#Custom Gifts for Politicians
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noisycowboyglitter · 4 months ago
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The Vice President Kamala Harris Is My Sorority Sister: A Legacy of Empowerment
The phrase "The Vice President Kamala Harris Is My Sorority Sister" refers to the shared bond between Vice President Kamala Harris and members of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated (AKA). This connection has been a source of pride and inspiration for many AKA members and supporters.
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Alpha Kappa Alpha, founded in 1908 at Howard University, is the oldest Greek-letter organization established by African American college women. Kamala Harris joined the sorority's Alpha Chapter while attending Howard University in the 1980s.
When Harris was elected Vice President in 2020, it marked a significant milestone not only for the nation but also for AKA. Her achievement resonated deeply with sorority members, who often refer to each other as "sorors" or sisters.
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The sorority's principles of scholarship, leadership, and service align closely with Harris's career in public service. Throughout her political journey, from District Attorney to U.S. Senator and now Vice President, Harris has often acknowledged the impact of her AKA experience on her life and career.
For many AKA members, Harris's vice presidency represents the culmination of the sorority's long-standing commitment to civic engagement and women's empowerment. It serves as an inspiration for young women, particularly women of color, showing that they too can aspire to the highest offices in the land.
The phrase also highlights the significance of historically Black Greek-letter organizations in fostering networks, leadership skills, and community service among their members, which can translate into professional and political success.
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When considering the best gift for a politician, it's important to choose something thoughtful, appropriate, and in line with ethical guidelines. Here are some ideas that could be suitable:
Books: A carefully selected book on leadership, history, or policy can be both informative and inspiring.
Personalized stationery: High-quality, customized notepads or letterheads can be practical and elegant.
Charitable donation: Making a donation in their name to a cause they support shows thoughtfulness and social responsibility.
Local artisan crafts: Gifts that represent their constituency or state can be meaningful and support local businesses.
Commemorative items: A framed copy of a significant bill they sponsored or a historic photograph related to their career can be memorable.
Professional accessories: A quality pen, briefcase, or portfolio can be useful for their daily work.
Patriotic items: Tasteful flag pins, cufflinks, or desk accessories with national symbols can be appropriate.
Time-management tools: A nice planner or digital organizer can help with their busy schedule.
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Remember to check specific ethics rules and gift limits that may apply to the politician in question to ensure compliance with regulations.
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Biden Picker Upper Beverage Tumbler
Shop 20-Ounce “Biden Picker Upper” beverage Tumbler. This makes a great gift for Christmas, birthday gift and is perfect for your drink! It is made of stainless steel and is double-wall insulated to keep your beverages hot or cold for hours! Nice slim style fits nicely in your hand and is the perfect size for your car cupholder. It comes with a straw and a spill-proof lid. This is a great gift for a great price!
Care instructions: Hand wash and air dry or hand dry
Due to different picture lighting settings the actual color might vary a bit from the pictures.
After a package leaves my hands with the post office, Granny & Grandpa's Custom Creations is not held responsible. Current Turnaround Time due to upcoming Holidays - 1-5 Business Days. While we always use priority shipping options, once shipped we cannot guarantee delivery due to the backlog current being experienced USPS/UPS/FedEx. If you have a strict deadline, please message me when ordering so that I can note any rush requests. Ownership of packages turned over to USPS transfers to the Buyer. We are not responsible for lost, held, damaged packages or delayed packages, once your package(s) leaves our Shop it is completely out of our control. Thank you for understanding!
Thank you for visiting Granny & Grandpa's Custom Creations, we truly appreciate your support of small businesses. We also personalize our products, please reach out to us with any personalizing any of our products, additional fee's may apply
Please visit www.grannygrandpascustomcreations.com to view more products. 
© 2018 All photography is intellectual property of Granny and Grandpa's Custom Creations © and may not be used without express written permission from Granny and Grandpa's Custom Creations.
LET’S GET SOCIAL & BE FRIENDS! Like, Tag & Follow us for Our new Creations, Inspiration & Giveaways!
website/ www.grannygrandpascustomcreations.com/shop                                                   facebook.com/ https://www.facebook.com/GrandpaHandmadecreations/                               instagram.com/ https://www.instagram.com/grannyandgrandpacustomcreation/
#grannygrandpascustomcreations #tumblers #beverage #granny #supportsmallbusiness #shopsmallbusiness
Shop 20-Ounce “Biden Picker Upper” beverage Tumbler. This makes a great gift for Christmas, birthday gift and is perfect for your drink! It is made of stainless steel and is double-wall insulated to keep your beverages hot or cold for hours! Nice slim style fits nicely in your hand and is the perfect size for your car cupholder. It comes with a straw and a spill-proof lid. This is a great gift for a great price!
Care instructions: Hand wash and air dry or hand dry
Due to different picture lighting settings the actual color might vary a bit from the pictures.
After a package leaves my hands with the post office, Granny & Grandpa's Custom Creations is not held responsible. Current Turnaround Time due to upcoming Holidays - 1-5 Business Days. While we always use priority shipping options, once shipped we cannot guarantee delivery due to the backlog current being experienced USPS/UPS/FedEx. If you have a strict deadline, please message me when ordering so that I can note any rush requests. Ownership of packages turned over to USPS transfers to the Buyer. We are not responsible for lost, held, damaged packages or delayed packages, once your package(s) leaves our Shop it is completely out of our control. Thank you for understanding!
Thank you for visiting Granny & Grandpa's Custom Creations, we truly appreciate your support of small businesses. We also personalize our products, please reach out to us with any personalizing any of our products, additional fee's may apply
Please visit www.grannygrandpascustomcreations.com to view more products. 
© 2018 All photography is intellectual property of Granny and Grandpa's Custom Creations © and may not be used without express written permission from Granny and Grandpa's Custom Creations.
LET’S GET SOCIAL & BE FRIENDS! Like, Tag & Follow us for Our new Creations, Inspiration & Giveaways!
website/ www.grannygrandpascustomcreations.com/shop                                                   facebook.com/ https://www.facebook.com/GrandpaHandmadecreations/                               instagram.com/ https://www.instagram.com/grannyandgrandpacustomcreation/
#grannygrandpascustomcreations #tumblers #beverage #granny #supportsmallbusiness #shopsmallbusiness
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smuttyaf · 9 months ago
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Jasper Gentlemen’s Club
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𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐞𝐰; 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭
wc: 9.3k | part two of the business
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“Treat yourself to something nice.”
Smile shines genuinely at the stack of blue bills falling into your grip. The heart of your customer pounds against your ear from the generous tip being gifted as you swiftly lean in pressing a kiss against his stubble cheek.
“I’ll surprise you,” You tease. His grip growing tighter against your hip at the gesture. “But that will just be our little secret.”
Following your movements he heads with you out of the dim decorative room. You depart from his side once leaving the elevator with faint ‘goodbye’ and his lingering touch trailing away from your waist. White train flows down your sides as you venture to the back of the establishment.
Heels click against the chestnut floorboard, the sound of lockers closing and gentle laughter fill your ears.
“Speaking of the devil,” Grace grins. Fishnets and lace peek under the usual feather robe. Her ginger hair sits in voluminous curls while her eyes are painted in black shadow.
Jasper Gentlemen’s Club, your place of employment for three years now. It’s a private upscale strip club to say in short, however it was the popular type of establishment catered for specific people; the elites and socialites of society, ranging from celebrities to politicians.
Already being high maintenance from the clientele that it specifically caters for, there were codes set in place to appease them. For example, always having proper upkeep of your appearance. Nails, toes, hair, lashes; everything had to be perfect. You were meant to look like a doll for your customers, suppose to be their escape from reality so you had to play the part perfectly. The second, would be no photography or video recording. It’s a no brainer but it was hounded into your mind, the only type of film the customers will ever be on is the security cameras. The situation being so serious everyone in the building had to sign non-disclosure agreements. And the last and final major rule, always being dressed in the renowned long tulle robe. Each dancer had this garment in every colour and pattern you can imagine, fluffy soft material making all your coworkers look like fairies dancing under the inky light.
Sometimes you couldn’t believe that this was your job. Working at this elegant spot and always looking stunning with your weekly manicures, pilates classes, and lash appointments. It was all that consumed your life aside from work. Even though you never thought you would find yourself in this position you couldn’t help but be happy about it. You struggled a lot during your teenage years, getting kicked out of your home at a such a young age you had to turn into an adult quickly. So you accept this lifestyle of greedy men and lustful hands, you much prefer it over the life you had before.
“You look like a sexy dominatrix,” You say glancing over her attire for the night.
Peeling open your purse, you let your tip money fall amongst the pile built up from your shift.
“You know me, you really know me!” Grace giggles with hand lying on her heart. You laugh at her expression while sitting at your vanity next to hers. “So… Do you remember the club owner I’ve been telling you about?” She ask, one arm place on the back of her chair as she faces you. You hum at her words nodding your head slowly.
She was boasting about this man that has been her new favourite of the month. Ranting about how he tips her generously and was the most handsome out of all her regulars. You’ve never took much notice of her roaster though, too indulged with your own you couldn’t really care about what her clients look like.
“He’s here and brought a friend… I may or may not have put in good words about you that he wants to meet,” Grace remarks with plucked eyebrows wiggling. It results with you shaking your head in disagreement.
“No thank you, I would like to go home to Cleo,” You sigh giving her an annoyed look. The desire to kick off these heels and curl against his fur freckle coat was all you wanted to do at the moment.
“Oh come on! Just one more before you leave!”
You twist your head at her words again. The clock was ten minutes away from your shift ending and you couldn’t wait for those numbers to dial in. Biting your lip you look at her.
“At least talk to him, I’m sure he’ll tip you for that… you know, because you’re just the sweetest girl in this joint.” Grace mocks Jasper’s southern voice. You roll your eyes at the reminder of him drunkly calling you one of his most prized employees during one the work anniversary parties.
“Fine, but you owe me.” Huffing with fingers tapping annoyingly at the vanity.
“Of course baby doll.”
You both touch up your makeup before going to the floor once more. It was Saturday night which meant it was busy, there was men litter by the bar while many sit amongst the lounge chairs, eyes all set on your coworkers performing their own little show for them before paying for the real thing. Her black train leads you towards the elevator, security smiling as you two step into the machine.
“Three please.” Grace smiles. The guard swiftly presses the number that brings you to the floor reserved for the most confidential people.
This makes you confused. If her client is just a club owner he couldn’t possibly be on this status? That can only mean the guest he brought with him has to be the one filling the role. If you could do a little dance in the space you would. Happy in your head thanking Grace for making you tag along but also causing you to wonder who it could be.
The elevator halts as you reach the floor. Both of you stepping out of the machine with robe swishing against your skin. White fluffy material tugs along the carpet as your heels echo in the hallway, eyes meeting the number of the door 323. The golden knob turns, allowing you both to step into the dim room.
Plum curtains pressed in baroque prints drape amongst the wall with stockard candles laminating the room, it gives sight on the two men standing each with glass of dark bourbon held in their hands.
Grace’s annoying rant about her regular being remarkably handsome is something you totally understand now, both look as if they could easily get sign and put on a runaway at any moment. One man holds a golden hue to his skin, black shiny hair slick under the lights, while the other has fair skin and luscious curls.
They stand in black suits fitting seamlessly against their bodies. The brown eyes of one man holds hues of caramel looking towards Grace while the other has beautiful emerald orbs that makes your breath catch in your throat.
She makes her way to the bronze man, feathers of her robe flutter under the lights. “Angelo, Y/N. Y/N, Angelo.” She introduce. You roll your eyes at her playfulness.
“Nice to meet you Y/N,” Deep Italian voice fills your ears as you smile curtly before giving the brunette next to him your attention.
Eyes watch the contour of his cheeks sink from his jaw tensing. His hair was short with loose ringlets weaving through, nose broad and standing high amongst the features of his chiseled face. He was enchanting, especially with the way he’s towering over you in this dim light, your cheeks begin to swell with heat from this foreign feeling brewing in.
Yes, you had plenty of handsome clients but never once did it make your heart sing a different tune. Your canine tooth pierces the corner of your mouth. The focus he has on you was more then just admiring ones appearance, it was as if he was devouring you.
The only thought passing through your head is hoping he can’t see your blushing cheeks as you play along to his daring gaze and let your alluring persona kick in.
“And who must you be?” You question, lashes look up at the man who still overshadows you in these tall heels.
“I’m shock you don’t know my name love,” Deep voice matching the same tone as his friend. It causes waves of arousal to flow through you.
“Don’t mind her, she’s doesn’t involve herself in small talk here,” Grace interjects, her hand sliding on Angelo’s suited shoulder while stepping into his body.
“Oh? Just my kind of woman then.” The brunette smirks. Those words make your ears tingle and grow red.
Jesus Christ get it together! You think to yourself. This is your new client, not some cute guy at the club, reel in your feelings and do your job.
“Told you to trust me Harry… now have fun you two,” Grace sings, hand slipping and locking with Angelo as she tugs him out.
The sound of the door closing is met with the slow hum of The Weeknd that fills the atmosphere, your heart is pounding in your ears with smile shining on your lips. Timid palms glazed over with sweat run over the white train of your robe.
This was so unlike yourself to be shy around men, especially with your profession after these few years, but now it was as if you can’t even control your nerves. You want to jump his bones and study every inch of him.
“Harry?” You say, body leaning into him and immediately smelling his expensive cologne, Baccarat Rouge. Your favourite mens cologne. Yeah, this was going to be difficult.
“Harry Styles,” He clarifies, eyes drinking you in as you move closer.
Your hand leaves your robe and feels over his collar to roam down his chest to feel over the buttons there. Applying pressure you gently shove him back a few steps before he’s against the familiar sofa, his knees bend with back falling softly against the cushions, your body now towering over his seated position.
The way he’s staring at you made the blood running through your veins thump with urgency to regulate your heart. A closed off part of you is unravelling itself just from looking at this man.
“Let me help you relax, Mr. Styles.” Pushing his legs apart with your thigh, your hips begin to sway to the music in the air. Nails going to the ribbon and playing with the bow.
Teasingly letting the smooth material slide between your fingertips, you move to the soft voice of the artist through the space, head lolling back seductively as you begin to unravel the string, your white embellished lingerie set reveals itself when you let the garment slowly cascade down your arms to rest in the hollow of your elbows.
Intricate fabric displays your busty breasts smooth with light sparkles dazzling under the lights, the floral lace design sits tight against your hips as your thighs rub against each other from each swing. Besides your waist moving so confidently with each stride, you can’t get over the way you feel so timorous.
Harry gaze is practically looking through you, observing every alluring movement that you do. The gentle press of your hands run up his thighs, your hips twisting side by side as you make your way between his legs, nails dragging into the thick fabric of his suit while doe eyes look up at him with playful smirk on your glossy lips.
His chest inhales deeply, knuckles turning white as he strains his hands by his side. The look in your gaze makes him want to groan hungrily, especially due to the position you’re lingering in. Nails trail into his thighs dreadfully to the slow symphonies in the background. He bites down on his bottom lip, body shifting under your eyes as you begin to rise up, swaying your waist back to your original position.
You continue to be enticing, hands running up your body as you turn around let your robe venture further down your arms to rest by your wrists, plump backside set in the air as you continue provoking him.
These movements were nothing new, especially with the way you allow yourself to fall deeper into his body and begin to dance in his lap, hair falling across your face you when rub yourself slowly against his obvious erection. Although, performing this sequence over hundreds of times your heart was beating erratically in your chest with mind racing with millions of thoughts. Thoughts you never had before ever since you’ve started working here, this new found feeling as if discovering Pandora’s Box.
You try to ignore the glint in his eyes, the way they hungrily look over every inch of your body, staring as if knowing what’s brewing in your mind.
