#2 weeks post labor day still counts as summer right...

[grapenehifics]

It's not Wednesday, WIP or otherwise, but here's a sentence from my fic for the @obikinlifeguardau collection that made me giggle:

It was a relief when Obi-Wan kissed him, because that saved Anakin from having to make any inane suggestions like, 'Do you want to take your pants off yourself or should I do it for you?', which sounded just a little too much like something Anakin would have said to one of the twins a couple years previously when they were being stubborn about bedtime.

[motorsportbarbie13]

A Package Deal - Part 6 (the finale)

Our time has come, this labor of love is *finished* (at least for now, i could probably be convinced to return to these loves soon)

warnings: none pairing: lando x singlemom!reader word count: 2k words

- A Package Deal - A Package Deal - Part 2 - A Package Deal - Part 3 - A Package Deal - Part 4 - A Package Deal - Part 5 - Master List

yourusername (private) posted

yourusername cold but happy carlossainz still can't believe you convinced Lando to spend Christmas in the cold. >>>yourusername oh it wasn't me! Stella said she wanted to learn how to ski, next thing I know he's booking a 2 week trip to Switzerland! >>>landonorris what my girl wants, my girl gets. 🤷🏻

Christmas, 2025 "Momma, are you sure Santa knows to bring my presents here this year and to not leave them at home?" The concern etched on Stella's face has you grinning into your wine glass.

"Yes, my darling." You assure her, patting her head as she snuggles deeper into Lando's side. "I wrote him a letter weeks ago, remember? You were with me when we mailed it! When you wake up tomorrow morning, all of your presents will be underneath that tree right over there."

This had been Stella's number one concern ever since Lando had announced that he'd booked a house at one of the most exclusive resorts in Gstaad, Switzerland for the Christmas holiday. You had spent a significant amount of time since discussing the fact that yes, Santa did know she wasn't going to be at home this year and yes, he would be able to deliver her presents here instead.

You had been in the mountain town for a few days now, spending nearly every waking moment on the slopes. It was beginning to feel routine, the way you all woke up around the same time and had breakfast together before getting your snow gear on and heading out onto the mountain. You had enrolled Stella in ski school that first day, despite Lando's protests that he could absolutely teach her to ski by himself, and she was thriving. It took a Herculean effort to get her off of her skis every evening but you were happy Stella was having fun.

Today you had managed to get Stella off the mountain early in order to go to dinner with Max and Pietra, who were also staying at the resort for Christmas. Max's initial reservations about Lando dating a single mom had long since evaporated into thin air, after he had seen how much both Stella and Lando adored each other this year. By the middle of the summer, you and Pietra had also become much closer as well, so you enjoyed traveling with Lando's friends who you now considered yours as well.

There was a crackling fire in the huge fireplace that took up most of the external wall of the large four bedroom chalet-style home and above the fireplace, Elf played on the tv. Stella was snuggled up between you and Lando, her head buried underneath Lando's arm, while her feet were stretched across your lap. Lando's arm is flung over the side of the couch, his fingers tangled in yours as his thumb brushes soft circles over the back of your hand. After a few days with a lot of activity, it felt nice to finally spend the evening relaxing in the quiet of your own space.

As the credits to Elf begin to roll, you tap Stella's feet, a signal that it's time to get moving. "Come on, baby girl, it's time for bed. Go brush your teeth and then I'll be in to read more of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and tuck you in, okay? The sooner you get to sleep, the faster Santa comes!"

Stella stretches out her legs and whines, sounding a lot like a cat after it wakes up from a long nap. "I want Dad to tuck me in tonight."

The entire world goes still as you suck in a breath at the name she just used for the very first time. On the other side of the couch, you see Lando freeze too, gaze snapping straight to you as his fingers tighten around yours. The request has your heart squeezing in your chest, a response to her question simply unable to form in your brain.

Stella senses the mood shift in the room and glances up first at you and then over at Lando. "What? Can't Daddy tuck me in just this once?"

Daddy.

Lando's stomach does a somersault up into his throat as he grips onto your hand for reassurance. Had she just...

It really shouldn't have been a surprise, he'd realize later once Stella was fast asleep and you were curled up in his arms in your shared bed. Ever since Silverstone back in July, Lando had practically moved in to your house in all but name. He'd decided to rent out his Monaco apartment to one of the new rookie drivers next season, choosing to remain full time in England where you were. The teachers and parents at school all knew him not as Lando Norris, Formula 1 driver but as the man that often picked up Stella from school whenever he was able to. Stella's teacher had even begun including him on her weekly email newsletters she always sent out on Friday afternoons. He was as ingratiated into this family as both you and Stella were.

But hearing her call him dad for the first time? The new title did something to Lando's heart that he wasn't sure he'd ever recover from.

Emotion claws at his throat as he struggles to find the simple words to answer her request.

"Of course he can, honey." You whisper, seeing the shock and adoration sit heavy on Lando's face. Your own voice is with thick with emotion too. "Do you need help finding some jammies to change into?" You ask as Stella slowly gets up from her little nest between you and Lando.

"Dad can help me." She says with a shrug, as if the name is the most natural thing in the world.

Lando moves to get off the couch as Stella pads down the hallway, the brand new teddy bear she had conned him into buying at a shop today tucked into the crook of her elbow. He squeezes your shoulder as you look up at him, brilliant smile stretching over your face.

"You okay?" You ask as he rounds the couch, following behind Stella, dazed look still on his face.

Lando rubs at the back of his neck, stopping for a moment before turning back to you. His eyes shimmer with tears as he glances behind him and then back at you. "I think so...is...is that okay with you? Her calling me..." He pauses, trying to work his mouth around the next word, "dad like that?"

You're surprised to see concern flit across his face, like you could possibly be upset at what had just happened. "Lando." You murmur, rising from the couch to stand in front of him. You slip your arms around his neck, pulling him in for a kiss. His lips are warm despite the fact that his kiss is hesitant at first. He quickly reads the emotion you pour into him though: confidence, love, desire. All of it positive and he knows without needing to hear anything vocalized that you're just happy about his new title as he is.

You tuck your head into his neck, nuzzling at the warm spot you love so much. "She loves you so much and so do I. You're the best thing that could have ever happened to us, Lando Norris."

Lando chuckles. "I think it's the opposite way around, my love. You two are the best thing that could have ever happened to me."

"DAAAAAAD" From the end of the hall, Stella's little voice calls out and you both can't help the laugh that pulls you apart. "I'm waaaaaaiting!!! Stop kissing Momma and come read to me!" She demands.

"The Princess awaits." Lando mutters before giving you one last peck on the cheek and turning away to walk down the hall towards Stella's room.

Over an hour later and you're 2 glasses of wine deeper than you were when Lando left you, still sitting alone on the couch. You're beginning to think he's fallen asleep putting Stella to bed only because you've done the same thing countless amounts of times over the years when you hear the door to her room whisper open.

"You were in there a long time." You murmur as Lando sits down on the couch before he pulls you into his lap. You set the wine glass down on the side table next to you so you can wrap your arms around his neck, pulling him closer to you.

"Stella and I had some things to discuss." He says lightly.

Lando's body relaxes as he tucks his head into your neck. If there's one thing you adore about your boyfriend you'll adore until the ends of time it's how affectionate he is. He's always touching you when you're near and he never gives half-hearted hugs, they're something he pours his full body into. The same goes with cuddling, it's never halfway with Lando when it comes to physical affection and you simply cannot ever get enough.

"Oh?" You laugh, grinning at him. "And what are you two plotting now?"

Lando shifts, glancing away as if he's nervous to answer your question. "Stella calling me dad just had me thinking about things..."

You lift an eyebrow. "Things?"

"Yeah" Lando nods. He takes a deep breath and pulls you closer into his chest. "I just got to thinking and maybe it’s time we make things official."

"What are you talking about?" Confusion has you pulling away from him so you can look at him. There's a small smile playing at the corner of his mouth and you have to resist the urge to kiss him, despite the fact that you are fully lost as to what he's talking about. "You’ve been calling me your girlfriend for months now?"

He chuckles, shaking his head. "No, I mean official official. With this." Lando lifts his hips off the couch and pulls out a black velvet box from his pocket. For the second time that night, your heart stalls in your chest, world tilting a bit on its axis.

"Lan." You whisper before sucking in a breath as he opens the top of the ring box. Nestled in the black velvet sits the most gorgeous ring you'd ever laid eyes on. It's simple and perfect and something you would have picked out on your own had you been let loose in a jewelry store.

"Marry me, baby." Lando's voice is thick, anxiety and nerves evident in every syllable that comes out of his mouth. "I never want to go back to a world where you and Stella aren't in my life. Stella sees me as her dad, I hope you can see me as your husband and father of the rest of our babies one day. I love you so much l. Spend the rest of your life with me?

It's a wonder the sound of your heart clattering against your ribcage doesn't wake Stella up it's so loud. Blood rushes past your ears so loudly, the sounds of the house are muffled for a moment and all you can do is stare at Lando. He doesn't move, a look of anxiety and love and hundreds of other emotions sitting so plainly on his face you can barely form a thought.

"Of course. Oh my god. Of course." Your right hand finds his cheek and you frame his face with your hand as he takes your left hand before slipping the ring on your finger. A perfect fit.

"Yeah?" A wash of relief crashes over Lando because for a moment he thought you were about to reject him.

When he had finished reading a chapter of Stella's book to her, he had as casually as he could brought up the idea of them being a family for real next year. Stella had been a bit confused, asking him if the weren't already a real family but Lando had quickly explained he meant he wanted to marry you but only if Stella thought that was a good idea because she was part of their family too and what she thought mattered to him just as much as what you thought.

You nod, laughing through your tears before crashing your lips to his in a heated kiss. "Yeah." You mutter against his mouth.

"I was going to do this tomorrow morning" Lando pulls away, glancing down at your hand that's still captured between his. "But it just felt right tonight. Stella was so excited, she started asking what kind of dress she’d get to wear at the wedding."

"Oh Lando." You coo before you allow him to lay you down on the couch, kissing you as he goes.

yourusername (private) posted

123 likes liked by BFFSarah, CarlosSainz, yourdad, and others yourusername mrs. norris has a nice ring to it, doesn't it? 😘 BFFSarah OH. MY. GOD. I'm sobbing. Bestie. I love you. I love him. I love Stella. I'm so happy for you!!! >>>yourusername ❤��❤️❤️ thank you babes >>>BFFSarah sorry, back again to tell you holy SHIT that ring!! @/landonorris you did good!! >>>landonorris why thank you! ☺️

landonorris posted

1,098,874 likes liked by yourusername, mclaren, zakbrownceo, and others landonorris santa can't compete with my present this year zakbrownceo congratulations to both of you!!! we'll have to throw a little party when you're back in the new year! >>>yourusername thanks zak!! you are too good to us! user009 the gold digger got what she wanted...how long til she's knocked up with baby number 2? gotta get that bag somehow... >>>user221 seriously. bro fell for the oldest trick in the book. fucking gross. >>>user223 hey so this is a fucking WILD thing to say about someone you don't even know so publicly. JESUS. user928 OH MY GOD THEY'RE ENGAGED user230 we're going to get dad lando content FOREVER >>>user929 the way i live for stella/lando content and now we get even MORE??? Yes please!!!

@shelbyteller @formulaal @martygraciesversion381 @longhairkoo @samantha-chicago @stelena-klayley @dark-night-sky-99 @luckylampzonkland @chlmtfilms @aykxz98 @forensicheart @cheer-bear-go-vroom @lieutenantchaos @willowsnook @linnygirl09 @meglouise00 @mixedstyles @secret-agents-stole-my-bunnies @mrosales16 @charlesgirl16 @leclercdream @daemyratwst @dramaticpiratellamas @mochimommy2002 @llando4norris @chelseyyouraverageluigi @iamaunknownsecret @maxivstappen @imlonelydontsendhelp @nina-or-anna-or-nora @a1leexxa @littlegrapejuice @sunflowervol18 @freyathehuntress @finn-dot-com @swiftie-4-lifes-stuff @chirasama @lauralarsen @dr3wstarkey @saskiaalonso @mindless-rock @piastri-fvx @mel164 @schumi-angel @myescapefromthislife @supertrashbread @sunny44 @tinystudentblaze-stuff

[sirenreading]

Sweet girl (Part 1)

pairing : Javier Peña x f!reader

rating : T

word count : 638

warning : age gap (legal), flirting, just a kiss, mentions of food/eating, farm life, massage(f! receiving)

A/N : i wrote like 3 fics in a day and now i have enough to post for a whole week, sorry for lacking on pedro fics, i’ve run out of ideas😭writing is hardd

part 2

You watched from the other side of the farm as Javier walked through. He’d just finished feeding all the chickens and was heading inside to make breakfast for the three of you.

Javier had just arrived back in Texas from all his business with the narcos just two weeks ago. Chucho had hired you right after you finished your studies and had moved around for the summer. Ever since he got back, it’s been nothing but heart eyes between the two of you. You had to admit you had a slight crush on the older man, but he probably had plenty of women waiting for him back in Columbia. You didn’t stand a chance.

You put on your robe, still leaving it so you could see some of your bare skin, and made your way to the main house, the smell of bacon and pancakes hitting your nose. It smelled delicious.

“Morning, Javi.”

“Darling, I got you.” he placed a plate of chocolate chip pancakes in front of you, your favorite.

“How’d you know?”

“Ah, an old man told me you’d cook them for him all the time while I was away, told me you were the best damn cook he’s head around to.”

“I told him you could be better than me, but we’ll put it to that theory when the time comes.” You both chuckled. You heard Chucho’s loud feet as he made his way down the stairs.

“I smell food, and please tell me that you made it and not my son here.”

“Sorry to disappoint.”

“Thank god you didn’t burn the house done, son, But you.” Chucho pointed to you, “need to cook for us tomorrow, show this man who runs the house now.”

“I’ll be on it the first time tomorrow.” You wiggled your eyebrows at Javi as you took another bite at your pancakes.

*

That afternoon you sat in your room fresh from the bath you took to relax your body from the hard labor. Running a farm is like having many little children around. You felt like your body could break at any moment.

You look in the mirror as you hear a knock on your door.

You told them to enter, and you turned as you saw Javier come in through your mirror.

“Javi, what do I owe the pleasure at almost 11 pm?”

“Wanted to come to check up on you, make sure you didn’t break anything, saw you out there today, this farm shit, ain’t easy, one of the reasons I was glad to get out.”

“And chasing drug dealers and murders down is easier?” You chuckled at him, and he raised his hands as if you’d caught him in a lie.

“But I just wanted to come to check up on you, and You need anything?”

“ Well, my arms feel as if they might fall off. Do we have any cream or anything I could rub on them?”

“Let me help you with that.” Before you knew it, Javi was right beside you, turning you back to face the mirror. You watched in the reflection as you lowered the oversized t-shirt you worse below your shoulders and began to rub them.

It felt incredible, as if all the stress from the day was being washed away with a straightforward motion.

You closed your eyes from the feeling of bliss, only opening them when you felt his hot breath on your neck. Seeing him so close, you turned your head looking into his eyes before placing a kiss on his soft lips.

When you pulled away, the look of shock flushed both of your faces.

“I’m sorry I shouldn’t hav-.”

“It’s fine, goodnight Javier.”

He had closed the door behind you. All you could do was feel the heat in your cheeks warming, touching your lips once more.

taglist :

@anaaaispunk @peach-child @jedifarmerr @miraclesabound @marvel-ingatbucky @greeneyedblondie44 @pedrosbrat @allthe-ships @thevoiceinyourheadx @donnaa @andistrurgss

@lafresamilk @athalien @rosie-posie08 @wyofabdoms @frankiemoraleswifexo

[managingmymuse]

employment

for writer's month day 2: coffeeshop AU

(original work, time-traveler universe)

No one in my family had ever really had a job.

We worked, of course. Running the farm was an entire summer's worth of back-breaking labor. Our portion of the homestead, too, required a lot of work to keep and maintain. When we were away, in another town or another century, we took on odd jobs to keep ourselves fed. In the pre-industrial age, my mother and sister and I took on laundry and mending, while my brother and my father hired themselves out as hands. Sometimes we'd stay for a week, other times for a whole season, but no matter where or when we were, there was always work to be found.

But that was the pre-industrial age. I was beginning to discover that the twentieth century was a lot harder to work around.

"Do you have your social security card?" the woman behind the counter asked.

I was standing in the pleasantly blank hallways of a large department store. The carpet was a dingy peach, and the walls had a magic-eye-like pattern to them. The faint sounds of classical music drifted through the air, piped in from a speaker that I hadn't yet been able to locate.

I shifted uneasily on my feet. "My what?"

"Your social security card," she said. "It's a blue card about this big." She held up her thumb and forefingers about three inches apart. "It's a government document."

"I don't think I have one," I said slowly.

The woman behind the counter popped her gum. "Sure you do. Everyone has one. It's probably at your parents' house."

"Right," I said, already thinking of how I could lay my hands on someone else's. "Can I call them and get back to you?"

"You sure can." The woman blew another bubble and removed the clipboard containing my half filled out job application. "You don't need to start today, do you?"

"I can't start without the card?" I asked. "Really?"

"Yeah," she said. She gave me a sympathetic smile. "It's corporate policy. We get in big trouble if we hire you without it. But don't worry, we've got tons of available positions. Come back with it by next week, and we'll start you on the floor. Okay?"

I pressed my hands flat against the counter, struggling to take deep breaths. "I don't think I'm going to be able to get the card that fast," I said. "My parents... they live out of state."

"They haven't lost it, have they?"

I shrugged. "I have no idea."

The woman stared at me over the counter. Her jaw worked furiously, but her eyes held sympathy. "You can always write to the records office where you were born if your mom can't find it," she said. "Though that's going to take longer."

"I really need this job," I said. "I can't... I don't know if I can wait a week.

The woman tilted her head to the side. I don't know if she sensed my desperation or not, but she must have felt bad for me, because she pressed up on her toes, looking out into the empty hall behind me before rummaging around on the counter for a piece of paper.

"Okay," she said. "You didn't hear this from me, but I've got a friend in town. Her name's Sherri. She owns a little place down by the university. Java and Jams. You ever heard of it?"

I shook my head, and the woman wrote down an address. "Sherri's got a bit of a bleeding heart. You tell her you've got no papers, and she'll probably take you on."

"You think she has a job for me?"

"Fall term is set to start in another week," the woman said. "I know she's got a job from you." She smiled brightly. "Tell her Karen sent you."

"Karen," I said.

She pointed to her name tag and smiled again. "That's right. You take care now, dear. And if you do get your card and you still want to a job, well, give me a call."

She extended a card to me along with the paper she'd written the address on.

"I... thank you," I said.

"No trouble," she said.

Behind me, the sound of footsteps heralded the arrival of someone else. Karen straightened up, smoothing her vest down over her shirt. "Well, miss, if that will be all?"

I glanced at the corner, and a man, heavy-set and wearing a thick tie, came into view. Karen's manager, if the squinty look in his eye and his name badge was to believed. "Thanks for your help," I said, before disappearing down the crowded aisles of the store.

It was a forty minute walk from the mall to the university district in the center of town. On an ordinary day, I would have hated it. But today it gave me some time to think.

Some time to think about how screwed I was, that is. I'd been in the 1985 for three days now, and already my supply of emergency rations was running dry. I hadn't planned to come here, so I didn't have any kind of modern currency on my person. Before my jump, I'd been in pre-colonial America, and the things the Iroquois had traded-- corn and squash and tobacco-- wouldn't get me anything here.

(Also, they were precious difficult to carry; say what you will about the modern capitalist economy, but it did make emergency funds easy to carry around).

I'd lucked into a place to stay, an apartment that was, blessedly, vacant. But if the calendar on the wall was to be believed, the professors that lived there would be coming back, and soon. I had to find a new place to stay, and enough money to buy it with. Not to mention a little extra to buy some food to eat.

My stomach rumbled even as I thought about it, and the sound tempted me to just jump home. To find a nice, shadowy alleyway, cross my fingers, and jump. But even as my stomach begged me to do it, my mind pulled back on the idea.

It wasn't that I didn't have the juice for it; after three days' rest, I had the stamina to jump back five hundred years at least, let alone a paltry one hundred. But the last time I'd jumped, Micah had found me. Not after an hour or a day or a week, but immediately. Within moments of my arrival.

I supposed I was lucky he hadn't turned up here. That I hadn't turned a corner and run smack into him. But even though I was in the clear-- for now-- I couldn't help but worry that by jumping to the Homestead, I was endangering everyone within it. Turning our only safe haven into a trap we couldn't escape.

A shiver rolled down my spine, even in the afternoon spine. I'd jumped with with Micah literally on top of me that last time. His knee had held me down while his hands wrapped around my neck. If I'd been anyone else-- my brother, or my mother, even -- I'd be dead now. I would have been too drained from the last jump to jump away.

But I was a freak among freaks. Damaged almost too far for repair. I screamed and kicked and fought, and somehow I drew in just enough air to pull it down into my middle. To speak the words to send me away.

