#Fundamental finance help

[unopenablebox]

important part of my relationship is that my girlfriend isn't subscribed to money stuff, so when we walk to work together i can just describe really good money stuff bits to them

[2happyherder]

[onepaisamore]

Personal Finance Fundamentals - Understanding your "Income"

A key to having a prosperous financial life stems from understanding one’s income. Welcome to another article on Personal Finance Fundamentals where we introspect fundamental principles to enable you develop an independent mindset to make rational choices regarding your personal finance. Today we aim to highlight the role of “Income” in the personal finance journey, and how one can avoid major…

[shewrites444]

pretty [ art donaldson x babysitter/age gap! reader smut ]

[ Hiii me popping up on here for the first time in forever lmao. I've been on a Challengers kick lately, let me know if I should write more on Art perhaps. :D ]

WC - 3.5k (unedited story, so apologies for any errors)

[ Summary - The reader and Art have been having an affair for the past few months after she became the Donaldsons' occasional babysitter. A lot of porn with a slight plot. ]

[ Warnings - Age gap (reader is college-aged, art is in his like mid-thirties), cursing, cheating/affair, oral (m&f receiving), dirty talk, tiny breeding kink mention, unprotected sex ]

-

It's not like it mattered to Tashi, well, anymore, what her husband did in his free time. A year or so ago, when Art found out about Tashi and Patrick's on-going affair at their challenger, he felt crushed, defeated, sickened, all emotions jumbled into one component, knowing what his wife was doing behind closed doors since they were teenagers. No amount of "I love you's" could make her drawn closer to him, no amount of care, compassion.. nothing. I mean, it would only make sense that an affair that lasted over ten years, especially with his former best friend and teammate, would fundamentally fuck up their marriage.

Tashi tried to fix it, she really did, by cutting off all connections to Patrick, promising Art she'd be better for not only him, but their daughter, Lily, and the careers and finances they shared together. She knew all the logic behind an affair was unjustifiable, and it made sense to fix a marriage with someone who genuinely cared for her and the family, careers, and finances they created together.

Art stopped playing tennis that year, and like they had promised each other months before, decided to work on the foundation full time, and with newer responsibilities, came the need for a sitter that wasn't only one of their parents when Art had a game or two.

That's where you came into the picture.

You were an undergraduate student at NYU, about to graduate in the spring with a heavy need for any sort of finances to help you afford your rent the rest of the semester. Knowing that your niece was in class with Art and Tashi Donaldson's daughter, that set up a fairly easy connection to a potential babysitting gig. They were millionaires, hell, maybe even billionaires at this point, so you'd be bound to get a pretty solid paycheck.

You were in luck. They needed an occasional sitter on the weekends, and a handful of nights during the week, and given that they both knew your sister, you were already trusted. Easy money.

You got along with Lily pretty well, too. Not to mention the Donaldsons were kind to you as well, and the amount of money they gave you for watching their one daughter, who was pretty self-sufficient other than needing to have a bedtime story or two read to her each night, was fucking ridiculous. Not like you were rolling in dough, but they surely overpaid you. Not like that was a problem for either parties, though.

Overtime, you talked more to Art when Tashi was starting to have more meetings, interviews, and other miscellaneous tasks that required her attention as they expanded connections to the foundation. At first, it was a bit awkward, given that when babysitting, usually the dad was a bit more absent, or quiet, but he warmed up to you after a few nights. He'd ask you about how Lily was, even ask you about school, or what you wanted to do after graduation, pay you, and that was really it. It was simple, really, until it wasn't.

And here you were, months later, standing at the small kitchen island in your apartment, which was, frankly, a bit inhumane in size for an inhabitant, but it's New York City, and it's what you could afford, even on the Donaldson's payroll. You had a small salad bowl in front of you, sliding the grape tomatoes off the cutting board in your hand into the mixture, as no other than Art Donaldson stood next to you, the tongs in his hand as you handed him the bowl.

Playing house with a married 35-year-old man wasn't on your list of things to do this year, but it's not like you were complaining.

From an outside perspective, it felt wrong, but to you, it felt just right. It was cliche, and well, bad, being apart of an affair for a multi-millionaire last name, and a man that was married, with a whole family, but you tried not to think about it.

Did you love him? You had never been in love, so you didn't really know, but probably not, at least not yet. Did he love you? You didn't think so, but he definitely favored you more than his own wife, and you weren't even thinking that because of the situation, you genuinely knew he preferred you.

