told him as I stood up to leave. “But this really sounds like an issue to be resolved by your fellow guildsmen.”
The sound of another shell splitting rang out as I turned away.
“I'm not through talking with you, predator.”
The sting as a piece nailed me in the back of the head prompted me to whirl back around, sticking my beak in the insolent yotul's snout. “Perhaps you've forgotten, little man,” I cooed in an equally bittersweet tone to the one he gave me before. “The krakotl never had a problem with settling issues the old-fashioned way before the interview. Try me and find out why I'm in the line of work I am.”
“Oh, we wouldn't want that in such a"- he waved his paw to a group of passersby who had stopped to gawk at my display -”public forum. Please, contain yourself.”
I had to force the feathers on my back to settle and I raised my head away from him. “What else is it you wanted, then?”
“Well, I'd appreciate if you took this merchandise off my paws,” he told me as he brushed the electronics and printout toward me.
“Why would I do that?”
“Because you're closer to the humans than I'd ever care to be, and may be able to find out who this Choctaw Nexus is. Something about the package just feels… off. And I know when to trust my feelings. Besides, we both know that you know where Tac is, don't we?”
“I don't-”
“We have videographic evidence that you conspired with a human - of the aforementioned squatters, no less - and let the kid escape. You're not as sneaky as you think, and if we find this ‘Choctaw Nexus’ turns out to be a bad actor that can be traced back to them - and by extension, you - well, there’d be no talking down my boss from having you dealt with. By helping me find out who this is, you may yet be able to clear your name of any wrongdoing.”
I clenched my beak tightly to maintain a straight face. Qitel stood up with a flourish and discarded the bag he was carrying in a bin.
“See, the krakotl were never special for using threats and bullying to get results. It's because you were good at killing predators,” he jeered. “Now, if you don't mind, this primitive has appointments to attend to… old lady who got trampled courtesy of the humans and all. You stay out of trouble, Hileen, and stay in touch.”
The self-assured marsupial melded into the crowd in a matter of seconds, leaving me with a table containing dumpster trophies and a pile of shells. Reluctantly, I swept the shells into my wing and dumped them into the bin before gathering the other two items he'd left me and stuffing them into my bag. I'd been gone from Nampi long enough and she would notice my absence before long.
Crossing the walkway again, I could spot from where I stood that Nampi was indeed still in the Platinum Paw. I approached, and soon I found that while she didn't seem to have noticed me stepping away, she was definitely in a soured mood based on the sagging of her ears and tail. With my talons clacking on the floorboards, I hustled to her side and her mood chippered up ever so slightly as she heard me approach.
I chimed in, “Find anything?”
“Everything. I want everything, Red, and I can't decide on what I want. They all just look so great!”
From behind, a voice called out, “Nampi!”
We both jumped at the exclamation and turned about to spot the venlil lady I'd seen before spring from behind the shelf. The man poked his head from behind the shelf too, though less enthusiastically and with yet another bag in his clutches. My friend's eyes widened in surprise with her tail and ears perking up in kind. With a light in her eyes, she exclaimed, “Nalek!”
The two embraced with shrill squeals and laughter as Nalek's accompaniment and I traded awkward glances.
“It's been too long!”
“You never stayed in contact!”
The women exchanged giddy greetings and the pompous stranger turned to me, leering over me as though she was sizing me up.
“Who's your friend here?”
“Oh she's actually my-...”
Nampi paused for a moment, looking back to me.
“Yeah, she's a friend.”
“A friend,” Nalek repeated while her eyes flicked between Nampi and I. “Right.”
Somehow, I get the impression that that was judgemental.
“I'm Hileen, by the way,” I chirped, “if names are to be exchanged.”
“Hileen, that's a lovely name! And such plumage to match, it's a wonder you aren't swarmed by suitors!”
Internally, I groaned at the notion. The idea of being approached by someone to state their interest in me made me queasy, to say the least. Thankfully, I never had that issue growing up as most of the other drakes in school were too busy chasing girls who didn't have a lousy pigmentation mutation such as myself.
“I'm flattered,” I told Nalek before turning to the man whose name had yet to be introduced. “May we get your name?”
“Sask.”
His response was succinct and tonally flat, though there was a brief silence as I expected him to elaborate. Nalek's beads jingled as she lashed him on the calf with her tail.
“I'm Sask, Nalek's fiancée,” he added, throwing her a look to see if she was satisfied.
Nampi gasped with her paws over her snout. “Fiancée! Nalek, you're getting married and you never even told me!”
“Well, I felt a little guilty since it technically broke our pact we made when we were pups. You remember that?”
“Of course! Why wouldn’t I? ‘Let she who bonds through betrothal first be cast out unto the world for all to admonish her!’
Sask and I both gave inquisitive expressions. “You two spoke like that as pups?” Sask asked.
“Well, I'm paraphrasing,” Nampi admitted with a playful ear waggle. “But you get the gist.”
“Indeed, they do, sweet Nampi. Now, may I ask what you're doing bringing your avian friend here into this store on this fine claw?”
“Oh, no no, she's the one treating me! Isn't that right, Red?”
I saw her tail twitch and was sure it took restraint not to tickle my neck with it as we stood before her old friend.
“She's been a good friend,” I explained. “So I wanted to reverse the roles for once and treat her to something myself.”
Nampi skipped over to me and wrapped her arm around me, glancing back to her old friend. “See? We'd all be so lucky to have a… friend like her.”
“So I've witnessed. But perhaps you're a bit stuck, as I've seen you prancing up and down these aisles for a while, no? Maybe you don't know what you want?”
“Nalek, you know I've never been good about making my mind up.”
“Some things never change, you ditz. Tell you what: you and Sask go find us a seat and we can catch up all we'd like when we're not taking up aisle space, yes? So shoo! I'll help Hileen here pick one out for you!”
With a bored grunt, Sask made off with the goods he had strapped to himself, followed by Nampi who gave me one more playful tail flick before dashing off into the crowd. I looked back to the mottled snout of Nalek who watched her friend wander off with a wistful glance.
“She was my first, you know.”
“Your what now.”
“Love. Way back when we were growing from pups into young adults back in private education, we explored much together. We saw each other through a lot, including the less savory parts of finding a mate. When Nampi realized it wasn't the boys she was into, she turned to me, and I offered my hand as her stalwart companion… to a point.”
“You weren't interested in her the same way?”
“I'd grown up seeing her as a sister of sorts, so ultimately, when we split it off, we stayed close as friends and she never seemed to be bothered by it. She struggled to find others in school who had the same interests as herself, but she never fussed about it.”
Nalek's claws browsed over a set of pouched bandoliers made with intricate embroidering. “Have you two… spent the night together? Alone?”
Spiritually, I reeled from the inquiry. The whiplash from that question was equitable to being smacked by a human. “Wha- why? How's that pertinent to the subject at hand?”
“That sounds like a ‘yes’ to me,” she purred with a smug glance my way.
I didn't need to begin to list the different ways such a question was violating to our privacy, and yet this woman was treating it like a game.
“Not really your concern, ma'am.”
Nalek chuckled as she picked out one of the bandoliers and inspected it with her claws. “I'd like to think that she and I still have that old connection, despite everything. And to that end, I know that she's no slag and doesn't trust easy. To see her be so vulnerable around you and to talk so highly of someone who's clearly below her income level as a predator…”
She stretched the bandolier out to appreciate the design in its entirety.
“Well, that's something special. Here"- she foisted the accessory into my wings as I stood gobsmacked -"this just screams her name.”
“This is, like, double my budget.”
“Love don't come cheap, darling. You wanna see good things happen, sometimes you've gotta step out of your comfort zone and grasp for it!”
“I'm being lectured by a rich woman on finances.”
“It's a philosophy that goes beyond money, ‘Red.’ The humans have a saying, in their horrendously predatory nomenclature, that contains a kernel of truth: ‘you miss every shot you don't take’.”
Yep, that's definitely a human phrase.
Nalek's steely braid rattled with every flick of the tail as we proceeded through the checkout.
“You want things to change between you and her?” she continued. “Don't just wait for it to happen.”
She let the conversation rest there as we finished the purchase, possibly to let me recuperate mentally from the damage done to my account. Outside, we found our respective partners sitting at a table with Sask looking up in boredom as Nampi chatted away, though she immediately shut up and turned to me with excited flicks of her tail as she saw what I was carrying.
I held it toward her and she happily shot to her feet, effortlessly removing the tags with her claws and clipping it to her belt. Nalek clapped and waggled her tail as the giddy lady did a whirl about to let us admire the accessory. While I'd have preferred one with pockets to give it a more practical use, I decided to let Nalek have the victory as our mutual friend clearly enjoyed it.
The rest of the paw was a blur as the two friends chatted without end until Sask eventually reminded his betrothed that they had a schedule to attend to. Though Nalek offered to call us a taxi home as a gesture of kindness, I saw through her ruse to determine that she was trying to pull a fast one on me - the clever ear flick she gave as we boarded the automated vehicle sold it for me.
We sat in the seats as the vehicle took the express ride home.
Nampi cleared her throat before she spoke, “Thank you for taking some time to spend with me, I know you've had a lot less free time as of late.”
“It's a prison of my own design, if I must be honest. A feedback loop of working a job that doesn't guarantee a paycheck to pay for rent that keeps going up, and thus needing to work more.”
The venlil giggled and chided me, “You really should've stayed in university.”
“There's a lotta 'should haves’ that've led me to this point. No use wondering what could have been.”
“There's always a use for wondering what could have been, Hileen.”
She wrapped an arm around my shoulder.
“Every decision I make, I always wonder what I could've done differently that it'd have turned out better,” she explained as she waved her free paw to the sky. “It's how you grow as a person, Red.”
Her silky pelt felt heavenly in contrast to the chilly air from outside, making it hard to let her words sink in.
“You rich types seem chock full of philosophy. I wonder if I'll become a brooding orator when I get some cash to my name.”
The cab filled with laughter as we veered around the final corner to my neighborhood, as it was the closest stop. The door popped open accompanied by a chime from the drone, signaling for me to depart.
But before my talons could even hit the pavement, I felt Nampi's scrawny arms wrap around my waist and she let out a pitiful mewl again.
“You don't need to get off here,” she told me with a pouty expression. “We can spend the rest of the paw at my place.”
“I'd love it, but I need to water my plants and get the month's bills sorted before they're due. Again.”
One claw at a time, I plucked her paws from around my waist and the childish venlil conceded, giving me another ear waggle as I departed. “I'll see you tomorrow?” I asked her.
“If you still have eyes by then, then you can bet your ass!”
“I still don't gamble.”
“You'll come around to it eventually.”
I shut the door to the taxi and watched as it carted away the one venlil who I ever truly felt on the same wavelength as. Fiddling with the lock felt like more of a chore than usual at this time as I felt a little voice tugging at the back of my head.
You miss every shot you don't take.”
The lock felt jammed as I began to jiggle it more vigorously with the electric key. Either the RFID or NFC readers were messed up, as the lock refused to accept my key. I looked up and down the street, though Nampi was now long gone for me to rescind my earlier rejection.
Every decision I make, I wonder what I could've done differently.
The door rattled as I grew more and more infuriated with the lock. Qitel's smug expression as he threatened me so boldly in public played back in my head, and I wondered what would've happened had I decided to go through with insulting his mother. Better yet, I wondered what could've been had I not backed down in the face of his unflinching confidence.
Bzzt. The lock rejected my key again.
Raagh! You fucking useless hunk of junk!
I squawked in anger and kicked against the door, careless of the consequences of having Markol back down here to admonish another of his tenants for causing a ruckus. The walls were surprisingly sturdy for how ineffective the venlil architecture looked on the surface and I reeled back in pain as my leg throbbed.
Click.
I looked to my left to see that it wasn't my door that came open, but that of the twins. The door cracked open ever so slightly, no doubt nudged by the force of my tirade and I sighed. Nobody was expected to be home at this time, with Vili being away and Luka leaving early to get a head start.
Luka had been given a stern talking-to by the landlord for allowing one of those cats into his apartment through neglect, and I was disappointed that he seemed to have not learned his lesson this time. In fact, it seemed he hadn't even thought to lock the door this time.
I took it upon myself to shut the door for him before turning back to my own apartment door. Grasping the key with one talon, I turned it ever so gently, though the lock still refused to give in.
With a bit more force, the torsion applied to the key felt as though it should've snapped it by now. Markol sure didn't waste any expense for the security for this place, doubtlessly as a result of his history in electronic security, but I wished now that he had provided a way in that didn't rely on privately sourced locks.
Considering my options as I stood trapped outside, I realized that I had never gotten around to paying for a new lock for Tadi. I'd considered contacting her to inform her that Tac had made it out of town safely, but that'd involve also telling her that her son was now in the care of humans, as if that was a better outcome to her.
Stepping out front, I realized that there was one more option I hadn't considered: my window. I usually forgot to lock it after I was through letting air circulate and I was silently grateful to myself for this absentmindedness now more than ever. Sticking a foot on the threshold, I lifted myself in a way that'd allow me to have leverage to force the window open.
The window made me fight for every inch, but I felt a strange satisfaction as it slowly opened up into an entrance that I could squeeze my way through. I let out a sigh as my talons clicked against the cool floor and slid the window shut.
I laid my satchel on the couch and turned back to the door, ready to unleash my fury on the disobedient object. But as I reached for the lock to manually open the door, I noted that the lights on the RFID interface both flashed at once, blinking erratically. Red and green flickered without rhyme or reason, indicating that it was both active and inactive.
As pretty as the colors were, I now knew that Markol's locks were not as reliable as he had touted them about: typically, such would not occur unless the device was damaged deliberately, and yet nothing indicated that I'd had uninvited guests. One could pray that those cats didn't secretly know how to cobble together an ECM jammer, but my personal wager was on faulty equipment.
Settling in, I browsed my favorite soaps on the television. For what was intended to be a day of relaxation and show of affection for a friend, I found myself rather wound up over all the things that added up. Couples threw around flowery words and swooned over one another on screen as I felt the tension diffuse. My holopad rang and I turned it over to spot that Nampi was informing me that she'd arrived home safely.
>>> Feels empty here, all alone.
She made sure to drive the point home with a sticker of a venlil making a pouty expression.
Next time, I thought to myself, I'll get it right for you, Nampi.
[ First / Previous ]
submitted by NotSoSlimShady1001 to NatureofPredators [link] [comments]