I hadn't been terribly concerned with where at the time. I certainly hadn't been thinking of 1985. But apparently my subconscious was ready for hair bands and spandex, because here I was.

It wasn't a bad place to be, I told myself, as I turned onto the coffee shop's street. It could have been worse.

The coffee shop was tucked away in a Tudor-style building that looked more like a home than a shop. Though it stood on a relatively busy street, it had a front garden fit for the suburbs. Wildflowers grew in great plumes on either side of the walk. A sign hanging from a wooden post in the yard read "Java and Jams."

I sighed and started for the door.

At nearly four o'clock in the afternoon, the place was almost empty. A man sat behind a bistro table in a corner reading a book and nursing a cup of coffee. A woman with frizzy red hair in a bun swept the floor in the middle of the room.

She looked up when I entered and set the broom down. "Need an afternoon pick me up?" she asked. "Today's special is the Colombian blend."

I wrinkled my nose. "No, no thank you. Are you Sherri?"

She wiped her hands on her apron, red and splattered with what looked like foam. "Who's asking?"

"I'm Allison," I said, putting a hand over her chest. "Karen sent me. From the mall."

Sherri tilted her head to the side, and the resemblance between the women instantly resolved itself. Sisters. They were sisters. "You looking for a job?"

"If you're hiring," I said. "I didn't see a sign."

"I don't advertise much," Sherri said. She sighed and moved behind the counter. "What was wrong with the mall? Don't you want to work in that over air-conditioned tundra?"

I risked a smile and stepped closer. "Karen said she would hire me if I came back with my social security card," I said. "But I... I don't think I have one."

Sherri's eyes flashed wide in alarm. She glanced over my shoulder at the man in the corner. He was still deeply absorbed in his book. "Well then. Have you ever worked in a coffee shop before?"

I suspected that doling out cups to hungry miners in California didn't count. "I've done some food service before with my family," I said. "But not coffee."

"Well." Sherri sucked on her teeth, looking me up and down. She must have decided something, because she nodded once, fiercely. "You seem a good sort. I can give you a try. We can fit in two weeks of training before the poets come back."

"The poets?" I asked.

Sherri's lips spread into a broad, genuine smile. "That's who mostly comes in here, in the first weeks of term. It's poets and novelists, starving and otherwise. They come to discuss literature and human misery. It's all quite dramatic."

I gaped at her, but the sparkle didn't leave Sherri's eyes. "We'll have college students later in the term, too," she said. "They don't usually show up until they've got midterms, though. Are you at the university?"

I shook my head. "Not yet."

Sherri looked at me, thoughtfully. "Well then. Two week trial. Cash okay? We'll do under the table unless you've got a bank."

A sigh of relief bubbled up from my stomach. "Cash is great," I said. "When can I start?"

Sherri untied her apron, pulled it off her neck, and offered it to me. "Right now. There's only an hour until we close up-- summer hours and all that-- but I think I can run you through the basics. Does that work?"

I tied the apron behind my back. "That works," I said. "That works really well."

[shark-myths]

Writing Reflection: 2018

I was tagged by @horsegirlharry, who i will smooch in person in ONE WEEK! 

1. Number of stories (including drabbles) posted to AO3: 15. I'm trying not to feel critical about my output this year: I was distracted by ~boy problems and emotional turmoil for a lot of 2018, so I absolutely slayed some journals but neglected my fic. but I also tackled some difficult projects, some of which I'm really proud of, and translated a lot of those big emotions back into writing, so there's a lot to give myself credit for.

2. Word count posted for the year: 224,001

3. List of works published this year (in order of posting)

Roman Candle Hearts

I'm A Wing, I'm A Prayer

The Five Point Palm Exploding Heart Technique

your hips, your lips, are mine

in space, no one can hear you misgender me

Girl Firsts

halfway to your heart (starting from your knees)

Boys Next Door/Assholes

Vices & Vices

Early Morning Company

Jaws of Death

Baby You're A Haunted House

The Fixed Stars of Heaven

Sell Out Girl

Think of All The Fellas I Haven't Kissed

4. Fandoms I wrote for: Fall Out Boy, Battlestar Galactica, Panic! at the Disco, My Chemical Romance

5. Pairings: Pete/Patrick, Starbuck/Apollo, Pete/Brendon, Brendon/Ryan, Patrick/Michael Day, Frank Iero/Gerard Way, Joe/Andy

6. Story with the most:

Boys Next Door/Assholes, aka the peterick SUMMER BOYFRIENDS au, aka the fic I wrote about falling in love with my ex that captures the sweetness and suffering of new summer love in a very specific and tactile way. It has the most hits, kudos, and comments of anything I wrote in 2018. I'm so glad you guys loved it so much!

9. Work I’m most proud of (and why):

Sell Out Girl, the sequel to girl out boy, is incredibly important to me and I'm so fucking proud of how it turned out. emotionally, i am prouder of the girl out boy stories  than anything else i've ever done. girlfic is how I am cleaning my wounds and healing my heart, and it is an honor to be doing that with you walking alongside me, and being touched and changed too. this fic was incredibly emotionally demanding but also, on a technical level, easy: there was lots of rambly internal monologues and angst, glitter-sharp language and poetical pain, which is my comfort zone as a writer for sure.

on a technical and writerly level, the one I'm most proud of is Baby You're A Haunted House, because i wrote it *fast*, in a fandom I'm not comfortable or familiar in, in a style I don't usually use, and to achieve a very specific artistic effect with the unreliable narrator and shifting sands of reality, while heartbroken. so I'm pleased as fuck with how it came out. it's one of my favorite things I've written in the past several years, and the perfect kind of challenge for me.

10. Work I’m least proud of (and why):

ugh, The Fixed Stars of Heaven . I usually love everything I write, but my experience of writing this fic was terrible. I was never inspired (except when researching the ISS and zero-g botany!) and the epistolary format meant I didn’t know how to develop the kind of tension I *live* for. the whole time I was writing, I didn’t go back and reread (a typical part of my process for matching tone) because I loathed it so much! I kept saying “well, something has to be my worst story” about it... and I still feel that way.

11. A favorite excerpt of your writing:

It's impossible to choose--I like my writing a lot, that's why I write the way i do. all of Baby You're A Haunted House and I'm A Wing, I'm A Prayer are beautiful to me; the love letter Pete writes in Boys Next Door/Assholes; and the whole bathtub scene from chapter 5 of Sell Out Girl, of which this is the very best part:

“Pete is safe and warm and submerged, an egg in a mermaid’s purse, waiting to swim out as a shark whenever she’s ready. She holds her breath and feels her baby beat within her. She looks up at Pat and fears nothing, nothing but love.”

12. Share or describe a favorite review you received:

every review I get makes impact on my heart. I take screenshots and save my favorites; you guys bolster me and keep me going. The best and most important reactions are the ones I get on Girl Out Boy stuff, and the outpouring of fanworks and support means the world to me. especially the way you guys showed up for and stood with me during my difficult breakup this year—wow. I love you so much.

my favorite reviews I’ve gotten this year have been a few different people who told me I was skilled at capturing the feeling of falling in love. as a feelings-and-process oriented romance writer, that means the world to me! I never know what plots my stories are going to have (my characters always surprise me), but I always know how I want a fic to feel. I’m never more honored than when you feel it too.

13. A time when writing was really, really hard:

during the slow-motion process of one of my romantic relationships coming apart in September and October! I was so anxious and keyed up and self-obsessed and miserable during that time, I literally couldn’t bear to write, and when I tried I just kept wrecking the Girl Out Boys’ lives. you guys carried me through.

14. A scene or character you wrote that surprised you:

I don’t want to spoil Sell Out Girl, but a ship I don’t typically ship popped up and I went with it, and I was exactly as surprised as everyone reading that it happened and that it felt so right and good!

15. How did you grow as a writer this year:

i tried new types of projects, like the fucking epistolary scifi fic, a flash fiction exercise, the unreliable narrator trope, and sequels. i wrote in a couple fandoms I'm less comfortable in, fairly often off of other people's prompts. I am trying to hone a cleaner writing style: I spend so much time lost and rambly in describing how characters feel, my stories lose a lot of chances for action and motion. i like my writing best when it is spare and vivid, able to actually evoke emotions rather than just tell you what they feel like. i think some of my fic this year really showcases that (like Vices & Vices ). i still grow so much as a writer, and learn so much about the craft, with each work.

i used an editing and revision process for Fixed Stars of Heaven, thanks to my dear friend JM, that i don't usually subject my work to. i also wrote through a project i was not enjoying, rather than dropping it as soon as my interest waned. my discipline as a wild, reckless writer is, slowly but surely, improving.

i wrote through my own shitty emotionally abusive relationship with a parent through the character of Andy in sell out girl, and got better at naming trauma and abuse and setting my own boundaries as a result of that.

i started reading (and a little bit writing) poetry again.

16. How do you hope to grow next year:

oh, i can't see that road! i hope i grow in ways i never expected cuz i'm faced with challenges in my work i could never have anticipated. generically, i hope i keep tightening my style and improving my discipline, and getting better at defending regular writing time.

17. Who was your greatest positive influence this year as a writer (could be another writer or beta or cheerleader or muse etc etc):

- i read only works by women for the entire year of 2018, and the nourishing impact of that on my entire inner life cannot be overstated. i didn't even read a comic book or a work book if it was written by a man. i kept myself entirely pure of the labor of perspective-taking for men, or subjecting myself to men's conception of anybody else's experiential reality.

- @leyley09 my official Fic Enabler, who is SINGULARLY AND SOLEY to blame for at least two fics this year, and has encouraged my very worst ideas about a hundred more

- my unofficial cheerleading squad family on tumblr, who lifted me up and made sure i was healthy, supported, and well through my whole shitty relationship ending debacle. @glitterandrocketfuel, @secretstudentdragonblog, @allkindsofplatinumandpercocet, and @laudanumcafe -- not to mention every other beauty who commented on my sad-ass selfies or my fic. thank you, my loves.

18. Anything from your real life show up in your writing this year:

EVERYTHING IS REAL

most notable and egregious examples:

- the letter pete writes for patrick in boys next door/assholes is a real love letter i gave someone

- the fight brendon and ryan have in vices & vices is a real fight i had with a partner

- the climactic kiss on the streets of new york at the end of sell out girl is my real first kiss with my new boo

the worst thing is that i don't generally farm my *past* life for my fic--everything that shows up is really recent and fresh, because i'm most interested in writing things i'm currently dealing with and experiencing. and yes, i especially steal the sex scenes.

19. Any new wisdom you can share with other writers:

be curious about yourself and your characters. if you've never written / published in a serial format, where you're only writing a week or so ahead of posting, you must try it at least once! listen to what your readers are noticing about your themes and characters! i learn so much about my the emotional resonance and direction of my stories from the people who read them and comment. my writing is so much stronger as a result of writing the majority of my work this way, and i have much more fun with it than when i write a long piece in an echo chamber with no input from you guys!

20. Any projects you’re looking forward to starting (or finishing) in the new year:

- i'm working on a Rent-A-Family trope + law firm AU + kidfic thing i started messing with last year

- Pete Wentz's Bisexual Realizations, a fic dreamed up and playlist-empowered by @nikadd

- a Venom AU for my beloved @immoral-crow

- Girl Out Boy hiatus fic

- and a MANIA anniversary surprise <3

21. Tag some writers whose answers you’d like to read.

all of my Peterick creator pals! @leyley09 @shatteredmirrors-and-lace23 @allkindsofplatinumandpercocet @laudanumcafe @glitterandrocketfuel and everyone/anyone else!

[littleredroseonthevalley]

Red Rose - Chapter 16

Prologue Ch. 1 Ch. 2 Ch. 3 Ch. 4 Ch. 5 Ch. 6 Ch. 7 Ch. 8 Ch. 9 Ch. 10 Ch. 11Ch. 12 Ch. 13 Ch. 14 Ch. 15 CH. 16

Summary: Riley manages the fallback from the hedgemaze fiasco, but she’s soon reminded that there’s no dull moment in Cordonia, as Tariq barges into her room and her and Drake have a moment.

Rating: M -  Not suitable for children or teens below the age of 16 with non-explicit suggestive adult themes, references to some violence, or coarse language.

Theodora sat at her dresser, brushing her thick, platinum blonde mane. Puberty has done her very well, with her skin as fair and spotless as it was at her birth, the hourglass figure and the harmonious breast also being God-given gifts. Her eyes were cold and cutting as a knife.

That night, they shone in determination.

“Promises are made, promises are broken.” She told to her own reflection. “Well, father, two can play at that game.”

She took off the brush from her hair and placed the richly-engraved brush back into the dresser drawer. She then rose from the chair and walked over to her closet. She took some clothes from the racks and threw them at a bag open at the door. She then proceeded to change her blue dress into a pair of pants, a shirt and a green parka.

All dressed, she threw the bag over her shoulders and sneaked off to her parents’ room. At that time of day, it was predictably empty. Behind a painting, lay a safe, and the code was 1918.

Inside the safe, there was cash, jewels, and most importantly, a hostage for her escape operation.

She refused to end up like her parents and siblings. She refused living that odious life. There it was a passport for another life, another herself.

Theodora threw everything inside the bag and sneaked her way into the house’s backdoor.

Half an hour later, safely on a train going away from the life she knew, she took a deep breath. Relief washed her lithe body.

Escape seemed at hand’s reach.

Applewood, Neokastron, Cordonia, Fall 2015

“Oh, God.” Riley bemoaned. “I’m so screwed.”

“This does hamper our initial plans, yes.” Charlotte noted. “We would stay in Cordonia until Theophany, and, when Liam did not pick you, we would have a good reason to leave. Riley would be killed off in some tragic accident a few months later, and that would be that.

“What we didn’t count on is the fact that you want to stay.”

“No matter, we are sticking with our original plan.” Riley said, determined. “Regardless of what I may be feeling about Liam or about anyone else, there is no way I can stay in Cordonia come February. Even if the impossible happens and Liam does choose me.”

“But there is a way.” Charlotte said, thoughtful. “Think about it: your story held uncontested up until now, even with the security services looking thoroughly into it. I doubt anyone except perhaps the MI-5 or the CIA could blow it now, much less some lowly yellow press, sketch of a reporter. And that’s only in the first few months, once the rage of your marriage passes, they stop snooping on the dirty secrets of your past and start snooping on the dirty secrets of your present.

“You have files of the marriage of Amara Grey and Brennan Flowers, the latter of whom died without any relatives to say you weren’t related to them, and the former is so deep in this as yourself, she won’t blab or else she’ll be packing to a federal prison.

“You planted school records in not one, not two, but in three different institutions, you swapped the yearbooks from the library in Cedar Cove, and all your supposed colleagues seem to remember a shy, quiet student at the corner they don’t quite remember the name of.

“You fed a fake Facebook for years, for Christ’s sakes!” Charlotte exasperated. “Honestly, if I didn’t know you, if I didn’t know you were lying, I would fucking think you were really Riley Flowers.”

Riley weighed what has been said by Charlotte, and she had to give her a point, by now there is no conceivable way for her to be discovered, not by the Cordonian court, and not if she didn’t screw up. However, one thing weighed heavily on her mind: “What about Karen and Ludwig?”

“Riley, my promise holds regardless of you deciding to be a queen or not. A week in February, and you’ll be free.” Charlotte said, in all seriousness. “We could tell everybody you were off to New York tying up some loose ends, we could even have Amara backing up these claims.”

Riley grumbled. “It still don’t change what happened today. Liam and I still had this huge fight, and we both said things we shouldn’t have, even if we did meant them.”

“Hey, sweetie, do you still have your journals?” Charlotte asked.

“My journals?” Riley said, confused.

“When you were younger, every time you got upset, you used to write your feelings away. Don’t you do that anymore?”

Then it dawned on her. Her notebooks. She used to write on them every day, as in to chase away the feelings of loneliness and fear from getting caught by the Rosenbergs. She remembered to take them to Cordonia, but she hadn’t touched a single one of them ever since she left New York.

Riley rummaged her trunk and pulled out six leather-bound notebooks. “Here they are. All the way back from the time I moved to New York.”

“Now, why don’t you give them to Liam as an apology gift?” Charlotte proposed.

“What?” Riley shouted. “Are you insane?!”

“Why not? I know you are paranoid enough not to put any names on those, and yet they are personal enough for him to see you’re making an effort to reach out. Besides, they’re the most genuine piece of yourself we can afford to give him right now.”

“That… That…” Riley stuttered while the wheels of her brain turned. “That might be actually a good idea.”

“I’m full of those today.” Charlotte said, smugly. “Now, come, we have to re-do your make-up and accessorize with this dress. Lord, for as much Bertrand is a stick-in-the-mud, he really has no sense of style!”

Riley giggled. “He really don’t. All that ‘country lord’ look of his isn’t working on his favor.”

New York City, Summer 1979

Melissa payed her cabby and got out of the car. Her meager belongings, mostly clothing, were packed into a small, black bag.

She had just arrived from the airport, she was at her parents’ home, in Georgia, and it certainly did not end her way. Not that she really blames them, she had thrown them a bomb.

She had met Kristijan during her internship at the United Nations. She was working under the Spanish ambassador, while Kristijan was a guard to Lord Talmai Bartholomaios, the Cordonian envoy.

They had met when he helped her when she got lost on her way to a meeting at the UN. He had been posted there for over three years and could probably walk through those halls in his sleep. He had a rare afternoon off, as Lord Bartholomaios was otherwise engaged, so, after her meeting, they went out for a coffee and became friends.

After some outings through the city, they started dating. It was a whirlwind romance, one she threw herself into head first.

However, Labor Day was just around the corner, and Lord Bartholomaios was due to return to Cordonia, and Kristijan is supposed to go with. He had told her his ‘commander’, the head of the security services he wasn’t allowed to disclose, was impressed with his work, and offered him a superior position, one that required him to move back to his homeland, permanently.

Facing the possibility of never seeing each other again, Kristijan proposed to Melissa last Friday night. She said she had to talk it over with her family first and promised him an answer the following Monday.

Today.

She used the card key Kristijan had given her and waltzed into the hotel. She went up to his floor and knocked on his door.

He answers her with a grin and a: “Melissa, you’re back!”

“Let’s do it, Kristijan!” She said, overwhelmed. “Let’s go to Cordonia! Let’s get married!”

She didn’t give him time to respond, as she kissed him passionately.

It might be against every ounce of reason in her body, but Melissa Walker was in love.

Applewood, Neokastron, Cordonia, Fall 2015

An hour later, Riley snuck off to Liam’s chambers. No-one saw her, as the servants were busy with preparations for the party downstairs, while the noblepeople were in their rooms dressing up.

She knocked three times, slow and steadily, waiting for a response. After a moment, a tortured ‘Enter!’ was heard from the other side of the heavy, engraved doors.

Prompted, she pushed the heavy doors weakly, as if she was afraid of it disturbing someone’s sleep. The room behind it looked the part, as its thick curtains were drawn, letting none of the sunset light into the room. The bed was also disheveled, as if none of the servants remembered to make it that morning.

Sat on a chair, with his back turned to the door, sat Liam. He had a glass on his hand and a tumbler on the coffee table in front of him, the brown color of the liquid suggested it was bourbon.

“If you came here to tell me I should be getting ready for dinner, pass along the message to my father I will be out shortly.” His tired voice rasped through the room.

“I did not come here to tell you that.” Riley said, in a meek tone. “Though, I can try to reach the King.”

“Riley!” The blond exclaimed, turning to see her. “What are you doing here?”

The woman sighed. “I came here to talk. To apologize, actually. I said some things I shouldn’t have, and I overreacted a little about… that.”

He gaped. “No, no, you were right, I shouldn’t have read that file. I just got scared and did something stupid, and when you caught me, I got scared again and just made everything worse. I should be the one to apologize.”

“Let’s agree we were both on the wrong, then.” She offered. “Regardless, I haven’t been doing a very good job of soothing your worries. You felt the need to read that file because I don’t talk about the past often, and while you’ve never asked, I also haven’t been going out of my way to tell you about it either.

“I don’t do that because it is painful for me to remember. Not the thing about my mother or my aunt and uncle, but for me it feels like every step of the way so far have been difficult somehow, and I just keep hoping for the next to be easier, to be painless. For me to be able to do that, I have to try and forget a little bit of the past and try to move forward, without looking back.

“When I moved to New York, I got into a little of a rough path and I found that writing my feelings helped sorting them out. So, I want you to keep these.” She handed him the six notebooks.

Liam inspected the objects. “What are these?”

“Those are my journals. Six years-worth of them, from the time I moved to New York to the day before I’ve met you. I haven’t written on them ever since I arrived, though, because every day seems more hectic then the one before, so…” She trailed off.

He placed them neatly on the coffee table, away from the tumbler and the glass of booze. “Are you sure you want me to read them?” He looked deep into her charcoal eyes.

“No, I’m not.” She said, honestly. “But I’m sure I want to give you, us, a sincere attempt, and if that’s what it takes, then so be it.”