"You want me to put a show on?" Art asked softly, glancing down at you as you walked over to the kitchen, rinsing off the cutting board. His eyes averted to your ass, glancing at the sweat shorts that hugged your figure, before looking up to meet your eyes when you turned around.

You knew he checked you out, it's not like that came to a surprise. Art was sweet, really, but it's not like he wasn't a sexual man because he was older. If anything, that made his sex drive higher. You shrugged, sliding past him to open the fridge and grab the salad dressing. "Eh, I'm good with whatever."

You can hear him set the bowl down, and his free hand travel to the side of your waist, over the thick cotton of your sweatshirt, as you grin to yourself, shaking your head while you set the dressing on the counter. "Shouldn't we eat first?"

"Just missed you today." Art muttered, lightly turning you around to face him before giving your forehead a light peck. "Haven't seen you all week, pretty."

Your cheeks redden, and the familiar pit in your stomach follows directly after. Fuck. Art was older than you, yes, but an emotional man at the fact of it, but he was so fucking needy. He'd come see you, not even two or three days between, and act like it had been two months without contact. He'd lay his head on your chest, play with your fingers, tell you how much he missed you, all because you hadn't seen him in not even a week. From the outside, that probably looked pathetic, a married man, who had a wife and child at home, coming to a college-aged girl's apartment, not even the size of his bedroom, cuddling her like he was a teenager. It was fucking toxic, actually, but again, you tried not to think about that part of it.

"Well, why don't we eat, and then you can show me that you missed me later, hm? That okay?" You step back slightly to look up to him, reaching forward to cup his rose-tinted, pale cheeks. You lean up to kiss him, pulling away to slide out of his embrace, your eyes following the meal you had just made together.

Art was pouting, basically, as he frowned at the corner of his mouth, walking towards the other side of you and gently taking the tongs out of your hand. "I'd rather show you now. You can't tell me you don't want me to fuck you right here, sweetheart."

"Art." You purse your lips together, shooting him a glare. You could pretend to be annoyed all you want, but he knew you weren't aggravated with him. It's not like you didn't enjoy him fucking the shit out of you on your kitchen counter, or anywhere, matter of fact. He'd fuck you right in your car when he walked you out of his house after babysitting, he didn't give a fuck. He liked you a lot, way more than he should, even in the given scenario of an affair.

"What?" He tilted his head, looking down at you with that stupid cheeky-ass grin he'd always give you when he knew you were fibbing. You wanted him, obviously. Sometimes, he didn't know why you even pretended to act like you didn't want it right then and there.

Art really wasn't even the most dominating guy, but if that's what you wanted, he'd put on a fucking show. He'd bend you over and fuck the shit out of you if that's what you wanted him to do. He'd make it hurt, if that's what you wanted him to do. But again, he liked you, so he'd never actually hurt you.

You glance down between you, the obviously erection in his sweatpants pointing right at you. You look back up to him, that look of pure want on his face so obvious. You glance to your bedroom. You don't have to speak, he already knows, and he listens so fucking easily.

The chemistry between the two of you was a fucking pain sometimes. You'd be so wet when he'd do as much as touch your back, it would piss you off sometimes, and you would think that after fucking him for a few months now, that feeling of freshness would go away, but it didn't.

You'd do more than just fuck, too. If he wasn't such a public figure, he'd take you out on real date, probably try to pursue you in some way if he wasn't married, and just a more normal-status guy, but that wasn't the case. He would make efforts though, buy you flowers sometimes when he'd come over, order the two of you something to eat, whether it was Chinese takeout or a 5-star review restaurant steak, he didn't care. He just wanted to please you, the best he could. All the time.

Right now, his definition of pleasing you was gesturing for you to lay down on your twin-sized bed, and plant his face between your legs, eating your pussy until you were begging him to fuck you with something other than his tongue.

You wiggled yourself out of your shorts and underwear in one, Art assisting you by pulling them off your ankles and onto the wooden floor. He spread your knees apart, kneeling on the hard ground before his hot breath was planting kisses between your thighs, his eyes never leaving yours.

You gulp, averting your attention to his mouth. You watch him get closer, and you can only gasp when he latches onto your clit. You feel him move his hand onto your thighs, wrapping around them from the back and holding your sides, his pale, calloused hands digging into your skin. It didn't hurt though, not at all.