2024.05.20 02:21 Automatic-Ganache-25 The flame that warms her name

The flame warming her name
Through forests dark where shadows play. The Ronin stalks his prey love that's gone astray. Like the wind occasionally fracking leaves the Ronnin keeps scorched earthing memories. A haunting that echos eternally burning infernally entire forests from the trees.
A love that lingers deep inside A longing that refuses to subside
In whispers he recalls her flame In tear drops he befalls her name
His Armour worn his souls ghastly broken code. The Ronin walks over coals on this ghostly road.
With every step a memory stays behind. A bittersweet reminder of loves gaze in kind. A ache of longing sharp as a blade. A wound still bleeding that time won't fade.
In silence he remolds her face In violence he beholds her grace
Does his undying love leaves him a feeling corpse necromancer? It's a hard truth to shallow a voice mocks but a beautiful answer
He knows only his to blame For His roles in this holy game The Ronin walks with lonely shame Using the flame warming her name
submitted by Automatic-Ganache-25 to amaturepoerty [link] [comments]


2024.05.20 02:21 toms885 30M and 38F do you have non member ideas for people not wanting to go the traditional route?

Non marriage ideas
Hello everyone! I'm looking doe ideas for a private ceremony between me and my SO. Neither one of us want to do a wedding or the marriage thing. (For personal reasons). What we are looking for is ideas for loving, cute, meaningful things for the two of us to do as we exchange promises. Ideas such as sand ceremony, or ribbon ceremony. We will be taking a trip to Greece and I would love to have a big romantic surprise planned around what ever idea we choose. Also I'd you have ideas for people who don't like rings and can't wear them (metal allergy and in Healthcare so not under gloves) I'd love to hear those too. (No silicone rings or ring tattoos please)
submitted by toms885 to relationship_advice [link] [comments]


2024.05.20 02:21 hazelends Gumball machine tattoo?

Any shop within an hour that does the “Get What You Get” tattoos? My husband and I are visiting in two weeks and we have been getting travel tattoos for the different cities we visit. We’d love a gumball machine tattoo or even some flash that represents the area? Any help is greatly appreciated!
submitted by hazelends to boone [link] [comments]


2024.05.20 02:20 AggripaDaRippa 28 /M/Pennsylvania/Anywhere Single cat dad looking for new people to chat with!

Hey there! Looking for some new people to talk to, down to chat about pretty much anything as long as you can somewhat hold a conversation haha. Not really great at writing these things so I'll just list off some of my interests and things I'm looking for.
About me:
-i like watching sports; baseball, hockey, F1, sometimes basketball.
-i love video games, I play mostly on my PC, but I also have a PS5 and a switch. Right now I'm mostly playing dota 2 and r6 siege, but I have and play a lot of other stuff too.
-I have two cats that I love to death, totally down to show you how cute they are!
I love movies, I have a pretty large physical movie collection of blu rays and 4ks, I especially love horror but I'll watch most genres.
-I also enjoy music a lot, mostly metal, but also pop punk, pop, rap, country, and some other random stuff too. I've been to A LOT of concerts over the past 10 years but haven't been to many recently.
-im pretty introverted, I work a lot and when I'm not working I like to pretty much stay in and relax for the most part.
-i work night shift, i I have a pretty unorthodox schedule and sleep during the day and I'm up all night haha
I have 6 tattoos!
I don't smoke or drink, I don't really mind or care if you do though!
Physically im 6 foot tall hazel eyes with glasses and short brown hair. Medium build, a bit of a dad bod.
That's pretty much it, I'm sure there's a lot more I could include but I'll save that for later. Now here's some things I'm looking for!
What I'm looking for:
-someone who can somewhat hold a conversation and is actually interested in getting to know each other
-down to share selfies and possibly down to voice chat in the near future
down to switch to another platform, I don't really want to use the chat feature on here, sorry.
-open to the possibility of something flirty, and or just friendship. I'm not strictly looking for friendship only.
That's mostly it I think. Shoot me a message with a little about yourself if you're interested
submitted by AggripaDaRippa to MakeNewFriendsHere [link] [comments]


2024.05.20 02:19 campionesidd Ranking all Juventus Jeep kits from worst to best.