Harry’s hand peels away from the velvet seat going to your moving hips, pulling you deeper against his embrace with head lying in the crook your neck, breath warm against your ear as you continue your teasing.
“No touching… you know this,” You scold. But despite the taunt you don’t move his hands, instead you slide your fingers on his knees increasing your ruthless movements.
You hear the groan that erupts from him lowly, nails curling into your skin as you push further into him. Turning your head slightly you nearly brush your lips together, it leads you to stutter at the close encounter. The mistake in your movements so distinct that you know he felt it, and if the lights weren’t such a dim glow he would see the way your eyes flare up at the near moment of kissing him.
“But you like it? Don’t you?” Harry purrs in your ear, heart fluttering at the rasp in his voice.
Rather than burrowing deeper into his touch you draw away from his reciprocating moves, his hands falling to his sides as he smirks up at you, expression shining with amusement.
Smile toying on your lips you straddle his thigh, hands running up his arms to curl around his shoulders. Everything about him was driving you crazy; the colour of his eyes, the cologne drawing you in, the material of his suit that feels smooth under your touch. You want him on top of you in every way possible.
As if catching a glimpse into your mind his hands find themselves back on your hips, compelling you to halt your previous movements of swivelling circles to drag roughly down his thigh. Your clit pressing tightly between the material of your panties to his rough motions that it makes you moan surprisingly.
Immediately biting down on your lip you can’t help but lean forward towards his face, his hands still moving you along his body, inching you closer and closer towards him. Nose brush against each other in the rush exchange just as lips nearly touch. You quietly whimper at the feeling of his nails digging into your hips. His mouth parting slightly as if trying to breathe in the sound you release.
You want so badly to lean in and discover the way he tastes. Honestly, you would do anything to have him cocooned around you in this moment, but unfortunately those thoughts don’t overshadow the reality of why you’re both in this room right now.
Skimming your tongue over your bottom lip, your teeth bite deeply into the flesh continuing to let him control your movements, his eyes still staring at you as he watches you restrain yourself from showing pleasure.
“How much you charge for the night?”
The words hang in the air causing your face to draw away from his, mouth parting in surprise as your expression resembles disappointment. You should really laugh at yourself. Did you think he was different than the rest? That the possessive look he has on you meant something more? You barely even know the man and your heart jumps for joy just at the appearance. You’re so naive, so stupid to really think he would see you differently.
“I —I don’t do that.” You mumble, pulling further away from him as you divert your gaze.
The tension that was once a teasing attraction between the both of you now is strained, the hum of the song concluding in the background sounds in the atmosphere while Harry’s grip relaxes realizing your change of emotion.
“Oh? I just thought…”
“You thought wrong.”
Heels balance yourself back on your feet. Arms trailing down the expanse of his as you faintly smile at him, your hands gather the sleeves of your robe around your wrist and drape it back over your shoulders, fingers lacing the ribbon together as the speaker occupying the room begins to play another song.
“It was nice meeting you sir.” You hush, faint smile tugging amongst your lips even though your face reads as if someone stomped on your dreams.
“Hold on now, let me apologize. I didn’t mean to offend you in anyway.” Harry confesses, his hands that were once on your skin reach out to draw you into his touch, however you step back.
It didn’t matter how he was going to form his words to express his regret about the invasive question. Whether he tried to say it in the nicest way or simplest terms, you know how he sees you. Just like your other clients; their little play thing that they want to unwrap to see more skin under the fabric.
It’s why you care little about the words you hear regularly. It’s expected of you even if it wasn’t something you offer. Yet, even when hearing it so many times, it still hurt that you were always perceived that way.
“None taken, have a good night.” You conclude the conversation.
Swiftly turning around you ignore the irritated expression on his face from your words, as you exit the room you try not to think of Harry and the blooming feeling of his presence captivating you.
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“You shouldn’t have such high expectations.”
Sparkling wine dazzles under the chandelier lights when Grace brings the glass to her lips. She rolls her eyes faintly as she drinks back the sweet liquid, all you can do is turn the noodles in your pasta out of boredom.
“You know that’s not it.” You sigh, fingers fiddling with the fork and slouching your head on your hand.
“Oh come on!” It’s her turn to exhale tirelessly with annoyed smile on her lips. “I say you let him have what he wants, see what you can get out of him.”
Of course she would say that because she provides that type service but, you on the other hand didn’t. You never look at Grace differently because of it but she would always comment on just letting certain clients pay for sex, little jabs about doing these favours especially since it charges more. Yes, it would be easy to receive such superficial things out of those gestures but you desire more than that, which she knew tremendously.
“You know that’s not my thing.” Letting your fork scrape against the red sauce in your plate.
“Yes that’s what you say but you’re so infatuated with him, just give it a chance you never know what you can get from Mr. Mafia himself?”
“Mr. What?”
Eyes nearly bulge out of your face as if you were a cartoon character. The metal instrument in your hand drops from your grasp with your head raising off your hold in complete shock. Harry was in the mafia? Now you’re just finding out about this?!
“Oops? I thought I told you,” Grace reveals as if it’s so normal to forget.
“Are you serious?” You remark, eyes stuck on the way she shrugs her shoulders nonchalantly.
“Yes very serious, now relax. Some of our clients don’t have the best professions either.” She points out raising her eyebrows, and to that you nod in agreement.
You breathe in deeply, hands reaching out to grab your drink and take generous sips from discovering this new found information. This beautiful man with sweet colour eyes and soft curls was part of something dangerous. You never thought about what he could possibly do for work but that was definitely not one of them.
“But yes, the man you’re so in love with is in fact part of the mafia.”
“How do you know this?”
“If you spend enough time around drunk Jasper you’ll find out anything babe.”
Laughing faintly you agree to that, he was always the most honest when intoxicated.
“He was telling me about Angelo as a new client, how he’s some club owner laundering money for someone related to Luciano, some mob boss? I don’t know, never heard of that guy, but! When I met Angelo the first time at work… and well after work too, he was always having someone call him under Styles, one time I caught him talking to him on the phone, something about money so I just put two and two together.”
You bite down on your lip, eyes falling away from her hazel ones and to your unattended bolognese. Money laundering? Hopefully that’s the worse he’s ever done, but the inkling feeling roaming in the back of your mind tells you it’s not. Why should you even care though? This false hope that he’ll actually want you is slim, so why even try to care about what he does.
“I’m telling you girl, with the amount of money he probably brings in you should give it some thought.” Grace sends you another look as she continues eating.
Rolling your eyes again you bring the wine glass back to your lips. This conversation was steering its usual direction and frankly you were over it, you need to shove your heart back in your chest and forget these ridiculous ideas.
“Well if this isn’t a coincidence.”
Both of your sights catch on the same men you saw last night, especially on the specific man who is the topic of the conversation. Harry is now standing right in front of you still looking remarkably handsome as ever. This time he was dressed in a navy blue suit that brought out a gentle tone in his eyes. If you weren’t in this restaurant you would probably take up Grace’s words and get on your knees in this moment.
It doesn’t take long for you to feel the heat rush to your cheeks, and unlike the gentlemen’s club the lights inside this restaurant are brightly lit around the room, only highlighting the flush to your skin. Diverting your gaze, you continue to tip the alcohol into your mouth as cheery laughter beams from Grace when she looks between Angelo and you.
“It’s good to know we all have taste,” She humours, while you decide to swallow back the sweet fluid and place your drink back in its previous place.
Your sight darts from your drink to the napkin with extra cutlery to avoid the unwanted attention burning on your face. You know it’s Harry practically boring holes into you, so heavy that you don’t even want to look up and see him. You just willow in Grace’s conversation doing everything to ignore contact.
That’s until weight presses on the back of your chair, the smell of him fills your nose as he practically buries his head into the side of your neck. You’re completely taken back at the gesture, head turning slightly to make distance.
“Are you going to hold onto my mistake forever?” Harry ask, voice low and assertive that you feel your cheeks grow even brighter.
Pulling away from his embrace you scan his face as he straightens his back peering down at you. He studies your appearance in reciprocation to your detecting gaze, as if wanting to know every dip and curve that roams the expanse.
“No.”
“Are you always this cold then?”
“Maybe.”
Finally breaking the stare down you turn towards Grace who smiles sheepishly Angelo way before looking towards you. Sight flickering between Harry retreating next to his friend.
“See you soon.” Grace shines watching the two step away and head to their table.
As soon as they’re out of sight you clench your teeth, fury completely combing through you at the sudden intrusion of the night.
“Ease up on him.” She laughs. It makes you sigh dramatically, reaching over and finishing your glass of wine.
“I want a shot,” You declare. It makes Grace erupt in even more laughter only making you join along. This night was full of surprises.
“For once would you take my advice?”
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Monday evening is slow; music transitioning between easygoing temp to dreadful paste. You book a couple private rooms in the beginning of your shift, flirt with some men on the floor to find some entertainment throughout the night, till you’re now in the back room listening to Clarissa and Lucy rant about their evening.
“I told Simon to let Jasper know I’m not taking him anymore and he persists on me keeping him!” Clarissa groans in annoyance hand hitting the leather sofa with frustration. Her energy radiates annoyance.
“Simon probably didn’t even ask, he’s just saying that… you know how he is,” Lucy responds with an eye roll only making you laugh at the exchange.
“I heard that!” Simon strides into the room with clipboard in hand and sharing knowing glances between each girl.
“Lucy you have private room eighty-six, Y/N you have confidential in three-hundred and twenty-three, and Clarissa you’re on the floor in five! No one should be in the back room on slow nights, you ladies all know this.” The statement only causes the group to exchange displeased expressions.
Clarissa and Lucy stand from the couch and make their way towards their own respective vanities while you get out of your seat and move towards the club manager.
“Confidential?” You question, following him as he begins to walk out the room.
“Yes, same gentleman as your last shift so don’t keep him waiting, quickly now,” His voice rush as he takes your wrist softly in his hand and drags you to the elevator, he sends tight limp smile towards the security guard before nodding his head and stepping away.
Same gentleman as last time. Harry wants to see you again? Even yesterday after the attitude you put up? The thoughts erupt in your mind with each of ding of the elevator. Different emotions course through as you make steps towards the familiar door.
You know you shouldn’t get your hopes up. He’s just like all of your regulars who simply want to see you, another of your clients. Nothing he can say or do will make you change your mind.
Fingers curl around the door knob, you relax your shoulders and let an alluring smile spread on your strawberry colour lips. The bubbling anxiety rumbles in your stomach as you retrieve the door open and move deeper into the room.
He sat on the diamond encrusted sofa, white button up with few undone to reveal ink roaming amongst his collar bones. His back is against the seat with arms laid amongst the sculpted frame, one hand free while the other held a glass of dark liquor. Even though he was sluggishly sitting along the chair, the way his hair was in messy curls and gaze falling to every step you make towards him, you shiver in excitement.
“Mr. Styles.” You smirk, concealing the feelings that spark in you.
Harry’s eyes venture down the expanse of your appearance, lingering extremely long on the way your hips sway, to them eventually staring even longer at your lips while you look down on him. His tongue escapes his mouth to run over his flesh, the hand occupying his drink brings it to his lips.
You let your eyes reciprocate his actions, staring longingly at this disheveled appearance; you admire how charming he looks relax with his ruffled curls and roaming eyes. You want to reach out and brush your hand across his skin but instead you let them slide down your waist comfortably.
“You look good in red.” Harry comments locking sight and smirking at you. His hands twirl the ice cubes in his empty glass that echoes in the space.
Smiling faintly at the compliment, you bow your head at the acknowledgment. “Thank you sir.”
Harry draws his other hand off the frame, fingers reaching into his breast pocket feeling over the contents before pulling out two blue bills. The warmth of his palm melts against your skin as it slips through the space in your robe and slides it into the band of your panties.
“Fill up my glass.”
He’s pushing it into your hand, voice so demanding it makes you confuse at the change of tone. You welcome the cool feel of it before turning around and going to the serving bar located in the room.
With your movements unscrewing the bottle to pour the contents, you hear ruffling from behind. Your heart beats so intensely it begins to give you chest pains. Circling back on your heels and making your way towards Harry, you see another few bills between his fingers as you hold his drink in front of him.
“Sit down.”
You oblige taking the seat next to him, mind completely confused on the change of his behaviour. You know your attitude yesterday may have been uncalled for but this was a different type of treatment. His presence being so cold yet inviting, you can’t tell if you’re scared by him or not.
The hand resting along the couch occupied with papers between his fingers run along the strap of your bra, he tucks the bills there while his gaze goes back to admiring you.
“What are you doing?” You ask, welcoming the his palm going to your breast to feel up your neck and grip your jaw with dominance.
“Do you forgive me?”
Threaded brows press together completely dropping your suggestive demeanour, eyes going to his suited pants until his grip tightens and directs your attention back to his.
“Is that what this is?” You continue, gaze running over the way his jaw flexes. “This money for my forgiveness. I’ve heard worse things in my field of work sir but, I’m very appreciative of the gesture.”
Your hand trails away from your thigh and drags along his knee, body leaning into this scent as you completely fall into your thoughts of this handsome man before you.
“So you don’t forgive me.” Harry responds coolly, the pads of his fingers sink deeper into your skin.
“I don’t care.” You state. Clenching down on your teeth while he releases his hold on your jaw. He rolls his eyes at your words, bringing the glass to his lips.
“You’re so frustrating.”
The comment causes your expression to grow with annoyance.
“Do you want me to dance or not?” Attitude clear in your tone as the palm of your hand continues to glide down the expanse of his thighs.
“No. I just want you to sit there.”
“Why?”
“You’ve been running away from me. So, I’m paying you not to.”
Swallowing hesitantly the previous motions you draw on his skin pause. Sight tearing away from him and falling to your polish nails. Well, aren’t you stuck. Sitting against these velvet seats with erratic heart and sweaty palms. The light beat of the song playing through the space between you both only intensifies the atmosphere even more. The ice smashing against his glass every few moments as Harry brings the drink to his lips.
“What do you want?” You say after a few minutes, fingers fiddling together when you look up at him.
“Isn’t it obvious already?” His voice still lace with frustration as he turns his head.
“You.”
Cheeks burn bright with mouth parting, the emotions he makes you feel… he was also feeling them as well. You distract yourself urgently flickering your eyes between him, trying to collect your words wisely.
“You don’t even know me.” The sentence not causing his gaze to waver. He’s still looking at you with this stone glare.
“So… tell me about yourself.” Harry suppresses the irritation in his voice as he rises his brow.
“Are you serious?” Completely surprised at the change of events.
“Very, now do tell.” Drink in hand gesturing for you to begin.
Suddenly that’s how you spend the rest of your night, introducing yourself to Harry. It range from telling him how you begin working at Jasper’s to how you grew up, and when your mind would dwindle he would ask you his own questions.
“How do you take your coffee?”
“Two creams one sugar.”
“Favourite food?”
“I love Thai.”
And without the disturbance of Simon ushering you to another room after your extended stay with Harry, you grow comfortable. Relaxing in his embrace and answering anything that came to his mind.
This connection that was clouding your judgment is too good to be true, from the introduction of your meeting to the the way your head is nestle in the crook of his neck, you thrive in the affection. Not listening to your overthinking thoughts that stir you in the wrong direction.
Instead, you let him know everything he wants; you tell him your favourite colour and how you like your steak cooked, to even confiding to him about certain clients you weren’t exactly keen of. The fact that you’ve only known the man for three days and was telling him your whole life story was beyond what you could imagine at the moment, he makes you relax and feel acknowledged. It was nice to feel this way after three years.
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Since that night Harry began to make his appearance throughout the week. The same room, for the same time, in the exact same position as last. With each meeting he never let you dance or even suggest it, instead he let you talk whether it was anything on your mind or his, that’s how you spent your evenings.