"Oh my god." Leaves your mouth without a single thought. Art knew exactly how to please you. "Art, you're gonna make me cum before you even fuck me."

He looked up to you, lips still pressed against your pussy, his eyes locked with yours for a moment, before he focused his attention to your body again. He didn't care. Guess that was the point.

You shake your head in disbelief, your back naturally arching as he pressed his tongue harder against you. God, you couldn't even imagine what it was going to be like when his cock was inside you, even though you'd slept together plenty of times before.

His tongue kept pace on your clit, as he moved one of his hands off your thigh and closer to your pussy, gently pushing his middle finger through your folds. Fucking hell, as if he couldn't make you more turned on.

"Art." His name rolled off your tongue. "You're gonna make me cum. I wanna finish with you."

He listened to you, and he obliged, despite how much he wanted you to cum now. Art slowly pulled his finger out of you, and his mouth away from you. He leaned up, motioning himself on top of you, before you moved your hands to lightly push him off.

"What's wrong?" He asked, almost immediately, his eyes dropping, almost disappointed. You knew his cock was aching to be inside you.

You lean up, your hands traveling to rest against the sides of his broad shoulders. "Here. Lay down."

Art wasn't going to fight that. He eagerly nodded at your request, your positions switching in seconds as he laid down on your bed. Your hands began to pull at the waistband on his sweats, and his underwear, sliding them off his body in one.

You weren't one for sucking cock, but with Art, you fucking adored it. You liked to watch him fall apart at just your mouth, knowing that he'd crumble once he fucked your pussy. You liked edging him to the point he was whining, begging, pleading to fuck you, or you to fuck him. Just depended on the day.

"You gonna suck my cock, pretty girl?" Art asked you, softly, a half-smile on his pink lips as he moved one of his hands to cup your cheek, his elbow propping his body up slightly. "Gonna let me fuck your mouth?"

"Mhm." You murmur, nodding as you move down to spit on his cock, wetting the tip before you peck a few kisses against his tip, glancing up at him as you laid on your stomach towards the end of your bed, front of your body aligned with his middle. "Gonna let you fuck my throat, Art."

Art's grin followed the rest of his lips, his cheeks dark red as his mouth hung open. He watched you lean down, his cock enveloped by your mouth. You had pretty, plump lips. Pretty and full lashes you'd bat when he fucked your throat. He could watch you suck him off all day. He could just be with you all day.

"You're so beautiful, [Y/N]. My pretty girl." He praised you, his hand still glued to your cheek, bits of spit against his thumb as you bobbed your head, his cock hard and full in your mouth. "Gonna let me fill your mouth up, hm? Or should I fill your pussy instead? What do you want, baby?"

It's not like you could answer the question. You keep sucking him off, looking up to his blue eyes, before you force him down your throat, muffling any sort of gag that your body desperately wanted to let out. You wanted him to know you could take his cock.

"God." He moaned, his eyes never leaving yours. He rubbed your cheek. "Your mouth feel so good, but I really wanna fuck you. Please, baby. I wanna cum in you. That pretty pussy, please."

It didn't take you much convincing to slide his cock out of your mouth and lay down on your bed. It made you feel embarrassed, desperate even, with how eager you were to have him stuff his cock inside you. Not like he judged you for that at all, just internal thoughts you'd have occasionally.

He sat up, his cock hard and straight, as his knees dug into the mattress. He took his shirt off in one pull, tossing it into the pile of your combined clothes before he moved you more towards the middle of the bed. He aimed his cock at your pussy, your legs spread wide for him, before he leaned forward, slowly pushing himself inside you, the both of you moaning at the raw feeling.

Art could be rough if you wanted him to, and you'd do the same for him, but typically, he savored the moment he entered you each and every time. He'd told you several times, that you were no where near in comparison to any woman he'd been with. No competition. You were it. In every way. Part of him wished he had met you earlier, maybe at Stanford or even grade-school. God, he would've worshipped you back then, all the way to now, and the future. You checked off all his boxes, physically, emotionally, sexually, everything. In a different narrative, he would've married you and had a life with you. Fuck tennis. Fuck everything. He'd rather whatever life he could've had with you.

"You feel so good, pretty. You always do." Art leaned down to press a hard kiss against your lips. He pecked your cheek, his lips moving to your ear. "I'm gonna fill that pussy. Gonna make you mine, baby, my sweet girl.. You want that? You like that?"