Liam quickly crossed the distance between them and hugged her tightly. “Thank you, Riley.” He whispers into her hair. “Thank you for being so kind and patient with me, even when I don’t deserve it.”

He kissed her deeply, making her knees go weak.

Palace of the Brigades, Avlona, Cordonia, Summer 1984

Melissa had her finest dress on, and her little child was also dress impeccably. She lived at the Brigades for five years, now, but she wasn’t quite used to the idea of royalty, and the prospect of actually meeting one made her giggly.

She walked over to some French doors, where Bastien, one of her husband’s apprentices, waited stoically for her.

“Good afternoon, Bastien.” She greeted, amicably. More than once the young man has had a meal with them at their apartment on the service lodge of the palace, and both Kristijan and Melissa had a soft spot for the boy.

“Good afternoon, ma’am.” He smiled at her. “Your Majesty waits for you.”

“Lead the way!”

He nodded and opened the door for her. It leads into a small drawing room, in which the Queen have had served some tea and biscuits.

The young royal rose to her feet, with some difficulty, taking upon account she was heavily pregnant, and greeted her. “Madam Walker, I am very glad you took upon my invitation this afternoon.”

Melissa’s face probably betrayed the frantic thoughts running through her head. “Y-Your Majesty!” She bowed hastily. “It is I who is glad about your invitation!”

She laughed softly. “Please, call me Carmela. We are alone, and I was hoping we could have a more relaxed conversation.”

“Of course, ma’am. I mean, Carmela.” It was rather strange calling a girl younger than herself ‘ma’am’, after all.

“Great!” She smiled. “Is this little Drake I hear so much about?” The blue-blooded approached the carriage, where the boy slept soundly. “How old is he again?”

“Six months.” The woman answered, with a soft smile. “He was born in late Fall last year.”

“How adorable.” She gushed. “Pardon me, I have the baby fever. I must run poor Bastien haggard with all my questions about all the mothers at the palace.”

Melissa giggled. “I remember how I was with Drake. I spent the day looking through baby clothes catalogs and pregnancy books. When are you due?”

“The doctors say All-Hallows, but I think this one’s going to be an early bird.” She patted her own protuberant stomach fondly. “I’m thinking of naming him Liam if it’s a boy.”

The other did a small double-take at the revelation. “It is different in Cordonia.”

“It is unusual in Italy as well.” She dismissed, with a faint smile. “But I’m a fan of Liam Clancy. Constantine’s going to take some convincing, though.”

“I thought the King wanted something more traditional.”

Carmela shrugged. “Some Greek mouthful, yes.” She poured two cups of tea and handed one to Melissa. “Speaking of things unusual, I never expected to see a surname like Kristijan’s in Cordonia. Walker,” She tested on her tongue, with her foreign accent. “It’s English, right?”

“It’s actually my name.” Melissa pointed out. “Kristijan said his surname carried a stigma in Cordonia, and he wanted to change it when we married.”

“Oh, my! There’s so much I know not.” Carmela commented. “Was it Slavic? I’ve noticed our Serbian subjects are very hostile to our rule. It would make sense for Kristijan to change it when he joined our employment.”

The other woman shook her head. “No, it was Greek. Bunas, after the river.”

“No, it doesn’t ring any bells.” She commented.

“How about the social season, ma’am?” She tried to change the subject. “You’ll probably be bed-ridden by then.”

“Don’t tell me.” She grimaced. “It would be my first one as Queen. Fortunately, Constantine is able to attend alone the events elsewhere. What worries me are the ceremonies held here at the Brigades. Which reminds me, Melissa?”

“Yes?” The woman responded.

“You were a diplomat once, right? Before marrying?”

She laughed uncomfortably. “I wouldn’t say that. I worked at an embassy, and I have a degree in International Relations.”

“But you do understand about ceremonials?”

“I suppose? Somewhat, at least.” Melissa said.

Carmela smiled broadly. “Great! You see, I was looking for a secretary, to help me with the preparations for the season. I would do it myself, but with the pregnancy and everything…” She trailed off.

The woman made a double-take. “Are you sure you want me?”

“Of course. You know the ropes, and I know I can trust you. It is more I can say about any other woman in this house.” The monarch answered. “And you will be paid handsomely for the job.”

Melissa weighs her options. As the wife of Kristijan, she was not allowed to take employment outside the palace and caring for Drake full time get really boring fast. Besides, with the money, they could save for retirement, which came early for royal bodyguards.

“Okay. I’m in.” The eldest smiled.

Applewood, Neokastron, Cordonia, Fall 2015

Riley arrived at dinner rigorously on time, perfectly composed and her head held high. Liam wasn’t with her, staying behind as in not to arise suspicion, but aside from him, all of the guests at the chateau were already in attendance.

Servants bustle about, keeping the tables freshly stocked with foods and drinks. Over a couple of tables, a few girls conversed in rushed tones.

“The King and the Queen seemed quite taken with you today, Lady Madeleine.” Some random suitor commented with said blonde.

She smirked. “They respect my opinions. And I believe we have a lot in common. I hope I’ll have the support and respect of all the ladies of the court if I’m chosen.”

The tone of her ‘if’ portrayed no doubt.

Penelope sat next to the pair and whispered back: “To tell you the truth, I think Lady Riley may be the one to be chosen, and I think she would be a wonderful queen.”

As much as Penelope’s heart was in the right place, that certainly wasn’t the moment to make that kind of statement. Much less to Madeleine, who frowned quite pronouncedly: “I suppose you are entitled to have your own opinion.” She said.

Charlotte waved at her, as if they were just meeting. Riley started walking over to her, also keeping up the appearances, when she crossed paths with Tariq.

“Good evening, Tariq.” She greeted, politely.

“Lady Riley.” He nodded, acknowledging. “It is always a pleasure seeing you.”

“A rare one, it seems. How have you been?” She engaged in conversation. Bertrand would be proud.

He laughed. “Indeed. I’ve been as splendid as you look, my dear.”

“You seem flirty tonight.” She pointed out.

“It comes from the deepest recesses of my being.” He winked. “This event can hardly bear a star as bright as yours.”

Riley thought it to be strange behavior from the young nobleman but preferred not to probe. She has enemies enough, no need going out and making more. “Thank you, Tariq. You flatter me.”

“It feels me with joy to hear you say that.” He beamed. “You know, I have to tell you, after talking to most of the other ladies here, I find myself having nurtured such an… appreciation for you. You are like a breath of New York fresh air.”

Knowing those same girls he speaks of, Riley can only agree to the sentiment, even if the phrasing is hardly ideal. “I don’t think anyone says that.”

“The other suitors are absolutely boring.” He admonished. “One talks only about her dogs, another merely sulks to the corners. And don’t get me started on Olivia.”

“Some of the other girls have their charms.” Riley weighed.

Tariq scoffed. “If they do, I have yet to find them. They have good breeding, wealth and manners, but they’re absolutely dull. How disappointing.”

There it was. Tariq the Plutocrat. Riley was starting to worry he had banged his head at some table corner.

He, however, wasn’t done: “Whereas with you, Lady Riley, you grow more interesting every time we speak. I must, however, take my leave. May you have a fantastic evening.”

Tariq bows and left, while Maxwell approaches.

“There’s our little social star!” He greets, with an unusual dose of excitement. “Is that Tariq you were talking to?”

“Yeah, and it was weird.” She commented, while looking at the place the young middle-eastern left empty.

“Strange?” Maxwell inquired, confused. “How so?”

“He was so amicable! And before today, we barely talked.”

The man tutted. “I’ll keep an eye on him. Now, come, Bertrand and I got a table this way.”

Palace of the Brigades, Avlona, Cordonia, Spring 1993

Melissa was sitting on the kitchen table. The dinner was served, and the children already ate. Drake and Savannah were at the conjoined living room, having their TV time.

Kristijan was late for dinner, again. Melissa knew his patrol schedule was messy, but he had said he would be home that evening. She tapped her fingers against the table, anger and hungry, as she had been kind enough to wait for him.

She sighed angrily and walked over to the living room. “Kids,” She told them while turning off the TV. “It’s bed time.”

“But, mommy!” Little Savannah complains. “Daddy isn’t here yet!”

The woman sighed once more. Her husband gave her nothing but trouble. “I know, darling. But it’s late, it’s way past the time for little girls to be in bed.”

She pouted. “I’m not a little girl anymore.”

“I’m sorry, Miss Grown-Up.” She smiled at her daughter’s antics. “Tell you what, go to bed now and I’ll have daddy giving you a good-night kiss when he gets here, ‘kay?”

“’Kay…” Savannah caved and walked over to the bedroom she shared with his older brother.

“Drake?” The woman called.

“Yeah?” He grumbled. Sometimes, she swore that boy was born sour.

“Watch your sister, okay? I’ll go over to the kitchens, but I’ll be right back.”

He looked at her warily but nodded his head. She kissed his hair and went out the front door.

Closing and locking her apartment’s door for security, she started walking down the hall. However, instead of going down to the kitchens like she said she would, Melissa walked over to the bachelors’ wing and knocked on an apartment’s door.

A man came out. “Mrs. Walker?” He asks, confused. “What are you doing here?”

“Bastien, you’re on the night shift tonight, aren’t you?” She inquired, feverishly.

“Yeah, I was going out right now.” He said. “Why? Do you need anything?”

“Actually, I do.” She smirked, with a hint of crazy in her eyes. “I need you to take me to the Queen’s chambers. It’s where you’re supposed to switch guard, isn’t it?”

He looked at the woman he so deeply respected and cared for. Bastien was sure that if she was asking such a thing, she had a legitimate reason for it, no matter how unorthodox. “Follow me.” He said and led the way.

On a hurried place, they made their way through the labyrinthine, ghastly hallways of the Brigades at nighttime. When they arrived at the heavy, mahogany doors of the quarters, Melissa eyed Bastien for him to make himself scarce.

The look he gave in response said that he would not hinder her, but he sure wasn’t leaving.

It was his own peril. Taken by murderous rage, she opened the door and walked right into the room. Unfortunately for Melissa, she saw exactly what she was looking for.

She picked up a shirt laid on the ground and placed on her nose. She knew that aftershave anywhere. She let it fall to her feet as she walks over to the bed. The couple laying there was fast asleep.

Melissa sat on a chair by the dresser and turned on the lamp. She took a good look at the face of the man resting on there. Tan skin, shaved neatly, but with a defined, rugged, hairy chest.

She picked up a heel on the floor and admired it. A dark blue, satin Zanotti, with silver fastenings. A beautiful shoe for a beautiful woman. Melissa twirled it by the heel, and then threw at the man.

He woke up, of course, startled. His eyes focused on her: “Melissa! What are you doing here?”

Her eyes glinted with the light of the lamp. “Why, Kristijan, you’re late for dinner. I came looking for you.”

The woman woke up, dizzy, and looked over at Melissa. “What is the meaning of this?!”

“Oh, I’m sorry, Regina, did I wake you up?” She asks, sickly sweet. “Now you can join us.”

“I would ever.” She admonished. “Have some respect!”

Melissa clicked her tongue and shook her head. “Oh, Regina, I find it terribly funny how you Cordonians think everybody owe you respect. When will you learn respect is earned?”

She leaned over the bed, over Kristijan, and whispered to her: “Don’t try evoking any Laws of Exception on me. I’m not a Cordonian citizen. You can’t throw me on jail.”

The Queen fumed but did not say a thing. Kristijan, however, pulled her away and stood up. He was as naked as the day he was born, his intimacy hanging limp by his leg.

He tugged on her arm, and whispered menacingly: “Let’s go, Melissa.”

“I’m going, I’m going.” She wriggled her arm away, and then lowered her sight to his genitalia. “But I think you should change first. I know you clearly don’t really care who see your bits, but some people may.”

She stood up and started to leave. Kristijan came after her, thankfully using some underwear, shouting: “Melissa! Melissa, wait!”

“What?!” She turned and barked.

“Just hear me out, okay?!” He said, frozen in place by her glare.

“What are going to say, huh?! It wasn’t what it looked like?!” She shouted, the sound bounced from the walls and empty rooms.

He sighed. “It is what it looked like. Or not, I don’t know. I did sleep with the Queen, I have been sleeping with her for some time, too. But what did you want me to do? She’s the Queen, for Christ’s sake!”

“I wanted you to keep it in your pants. I expected you to keep your vows. I expected you to, at least, tell me what was going on.” She said, cold.

He scoffed. “And then what? You think I’d still have a job here? A place to live?”

“We would find a way, Kristijan!” She shouted, frustrated. “I’m not an invalid!”

He sighed one more time. “What now?”

“I’m going back to the US.” She said, seriously. “I’m taking the kids. There’s nothing for us here anymore.”

With that, Melissa left, and Kristijan did not try to stop her.

Applewood, Neokastron, Cordonia, Fall 2015

Riley followed Maxwell to the table and sat down between him and Charlotte, who accompanied them on that meal.

Soon enough, the sound of glass clinking fell through the al-fresco dining area. Everyone then turns to the source of the noise, which was the figure of Prince Liam, standing up next to Constantine and Regina.

“If I may have everyone’s attention, I’d like to say a few words before we serve the main course.” The blond announced. “First, I would like to thank everyone for joining us out here at the country estate. I had the honor and privilege of having you in my court, and I could not ask for better company.

“As I step into my father’s place in the next few weeks, I can only hope I am half the man he was for Cordonia.”

“Long live Prince Liam!” Maxwell pulls the chant, followed by claps and cheers by all attendees.

“Thank you all.” Liam bowed. “When we next meet like this, it will be on the next event of the season, the traditional New Year’s party hosted by the illustrious House Beaumont.”

The crowd applauds, and Maxwell hollered: “Woo-hoo!” He then turns to Riley. “I can’t wait to show you the manor.”

“Maxwell, aren’t we a little strapped for cash right now?” She asks, concerned. “Can we afford hosting a party this big right now?”

He grimaced. “I don’t think we have a choice. Like Liam said, it’s tradition. We can’t back out now.”

“Yes. If we back out, we might as well announce to the whole world we are officially ruined!” Bertrand barked.

“Bertrand has a point.” Charlotte pointed out. “The manor house is big and opulent enough, we’ll be fine as long as we keep them busy. If the food is a little lacking, I bet no-one will notice.”

As the applause dies out, Liam continues: “The Beaumonts will surely give us another legendary night to remember. Until then, I thank you once again and wish you a good night.”

Palace of the Brigades, Avlona, Cordonia, Spring 1993

The Walker family, the personnel of the palace division of the Security Services and the Royal Family was congregated at the chapel within the Brigade Hill, honoring a sacrifice of one of their own.

As per request, there would be no speeches, no talking, no medals. There would only be a prayer conducted by the chaplain, which was over. The people were walking on a line, saying their condolences to the widow, standing by the casket.

After a big group of maids, security guards and other relatives payed their respects, there came the turn of the Royal Family. The youngest boy, Liam, was spared from the ceremony, thankfully.

Melissa couldn’t spare Drake of many uncomfortable comparisons he was subject to as the ‘common’ friend of one of the Princes, but the absence of a parent was a circumstance she really hadn’t considered to face up to a few weeks before.

Then, when Kristijan’s sins had come to light, Melissa was ready for filing divorce. She had bought the plane tickets, prepared the kids’ passports, wired her savings, called some relatives. And now she was a widow.

The first one to offer his sentiments was Prince Leo. The teenaged aristocrat couldn’t be bothered to play the part appropriately, appearing bored throughout the ceremony. Though, it was fair to say he would have rather for Kristijan to have failed on his mission.

Following him, there was Constantine. He hugged her softly, and said, on a low tone: “Your husband died a hero. The Royal Family has an eternal debt to you, ma’am.”

Then, it was the face she dreaded the most. Regina. Her dead husband’s lover. The woman he died to protect. There was something salacious, belonging to a cheap paperback novel, having such an encounter.

She was wearing a black, embroidered silk dress, her head covered with a shawl and a Spanish mother-of-pearl clasp. As she often does, Regina was asserting her power with subtlety.

The royal approached her and whispered softly to her ear. “I want to see you out of this country by nightfall. Take your snotty twerps with you.”

“Say, Regina, doesn’t your husband find most strange for you to be all alone with Kristijan on the gardens? At the middle of the night?” She asks, with a smirk.

“Are you really threatening me?” She barked.

“Not at all, Your Majesty. I am merely showing you I am not without my own bite.” She said, neutral. “But rest assured, by this time tomorrow, I’ll be far away from your sight.”

The Queen huffs and backs off her.

Applewood, Neokastron, Cordonia, Fall 2015

Riley walked down the hallway leading to her chambers. She was alone, as Bertrand and Maxwell were busy arranging their suitcases, and Charlotte said she would retire early.

Speaking of the Beaumonts, they said they would be spending their Christmas on a ski lodge in Switzerland. Given the price of the room and the fact the holiday was upon them, Bertrand made it clear she wasn’t invited. Charlotte said she could spend the week in Italy with her, but Riley knew how it was at her place, and she had her fill of aristocratic parties.

She reached her door and opened it. “Charlotte!” She called. “I’m here.”

The room was empty. Shrugging, Riley tried to lock the door, but the lock seemed stuck. As it was very late, the two women would have to make do with a chair against the handle.

Deciding to place it only after Charlotte’s return, Riley started taking off her clothing and her bodice. Butt-naked, she put on a silk robe and started walking over to the dresser to remove her make-up.

It was when she heard the door open and shut. “Is it you?” She called, distracted.

“It is I, love, and good Lord! Disrobing in my room! What a forward gesture. I like it.”

It wasn’t Charlotte’s voice. Riley turned to the intruder and shouted: “Tariq! What the Hell are you doing here?!”

“Please don’t misunderstand. I’m not upset. I’m just surprised. I suspected, but I’ve never thought it would happen so soon.” He said, approaching her.

She tried to cover herself better, while taking a step back. “Tariq, I think there’s something wrong here…”

He takes her hand and places over his heart. “No, I must say this! Your feelings are most ardently returned! You’ve enchanted me just as you enchant everybody you come across, and now I know you feel the same way about me.”

She raises an eyebrow at him. “About that…”

Before she can say anything else, he lowers his head and take her mouth into a kiss.

Riley starts trying to push him away, when the door is pushed open and a figure launch itself into Tariq.

“Get away from her!” The deep voice commands, pining the middle-eastern man away from her by the shoulder.

“Unhand me!” Tariq spats back. “How dare you enter my room without my permission!”

“He’s one to say!” Riley sneered to herself, as Tariq punches the figure squarely on the face. Just then she is able to take a good look to the man, who reveals himself to be Drake.

The commoner reels back for a split second and then tackles the nobleman to the ground. They grapple intensely for a second until they pull apart.

“Who the Hell do you think you are busting into my room?!” Tariq shouts, angry.

“This is Riley’s room!” Drake spats back. “And I heard her screaming, I think she wanted the interruption.”

“Oh, God!” She ran her hand through her hair. “Tariq, someone pulled a prank on you. I’m not, in any way, interested in you, I’m sorry.”

He looked at her with puppy eyes. “So, this isn’t going to be the bold, romantic beginning to our love story?”

“No.” She doubled the ‘o’, shaking her head.

He sighed and tried to gather whatever little dignity he had. “I see. Let me deeply apologize here. I’m so sorry for this transgression. I was incredibly wrong. Now, before I can humiliate myself any further, let me take my leave. Good night, Lady Riley. Whomever has your heart, he is indeed a lucky man.”

As the man leaves, Drake slams the door shut behind him.

Riley threw herself on the bed, covering her face with her hands. “Before I bemoan my luck, thanks, Drake. If you hadn’t intervened, I would have kicked him in the nuts and it everything would be worse.”

“Aw, shucks, Flowers, don’t go soft on me now.” He sideline-smirked at her. “I’ll always be here for you. Because of Liam, of course.”

She sat up straight and looked at him. “What Liam got to do with anything?”

“Liam would never forgive me if something… bad… happened to you.” He sighed and withered under her inquisitive look. “And I wouldn’t forgive myself, either.”

She smirked, defiantly, at him, while he averts his eyes, embarrassed.

He clears his throat. “Anyways, you can see why it looked bad. I heard a scream and I saw you half-naked, with Tariq all over you…” He trailed off. “Are you okay, though.”

“I’m fine.” She said, earnestly.

“Well, I should get out of here before we really cause a scandal.” He said, and turned to leave when he winced in pain, clutching at his side.

“You’re hurt.” She pointed out.

He dismissed it with a: “Nothing some whiskey won’t heal.”

“Come on, big boy, I’ve got some ice.” She said, motioning for him to sit on the bed.

He smirked. “You trying to get me to take my shirt off, Flowers?”

“I am succeeding.” She smirked at him. “Chop-chop, I don’t have all night.”

“You have a real bossy side to you.” He murmurs while obeying her order.

“Take it to someone who cares.” She rolled her eyes, picked up a handkerchief and some ice, and started evaluating the bruise.

“So, doc, do you see anything alarming?” He asks, ironic.