With Jeep's shirt sponsorship due to end imminently, I decided to rank all the Jeep kits we've had over the years. These include all home, away and third kits since the 2012-13 season, but exclude any special edition or one-off kits. Of course, these are my subjective rankings, so I don't expect anyone to agree with this 100%, so feel free to voice your own opinions.
Starting off with the worst kits:
36) 2021-22 Third kit. By far the worst Juventus kit with the Jeep logo in my opinion. While it uses classic Juve colors like yellow and blue- the overly bright yellow and the horrible design make it ugly for an amateur kit, let alone on one of the biggest teams in Europe.
35) 2019-20 Home: The worst Home kit on this list. It made a total mockery of Juve's classic black and white stripes and replaced them with an unappealing half white/ half black shirt with a pink ribbon in the middle. While this might not have been a terrible third kit, it was an absolute travesty to have had it as a home jersey.
34) 2017-18 Third: An unappealing olive green kit with a horizontal white band that completely seems out of place. Highly forgettable.
33) 2023-24 Home: In previous years, Adidas has done a stellar job of incorporating yellow into the mix and complementing it well with other colors, but in this instance, the yellow clashes with the black and white stripes and makes it look like a mess.
32) 2016-17 Third: The infamous zebra kit. While the zebra design on the sleeves itself doesn't look too bad, it doesn't go well with the completely bland and uninspiring white of the rest of the shirt.
31) 2020-21 Third: While the orange color looks good, the black spots look like smudges of ink and ruin the overall appearance of the jersey.
30) 2018-19 Home: The black and white stripes are too narrow, and the Jeep sticker is slapped on top of it.
29) 2019-20 Away: Not a bad looking kit by any means, but the white kit and the red lettering are very unremarkable and forgettable.
28) 2012-13 Away: An otherwise good looking kit whose ranking is knocked down several spots due to the ugly Jeep sticker which sticks out, and not in a good way.
27) 2012-13 Third: Just like the kit below it in this ranking it is ruined by the awkward placement of the Jeep logo.
26) 2013-14 Third: Plain and boring black kit. Not much to see here.
25) 2022-23 Home: A controversial jersey. Some people loved this jersey and others hated it. Personally I think it looks good from a distance, but isn't pretty from up close.
24) 2023-24 Third: A greyish black jersey that is decent looking, but a very forgettable one.
23) 2020-21 Away: From here on out, we start getting to the decent looking kits and jerseys. This is another forgettable entry in the list. The dark blue color looks nice, but there's nothing that stands out about this kit.
22) 2015-16 Home: Another kit that divides opinion. The stripes are too narrow for my liking.
21) 2018-19 Away: A very clean, crisp beige design that stands out simply because we're not used to seeing this color on a Juventus jersey.
20) 2014-15 Third: Another unconventional Juve color, but I like the clean bright green design. This kit belongs firmly in the middle of the pack.
19) 2016-17 Home: A slightly unconventional design for a home kit. Would've ranked higher if the Jeep sticker was incorporated more gracefully.
18) 2018-19 Third: Very similar to the gorgeous 2015-16 kit, this beautiful jersey loses a few spots for being not very distinct from it.
17) 2019-20 Third: Most of Juve's blue kits are easy on this eye, and this one is no different.
16) 2022-23 Away: A sleek black kit with an electrifying Jeep logo, but not a very memorable one.
15) 2012-13 Home: The very first Juve home jersey with a Jeep logo. The collar looks nice, but like other early Jeep designs, the Jeep logo placement isn't done very well.
14) 2014-15 Home: A classy and timeless home kit, which will be remembered favorably for years to come due to Juve's incredible season that year.
13) 2022-23 Third: Juve returning to its pink roots yet again. This kit gets a high rating due to its intricate design although few people will remember it in the coming years due to Juve's miserable season on and off the pitch.
12) 2017-18 Away: Yellow and blue are classic Juve colors, but this kit's similarity to the 2013-14 kit leaves it out of the top 10 list.
11) 2016-17 Away: I have fond memories of this pretty two-tone blue kit, as Juve had another memorable season in Italy and Europe with it.
10) 2023-24 Away: One of the few horizontally striped jerseys on this list. I appreciate the effort to make a design that stands out from the rest. The pink and grey stripes complement each other nicely
9) 2013-14 Home: This is what a Juventus home jersey should look like. Perfectly spaced stripes, and a great collar and simple sleeves. Not ranked near the very top due to the intrusive Jeep sticker.
8) 2015-16 Away kit: The highest ranked pink kit in this list. Would've been perfect with a better Jeep logo.
7) 2021-22 Home kit: Excellent kit. The only thing I don't like about it is the horizontal Adidas stripes on the top.
6) 2013-14 Away: The Yellow shirt and blue shorts are done to perfection. If you wear this shirt, make sure it to wear blue jeans or blue shorts to match the color combo.
5) 2021-22 Away: Very visually striking jersey, and one which you can wear casually and look great in. I actually like the Adidas stripes on this one.
4) 2020-21 Home: The gold lettering and logos look really nice on the home shirt. A huge improvement over the dreadful 2018-19/ and 2019-20 jerseys.
3) 2017-18 Home: The first Juve jersey without the classic Juventus logo, but the classy design of the collar and the gold touches more than make up for it. The best Juve home jersey in a long time in my opinion.
2) 2014-15 Away: Reminiscent of the 1995-96 Juventus away jersey, this stunning kit also brought us many memorable moments in the Champions League. This was one of the last kits Nike designed for us, and they certainly made sure they signed off on a high note
1) 2015-16 Third: The black and gold combo is sublime. The Jeep logo is tastefully done, and the classic Juve logo is converted to a black and gold scheme which looks gorgeous. Adidas hit a home run with this one.
Based on the average ranking of each kit, the seasons with the best kits are
  1. 2015-16
  2. 2014-15
  3. 2013-14
and the seasons with the worst kits are:
  1. 2019-20
  2. 2012-13
  3. 2018-19
submitted by campionesidd to Juve [link] [comments]


2024.05.20 02:16 Southern-Bag-1275 my love without you

I still carry so much love for you. I still reminisce on our memories and the many hugs we used to share. even without you, I love you. I know one day my feelings will fizzle out, but they'll remain with me forever in a different form nonetheless. I'll forever carry a part of you. someone who never made me feel alone. who brought pure happiness to me. I'm sorry I made mistakes. I'm sorry I made you grow tired. If I could turn back time and undo my mistakes I would. I would do anything for you. if only we had better pasts. If only you didn't let go of our love just as I intended to mend my wrongs. my love is still here. refusing to let go. please let go. I want to heal. I'm learning as I go. please let this be easier. I hope you're doing well. I miss you. for you, I will always be here. please be well. thank you for being your kind self to me.
submitted by Southern-Bag-1275 to UnsentLetters [link] [comments]


2024.05.20 02:15 sssurrrealism IEI So4 archetype and its correlations with the types of the AP typology system

Lately the whole typology community has been obsessed with narrowing down possible combinations between types of different typology systems. This tendency, without any exaggerations, has reached a point of absurdity. Unfortunately the majority of community supports the idea of strict archetypes, neglecting the fact that human psyche is not a material thing that can fit into certain categories. Our consciousness surely can be characterised by some definitions or dichotomies, nonetheless all typology systems were inherently created to describe mental processes, not to force people fit into specific categorisations. All sciences change their theories if they don’t correspond to reality - for some reason this rule is not applied in typology. The community decided that we have to adjust people’s identities to fit into some rules that are not always correct.
Of course, some combinations are obviously not possible, but that absolutely doesn’t mean that we have to get rid of almost every correlations. Borders between various typology systems are not precise since each of them focuses on its own peculiar studies of human personality. This is the reason why sometimes it’s just impossible to amalgamate some typology methods to create a correlation between them.
In this article i want to talk about IEI so4 archetype and its combinations with types of attitudinal psyche method of typology.
First of all let’s emphasise that 4th enneagram type belongs to heart triad. This means that individuals who identify themselves with this enneatype can only be ethical types in socionics. Considering the fact that 4th enneagram type is also known as a withdrawn one, individuals who associate themselves with this enneatype are most likely to be introverts.
Now let’s dive deeper into details of social subtype. I want to quote a description from this website: “The social instinct motivates us to create relationships and care for the wellbeing of others. It includes our desire to positively enhance the lives of those we care for. When sensitive to the social instinct, we’re interested and curious about people beyond what they can be or do for us. The social drive is what helps us to assess who is and who isn’t a worthy friend, ally or partner, without losing sight of the humanity of anyone we may be in conflict with.
Description of So-IV subtype by Claudio Naranjo: “Social Fours develop mechanisms for calling negative attention to themselves. The shyest of the Four subtypes. There's a shame about desiring, about "loving." Proust is filled with the social envy of the person dazzled by the "aristocracy," who has a passion for being "in", who wants to be included, to receive their favors. A feeling of "I'm nothing," "I'm ugly," "I'm silly." Fours in general want to absorb through their gaze, but this is especially true for the Social Four
I think both of aforementioned citations are without any doubt correlated to the Fe-function in ego-block position: “Fe is generally associated with the ability to recognize and convey (i.e. make others experience) passions, moods, and emotional states, … , recognize and describe emotional interaction between people and groups, and build a sense of emotional unity.” - desertion is taken from this website:
We can conclude that So-4 enneagram subtype strives to share own emotions with others, in other words to evoke certain impressions in the public. It means that such individuals are focused on their emotional impact on others. This statement also corresponds to the description of the emotional aspect in the 2nd position, which is conscious, extroverted and subjective: “Second Emotions provoke the expression of reactions, showdown. They encourage acting in other people.” - https://wiki.personality-database.com/books/psychosophy-attitudinal-psyche/page/emotion
Now let’s discuss why IEI So-4 individuals may have the volitional aspect in the 4th position. Description of 4V:The Fourth Will becomes weak-willed, waiting for decisions and active actions from others... Such individual can take the lead, but only if he is “assigned” by those around him, but hardly of his own free will, because he does not like to strain and bear responsibility too much. There is an opinion that the Fourth Wills have no ambitions - this is not so. But it is easier for them to realize their ambitions alone, without responsibility “for a common cause”. In addition, 4V can be “infected” with your dreams and plans with prolonged exposure”.
Aforesaid statement is almost identical to the definition of suggestive Se:
He is additionally very indecisive. He may lack the ability to make important decisions, especially with regards to his own future. He may know what he wants to achieve out of life in a broad or long term sense, but will find it very difficult to set and finish the short term projects leading to it. In order to be able to act, he needs a tangible and definite stimulus from somebody well grounded in external reality and who has a clear picture of what must be done in a certain situation.
All these arguments indicate that IEI So-4 archetype can be not only an ExVx in attitudinal psyche typology system, but also an xExV.
Thanks for your attention !!!!
submitted by sssurrrealism to attitudinalpsyche [link] [comments]


2024.05.20 02:14 dadnapgames Created a Puzzle Game in Memory of My Sister – A Tribute to Her Love for Sequence Puzzles

I created this puzzle game in memory of my sister, whom I lost to cancer. She loved solving puzzles and taught me a special number sequence game when we were kids. She was in high school, and I was in third grade at the time. This game is based on the puzzles she showed me, and it’s a tribute to the joy and inspiration she brought into my life. I hope it brings some of that joy to you too. ❤️
It's a available on Android and iOS. Sebosuki.com link should take you to the appropriate app store for your device. 🙌
Thank you for playing. 🙏
submitted by dadnapgames to IndieGaming [link] [comments]


2024.05.20 02:10 dadnapgames I Created a Puzzle Game in Memory of My Sister – A Tribute to Her Love Sequence Puzzles

I created this puzzle game in memory of my sister, whom I lost to cancer. She loved solving puzzles and taught me a special number sequence game when we were kids. She was in high school, and I was in third grade at the time. This game is based on the puzzles she showed me, and it’s a tribute to the joy and inspiration she brought into my life. I hope it brings some of that joy to you too. ❤️
It's a available on Android and iOS. Sebosuki.com link should take you to the appropriate app store for your device. 🙌
Thank you for playing. 🙏
submitted by dadnapgames to MobileGaming [link] [comments]


2024.05.20 02:07 SanderSo47 Directors at the Box Office: Clint Eastwood (Part 2)

Directors at the Box Office: Clint Eastwood (Part 2)
https://preview.redd.it/va70nf0l3h1d1.png?width=1920&format=png&auto=webp&s=021d936ee0a724ca428d8559f5823592404d1822

As Reddit doesn't allow posts to exceed 40,000 characters, Eastwood's edition had to be split into two parts because his whole career cannot be ignored. The first part was posted yesterday.