You nod, your mouth open as you moan, rather loudly as he picked his pace up the more he talked to you. "Y-Yes, baby, fuck yes, fill me up. You're so fucking sexy.. You fuck me so good, Art."

Art groaned at your response, moving his head back to align above yours, his overgrown curls bouncing with his movements, the bed squeaking underneath you. He'd let his hair grow out a bit more lately since you complemented it awhile back.

"Gonna fill this pussy, pretty girl. Gonna give you my cum." He muttered, almost to himself, as he looked between your bodies at what he could see, watching himself fill your hole. It was obvious you were fucking a former pro-athlete. He could fuck you for hours if he wanted to with the amount of stamina he had, regardless of his age. It was fucking hot, how much, and how long, he could fuck you.

You could feel your orgasm increasing the more he penetrated you, the more he pulled his cock nearly out of you and forcing it back inside you, sending jolts through your body. You were already overstimulated enough from just slower sex, him fucking you like a bunny was almost too much for you to take. Not like that was a bad thing though.

"Come on." You talk to him, watching between the two of you, too. "Make me cum, baby. I wanna finish with you, Art. Please, baby. Fuck me so good."

He nods, his body rocking against yours, your legs moving up to wrap around his hips, keeping him closer, and more inside you. You wanted him to fill all of you, not missing a drop of his cum. You wanted him to make you ache when you woke up tomorrow morning.

"Fuck." He groaned, moaning into your mouth as he kissed you, his tongue sliding against yours as he came inside you.

You felt your body jolt, finishing at the same time, as he filled your pussy up. It felt so good to be on the same level, the same energy, as him. So fucking good.

He gave it a few seconds before he pulled out of you, sitting back up, making sure he fucked your right. He rolled to the side before he pulled you closer to him, his hand running through your frizzy hair, kissing the side of your forehead.

You smirked, looking up to him, a small laugh leaving your lips. "What? You can't be shocked, we've had sex so many times I can't even count it at this point."

"I'm not shocked." Art laughed, playing with your hair as he looked up to the ceiling. "It just feels so different with you. You know how much I like you, [Y/N]. Just feels good is all."

"Hm." You watch him look up. You wanted to bring something else up, more emotional topics, but, as much as you knew he did fancy you, you didn't want to fuck up the moment. "Feels good to me, too." Is all you say in return.

Art looks down at you after a moment. "Yeah?" He grins, moving closer to you as he kisses your lips. "Good."

"Yeah." You return his kiss, slightly leaning up as you look to the door. "You wanna eat now? Got your energy out?"

Art shrugs, sitting up. He pecks your bare shoulder. "Maybe not. Maybe can let the rest of it out later."

"God, you're hornier than me." You scoff, pushing him off with a red face, laughing to yourself at the man before you. "Let's eat. I'm starving."

"Whatever you say." He smirks, clearly teasing you, before stepping out of the bed, grabbing his clothes and tossing yours to you.

And that was what was odd about you and Art. It was casual, but not in a hookup sense. Casual in the way that you could sit down and eat with him, make a meal with him, watch shows and movies together, like a normal couple. It drove you insane sometimes. He felt the same way, but how the hell could he tell you that, when he could never actually be with you? He'd have to mask it some type of way, and usually that was through sex. Not like he didn't enjoy it solely for sexual reasons, because, god, he enjoyed fucking you, but he also enjoyed you.

He watched you finish your plate as you sat on the sofa together. You were gorgeous, the perfect picture of the woman he'd want to be with for more than just this. But that was something you'd have to figure out later.

[the-virgoperspective]

Part 2

Venus is one of the most important planets to understand in a composite chart, as most people (should) hold love within their bonds. Venus in the composite chart represents love, attraction, and the ability to form relationships. This placement can indicate how much love there is in a bond, how strong this love can be, and how strongly it can carry them through life. The position in the composite chart can tell how love will be expressed through the bond and what part of the native’s environment is most desired to be brought to the experience. It is not necessary to have a “good” Venus, as I personally don’t believe there are any bad positions, but a “good” Venus can make the relationship worth having.

I will be using the writings of Robert Hand from his novel “Planets in Composite: Analyzing Human Relations” to describe the meaning and significance of Venus in each composite house. Please always keep in mind that this is only one vital step to reading an entire composite chart and should not be seriously considered without viewing everything as a whole. This is just one piece. Enjoy!