His presence was relief during your hectic week, depending on your availability between clients you spend as much time as possible in his touch and finding serenity in the way his voice soothes you.
It was now Sunday and you were off, deciding on staying in tonight and catching up on Real Housewives. You sat in your loft with Cleo tuck on your lap, fingers digging into the bag of popcorn while the other reaches towards your ringing phone.
“Hello!” You sing, eyes caught on the dinner scene happening before you.
“Not in today?” The voice on the other line making your body shiver with excitement.
“No sorry, I don’t work Sundays… I should’ve told you.” You confess, guilt brews of him going to the club and not finding you there.
“No worries, what are you doing now?”
Eyebrows rise up on your forehead with deep breath releasing, you flick your eyes around immediately taking your hand out of the popcorn bag to grab the remote and lower the volume, body straightening up as you sink your teeth into your lip.
“Miss me already?” Fingers falling to your plump flesh as smirk pulls on the skin. Harry’s laugh sounds through the speaker, the happy cheer making your heart leap.
“Yes. Yes I do, how can I not?” Lashes flutter with smile beaming shyly.
Maybe this was all too good to be true. Maybe this was just a fleeting moment that Harry is having; booking you six nights out of the week, paying you to refill his glass and converse with him. Maybe he was just going through phases, maybe he just thought of you as another one of his toys. But this attention was one you couldn’t pass up; the way he admires at you, the feel of his hands gracing your body for sheer moments, the reassurance of his words when speaking your thoughts. After years of petty affection and surface base material, this for once felt different. It felt genuine even if you’ve only known him within such short time.
“Are you home?” Are his next words to break the silence.
“Yes,” You answer, fingers trailing from your lips to run into your hair nervously.
“Can I come over?” Heart practically melting in your chest at the suggestion.
“Yes.” With blooming hues of pink roaming amongst your cheekbones.
Eager emotions flood your body as you voice your address to him before ending the call. Your hand drops the remote and gently moves Cleo off your lap as you escape towards your room.
What the hell did you get yourself into and what the hell are you even suppose to wear? Your outfit currently being an oversized t-shirt and gym shorts will certainly not do the job as you venture into your closet; skimming over hoodies and dresses. You end on grabbing your two piece yoga set hoping it will suffice compared to how you look throughout the week.
Sitting in front of your vanity you immediately comb through your hair and brush through your lashes. Nerves coursing through your body at Harry coming over. The unusual excitement of getting worked up for seeing someone revels in your mind, you skim over your features intricately to look for something off when you know that there wasn’t anything. There is this need to look your absolute best for him, even you know you already do.
Huffing slightly at the thoughts running through your mind you get up and make your way out of the room and head into the kitchen, fingers immediately lighting candles and then running quickly to the couch to begin folding the blanket you once laid on. If you were being recoded right now you would laugh at how you run across the spacious condo to make sure everything looks in place.
With ideas of the night ahead bombarding your mind the familiar sound of the buzzer quakes in the room making your heart drop. You step away from the couch and move towards the door, hand pressing the button to let him in.
This feeling was as if you were a teenager all over again. These dreamy aspect of emotions being as if you saw your high school crush passing in the hallway. It’s been three years without mental or physical affection, this new found treatment from someone was making you drunk off happiness.
With these nerves overcoming you, the urgency for alcohol to sooth your system lingers in your mind making you go over to your fridge and take out the chilling wine to soon tug your body over to your glass rack and pull two off, you’re setting them on the table when there’s knocking at the door.
Taking a deep breath you count to three, making your way over and unlocking it. Grin toying on your lips with Harry revealing himself adorn in his black suit.
Chest quakes with each pump of your heart as his lips mirror your happiness. Widening the door you let him step into your home, body turning to shut the door before letting your smile turn nervous.
“I know you drink whisky but I only have wine for tonight.” You stammer, body making your way over to the island and gesturing to the bottle of Prosecco.
Harry looks over the bottle, his eye soon falling on yours with smirk appearing. “I’ll have a glass.”
Control motions peel open the new bottle and fill each cup. He takes his drink in hand before humming at the taste.
“Enjoy reality tv?” The question only makes the warmth in your cheek spread further as you look at the television screen displaying women throwing drinks and overturning the table.
“Oh… um… yes,” You stumble over your words, avoiding Harry’s eyes as he chuckles next to you.
“Flustered are we?” He points out, body bumping into you teasingly.
“This is what you came over to do then, just make me a blabbering mess in my own home.” You pout, sight moving away from the granite counter as you lift the wine glass to your lips and look at him.
Amuse expression shines over his face while he shrugs his shoulders in response. “It does make things more interesting.”
“Interesting?” You recite in his own tone.
His hand that rest along the counter passes through the space between you both to let his palm venture down your waist.
“Yes… interesting how displeased with me you were at first yet having this look of want in your eyes.” Your gaze blares, confusion written all over your face while you relax deeper into his touch.
“I —I feel it too.” He’s hesitant before clearing his throat, lashes flutter against the hollows of his eyes as he collects himself. “This pull to be next to you… it’s unexplainable… ever since the first night.”
The words Harry formulates as if he’s just letting his heart expel everything he’s been building up over the week. It makes the one in your chest thunder with admiration.
“And I shouldn’t have said those things… it’s so stupid but my mind went blank and I just…” His brows push together trying to collect his thoughts properly. “The night I saw you at the restaurant it made me realize I really fuck up. I don’t want to do that with you ever again. I want you to trust me, I want you to love me, I want you to—“
But you immediately cut him off letting your emotions spring in and press your lips against his. Wine stain flesh burns on each other as gracious pecks transform into tongues joining together. The hand that trail down your hips run over your backside.
The heat that he expels when he steps deeper as if shielding you with protection has you moaning against him, head tilting slightly to invite the arousal blooming.
As his palm moves further the surprise of his grip tightening around your ass makes you jump, the hand that was wrapped around your glass bumping against the underside of it causing it to tip over.
“Fuck!” The crashing sound of it smacking against the counter makes you part away from him. “I’m so sorry.” You breathe out. Leaving his embrace to go to the paper towel dispenser and beginning to clean the mess. Cheeks burning even brighter from knocking over your wine.
“Relax baby,” Harry coos, hands falling on your nervous ones as you clean up the puddle.
Laughing shyly you shake your head embarrassed by your behaviour.
“You make me anxious,” The confession falling out of your mouth effortlessly as you collect the drench paper.
His palms grip your fingers tightly causing your gaze to catch with his. Instead of an irritated expression he shares one of amusement and adoration.
“Likewise.”
And ever since that night the connection between you both grows stronger; Harry visits during your shifts to meeting you right afterwards. Coming home to bouquet of roses and designer bags, sending you black trucks to take you out to dinner or meeting with you at Bottega Veneta to piece together an outfit for him.
Two weeks of knowing Harry and he was already dazzling you with the most extravagant gifts but still remaining respectful and never letting you dance when he visit the club. You’re absolutely head over heels. He’s always kind and gentle with you, never pushing your boundaries and soothing you with his words. This affection was a breath of fresh air and you’re undoubtedly happy about it.
Although the regard to respect you was admirable, you were beginning to crave more than cherish kisses and subtle touches. A plan brewed in your mine once your eyes peeled open this morning and you decided to put it in motion tonight. So, as you sit in front of your vanity of the club you fix the straps of your embroidered charcoal bra and look over yourself in the mirror.
“Who might you be expecting?” Clarissa calls from across the room. Your glossy lips don’t hesitate to smile as you look towards her.
“I told you about Harry, right?” You remark, letting your fingers run under the band of the bra to fit more comfortable against your skin.
“Oh! That’s who has you in a good mood lately,” Lucy joins in, jet black hair framing her face in layers with smirk written all over her features.
“If you say so,” You sing, turning around in your chair to look over yourself again.
“Don’t think we haven’t been seeing your post lately,” Clarissa marvels while drumming her fingers against the table.
“So generous with his gift-giving,” Lucy continues in her playful tone, only making you giggle.
The heavy steps of Simon thunder against the oak flooring as he makes his way into the room. Head set intact with clip board in hand, he begins to give everyone knowing looks assuring everyone of their duties tonight.
“And Y/N, you have your regular in confidential.” He finishes at the end of his list before turning to usher the ladies onto the floor from the back room.
“Have fun babe, be safe.” Clarissa whispers when passing you with gentle hug.
You smile at her while nodding with assurance. Looking over yourself, you tie your robe together, lips running over one another before stepping out of your chair and making your way towards the familiar room.
Even with spending so many days with Harry, these emotions that quake whenever he’s mention or to soon bare his presence always resonate these deep feelings; this need to feel his touch rougher on your skin or feel him in the sweet places that you think of him most. You knew this was beyond the earlier arrangements of your first initial meeting, this meant more.
Cigarette smoke roams the air as you make your way towards him. He’s in his usual spot, tailor suit gracing his appearance beautifully as you smile at him. Manicure nails drag against the material while his hands feel over your covered hips.
“Hi angel.” Harry says while feeling over your body.
“Baby,” You purr, moving deeper into his touch. “I have a question for you.”
His features raise in question but doesn’t stop his wondering hands from pulling the ribbon of your robe apart and revealing your body to him.
He hums attentively, looking over your face as he continues to roam over your skin. You’re so enthralled by his touch that you nearly forget your plan.
“Tell me how I make you feel.” Statement leaving your mouth with fingers roaming up his neck and playing with the hair there.
Forest eyes flash with worship as his grip tightens against your waist.
“I feel like you’re made for me.” Knees push his apart as you step between his legs.
“I swear you just take my breath away.” Head craning down for your lips to trail kisses along his cheeks to his jaw.
“You’ve imprint my heart so deeply.” Your hands find themselves running over his chest while his roam over your backside.
“That your love feels undeserving for someone like me.” Those words making you swell with sympathy as kisses continue down the curve of his neck.
“It’s so intense I just have to be near you.” Fingers undoing the few buttons of his shirt as you begin to sink to your knees. His eyes lock on you while his hands link together in your hair, the smooth symphony in the air only escalates the tension.
“Feel you.” He continues, eyes fluttering as your hands move away from his chest to feel over his thighs.
“Hear you.” Your fingers glaze over his erection as you both look at each other with lust.
“Be inside you.” Nails dragging roughly over the print with mascara coated lashes batting up at him.
“Tonight’s your lucky night.” You cut him off. Smirk smoothing over your lips as you begin to undo his belt buckle. “Let me help you relax, Mr. Styles.”
Shifting under your hold he watches you retrieve him out of his boxers. Tongue immediately escapes your mouth looking at how thick and heavy he sits in your hand. It makes pure arousal quake between your thighs as you tug him gently, eyes catching with his.
“Been holding out on me.” It’s his turn to send you a smirk. The look alone makes you want to skip foreplay and take him right there.
You lean in with tongue running from the base to the tip. Pressing flat against the underside it leaves trail of saliva in its wake, your mouth enveloping the crown of his cock while his chest raises with pure satisfaction. His hands continuing to run through your hair.
Pleasant moan vibrates through your throat as your mouth ventures down the expanse of him, tastebuds savouring the salty flavour with each descend of your mouth as you find your paste.
Both of you are still set in this hyper-focus trance looking at each other with the pleasing gestures you assert over him. Spit coating his member as you glide down his cock, plump lips wrapping around his girth as you swallow him down.
“S’good,” Harry slurs, one hand leaving your hair to drag along your neck.
Lashes flutter up at him, relishing in the blissful look crossing his face. He slides down your throat effortlessly with your head bobbing swiftly, his cock wrapped in the slick space of your mouth.
Your clit throbs between your legs, the need to have attention there stirs your next movements as you let your hands glide across his thighs and gather his twin globes into your palm and begin massaging them.
The gesture has Harry groaning, nails gliding down your skin in the change in motions. Eye contact breaking as his head falls against the couch with chest rising in urgency. The site alone makes you want to come, but instead you suffice for the whimper that leaves your mouth when letting yourself glide back up his cock.
“Such a good fuckin’ girl,” Harry moans, fingers trailing away from your neck to collect your hair in his palm.
The comment makes your stomach tremble, his hands following your gracious movements, with sweat beginning to shine from his temples as he chews away on his lip.
“Look at me baby,” He coos, his hold tugging your mouth away from him. Diverting your attention you look up at him; red eyes with saliva glistening across your lips as shaky breath escapes.
“So pretty for me,” Harry utters, thumb running across your bottom lip as his green eyes search your face. “Stand up, get this off.” He reaches over to tug on your robe.
You raise off your knees letting the garment trail off your shoulders as you stand. You’re immediately letting your feet kick off your tall heels, pleasantly sighing at the relaxing comfort at having them off.
The next motions are your hands teasingly pulling your panties down, Harry’s eyes watching every movement as he watches you unclasp your bra next.
His hands reach out for you, feeling over your soft skin as pulls you into him. Straddling his thighs your fingers go to his chest to pull his blazer off, he quickly follows your lead to take it off the rest of the way while you decide to continue undoing the buttons of his dress shirt.
“I want to feel you.” You breathe against his skin.
Gripping his cock in your hand, you gently let him glide between your folds. Harry nods earnestly against your chest, his hold moving from your waist to your breasts, his lips pressing against your fever skin as you let yourself sink down on him. High pitch whimper drawing from your throat as he stretches you out.
“You drive me crazy,” Harry utters with grip tightening as your hips meet each other.
A soft cry releases from your lips as you find the strength to raise back up on your knees and grind yourself into his lap. The thick strain of his dick against your walls has your head falling into his face.
Erotic moans fill the room when your hips discover the perfect rhythm that has him dragging down your folds in the most beautiful way with the combination of him reaching depths of pure bliss.
Harry hand trail away from your breasts and wrap around your throat, rough grasp taking ahold of you as he brings you deeper into his face. From the grip he has to the haunting look in his eyes you are completely devoid of every sense in your body.
“Good girl.” He continues, his thighs positioning himself better on the couch as he begins to thrust and meet your hips in perfect unison.
The name makes your frantic heart gush with devotion, eyes fluttering at the air shortening in your lungs while your nails curl around his shoulders digging into his skin.
“So good for me.” Harry rasps, his merciless strides into your pussy halting your previous movements.
The sweet nectar you produce between your legs sound with each thrust from the satisfying pleasure coursing through you. The static of your climax catches in the pit of your stomach, your eyes rolling from how deep he’s in you that you can’t help but lunge forward.
Lips connecting fiercely with the taste of him making you hum as your tongue explores him. The rough grip he holds around your neck relaxes as he continues his frantic thrusts.
The spark of your release climbs up your spine with fury; head tilting back, eyes fluttering in the thrill of falling apart around him. Your walls quiver in irritated satisfaction as your climax barrels over in passionate rage.
“Tell me…” Harry breathes when pulling away from your face, his eyes watching your dazed out state. Your fingers go numb against his shoulders, with your head completely being propped up by the hold he still has over your throat. “Tell me how I make you feel.”
Completely intoxicated with satisfaction of your release you let your lips begin to pepper kisses along his jaw. The urge to prove to him how much he means to you in this moment has your pussy meeting his rhythmic thrusts.
“Like I’m on fire,” You moan, nails digging into the material of his soaked button up.
“You don’t know how long I’ve been wanting to feel you inside me,” Urging him with the seductive tone in your voice. The hands he has wrapped around your neck tenses as he looks at you completely intrigued.
“I —It feels so good,” You whimper as you slowly rock yourself down his length. “You feel so good baby.”
Deep throaty growl shivers over your embrace as his head relaxes deeper into the frame of the couch.
“I want you like this forever.”
The flex of your slick walls around him earns a delicious moan from him. His seed painting your walls effortlessly as you continue to work yourself through his climax. Your fingers travel to his hair and bring your lips back together.