Million Dollar Baby (2004)¨

"Beyond his silence, there is a past. Beyond her dreams, there is a feeling. Beyond hope, there is a memory. Beyond their journey, there is a love."
His 25th film. Based on stories from the 2000 collection Rope Burns: Stories from the Corner by F.X. Toole, it stars Eastwood, Hilary Swank and Morgan Freeman. The film follows Margaret "Maggie" Fitzgerald, an underdog amateur boxer who is helped by an underappreciated boxing trainer to achieve her dream of becoming a professional.
Paul Haggis wrote the script on spec, and it took four years to sell it. The film was stuck in development hell for years before it was shot. Several studios rejected the project even when Eastwood signed on as actor and director. Even Warner Bros., Eastwood's longtime home base, would not agree to a $30 million budget. Eastwood persuaded Lakeshore Entertainment's Tom Rosenberg to put up half the budget (as well as handle foreign distribution), with Warner Bros. contributing the rest.
The film had an incredible run in limited release, breaking many records for Eastwood's career. It eventually earned a fantastic $216 million worldwide, becoming his highest grossing film ever. It received critical acclaim, and it was named as one of his greatest films. It won four Oscars: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Actress (for Swank), and Best Supporting Actor (for Freeman). Eastwood became one of the very few directors to make two films to win both Best Picture and Best Director.
  • Budget: $30,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $100,492,203. ($166.8 million adjusted)
  • Worldwide gross: $216,763,646.

Flags of Our Fathers (2006)

"A single shot can end the war."
His 26th film. Based on the book written by James Bradley and Ron Powers, it stars Ryan Phillippe, Jesse Bradford, Adam Beach, John Benjamin Hickey, John Slattery, Paul Walker, Jamie Bell, Barry Pepper, Robert Patrick and Neal McDonough. The film follows the 1945 Battle of Iwo Jima, the five Marines and one Navy corpsman who were involved in raising the flag on Iwo Jima, and the after effects of that event on their lives.
The film received positive reviews, but it bombed at the box office with just $65 million against its huge $90 million budget.
  • Budget: $90,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $33,602,376. ($52.2 million adjusted)
  • Worldwide gross: $65,900,249.

Letters from Iwo Jima (2006)

"The completion of the Iwo Jima saga."
His 27th film. Based on Picture Letters from Commander in Chief by Tadamichi Kuribayashi, it stars Ken Watanabe, Kazunari Ninomiya, Tsuyoshi Ihara, Ryō Kase and Shidō Nakamura. It's a companion film to Flags of Our Fathers, and portrays the Battle of Iwo Jima from the perspective of the Japanese soldiers.
In the process of reading about the Japanese perspective of the war for Flags of Our Fathers, in particular General Tadamichi Kuribayashi, Eastwood decided to film a companion piece with this film, which was shot entirely in Japanese. The film was shot back-to-back, starting filming just one month after Flags of Our Fathers wrapped filming.
Despite being seen as the least accessible of both films, this film was much more successful at the box office than the previous film (including a colossal $42 million in Japan alone). It also received critical acclaim, particularly for how it handed the depiction of good and evil from both sides. It received 4 Oscar nominations, including Best Picture and Best Director.
  • Budget: $19,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $13,756,082. ($21.3 million adjusted)
  • Worldwide gross: $68,673,228.

Changeling (2008)

"To find her son, she did what no one else dared."
His 28th film. It stars Angelina Jolie and John Malkovich, and is based on real-life events, specifically the 1928 Wineville Chicken Coop murders in Mira Loma, California. It follows a woman united with a boy who she realizes is not her missing son. When she tries to demonstrate that to the police and city authorities, she is vilified as delusional, labeled as an unfit mother and confined to a psychiatric ward.
The film earned $113 million worldwide, barely breaking even at the box office. The film received mixed reviews, but Jolie received praise for her performance. She was nominated for the Oscar for Best Actress.
  • Budget: $55,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $35,739,802. ($52 million adjusted)
  • Worldwide gross: $113,398,237.

Gran Torino (2008)

"Ever come across somebody you shouldn't have messed with?"
His 29th film. It stars Eastwood, and follows Walt Kowalski, a recently widowed Korean War veteran alienated from his family and angry at the world, whose young neighbor, Thao Vang Lor, is pressured by his cousin into stealing Walt's prized Ford Torino for his initiation into a gang. Walt thwarts the theft and subsequently develops a relationship with the boy and his family.
The film received great reviews, as well as praise from the Hmong community. It ended up becoming a sleeper hit, and it earned $270 million worldwide, becoming his highest grossing film.
  • Budget: $25,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $148,095,302. ($215.6 million adjusted)
  • Worldwide gross: $269,958,228.

Invictus (2009)

"His people needed a leader. He gave them a champion."
His 30th film. It stars Morgan Freeman and Matt Damon. Following the aftermath of the apartheid, President Nelson Mandela decides to unite his people by supporting a rugby team in their bid to win the 1995 Rugby World Cup.
The film earned $122 million worldwide, barely breaking even. It received positive reviews, and Freeman and Damon received Oscar nominations for their performances.
  • Budget: $50,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $37,491,364. ($54.7 million adjusted)
  • Worldwide gross: $122,426,792.

Hereafter (2010)

"Touched by death. Changed by life."
His 31st film. It stars Matt Damon, Cécile de France, Bryce Dallas Howard, Lyndsey Marshal, Jay Mohr and Thierry Neuvic. An American with a special connection to the afterlife, a woman with a near-death experience and a young English boy, who lost his loved ones, cross paths in an effort to find closure in their lives.
Despite mixed reviews, it managed to earn $107 million, turning a small profit.
  • Budget: $50,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $32,746,941. ($47 million adjusted)
  • Worldwide gross: $106,956,330.

J. Edgar (2011)

"The most powerful man in the world."
His 32nd film. The film stars Leonardo DiCaprio, Armie Hammer, Naomi Watts, Josh Lucas, and Judi Dench, and follows the career of FBI director J. Edgar Hoover, focusing on Hoover's life from the 1919 Palmer Raids onward.
The film received mixed reviews; while DiCaprio received praise, the technical aspects of the film were criticized. It earned $84 million, making it a box office success, but far below what DiCaprio usually makes at the box office.
  • Budget: $35,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $37,306,030. ($52 million adjusted)
  • Worldwide gross: $84,920,539.

Jersey Boys (2014)

"Everybody remembers it how they need to."
His 33rd film. Base on the 2004 jukebox musical, it stars John Lloyd Young, Erich Bergen, Michael Lomenda, Vincent Piazza and Christopher Walken, and tells the story of the musical group The Four Seasons.
It received mixed reviews, with praise for the musical numbers but criticism for the narrative and runtime, and failed at the box office.
  • Budget: $40,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $47,047,013. ($62.3 million adjusted)
  • Worldwide gross: $67,647,013.

American Sniper (2014)

"The most lethal sniper in U.S. history."
His 34th film. It is based on the memoir by Chris Kyle, Scott McEwen and Jim DeFelice, and stars Bradley Cooper and Sienna Miller. The film follows the life of Kyle, who became the deadliest marksman in U.S. military history with 255 kills from four tours in the Iraq War, 160 of which were officially confirmed by the Department of Defense. While Kyle was celebrated for his military successes, his tours of duty took a heavy toll on his personal and family life.
In 2012, Cooper and Warner Bros. bought the rights to the memoir. Cooper wanted Chris Pratt to star as Kyle, but WB told him they would only greenlight the film if he stars in it. After Kyle's murder in 2013, Steven Spielberg signed to direct. Spielberg had read Kyle's book, though he desired to have a more psychological conflict present in the screenplay so an "enemy sniper" character could serve as the insurgent sharpshooter who was trying to track down and kill Kyle. Spielberg's ideas contributed to the development of a lengthy screenplay approaching 160 pages. Due to Warner Bros.' budget constraints, Spielberg felt he could not bring his vision of the story to the screen. So Eastwood was brought in to direct.
The film attained a solid, but not extraordinary response from critics. It also attracted some controversy over its portrayal of both the Iraq War and Kyle himself.
The box office though?
To say that the film had a fantastic run would be selling it short.
It opened on Christmas Day in 4 theaters, and it earned a huge $633,456 ($158,364 PTA). But the following weekend, it actually increased despite playing at the same amount of theaters, adding $676,909. That translated to a $169,227 PTA, becoming the highest second weekend PTA in history for a live-action film. And on its third weekend, it earned $579,518 ($144,879 PTA), becoming the first film to have three weekends above $100,000 PTA. In the 22 days it played in just 4 theaters, it earned $3,424,778.
On its first wide weekend, the film shook the industry by opening with a colossal $89 million. That was almost as much as the other 2014 blockbusters, and given that the film didn't have 3D pricing, it's very likely it sold far more tickets than them. It broke the January opening weekend record by twice as much, and the second biggest for an R-rated title. With insane word of mouth ("A+" on CinemaScore), this film had the legs. In less than one week, it became Eastwood's highest grossing film domestically. On its second weekend, it dropped just 28% and made $64 million, which was the biggest second weekend for an R-rated film (a record it still maintains) and crossed $200 million domestically. And by March, the film overtook The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1 ($334 million) as the highest grossing 2014 film in North America.
After an insane run in theaters, it closed with a gigantic $350 million domestically, which made it the second highest grossing R-rated film in North America. Overseas, it was also very strong, and it made a huge $547 million worldwide. It was easily Eastwood's highest grossing film, even adjusted for inflation. One of the greatest box office runs in recent memory. It received six Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Actor for Cooper, ultimately winning one for Best Sound Editing.
The biggest surprise of the 2010s? Perhaps. Cause let's face it, when 2014, did any of you had this as the top film of the year? Or even in the Top 20? Please.
  • Budget: $59,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $350,159,020. ($463.7 million adjusted)
  • Worldwide gross: $547,659,020.