7H Composite Venus

Composite Venus in the seventh house is a good indication this is a personal relationship based to a considerable extent on affection. There may be other reasons for this relationship, but love is certainly one of the most important. This position of Venus does not guarantee a successful relationship, but it does help. After the Sun and Moon positions, this is the one of the most important elements in the chart of a love relationship.

You will have a strong sense of shared emotion and feeling and a great need to share your experiences. You will think of yourselves as a unit, a couple, rather than as two single individuals. You will want to be together and do things together as much as possible.

The only danger that you should watch for with this position is that you may tend to be too accommodating; that is, you will try to agree with each other even when one of you has a legitimate grievance. Instead of expressing it, you will remain quiet for the sake of preserving the peace and harmony of the relationship. The problem is, if you do this often, eventually the friendly atmosphere wears thin, and all kinds of resentments boil out, with no way to control them. Do not let your desire for peace and harmony prevent you from confronting important issues. Speak your mind-it can’t seriously disturb a good relationship.

8H Composite Venus

With composite Venus in the eighth house, the love and affection between you will have an intensity that is often lacking in the other houses. This position does not guarantee that you will have a love relationship, however; it simply indicates emotional intensity concerning love.

Traditionally the eighth house is the house of death, although that does not always literally mean physical death. The eighth house has much to do with creation of something new as with the destruction of something old. So Venus in the eighth house represents the mingling of love and death, or more accurately, love and regeneration.

In a love relationship, the expression of love will be quite intense. With a powerful quality that will transform both of you in some fundamental way. You will experience love as a regenerative experience that makes you over into a new person. A sexual relationship particularly will have this intensity. Your love will not be light and gay but something very serious that involves both of you at all levels of the mind, body, and soul.

On quite a different level, the eighth house can also refer to joint finances and property. Venus promises material prosperity within this relationship. It is often said that Venus rules money, and although some people have questioned that, Venus does produce an ability to attract money, especially in the second and eighth houses. This is an especially good placement if the two of you ever require financial help from others.

9H Composite Venus

With composite Venus in the ninth house, love and affection tend to be intellectual issues that are discussed and pondered over rather than felt. The ninth house of the composite chart represents the overall life-view shared by the two of you-your collective attitudes and the nature of your intellectual exchange. Consequently there is a danger that you may over-intellectualize your feelings in this relationship. Love is a more distant experience rather than something felt and shared immediately.

However, in compensation, you both examine the nature of your feelings and are more capable than most people of understanding what you mean to each other. You are somewhat less likely to behave in an unconscious and inappropriate manner toward each other. You can communicate at a very high level concerning your relationship.

Love may become a philosophical ideal in this relationship, much as it was in the medieval code of chivalry. You tend to think in intellectual terms and to devote considerable attention to bringing about your ideals.

The experience of this relationship may also make both of you see more clearly and become more aware of the world around you. Venus in the ninth house can signify love as an agent of consciousness expansion. One or both of you will be exposed to a broader range of experience because of this relationship.

10H Composite Venus

The tenth house of the composite chart is an angular house, and therefore the effect of Venus is emphasized. Your experience of love within this relationship will very strongly affect the lives of both of you. The tenth house rules the purposes for which the relationship exists, the nature of its individuality, and its role in the larger society. On the psychological level, this relationship will aid both of you in discovering what you want to do with your lives. Loving each other should reinforce you and give you greater confidence in yourselves.

Partly because of this mutual reinforcement, you are likely to be very openly affectionate in the company of other people. They will regard you as a loving couple, or if you are friends, as having a very close friendship. This is a relationship that stands openly before the world and does not hide from the view of others.

At the same time, this relationship will teach you about the nature of love and how you relate to others on an intimate personal level. The only way you can learn what living with another person means is by doing so. That is one of the purposes of this relationship.

On a very different plane, the tenth-house Venus may also mean that you have come together for some purpose connected with the arts, entertainment, or luxuries. This may be either amateur or professional.

11H Composite Venus

Composite Venus in the eleventh house is one of the best placements for an intimate personal relationship. The eleventh is the house of friendship, and at the very least, Venus here will help to make you friends. However, the emotional depth of this relationship is not limited to friendship. This position can also be a sign of a deep love affair. In some ways it is better than a fifth-house Venus, because along with “being in love” you also love each other. That is, you have a strong abiding affection for each other along with that well-known, often short-lived feeling of intoxication.