Harry releases his hold from your throat, his palms venturing down your sides and massaging the skin as you lazily ride him. Body relaxing against his comfort as you welcome his kisses.
“Do you even know how weak you make me feel.” Harry breathes against your lips, hands gripping your ass roughly to push you deeper into his chest.
“No… but I like when you tell me.”
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starqueensthings · 1 year ago
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Dork Love: Part One (of probably three because I can’t be tamed)
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AO3 | Next Chapter
Summary: A scowling stranger brings a damaged riflescope into your store for repair and, always willing to defer responsibility for the sake of charity, you take on the challenge. When you return it to him, he brings along another… obstacle. An adorably goggled, bad-postured obstacle who seems as infatuated with your intelligence, as you are with his twinkly (magnified) eyes.
Pairing: GN!Reader x Tech (can also be read as ND!GN!Reader x ND!Tech if you squint)
POV/Rating/WC: 2nd, all readers welcome, 6355 Words.
A/N: This masquerades as a Crosshair fic at first, but I was insistent on writing something other than Medic!Reader for this one, and Tech is not the kind of man that develops intimacy quickly so it’s structured as a slow burn with a little more backstory. Extra thanks to @staycalmandhugaclone for beta reading this one… twice. She catches all my made up words (slajacked? embarriered? LOL) and makes my disjointed writing readable. LYSM ❤️
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A heavy sigh, laden with guilt and culpability, left your lips at the sight of the impending workload behind your cash register. The teetering stack of acrylic trays, each holding the paid invoice of an order in need of processing, sat benignly on the counter, awaiting the moment that you would finally succumb to the gnaw of responsibility and turn your wandering attention to them. The smattering of plastic containers that you’d locked the door on without even a breath of anxiety, your overstimulated mind full of assurances that you’d gift them your undivided attention the following morning, had somehow mutated into a looming tower of things to do and the desperate desire to defer them again now consumed you.
The impeccant ring of the bell that hung above the door had thankfully silenced, and the void of its tinkling alarm saw a peaceful moment of respite and a fresh mug of caf wreathed by hands covered in dried lens polish and seemingly permanently stained with the ink of your trusty red lens pen.
In spite of the lingering exhaustion and the continuous ache in your feet, every complaint that threatened to spill from your tongue was swallowed and substituted with a quiet murmur of appreciation. Since you’d purchased the optical store from your uncle, you’d been blessed with an expanding clientele and an increasing revenue, though despite the economic growth, the inception of your ownership had been fraught with challenges. Your uncle was, and always had been, a kooky and eccentric old chap, and one that had stubbornly deferred his retirement from the industry for decades too long. His later, wizened years had seen him develop a peculiar and surreptitious habit of concealing his deteriorating mind with impugnable, makeshift repairs on his already ancient optical equipment. More troublesome than his DIY endeavours, however, was the recurrent burying of evidence, ensuring that his mounting financial hardship was conveniently camouflaged and ‘misplaced’ with the several hundred overdue invoices. Three consecutive years later, and thousands of credits funnelled regrettably yet optimistically into the pocket of an accountant, the metaphorical dumpster-fire that you purchased from your father’s zany older brother had finally turned profitable.
The storefront was auspiciously located on the uppermost level of Coruscant’s nefarious ‘Underworld’, meaning the demographics of your clientele was as diverse as the galaxy was. Politicians, concealing their bulging wallets beneath expertly-sewn and ornate robes, were some of your favourite customers to interact with, as years of experience in medical sales had seen you master the tactful art of disengaging lowball negotiations. Paradoxically, it was the impoverished customers making their way up from the callous clutches of the lower levels that posed your biggest challenge; their often heartbreaking stories of systemic neglect fueled the philanthropic flame that flickered deep in your gut. The inception of the war had enchained many in the shackles of financial hardship and desperation, and while pleading ignorance and naivety was the route that many Coruscanti citizens opted to take, the desire to temporarily close your shop and traverse the galaxy doing missionary work was becoming difficult to stifle.
Yet you were as logical as you were benevolent, and despite the constant pull towards a life of nomadic altruism, the fact remained that you had invested too many days and even more credits resurrecting this business to simply abandon it in its infancy.
The squeak of the rolling desk chair echoed around the quiescent room as you sat yourself down behind the computer, determined to use the hot caf in your hands as a catalyst to ignite the engines of motivation into life. The chrono on the wall ticked on, unaffected by the looming task list that you continued to abscond from; moments stretched to minutes, your hands poised and motionless over the keyboard, and the resolve to work kept simply evaporating, wafting into the air and vanishing faster than the steam from your mug.
‘Damnit, I forgot to water my plants this morning…’ Your eyes were affixed on a the pair of prescription swimming goggles nestled in the tray that you’d perched in front of you nearly twenty minutes ago, yet the mental image of your limp fig tree, neglected the decency of water for the second straight week, was all your unfocussed eyes could see. ‘But I should probably prune it before I water it… and if I’m going through the hassle of pruning it, I should probably repot it fi—’
The sudden jangling of the bell broke you from your listless stupor, sending a startled jerk through your shoulders and pulling your gaze upward to the figure stepping into your space. The detail of his appearance remained momentarily obscured, shrouded in the shadows cast by the bright sunlight pouring in the door behind him, though it was immediately apparent by the rigid armour that enveloped his tall frame that he was a soldier or mercenary of sorts.
“Hello,” you called to him, alerting him of your presence behind the counter, but his response to the greeting and the small smile you’d hitched onto your face, was nothing more than a nod of acknowledgement, his eyes narrowing slightly as they darted around the walls of your shop.
Curiosity tipped your head to one side, and you watched him with reserved intrigue as he neared the counter, his big, metallic boots thunking heavily on the wood floors with every step. The armament that adorned his figure was dark, and unlike anything you’d seen before. The clone troopers on Coruscant typically wore protective suits of white plastoid, and were conversationally quite warm and friendly, but this man’s presence, complete with a frown and a crosshair tattoo, issued none of those vibes.
“What can I do for you?” you probed, ignoring the protest of your aching feet as you stood and met him across the counter. He hastened to fold his arms over his chest, throwing into sharp relief the sniper pole extending proudly from his left shoulder bell.
“What do you know about scopes?” he asked you, the smoke that bathed his words raising the small hairs on the back of your neck.
“What kind of scopes?” you quizzed back to him, wrenching your eyes from the intimidating tool on his shoulder. “Oculars? Speculars?”
“Rifle.” In stark contrast to the way he carried himself— slithering and softly, as if he funneled every effort into not preventing his movements from making a sound, his reply was direct, curt, and impatient, and despite your best efforts to repress it, the contradiction pulled a small smirk onto your face.
“I should have known,” you answered apologetically, gesturing with a flick of your eyes towards the pole on his pauldron, and for the second time in as many minutes, he forewent a spoken response, instead flicking his eyebrows and letting the ghost of a laugh huff from his nose.
“I studied a decent amount,” you continued, bewilderment budding inside of you as the peculiar stranger reached around to a pouch on his belt and retracted a toothpick. “But we don’t sell them. We’re mainly a spectacle sho—”
“I’m not buying,” he interrupted with another impatient little shake of his head. “There’s something… off… with mine.”
The intentionally vague nature of his complaint prompted the arch of your left eyebrow to raise, and it was with genuine perplexity that you replied. “Off? In what way?”
The rhythmic dance of toothpick across scowling lips filled the silent space of his hesitation, and the shadow of scepticism flitted behind his eyes as he peered down his nose at you.
“It sounds idiotic,” he muttered through teeth clenched around his wooden pacifier, “But the visuals are being distorted… and it seems to be at random.”
Your brows furrowed against the continued ambiguity of his complaints, and though you would never voice it aloud, his grievance did sound somewhat idiotic and nonsensical. Intermittent distortion through a set of lenses was not a concept you had ever come across, as typically someone’s vision was either clear, or it wasn’t. His hesitation to provide the description now seemed warranted, and it was your turn to entertain a scowled moment of hesitancy as you fought to digest his undetailed explanation.
“I’m not following you,” you sighed, both coming up short on an explanation and growing increasingly wary of his man-of-few-words attitude. “Do you have it with you?”
He unfolded his arms from their knot across his chest, exposing a thin, black plastoid case previously invisible by the tight ensconce of his gloved hand. The rigid container looked vaguely familiar to you, though your mind barely had a moment to dawdle in potential recognition before he was deftly unlatching the closure on the lid and pulling the scope from its velvet bedding.
Eyes widening with wonder, you collected the tool from him, your outstretched hand instantly sagging under the unexpected weight of the equipment. Your exposure to military grade weapon accessories, and knowledge of the various optical tools available for combat was limited, but one did not have to be an expert in the field to know this was a highly sophisticated, and highly coveted tool.
“Sometimes I’ll line up a shot with no issue,” he divulged, his sharp eyes dissecting your movements as you rotated the scope delicately in your fingers. “Other times, the image of the target seems warped. But I haven’t been able to establish a pattern, and none of my brothers see anything wrong.”
“Hmm,” you acknowledged, concentration pulling your lips tightly to one side. “That’s definitely… odd… and it seems random? Intermittent?”
He offered nothing but a small grunt of confirmation, supervising your twiddling of the tool with unwarranted intensity as if poised to pounce should you dare to mishandle his prized possession, but curiosity had entirely banished your unease of his demeanour, and it was eagerly that you returned the ocular to your eye.
The Snellen chart, hung at eye level across the room and inscribed letters of varying sizes, became the recipient of your attention; while designed to measure how effectively one could see at a specific distance without their glasses on, it acted appropriately well as a makeshift visual barometer for your diagnostics. Though despite alternating eyes, rotating the scope both clockwise and counterclockwise, and shifting your position behind the counter to create a variance in lighting, you failed to see anything that was overtly distorted or warped. The notion that you may not be able to solve the stranger’s problem simply because you couldn’t see it to diagnose it, pulled a disappointed frown onto your lips, usurping the confident determination you’d felt only minutes previously.
Still, he watched you mercilessly, impatience and expectation etched into the every superficial crease on his forehead. It was only as you moved to the lower the scope, prepared to sadly explain that he’d have to try elsewhere, did your departing gaze finally catch a micro glimpse of the issue. The distortion was there… but barely, and his brothers’ failure to corroborate the issue became instantly validated.
“Interesting,” you mused under your breath, locking your gaze on the minutely warped quadrant of the chart and turning the scope slowly in your fingers. “I think I see what you’re talking about,” you continued quietly, your refusal to lose sight of the issue subconsciously keeping the tone of your voice hushed. “It… it doesn’t seem like an issue of direct clarity, so the integrity of the lens coating must be intact… and the reticle itself is orientated at the correct rotation, so that rules out the first focal plane…”
Your hushed diagnostic rambling trailed away to silence as a theory emerged to the forefront of your mind. Before his frowning lips could wrap themselves around a sardonic response, you lowered the equipment from your eye, gripped it tightly in your hand, and flung your arm aggressively downwards, a motion reminiscent of trying to force a small amount of ketchup through the opening of a large bottle. His posture straightened hastily, and his horrified expression on his lithe face combined with the sharp gasp that slapped his throat, had you momentarily fearful he might pluck the toothpick from its clamp between his teeth and toss it at you like a javelin.
“Kriff, be careful.” It was not a request but a demand, leaving his lips in a hiss that suited his demeanor much more than that curt impatience he’d emanated earlier. “That’s my favourite scope.”
His warning went ignored, a prideful self-satisfaction smothering the duress of his mistrust as you peered through the scope again and found the resolution you had expected. “Ha,” you cheered in a whisper, orienting yourself towards him again. “Look now. Tell me if it’s any different.” You held the weighty scope out to him and gestured to the chart across the room. Still tinged with the horror brought on by your seemingly impulsive disregard for his property, his scowl intensified, exacerbated by a budding sense of scrutiny, but despite his dubious disbelief, he took the tool from your extended palm and brought it to his tattooed eye.
The speed in which he ran the scope through his own set of visual diagnostics was nothing short of remarkable, and it was this behavior, not the hissed warnings of care that reinforced his attachment to the tool. “Hmm,” he eventually grunted, his expression now impassive. “Seems normal actually.”
Eager to share your theory, you shifted your weight to your elbows. “I’m thinking the second focal plane might have dislodged in the chamber somehow,” you advised him. “Is there quite a bit of recoil from your rifle?”
A smirk tugged at the corners of his lips, almost entirely banishing the tension in his brow and softening his expression to a nearly unidentifiable degree, and it was only barely that you contained the smile threatening to engulf your own features. “She’s got a bit of a kick,” he admitted slyly, flicking the toothpick noisily with the tip of his tongue. “But that’s not going to change. So what now?”
You sighed through your nose, gaze affixed on the piece of equipment clutched in his long fingers as a merciless tug-of-war erupted in your mind. It had been years since the opportunity to tinker with something as niche and unique as a long-range rifle scope had fallen into your hands, but the mountain of work already awaiting your attention was formidable, and could not be ethically delayed any longer.
“I’ll see what I can do,” you offered, sheer curiosity sending a right hook in the direction of your better judgement. “But I won’t be able to identify the root of the problem, or the solution, until I take it apart and run diagnostics on the individual pieces.”
His softened expression receded entirely, the soggy strip of wood in his teeth continuing to dance across now scowling lips as he cocked a dark eyebrow and glowered at you, but you matched the reemergence of mistrust with a neutral stare, drumming your nails lightly on the desk between you and watching the cogs of indecision turn behind his eyes. His top lip flattened slightly, tense with threats and warnings of caution that he longed to voice aloud, but he was as aware as he was cranky; his desperation for a solution seemingly outweighing his skepticism, and he restrained every admonishment lingering on his tongue.
“Like I said,” he snarled, refusing to soften the glare he was sending your way. “It’s my favourite scope.”
You swallowed against a mixture of disappointment and offense, embittered that this unnecessarily stern man had actively sought your help with his problem, but was too suspicious and wary to grant you the permission to fix it, despite having seemingly identified the root of the issue before his eyes. You hitched an ingenuine smile to your face and shrugged, perching yourself back on the seat of your squeaky desk chair and pulling the swimming goggles towards you. “It’s your choice,” you reminded him, rousing your slumbering monitor to life with the prod of your finger. “You can leave it and be no worse off… or I can take it apart and have a go at fixing it.”
Silence ensued in the following moment, a quiet broken only by the occasional click of wood against molar and the rhythmic tapping of your fingers on the keyboard, but despite his seemingly steadfast refusal to accept your offer, he didn’t move from his perch against the counter.
“Fine,” he grumbled, taking you by surprise and immediately stealing your attention back. “But I fly out at sunset, so I’ll need it back before then.”
“I can do that.” Thrilled by the valid excuse to delay ordering it (and its neglected comrades) for another few hours, you happily pushed the acrylic tray housing the goggles away from you and stood from your chair. “I close up shop before then anyways. Actually, there’s a shooting range about a block west of here. I can meet you there in a couple hours, and you can fire off a couple shots to see if my handiwork holds up.”
“Deal.” He stood up straight and plucked the strip of wood from his lips, flicking it to the floor at his feet without a second thought. “Name’s Crosshair.”
“Crosshair,” you repeated after offering your name in return, and with a gesture towards the tattoo around his eye you said: “Should have known.”
***
The sun that had so refreshingly bathed the planet that afternoon was readying itself for another night of slumber, sinking ever lower toward the horizon with each passing minute, and its void in the musty industrial building sent a shiver down your back.
A small alcove set into the wall, adorned with a smattering safety notices, acted as a landing zone for those entering and exiting the active firing lanes. An obnoxiously heavy, rolling durasteel door separated the two areas, and it was with an almost comical level of exertion that you managed to roll the door ajar just wide enough to squeeze through the gap. The audible rumble of the long-ago seized wheels was lost amongst the echoing din that bathed your ears in the room beyond; each of the two dozen lanes occupied by a duo of armed beings, jeering at each other over missed shots and poor grips.