Sully (2016)

"The untold story behind the miracle on the Hudson."
His 35th film. Based on the autobiography Highest Duty by Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger and Jeffrey Skiles, it stars Tom Hanks, Aaron Eckhart, Laura Linney, Anna Gunn, Autumn Reeser, Holt McCallany, and Jamey Sheridan. The film follows Sullenberger's 2009 emergency landing of US Airways Flight 1549 on the Hudson River, in which all 155 passengers and crew survived and the subsequent publicity and investigation.
The film received strong reviews, and earned over $240 million worldwide, becoming one of his highest grossing films.
  • Budget: $60,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $125,070,033. ($163.3 million adjusted)
  • Worldwide gross: $243,870,033.

The 15:17 to Paris (2018)

"The real heroes."
His 36th film. Based on the autobiography by Jeffrey E. Stern, Spencer Stone, Anthony Sadler, and Alek Skarlatos, it stars Stone, Sadler, and Skarlatos as themselves and follows the trio through life leading up to and including their stopping of the 2015 Thalys train attack.
Despite choosing Kyle Gallner, Jeremie Harris and Alexander Ludwig as the leads, Eastwood decided to cast the heroes to play themselves, which was met with confusion as they lacked acting experience. And that was reflected on the final film; it received negative reviews for its acting, and it bombed at the box office.
  • Budget: $30,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $36,276,286. ($45.2 million adjusted)
  • Worldwide gross: $57,176,286.

The Mule (2018)

"Nobody runs forever."
His 37th film. Based on the 2014 The New York Times article The Sinaloa Cartel's 90-Year-Old Drug Mule by Sam Dolnick, it stars Eastwood, Bradley Cooper, Laurence Fishburne, Michael Peña, Dianne Wiest, and Andy García. Due to financial issues, horticulturist Earl Stone becomes a courier for a drug cartel. Slowly, he grows closer to his estranged family, but his illegal activities threaten much more than his life.
It received good reviews (although some questioned its story and tone), and earned over $173 million worldwide.
  • Budget: $50,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $103,804,407. ($129.6 million adjusted)
  • Worldwide gross: $174,804,407.

Richard Jewell (2019)

"The world will know his name and the truth."
His 38th film. The film stars Paul Walter Hauser, Sam Rockwell, Kathy Bates, Jon Hamm, and Olivia Wilde. The film depicts the July 27 Centennial Olympic Park bombing and its aftermath, as security guard Richard Jewell finds a bomb during the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, Georgia, and alerts authorities to evacuate, only to later be wrongly accused of having placed the device himself.
The film received positive reviews, but several journalists criticized the critical portrayal of the reporter that first accused Jewell: Kathy Scruggs (specifically for trading sex for stories). The film marked another commercial failure for Eastwood.
  • Budget: $45,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $22,345,542. ($27.4 million adjusted)
  • Worldwide gross: $44,645,542.

Cry Macho (2021)

"A story of being lost and found."
His 39th film. Based on the novel by N. Richard Nash, it stars Eastwood and Dwight Yoakam. Set in 1979, it follows a former rodeo star hired to reunite a young boy in Mexico with his father in the United States.
Nash tried to get this film made all the way since 1970s, but no studio was willing to pick it up. He restructured his films as a novel, was successful and studios were now interested. There were a few candidates for the leading role; Robert Mitchum, Roy Scheider, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Eastwood himself. Arnie was willing to star in the film back in 2003, but put it on hold when he was elected Governor. He was set to star after leaving office, but the project was scrapped after his affair scandal was made known. In 2020, Eastwood signed to return.
The film received mixed reviews, particularly for its writing and acting. It was also a huge flop at the box office, and marked Eastwood's least attended film as leading man. David Zaslav criticized the studio's decision to finance the film. Warner executives allegedly said that although they knew the film was unlikely to turn a profit, they felt indebted to Eastwood for his decades-long relationship with the studio and his consistent ability to deliver films under budget and on time.
  • Budget: $33,000,000.
  • Domestic gross: $10,310,734. ($11.9 million adjusted)
  • Worldwide gross: $16,510,734.

The Future

He recently wrapped post-production on his 40th film, Juror No. 2. It stars Nicholas Hoult, Toni Collette, Zoey Deutch, Leslie Bibb, Chris Messina, J. K. Simmons and Kiefer Sutherland, and follows a juror serving on a murder trial who realizes he may be at fault for the victim's death.

MOVIES (FROM HIGHEST GROSSING TO LEAST GROSSING)

No. Movie Year Studio Domestic Total Overseas Total Worldwide Total Budget
1 American Sniper 2014 Warner Bros. $350,159,020 $197,500,000 $547,659,020 $59M
2 Gran Torino 2008 Warner Bros. $148,095,302 $121,862,926 $269,958,228 $25M
3 Sully 2016 Warner Bros. $125,070,033 $118,800,000 $243,870,033 $60M
4 Million Dollar Baby 2004 Warner Bros. $100,492,203 $116,271,443 $216,763,646 $30M
5 The Bridges of Madison County 1995 Warner Bros. $71,516,617 $110,500,000 $182,016,617 $22M
6 The Mule 2018 Warner Bros. $103,804,407 $71,000,000 $174,804,407 $50M
7 Unforgiven 1992 Warner Bros. $101,167,799 $58,000,000 $159,167,799 $14.4M
8 Mystic River 2003 Warner Bros. $90,135,191 $66,460,000 $156,595,191 $25M
9 Sudden Impact 1983 Warner Bros. $67,642,693 $83,000,000 $150,642,693 $22M
10 A Perfect World 1993 Warner Bros. $31,130,999 $104,000,000 $135,130,999 $30M
11 Space Cowboys 2000 Warner Bros. $90,464,773 $38,419,359 $128,884,132 $60M
12 Invictus 2009 Warner Bros. $37,491,364 $84,935,428 $122,426,792 $55M
13 Heartbreak Ridge 1986 Warner Bros. $42,724,017 $78,975,983 $121,700,000 $15M
14 Changeling 2008 Universal $35,739,802 $77,658,435 $113,398,237 $55M
15 Hereafter 2010 Warner Bros. $32,746,941 $74,209,389 $106,956,330 $50M
16 Absolute Power 1997 Sony $50,068,310 $42,700,000 $92,768,310 $50M
17 J. Edgar 2011 Warner Bros. $37,306,030 $47,614,509 $84,920,539 $35M
18 Letters from Iwo Jima 2006 Warner Bros. $13,756,082 $54,917,146 $68,673,228 $19M
19 Jersey Boys 2014 Warner Bros. $47,047,013 $20,600,000 $67,647,013 $40M
20 Flags of Our Fathers 2006 Warner Bros. $33,602,376 $32,297,873 $65,900,249 $90M
21 The 15:17 to Paris 2018 Warner Bros. $36,276,286 $20,900,000 $57,176,286 $30M
22 Firefox 1982 Warner Bros. $46,708,276 $0 $46,708,276 $21M
23 Richard Jewell 2019 Warner Bros. $22,345,542 $22,300,000 $44,645,542 $45M
24 Pale Rider 1985 Warner Bros. $41,410,568 $0 $41,410,568 $6.9M
25 The Gauntlet 1977 Warner Bros. $35,400,000 $0 $35,400,000 $5.5M
26 The Outlaw Josey Wales 1976 Warner Bros. $31,800,000 $0 $31,800,000 $3.7M
27 Blood Work 2002 Warner Bros. $26,235,081 $5,559,637 $31,794,718 $50M
28 Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil 1997 Warner Bros. $25,105,255 $0 $25,105,255 $30M
29 Bronco Billy 1980 Warner Bros. $24,265,659 $0 $24,265,659 $6.5M
30 The Rookie 1990 Warner Bros. $21,633,874 $0 $21,633,874 $30M
31 True Crime 1999 Warner Bros. $16,649,768 $0 $16,649,768 $55M
32 Cry Macho 2021 Warner Bros. $10,310,734 $6,200,000 $16,510,734 $33M
33 High Plains Drifter 1973 Universal $15,700,000 $0 $15,700,000 $5.5M
34 The Eiger Sanction 1975 Universal $14,200,000 $0 $14,200,000 $9M
35 Play Misty for Me 1971 Universal $10,600,000 $0 $10,600,000 $950K
36 Honkytonk Man 1982 Warner Bros. $4,484,991 $0 $4,484,991 $2M
37 White Hunter Black Heart 1990 Warner Bros. $2,319,124 $0 $2,319,124 $24M
38 Bird 1988 Warner Bros. $2,181,286 $0 $2,181,286 $14M
39 Breezy 1973 Universal $200,000 $17,753 $217,753 $750K
Across those 39 films, he has made $3,536,687,297 worldwide. That's $90,684,289 per film.