“Other than the fact you bruise like a peach, it seems you’ll be okay.” She said, snarky.

He scoffed. “Tariq hits harder than you’d think.”

Riley laughed, ironically, while standing up. “I can’t believe you lost a fight to Tariq!”

“I didn’t say I lost! I never said that!” He defended, desperately. “I definitively won, I’m just saying he got in some good hits and I didn’t expect that from a palace brat.”

“Whatever floats your boat.” She smirked.

From Drake’s point of view, the moonlight coming from her window framed her profile. Her petite, princess-like nose and superior smirk were features he was sure he was supposed to despise, but it seemed right on her, like if it was supposed to be so.

Drake runs his fingers through his hair. “You can be so…” He started, but then lost his nerve. “Never mind. Hey, aren’t you supposed to be treating my wounds?”

“Before I ice your wounds, wouldn’t you like something to drink?” She offered. “Lest of all you bitch when I put it on your rib.”

“Hit me.”

She walked over to the bar and poured two glasses of whiskey on the rocks. Handing him one of them, she says: “I wouldn’t make you drink alone.”

“Heh. Thanks.” He smirks.

Drake downs his glass as Riley presses the ice against his body. “Hey! It hurts!” He complains.

“Grow a pair!” She bit back but pressed more gently the ice.

Drake turns and catches her eye. After a long second, he lowers his gaze. “Thanks.” He breathed out and paused. “I know I don’t act very grateful for anything most of the time, but I do… care about you.”

“Mighty way to show it.” She complains. “Most of the time you act like you hate me.”

“I do not.” He defended.

She raised an eyebrow at him. “Drake.”

“Okay, I do, don’t I?” He sighed. “It’s not personal. It’s just… easier that way.”

“Easier? For whom?” She questions while keeping up with the ministrations.

“You’re here for Prince Liam. All of the suitors are. And, well, so is the entire court. All the nobles, all the servants, even. Everything and everyone in this place exists to orbit around Liam. You could almost hate him for it, if he weren’t so damn likeable. It’s dangerous for people like you and me to forget about that.” He grumbled the last part.

“Where are you getting at, Drake?”

“Hell, Flowers. Don’t make me say it.” He whispers and gulps down his drink. “If we’d met somewhere else, anywhere else. At a club in New York, or in the airport, or at a party… If you hadn’t been our waitress that night, and I hadn’t been sitting next to Liam… Do you think it would be different?”

“Drake, Drake, Drake.” A woman’s voice came from the door. The two of them broke apart, and faced the source of the sound, which was Charlotte’s frame. “Don’t you ever tire of being a whiny, charity case? Because I do, constantly.” She sneered.

“Fuck you, Rosenberg.” He barked at her.

“Drakey-poo is mad? How sad!” She ironized. “Let me answer this one for Little Miss Flowers over here. It wouldn’t be any different. You know why? Because you’ll always be the same, you’ll always look over your shoulder, worried that Liam will take your happiness away from you, that they will move on to greener pastures. And so, you make their lives a living Hell, so when they finally leave, you can act like if you had known all along.”

He lunged at her, and it seemed like he was going to hit her, but he lowered his hand and said on a dangerous tone: “You are just some left-over, bitter, society wife. Look yourself in the mirror before preaching about my life.”

With that, he left the bedroom.

Charlotte then shuts the door. Riley runs over to her. “God gracious, Charlotte! Where were you?”

“Constantine called me over to his study. He was trying to negotiate part of their debt.” She said, dismissive. “What is more interesting is why Walker was here in the first place.”

Riley then explained everything to Charlotte about what had happened that night. The blonde walks over to the door to check it. “Riley, I locked the door on my way out.”

“But it was open when I arrived!” She said, nervously.

“Check the trunk!” The blonde commanded.

It was still locked, with no signs of forced entry. “It seems our secret is safe, at least.”

Charlotte was fretful, still. “Regardless, there’s blood in the water. Come, we’re leaving now.”

The two girls packed everything on the room quickly, and on the silence of the night, they fled Applewood.

Atlanta, Georgia, Summer 2010

A middle-aged man climbed slowly the stairs. He was struggling with the steps, having been hindered with a crutch. Unfortunately for him, the building had no elevators and his destination was on the fifth floor.

It was a very important meeting, which is why he had come from so far away, and the delicacy of the matter had him prescinding of his assistant.

When he finally reached the floor, he stopped for a moment, to catch his breath and to dispel his flustering. He wiped his forehead with a handkerchief, as Georgia was much warmer than he had expected. Then, he continued his walk and knocked on an apartment door.

A woman answers. “Hello. How may I help you?”

He cleared his throat and asks: “Are you Melissa Walker?”

Her face paled. “Who are you?”

“I am Ludwig von Rosenberg.“ He said, solemn. “I wish to speak about your husband.”

Red Rose - Masterlist

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Taglist: @boneandfur; @mfackenthal

[donald-clemons]

Five Ways to Get Your Ecommerce Store Ready for Labor Day

When you consider holiday shopping, Labor Day might not be the first holiday that comes to mind. But for ecommerce merchants, Labor Day represents a major seasonal milestone and a critical chance to reinvigorate your revenue after the dreaded “summer slump” that many ecommerce stores experience.

If Labor Day weekend snuck up on you this year (it’s the first Monday of September), it’s not too late to gear up your ecommerce store for this pivotal holiday. Here are five last-minute preparations you can make during the month of August to master the Labor Day sale and kick off your best holiday shopping season yet.

1. Highlight the Right Products

As you shore up your Labor Day sales strategy, consider the types of products that have historically performed well on Labor Day. While all types of industries can throw successful Labor Day sales, certain verticals perform better than others: namely, consumer-friendly “Back to School/Work” products like apparel, school or office supplies, and electronics.

It’s also a good idea to consider the economic realities of today’s consumer. Last year, 66% of shoppers celebrated Labor Day on a smaller scale, and 39% were more budget conscious. It may take steeper discounts than usual to entice this year’s consumers, so factor that into your strategy.

2. Count on Email

Studies show that email marketing drives 30% of all Labor Day sales—more than any other channel including direct traffic, paid search, and organic traffic. That’s great news for your last-minute Labor Day planning, because unlike the more time-intensive strategies like SEO, a month leaves you with plenty of time to prepare an email campaign (as long as you’re already running an email marketing strategy).

This month, prepare the design and messaging of the emails you’ll send out to your customers to remind them of the Labor Day sale. In addition to sending out an email blast the day of or before the sale, you can also build a series of countdown emails to get customers excited in advance.

3. Prepare Your On-Site Merchandising

It may seem like a headache to switch out your banners and other merchandising slots for a minor holiday, but fortunately, design programs like Canva can make whipping up a new banner fairly painless. If you’re not a design expert, stick with a template and change only the colors and messaging to fit your brand. Canva templates may not have the flash of your traditional homepage banners, but they’ll get the important work done: delivering your message while standing out to the customers who have grown “blind” to your usual on-site banners.

Remember, too, the onsite merchandising slots that offer you quick, easy wins. For example, sticky headers are a fantastic way to announce a holiday sale or link customers to a particular page, and they take about 30 seconds to update.

4. Get Social

As you map out your social strategy, remember what Labor Day is really about: it’s a celebration of American workers and laborers. If you can, try to wrap the spirit of Labor Day into your sale by focusing on American-made products or giving special discounts to “Essential Workers” who can’t take the day off. When that’s not possible, you can at least keep the spirit of the holiday alive through your social media posts. This is a great time to publicly highlight and thank your own workers, too.

5. Think Forward

If you’re feeling overwhelmed or concerned that you’ve missed the boat on Labor Day sales this year, don’t worry—just plan ahead. Labor Day is a great reminder that your major holidays—Thanksgiving, Black Friday, Christmas, etc.—are just around the corner. You still have plenty of time to prepare for these business-critical holidays, so if you’re feeling under the water, let go of Labor Day and parlay the missed opportunity into a redoubled focus on this year’s major holiday season.

Also, remember that Labor Day sales don’t need to be complicated. You can often use Labor Day to kick off a longer, more complex promotion like a “Back to School Week/Month,” which makes the sale on the day itself less of an “end all be all.” Or, you can simply use Labor Day as a time to send out an email or put up a social media post calling out and thanking your workers.

In Conclusion

No matter how you decide to wrap Labor Day into your larger sales strategy, there’s still time to prepare. Start with the tips on this list, and get ready to say goodbye to the summer ecommerce slump—your busiest and most exciting season is about to begin.

Five Ways to Get Your Ecommerce Store Ready for Labor Day published first on https://yousweetluxury.weebly.com/

[olko71]

New Post has been published on All about business online

New Post has been published on http://yaroreviews.info/2020/12/airbnbs-stock-price-more-than-doubles-in-market-debut

Airbnb's Stock Price More Than Doubles in Market Debut

Airbnb shares debuted on the Nasdaq stock exchange in New York Thursday.

Photo: carlo allegri/Reuters

By

Preetika Rana

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Preetika Rana

,

Maureen Farrell

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Maureen Farrell

and

Micah Maidenberg

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Micah Maidenberg

Updated Dec. 10, 2020 4:32 pm ET

Airbnb Inc.’s ABNB 112.81% shares more than doubled in their trading debut on Thursday, reflecting a soaring market for new stock listings and the home-sharing company’s ability to navigate the coronavirus-induced downturn in travel this year.

The stock began trading at $146 on the Nasdaq Stock Market, higher than its initial-public-offering price of $68 a share. It closed slightly lower than its opening price at $144.71.

Airbnb, co-founded in 2008 by now-Chief Executive Brian Chesky, changed the hospitality industry by demonstrating that millions of people were willing to skip hotel stays and book spaces offered by hosts on its platform. The company says it has built a powerful brand, with the majority of guests this year going directly to Airbnb when booking short-term rentals.

The company ended the day worth $100.7 billion, based on a fully diluted share count, greater than the combined market value of Marriott International Inc., Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. and Hyatt Hotels Corp.

Airbnb’s first-day performance is likely to continue to fuel excitement over the IPO market, where investors have been clamoring for shares of hot newly public companies.

In addition to Airbnb, shares of DoorDash Inc. and C3.ai Inc. also surged on their first day of trading, jumping 86% and 120% respectively on Wednesday. DoorDash’s stock slipped 1.9% Thursday, while C3.ai continued to rise, gaining 40.6%.

By both volume and stock price performance, these companies are trading into one of the hottest IPO markets in history. So far in 2020, more than $155 billion has been raised on U.S. exchanges, far exceeding the previous full-year record set at the height of the dot-com boom in 1999, according to Dealogic data that date to 1995.

Airbnb’s listing caps a difficult year in which the company was whipsawed by a sharp decline in travel caused by the spread of Covid-19. The pandemic upended vacations and work-related trips, forcing Airbnb and other companies—including airlines, hotel chains and cruise operators—to retrench.

“If you can survive a global pandemic that shuts down global travel, you can survive anything,” said Alfred Lin, partner at Sequoia Capital and an Airbnb board member and early investor.

This spring, as consumers sheltered in place, Airbnb borrowed $2 billion to shore up its cash reserves. In May, the company said it would cut 1,900 jobs, or one-quarter of its staff, and pause investments in noncore operations. Airbnb slashed other big expenses, including for marketing.

“I assumed that this crisis was a storm that could be unrelenting for years,” Mr. Chesky said in an interview.

Airbnb was bleeding cash earlier this year, making its plans to go public by the end of 2020 look bleak. But by adapting its business to the pandemic, Airbnb looks to have salvaged its IPO and possibly its future. Photo illustration: Jacob Reynolds/WSJ

But the company was able to latch on to demand from people looking for trips closer to home during the pandemic, fueled by consumers wanting a change of location. In August, for example, more than half of bookings made through Airbnb were for stays within 300 miles of the guest’s location. Revenue is nowhere close to pre-pandemic levels—down 32% year over year in the first nine months of the year—but has still recovered from lows in the spring.

“One of the benefits of the crisis is that it did require us to get really focused.…That enabled us to tell a story about who we are and what we’ll be,” Mr. Chesky said. In the weeks leading up to the debut, Mr. Chesky spoke to prospective investors on video wearing sweatpants.

As of the end of September, the company had more than 4 million hosts and 7 million listings of home rentals and experiences, such as guided activities, in more than 220 places globally, according to a prospectus about the IPO.

The company’s costs jumped fivefold between 2015 and 2019 as it expanded into new areas such as media and transportation, built a new headquarters and aggressively invested in sales and marketing. Mr. Chesky said he ran through hundreds of expense items during the pandemic. Total costs dropped 22% in the first nine months of this year compared with the year-earlier period. The company’s hefty sales and marketing budget was cut by more than half.

The cost cuts, along with the unforeseen pickup in local stays, led the company to post a profit in the third quarter of this year. The June-September quarter is typically strong for the platform because of seasonal factors including summer vacations, and Airbnb has turned a profit in that period since 2018.

But like many Silicon Valley startups that are bleeding red ink when they go public, Airbnb has never posted a full-year profit. Its loss last year was greater than its losses in the previous four years combined. And it lost more than twice as much through the first nine months of this year than it did in the year-earlier period, largely because of shrinking revenue earlier in the health crisis.

“I don’t know what the future brings but that we can adapt to it,” Mr. Chesky said. He pointed to Airbnb redesigning its app and website to focus on local stays during the pandemic.

Some investors said the run-up in prices for Airbnb’s shares made them too expensive and avoided buying the stock during Thursday’s debut.

“I’m a big fan of Airbnb, and I really wanted to buy some today myself. But I wasn’t able to do it because I just don’t feel that the math is reasonable, and the stock should come down in my view,” said Tony Roth, chief investment officer for Wilmington Trust, which manages $124 billion in assets.

The company’s growth in recent years has drawn sharp opposition from many corners. Many homeowners have been pushing to combat Airbnb, raising objections to living near short-term rentals because of noise, parties and worries about property values. In its stock-offering prospectus, the San Francisco company notes that landlords, neighborhood groups and condominium associations have moved to prohibit or restrict home sharing.

Denver, Boston and other cities have tightened rules covering short-term rental operations, as have cities that before the pandemic were major tourist destinations, including Rome and Barcelona. Meanwhile, some mayors have said that investors have purchased homes to rent out through Airbnb, exacerbating housing shortages and affordability. Airbnb said in its prospectus that it will continue “to collaborate with policymakers to implement sensible legislation in cities around the world.”

Organized-labor groups tied to hotels have also fought the company. In New York, for example, a major hotel-employee union had put together a lobbying effort to try to curtail it. Airbnb earlier this year said it would hire union construction workers for new-real estate projects where it is involved.

Write to Preetika Rana at preetika.rana@wsj.com, Maureen Farrell at maureen.farrell@wsj.com and Micah Maidenberg at micah.maidenberg@wsj.com

Copyright ©2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. 87990cbe856818d5eddac44c7b1cdeb8

[godsheadangel]

📖📖📖📖📖 JOHN 1: 32-33 KJV📖📖📖📖📖

AND JOHN BARE RECORD, SAYING, I SAW THE SPIRIT💫DESCENDING FROM HEAVEN LIKE A DOVE, AND IT ABODE ABOVE HIM.

AND I KNEW HIM NOT: BUT HE THAT SENT ME TO BAPTIZE WITH WATER🌊THE SAME SAID UNTO ME, UPON WHOM THOU SHALT SEE THE SPIRIT💫DESCENDING, AND REMAINING ON HIM, THE SAME IS HE WHICH BAPTISETH WITH THE HOLY💫SPIRIT

#1 THE BAPTISM OF CHRIST✝

PAINTED IN 1710 AERT DE GELDER✝

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#2. THE MIRACLE OF THE SNOW

MASOLINO DA PANICALE IN 1400

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#3. PAINTED IN THE 15TH CENTURY

THE MADONNA WITH SAINT GIOVANNINO

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#4. THE CRUCIFIXION PAINTED IN YEAR 1350

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📖📖📖📖📖 LUKE 1:34-36 KJV 📖📖📖📖📖

THEN SAID MARY UNTO THE ANGEL, HOW SHALL THIS BE, SEEING I KNOW NOT A MAN?

AND THE ANGEL ANSWERED AND SAID UNTO HER, THE HOLY💫GHOST💫SHALL COME UPON THEE, AND THE POWER OF THE HIGHEST SHALL OVERSHADOW THEE; THEREFORE ALSO THAT HOLY💫THING WHICH SHALL BE BORN OF THEE SHALL BE CALLED THE SON✝ OF GOD✝

#5. THE ANNUNCIATION

PAINTED BY CARLO CRIVELLI IN YEAR 1486

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📖📖📖📖📖[DANIEL 7:9 KJV]📖📖📖📖📖

I BEHELD TO THE THRONES WERE CAST DOWN, AND THE ANCIENT OF DAYS🌅DID SIT WHOSE GARMENT WAS WHITE AS SNOW AND THE HAIR OF HIS HEAD LIKE THE PURE [WOOL:] HIS THRONE LIKE THE FIERY🔥 FLAME, AND HIS WHEELS AS BURNING FIRE.

#6. GLORIFICATION OF THE EUCHARIST

👁GOD💫HIMSELF IS PICTURED ON THE RIGHT SIDE [HIS IMAGE INCORRECT] BUT NONE THE LESS THIS HAPPENED AS IT WAS [FORETOLD TO PROPHETS] IT IS SO ENOCH✝ WHO GRACED 👁GOD💫ON THE LEFT SIDE WITH [HIS✝ BLESSED✝ PRESENCE] FOR OUR 👁GOD💫[DID SO DELIGHT IN HIM✝ SO!!!]

LET TRUTH REALITY BE FOREVER KNOWN!!!

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

#7. THE MAGNIFICAT

PAINTED IN THE 15TH CENTURY

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

#8. THE CRUCIFIXION OF CHRIST✝

PAINTED IN THE 17TH CENTURY

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

#9. BACCHUS AND ARIADNE

BY LUCA GIORDANO 16TH CENTURY

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

#10. ANNALES LAURISSEN 12TH CENTURY

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖

GODSAYS💫IT IS REAL DEMONS👹IN FLESH WHO IN [ANCIENT TIMES CENTURIES AGO] WHO DID SO GO AGAINST ME, THY 👁GOD💫

🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀

AND IT IS SO REAL DEMONS👹IN [FLESH] WHO NOW GO AGAINST ME, THY 👁GOD💫

🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀

MANY [EVANGELICALS IN THE DEEP SOUTH] OF AMERICA🇺🇸CLAIMING TO THEIR MANY EAGER CHURCH MEMBERS THAT THERE IS [NO CONNECTION BETWEEN HOLY💫SPIRIT] AND WHAT [MANKIND CALLS UFO'S] WHICH IS, AND HAS ALWAYS BEEN MY ANGELS👽WHOM COME IN MANY FORMS, I SPEAK IT!!!

👉LOOK UPON THESE ANCIENT PAINTINGS🙏LET YOUR OWN 💫SPIRIT💫GUIDE YOU🙏👉GET THEE, AND THY FAMILIES FAR AWAY🙏FROM THESE FALSE ONES MISLEADING👉WITH FALSEHOODS FOR SURELY THIS IS 🙏YOUR WARNING MY CREATED CHILDREN

🌄THE SIGNS HAVE BEEN LEFT FOR YOU🌄▶WHERE IS YOUR BELIEF IN ME? THY GOD

📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖📖

SURELY, [TRUTH REALITY] OF SIGHTINGS OF MY ANGELS😇HAVE BEEN WITNESSED FOR MANY CENTURIES YET THEY ARE HIDDEN IN 👉MUSEUMS AND CHURCHES⛪AND ART👈 👉COLLECTORS HOMES MANY STOLEN👈 [SO PASSED AROUND AND LIED UPON!!!]

IT SICKENS ME, I AM HE, THY LIVING GOD💫TO WATCH [MY CREATED CHILDREN] TRULY MISLEAD BY THESE FALSEHOODS TOLD BY THESE SPIRITLESS, WHO CLAIM TO BE SO CONNECTED TO ME, [THIS IS A GREAT LIE]

THEY PROPHECY TO YOU FROM THEIR EVIL PULPITS DENYING YOU [TRUTH REALITY!!!]

[PREACHING AND LECTURING] THAT THE ONE KNOWN IN HOLY💫HEAVEN ABOVE💫

AND HELL🔥ITSELF AS DEMONTRUMP👹IS NOT WHO MY ANGEL BROTHER AND MANY ANGEL MESSENGERS OF MY HOLY💫WORD HAVE SPOKEN HIM👹 TRUTH TO BE,

BUT HE👹IS SO, WHOM I AM HE✝ I SPEAK IT OF WHO LEADS MANY DEMONS👹IN FLESH WHO IN TURN [DO HIS BIDDING TO] TO KEEP THE MANY SPIRITUALLY💫SLEEPING ONE'S IN HIS👹DEMON FLOCK!!!

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦

[REAL PROOF] OF THE REPUBLICAN PARTY CHANGE WAS GIVEN IN THE YEAR OF 2000

WHEN THE EVIL👹 LEADERSHIP TURNED TO SATAN👹HIMSELF AS THEY TURNED THE SPIRIT💫LIFE✝ 5🌟STAR PENDGRAM UPSIDE DOWN TO REPRESENT THE EVIL👹GOP!!!