If the sniper pole protruding menacingly from his shoulder wasn’t enough to make him easily distinguishable in the shadows opposite, then the stunning contrast of his silver hair and his dark armour certainly was, and it was with haste that you crossed the room toward his pacing position. The separation from his prized possession seemed to have rendered him, shockingly, more impatient than hours previously, the soggy toothpick between his frowning lips dancing ceaselessly while the thumb on each of his hands aggressively cracked the knuckles of its neighbouring fingers. But while his appearance and obvious restlessness had initially captured your attention, it did not hold it. Something else caught your eye… someone else.
A second man stood in close proximity to the sniper, almost identical in height though the stoop in his posture, brought on by the intent downwards gaze toward the device clutched in his hands, ensured a less imposing presence than his broad shouldered, glaring neighbour. He seemed at first glance, to be an extraordinary dichotomy to his companion, the perfect ying to Crosshair’s yang; where one’s hair shone brightly in the light of the buzzing fluorescent bulbs overhead, the other’s reflected the dark of shadowed corners, where one’s cuirass was deliberately painted dark, the other’s remained white, adorned with colour only minimally, and where Crosshair’s impatience was evident, with his sharp eyes darting mercilessly around the room, his companion seemed content to remain still, gaze affixed to the screen only inches from his nose.
‘Must be one of his brothers,’ you concluded as you approached the loitering duo.
Crosshair detected your arrival almost immediately; the intensity of his unrelenting gaze as you crossed the room to his position rendered your friendly “hello,” completely redundant. A double-take interrupted the greeting poised on your tongue for his companion, the unexpected allure of his features, thrown into relief by close proximity and the fleeting shift of his attention from the device in his hands to you, rendered you briefly inarticulate.
He continued to look remarkably different from his brother at second glance, with a squarer jaw, fuller lips, a more substantial frame (disguised by poor posture, a slight bow in his legs, and significantly less armour), and a set of dark goggles framing a pair of stunningly warm, brown eyes.
“Any luck?” Crosshair probed impatiently, opting to forgo niceties for the second time that day.
“Yeah, some,” you assuaged with a nod, tearing your gaze away from his brother. “My first assumptions were largely correct. The second focal plane must have dislodged in the scope’s housing at some point. Unless you knocked it pretty forcefully against something, a theory I can rule-out based on the otherwise pristine condition of the equipment, it was likely the extended period of repeated recoil that caused the dislocation.”
The large, goggled eyes had directed themselves to you again, this time almost urgently and paired with an abrupt jerk of his head in your direction. The jarring motion stole your attention mid-sentence, the recited explanation rolling off your tongue turning laggy and discombobulated under the intensity of his wide-eyed, astonished stare. Your eyebrows lifted slightly as you turned to face the slack jawed stranger, but no sooner did your gaze fall onto his blushing face, did he avert his focus from you again.
“Okay, and?” Crosshair asked, his probe prompting you to frantically try and find the lost train of thought from the previous second.
“Honestly,” you continued, redirecting your attention to the sniper, “With how minutely displaced the lens was, I’m impressed you even noticed.”
“Impressed?” Crosshair repeated, cocking an eyebrow in apparent disbelief. “Why?”
“Well… mathematically, any change in the relative vertex distance between focal planes will cause a deviation in the refracted ray, thus distorting the perceived real image…” The goggled man’s head snapped violently upwards again, his eyes widening to the size of dinner plates as his attention darted back and forth between you and his silver haired brother. “...but the second focal plane was only dislodged by about a millimetre. You must have pretty fantastic eyesight to pick up on such a small visual misalignment.” A fleeting glance to your right confirmed that the goggled man’s twinkly brown eyes were affixed on you, and it was with a foreign sense of budding shyness, that you extended the plastoid box out to Crosshair.
“Did you fix it?” he queried, collecting the offering and promptly unlatching the lid.
“Only temporarily, unfortunately.” A disappointed grimace weighed down your response. “It likely happened during the initial dislodging, but the bevel that holds the lens in place is significantly chipped. I’ve re-embedded it into its grooved housing, but I wouldn’t rely on it being a permanent solution.”
The disappointment that saturated your explanation did not seem to be mutual as the sniper wasted no time dropping to a knee beside you and pulling the pack from his shoulders. He retrieved the scope from its enclosement first, abandoning its container to the stone floor at your feet, before collecting and clicking together the deconstructed rifle parts that he wore on his back. Eager to avoid being accidentally knocked by the intimidatingly long rifle barrel being mounted into place, you turned and took a small step sideways.
The toe of your boot, however, didn’t descend as gracefully as you’d intended, instead snagging itself upon something domed and rigid, simultaneously sending your right ankle tipping sideways, and your arms outwards in a frantic motion to stabilize yourself. It wasn’t until you’d steadied the breath in your lungs that your eyes located the tripping hazard, ready to kick it away lest you step on it again. Embarrassment flooded your veins. It was a boot…
“Oh kriff, I’m sorry!” you cried, immediately relieving your fingers of their iron grip around the goggled man’s forearm. “I should have looked before I moved. Did I hurt you?”
Fuelled by the pounding of your heart in your chest, a heat rose quickly and earnestly to your cheeks as dazzling brown eyes widened behind those goggles again. An awkward silence expanded in the air between you as he failed to answer, and you hastily shifted your attention to Crosshair’s retreating figure, reconstructed rifle pointed upwards to the ceiling as he headed towards the nearby shooting lane.
“You did not. Our footwear is impregnated with a multilayered durasteel core that is able to withstand over 150kg of pressure, and you do not appear to have a mass equivalent to or exceeding that. However, the unanticipated need to anchor yourself with my arm nearly caused me to drop my datapad.”
It may have been the curt, matter-of-fact tone in which he spoke, another complete inverse to the slithery smoke of his brothers voice; it may have been the awkward and inelegant cadence of his reply; it may have been the adorable shift of his goggles on the bridge of his nose as he averted his gaze from you again that triggered a flutter in your gut, but for the second time, you found yourself momentarily tongue-tied.
“That would have been bad,” you somehow managed to force out under the duress of the giddy smile fighting to adorn your lips.
“Indeed,” he breathed.
His attention returned bashfully to the illuminated screen in his hands, the tops of his ears reddening slightly against the brush of his dark hairline, and you took the deviation of his gaze as an opportunity to survey his goggles. It was not the untraditional choice of eyewear that warranted your curiousity, as a strapped goggle was an entirely appropriate choice for a soldier who was likely constantly active, nor was it the recording device, mounted expertly along his right temple and aglow in the dim lighting of the corner either. It was his lenses: tragically thick, horribly smudged, and inducing a degree of magnification that you saw only rarely in the industry.
‘Poor hyperopes,’ you thought to yourself, the inherent squint of his eyes as they fought to focus through a series of ungodly fingerprints pulling an adoring smile onto your lips.
“Sorry if this is a little strange but… can I clean your lenses?” You spoke deliberately lightly and aloofly, intent on ensuring that he took no offense to your offer, and it was with a subdued tentativeness that you watched the adam’s apple bob in his throat.
“Clean my lenses?” he repeated, returning his gaze to you with dark brows knitted slightly in befuddlement.
“Yes,” you confirmed, blindly reaching into your bag for your trusted, green microfiber cloth. “They are filthy, and I don’t know how you can see anything.”
An unexplained affection welled inside of you as his thin fingers nimbly shifted his goggles again, exposing the repeated gesture as a soothing motion; the smallest of irrelevant movements acting as a pacifier against situations where discomfort threatened to provoke him.
“I did not realize the poor nature of their condition,” he admitted, indefinitely suspending the back and forth of his attention by stowing his datapad away into one of many pouches around his waist.
“You wouldn’t,” you answered with a small shrug and a smile, watching his features tense momentarily under the duress of pulling his goggles off. “Hyperopic, or ‘far-sighted’ people, by nature, struggle to see anything in the immediate vicinity of their gaze. That’s why they can never tell if their glasses are dirty or their lenses are scratched. So… you can’t help it.”
“You… are correct.” He answered slowly, his tone still dripping in what sounded like pleasant astonishment as he extended his goggles out to you. “A mutation in my genetic structure caused an innocent yet bothersome bilateral malformation of my corneas, resulting in a significant degree of hyperopia.”
“That’s probably putting it lightly.” A small chuckle left your mouth as you swaddled the left lens with your cloth and began to deftly wipe away the sea of fingerprints. Much like Crosshair had while his precious scope was being tended to in the foreign clutches of a stranger, this man watched your practiced hands intently and possessively as you worked to polish away any signs of a smudge.
The fluorescent bulbs suspended two-dozen feet above you were nowhere near as effective as the optical-grade backlit yellow panel that sat in the corner of your workshop, but were just luminescent enough to affirm you’d removed the last of the oily smears before you pocketed your cloth. A knowing smirk peeled its way across your lips as you shifted the lenses to-and-fro in front of your mildly squinted eyes, observing how the biconcavity on the front surface bent the reflection of the overhead light. “What’s the nature of your prescription?” you questioned as your left eye closed and your fingers rotated his goggles. “I’m assuming just based on the Against-Motion principle, that you’re probably around a +8.00? Maybe a +9.00?”
He blinked rapidly and repeatedly, seemingly trying to rid his vision of the anatomical blur that would forever plague him in the void of his goggles before answering.“I… am not certain of the exact dioptric correction,” he divulged, now grinding his knuckles into his eyes. “But I believe your estimation to be accurate. I am impressed that you could make such a determination based loosely on the principles of magnification alone.”
“It’s my job.” While you were able to modestly shrug away the giddiness of his inferred praise, your composure was no match for the accentuation of his sharp jawline, thrown into relief as the first hint of a smile tugged his cheek toward his ear. “I handle dozens of lenses every day,” you continued, averting your eyes to the goggles you held out to him. “I’m well practiced.”
“That is obvious.”
The affable response waiting just behind your smirking lips was halted in place by the return of the sniper as he reappeared at his brother’s side, his lithe face impassive and his rifle already snuggled into its cradle in his pack.
“Big improvement,” he uttered, the nod of appreciation that followed his words filling you with a mixture of relief and pride. “What do I owe you?”
“Not a thing,” you answered with a dismissing wave of the hand. The sight of notoriously scowling lips now taut behind a satisfied smile was enough to support that delaying your nefarious to-do list, while undeniably irresponsible, was the right decision. “It was actually nice to have a bit of a challenge for once. Like I said, it’ll hold for a while but it’s not a forever fix.”
“Disappointing.” Faster than it had come, the sly smile on his face disappeared, replaced in a breath by a glum grimace as he plucked the toothpick from the tight clamp of his teeth and flicked it to the floor at his feet. “Pretty sure that model is out of production now.”
“Sure is,” you confirmed, sympathetically matching his grimace with one of your own. “I did some research today—” (goggles snapped his head in your direction again) “—from the limited information that I could find, your model was the last that incorporated a biconcave first focal plane. But… I actually found an alternative tucked away in my workshop.” You reached a hand blindly into your bag, the keys to your speeder jingling as you roughly pushed them aside in search of the stiff plastoid box you’d shoved into the depths before leaving work. “The internal components are the same, but the barrel attachment clip differs from yours.”
Crosshair spared the offering only a microglance before the crease between his dark brows deepened, his top lip flattening at the thick layer of dust that blanketed the white plastoid case. You grinned apologetically at the sight of his disgusted expression, and an understanding began to click together like puzzle pieces in your mind. Crosshair’s man-of-few-words ethos was not one of implied supremacy as you had initially presumed, he simply communicated more effectively with his expressions and mannerisms than he did with words.
“The box looks like it hasn’t been touched in centuries,” you admitted, pushing the case into his chest, “but the scope itself is pristine. You’re welcome to keep it if you think it’s suitable.”
His gaze danced across your features skeptically as if dissecting it for any sign of an ulterior motive that hadn’t managed to previously identify, but the reassurance you offered by means of a small smile must have silenced his concerns, as he moved to unlatch the container and flip it open.
It was barely an hour after Crosshair had departed your establishment that you realized why the plastoid case that housed his scope had seemed vaguely familiar to you, and it was with a sense of excited urgency that you’d jogged to the back corner of your workshop and snatched the step stool from beside the broom. Tucked away on the top shelf of a precariously hung cupboard above the lens polisher and caked several decades worth of dust, the white box sat seemingly waiting for you. Countless times in the past had it been regarded as nothing but left over detritus from your uncle, unceremoniously pushed aside and ignored as you fervently looked for something else among the clutter, but today, as recognition had flared inside of you, it’s time in the spotlight had finally come.
The sniper’s abnormally long digits pulled the foreign scope from its foam mattress, hovering it in front of his tattooed eye while turning to orient himself toward the target sheets on the opposite wall.
“Hm… not bad actually,” he relented a moment later, turning back around and holding the scope out to his brother. “Tech, do you think you could modify the barrel attachment?”
So his name is Tech. The wordless introduction ensured another flush of your cheeks, and eager to repress the giddy smile that threatened to expose you, you sucked your bottom lip between your teeth and ignored the brown–eyed man still passively gaping in your direction.
Crosshair shook the scope impatiently in the space between them, seemingly hoping the motion would shatter the muted reverie in which his brother was currently enthralled. “Tech? …Tech.”
“Um… yes,” Tech confirmed to your surprise, having collected the tool from his brother and agreeing to the task without even sparing it a glance. “Yes… I am able to… attach… myself.”
The chuckle that threatened to spill from your lips forced your gaze to the floor. The weathered and worn painted concrete beneath your boots was nothing but the epitome of lusterless and drossy, but in this moment of featherbrained awkwardness, you’d never seen a more interesting floor.
“Maker, since when can you not talk?” Crosshair hissed through clenched teeth.
Hot in the face and growing increasingly embarrassed by both the awkwardness of the conversation and the rapid emergence of this schoolgirl crush, you turned your attention back to your bag, thrusting your hand into its depths once again and pretending to dig around for something. Your peripheral vision saw Tech shift his goggles on his nose again, and immediately retract the datapad from his waist pouch.
You cleared your throat quietly before adjusting your bag on your shoulder and swinging your keyring noisily around your finger. Tech was blushing furiously and had turned his gaze to the screen of his small device, fingers dancing across the multicoloured buttons as if he’d injected rocket fuel directly into his knuckles. Crosshair, on the tail end of an elaborate eye roll, shook his head impatiently and huffed.
“You sure about this?” he asked you, tapping the lid of the plastoid box in his hands.
“Absolutely,” you answered without even the thought of hesitation. “It was just taking up very limited cupboard space so, if you want it, it’s yours.”
He nodded once, surveying your expression fleetingly once more before tucking the parcel under his arm. “Thanks again,” he mumbled, tossing you a casual three-fingered salute of acknowledgement before turning on his heel and heading the opposite way to the heavy, sliding door.
The sudden abandonment at the hands of his brother seemed to have roused Tech from his vigorous tango of typing, and his magnified eyes flickered to yours only briefly before darting towards the door. Mild amusement pulled another smile to your lips as discomfort erupted across his features; his jaw tensed, his posture straightened, and despite having spent the previous dozen minutes intermittently gawking at you, he now avoided your gaze.
“You better go,” you smirked, gesturing towards the disappearing head of silver hair. “It was nice to meet you. Good luck going… wherever it is that you’re going.”
“The ideology of ‘luck’ is illogical,” he intoned, raising a know-it-all finger into the air, the gesture somehow only intensifying your affection for him though he continued to evade eye contact, “but the sentiments are appreciated. And it was a pleasure gaining your acquaintance as well.”
His stooped frame made it barely three long paces before an urgent idea erupted in your mind. “Tech, wait!”