The Verdict

Insanely profitable.
Even the bombs do not taint this kind of reputation. Eastwood has made all these films under budget and never past its deadline. That's something that has to be treasured for studios, no wonder he's been staying with Warner Bros. since 1976. His ability to get films ready in short notice is impressive; Richard Jewell started filming in June and it was on theaters in December. One of the most impressive actors who transitioned into directors. You can tell that Sergio Leone and Don Siegel taught him well.
Now of course, his method of directing can also have its setbacks: he's often known for not asking for multiple takes and he skips rehearsals. So that means the performances of his actors aren't always the best they could've done. Which is why, despite making some masterpieces or fantastic films, he's also made a few films with weak technical aspects: poor lighting (J. Edgar), questionable logic (Cry Macho), obvious props (the fake baby in American Sniper), and some bad acting (Gran Torino and The 15:17 to Paris). At the same time, it's clear he can also get extraordinary performances through these methods; Gene Hackman, Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Hilary Swank and Morgan Freeman won Oscars for starring in his films.
He also proved old age doesn't prevent you from continuing to work. He's turning 94 in a few weeks, and he's still directing films. Manoel de Oliveira directed films until he was 104, so perhaps we still have a few more years with Eastwood behind the camera.
P.S. Ever since I started this series, there's been suggestions that I should do "Actors at the Box Office" multiple times. While the idea is intriguing, that doesn't seem feasible for me. I'd have to categorize whether the actor is leading, supporting, original IP, adaptation, remakes, etc. Besides, with the continuing decline of star power, it's tough to decide what actor is truly moving the needle at the box office. That's why I'm making solely "Directors at the Box Office", because the director is responsible for the production. If the film succeeds, the director will get credit. And if the film flops, the director will be blamed. So this is the closest you'll get to "Actors at the Box Office".
Hope you liked this edition. You can find this and more in the wiki for this section.
The next director will be Robert Zemeckis. One of the biggest falls from grace.
I asked you to choose who else should be in the run and the comment with the most upvotes would be chosen. It had to be a controversial filmmaker. Well, we'll later talk about... Zack Snyder. Oh, BoxOffice chose fuego 🔥
This is the schedule for the following four:
Week Director Reasoning
May 20-26 Robert Zemeckis Can we get old Zemeckis back?
May 27-June 2 Richard Donner An influential figure of the 70s and 80s.
June 3-9 Ang Lee What happened to Lee?
June 10-16 Zack Snyder RIP Inbox.
Who should be next after Snyder? That's up to you.
submitted by SanderSo47 to boxoffice [link] [comments]


2024.05.20 02:04 Ancient_Poem_3598 National Geographic Home Entry [partially lost]

I have vivid memories of rewatching this one National Geographic video in Elementary school. As part of an outreach effort, kids were encouraged to send in their own videos, which would then be ranked and possibly displayed on the website. There is a chance that the video was on a different educational wildlife site, but I am absolutely certain that the video itself was of a turtle wandering through/eating grass as a high pitched voice sung “earth-friendly lawn mower”. While I do casually follow popular lost media searches, I am not well versed in the more “niche” pieces, so it is possible it exists in some corner of the internet that I am unaware of. As far as I can tell, it is not on YouTube and typing any keywords into a search engine yields nothing. I know it’s insignificant, but I would love to find it one day so that it can receive the praise it deserves (for the masterpiece that it is). Please let me know if you have any information (updates, similar memory, etc.), thank you so much! Also, I love this subreddit, keep up the great work :D
submitted by Ancient_Poem_3598 to lostmedia [link] [comments]


2024.05.20 02:03 mozaaz37 Debunk this: Apocalypse starts between 2025 and 2027 and Jesus returns between 2030 and 2034

Hi guys, i'm a brazilian 17 year old guy that was happy, sympathetic and caring towards others, I am catholic and I participate in Sunday school every Saturday, but since the start of the pandemic in march 2020 onwards, i suddenly became brainwashed and paranoic with Christian conspiracy theories, mainly Qanon, and end times prophecies but in 2022 it only got worse, it all started at school when my sociology teacher who coincidentally was an evangelical pastor started talking a little about the end of times/Ragnarok and my friend said that between 2023, 2024 the apocalypse will begin, or it doesn't happen anything in these years, very probably in 2025 and 2027, and i searched on youtube and i saw various evangelical channels claiming that we are at the end of times and 2030 the world will end bc in that year Jesus will come back to only save evangelical christians and will only save those who are on the Life Book and will throw everyone who's those name wasn't on Life Book burn alive on the lake of fire of the hell alongside the antichrist, false prophet and everyone who followed him and God will destroy the universe and we will be living in the New Jerusalem, and they say repent of sins because the devil exists and they insist on saying that sin and the devil exist even though this has not even been scientifically proven, such as not wearing short clothes like shorts, jeans, not getting tattoos or piercings, not eating meat of pork, prohibiting homosexuality, free will, dating during adolescence and many others, they say that we are experiencing the greatest apostasy in history, which means that people are moving away from faith and and God and ignoring the warnings about the doomsday bc the world is becoming more ''sinful'' and the love between the people has been cooled and we are living like in the antediluvian days when Noah warned about the cataclysm but people ignored, mocked and called him demented and paranoid and instead they were eating, drinking and partying until the flood came and destroyed the world. world and killed everyone, and they keep repeating this saying that this is real even though it has been proven that it never happened and that it is impossible for a storm this strong to cover the top of Mount Everest, they think they are right and scientists are wrong, because science is an ''abominable sin'' against God, They say that God is merciful but he is also wrathful and cruel against those who do not follow his commandments. and they also talk about Jesus' appearance as if it were true at that time even though it has not yet been proven. i've watched some videos of these pastors and missionaries of my country and never got their prophecies and predictions wrong, all of things that have said become true
They say that geopolitical tensions are increasing which will cause ww3, it is no wonder that countless billionaires around the world like Mark Zuckerberg are building bunkers and selling several of their assets, i saw a letter written in 1873 that a American Freemason named Albert Pike who in his letter predicted the first two world wars, and is now supposedly ''predicted correctly'' the third world war, which would begin with a conflict between Zionist Israelis and Arabs, and also they claim that this war between Israel and Iran -Hamas is also the prophecy of Gog and Magog being fulfilled, They also say that the world will enter an unprecedented global economic crisis worse than the great depression, which would increase prices absurdly and this would culminate in the greatest famine the world has ever had, surpassing the great famine of the Middle Age,
They also say that elites such as the World Economic Forum, the UN and the Bilderberg Group will launch a gigantic EMP weapon that will shut down all energy and appliances in the world, and that they will then enact global martial law that will taking citizens off the streets and homes via buses and putting them in concentration camps and killing mainly white and conservative Christian groups and burying them in FEMA coffins which will start the famous New World Order and mass depopulation through the great reset and agenda 2030 and will put an end to all cash and create an electronic currency where payment is made with the global fingerprint, which they also say will replace passports with this global biometric password, they also say that They will do away with clothes and food and will replace them with processed foods made from insects, GMOs and laboratory-grown meats and everyone will be forced to wear the same clothes and have their names changed they also say that they will install government cameras inside the houses to know if any intruder is entering the empty houses
and all of this will begin the antichrist's rise to power, he will be a powerful leader who will unite all sovereign governments into one government and people will worship him and will implant the mark of the beast, where no one will buy and sell without it and will kill everyone who does not accept the mark, which means that everyone in the cities will die, only those who go to the fields or mountains will survive, it is no wonder that they are asking to stock up on water, non-perishable food, batteries , flashlights, medicines especially ivermectin (so much so that I've seen reports of people curing themselves of COVID using this medicine and chloroquine) and radios to survive between 2025 and 2027, because according to them, there will be a pandemic 30 times more lethal than the previous one that will kill almost 400 million people in just two years and that will be the period where seal the seven-year peace agreement between Christianity, Judaism and Islam and will sacrifice a red heifer in the Al-Aqsa Mosque, where it will be destroyed in sequence to begin the construction of the third temple where the throne of the antichrist will be during the final three and a half years
They also insists that global warming is a lie bc all of these disasters that are happening such as frequent strong earthquakes which happened in turkey, morocco, japan and taiwan recently, floods that left the southern of my country almost destroyed, tornadoes and hurricanes becoming stronger and killing more people and wildfires becoming more frequently is caused by these globalists, for example, the recent wildfires that happened in hawaii, canada and chile was caused by massive lasers coming from satellites and these floods and earthquakes caused by HAARP, and the fact-checking and social media such as reuters and afp is lying bc they are owned by rothschild and george soros for example
And i'm worried to have a cancer or a fatal heart attack when i become 20 years old that they discovered that in the last years have an increase on cases of cancer and fatal heart attack on young people, and they claim that is bc of the vaccines bc they contain aborted fetuses and microchips and graphene
And they also talk about the woke agenda, where defenders of this theory claim that globalists use films, video games and series to misrepresent characters from these entertainment industries to promote progressive agendas such as LGBT, black lives matter, abortion and feminism, for example, they made Ariel from The Little Mermaid black in live-action instead in white, as a way of indoctrinating masses and grooming children to be subjected to being perverse, it's no wonder that Disney is in one of the biggest crises in its history by excessively promoting identity issues in every film they release. And it's also no wonder that the number of abortions in the world increased over the last years
What I am most afraid of is the claim that globalists have knowledge of future events that makes the masses accept the event when a certain thing happens, this is called predictive programming, for example, in many disaster and science fiction films, there is a subliminal message in numbers called ''923'', supporters of this number mean that something very bad will happen on September 23rd, but obviously nothing happens, in White Noise for example, there was a train accident in the state of Ohio and in 2023 a train derailment with toxic products occurred in the same state as the film, Black Mirror ''predicted'' several technological innovations, The Simpsons for example predicted the September 11 attacks and Trump's victory in the elections, The Matrix also predicted predicted several technological innovations, such as the redpill movement and the production of babies in uterine machines. As for the Leave the World Behind', they say that the film predicted the accident of the ship that collided with the bridge in baltimore, Lastly, the film The Knowing is incredibly identical to the plot of the biblical apocalypse, but these claims are already debunked by fact checks
And i became scared of these prophecies that have been ''fulfilled'' such as Ezekiel which mentions that Dead Sea became filled with fishes and signs in the sky and stars disappearing
i will mention some of them:
They discovered recently that the moon have some rust pigments and the sun are frequently producing giant black spots which in apocalypse 6:12-17 means that the sun became black and the moon becoming blood
The days are passing faster, which on matthew 24:22 mentions that unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened.And unless those days were shortened, no flesh would be saved; but for the elect's sake those days will be shortened.
The Euphrates River is drying up which in apocalypse mentions that the sixth angel poured his bowl over the Euphrates River and its waters dried up and released four demons who destroyed half of the population
Some Rivers and seas are becoming red, which refers to Apocalypse 16:4 that the third angel poured his bowl on rivers and seas and became red as dead blood
And I started to think that some mathematical calculations they do are simply not coincidences, they took the year the Black Death ended in 1353 with the year the WHO declared a global COVID emergency in 2019, subtracting those years would give the result in 666 (2019-1353=666 to be simpler) which alludes to the number of the beast and nd other math that they also thinks its a proof that we are at the end of times uf we use the word ''CORONA'' as a code where the alphabet is corresponding to its letter in ascending order (for example a = 1, b = 2), it would give the numbers 3, 15, 18, 15, 14, 1 will also give the number of the beast is correct if we multiply these numbers.
I'm trying to follow channels that disagree that we are in the end times and treat people with love, like the method of preterism where it states that the apocalypse happened in the year 70, but they say that this is heresy because in Matthew 24:24 it says that in the last days false prophets will emerge deceiving many people and in 2 Peter 3:3 where it says that at the end of time many will mock and disagree with the imminent Return of Jesus
i'm asked my parents and my friends to repent of your sins and believe in the Word of God, But I bothered them so much that now they don't even want to hear it,
however after all that, I started to think that these evangelical channels only preach fear in people, thinking that Jesus is going to return physically and that I have been superior all the time for no reason at all. I researched these things so much that now it appears when I search for an account on Instagram or YouTube, I would like to thank anyone who could give me some tips on how to get out of this and get rid of these pests, how i do?
submitted by mozaaz37 to DebunkThis [link] [comments]