The eleventh house is also the house of hopes and wishes, and Venus here is a good indication that the two of you have harmonious ideals. Because you both are seeking the same things, being together will help you find them. It can also mean that you idealize either the feeling of love or your attitudes about feelings. But if both of you are reasonably realistic about yourselves, you will experience this relationship as something beautiful and ideal, because the experience is based on truth.

The eleventh-house composite Venus is one of the best signs for a balanced and harmonious relationship of any kind.

12H Composite Venus

Composite Venus is one of the least difficult planets to have in the twelfth house. There are problems associated with it, but there are strong points as well.

This placement signifies that while you may have strong feelings or affection for each other, you may not be demonstrative about them. Other people may not even be aware of how you feel about each other. The twelfth-house Venus can be a sign of a secret relationship.

This is also the house of your own unconscious, of those areas of your lives and experience that you have repressed from your conscious mind. With Venus in the twelfth, your relationship may be influenced to a considerable degree by unconscious factors in both of you. It may be difficult to understand the dynamics of this relationship, and you may do things for no apparent reason. This can be either good or bad, of course, depending on what you do. In any case, you should try to understand what lies behind your relationship, if only to gain greater control over yourselves.

On the clearly positive side, this placement can help both of you overcome your ego-drives within the relationship. It enables you to give way to the other when that is desirable. You are able to think of yourselves as a unit and to subordinate your personal interest to your interests as a couple. This ability can eliminate many problems that will arise.

Find part 1 here!

ᡣ𐭩 star divider by @grungenglam ᡣ𐭩

[yusuke-of-valla]

The thing about conflicting headcanons re: Yusuke's financial situation post Madarame (ie is he actually poor, does he make money but spends it all on art because he has poor impulse control, is Kosei a money laundering scheme etc.) is that like Yusuke's financial situation is written to facilitate a running gag so it's not consistent.

The school gives him an allowance, but he's also being charged for utilities despite being on a scholarship and so showers in the cold and works in the dark and worries about the electricity bill.

We know he bought those lobsters that one time but realistically how much of his money is being spent on supplies for class vs non-necessities he feels inspired by? Because canvases are expensive and if there's a certain size expectation/requirement you can't save by getting a smaller canvas. So when someone says "he just spends all his money on art" what are we really talking about?

By Strikers he's very excited to have money from an art contest to spend on his friends but was that true during the course of the base game when he was in his slump? Because I have a hard time believing he was even entering competitions

The details don't really make sense because most of these details come from jokes that are never elaborated on into cohesive worldbuilding.

And even if you want to say the issue is just he's got bad spending habits, that's still a situation that would require intervention by an adult probably because uh, no shit?

Yeah of COURSE Yusuke is completely unprepared to live on his own and is incidentally starving himself, he was raised by a dude who convinced him that the only purpose he served was helping his Sensei. In what way would it have benefitted Madarame to prepare Yusuke in any way to live on his own or know how to balance finances, he actively wanted Yusuke reliant on him, because that's how abuse works.

I'm pretty sure Yusuke has never even conceptualized living on his own, and that's not even adding in the detail of Nakanohara being concerned he'd commit suicide if he stayed with Madarame. NO SHIT HE'D BE BAD AT IT? People don't just emerge from the womb capable of money management

In that situation is the proper response really "oh that Yusuke, he just doesn't understand money, it's not a big deal"?

And like regardless, he IS still starving. Like the extent to which you think it's self inflicted aside, he's a 16 year old who will constantly talk about skipping meals and eating sprouts from the park and that sucks. Someone should maybe like talk to him about the root cause of that!