He turned his slumped shoulders back around to face you, mild curiosity etched into the small furrow in his brow as he lowered his datapad and held it limply at his side. “Keep this,” you offered, extending out the green microfiber cloth to him. “You need it more than I do.”
He stared, adorably flummoxed, at the fabric in your hand. “Keep it in one of your six hundred pockets,” you added with a goofy smirk and small gesture down to the series of cargo belts that seemingly adorned every inch of his tall frame. A mildly affronted expression ghosted across his face, but it was succeeded almost instantly by the same small smile that had sent your heart aflutter earlier. He took the cloth from you with a small nod, tucking it into the pouch perched just above a dangling spanner wrench on his hip, before muttering a quiet “goodbye” and continuing toward the door.
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raymondduggantravel · 1 month ago
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5 Types of Surveys You Should Participate In—And Why It Matters
In today’s fast-paced world, businesses, organizations, and governments rely on accurate data to make decisions. One way they gather this valuable information is through surveys. You might have encountered many types of surveys online or in person, but did you know that your participation can significantly impact change? In this blog, we’ll explore five types of surveys, highlighting why they’re important and why you should consider participating.
1. Customer Satisfaction Surveys
Why They Matter:
Ever wondered why companies ask for your feedback after a purchase? Customer satisfaction surveys are a tool businesses use to gauge how well they meet customer expectations. The insights gained help companies improve their products, services, and overall customer experience.
Why You Should Participate:
Shape the future of products: By providing honest feedback, you influence how companies refine and develop their offerings.
Get better service: Your input helps businesses identify areas where they can improve, which could result in better services for you in the future.
Exclusive rewards: Many companies offer discounts or rewards for completing these surveys, making it a win-win situation for both you and the business.
2. Employee Engagement Surveys
Why They Matter:
Employee engagement surveys are conducted within organizations to understand how employees feel about their workplace. These surveys cover job satisfaction, management, work-life balance, and team dynamics.
Why You Should Participate:
Voice your opinion: If you’re employed, these surveys provide a safe platform to express your thoughts on management, company culture, and work conditions.
Improve your workplace: Honest feedback from employees can drive positive change, improve work environments, and increase job satisfaction for everyone.
Build better leadership: When management understands the concerns and suggestions of their teams, they can create policies and make decisions that support a more motivated and productive workforce.
3. Political Opinion Polls
Why They Matter:
Political opinion polls measure public sentiment about political issues, elections, or government performance. Polls like these inform political leaders, policymakers, and the media about public concerns and opinions.
Why You Should Participate:
Influence decision-making: Your voice adds to a collective view that could influence policy decisions and political discourse.
Shape the political landscape: Politicians and leaders often adjust their priorities based on what the public wants. Your input helps ensure that your concerns are addressed.
Understand trends: Participating in these surveys allows you to see where you stand in comparison to others and gain insight into broader societal trends.
4. Market Research Surveys
Why They Matter:
Market research surveys are used by companies to understand consumer behavior, preferences, and market trends. This research helps businesses decide what products to launch, how to price them, and how to market them.
Why You Should Participate:
Influence new products: Companies rely on feedback from people like you to decide what features to add or what products to create. Your opinion can directly affect future innovations.
Stay ahead of trends: By participating in market research, you often get a sneak peek at new products or services before they hit the market.
Get rewards: Many companies offer incentives such as cash, gift cards, or discounts for participating in market research surveys.
5. Health and Wellness Surveys
Why They Matter:
Health surveys are often conducted by government bodies, research organizations, or healthcare institutions to assess public health trends, study diseases, or improve healthcare services. These surveys play a critical role in shaping health policies and medical research.
Why You Should Participate:
Contribute to scientific research: Participating in health surveys can contribute to advancements in healthcare and medical research, potentially saving lives or improving the quality of care.
Raise awareness: Health surveys help identify trends in public health that may need attention, such as the rise of certain diseases or health conditions.
Improve healthcare services: Your participation allows healthcare providers to understand what patients need, leading to improved services, more targeted treatments, and better patient care.
Why Your Participation Matters:
By participating in surveys, you are helping companies, governments, and organizations make better decisions based on real data. Surveys allow decision-makers to better understand consumer and public needs, ultimately leading to improved products, services, policies, and societal well-being.
Here are three key reasons why you should participate in surveys:
Be heard: Surveys provide a platform where your opinion can directly impact the world around you.
Drive positive change: Whether it's about the workplace, healthcare, or politics, your input can lead to real, actionable change.
Gain benefits: In many cases, surveys come with rewards or incentives, allowing you to get something back in exchange for your time.
So the next time you come across a survey in your inbox or on a website, take a moment to consider participating. Your feedback matters more than you think!
Conclusion: From customer satisfaction surveys to political opinion polls, the surveys we take part in help shape our society. By sharing your thoughts and experiences, you contribute to a better future for everyone. Plus, it’s an easy way to ensure that your voice counts, while sometimes reaping personal rewards along the way!
CLICK HERE TO JOIN and REFER.
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randomtable · 2 years ago
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Random Calendar Builder: Solar Calendars
This is part one of a series on calendars I am planning! See this master post for more calendar content as I post it: https://www.tumblr.com/randomtable/713543620842700800/random-calendar-series-masterpost?source=share
Year length:
(how many days does it take for the planet to revolve around the sun?) The year is 7d100 days long.
Now, divide this year length by 4 to find the length of your planet’s seasons. *If the result is a fraction or decimal: 1/4 or .25 means one season will be one day longer than the others. 1/2 or .5 means two seasons will be one day longer than the others. 3/4 or .75 means three seasons will be one day longer than the fourth. The length of seasons is also the number of days between the solstices and equinoxes.
1d8 Days to Start The Year On: 1. The day after the Winter Solstice, when nights are just beginning to grow longer. The New Year is celebrated as a time of hope, of starting an upward journey after hitting a low point. New Years celebrations might include light-based decorations, songs about light and hope, and making plans for self improvement. 2. A day between the Winter Solstice and the Spring Equinox, which is the anniversary of the dawn of the ruling dynasty who implemented this calendar. (Feel free to select the exact day randomly). The New Year is celebrated as a patriotic event. New Years celebrations might include flying emblems or flags, nationalist and propaganda songs, and speeches or addresses from leaders and politicians. 3. The day of the Spring Equinox, when cold is giving way to warmth, and it is time for planting and for baby animals to be born. The New Year is celebrated as a time of rebirth and new beginnings, and it may be personified as an infant or baby animal. New Years celebrations might include imagery of flowers, eggs, and babies, time spent planting crops or gardens, and songs about joy and rebirth. 4. A day between the Spring Equinox and Summer Solstice, which is the birthday of a deity or other important religious figure. (Feel free to select the exact day randomly) The new year is celebrated as a religious feast day. New Years celebrations might include prayers and songs to the holy figure, feasts in their name, and religious services. 5. The day after the Summer Solstice, when the days are long and hot. The New Year is celebrated as a time of rest, taking a break from hard work and hot sun. New Years celebrations might include observing a day without work, gifts like hats and parasols that protect from the sun, and activities like swimming to cool off or sharing chilled food and drinks. 6. A day between the Summer Solstice and Autumn Equinox, which is the anniversary of the death of a deity or other important religious figure.The New Year is observed as a somber day of religious reflection, where the year that passed may also be treated as a living thing which has died. New Years customs might include fasting or making other sacrifices, lengthy prayers, and wearing veils or other mourning clothes. 7. The day of the Autumn Equinox, when the harvest is in full swing. The New Year is celebrated as a time of bounty and of preparation for the long nights of winter ahead. New Years celebrations might include feasting, songs wishing farewell to the times of plenty and to the sun, and expressing gratitude to the earth, to a deity of fertility, or to farmers for a bountiful harvest. 8. A day between the Autumn Equinox and the Winter Solstice, which is thought to be the anniversary of the creation of the world itself. (Feel free to select the exact day randomly). The New Year is observed as a serious but joyful religious holiday. New Years traditions might include offerings to the god or gods of creation, prayer and song about their power and might, and excursions into the wilderness to behold their creation in its natural state.
Months:
The year is divided into 5d4 months, which may or may not be roughly based on the lunar cycle*.  Divide the year length by the number of months to get the length of the months. It’s likely this number won’t be even. If it isn’t, multiply the fraction/decimal by the number of months to get the number of extra days.
1d4 Things to do with Extra Days 1. Make months unequal: distribute the days among certain months, so that some are a day longer than others. 2. Add these days as extra holidays between months: These days aren’t considered part of a particular month, rather falling between the months and being days of rest or celebration. Try to distribute them equally, if you can. 3. Add these days as a multi-day holiday at the end of the year: this extra time becomes an extended period to prepare for the new year, following the tradition rolled on the previous table. 4. Add these days as a multi-day holiday in the middle of the year: this extra time is a mid-year break, situated between two months near the midway point of the year. You can consult the previous table for what this festival might be for, based on what time of year it occurs, or make up something else.
Weeks:
Your calendar’s weeks are informed by how its months are divided. Here are some options for weeks, noting which types of months they work for.
Perfect Weeks: (Does not work for unequal months.) If there is a number between 5-10 that your month length can be evenly divided by, then this can be the length of your week. For calendars with extra days between months, those extra days are also considered to be between weeks.
Unequal Weeks: (Works for any type of months.) Your months are divided into a number of weeks. In order to make that number whole, some of your weeks are a day longer than others.
One Short Week: (Does not work for calendars with extra days added as a multi-day holiday.) Weeks are 1d4+4 days long. If this number does not divide evenly by how long your year is, the remaining days are treated as a multi-day holiday at the end of the year. (Note that this holiday is still considered part of the last month of the year.)
Earth-like Weeks: (Works for any type of months.) Weeks are 1d4+4 days long and do not change or reset at the end of the year or month. What day of the week the year or the month begins on varies from year to year and month to month. If you have holidays that are between months, the weeks should also skip these holidays.
*Bonus: Lunar Cycles in Solar Calendars (Under the Cut)
If your year does not divide perfectly into the number of months you rolled, then your lunar cycle will not stay aligned with your months. For simplicity’s sake, we’ll assume that your base month is the actual length of a lunar cycle. You can plot these lunar cycles out on your calendar just like we do on Earth, and you’ll see that they quickly become misaligned with the months.
(Warning, math ahead!) The “extra days” you calculated before are called the Epact, the difference in length between the solar and lunar years. You can subtract the Epact from the year length to determine the lunar year length, and use those numbers to determine extra information about the alignments of the solar and lunar calendars: * A purely lunar calendar (with no leap months added to re-align with the solar year) will cycle through the seasons, so over several years what seasons happen in which months will shift. To determine the length of this cycle, divide the solar year length by the Epact. This tells you how many years it takes before the seasons re-align in the lunar calendar. (On Earth, it takes 33 years.) If the result is a whole number, then the lunar and solar calendars will have the same New Years Day if they both began on the same day initially.  (If it isn’t a whole number, how often they line up is a little bit more complicated: it’s equal to the least common multiple of the two different year lengths, divided by the length of the solar year.) * You can also determine how many years it takes before the cycles of the moon line up to the same days of the year again. This is equal to the least common multiple of the solar year length and the lunar cycle length (which is the base month length), divided by the solar year length.
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eruverse · 2 years ago
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Headcanon: jobs!!
This post talks about human jobs the nationpeoples have. Anyway, I think the nations aren’t always diplomats or politicians, even tho they could indeed take on some tasks along those lines. In general tho the nationpeoples are linked to the state/work for the state so it’s quite rare to find them working corporate jobs or opening businesses. IF they do, then ultimately these corporations have the state as their clients. Basically everything they do typically goes to the state fast.
Russia:
He has a military job (lieutenant general) with medical training. He’s been in the military for the longest time and would love some change + a bit of distance from the state, but the state doesn’t really allow him to (there are indeed some nations with a fate like that). At the same time, he’s not much suited for other things so he keeps returning to the same path? Yeah. He does have hobbies tho, for example he loves studying math and physics and would often sneak into good universities to learn under esteemed lecturers. They love him because he’s such a curious and attentive student but at the same time he’s not much cut out to do the works needed to obtain a degree, so he doesn’t get those. However he’s better than many academics in the field simply because he’s much older than them and has been studying for a hella long time (he’s also naturally gifted in these).
This is stereotypical of him, but yes he’s good at hacking. Often trolls people with his capabilities, which is at times harmless but sometimes he does some unhinged shit which causes legit headaches. Sometimes he uses his abilities to hack into America’s house and wreck shit with his computerized home appliances. Nothing harmful of course, and America also takes it all in fun strides and would call Russia back like “Hey you got lucky this time!! Awesome what you did!!” (They’re both kids ok).
Mongolia:
I mentioned his job before on another post some time ago, but basically he’s a nomad and he works with nomads, not sorry to be predictable lol. He travels all over the country to make sure the nomads live well, so basically some kind of an overseer and mediator. He also works in the conservation side of national parks. His jobs demand him to be out on his feet almost all the time and he’s too happy for it to want other jobs, lol. He only spends maybe a few months a year in the city.
During communist era he used to be in the military and became a general/lt. general (highest rank was marshal, right after army general). As a rule, the nationpeoples who were under Soviet Union + satellite states were all in the military. Even without that tho Mongolia has been in the military for the longest time since Empire era (in general medieval nomads doubled as armies), and these days he’s still called a lot to advise. He still trains a lot and a bulk of that is military level trainings.
Kazakhstan:
He’s a tech engineer for energy field hired by the state. Also does plenty programming but he does best with what he can work with his own hands, and any programming he does is ultimately linked to his main job. He often tinkers with techs at home as sources of inspiration.
(Yes, he’s Rich)
During communist era he was a lieutenant + military engineer. Was, and still is, an excellent sniper.
Uzbekistan:
Is a scholar in Central Asian history/related studies. He has deep interest in everything Central Asian and often does research under state sponsorship. As he’s also a student under sufi masters, his interests also include religion and/or theology.
His side job is gardening. He’s also a resident cook for people around him as he’s really great at it.
Turkey:
He works as a state advisor but his side job is designing bespoke attire for men and women alike. He works with the best quality garments made in his country and his customers are all high-end ones. His hobbies include sewing, knitting and dressing people up — which in fact he’s practiced since Seljuk era, where slave girls became stunning consorts in his hands. He loves beautiful people, but he’s very much on board with spoiling them so they could rise up to his standards.
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draculas-husband · 2 years ago
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Tea/Coffee Shop AU -
Edmont is a politician who has been struggling to find a place where he can just relax, a place where he won't get recognized and bothered too much. Until one day when he stumbles upon a quiet little café at the edge of town; run by a man named Drac Lusard.
Drac on the other hand has been struggling with keeping the place at all due to his lack of customers leading to financial struggles.
Edmont is pleased to find that the barista has no clue who he is, but treats him with respect and impresses him quite a bit with his culinary skills. Not to mention that the xaela is quite pleasing to the eye.  It takes him a while to realize that Drac has been flirting with him, but once he does; it both surprises and intrigues him. Causing him to return.
Edmont eventually ends up retiring and becomes a full time writer, spending most of his days at the café working and enjoying Drac's tea blends, baked delights and most of all... company.
He ends up unintentionally inspiring his sons to come to the place as well. His lads, seemingly being rather curious about why their father is spending so much time there. He even goes so far as to write a book based on Drac's life which ultimately helps Drac attract more customers, getting the small business owner's economy in order and then some.