2024.05.20 02:03 wesleymess Season 3 Protag Marcy AU

AU where Anne notices Andrias attempting to attack Marcy, her powers flare back up long enough her to push Marcy out of the way and into the portal, taking the blow for her while Marcy and the Plantars are warped back to Los Angeles.
• Before the portal warps Marcy back instead of the "I-I'm sorry... for everything." that Marcy gives, Anne tries to comfort Marcy, saying "D-Don't worry, M-Mar-Mar... I probably w-would have done the s-same if I had to be separated from y-y-you and Sash...".
• While back in Willow Brooke, Marcy can't bare to confront her parents so she decides to stay with the Boonchuys. Obviously, after she explains why she ran away and her need to get everyone back home, they let her and the Plantars stay as long as they need. Marcy tells them about Amphibia but, like Anne, leaves out the parts about the evil king....... and the fact that she saw their daughter get stabbed through the torso and possibly die... instead she lies that Anne is still perfectly fine back in Wartwood.
• Marcy is more angsty about this whole thing than Anne appeared to be in canon. Made even worse by the fact that every time she sees the people she now lives with, she is reminded that her cowardice cost them the most important person in their families. She also finds being the only one of her friends to make it back to the place that she tried so hard to run away from as a form of twisted irony. A cosmic punishment for tampering with a mystical artifact that was far beyond her understanding, leading to her friends and their loved ones paying the price for it.
•A lot of the same plot beats still happen such as Fight at the Museum, Fixing Frobo, If You Give A Frog A Cookie, and Mr. X but episodes such as Thai Feud and Temple Frogs don't due to Marcy obviously not having the same familial bonds as Anne and Adventures in Catsitting due to The Boonchuys being unable to schedule a dentist's appointment for a child that is not under their legal guardianship.
• Marcy wears her blue Newtopian cloak even with her casual clothing just in case she sees her parents and needs to hide her face from them under her hood so they don't recognize her. (There is a running gag through season 3 where she has to make sure she doesn't stand under any sprinklers in case her cloak spontaneously combusts.)
• Back in Amphibia, The Core, now no longer having Marcy, decides to take Anne. Now calling themself Dianne, they use Anne not for her mind... but instead for her power and to use it for it's namesake.............. to bring about Calamity.
• Andrias still sends out the Assassin bot to Willow Brooke to kill Marcy and the Plantars in order to tie up any loose ends in his plans.
• Marcy's Calamity powers awaken while protecting the Plantars in the Supermarket and finds that her powers allow her to use magic though the use of any staff-like object. In this case, a metal pipe in the storage freezer that she was going to use to bash in the robot's head, and summons a blast of energy to send the Assassin bot packing. Marcy later buys a foldable walking staff from a drug store and carries it around in her satchel in case of "Magical Girl emergencies" as she calls them. (Her powers are an homage to Matt's original idea for Marcy to be a sorceress.)
• In this version of Anne-sterminator, it's laundry day and since Marcy can't go back to her house to grab clean clothes, she has to wear some of Anne's, namely her iconic St. James Middle School uniform. When the Assassin bot comes to kill Marcy, it sees Marcy in Anne's clothes and gets confused allowing everyone time to escape. In the junkyard, Marcy whips out her staff and uses her Calamity powers to cast an Anti-gravity spell on the Assassin bot, launching it into orbit where it's bomb detonates. Marcy finally has to come clean about Andrias and what happened to Anne. While the Boonchuys are devastated about Anne, they know that Anne would have wanted to get the Plantars and Sasha back home and use that as motivation to keep going.
• While in The Core, Anne's Fantasy world is one where Amphibia and Earth are merged into one and she doesn't have to choose. (A tongue in cheek mocking of Star vs' ending) She gets sus when she notices everyone acting off. When Anne calls bull on the whole thing, The Core leaves her in the darkness with only the light of her phone containing her real memories to keep her company.
• During The Core's invasion, Dianne uses Anne's Calamity powers in their fight against Sasha making it far more of a brutal beat-down than a proper 1v1. When Grime sacrifices himself, it causes Sasha's Calamity powers to awaken, making it a fair fight.
• While battling Andrias, when Marcy starts running low on Calamity juice, Andrias starts mocking her. Telling her that "If she wants to, he'll gladly let her use the music box to take her to another world where she can run away from her problems.... again.**" and this, along with the Boonchuys playing "As If It's Your Last" by Blackpink over the city's loudspeakers to remind Marcy that she's doing all this for Anne leads to an epic tear filled "I'm... Done... Running..." as she twirls her staff around, her powers flare back up, and she gets her second wind.
submitted by wesleymess to amphibia [link] [comments]


2024.05.20 02:02 joforofor Most memorable phrases of exwBPD?

I'd like to have this thread be filled with the most memorable quotes you think are self-explanatory. I'll start:
Just so you know, I was being absolutely loving towards her and did my best to be a good boyfriend. There's that.
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2024.05.20 02:00 Yazarus 24M What can I write here that has thirty... Wait

I am going to keep some of the information sparse to invoke some sense of mystery, and not because I'm not good at selling myself *wink*
24M from CST timezone (USA). I have a new job, but the problem? There is no one around my age. There goes that tried and true method of friendship! The other problem? I've worked third shift for the last 4 years... so my social life is pretty nonexistent. You can see why I am on this subreddit tonight LOL.
I am down to make some friends or even new best ones, but all I ask is that you are not a dry texter and 20+.
I like to read fantasy/ science fiction books and sometimes watch anime (could use some recs!) I have a bad habit of wanting to be a cheapstakes so you can often find me fixing my car because I was too stubborn to take it to a mech. I like to walk down trails and drive back roads with the windows down. No one can hear me blast Taylor Swift that way! I like to find new places to explore and be able to drive out to them. I also want to start switching up my clothes and style and could use suggestions!
I have been growing my hair out for the last two years, but I am inching closer and closer to getting the chop since it is starting to become annoying. I have my nose + ears pierced and want some tattoos in the future when I have the extra money to afford a decent artist. I like to listen to a whole bunch of different music genres, but I feel that a lot of my knowledge is shallow because of this. I would love to get some decent recs to add to my playlist. I have been in a country mood lately with the great weather. Some genres I like: r&b, pop punk, metalcore, rock, hiphop, OSTs, etc.
I am not much of a gamer, but I am willing to try some out with you if we happen to click. The main issue that I have is that I cannot remain interested all that long, and become bored too fast. I am not really into competitive games though, since it sounds like a bother to maintain. My dream job would be to become an author with enough success to have a sustainable and secure future, but I find myself never writing when I am off work lol. I am hard of hearing; throwing that out there because it could be cool to meet others as well.
Phew. I meant for this to be a lot shorter. So much for mystery, huh?
If you've read this far, hmu!
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2024.05.20 01:56 Salems_Ghost My heart hurts…..

I lost someone I loved very much a couple of days ago, and it was all my fault because I couldn’t be direct. Sometimes we are our own worst enemies. I don’t even know why I’m writing this, because no one will ever see it, but I loved her with all my heart, truly. I just hope that in some way, I made a big enough impact on her that she’ll never forget me or the time we shared. The pain of all of it is now my burden to forever bear every time I look into the mirror and see the tattoo I received for her.
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2024.05.20 01:55 Prestigious_Boot_105 Breaking no contact (Again)

Alright, to make long story short from my last no contact we both really needed closure from our fight that resulted in our break-up. We hanged out every other weekend and talked for about a month. Why we broke up was due to pettiness, ego, and pride on both sides and she was on her menstrual cycle too, I was also very confused on her antics during our relationship and didn’t communicate at all with her on how I felt about, in which resulted for a perfect storm for us to break up. Fast forward a month, she reacts to a message I sent on Instagram before we broke up with a bunny on Easter. I tell her my apology and hope she and her family were doing okay, the following week calls me drunk and all emotional about wanting to be back together and wants me to go see her calling me “babe” “I love you,” etc. We hanged out, watched the Total Eclipse, a movie the following weekend, trip to Dallas (she lives in another city not too far ((kinda far actually))😭But then, she told her father after he called her during our date in Dallas. Now I already told my mom that I was seeing her again, she didn’t say anything and really didn’t care. She told it was my choice in the end of the day. Will her Dad wasn’t too fond of her being with me and after I broke up with her. After I dropped her off I messaged her the day after because she was kinda ghosting me that night I dropped her off. She just told me that her father wasn’t too happy that she was hanging with me so she said that we shouldn’t hang out anymore and or talk all together. I totally agreed as I talked to her on the way dropping her off about how I felt and if a scenario ever happened where I got a disapproval from her family it would result to me leaving because I care for her and I don’t want them and her to be unhappy for us being together after betraying there trust with there daughter. After that, we parted ways and thanked each other for the great memories and we didn’t speak for a couple days until she messages me 2 days later “ ____ 😭😭” (fill in blank with an imaginary name) I responded with “is everything okay” and then … radio silence. For a day, then messages me with “I fell asleep” at like 9PM which she knows I’m asleep because I have to wake up at 5am. I tell to stop being dry and to spit it out. I was honestly kinda annoyed because she was just drowning me in like suspense or something so I sent her a paragraph telling her I love her and care for her but it’s best for us to go no contact. AND… was left on delivered again. Now to current events, sorry the ‘ prologue’ was not “long story short.”💀
Fast forward two weeks later. It was ruff on not only me but her too. I honestly was really depressed and honestly praying to god for another chance and will, he delivered. On Thursday I took a nap of misery and told god for her to message me and give me on last time with her. Waking up at 12am all sweaty, stinky breath, thirsty as hell, I check my phone and I see a notification from her. My first thought was “my prayer was actually answered.” She just said if we could talk and how she wasn’t really handing our break up #2? She stated her dad got drunk and just told her he wasn’t mad about hanging out with me but not telling him she was hanging out with me. I told her that I was honestly really depressed and wanted her back in my life because I can’t see myself with someone else. We accepted that we will AGAIN rekindle our “friendship” (seeking to rebuild our relationship back but slow and exclusive) but here’s what’s troubling me now.
She’s being all shallow and ghosting me for hours sometimes even days. I can’t process her telling me she’s “not doing so good” without me but ends up ghosting me or being dry at times and honestly it’s bringing me the assumption she doesn’t really miss me but just likes the company and the attention. It’s very frustrating that she comes back to my life, twists the knife even deeper and then puts little effort in trying to fix it (I thought I did something there😭🔥) But Yha, this is my biggest struggle by far right now with her. And this isn’t new, after our first initial no contact she was the same, ghosting me being dry as the savannah desert, and now. So what do you guys think if someone even read this far😭 if you did, ummm… I’ll pray for you tonight🥹 anyways have a great day people of Reddit🫡
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2024.05.20 01:53 amca_19 Diving a bit deeper into Signora reserection theory