TL;DR: Yusuke's financial situation doesn't make sense because it's not supposed to, so it kind of doesn't matter to me how people headcanon the nature of it, and I fundamentally think it's incorrect to say one option of "poor vs has bad impulse spending habits" is more correct than the other because arguably they both raise the question of "holy shit why is no one stepping in here" if you think about it all the way through

PS. Also I wrote this whole thing because I saw a tweet that was like "one big misconception i see about yusukes character and how he’s treated is people saying “Why doesn’t Joker/Haru give him money when he’s poor?” and the real fact is that he’s not poor (post madarame). He’s just EXTREMELY irresponsible with his spending and spends it all on art," and I was like "idk if that's a misconception really I think a case can be made for both because it doesn't make sense" and then AFTER I wrote it I remebered that I have repository of every Yusuke scene uploaded into my brain and was like "wait if you call Yusuke poor in PQ2 during the Akihiko/Shinjiro/Yusuke quest he'll agree" and then there's also the scene in Tactica where Marie calls him dirt poor and he doesn't disagree with the poor part, just that she insulted dirt

So like my point still stands but I'd ESPECIALLY not call it a misconception to say he's poor when canon material supports it.

[djbunnie]

reddit inspired AU DamiRae

Rachel (19) was in a relationship with her high school sweetheart, Garfield (19). They had been dating since their sophomore year, a total of five years. After graduating high school, they moved to the big city, shared an apartment, and Rachel began pursuing a degree in Finance. Fortunately, she had a scholarship, and her parents covered her tuition, but she still needed a job to cover rent, utilities, and other expenses.

Rachel paid for everything without complaint, willing to make that sacrifice for her boyfriend.Garfield, he on the other hand, was pursuing his dream of becoming a DJ and influencer. While he did some work, it consisted mainly of small jobs like dj school dances and other small events. 

Things seemed normal until Garfield decided to have a serious talk with Rachel. During their conversation, he dropped a bombshell on her.

Garfield wanted them to have an open relationship, meaning they would both be free to date other people while still being together.

The idea completely shocked Rachel. From the beginning of their relationship, Rachel had been the "loser" while Garfield was the "popular" and the "it Boy." Like any other kid in school, she had longed to be accepted and have some like Garfield by her side. Imagine her luck when she experienced a growth spurt over the summer and developed a curvaceous figure. By her second year of high school, she had transformed from "loser" to "pretty girl." Rachel underwent an incredible glow up but remained quiet and timid. Garfield noticed her newfound popularity and began dating her.

Rachel was overjoyed.

She believed they were exclusive: just the two of them, committed only to each other. That was her understanding and expectation, especially since they had moved to the big city and were living together.

When he suggested changing this fundamental aspect of their relationship, Rachel initially refused, but eventually Garfield pressured her into agreeing. 

Rachel tried to convince herself that this new arrangement was acceptable and normal, and that she was truly okay with it.

Of course, they established some ground rules:

They needed to text each other beforehand about the time and location of their dates to avoid scheduling conflicts.

They would not discuss other partners with each other.

They were not allowed to bring other partners to their apartment.

And so on.

For the first four months of this polyamorous arrangement, Rachel was unhappy. It hurt to see Garfield seeing other women, as he had dates almost every day. Feeling neglected and alone, she couldn't complain because she had agreed to the terms and didn't want to appear controlling.

After four months, she decided to go out. She went to a bar and met Damian (19). They hit it off immediately, and she told him about her open relationship with her boyfriend, asking if he was comfortable with it. Damian agreed, explaining that he had recently ended a bad long-term relationship and wanted to enjoy his youth.

After a couple of dates, Rachel and  Damian really hit it off. They were constantly calling and texting each other. Whenever Rachel was with her friends, she couldn't help but talk about Damian. Every time she said Damian's name, she smiled. Damian was always on her mind, and she looked forward to their dates.

There were times when she completely forgot about Garfield.

Rachel: "Great news! Damian is ahead of his classes. He called me last night, excited because he's on track to graduate a year early!"

Donna: "That's awesome, Rae! Any plans to celebrate?"

Rachel: "Yeah! you won't believe my luck. I was able to get a reservation at that nice Italian restaurant. Someone had to cancel their reservation last minute, and it was available the day I called."

Donna: "Nice!"

Donna: takes a sip of beer "By the way, how's Garfield doing?"

Rachel: "Who? Oh! Yeah, um... he's doing okay, I guess."

At this point, Garfield was rarely home because he was constantly out with other women. Their relationship had grown increasingly distant, to the point where Rachel saw him as nothing more than a roommate—and a freeloader since he wasn't contributing financially.

Rachel stopped planning dates and buying Garfield gifts. she ceased calling and texting him, and he didn't notice because he was preoccupied with his other relationships.

Damian and Rachel were at his place, both slightly intoxicated. Sexual tension filled the air as they made out on the couch. The atmosphere heated up, and Damian began kissing her neck. 