But the greatest gift they end up giving the other is love. Establishing a deep and meaningful romantic relationship with one another. 😊❤️
A huge thank you to @the-icebreaker for letting me borrow their apartment for this shoot! It was perfectly decorated  and I would've personally loved to work at such a cozy café. 💖
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casliveblog · 1 year ago
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Custom Toonami Block Week 145 Rundown
Spy X Family: Yor catches some of the bad guys with the bomb dogs but isn’t able to go after the leader because she can’t leave Anya again so Terrorist Bakugo gets away (it’s really funny that the terrorist boss is voiced by Clifford Chaplin and is talking about explosions all the time). To my surprise Yor actually does find out how serious the situation is with the terrorists and Anya gets a Future Dog Sight vision of Loid getting blown up by the bomb and a lengthy view of how this will also start a World War. So Anya apologizes to Yor for running off on her own and then… immediately runs off on her own again. Loid’s group catches the remaining terrorists so Bakugo is left by himself with one dog that Anya’s dog seems to have beef with so this briefly becomes Up because this dog even kinda looks like Alpha, feel like Doberman Pinschers are up there on the list of dogs that get a bad rap. Anyway Anya finds the bomb and is able to convey the message to Loid without blowing her cover so Loid can go and steal the Minister’s clothes and get Bakugo’s dog to track him instead (idk how long that’d work for like presumably politicians put on fresh suits before big meetings and Loid’s scent would eventually overpower the residuals of his but it’s clever so I prolly shouldn’t think about it too much maybe the Minister’s just a sweaty old guy that never changes idk). But yeah Loid is able to parkour away from Alpha and is just gonna fucking shoot the dog, like he acknowledges it isn’t the dog’s fault and he’s sorry but like I really hope he doesn’t shot that fucking dog like he’s a god damn spy shouldn’t he have tranqs or something?  
Inuyasha: So we’ve entered the Princess Abi mini-arc and she is one of my favorite minor underutilized villains up there with Yura, she’s just pretty dope. She’s using her little pterodactyl birds to suck blood from the human villages around to basically give her phoenix mom a feudal blood transfusion since she was poisoned after eating a big ol’ poison demon. I’m not sure that’s how blood works but it’s the feudal era so the fact that they’re messing with blood at all is kind of a miracle plus idk maybe demon biology is weird. Anyway OG Naraku shows up after not seeing him for a while as Hakudoshi’s currently on Temporary Naraku duty. But he says Abi’s gonna help him get to the afterlife and gives her a bone trident. Because Naraku is the shadiest god damn person in the world Abi and her mother don’t trust him as far as they can throw him but as a show of good will he faces off against the children of the poison demon Mama Abi ate. They start shooting poison and Naraku’s just like ‘aw that’s cute, they think they have poison’ and fucking poison blasts them into the stone age. Abi and Mama Phoenix don’t trust Naraku but their racism makes them overconfident like ‘yeah that guy’s stronger than anyone I’ve ever seen but he’s a half-demon so I can probably still kill him if he gets up to anything’ sound logic guys. Meanwhile Inuyasha’s group is defending the only village in the area left standing and Abi’s Pteradactyls do a pretty cool The Birds parody and start fucking shit up. Of course Abi comes around and Naraku’s gifts of Saimyosho and Bone Trident barriers protect her from the group’s two biggest OHKO moves (prolly still wouldn’t do shit against Kagome’s Sacred Arrow but when was the last time she did shit with that). Since Abi has two brain cells to rub together she puts together that Naraku’s setting her up to fight Inuyasha and dips the fuck out of there because if some shady dude wants you to fight a guy with a laser sword even if you think you can win there’s probably nothing good coming from that. Anyway next week’s a random filler flashback episode that expands on Kikyo’s flashback with Inuyasha, I have no idea why they didn’t air that special BEFORE we started a new story arc with Abi but yeah, what do I know.
Yu Yu Hakusho: I can’t emphasize enough how much this has just become a DBZ fight, like I’ve said that before in this series but Demon!Yusuke vs Sensui is just literally a DBZ fight. It’s kinda funny watching them go through all the DBZ tropes for the first time like the moving so fast you can’t see, the ‘dodge and blow something huge a mile away up’, the casually changing landscape as they demolish rock formations with their sheer manliness, the clash creating weather phenomena, the ‘let’s move this category four brawl to that convenient empty desert so no one gets hurt’ it’s cute, like the meme of the guys on the gallows with DBZ just looking at YYH like ‘first time?’ since with DBZ everyone just kinda got desensitized to it real fast it’s amusing to watch a series with relatively grounded fights just become DBZ and have everyone lose their minds. Also there’s kind of a funny scene where we cut back to the Spirit World SPC and apparently nobody told them S Class demons were really a thing because they wanted to keep their egos up and let them believe they were the strongest since S Class Demons are basically Elder Gods and never interfere with humans anyway, it’s just kind of a bizarre decision to save your police’s sanity by telling them there’s nothing they can’t beat. But yeah Yusuke comes back and is only mildly distressed that his heart isn’t beating anymore which Kurama and Hiei laugh off and are like ‘yeah that happens’ and it’s actually kinda cool that Kuwabara and Kurama and Hiei all get kinda jazzed that Yusuke’s back like it actually gives them a power boost, the comfort of having him return is stronger than the despair of losing him in the first place and it makes no god damn sense on a power scaling level but it’s a nice theme. Yusuke does his DBZ thing and is kinda having trouble getting a read on how strong he is until his demon side just takes over and wants to finish the fight for him and I’m slowly realizing I don’t think Tite Kubo has an original storytelling bone in his body, Bleach just lifted a whole show and gave it a new coat of paint huh.
Jujutsu Kaisen: It’s time for Yuji’s big return! We get a fun little couple of intro scenes and the main takeaway is that Gojo wants Yuji to just cram every finger they have into his mouth right now but everyone else is afraid he’ll explode or some shit if he does it before he’s strong enough to handle or worse turn traitor and let the power go to his head. But yeah Yuji meets back up with Megumi and Nobara and is just kinda thrown into their new squad after not seeing them for two months and NOBODY has a reaction to seeing him alive except for being mildly pissed that he kept it a secret. Megumi vouches for his pure fighting capability outside of Cursed Techniques so the others are on board for letting him join their race to quell a minor spirit while using even minor-er spirits as a tiebreaker. The Yamamoto Kyoto principal dude wants Yuji dead still so he just straight up tells his students like ‘yeah go murder that guy in the games, make it look like an accident if you can but if not no biggie’ like holy fuck even if you consider him a threat, treating him as ‘not a person’ as he calls it seems like Kyoto’s REALLY teaching their students the wrong lessons, aren’t these guys supposed to save people? Guess it goes along with the theme of Yuji having a potentially too high reverence for human life but also the virtue that he places on not killing even the worst people. Todo objects to random murder and more importantly his idol show is on so he’s not gonna go along with that. Meanwhile the bad guys are all healed up and ready to go take the fingers the school has during the event and Gojo warns that the person leading them is probably a school insider of some sort, so yeah we got a standard Chunin Exams situation going on here where there’s a surface test but also like three random backstab plots happening in the background.
Ranking of Kings: So Shield Guy loses an eye and a foot to the chimera things and Hilling cries out to Bosse to save them and Daida!Bosse almost rips his way straight out of his cell to do so but whatever the fuck Miranjo’s got on him to make him do absolutely jack shit in this arc stops him. Hilling doesn’t want to leave shield guy to die so she tries to help and turns out Giant Snake Cerberus is here to save the day and takes out the Chimeras to give Hilling a chance to heal Shield Guy but Gnasty Gnorc is still here and fucks giant snake up. Then Bojji FINALLY returns home and defends the snake and his mom. We get a minor flashback with Despa teaching Bojji how to fucking CUT THE SPACES BETWEEN ATOMS which is badass beyond words. And Bojji uses this power to fucking wreck Gnasty Gnorc’s shit. Bojji wants Hilling to heal the snake but he’s like ten times the size of the stuff she usually heals and she’s out of magical Gatorade. Luckily Kage’s a mobile hammerspace and is able to get her enough to heal the snake AND the chimeras after Bojji feels bad about everyone being hurt. Hilling and Kage are the biggest egos in the room so they clash for a bit but it resolves itself relatively quickly which is kind of funny because if Hilling didn’t trust Kage she sure was quick to drink some mysterious potions he literally pulled out of his ass. But yeah once Gnasty Gnorc wakes up he realizes he’s not about to fuck around with the power to cut atoms and swears loyalty to Bojji which is pretty cool, Bojji’s like gathering his own little One Piece crew to become the Ranking of Kings King. Meanwhile Despa is watching his guards get fucked up by Ouken who’s apparently literally immortal and only gets saved by random unexplained lightning bolt frying him temporarily unconscious. Apparently Ouken used to be a prince of the underworld which I guess would make him Desha and Despa’s third brother? But now he’s immortal and being cut off from the fear of death or urge to watch others grow made him a fucking asshole which is kinda funny because if he really is the third Des brother that means he’s only been immortal for like a couple years probably and it IMMEDIATELY made him an asshole. Also Desha is now arriving at the Underworld gate to beat Miranjo and it’s implied do something to save Ouken.
Vinland Saga: So this is an episode just fucking loaded with religious allegory and how people interpret Christianity and there’s A LOT of room for interpretation so I apologize if I misread anything to leave anything out. It starts with the Those Two Guys of Askeladd’s troupe trying to decipher the kind of love the Christian Priest is searching for and I’ve been forced to read enough about the Four Loves that I’ll spare you the explanation but essentially what the Priest is after is a brotherly love for all humanity that doesn’t distinguish by relation to the person but is compassionate towards all, and only the Vikings telling him of the story of Thorfinn’s dad gets him even close to explaining it. We then cut to a little village where a girl is having an existential crisis about stealing a ring given her family won’t shut up about Jesus and stealing is… you know, one of the Commandments. It’s kind of a refreshingly frank depiction of how generations of Christians use fear and vague moralistic stories to perpetuate the general idea of Christianity while kinda missing some of the details, considering a lot of anime treats Christainity like this weird nebulous mythology to be referenced with cool shit like in Evangelion this is kinda neat to see. But yeah, this is still a story about Vikings so Bjorn breaks into their house while the girl is out and Askeladd’s crew proceeds to fucking murder everybody to steal their food and keep their location a secret. I don’t remember if we see any of their Welsh guardians in this episode and I THINK this part is in England but murdering a bunch of harmless villagers at the drop of a hat should give them some pause about making a deal with these guys. But yeah the ring stealing girl escapes and finds the Coordinate from Attack on Titan and prays to god feeling like her stealing and the Viking genocide is the same deal because Catholic Guilt is a hell of a drug and presumably she dies because she’s out in the middle of the snowstorm with like no food and nothing around, like that’s the reason Askeladd raided the village in the first place so like we don’t see her actually die but I’m not holding my breath for her survival. One thing I wanted to bring up is whenever we get to the pillaging scenes we never see Thorfinn directly participate in the pillaging part like he’ll murder other warriors but we never see him killing civilians on-screen, I’m sure he probably does at some point and that’s part of his infamous turmoil in season two but I just thought that was an interesting choice, like it reminds me of how The Kid is portrayed in Blood Meridian where they’re very vague about how involved he is in the atrocities going on so they leave it up to interpretation of how much blame he carries for it.
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goldendiie · 2 years ago
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Ok here me out! Fillmores parents try visiting Fillmore to convince him to come home because it looks bad to the public for a politician son to disappear and they see sarge like
Fillmores dad :"ah yes my son being friends with this upstanding young man will help straighten him out "
Sarge: Don't be suspicious Don't be suspicious don't be suspicious
Fillmore was having a bad day. He and Sarge had argued that morning, and his customer intake had been lower than usual. The gift-wrapped bow on top of everything, though, was the fact that his father had tracked him down.
He looked almost comical: Roger Callahan had always been an extremely buttoned-up individual, yet here he stood against the psychedelic lavender-washed backdrop of the Taste-In.
“For someone so smart, you could’ve done a better job of covering your tracks,” his father said flatly, “For God’s sake, at least change your name the next time you run away.”
“I didn’t run away,” Fillmore bit back. “You kicked me out.”
His father looks back at him challengingly. “Did you not drop out of Berkeley?”
“What I do with my time and money is none of your concern,” Fillmore replied. “What the hell are you doing here, anyways?” He added, somewhat snarky, “Have you ever heard of the telephone? You could’ve called.”
“I’m taking you back to New York,” his father replied, a tone of finality to his voice. “People have started asking questions about where you’ve gone, and we can’t afford a scandal.”
Fillmore stared back at him, floored. “What, I don’t get a say in this?” He snapped, “Maybe I’d prefer to stay gone.”
“Son, I’m not going to tell you twice,” his father said, “This is serious! People are beginning to notice!”
Fillmore scoffed. “Not my problem.”
Just then, the beaded curtain was pushed aside. Fillmore nearly snapped his head to look, uttering a short we’re closed—Unfortunately, it was Sarge that was standing there. He looked halfway terrified, looking between them as he began to back away.
He said, “I’ll come back—”
“No, no, you’re cool,” Fillmore said after him. “My father was just leaving, anyways.”
Sarge froze, one foot behind him in the doorway. He mumbled, “I just, uh… I seem to have lost my wallet. Have you seen it?”
Sarge had likely come to talk about their argument earlier, as his wallet was very clearly in his front-right pocket. Fillmore seemed to sense this, and gestured with his head. “You can check inside.”
Sarge ushered past them, looking as though he wanted to avoid being seen. He nodded his head vaguely in the direction of Fillmore’s father as he passed.
“A friend of yours?” his father asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Yes." Fillmore nodded shortly, unwilling to divulge any other information.
His father hummed, evidently surprised. "He's normal."
"Very."
Sarge returned a moment later, wallet in hand. “Found it,” he said, smiling nervously.
Roger Callahan turned on him. “You," he said. "What's a respectable young man like yourself doing wasting time with this—" he gestured vaguely in Fillmore's direction, "—vagrant?"
Fillmore cut in, "I said he's my friend."
"Speak when spoken to." His father shot him a rather dangerous glare, before looking back to Sarge. "And that's all?"
Sarge stood a little straighter, a rather challenging expression crossing through his eyes. "If not friends, what else would we be?"
Roger Callahan scoffed, "Like you don't know."
Fillmore, again, spoke up, "Go back to New York, asshole."
His father swung around, furious, "I won't say it again—"
"No, you won't," Fillmore interrupted, "This is my property, and I'm calling the sheriff if you don't scram." He gestured in the direction of the door, picking up the telephone.
"You'd call the police on your own father?"
"Try me."
Roger Callahan took one step forward. Fillmore dialed one number on the rotary. Another step, another number. He pressed the receiver to his ear, ready...
"Christ," his father said. He turned back to Sarge, incredulous. "You, young man— do me a favor and straighten him out, would you?" He added, "Maybe you'll rub off on him."
Sarge exchanged glances with Fillmore. "I'll, uh... I'll sure try."
"You—" Roger Callahan continued, wheeling around and quickly advancing on Fillmore. "You will be coming back to New York if it kills me."
"Cool," Fillmore said, indifferently, "Hope it does."
His father blinked at him, before storming out. It was another moment before the car left his lot, and another still before its tires screeched down the highway.
Across the room, Sarge deflated. "What the hell?" he asked.
"Right?" Fillmore replied, "What's his problem?"
Sarge whistled, and neared the Taste-In's counter. He seemed to peer out the beaded curtain for a moment, as though he was making sure that Fillmore's father had actually left.
"So," Fillmore said, "Promise you'll straighten me out?"
Sarge groaned. "Please, shut up."
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philflora-flower-bouquet · 1 year ago
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HISTORY OF MOTHER’S DAY
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Nothing in the world can compare to a mother's love or support. They've always been there for us, from when we were kids to moody teenagers and needed a shoulder to cry on. In the Philippines, we have Mother's Day every year to honor our moms.
Many people still celebrate Mother's Day on this day, even though it began many centuries earlier. Today, it has already grown to provide custom-made or homemade Mother's Day cards, floral, and other gift items. Here are some interesting facts about how Mother's Day came to be. We hope this will help you think of things to do for Mother's Day before it happens!