👉👉DEMONS👹INVERTED THE STARS👈👈

AND MOST OF YOU MY CHILDREN KNOW THIS, YET YOU STILL STAY IN THE GOP?

👉DEEP INSIDE YOUR SOULS LAST CRY FOR SURVIVAL YOU KNOW IT HAS NOT BEEN THE SAME SINCE 1999!!! WHY? THINK!!!

WHY WOULD THE EVIL👹GOP👹SENATORS BLOCK ANY WITNESSES FROM TESTIFYING? ♦♦♦ [REPUBLICAN WITNESSES] ♦♦♦ ♦♦▶WILLING TO TELL THE TRUTH◀♦♦

YOU KNOW THE TRUTH!!! ITS IN YOUR SPIRIT 👉DO SO LEAVE THAT POLITICAL👹PARTY AND DO AS YOU DESIRE [START ONE] IF YOU WISH, AS LONG AS IT INVOLVES ME, GOD💫

FOR THE GOP USE TOO BUT IT HASN'T DONE SO FOR 20+YEARS SATAN👹HAS THE YOUR CALLED LEADERS AND THEY DO HIS WORK!!

I AM HE, THY LIVING SPIRITUAL💫GOD💫DO SPEAK IT TRUTH REALITY TO MY CHILDREN!

🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀

I AM HE✝ THY GOD💫CONTROL ALL THAT IS!

👉DO NOT HATE THE TRUTH NOR THOSE👈 👉MESSENGERS I HAVE SENT BACK TOO👈👉AWAKEN🌄YOU SPIRITUALLY💫WAKE UP!

👽😇👽😇👽😇👽😇👽😇👽😇👽😇👽😇👽

👁 GODSHEADANGEL.POSTHAVEN.COM 👁

👽😇👽😇👽😇👽😇👽😇👽😇👽😇👽😇👽FEBRUARY 2ND SUNDAY 2020🇺🇸 0526HRS 📖📖📖📖📖 PSALMS 91:11 KJV 📖📖📖📖📖

"FOR HE SHALL GIVE HIS ANGELS CHARGE OVER THEE, TO KEEP THEE IN ALL THY WAYS."

FOR SURELY, STANDING THERE EVEN THEN EAST OF [THE GARDEN OF EDEN] AT THE VERY [EDGE OF IT] WHERE THE FLAMING🔥SWORD WAS ROTATING BACK AND FOURTH PROTECTING THE TREE🌳OF LIFE✝ FROM ADAM RETURNING TO SPEAK WITH GOD💫ABOUT HIS SIN, WAS SO OUR BROTHER THE HEAD ANGEL KING👑 OF MERCY💫

WHO SPOKE WITH HIM✝ AND CALMED HIS✝ MIGHTY ANGER, FOR GOD✝ DID SO REGRET CREATING MANKIND✝ FOR IT GRIEVED HIM✝ IN HIS✝ HEART❤OUR GOD✝ LISTENED✝ AND AND FORGAVE ADAM😇 AND EVE😇THEN [SO PASSED HARD JUDGEMENT ON THEM] ADAM✝ TO LABOR HARD THE GROUND AND EVE✝ TO LABOR HARD GIVING BIRTH👣

YET, IF IT WERE NOT FOR THE HEAVENLY💫WISDOM THE HEAD ANGEL KING OF MERCY CHOSE TO SPEAK TO OUR GOD💫SURELY MANKIND✝ WOULD HAVE ENDED!!!

SO, IF ANY LIVING IN OUR GODS💫CREATED WORLD🌎THINKS THAT I AM IN CHARGE ALONE OF THIS PLANET CALLED EARTH🌍

DO THINK AGAIN AND AGAIN!!! AND READ PSALMS 91:11 KJV AND SEE WHERE IT SAYS FOR HE✝ SHALL GIVE HIS ANGELS CHARGE OVER THEE, [NOT ANGEL] CHARGE OVER THEE!!!

👉CHARGE TO [HELP] GUIDE MANKIND AND DELIVER ALL OF OUR 👁GODS💫MESSAGES FOR ONLY 👁GOD💫IS IN TOTAL CONTROL!!!

🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊

👉DON'T FORGET TO REFRESH THIS POST

🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷👁GOD💫HAS CHOSEN HIS ANGEL TO LEAD🇺🇸🇺🇸2020🇺🇸JOE C😎😎L BIDEN🇺🇸2020🇺🇸🇺🇸🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷🔷

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦TUESDAY FEBRUARY 4TH 2020🇺🇸 0540HRS ♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦📉📉📉📉📉📉📉📉📉📉📉📉📉📉📉📉📉U.S.🇺🇸 INDICATORS SHOW BIG SLOWDOWN 👉👉 WEAKNESS BUT NO RECESSION 👈👈JUST LIKE IN 2008 BEFORE THE BIG CRASH!♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾

FALSE JOBS NUMBERS✔✔✔✔✔✔✔✔✔✔✔ LIES 👉[BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS]👈

[501,000 FEWER JOBS CREATED IN U.S.🇺🇸] THAN REPORTED BY EVIL ADMINISTRATION SEE MARKETWATCH ARTICLE 8/24/2019!!!

♦ NOT 5,000, NOT 50,000 BUT 500,000 ♦ JOBS REPORTED FALSELY TO AMERICANS!!!

DEMONTRUMPS👹TAX CUTS CREATED NO JOBS!!! IT SAVED THE WEALTHY MONEY 💰◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦

FALSE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE✔

FALSE MANUFACTURING JOBS NUMBERS✔

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦

🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻🔻

HISTORIC HOMELESS CRISIS IN U.S.🇺🇸✔

🔺🔺🔺🔺🔺🔺🔺🔺🔺🔺🔺🔺🔺🔺🔺🔺🔺

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦***♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾

FARM🚜BANKRUPTCIES AT ALL TIME HIGH⬆ AGRICULTURE🚜 SURPLUS SMALLEST IN THE LAST 🚩40 YEARS!!!🚩

👉WISCONSIN🇺🇸LOSING 2 FARMS A DAY👈✔NOW FACING SERIOUS DAIRY🐄CRISIS✔

◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦

GLOBAL OIL🛢MARKET WORSEN'S AS OPEC TAKES 🚩EMERGENCY ACTION🚩TO DEAL WITH 💥[CORONAVIRUS]💥

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦

BRITAIN🇬🇧PRODUCTIVITY DECLINE IS THE WORSE IN 250 YEARS. -BLOOMBERG NEWS

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾

WALL STREET BROKERS BRACING FOR WILD 👉VOLATILITY ADVISING MOST INVESTORS 👉TO BUY ON THE DIP👈 🚩RED FLAGS🚩

◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦

🚩🚩YIELD-CURVE INVERSION REDUX🚩🚩SPREAD BETWEEN A 3 MONTH AND 10 YEAR 📉TREASURIES GETTING WORSE DAILY📉

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾

MANUFACTURING JOBS FELL IN THE U.S.🇺🇸👉[RUST-BELT SWING STATES🇺🇸IN 2019]👈INDIANA, MICHIGAN, PENNSYLVANIA, OHIO ◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾

♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦♦👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇

CHINA🇨🇳WISELY INJECTS 380 BILLION YUAN VIA 7DAY REVERSE REPOS THEN ANOTHER 120 BILLION YUAN IN 14DAYS A TOTAL OF 500BILLION YUAN OR $71 BILLION U.S.🇺🇸 WHY? [TO SAVE THE GLOBAL🌎MARKET📉]

👉BECAUSE OF THE GLOBAL SLOWDOWN👈GOD💫PROPHECY OF GLOBAL RECESSION!!!

🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳BLESSINGS4 GODS💫SPECIAL💫ANGEL💫PRESIDENT🇨🇳 XI JINPING😇

🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳🇨🇳

GODS💫CREATED CHILDREN IN HIS WORLD 👉HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU DID TO HELP👈 👉👉[SAVE THE WORLD'S🌎ECONOMY]👈👈

☝THAT'S WHY THE STOCK MARKET IS UP☝

◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹

UNFORTUNATELY, DEMONTRUMP👹WILL WAG HIS LYING TONGUE AND TAKE CREDIT FOR IT!!! ♦STUPID PEOPLE WAKE UP🌅♦

👉👉A GLOBAL RECESSION IS CLOSE👈👈

👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹👹

YET, SATAN'S DEMONTRUMP👹WILL KEEP MANY FOOLS ASLEEP WITH OBVIOUS LIES!!!

BUT THE OBEDIENT ONE'S OF OUR👁GOD💫ARE AWAKENED🌄SPIRITUALLY💫AND WILL [NOT BE FOOLED]FOR THEY ARE BLESSED✝🤜🤜🤜🤜🤜🤜🤜💀💀💀🤛🤛🤛🤛🤛🤛🤛

GODSAYS💫10,000 DEMONS👹WILL PERISH THE CURRENT DEATH COUNT IS🤜💀50!!!

🤜🤜🤜🤜🤜🤜🤜💀💀💀🤛🤛🤛🤛🤛🤛🤛🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄

👉👉👉 WWW.NINACUBANA.COM 👈👈👈

👉HTTP://NINACUBANA.COM/#DONATE👈

HELP MAKE A DREAM💫BECOME REALITY

🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄🌄👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇

GODS💫HOLY💫SIGN✝ABOVE NAZARETH✝ REPRESENTING HIS✝COMING HOLY BIGSIGN [WITNESSED] BY MANY INCLUDING SINGER JOVANA TIPSIN [2/2/2020]

BLESSINGS4 JOVANA TIPSIN🔥SHE HAS SO RECEIVED A FLAMING FIRE🔥SYMBOL AND SHALL BE INVITED TO A FUTURE ANGEL😇QUEENS💜PARTY🎉

LOOK UPON THE SPIRITUAL FLAMING GLOW SEEN A TOP [THIS TUMBLR PAGE] RIGHT [ABOVE] THE ANGEL👑OF DEATH💀IMAGE!!!

👉IT SEEMS [NO MEDIA OUTLETS] WANT👈 THIS REAL PROOF SIGN FROM GOD POSTED

WHEN YOU LEAST EXPECT IT, IT SHALL BE!!!

👁GOD✝ HAS SENT HIS✝SIGN AND CHOSEN!🇺🇸🇺🇸2020🇺🇸JOE C😎😎L BIDEN🇺🇸2020🇺🇸🇺🇸

🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀

GODSAYS💫SURELY MY PROPHECY OVER [2] YEARS AGO POSTED THEN ON [GOOGLE+] [SHALL BE SO TRUTH] ON A COLD🌬AND CLOUDY☁JULY SUMMER DAY!!!

🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀

👉5 PROPHECIES GIVEN SHALL BE JUST AS THEE OTHER [6] THAT CAME TO BE REALITY

◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾

[3,3 AND3 AFTER THE EARLY DAWN✔]

👁GODS💫PROPHECY✝ CAME TO REALITY JUST [3] DAYS AFTER ON JUNE 14TH AT A [GOP CHARITY] BASEBALL PRACTICE IN ALEXANDRIA, VA. WHEN A SHOOTER SHOT MULTIPLE ROUNDS STRIKING THEN [GOP] MAJORITY WHIP STEVE SCALISE👹[3RD] IN LINE FROM THE PRESIDENCY AND OTHERS FROM [3RD] BASE!!!

[JUNE 14TH 2017!!!]

◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾

[WHITESTARS WARNED TO OBEY✔]

👉THEY WERE TOLD TO GET READY!!!👈

2 DAYS AFTER 👁GODS💫PROPHECY✝ [59] CONCERTGOERS IN PARADISE, NEVADA WERE KILLED BY SHOOTER!!!

[OCTOBER 2017!!!]

#SPIRIT💫JUMP!!!

◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾

[TRAIN ACCIDENT✔]

5 WEEKS AFTER 👁GODS💫PROPHECY✝ A AMTRAK TRAIN🚆CARRYING REPUBLICANS TO A RETREAT CRASHES INTO TRUCK🚚 NEAR CORZET, VIRGINIA AND KILLS DRIVER!

[JANUARY 2018!!!]

◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾

[MEGA EARTHQUAKES IN MEXICO🇲🇽✔]

2 DAYS AFTER 👁GODS💫PROPHECY✝ A 7.2 MEGA EARTHQUAKE KILLS OVER [200+] PEOPLE!!! GOD💫GAVE ME INSTRUCTIONS TO HAVE HEAVENS💫SPIRITUAL ANGELS💫TO STIR THE GROUND AND KILL!!! THEY DID!!

[FEBRUARY 2018!!!]

◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾

[BIG VOLCANO ERUPTING🌋✔]

AFTER 250 YEARS JAPAN VOLCANO BLOWS! 2 MONTHS AFTER 👁GODS💫PROPHECY✝ IT DID SO SHOCK MANY PEOPLE!!!

[APRIL 2018!!!]

◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾

[DARKSTARS WARNED TO OBEY✔]

👉THEY WERE TOLD TO GET READY!!!👈

A WEEK AFTER GODS💫PROPHECY✝ [22] PEOPLE WERE SHOT AND INJURED AT A ART FESTIVAL IN TRENTON, NEW JERSEY!

[JUNE 2018!!!]

#SPIRIT💫JUMP!!!

◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾◾

NONE OF MANKIND CAN STOP GODS PLANS

NONE OF MANKIND CAN STOP PROPHECIES

THE OBEDIENT ONES OF OUR MIGHTY GOD UNDERSTAND TIME IS RUNNING OUT⏳FOR ALL OF MANKIND FOR THESE ARE REALLY THE LAST OF END DAYS🌅

👁GOD💫IS MIGHTY IN HOLY💫POWER FOR HE✝ ALONE IS IN TOTAL CONTROL!!!

🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊

ONLY 👁GOD💫CAN CHANGE HEAVENLY💫COLORED✝ VISIONS AND PROPHECIES✝

🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊🌊

ONLY OUR BABYANGELS😇BIRTHS👣CAN [SAVE MANKIND] 👁GOD💫SAID! FOR HE✝ SHALL GIVE MANKIND ⭐21⭐EXTRA YEARS OF ⭐EXISTENCE⭐AFTER THEIR BORN👣

IF, THEY ARE NOT BORN 💥WW3💥DEATH💀DESTRUCTION FOR ALL OF MANKIND!!!

👉👉GODSAYS💫IT CAN BE AVERTED👈👈

🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🌀🤜🤜🤜🤜🤜🤜🤜💀💀💀🤛🤛🤛🤛🤛🤛🤛IF, I LIVED IN THE CITY OF VAN NUYS SURELY I WOULD SPREAD [TRUTH REALITY WORDS] AROUND THAT CITY [TO WATCH] WHAT YOU SAY TO 👁GODS💫YOUNGER BROTHER AND NEPHEW CURTIS JR. OF THE HOLY💫SPIRIT FOR SURELY A PROPHECY✝ BECOMING SO QUICK REALITY FROM 👁GOD💫 HAS BEEN SAID TO BE FORMING INSIDE OF HIS✝ HOLY POWERFUL💫MIND✝

TRUST STARNEISHA👽 BAYSHARA😇HOVER!DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THE LORD GOD💫

BEFORE THE NOTRE DAME CATHEDRAL⛪ FIRE🔥IN FRANCE🇫🇷 WHAT MANKIND CALLS A UFO WAS SEEN 15 MINUTES BEFORE AND MANY VOLCANOES SMOKE AND ERUPT🌋 AFTER WHAT MANKIND CALLS A UFO WAS SEEN!!! DO YOUR RESEARCH AND OBEY!!!

🌅DO SO OBEY OUR MIGHTY LORD GOD✝🌅

~ENOCH😇FROM THE HOLY💫HEAVENS💫

👽👽👽👽👽👽👽👽👽👽👽👽👽👽👽👽👽👉GODSHEADANGEL1.POSTHAVEN.COM👈

BLESSINGS4 STEVEN BARONE💫WHO RECORDED THIS LAST NIGHT🌌

BLESSINGS4 UFO MAN💫WHO POSTED THIS TRUTH REALITY VIDEO 45 MINUTES AGO! 10:45AM PST 2/6/20

😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇

DO NOT MAKE ANY MISTAKE CHILDREN OF 👁GOD💫ALL OF US HIS ANGELS IN [FLESH] ARE NOT PERFECT IN ANY WAY! WE ALL DO MAKE MISTAKES AND HAVE OUR OPINIONS ON VARIOUS SUBJECTS ESPECIALLY WHEN IT COMES TO SOME WE KNOW OR HAVE KNOWN! [BUT MAKE NO MISTAKE]✔ WE DO NOT TAKE IT PERSONALLY WHEN OUR OWN OPINIONS ARE VERY DIFFERENT FROM ONE ANOTHER'S! SOME OF MY ANGELQUEENS👑

ARE [PROFESSIONAL JOURNALISTS] WHO COME UNDER FIRE FOR SOMETHING ASKED OR SOMETHING SAID WRONGLY OR TAKEN OUT OF CONTEXT THIS IS THE NATURE OF THE BUSINESS 👁GOD💫TRULY KNOWS ALL OF OUR HEARTS, MINDS AND SPIRITS AND ALLOWS US TO BE OURSELVES INCLUDING MYSELF WHO MANY WORLDWIDE REFER TO AS [THE FOUL MOUTHED ANGEL,] ITS TRUE!!

MANY WORLDWIDE🌎CAN'T BELIEVE GOD✝ WOULD HAVE 👉[ONE OF HIS TOP TWO]👈 ANGELS😇 IN [CHARGE OF HIS CREATED] CHILDREN USE SUCH VULGAR LANGUAGE BUT YOU WOULD BE INCREDIBLY WRONG!!!

OUR MIGHTY 👁GODS💫[IDEA] OF WHICH [ANGELS GET CHOSEN FOR SPECIFIC JOBS] OR JOURNEYS ARE [TOTALLY DIFFERENT] FROM YOURS, [HIS REASONS ARE HIS OWN]

🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇👇

REMEMBER THIS, ALL OF YOU WORLDWIDE NOAH✝ WAS A DRUNK, MOSES✝ STUTTERED ABRAHAM✝WAS TOO OLD, ISAIAH✝HIMSELF PREACHED NAKED, JONAH✝ DID RUN FROM GOD✝💫PETER✝ DENIED JESUS✝CHRIST✝ SAMSON✝ WAS A WOMANIZER WHO HAD LONG HAIR, RAHAB✝ WAS A PROSTITUTE AND KING DAVID✝ HAD AN AFFAIR!!!

☝☝☝☝☝☝☝☝☝☝☝☝☝☝☝☝☝

🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏

👁GOD💫[DOES NOT] CHOOSE ACCORDING TO WHAT ANY OF YOU IN MANKIND THINKS SHOULD BE!!! I AM HE, THY LIVING GOD💫CHOOSES [FOR HIS REASONS ALONE] ONLY HE, HIMSELF DOES SO KNOW AND MAKE NO MISTAKE [WE HIS ANGEL FAMILY] ARE NOT PERFECT NOR WERE ANY OF OUR CHOSEN 🙏ANGEL ANCESTORS IN [FLESH!!!]🙏

SO, WHEN YOU [HEAR OR SEE US] EXPRESS OUR [PERSONAL OPINIONS] ON A SUBJECT OR ON EACHOTHER MAKE NO MISTAKE ITS [A OPINION AT THAT TIME!]