U/Yass_0w0Had Made a list of possible ways/reason's that Signora would be reseructed.
Some examples Moth/Butterfly themes, affiliated with new life throu transformation/rebirth.
Her having given up her physical form already ...
But me being me I have taken up to my self to dive a bit into his concept's ( I'm not obsessed nor unhingedly interested into genshin/fictional characters I just enjoy to theories and take a look on them , I'm an artist/sketch artist ( or at least that's what I am called by my friends and family) and I wish to one day work on designing games and characters and there Stories as my profession/side husel)
Most credit is to u/Yass_0w0 check him out!!!
Signora/her moth interrupting the reserection of another character; She could interrupt the reserection of the old Pyro Archon, Take over there body/place/title and thereby claim ownership of the gnosis but the new archon won't let that be but till she(Signora) is beaten she will have given the gnosis over to dottore/capitano/Columbian and would be left to die, which makes her join us.
Dottore will reserect her, as part of an experiment or as part of a trap(dottore is unhinged and cares little for life) which wouldn't make it surprising if he reseructed her just so she could be the bait to be killed by the archon/tribes of natlan while he follows his own Agenda taking gnosis and burning irmensul as seen in that one scene and revealed by one of the Devs to happen in the future.
Capitano(if he is the blood stained knight) resurrecting her; His respect for her and his former master ( her lover) would make him feel it kind of as a duty to bring her back or at least try so, but he will fai or not even tryl to bring la signora back, instead he will reseruct Rosalyne the gentle version (with maybe memory holes).
She gave her body up, but was it destroyed? We know that she nearly killed herself while transforming into CWoF for the first time. Her giving up her body does not mean she destroyed it, it could be somewhere in natlan hidden/protected by a temple or in the liquid fire she drank(I remember reading that there was the sea of liquid fire) where she could have dived into and emerged as a bodyless version of her self that uses elemental energy to manifest a physical form. Or since we know that she was an akademiya student she could have preserved her body somewhere by artificial means.
Cracky theory I'm a giant fan of both la signora and Sandrone, seeing as we have gotten a puppet character in an hoyo game already (Herta HSR) I wouldn't be surprised getting one in genshin(yes balladeer is a puppet of raiden but technically missing the puppet aesthetic) and while Herta is pretty basic in her design she was probably used to test the waters on how to give a character such depth in its design as to produce clear and authentic puppet aesthetic(especially with the hints of us getting a 5 star version of Herta later in the game),comming to the theory What if she will be ,,reserected" into one of sandrones puppets maybe even one in image of a younger(former version)of Rosalyn like the one on arlechino story trailer with less detailed/accessories like her crown/eye patch thingy. A factor for making me think that is that sandrone who was supposedly meant to appear in fountain never did so so her having little bit of influence even if not by showing up in natlan at all would be pretty expectable not to mention hoyo wouldn't be stupid enough to neglect the customer's/players wishes especially seeing as Hsr has become the companies mayn trademark and genshin has not been doing so well since Hsr released(yes arlechino banner was very successful but you have to take into account that 3 new characters are appearing in the next patch,all of which are very popular and are expected to do very very well in getting players to pay for gems, battle pass..., as well as it being suspected that 2 other fan favourites will appear the version after that(2.4).
She won't be reseructed at all (in natlan)she is dead and won't make a return untill shneznaya where we will face her casket/coffin in the palace and then the tsaritsa will reseruct her(having the all gnosis) just to pay her back for her devotion and her having been let go/relieved of her duty will make her join us (since all Archons will be playable we will join with the tsaritsa) and so Signora would join us by default.
I was writing this while it's late and I should be asleep so it's Very cracky but alas I'm just a humble Enjoyer of the fictional worlds and there characters who wishes to share laughter, knowledge, Opinions and all of the other shareable things I'm not able to think of. And this helps me get tired for sleep 😴 Thanks For reading have a lovely day/morning/noon/afternoon/night and over all have a peaceful day...
Edit; I have failed to ask I/Yass_0w0 if I could name him and if I could use his ideas, and as a person who once got there art stolen I wish to apologise if it comes over to you as if I've turning his concept's into mine also my friend mentioned I should write here if you(Yass_0w0) read this thank you for your posts and I'm sorry that I didn't ask you before posting if you wish for me to delet the post/remove you're acount name from it please feel free to write it in the comments.
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2024.05.20 01:47 MapMiserable2468 Feels like the right time to write this

I’ve been living in Brighton for a couple of years now, and this has been my first full season properly watching the Albion and going to as many home matches as I can.
I cannot begin to express how much joy that this club, this community, has given me. I was walking away from the Amex yesterday, thinking about all the incredible memories I’ve had this year. Being soaked in rain after defeat to AEK Athens, thinking if we had what it takes to compete in Europe. Chewing the fat over countless League matches with friends I’ve insisted on coming to watch with me. The glorious buzz after our 88th minute win against Marseille and calling my mum watching from up north afterwards.
I sometimes think about the empty void in Falmer if fans tireless campaigning couldn’t get the stadium built. If the wind in Hereford took the ball slightly off course and we couldn’t get that 1-1 draw. Don’t let anyone ever tell us we don’t have history. It’s written with the passion and love for the club by this community, and I really believe our best days are still to come.
Most people don’t get to choose their club, but for a somewhat unanchored person finally finding an anchor, I feel so at home walking down that ramp from the station. Proudly wearing a shirt with our badge on.
I’m all in. Up The Albion.
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2024.05.20 01:47 LadyTrixieRed Mentally exhausted caregiver

I am so tired, mentally and physically. I don't know what to do anymore.
My hubby (60m) was diagnosed with GBM of the left parietal lobe on May 2, 2023. He had surgery on May 4, followed by radiation and chemo. He was doing really well until last month, when he was hospitalized with seizures. Mind you, this was his first setback, 11 months post diagnosis, and it is NOT due to tumor progression.
The seizures really took a lot away from him. His short term memory is gone, and his long term memory is iffy at times. His right side is weak. He has problems discerning reality from dreams at times. He refused to stay in hospital rehab and they discharged him 4 days after he arrived. Regardless of the strain it put on me, he insisted on coming home, and I was tired of arguing with him about it daily, especially after spending a week at his bedside while he was unconscious. He could barely walk, but home he came.
He has gotten stronger over the past month. He pushes himself to walk and do things around the house, even when he shouldn't. His recovery isn't fast enough for him, though. He is convinced that he is slipping. I have told him that maybe he would be further along if he had stayed in rehab, or did any of the things that were recommended by his doctors. But they don't know anything, and neither do I, don't you know?
I understand that he is hurting. I understand that he is ill. I understand that this disease is horrible, and that it will eventually take him. But I can only take so much mollycoddling and feeling sorry for one's self! It's been over a year, and he is STILL HERE! He is functioning. He is SO VERY LUCKY to be alive! I see people in this group who lose loved ones within months or weeks of diagnosis, and my heart breaks for them! His focus is only on what he has lost, and on his impending demise, instead of being thankful for the time with which he has has been blessed.
And that makes me angry. So very angry! If I said this to anyone outside of this group, you lovely people who actually get it because you are going through it on one side or the other, I would get shocked, pearl clutching gasps of horror. "How can you say that about someone with cancer?!" Quite easily, actually. Constantly feeling sorry for himself isn't helping a thing. It's hurting his recovery. I'm of the "just grit your teeth and do what you must" school of thought, which is probably why his attitude annoys me so! I want him to FIGHT, not roll over and give up! If anyone had said "That's it. There's nothing more we can do", I would be so much more understanding. But that isn't so! Make peace then, but not before.
Thanks for letting me vent.
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2024.05.20 01:46 Park_Account It will get better, won't it?

Today marks one official week since my ex boyfriend and I broke up and it's been undoubtedly the hardest day for me. The breakup came unexpectedly and it completely blindsided me. Although I initiated it, i feel like I'm the one that was left behind to pick up the pieces. I can't blame him for not seeing a future with me but how could he constantly reassure me and be loving to the very last moment only for him to say something entirely different? I'm having a hard time understanding and I want to reach out and talk. Not even to get back together but just to understand what went wrong but it's useless, isn't it? I keep hoping that I simply asked at the wrong time, when everything was changing too fast for him but that shouldn't have mattered right? I keep comforting myself that I deserve someone who is sure of me but I keep wondering what I did to make him unsure of me. I never once doubted his love and his commitment to me but at some point, he realized this was all too much, I was too much for him and he decided to let go. I keep wondering if he's feeling just as miserable as I am? If he misses me just as much as I do. And even, though deep in my heart, I feel like our story isn't over, I have to learn to let go. I yearn for the day this is all but a distant memory of my first love. Thank you, whoever decides to read this.
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