History of Mother’s Day When it comes to society, moms have always played an important role. One woman after another had a significant impact on history: former Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg was a mother when first nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1902. Mother's Day is when many people gather to honor all types of mothers, and we owe this tradition to many remarkable women.
Ann Reeves Jarvis Ann Reeves Jarvis, an Appalachian housewife, started Mothers' Work Days in 1858 to help troops and children's hygiene while the war was still going on. Women's child care classes were one of her many accomplishments, and she was instrumental in getting them started. She lost eight of her twelve children when she was a mother because of dirty water.
While she was helping to create a group of women's organizations, she begged them to promise that the Civil War would not interfere with their work. They said that no matter which side they were on, they would help people who were sick or injured. She began Mother's Friendship Day, which was meant to help Union and Confederate soldiers get along better with each other.
Julia Ward Howe As a suffragette and abolitionist, Julia Ward Howe authored a Mother's Day Proclamation to encourage mothers to help them achieve world stability. In 1873, she tried to get a Mother's Day of Peace set up to have peace on earth, and people would stop fighting with each other. The work of Ann Reeves Jarvis very much moved her.
Anna Jarvis Since it wasn't until Ann Reeves Jarvis' daughter, Anna, came around, Mother's Day has become a universally recognized celebration. Anna desired to establish a memorial day for mothers who had gone away and recognize women's contributions to their children after her mother died in 1905.
On May 10, 1908, a church in Grafton, West Virginia, hosted the first formal Mother's Day celebration. John Wanamaker, a Philadelphia businessperson, contributed to making this Mother's Day immense popularity thanks to his money. On this day, a huge number of people also went to a Mother's Day occasion at one of Wanamaker's retail locations at the same time. A shrine honoring mothers everywhere may be seen in this cathedral on May 8, International Mother's Day.
Anna decided to make Mother's Day a public holiday because she saw how well this first event went, making it a goal. Every day, she chose to write to politicians and newspapers from all over the country, having to ask people to accept the day and start celebrating being a mother. Many other nations soon joined in, too. Some even made it a holiday in 1912 and after.
Ex-President Woodrow Wilson declared the first national Mother's Day holiday in 1914, making it official. The first Sunday in May used to be Mother's Day, but now, it's every second Sunday in May.
What are the origins of Mother’s Day? In the Ancient Greeks, there was a holiday called Mother's Day, and it was a way to honor mothers. Every spring, they held an elaborate celebration to honor the goddess Rhea, who was revered as a mother to the gods. Rhea was very close to some other mother goddess, Cybele, whom the Romans celebrated.
First, it was not a way to celebrate motherhood. People went back to their main church for a special service during Lent when they went directly to the central church to pray. Mother's Day is celebrated on the fourth Sunday of Lent every year because of this tradition.
The tradition of giving gifts also came from families meeting at this Mothering Sunday mass. Children will indeed pick flowers on their way to church and make bouquets for their mothers to give to them as gifts. As a result, it is still the best way to show your mom how much you care on Mother's Day today.
They would also get to go back to the house to their mothers on Mothering Sunday in the Middle Ages. In the past, they would indeed take a special cake for Mother's Day called a Simnel cake.
A woman named Anna Jarvis, who lived in the United States, helped bring back the popular appeal of Mother's Day festivities in the 1900s. Jarvis talked to President Woodrow Wilson about making Mother's Day a holiday in 1914.
How did Mother's Day become a tradition? As we recognize it, Mother's Day started a lot later than it is now. In ancient Greece and Rome, there were festivals called Mother's Days. Ancient Greeks revered Rhea, Cronus's wife and mother of the gods, as a goddess in her own right. Rhea would receive gifts throughout Greece, including food, wine, and flowers.
As well as Cybele, the Romans had a goddess called Magna Mater, which translates as "Great Mother," which they worshiped. The Romans even built a temple for her. In March, they took part in the Celebration of Hilaria and gave gifts to the goddess.
Today, most individuals demonstrate to their moms how much they care by buying or attempting to make gifts and having to give them a break. For Mother's Day gifts, chocolate, flowers, and cards are still the most favorite things. The National Retail Federation (NRF) predicted that Americans would spend about $2.67 billion on Mother's Day in 2021, which is a lot of money.
Gifts to Send for Mother’s Day Now that we've discussed the history of Mother's Day festivities let's talk about how you may express your appreciation and love for your mother. It's hard to show how you feel, even more so once your opinions are more important than your words. When you give her a gift on Mother's Day, make sure it's something she'll love for a long time.
Chocolate and Jewelry Chocolate and jewelry are two of the most famous gifts, but if you've run out of ideas, there are many other choices you can choose between. It doesn't matter what her preferences and hobbies are; we can assist you in finding a present that she will appreciate. If you want to send your mom a gift for Mother's Day, look at the Philflora gifts shop.
Spa Day Gift Basket You can send moms who could use some time off a spa day gift basket with all the things she requires to achieve their spa day an achievement. A day at home with all the comforts of home, from lotion to body butter, will be a relaxing one for her.
Flowers It's a great opportunity to show your mom how much you love her. People love flowers because they're simple, and we can assist you to get them to her door. It's good to buy carnations, daisies and roses, and tulips for Mother's Day if you want to send more traditional flowers.
Gardening Tools It doesn't have to be difficult to choose the right gift for your mom. If you can't decide on a gift for your mom, presume about what she prefers to do in her leisure time. For example, on a hot day in the summer, she likes to work in her garden. If so, you might want to buy her gardening equipment, like gloves, pruning shears, and a watering can. She may be a DIY whiz who enjoys making things from scratch. A sewing machine, adult coloring book, or toolbox could be good gifts for her. Your mother will be delighted with any present that comes from the heart.
Conclusion Remember to put May 8, 2022, down as the date for this year's Mother's Day, so you don't forget! You don't want to forget about this important holiday. Philflora.com has a lot of same-day flowers that will get there in time for Mother's Day without your mom even realizing it. Don't worry; we won't tell anyone.
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allthebrazilianpolitics · 2 years ago
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Jair Bolsonaro and the case of the smuggled diamonds
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Recent revelations regarding former Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro’s attempt to smuggle jewelry for his wife have again put the controversial politician and his family in the spotlight. While Mr. Bolsonaro is no stranger to controversy, this latest incident only adds to the long list of bizarre and suspicious situations in which he and his family seem to find themselves.
In 2021, members of the Bolsonaro administration attempted to smuggle a jewelry case given to Mrs. Bolsonaro by the government of Saudi Arabia, containing a necklace, a watch, cufflinks, a pen, and diamonds — valued at more than USD 3.17 million.
A Brazilian delegation, led by Brazil’s former mines and energy minister, returned from Saudi Arabia in October 2021 with the case. The delegation did not log it as an official gift to the Brazilian government (which would make the jewelry government property), nor did the minister’s aide who was carrying the items declare them to customs.
From fishing for coins in presidential fountains to questionable financial transactions, Mr. Bolsonaro and his family seem to have a knack for attracting trouble. It’s almost as if they are magnets for scandal and drama, always finding themselves embroiled in the latest controversy.
Continue reading.
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whatdoeschronicevenmean · 1 year ago
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I’d understood organised religion to be something between an embarrassment and an evil. Yet as AIDS did its dreadful work – this was the 1990s – I watched nuns offer compassionate care to the dying. Christian volunteers checked on derelict men with vomit down their clothes. I became uncomfortably aware that New Agers do not build hospitals or feed alcoholics – they buy self-actualisation at the cash register.
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I also learned that intelligence and education do not protect against superstition. Many customers were stockbrokers, advertising executives or politicians, dealing with issues whose outcomes couldn’t be controlled. It’s uncertainty that drives people into woo, not stupidity, so I’m not surprised millennials are into astrology. They grew up with Harry Potter and graduated into a precarious economy, making them the ideal customers.
What broke the spell for me was, oddly, people swearing by my gift. Some repeat customers claimed I’d made very specific predictions, of a kind I never made. It dawned on me that my readings were a co-creation – I would weave a story and, later, the customer’s memory would add new elements. I got to test this theory after a friend raved about a reading she’d had, full of astonishingly accurate predictions. She had a tape of the session, so I asked her to play it.
The clairvoyant had said none of the things my friend claimed. Not a single one. My friend’s imagination had done all the work.
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You could try and not be owned by @dickbong69
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happiestplacehq · 17 days ago
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OZ “OOGIE” BORROR is fifty-two years old. He is the owner of Snake Eyes Casino. He is the incarnation of Oogie Boogie from the Disney film The Nightmare Before Christmas.
+ Confident, Inventive, Charismatic - Calculating, Untrustworthy, Sly
ABOUT OZ
Despite being born and raised in Redwood Hollow, not much is known about Oz, and one might find themself more fortunate to keep it that way. A cunning kid, Oz was an enigma of a child. He had invented ways to cheat on tests that the teachers had never seen before, despite him actually knowing the material. He simply wanted to see if he could. Such actions would have gotten him expelled, but Oz had a way with words better than any politician. The same teachers he scammed he would make laugh, the same students he grifted still wanted to be him, and a bout of shoplifting landed him his first job. Ultimately his charm won him a casino. For thirty two years the casino has been Oz’s pride and joy. Its walls are his kingdom. He has enjoyed getting to know the clientele over the years, not for friendship, but for information. Oz keeps his eyes open and ears always listening around town for everything, aided by those loyal to him. An ever haunting fly on the wall, Oz has a gift for collecting blackmail. That, on top of the debt his customers could pile up, often leads people to participate in his rumored “wheel of fun”, in which a spin of a roulette wheel decides the fate of your debt. If you’re extra lucky, he simply wipes it all away. If you’re somewhat lucky, then he offers a loan with interest. For the unlucky, perhaps he is in need of certain secret information, or an item stolen. Inexplicably, most people find themselves facing that last option. After all, the house always wins.
  ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
Oz is pansexual
Oz uses he/him pronouns.
CONNECTIONS
Jack King - Long standing enemies; Oz suspects Jack is onto him and his schemes, and does his best to derail his investigating. Lock, Shock and Barrel - His adopted children, though he uses them more as lackeys than anything else. Sally Finkelstein - Doesn’t appreciate that Sally talks back to him, but he knows he can use Sally as leverage against Jack if it ever comes to it.
Oz is currently unavailable. His faceclaim is Jeffrey Dean Morgan.
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unhingedwomandiaries · 20 days ago
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The potential next vice president of the United States is some dude I went to Yale with. Now, I'm not saying Yale is a breeding ground for future politicians - actually, you know what? That's exactly what I'm saying. But this guy? He's like if every 80s movie villain decided to have a baby, and that baby grew up to write a book about how hard his life was.
There was a time where I was working at this bookstore and I see this book. The author's name is familiar, like that song you think you've heard before but can't quite place. Turns out, it's by this guy from Yale. The same guy who wore watches that cost more than my first car and carried a bag that probably had its own trust fund.
So I read it. Because of course I do. It's like watching a car crash, except the car is made of white privilege and the crash is happening in slow motion over 300 pages. He's writing about Appalachia like he's David Attenborough observing a new species. "And here we see the poor person, in their natural habitat, talking on a cell phone. Fascinating."
There's this part where he talks about working in a grocery store, and he's just seething with contempt for the customers. It's like he thinks poor people should shop in sackcloth and ashes, flagellating themselves for daring to buy a steak. I mean, what's next? Should we set up a means test for the produce section?
And then there's this whole bit about Christmas presents. Apparently, poor people buy their kids toys, while rich people give "useful gifts." Which begs the question: What the hell kind of Christmas did this guy have? Was he unwrapping mutual funds and property deeds?
The wildest part is, this guy is from suburban Cincinnati. He's about as Appalachian as I am Martian. But he's positioned himself as the voice of a region he understands about as well as I understand quantum physics after watching "Interstellar."
So now this dude might be a heartbeat away from the presidency. It's like we're living in a reality TV show, but instead of getting voted off the island, the losers get to make policy decisions.
I can't help but think about how we got here. Is this what de Tocqueville meant by American exceptionalism? Did he foresee a future where our potential leaders would be guys who think growing up with a spare house is a hardship?
In the end, it's all a bit like one of those Magic Eye pictures. You stare at it long enough, and instead of seeing a sailboat or whatever, you just see the absurdity of our political system in high definition. And maybe that's the point. Or maybe I've just been staring at this too long and need to go outside.
Either way, I hope he doesn't get elected. But in a world where reality TV stars can become president, I'm not holding my breath. Welcome to America, where the American Dream is alive and well - as long as you're dreaming about writing revisionist memoirs and running for high office.
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rembrandt-almonia · 1 month ago
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Welcome to the 3rd part of our Cagayan de Oro business interview series!
In this post, we’ll be sharing insider views and insights from local entrepreneurs, giving you a closer look at the business scene in Cagayan de Oro City.
Better Components
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The manager said their company opened in 2017, the same year as SM. Their main products are high-quality, unique musical instruments, which make their business stand out. Their regular customers include barangays, private clients like theater groups, and everyday buyers. To keep customers loyal, they offer great service and use marketing strategies like promotions and sales. They also focus on treating customers well, encouraging them to recommend the business to others.
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They measure their success by tracking quotas, sales, and the effectiveness of their marketing efforts. They use systems like inventory and database management that are linked to their finances. Employees are trained to handle different customer situations and be good workers. The leadership listens to employees to create a better work environment. When dealing with customer feedback, they respond calmly and kindly, believing the customer is always right. They take pride in hitting their monthly quotas and seeing their sales increase, especially during the "ber" months.
Deoglow
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The manager said their branch opened in 2019 and mainly focuses on beauty products and services. They believe their business stands out because they offer high-quality products and great service, with customers being satisfied. Their main competitors are beauty stations, and they often serve local politicians like mayors from Villanueva. They build trust with their customers by listening to their needs and making them feel comfortable.
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They handle their transactions manually without using any apps or systems. They deal with customer feedback and issues calmly, aiming to be professional in their work. Their business strategy involves posting online to attract customers, with a focus on meeting customer needs by providing good service. She also mentioned that having a good image is key to attracting more customers.
Far East Medical
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The branch, which opened on March 23, 2017, mainly sells products like wheelchairs, electric wheelchairs, scooters, and other medical equipment. Their main customers are elderly people and some with disabilities. The business stands out by offering lifetime services and free labor, which has helped build strong customer loyalty. As a result, their sales increase, especially during the "ber" months (September to December). Their main goal is to meet their sales targets each month.
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Their marketing strategy involves promoting their business and services on social media. They use an app called StoreHub for daily transactions. One of their biggest challenges is running out of stock on products that customers are looking for. The manager mentioned that patience is key in this kind of business since you won't always have customers all the time.
Hannah's Cake Decors and Party Needs
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Their branch opened in 2021, focusing mainly on party decorations like balloons and birthday candles. They also offer cake decorations for events like birthdays and weddings. The branch manager believes their products are unique and high quality, making them better than similar stores. Their main customers are children, party organizers, and decorators.
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We noticed that they also sell toys for children, which make great gifts. The manager mentioned that sales increase a lot during the "ber" months due to higher demand for party supplies. Their main goal is to meet their sales target every month.
Father and Son's Music
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The manager mentioned that their business has been running for almost 7 years, with the branch in SM being open for around 2 years. They mainly teach music, including vocals and instruments, and their main customers are children and people with mental health challenges. They believe music has the power to heal, which is why they love their job – it allows them to help others through music.
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The manager believes in personal growth for both students and teachers, as they can learn from each other. They emphasize that music can be profitable and often highlight their musicians. They want to convey the message that music can do more than just entertain; it can resonate with people. Many customers or students have stories they struggle to express, so they are motivated to teach music to inspire others and help them improve their lives.
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