TRUST, IT IS NOT EVER PERSONAL SURELY WE HIS [ANGEL FAMILY] KNOW HOW FAR TO GO, [THERE IS A LINE] HE DOES NOT ALLOW EVEN US TO CROSS!!! WE STAND UNITED IN STANDING UP☝FOR HIM✝

😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇😇

[exo-orbiter-1983]

1-99

Dude what the f u c k

Spotify, SoundCloud, or Pandora? - Sound Cloud

is your room messy or clean? - MESSY LOL

what color are your eyes? - Golden brown

do you like your name? why? - Yes! Because I picked it and it’s something I’ve grown very comfortable with

what is your relationship status? - Single

describe your personality in 3 words or less - loyal, funny, hard-working

what color hair do you have? - brown

what kind of car do you drive? color? - a gray toyota sienna (I’m basically a soccer mom)

where do you shop? - amazon, maybe hot topic. I dont really shop

how would you describe your style? - clothing? Laid back. I wear basketball shorts, athletic shoes, a t-shirt, and sometimes a hat 

favorite social media account - instgram or tumblr

what size bed do you have? - full

any siblings? - yep, little sister

if you can live anywhere in the world where would it be? why? - tbh california, just not my current city. I like it here, it’s pretty liberal and open and the weather is slightly standable in the spring

favorite snapchat filter? - doggo

favorite makeup brand(s) - lmao I don’t wear makeup

how many times a week do you shower? - not enough

favorite tv show? - orange is the new black

shoe size? - LOL 3 IN KIDS

how tall are you? - 5′1″ FINALLY

sandals or sneakers? - sneakers all the way

do you go to the gym? - no, we have a workout room at home plus im in band so that works well enough

describe your dream date - oh boy. Honestly just doing something chill together and going for a walk and looking up at the stars together. Nice cuddling and some kisses thrown in there too lmao

how much money do you have in your wallet at the moment? - $0, I don’t use cash

what color socks are you wearing? - white

how many pillows do you sleep with? - 1, sometimes 2

do you have a job? what do you do? - I do not, menchies rejected me

how many friends do you have? - a big group of like 10 or 11 who I can really call friends and actually depend on

whats the worst thing you have ever done? - oh fuck okay, probably run a red light and almost tboned someone but luckily they stopped because my dumbass is a terrible driver

whats your favorite candle scent? - cinamon

3 favorite boy names - ALEX, Mikey (cuz he’s my bff and I love his name), and Andrew

3 favorite girl names - Taylor, Sarah, Kate

favorite actor? - idk man

favorite actress? - Amy pohler 

who is your celebrity crush? - Laura Prepon god she’s so fucking hot

favorite movie? - Power rangers

do you read a lot? whats your favorite book? - not really, but my fav series is chaos walking

money or brains? - brains

do you have a nickname? what is it? - yes! a lot of people call me shimmy or Shim

how many times have you been to the hospital? - I got hurt a lot when I was younger to I went to the urgant care but that’s it

top 10 favorite songs - 1. You’re gonna go far kid 2. First by Cold War Kids 3. Forest by ToP 4. be Still by the killers 5. mr. brightside by the killers 6. The Violence by Rise Against 7. Cecilia and the satelite 8. Handclap 9. Believer by imagine dragons and 10. tear in my heart

do you take any medications daily? - nope

what is your skin type? (oily, dry, etc) - dry

what is your biggest fear? - losing someone i care about

how many kids do you want? - 3

whats your go to hair style? - Parted on the side and just kinda swept over and pushed forward? Idk how to descibe it ill post a pic after this tho

what type of house do you live in? (big, small, etc) - i guess it’s a little on the bigger side

who is your role model? - my friends mikey and lexi (@bridkid)

what was the last compliment you received? - “You’re tone sounded really good that rep”

what was the last text you sent? - “Are you shitting me” to Lexi after seeing that someone was making me answer 99 fuckin questions

how old were you when you found out santa wasn’t real? - bruh idk maybe 9, 10?

what is your dream car? - idk just not my current van

opinion on smoking? - dont do it

do you go to college? - nope I’m a junior in high school

what is your dream job? - high school band director

would you rather live in rural areas or the suburbs? - suburbs

do you take shampoo and conditioner bottles from hotels? - nah

do you have freckles? - not really

do you smile for pictures? - I try

how many pictures do you have on your phone? - 431

have you ever peed in the woods? - definitely

do you still watch cartoons? - of course

do you prefer chicken nuggets from Wendy’s or McDonalds? - wendys

Favorite dipping sauce? - BBQ

what do you wear to bed? - basketball shorts and a t shirt, sometimes I sleep shirtless if it’s too hot tho

have you ever won a spelling bee? - nope, never participated in one

what are your hobbies? - music and hanging out with friends

can you draw? - yeah I’m not terrible at it

do you play an instrument? - Yes! Trumpet, piano, saxophone, french horn, euphonium, bass drum, and pit percussion

what was the last concert you saw? - Does DCI count

tea or coffee? - coffee

Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts? - starbucks

do you want to get married? - maybe, probably

what is your crush’s first and last initial? - DR

are you going to change your last name when you get married? - probably, just because I don’t like my last name rn

what color looks best on you? - blue

do you miss anyone right now? - my friend lexi cuz bitch graduated

do you sleep with your door open or closed? - closed holy shit

do you believe in ghosts? - not sure

what is your biggest pet peeve? - my trumpet section

last person you called`- Nathan, one of the sophomores in my section because he was super late this morning

favorite ice cream flavor? - cookies n cream

regular oreos or golden oreos? - regular

chocolate or rainbow sprinkles? - gay

what shirt are you wearing? - my SCSBOA 2015 Championships shirt

what is your phone background? - a picture of me, Mikey, and our friend Emma laying on top of each other

are you outgoing or shy? - more outgoing than shy

do you like it when people play with your hair? - YES I LOVE IT

do you like your neighbors? - no 

do you wash your face? at night? in the morning? - when I shower I wash it

have you ever been high? - nope

have you ever been drunk? - I’ve been buzzed

last thing you ate? - crab quiche 

favorite lyrics right now - literally the entirety of be still by the killers but i like this part “And may your limits be unknownAnd may your efforts be your ownIf you ever feel you can't take it anymoreDon't break characterYou've got a lot of heartIs this real or just a dream?Rise up like the sunLabor till the work is done“

summer or winter? - summer

day or night? - depends

dark, milk, or white chocolate? - milk

favorite month? - august or november

what is your zodiac sign - pisces

HAPPY I ANSWERED 99 QUESTIONS BUDDY also this proves I have nothing better to do with my life lmao

[this-ginger-has-no-soul]

Masterlist

Masterlist for every Fandom and Character

Marvel

Bucky Barnes:

Dating Bucky barnes would include

You’re my mission- 1, 2, 3

Need a Hand?

Bucky I could use a hand

Winter Wonderland

Beefycake Barnes

Mission Accomplished

The stars would be so proud

Desperate Kisses

Nightmares

This isn’t right

No

I’ll take care of you

They’re gone

Calm down

Love yourself, accept yourself

You’re freezing!

What is a me-me?

I promised I’d never hurt you

Stop smiling

Flower crowns

You’re my lobster

Wings and curls

You don’t have to hide

First snowfall

Sick days

Don’t leave me

Keep count for me

Don’t touch them

I’m glad it was me

It’s not your fault

Pinky finger

9 A.M. dates

Shush and lemme take care of you

Ikea

I like them

My soulmate is the reincarnation of President James Buchanan?

Get out while you still have a chance

Lights on

Little reminders

Save me

I’m coming home

I understand

How do you run from a shadow?

You don’t have to do this

I know the feeling

I got you

I love you

I’m not leaving you

Fight me.

Early morning talks

Pointless fights

I’m in love with another

Don’t judge me

Be good to her

Safe Haven

I’m here for you

Period pains

Heartbeat

Puppy struggles

I think you’re adorable

Winter’s touch

With those…fanfiction green eyes

My own rapunzel

Winters in Brooklyn  *one of my personal favorites*

Mine

Do it again

I’ll be your legs

Battle scar

Teddy bear

The music from your fingertips

She’s perfect

I didn’t mean it

Breathe easy

Anniversaries

Halloween carols

You look like you saw a ghost

The Jager and the Kaiju- 1, 2, 3, 4

I don’t get jealous

Sister of Mine

Stomach kisses

Who knew?

Stop.

Post Break up cuddles

Fresh eyes

Bruises

We’re not animals

You look cute like this

Nicknames

We’re innocent- 1, 2

Homecoming

BAMF

A spider’s own

Triggers

They’re mine

Self defense classes

I need you by my side

Old songs

Blue as the sea

Spiders own

Razors

Accents

He knows where you are

Fairy dust

Science conventions

White Christmas

A Brooklyn Christmas

A fairytale proposal

Kiss me

Talk shit again

Take Control

So close yet so far

I thought they’d say yes

Nightmares 2.0

Steve Rogers

We all hide behind our smiles

Language

Conversations you’ve most likely had with Steve Rogers

Anxiety Attacks

I don’t know what I’d do without you

Double date

Take a break

Packing up and breaking down

Poetry

You’re an idiot

Tattoos and Piercings

New technology

I’m here for you

All American Dream *Another one of my personal Favorites*

Children can be a hassle

They’re not worth your time anyway

You’re late

Pure bliss

Not so innocent

He’s here with me

Sleep habits

Feeling’s mutual

Captain Canada- 1, 2

Bed is better with two

Bands

You’re beautiful

Old love never dies- 1, 2

My hero

Your moobs

I’m just scared is all

Teach me

Respect

Just a little shy

Like a married couple

Tales of our scars

I love her- 1, 2

Story of the century

My broken love

Awkward

Work Accidents

The fruit of our Labors

Say you won’t let go

Natasha Romanoff

The itsy bitsy spider

Traitor

Make the bad dreams go away

You’re not funny

He’s been at this all week

Girls night out

Shy spider

Lost souls and broken hearts

Fun sized

Surprise

You’re old enough to be my mom

Broken noses

I’m sick

Rewarding kisses

Angry spider

Never leave your side

My little fighter

Broken Lullabies- 1, 2

We should have never fought these battles

You’re too kind to do this to yourself

Morphine confessions

Stay with me

Scales- 1, 2, 3, 4

Museum Exhibits- 1, 2

I dare you

The cat and the spider

Comfort in a Widow’s kiss

Cafe dates

Near death experience

From friends to lovers

Are you ticklish

Lovers in the most unlikely places

I’m by your side

My alien angel

Lovely surprise

Wanda Maximoff

Baking

Music

Honey gone bad

Sister I wish I had had

Nightmares of the past

Bond

Thunderstorms

Hearing aids

Lay a finger on them

Family reunions

Kisses make everything better

Bed hog

Kisses make everything better

Touch her again

Double Trouble

Tony Stark

Please stop

Things you said when I was asleep

Conversations you’ve most likely had with Tony Stark

Whispered Songs

She lays down

Femininity 

Clint Barton

Hey Barton, Catch

Pizza, Puppies, and Coffee

Perfect Pair

Conversations you’ve most likely had with Clint

I’m making up for lost time

Coffee cups and broken bones-1, 2

Car wrecks and coworkers

Girlfriend

Peter Parker

Long time no see

Cuts and Bruises

I hurt you

Kill it!

Savior

You’re into the older type?

You’re just a kid

Loki

Everyday Midguardian Objects

Things I uses to love

I’ve fallen in love

Silly girl- 1, 2

I’ve fallen in love

Sam wilson

Cat and Bird

Change in Scenery

Bruce Banner

Hey Big guy

Thor

Cuddles

Black Panther

I don’t want to fight you

X-Men

Kurt Wagner

Scars

Pay attention to me

I could have lost you

I love everything about you

My blueberry kitten

Difficulty

Tile is Dangerous

Jealousy

Hide and seek

German lullabies

Conversations you’ll most likely have with Kurt Wagner

Silent book friend

The little blue comfort in my life

Warren Worthington

Feathers

Pretend to be my boyfriend

Flaws

Always someone else- 1, 2

I’m nesting, it’s what birds do

I’ll love you forever

I’ll spread my wings and-

Sweet as candy

Please don’t be scared of me

I don’t love you- 1, 2

That’s what happens

That was cute

Charles Xavier

Insecurities

Slow dancing at 3 in the morning

Calm your mind

Can’t you see what you’re doing to me- 1, 2

It’s over for me

Mission failed

Thorn in my side

Could I do something more?

Does she know that we bleed the same?

Time Travel

Erik Lehnsherr

Well this one is soft and kind

You make me think the world can be a better place

Can you hold me?

Logan Howlett

Dangerous

It’s okay not to be okay

You scared me

Happy birthday

My hero

Wade Wilson

Maybe it’s the mask

I like you better without the mask

Conversations you’ll most likely have with Wade Wilson

Scott Summers

Glasses and chaos

Guess this was a blessing in disguise

Peter Maximoff

Piggyback rides

Lazy mornings

Alex Summers

I’m not afraid of you

Hank Mccoy

Blue is better

Supernatural

Dean Winchester

Please don’t go

Regrets

I’m forgetting

The phone

I’m sorry princess

You’re in love and it’s not with me

Salt and Holy water

Shark week

Freckles

Can we just watch the stars?

Conversations you’ll most likely have with Dean Winchester

It burns

Hey jude

I thought you gave up smoking

Monster in the closet

Of Heaven and Hell- 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Dog days

Stitches and Scotch

Gorgeous

My ex-boyfriend the werewolf

All I wanted was a back massage

I missed you

In sickness and in health

Heartbroken

I can’t lose you

Don’t hurt them

Shitty diners

Sam Winchester

Last time

I’m in love with the Devil

You make me smile

Close your eyes

Aren’t you a little old to be afraid of the dark

Hickies and Bedhead

Yoga

Conversations you’ll most likely have with Sam Winchester

Castiel

I’ve never felt pain like this

Guardian angel

Lucifer

The Serpent’s love

Sherlock

You’re in love

Marriage is a trivial thing

Doctor who

The Stranger in white

Superwholock

The case of the forgotten memories- prologue, part 1

Others

Bigby Wolf

I’m trying

Terrible jokes

[preciousmetals0]

Jobs on the Line; Peloton’s Doing Fine

Jobs on the Line; Peloton’s Doing Fine:

Wall Street’s Breaking Bad

This must be Thursday. I never could get the hang of Thursdays.

— Arthur Dent, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

Indeed, it is Thursday, dear reader. And you know what that means … weekly unemployment claims and a market rally. (More optimistically, it’s also Reader Feedback day! Read on…)

The Labor Department reported 3.2 million new unemployment claims for last week. The seven-week rolling total now sits at a staggering 33 million. In case you wondered, that’s bad.

However, Wall Street managed to delude itself into finding a silver lining once again. Investors are keying off the fact that claims have fallen steadily for the past five weeks.

In other words, the labor market is bad and getting worse. But … at least it’s not getting progressively bad… (Or the amount of bad is not as bad as the amount of bad that we had two weeks ago.) Something like that.

So, either Wall Street has broken “bad,” or investors are so far into doublespeak that they can’t tell the difference anymore. Personally, I like Jim Cramer’s commentary on the situation: “At the end of the day, this action makes little sense.”

Cramer also went on to tell CNBC: “When we get Friday’s employment report it is going to be so bad that we’re going to be debating whether we’re in a serious recession or a depression.”

I don’t have Cramer’s confidence on this one. I believe Wall Street will shrug off tomorrow’s official jobs data from the Labor Department. Why wouldn’t it?

The market has shrugged at every other piece of apocalyptic economic data in the past two months. Why should tomorrow’s nonfarm payrolls report be any different?

The Takeaway: 

Let’s shift gears here and turn to a reemerging trend that could have a more direct impact on our trading habits over the next several weeks to months.

I’m talking about the return on the trade  war cycle.

Buried under the weekly unemployment claims headlines was this gem from MarketWatch: “Global Equities Rise on Trade Talk Hopes as More Jobs Vanish in the U.S.” (Well, that was the headline before MarketWatch changed it.)

Yes, trade talk hopes.

On May 1, President Trump said that he is considering putting the kibosh on the phase 1 U.S.-China trade deal in retaliation for China’s handling of COVID-19.

Trump doubled down on the China threat at a town hall meeting over the weekend. “Now they have to buy,” Trump said. “And if they don’t buy, we’ll terminate the deal, very simple.”

Today, news broke that Washington and Beijing have scheduled talks on the matter next week. This will be the first time that the two sides have discussed the trade deal since signing it in January.

And so, we find ourselves once again moving the needle on the Great Stuff Trade War Cycle chart:

If you followed this pattern last year, you probably made quite a bit of cash. I had more than a few Great Stuff readers tell me they made bank by following this pattern.

That said, things are a bit different this time around. We’re not in a bull market. We face a mountain of bad economic data. And we’re desperately dealing with a global pandemic. Given those external pressures, this may be a short-lived trade war cycle.

Regardless, Trump’s tilt toward China brings more volatility to an already volatile market. But you can use this volatility instead to your advantage instead of making decisions out of panic.

Hectic times beg for simple trading strategies, and we found what just might be the simplest strategy to follow: the 10X Switch.

Adam O’Dell is about to show you how you can use it to easily play both sides of the market swings — without buying or selling a single stock, option or bond.

The best part? You can reserve your spot to hear more for free. Simply click here.

(See, we told you Great Stuff gets you past the velvet ropes.)

Good: Viable Viacom

ViacomCBS Inc. (Nasdaq: VIAC) is the dark horse in the race for streaming-video dominance. The unholy union between Viacom and CBS holds a collection of content that includes Pluto TV, CBS, Nickelodeon, BET, MTV, Comedy Central, Paramount Pictures and Showtime.

That dark horse status isn’t holding back ViacomCBS at all. The company blew past Wall Street’s earnings expectations this morning by $0.18 per share. Revenue, meanwhile, beat analysts’ targets by $100 million.

That’s not to say there weren’t problems. ViacomCBS’s ad revenue fell 19% year over year, and so did both earnings and revenue. However, digital-streaming revenue soared 51%, and film revenue jumped 11% on home-licensing deals (read: streaming deals).

The point is, if ViacomCBS wasn’t already on your shortlist for streaming video investment ideas, it should be. The real question is, if you read Great Stuff, why isn’t VIAC already on your radar? (I mean, we told you about ViacomCBS back in February.)

Better: Getting Down at P-Town

It’s official. I was wrong on Peloton Interactive Inc. (Nasdaq: PTON).

Well, sort of — I didn’t count on a global pandemic to force people to work and work out from home.

The company proffering stationary bikes with video subscriptions is making bank during the U.S. pandemic lockdown. This morning, Peloton said that first-quarter revenue spiked 66% to $524.6 million.

Earnings were still poor, arriving at a loss of $0.20 per share and missing the Street’s estimate by $0.02. But, for an expanding startup, that’s to be expected.

The real juicy news is that subscription revenue skyrocketed 92%, as the company’s “connected fitness” subscribers jumped 94% to 886,0000. Paid digital subs rose 64% on the quarter.

Peloton also raised its full-year revenue and subscriber count outlooks above Wall Street’s target.

What’s more, this trend may be stickier than most stay-at-home trends in the market right now. Imagine going to the gym while COVID-19 still floats around out there with no cure. No thanks.

So, do I still think Peloton sells overpriced bikes with the equivalent of a Netflix subscription? Yes.

Is that model going to work in the current and post-pandemic market? Yes, yes it will.

The fear-driven sentiment surrounding local gyms and going outside to work out could linger for months to a year or more. That fear will provide a heavy tailwind for PTON stock and the company’s bottom line.

Editor’s Note: Looking for a way to play earnings season? Just wait until you hear from earnings expert Chad Shoop… (Click here.)

Best: Testing, One, Two … Three?

We’re still months away from a viable vaccine for COVID-19, but Moderna Inc. (Nasdaq: MRNA) has put the world one step closer to that goal.

Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration cleared Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine for phase 2 trials. The company plans to begin those trials with 600 patients very shortly. Furthermore, it’s already finalizing plans for phase 3 trials as early as this summer.

“We are accelerating manufacturing scale-up and our partnership with Lonza puts us in a position to make and distribute as many vaccine doses of mRNA-1273 as possible, should it prove to be safe and effective,” CEO Stephane Bancel said in a statement.

I’ll be honest: This is the best news I’ve heard on the COIVD-19 front since this whole thing began.

Now, you’re probably wondering if you should invest in MRNA shares. I’m going to give that a great big “that depends.”

Way to be noncommittal there, Mr. Great Stuff.

Well … it does. Are you in or nearing retirement? Then stay away from speculative biotechs. Moderna itself said that it will “incur significant expenses this year” due to vaccine development. It should get most of that money back from grants and awards, but it’s still a risk.

If you’re younger in your investment journey, and your risk tolerance is high enough, you might give MRNA a shot. (Ha-ha … shot … I’ll see myself out.)

That said, for those of you into taking risks, wait for MRNA to pull back from today’s surge before you jump in. There will be some follow-through profit-taking from those who got in early. You’ll get a better entry price if you don’t chase today’s surge.

You yelled “Marco!” and it’s my turn to play polo — or something along those lines. It’s time for this week’s edition of Reader Feedback!

Boy, this week has everyone writing in … and it’s not just the “DO YOU HAVE MESOTHELIOMA???” ads that usually come through.

Nay, this week, Great Stuff readers are right on the pulse with all things China and trade wars. Seriously, I haven’t seen this many “anti-this” and “anti-that” email chains since the early 2000s… (Boycott the world — no, no, reopen the world! Go underground! Eat more broccoli!)

Keep it coming, dear readers! Write to us anytime at GreatStuffToday@BanyanHill.com. Now let’s dive in…

Imperfect Circle

Some cities are exposing their inner dictators by some of their actions. The federal government has been overly generous in helping the states deal with the enormous challenges created by this virus. Has it been perfect? Of course not. It’s government. I just hope and pray voters remember who did what in November.

— Andrew W.

Hey Andrew! Quick counter point, just for funsies: At many levels, the federal government’s inability to stay self-consistent is one of the enormous challenges that states are facing. Reopen now, reopen never — it doesn’t matter what the plan is if mixed messages and misinformation botch it either way.

That said, I am envious of the hope you hold for your fellow voters this November.

Warren Dumps

Just one question — who did Buffet sell all his airline shares to?

All the airlines he sold have similar charts, but selling a position the size he had any time in the last month should have caused an even bigger move, unless someone with VERY DEEP pockets was buying those shares.

— Gordon F.

Deep pockets, you say? JPow, it’s Buff Buff. My, what unlimited stimulus you have … maybe you’d be down with a little personal bailout…

I hate to break it to anyone wanting a juicy story. There’s no boogey man here. There’s no conspiracy. I know, the X-Files lied to me too.

Many people, new to the markets or otherwise, want to find something — anything — amiss whenever the Big Money is concerned. Warren Buffett didn’t go prowling the streets of Omaha looking for a back-alley airline stock deal, as fanciful an image as that might be.

Let’s break this down.

Big-time investors like Buffett’s Berkshire don’t just dump $4 billion in stock all at once. They do it carefully, bits at a time over a period … to market makers, other big investors, retail investors and banks. And Berkshire and its subsidiaries started last month.

I’m not privy to the exact methods, but Big-Money investors do this for exactly the reason you mentioned: to not tank the market all at once … and to not hurt the prices that they get for that sold stock.

Is Buffett willing to get a bad deal on hundreds of millions of airline shares? When a single-penny difference means losing billions? And risk even more portfolio upheaval at a time like this? I say nay nay.

(A shill! A shill! They got to him!)

Sure.

Ooh, I’ve Been Dirt, and I Don’t Care

I read lots, but put my money in dirt (real estate). I know where it is and how much it will make me. — Tim P.

You know how much it’ll make you?! Tim, your crystal ball — give it here!

I joke, but there is one serious leg-up that real estate has over equities right now.

Yes, home showings will slow and/or stop. And going through the buying process is a pain in non-pandemic times. (Though, I’ve seen quite a few rental listings using the “See it solo!” method, which gets my industry-disruption Spidey senses tingling.)

But here’s the difference: With stocks, you can check Robinhood every second of the trading day and watch the dizzying price changes.

You can … but it’ll drive you bat-flu crazy. Well, most of the market is glued to the screen anyway. And as investors’ positions whipsaw, so do their reactions, and the vicious cycle grows through rally, bust and boom again — often within mere hours.

Irrationality breeds irrationality, and the equity markets are filled to the brim with it right now. Real estate? Not to the same neck-breaking extent. Just imagine if your house had a ticker on it and you could see it make 500-point moves like the Dow every day.

If you wrote in and I didn’t get to your email, it may be because you cursed too $%^*@#$ much. I still appreciate your email, even if we can’t share it publicly.

Got more on your mind? So do I, so let’s get writing. Send us an email at GreatStuffToday@BanyanHill.com.

That’s a wrap for today, but if you still crave more Great Stuff, check us out on social media: Facebook and Twitter.

Until next time, be Great!

Regards,

Joseph Hargett

Editor, Great Stuff

[goldira01]

Wall Street’s Breaking Bad

This must be Thursday. I never could get the hang of Thursdays.

— Arthur Dent, The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.

Indeed, it is Thursday, dear reader. And you know what that means … weekly unemployment claims and a market rally. (More optimistically, it’s also Reader Feedback day! Read on…)

The Labor Department reported 3.2 million new unemployment claims for last week. The seven-week rolling total now sits at a staggering 33 million. In case you wondered, that’s bad.

However, Wall Street managed to delude itself into finding a silver lining once again. Investors are keying off the fact that claims have fallen steadily for the past five weeks.

In other words, the labor market is bad and getting worse. But … at least it’s not getting progressively bad… (Or the amount of bad is not as bad as the amount of bad that we had two weeks ago.) Something like that.

So, either Wall Street has broken “bad,” or investors are so far into doublespeak that they can’t tell the difference anymore. Personally, I like Jim Cramer’s commentary on the situation: “At the end of the day, this action makes little sense.”

Cramer also went on to tell CNBC: “When we get Friday’s employment report it is going to be so bad that we’re going to be debating whether we’re in a serious recession or a depression.”

I don’t have Cramer’s confidence on this one. I believe Wall Street will shrug off tomorrow’s official jobs data from the Labor Department. Why wouldn’t it?

The market has shrugged at every other piece of apocalyptic economic data in the past two months. Why should tomorrow’s nonfarm payrolls report be any different?

The Takeaway: 

Let’s shift gears here and turn to a reemerging trend that could have a more direct impact on our trading habits over the next several weeks to months.

I’m talking about the return on the trade  war cycle.

Buried under the weekly unemployment claims headlines was this gem from MarketWatch: “Global Equities Rise on Trade Talk Hopes as More Jobs Vanish in the U.S.” (Well, that was the headline before MarketWatch changed it.)

Yes, trade talk hopes.

On May 1, President Trump said that he is considering putting the kibosh on the phase 1 U.S.-China trade deal in retaliation for China’s handling of COVID-19.

Trump doubled down on the China threat at a town hall meeting over the weekend. “Now they have to buy,” Trump said. “And if they don’t buy, we’ll terminate the deal, very simple.”

Today, news broke that Washington and Beijing have scheduled talks on the matter next week. This will be the first time that the two sides have discussed the trade deal since signing it in January.

And so, we find ourselves once again moving the needle on the Great Stuff Trade War Cycle chart:

If you followed this pattern last year, you probably made quite a bit of cash. I had more than a few Great Stuff readers tell me they made bank by following this pattern.

That said, things are a bit different this time around. We’re not in a bull market. We face a mountain of bad economic data. And we’re desperately dealing with a global pandemic. Given those external pressures, this may be a short-lived trade war cycle.

Regardless, Trump’s tilt toward China brings more volatility to an already volatile market. But you can use this volatility instead to your advantage instead of making decisions out of panic.

Hectic times beg for simple trading strategies, and we found what just might be the simplest strategy to follow: the 10X Switch.

Adam O’Dell is about to show you how you can use it to easily play both sides of the market swings — without buying or selling a single stock, option or bond.

The best part? You can reserve your spot to hear more for free. Simply click here.

(See, we told you Great Stuff gets you past the velvet ropes.)

Good: Viable Viacom

ViacomCBS Inc. (Nasdaq: VIAC) is the dark horse in the race for streaming-video dominance. The unholy union between Viacom and CBS holds a collection of content that includes Pluto TV, CBS, Nickelodeon, BET, MTV, Comedy Central, Paramount Pictures and Showtime.

That dark horse status isn’t holding back ViacomCBS at all. The company blew past Wall Street’s earnings expectations this morning by $0.18 per share. Revenue, meanwhile, beat analysts’ targets by $100 million.

That’s not to say there weren’t problems. ViacomCBS’s ad revenue fell 19% year over year, and so did both earnings and revenue. However, digital-streaming revenue soared 51%, and film revenue jumped 11% on home-licensing deals (read: streaming deals).

The point is, if ViacomCBS wasn’t already on your shortlist for streaming video investment ideas, it should be. The real question is, if you read Great Stuff, why isn’t VIAC already on your radar? (I mean, we told you about ViacomCBS back in February.)

Better: Getting Down at P-Town

It’s official. I was wrong on Peloton Interactive Inc. (Nasdaq: PTON).

Well, sort of — I didn’t count on a global pandemic to force people to work and work out from home.

The company proffering stationary bikes with video subscriptions is making bank during the U.S. pandemic lockdown. This morning, Peloton said that first-quarter revenue spiked 66% to $524.6 million.

Earnings were still poor, arriving at a loss of $0.20 per share and missing the Street’s estimate by $0.02. But, for an expanding startup, that’s to be expected.

The real juicy news is that subscription revenue skyrocketed 92%, as the company’s “connected fitness” subscribers jumped 94% to 886,0000. Paid digital subs rose 64% on the quarter.

Peloton also raised its full-year revenue and subscriber count outlooks above Wall Street’s target.

What’s more, this trend may be stickier than most stay-at-home trends in the market right now. Imagine going to the gym while COVID-19 still floats around out there with no cure. No thanks.

So, do I still think Peloton sells overpriced bikes with the equivalent of a Netflix subscription? Yes.

Is that model going to work in the current and post-pandemic market? Yes, yes it will.

The fear-driven sentiment surrounding local gyms and going outside to work out could linger for months to a year or more. That fear will provide a heavy tailwind for PTON stock and the company’s bottom line.

Editor’s Note: Looking for a way to play earnings season? Just wait until you hear from earnings expert Chad Shoop… (Click here.)

Best: Testing, One, Two … Three?

We’re still months away from a viable vaccine for COVID-19, but Moderna Inc. (Nasdaq: MRNA) has put the world one step closer to that goal.

Today, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration cleared Moderna’s coronavirus vaccine for phase 2 trials. The company plans to begin those trials with 600 patients very shortly. Furthermore, it’s already finalizing plans for phase 3 trials as early as this summer.

“We are accelerating manufacturing scale-up and our partnership with Lonza puts us in a position to make and distribute as many vaccine doses of mRNA-1273 as possible, should it prove to be safe and effective,” CEO Stephane Bancel said in a statement.

I’ll be honest: This is the best news I’ve heard on the COIVD-19 front since this whole thing began.

Now, you’re probably wondering if you should invest in MRNA shares. I’m going to give that a great big “that depends.”

Way to be noncommittal there, Mr. Great Stuff.

Well … it does. Are you in or nearing retirement? Then stay away from speculative biotechs. Moderna itself said that it will “incur significant expenses this year” due to vaccine development. It should get most of that money back from grants and awards, but it’s still a risk.

If you’re younger in your investment journey, and your risk tolerance is high enough, you might give MRNA a shot. (Ha-ha … shot … I’ll see myself out.)

That said, for those of you into taking risks, wait for MRNA to pull back from today’s surge before you jump in. There will be some follow-through profit-taking from those who got in early. You’ll get a better entry price if you don’t chase today’s surge.

You yelled “Marco!” and it’s my turn to play polo — or something along those lines. It’s time for this week’s edition of Reader Feedback!

Boy, this week has everyone writing in … and it’s not just the “DO YOU HAVE MESOTHELIOMA???” ads that usually come through.

Nay, this week, Great Stuff readers are right on the pulse with all things China and trade wars. Seriously, I haven’t seen this many “anti-this” and “anti-that” email chains since the early 2000s… (Boycott the world — no, no, reopen the world! Go underground! Eat more broccoli!)

Keep it coming, dear readers! Write to us anytime at GreatStuffToday@BanyanHill.com. Now let’s dive in…

Imperfect Circle

Some cities are exposing their inner dictators by some of their actions. The federal government has been overly generous in helping the states deal with the enormous challenges created by this virus. Has it been perfect? Of course not. It’s government. I just hope and pray voters remember who did what in November.

— Andrew W.

Hey Andrew! Quick counter point, just for funsies: At many levels, the federal government’s inability to stay self-consistent is one of the enormous challenges that states are facing. Reopen now, reopen never — it doesn’t matter what the plan is if mixed messages and misinformation botch it either way.

That said, I am envious of the hope you hold for your fellow voters this November.

Warren Dumps

Just one question — who did Buffet sell all his airline shares to?

All the airlines he sold have similar charts, but selling a position the size he had any time in the last month should have caused an even bigger move, unless someone with VERY DEEP pockets was buying those shares.

— Gordon F.

Deep pockets, you say? JPow, it’s Buff Buff. My, what unlimited stimulus you have … maybe you’d be down with a little personal bailout…

I hate to break it to anyone wanting a juicy story. There’s no boogey man here. There’s no conspiracy. I know, the X-Files lied to me too.

Many people, new to the markets or otherwise, want to find something — anything — amiss whenever the Big Money is concerned. Warren Buffett didn’t go prowling the streets of Omaha looking for a back-alley airline stock deal, as fanciful an image as that might be.

Let’s break this down.

Big-time investors like Buffett’s Berkshire don’t just dump $4 billion in stock all at once. They do it carefully, bits at a time over a period … to market makers, other big investors, retail investors and banks. And Berkshire and its subsidiaries started last month.

I’m not privy to the exact methods, but Big-Money investors do this for exactly the reason you mentioned: to not tank the market all at once … and to not hurt the prices that they get for that sold stock.

Is Buffett willing to get a bad deal on hundreds of millions of airline shares? When a single-penny difference means losing billions? And risk even more portfolio upheaval at a time like this? I say nay nay.

(A shill! A shill! They got to him!)

Sure.

Ooh, I’ve Been Dirt, and I Don’t Care

I read lots, but put my money in dirt (real estate). I know where it is and how much it will make me. — Tim P.

You know how much it’ll make you?! Tim, your crystal ball — give it here!

I joke, but there is one serious leg-up that real estate has over equities right now.

Yes, home showings will slow and/or stop. And going through the buying process is a pain in non-pandemic times. (Though, I’ve seen quite a few rental listings using the “See it solo!” method, which gets my industry-disruption Spidey senses tingling.)

But here’s the difference: With stocks, you can check Robinhood every second of the trading day and watch the dizzying price changes.

You can … but it’ll drive you bat-flu crazy. Well, most of the market is glued to the screen anyway. And as investors’ positions whipsaw, so do their reactions, and the vicious cycle grows through rally, bust and boom again — often within mere hours.

Irrationality breeds irrationality, and the equity markets are filled to the brim with it right now. Real estate? Not to the same neck-breaking extent. Just imagine if your house had a ticker on it and you could see it make 500-point moves like the Dow every day.

If you wrote in and I didn’t get to your email, it may be because you cursed too $%^*@#$ much. I still appreciate your email, even if we can’t share it publicly.

Got more on your mind? So do I, so let’s get writing. Send us an email at GreatStuffToday@BanyanHill.com.

That’s a wrap for today, but if you still crave more Great Stuff, check us out on social media: Facebook and Twitter.

Until next time, be Great!

Regards,

Joseph Hargett

Editor, Great Stuff

[moversdevelopment]

2020 peak season for movers – the ultimate preparation guide

As days go by, we are slowly approaching the 2020 peak season for movers. And so, we’ve decided to explore the topic and offer some practical advice for both moving companies and the people/businesses planning to relocate. Certainly, the influence of current global events is detrimental when planning on how best to approach the entire topic. As far as moving industry trends are concerned, a majority of states and countries have found them to be vital for maintaining balance. Therefore, moving businesses should still be preparing for the upcoming season. We are here to offer the following guidelines on how best to accomplish that.

Vital advice when it comes to peak season preparations for movers

#1: Keep up with global news and trends

Certainly, as far as relocation services are concerned, there is little room to think outside the box. People want to relocate their household or business and they need someone to handle that task for them. The end. Well, not necessarily. There are plenty of external factors that you need to consider as a business.

You need to keep track of current trends and news.

For example, with the current COVID-19 situation, people will be looking for certain assurances. Many moving companies are providing those assurances in the form of banners on their homepages, explaining the current situation and whether or not they will be offering services. Additionally, movers are presenting customers with an action plan in terms of the steps they are taking to ensure the safest relocation possible. And most are also offering advice on how customers can stay safe during a relocation under the current circumstances.

#2: Adapt to the needs of the market

The overall dynamic of the relocation industry lies in its potential to tailor its services to the expectations of customers. Modern consumers are looking for ways to shorten their decision-making process as well as the moving process itself. Therefore, it rests on professional businesses to provide the foundation for that. Whether we’re talking about the implementation of an online moving quote calculator on your website, providing the option of virtual in-home estimates, or using any other moving estimate app, implementing technology is crucial.

With so many advancements in terms of not only moving industry software solutions but also for other industries, you need to do all you can to remain competitive. And that means making certain changes to help modernize your conversion process. By offering potential customers the comfort of organizing an entire relocation within minutes from their homes, you are adapting to the needs of the modern market. And this can prove to be one of the best ways to remain competitive during this peak season for movers.

#3: Ensure that your moving crews are up to the task

Make sure your moving crews are physically prepared for the peak season.

It’s important to avoid as many delays as possible while being able to ensure as many quality moving jobs as possible at the same time. In order to accomplish that, companies need to make sure that their staff is up to the task. So, before the moving season beings, now would be a good time to give all your employees a physical. Make sure that they are in top shape and in zero risks of taking sick leave when you need them most. Remember – a healthy inner structure of a company leads to top-quality services.

#4: Optimize your company resources

As busy as the upcoming months are sure to get, moving companies need to prepare their resources for the peak season. The last thing your company needs is truck malfunctions or equipment failure in the middle of the season. Therefore, you will want to go through all your resources and double-check all trucks, equipment, packing supplies, protective gear, etc. This occasion would also be ideal for calculating the overall volume of moving jobs your company is prepared to handle at any one time.

#5: Prepare contingency plans for peak season for movers

Go through your contingency plans in case of additional work.

The thing to remember about peak season for movers is that you can always get overwhelmed with the amount of moving jobs. And when companies don’t want to miss out on additional chances for profiting, they implement contingency plans. When it comes to professional relocation companies, this usually varies but most commonly comes down to:

Hiring part-time moving crews

Complete with background checks and prior experience, you should always have a couple of crews ready to step in to fill the gaps. And even if your labor lacks the experience, you can easily pair them with your full-time crews, still increasing your number while maintaining quality.

Leasing additional trucks and vans

During critical times, you might lack the trucks to accommodate all the moving jobs in the most time-efficient manner. And delays can lead to bad reviews or lost moving jobs. Instead, you can always sign a limited-time lease for additional moving trucks. That way, you will secure a sufficient number of trucks in case that business really picks up and overwhelms your company.

Double your equipment and supplies

Companies tend to neglect just how much packing materials it can take to handle a large volume of moves. Therefore, make sure to double your usual supplies and go through all your equipment once again in the upcoming weeks. Of course, remember that there will also be people wanting to buy packing materials, so you will want to prioritize whether or not you want to sell supplies during the season or just accommodate as many moves as possible.

Secure additional storage units

According to trends in the past several years, the storage industry has been growing exponentially. Today, it is a multi-billion dollar industry with facilities and warehouses across the globe. And so, more and more moving companies are looking to secure storage units and add it to their portfolio of services. It can not only meet the specific requirements of potential customers, but it can also prevent any unwanted chaos in your operations. By using storage units, you can avoid logistical issues and make additional time to take on more moving jobs.

#6: Target the right audiences with your marketing strategy

We’ve discussed the importance of marketing for moving companies in the past. After all, it’s what our company does and has been doing for the past several years. And being prepared in terms of pre-peak advertising ideas is one of the finest ways to attract as many customers during peak season for movers as possible. After all, there are plenty of last-minute promotional solutions for movers looking to generate as many leads as possible during the upcoming months.

#7: Understand the motivation behind the decision to relocate

As most of us are aware by now, the peak season for movers in the U.S. falls in the summer months, in-between May and August. People find this time of year best for making changes. Whether it’s going on vacation, relocating, decluttering a home or office space, expanding a business, etc. – the better the weather, the easier it gets. And the reasoning is simple enough:

Military staff often get re-assigned during the spring and summer months. Hence, most military families will be looking for relocation companies.

Regular families with children tend to opt for summer moves to take advantage of the summer break from school.

Students find the end of spring to be great for heading back home for the summer, and the end of summer to head back to the university.

Of course, there are always temp workers and interns that usually end their employment before or during the summer months.

Finally, you can always count on senior citizens to wait for nice weather conditions to retire long-distance and take their belongings with them or store them away.

And these are just several prime examples of your typical relocation needs and audiences. And each one of these responds well to different channels of advertising your business.

The post 2020 peak season for movers – the ultimate preparation guide appeared first on Movers Development.

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[recentnews18-blog]

New Post has been published on https://shovelnews.com/countdown-whats-the-deal-with-eugene-melnyks-video-to-senators-fans/

Countdown: What's the deal with Eugene Melnyk's video to Senators fans?

The Ottawa Senators have not been by any stretch of the term a model franchise. (Photo by Andre Ringuette/NHLI via Getty Images)

More

The Countdown is a quick look at some of the big stories in hockey in the last week. This time, we look at that insane-o Melnyk video, Steve Goodbyzerman (working on the copyright now), a Bruins trade, future labor strife, and so on!

8. Ottawa still, somehow

You know you have put together a good video when your social media team blasts it out at like 10:30 on a Monday night.

I could use a lot of words to describe the Eugene Melnyk/Mark Borowiecki joint that ran on the Senators’ Twitter page this week but the one I’ve seen most often is “bizarre,” and that really works for me. Yeah, Melnyk is wearing a jersey that could be more than a decade old, and not one of the Adidas ones that are now entering their second season. Yeah, he tells Borowiecki that the team is in the dumpster within 45 seconds of the video starting. This is all very funny, to me.

What’s being talked about less, and which is significantly more incredible to me, is that Melnyk told Borowiecki that the team plans to use 10 rookies this year — TTTTTEEEEEEENNNNNNNNN — just days before the team starts training camp. This is incredible because the Senators likely don’t have 10 guys in their farm system who can be legitimate NHLers. Like, it doesn’t seem physically possible to roster that many young guys, even if you can find a way to get your veteran roster down to just a baker’s dozen.

Okay, Erik Karlsson is getting traded before the season starts, we can all agree on that. Maybe the team also finds a way to offload Mark Stone, Bobby Ryan, Matt Duchene, and perhaps even Craig Anderson at some point as well. Even if you don’t get a single NHL-level player back for it, which seems impossible, that still leaves you with like three or four vets you have to get rid of. This is a ludicrous claim on its face.

And then like two seconds later, Melnyk doubles down on that: The team will roster 15 or even 16 kids next year. To be fair, they only have 11 guys signed for next season, and at least two of them (Ryan and Anderson) are trade bait right now, so that’s conceivable. But can you even imagine what an NHL team of 15 or 16 first- and second-year players, plus veterans like Marian Gaborik and Mark Borowiecki actually looks like? They’d be lucky to win 20 games. I’m not kidding.

This is the worst franchise in professional sports. Maybe ever. I don’t know how they keep topping themselves but apparently they also gave Shawn Simpson from TSN radio a five-hour interview for the assistant GM job, so perhaps all things are possible.

7. Unsigned RFAs

This is something I’ve checked in on periodically over the summer, but here we are on Sept. 12 — camps officially open today baby!!!! — and there are still eight unsigned RFAs who need contracts.

Some quick updates I’ve seen in the past few days: Darnell Nurse is apparently far apart with the Oilers on what’s a good contract for him (could be trouble). Willy Nylander might show up to camp without a contract and continue playing in good faith (yikes!). The Sabres want something “fair” from Sam Reinhart (bad news for the player). Vegas is acting like Shea Theodore is being unreasonable (also not good for the player).

You all have cap space. Let’s get these fellas signed! No big deal!

6. Hockey culture

I touched on it a little bit in WWL this week but the Josh Ho-Sang thing still annoys me, as does the “Believe me dude, no NFL player could EVER play in the NHL” nonsense that came out last week from a bunch of humorless, dumb scolds.

People in this sport always cry about “no one pays attention to us” and then the second someone does, it’s “[expletive] you! You have no right to talk about us!” If the NHL was even 10 percent more fun, maybe they’d show one highlight on SportsCenter. But this is an impossibility under the current system because only rich white people who embody the “eff-you, got mine” attitude are allowed to have opinions about it without being vehemently shushed.

Simply put: We gotta stop old white guys who “played the game” from running this sport. Not sure how we do it but email me and we’ll work on a plan.

5. Counting on the Caps

I’ve seen so much stuff in the past couple of weeks about “The Caps could have a big year again! They might repeat.” Are we forgetting that like, as of the end of the regular season, we all thought they kinda sucked? Then they went out and made literally zero improvements to their roster this summer, and in fact canceled out the one they made (addition-by-subtraction with Brooks Orpik) and re-signed the guy!

The Caps needed absolutely everything to go right in the playoffs after getting a HUGE shooting-percentage season that papered over Braden Holtby playing in a toilet for six months. Think that happens again? I mean, it could because there’s a lot of talent there, but I’m not holding my breath either.

4. The Lightning?

So Steve Yzerman stepped down as GM yesterday, kind of unexpectedly. People tweeted after the fact that they’d heard it might happen but that’s one of those things that’s easy to say in hindsight if you want to seem really plugged in.

“I’d heard rumblings Montreal was gonna trade Max Pacioretty for a middle-six forward and a good prospect who’s by no means a sure thing, I just couldn’t report it.”

Anyway, Julien BriseBois is the new GM and I don’t expect Tampa to miss a beat because everyone has been saying for years that he’s miles beyond competent. Why he didn’t get a job before this is for someone else to figure out, but he’s got one now and with a Cup contender. Not bad, because one of his first moves will probably be trading Dan Girardi, Ryan Callahan, and a brand new Adidas Senators jersey from NHL.com for Erik Karlsson and Bobby Ryan, both of whom have 80 percent salary retained somehow.

The Bolts will be fine. Yzerman has left them in a pretty good position to win for the next six or seven years at least. Must be nice, eh Julien?

As for Yzerman, well, he’s gonna stay on as a “senior advisor” to the club while living in Michigan (and spending more time with his family). Once his contract ends next summer, he’ll assuredly put on his waders and stand waist-deep in whatever mess Ken Holland leaves for him. Not the best career or life decision to leave Tampa, where he managed the Lightning, to move to Detroit and manage the Red Wings, but you gotta do you.

3. The Bruins

To go from having Adam McQuaid at $2.75 million being your eighth-best defenseman (and someone you probably can’t demote) to having Steve Kampfer at $650,000 in that same position (and being able to send him to Providence so fast McQuaid’s head will still spin) is a pretty good day-before-camp move.

Now if only they could find a buyer for Kevan Miller…

2. The owners, baby!!!!

We’re about a year out from someone being able to end the current CBA and media people are already starting to make noise like, “Well if there’s a work stoppage, it’s probably gonna be the players’ fault because the owners are pretty happy right now.” Pretty gross, but people always have to carry water to keep the sources happy.

Yeah, no kidding they’re happy. They’ve won huge concessions the last THREE lockouts. Players are gonna be looking to get back like a quarter of the money they give up in escrow (which, like, if you’re a guy who makes $3.5 million, that’s not how much you actually make) and maybe more flexibility around going to the Olympics.

There’s basically no chance the players strike but just like when people say to small business owners, “Do you think you could pay us something even remotely resembling a living wage?” and those brave Entrepreneurs prostrate themselves screaming “I’M A JOB CREATOR AND YOU WANT TO KILL OPPORUNTITY” through the rolled-up tinted windows of their $95,000 SUVs, owners will throw a huge temper tantrum and have another lockout.

But this time it’ll be the players’ fault because, just like every big corporation in America was happy with last year’s tax reform, hey look, the owners are happy with the system in place now. Because it heavily heavily heavily favors their interests.

1. Vegas

Something I didn’t get a chance to talk about in Monday’s Habs/Knights take, because it wasn’t germane to what I actually wanted to talk about, is how good this Pacioretty deal was for Vegas.

Just unbelievable.

They offloaded an overpaid guy (for whom they overpaid in trade, to be fair) and got an elite left wing for the cost of a prospect and a pick. As I said above, Nick Suzuki seems like he’s going to be good, but he’s probably not going to be Pacioretty-level prolific and there are plenty of question marks.

This is the sign of a team making moves because it knows it can be competitive, especially in that division. Let’s put it this way: The Golden Knights now have a second line of Pacioretty – Stastny – Tuch for the next four years at a relatively low price point (less than $11.5 million next season, then $13.5 million plus whatever Tuch re-signs for after that). And that’s behind an elite top line that somehow costs only $15.25 million next season.

That Pacioretty extension, by the way, was a just-right amount of money and a shockingly reasonable number of years. To avoid going five-plus with a guy who’s gonna be just a few months from being 30 when that deal kicks in was just fantastic for the club.

I still have plenty of questions about that forward depth and defense overall, but this is an unequivocal win for George McPhee. He not only replaced James Neal and David Perron, he improved on both of them without breaking the bank.

(Not ranked this week: Nothing.

Camps open, people are en route to China already, hockey’s back. I love it and you!!!!)

More NHL coverage on Yahoo Sports:

Ryan Lambert is a Yahoo! Sports hockey columnist. His email is here and his Twitter is here.

(All stats via Corsica unless otherwise noted.)

Source: https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/countdown-whats-deal-eugene-melnyks-video-senators-fans-142739626.html

[lotsofdogs]

The Great Big Postpartum Post

Today’s blog post has been a long time coming! Well, I guess it hasn’t been brewing for that long considering Ryder is just now 8 weeks old but it has taken me a lot longer to find the time to sit down and type up everything about this postpartum period than I anticipated.

I’ve actually been working on bits and pieces of this post for weeks and thought about breaking it up but decided against it so everything is in one place. Today’s post touches on everything from Ryder and breastfeeding to newborn sleep and the transition into life with two children. Brace yourselves because you guys are getting a VERY wordy post comin’ at you today!

Ryder

Oh Ryder! My sweet little boy! Ryder is such a gift in our lives and I absolutely love being his mother.

I don’t quite know how to put the way I feel about this little guy into words but he has a personality that feels almost calming to me which I know sounds crazy but there’s something about the way he locks eyes with everyone as he coos away that makes me feel like he’s going to be an introspective and thoughtful little boy. We all say he seems older than his 8 weeks somehow and I cannot wait to watch his personality develop and unfold as time goes on.

As far as babies go, he’s pretty darn easygoing and as Ryan likes to say, “He’s a good baby… but he’s still a baby,” which I think perfectly sums things up around here. It’s basically our way of saying he’s not too challenging but newborns are never a cakewalk! Ryder is admittedly an easier baby than our first (I hate to compare but I think it’s only natural for those with two kids to admit that all babies are different and some are easier than others) and Ryder truly feels like an angel baby to me because most of the time he’s just so content.

He loves to kick and coo and look at lights and fans and faces. High-pitched baby talk works wonders with Ryder and brings about the cutest little expressions that seem to showcase 5,000 emotions in 2.5 seconds. He’ll look at us with a big, gummy smile that will morph into a skeptical look that will quickly morph into a judgmental baby face and I’m trying to soak them all up!

It’s so neat to see Ryder’s personality develop right before my eyes and the past few weeks have brought about tons of smiles, gurgles and sweet baby chirps and coos that I just adore. He loves people and will lock eyes and stare at anyone and everyone who meets him.

Ryder is out of all of his newborn clothes and into 0-3 month and some 3 month clothing already. When he was born, I thought we lucked out and would be able to reuse all of Chase’s old clothes since they both have summer birthdays but I am beginning to wonder if Ryder’s size might not make this a possibility!

I love his squishy thighs, the milky bubbles he blows, the way his gummy smile creeps into his eyes and overtakes his whole face, his fluffy mohawk and the way he’ll come off my chest after nursing and give me the cutest little flirty smiles. It melts me every time and I am so grateful for this little boy.

Breastfeeding

Breastfeeding admittedly got off to a bit of a stressful start. When we were in the hospital and I attempted to nurse Ryder for the first time, he latched well but would only take one or two powerful sucks before coming off my breast. We now realize this was likely because he couldn’t breathe well while nursing. Once he was admitted to the NICU, I spent the next few days setting alarms and exclusively pumping which resulted in some incredibly sore nipples and stressed me out because after my first pump, I was pumping next to nothing or nothing at all. I was assured that this was normal and encouraged to continue pumping.

During this experience and also in hindsight, I felt incredibly grateful that I was a second-time mom because I cannot imagine how much more stressed I would’ve felt to have to learn how to pump immediately and then try to navigate nursing for the first time. I also know I am very, very lucky that our NICU stay was relatively short and I was able to nurse Ryder after a few days. I know this is not the case for many and I will always feel so grateful for everything.

Once my milk came in and I was able to nurse Ryder, breastfeeding improved dramatically. I felt my uterus begin to cramp, my bleeding increased and my body seemed to physically respond to nursing Ryder in the most incredible way.

Nursing Ryder in the beginning was a very different experience from learning to breastfeed Chase. It’s truthfully been much, much easier this time. I think this has a lot to do with the fact that Chase had a tongue tie that resulted in bleeding, scabbing and a lot of pain and I needed to use nipple cream like it was my job. I remember dreading the moment Chase would need to latch again because it would hurt so much until he had his frenulum clipped. Another thing I believe has contributed to an easier experience this time around is the simple fact that this is my second time breastfeeding. I truly believe nursing Chase for 15 months permanently changed my nipples and paved the way for Ryder a bit. Is that weird? Unfounded? Maybe! But whatever it is, I’ll take it!

Ryder is nursing well and seems to be a very efficient eater. He rarely wants to nurse for an extended period of time but he definitely wants to nurse often. I am nursing on demand at the moment which means that some days I feel like all I do is nurse, especially when Ryder wants to snack or cluster feed all day long. Ryder will often stay latched well for several minutes but then he likes to come on and off my breast and intersperse nursing with looking at me or looking around the room and cooing. This will often result in a very messy and milky nursing experience (my breasts will often spray milk or drip milk when he breaks his latch), so we’re going through a lot of milk-soaked burp cloths and blankets over here right now.

One obstacle that surfaced for the first few weeks of Ryder’s life that was somewhat related to breastfeeding was a pretty horrible diaper rash. His poor little booty was so red and he had little bloody sores on his bottom. The pediatrician had my breast milk tested to see if Ryder might have a milk protein allergy but everything came back normal. His diaper rash cleared up dramatically around 6 weeks and I think a HUGE part of this was the fact that Ryder started pooping less and his butt finally had time to recover between poops.

In the interim, we did a lot of naked baby time to give his butt a chance to breathe in between diaper changes and tried a bunch of diaper rash remedies, creams and oils. Most diaper rash remedies didn’t work well for Ryder (even a prescription cream) but Triple Paste seemed to work the best for him and we went through that stuff like it was going out of style!

Sleeping

My expectations for newborn sleep were really, really low. Chase was up nearly every two hours for feedings for well over a month or two and when I looked back on my monthly update posts for Chase, I saw that he was still waking up at least two times a night at 4-5 months old. This is what I was expecting from Ryder so I cannot tell you how incredible it has been to have a child who seems to sleep well. It’s pretty darn amazing. But I say this in the same breath that I say we are doing NOTHING different this time around with Ryder so if you have a baby that is a horrible sleeper, you’re doing a GREAT job and you’re doing nothing wrong. I feel you. Chase’s sleep was rough but in the beginning I had no point of comparison and thought all babies woke up a million times a night. (In this instance my naivety as a new mom worked as a benefit for me.)

Once I started to realize some babies were, in fact, sleeping through the night when we were still up all the time with Chase, I began reading baby sleep books which mostly made me feel like a big fat failure. As a second-time mom, I now realize some babies are just better sleepers and some parents just get really lucky. That’s not to say following sleep training techniques and implementing schedules doesn’t work for babies — I think they totally DO! — but babies are so different and as someone who has had a baby who was a pretty awful sleeper and someone who has a baby who seems to be a naturally good sleeper, I just feel like that’s an important thing to say to any moms out there who might be reading this post with bags under their eyes after months of horrible sleep. You’re doing great and it will get better! That’s something I also carry with me this time around — bad sleep DOES come to an end and it happens faster than you might think. Understanding that all of the baby struggles are temporary somehow makes it easier this time, too.

In the beginning, Ryder was up every three(ish) hours in the night. Some nights were filled with more frequent feedings but as the weeks went on, the time between Ryder’s feedings stretched out more and more. Right now I typically feed him before we go to bed between 8 and 9 p.m. Ryder will then typically wake up between midnight and 2 a.m. and again around 4 or 5 a.m. The fact that I am usually getting at least one solid 4-5 hour stretch of sleep between nursing sessions feels like an incredible gift and has been a huge help when it comes to my energy level every day. We’ve even had a few nights where Ryder skips his middle-of-the-night feed and wakes up to nurse for the first time between 4 and 5 a.m. (I pretty much wanted to high-five everyone I saw the next day after those nights!)

Of course some nights are still rough around here — just last night I found myself pacing around our room and rocking him from 2:30-3:30 a.m. — and I admittedly found myself throwing a dirty diaper in the washing machine last week because I was so out of it but, on the whole, I am counting my blessings in the newborn sleep department at the moment.

Physical Recovery and Changes

My physical recovery from this pregnancy has honestly been pretty good. Labor was fast and my delivery was pretty easy (thank you, epidural) and I only needed two stitches so I wasn’t too sore for too long. I continued to bleed and experience some serious postpartum night sweats up until around 5 weeks postpartum.

I started walking for exercise (and sanity!) when Ryder was about a week and a half old. I kept my pace nice and easy and gradually worked up to walking three(ish) miles almost every day. I feel really good now and just started to return to boot camp classes this week.

I am definitely easing into fitness and currently modifying my workouts quite a bit. After I received the okay from my doctor at my 6-week postpartum checkup, I began doing some moderate strength training in our garage but only a few days and every workout left me feeling so sore!

From an aesthetic standpoint, I’m softer everywhere and the cellulite is REAL over here but I’m not really focused on that right now. I’m not weighing myself regularly (I didn’t before I got pregnant and don’t plan to start now) but I hopped on the scale for the sake of this post and saw I’m up about 12-15 pounds from my pre-pregnancy weight. I know from my experience with Chase that the final 10-15 pounds of pregnancy weight gain took the longest to lose and it took me a solid 9 months to lose it all after my first pregnancy.

My plan for postpartum weight loss is the same this time around: I plan to focus on being as healthy as I can, work out regularly to make myself feel strong (mentally and physically) and trust that my body will do what is best. Breastfeeding is a priority for me and along with nursing comes ridiculous hunger so I feel like I’m an eating machine and I wouldn’t want to mess with anything that could effect my milk supply.

I say all of this in one breath but I don’t want to mislead anyone into thinking I’m completely confident with my postpartum body. I feel secure in my body and so grateful for what it has done but getting dressed feels awkward since I’m in a weird transition stage where maternity stuff doesn’t really work and my regular clothes all cling to my body and feel too small. I am just not dwelling on my physical appearance and I am trying to put my focus where it matters — on my two boys — and remind myself that my body just did something amazing and it should look different right now.

Despite what the media and social media portrays, I know it’s not realistic to look like I didn’t just give birth 8 weeks after our baby arrived so I’m trying my best to embrace the softness, cellulite and body changes and focus on the incredible reason my body looks different. It just produced a HUMAN and that’s pretty freaking incredible!

Transition to Two Children

In today’s post I’m focusing on how I’m personally handling the transition into life with two kids but you may read more about how big brother Chase is handling the transition in Chase’s Three Year Update. 

To be completely honest, the hardest part about this postpartum period has been the transition from one child to two. This is not because Chase is acting out or we have a colicky baby or anything dramatic but simply juggling two children is very, very different than one baby. There’s basically NO downtime and every day feels a bit chaotic right now.

When Chase was a baby, I could count on his nap time to work but now I can count on one hand the number of times Chase and Ryder’s naps have coincided which means I am constantly feeling behind on everything. I cannot blog or get work done nearly as often as I used to and our house rarely looks clean but I know this is a season and I’m trying to embrace this time as best as possible.

Possibly the biggest blessing in this postpartum transition period was having my mom here to help after Ryder was born. So many fellow moms encouraged me to accept help during this time and I’m so, so glad I did even if my first inclination was to say, “I’ve got this!”

My mom mostly helped with Chase after Ryder was born which is exactly what we wanted and needed most. Ryan got one week of paternity leave so his time off was all used up while we were still in the hospital with Ryder. Having my mom’s help during this time and right after Ryan went back to work was so incredible and absolutely helped with the transition. Her help made a huge difference to me during the first couple of weeks with two kids and I know how lucky we were to have her here!

When Ryder “woke up” (aka was no longer sleeping all day every day), I had quite a few meltdown days. Seemingly overnight, Ryder needed more attention and soothing to be content and on the days when Chase wouldn’t nap or didn’t nap well, he’d often be in a serious MOOD by 4 p.m. Let’s just say the hours from 4 p.m. until bedtime often felt (and can feel) like an eternity. This is the time of day that is still the most challenging for us and it can feel really long and draining some days since it’s typically the time of day when Ryder seems the most hands-on (they call it the “witching hour” for a reason!) and, depending on his mood, Chase can be needier and whinier than usual.

Ryan often doesn’t arrive home from work until after 7 p.m. (this isn’t a complaint, just a reality) and there have been more than a few days that he’ll arrive home to me telling him I just want to face-plant into bed. (Side note: My back often feels totally destroyed by the end of the day from all the rocking, bouncing and soothing. I don’t remember this happening with Chase but the pain I feel in my mid/upper back is killer at the end of some of the rougher days! Has this happened to any of you!?)

As far as the impact of two kids on our marriage, all is well over here but in full transparency our time to really connect as a couple feels rather limited on a daily basis. I swear an entire week can easily go by where I feel like I’ve barely talked to my husband! By the time Ryan is home from work and we tackle the bedtime routine, the only thing I want to do is go to sleep and since we both seem to fall asleep the minute Ryder goes down for the night, it can be a little challenging to get that one-on-one time to talk and connect. We’re trying our best but many times during the week our conversations feel fragmented by bursts of one child needing this or that or family playtime. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love building airplanes or playing dragons with Chase, Ryder and Ryan but playing dragons with my husband is very different from actual adult communication!

It’s more clear than ever to me that we need to be intentional in our time together as a couple and we’re slowly getting into a better rhythm. I’m not quite ready to schedule a date night and leave Ryder with a babysitter (I still need to pump and get him used to taking a bottle again) but hopefully that isn’t too far off! In the meantime, we’re doing our best to keep communication open, acknowledge our feelings and lean on each other even if we’re not getting as much couple time as usual these days! Thankfully we both seem to understand that this time with a newborn is so fleeting and we are just trying to go with the flow and be great parents and great spouses even though the parenting role admittedly — and understandably — seems to be taking the front seat at the moment.

Sooo there you have it! A bazillion words and way more than you guys all probably cared to know about this postpartum period! I will likely do a followup post to this one in the coming weeks much like I did after Chase was born to address any lingering questions, so please let me know if there’s anything you’d like me to touch on that I may have missed! And if you made it to the end of this post, thank you so much for reading about this special and crazy time in our lives!

[Read More ...] https://www.pbfingers.com/the-great-big-postpartum-post/