Rachel moaned as she grind against his crotch.

Damian: feeling cocky “bet your boyfriend doesn't make you feel this good”

Rachel: "Who?"

Damian pulled away, halting their intimacy.

Damian: "Your boyfriend...Garfield? Did you forget about him?"

Rachel: "Oh! Yeah, um... I'm sorry..."

Damian: "Rachel, is everything okay?"

Rachel wasn't sure if it was the alcohol or her trust in Damian that made her so vulnerable. she confessed everything to him: how Garfield had pressured her into an open relationship and how lonely and neglected she felt. At that moment, Rachel realized she no longer had romantic feelings for Garfield. And without intending to, she confessed her feelings for Damian.

Rachel: "Oh shit! I'm sor-"

Damian: "I love you too Beloved."

Both were shocked. Rachel was overjoyed to hear him say that. He leaned in to kiss her, but she stopped him.

Rachel: "Dami, wait!"

Rachel: "Don't get the wrong idea. I'm so happy we confirmed our feelings for each other, but I want to be in a monogamous relationship."

Damian: "Me too!"

Rachel: "Great! Before we take this further and make it official, I need to break up with Garfield first."

So no physical intimacy between Rachel and Damian... yet.

On the drive home, Rachel received a text from Garfield reminding her that he was leaving for a gig tomorrow and wouldn't be back for two weeks. Seeing this as an opportunity, Rachel decided to make her move. she acted normally until Garfield left the next morning. Rachel called her best friend, Donna, and other college friends to help her pack and move into Donna's place. After moving all her belongings, Rachel texted Garfield that they should break up, informed him that she was no longer on the lease, and sent him this month's rent money via Venmo. She told him not to contact her and blocked him on everything before starting a relationship with Damian.

When Garfield returned from the gig, he bombarded Rachel with texts, calls, voicemails, and other messages. He was distraught, begging her to reconsider and claiming that opening their relationship had been a huge mistake. He confessed that the women she had dated only wanted sex and never truly loved him. He realized that Rachal was the one who truly loved him and admitted he was foolish for letting her go. He pleaded for another chance, unaware of her relationship with Damian. (plus Rachel was paying for everything, he didn't have any money) 

The first few months were chaotic, with Garfield becoming increasingly unhinged. Fortunately, law enforcement wasn't involved, and eventually, Garfield gave up and moved on. (maybe Damian was the reason why and didn't tell Rachel about it lol) However, Garfield continued to try to contact Rachal for another chance every year, but she never responded.

Rachal graduated and began working for Wayne Enterprises Finance Department.  Damian became CEO and proposed to Rachel, she said yes. They started a beautiful life together, living in the Wayne Manor with 6 children. 🥰🥰🥰

[thestartarot]

North Node Aries / South Node Libra

My own observations, take what resonates.

18 y/o over due to sensitive topic nature, thank you.

Soul color: Red

Your destiny point: independence in all relationships and feeling accepted for who one truly is, a firm grasp on who you are, be meaningful, and have confidence to feel comfortable in your own skin.

How to overcome: stop worrying and letting your life get so defined by what people think of you or how someone decides to validate you. Find an actual sport to help with issues of insecurity brought on by competitiveness and learn when to walk away from confrontation.

Childhood: An Aries NN is always interesting in the dynamic of the home. A lot of repressed conflict here. Most likely, a lot of arguing in the home (between siblings, between parents, maybe everyone) and often times the fights were intense and the resolutions were passionate and heartfelt. This placement has an undeniable sense of feeling mistaken from all angles, feeling unusual. Because of this, the placement will go to great lengths to seek validation from family and friends. In addition to the validation needed at home and with friends, the media plays a big role in validating this placement and often what we are taught to be “standard” is actually unobtainable and sometimes impossible. There were probably a vast amount of different social groups and cliques growing up. This placement certainly didn’t want to lose out in popularity so may have been the most popular in school or may have been everyone to everyone, losing themselves in the process.

Also, there are moral issues here, embrace what is different and cool and genuine to you or stay in the crowd? This placement stays with the crowd, there’s more protection and the friends are a way to escape the confines of the home where it’s easy to not feel like enough with everything going on (sports, grades, finances etc.) This placement may have also had to mature early, maybe even having jobs at young ages.

Adulthood: This placement may still be in contact with same friends from high school or college because community are the social checks and balances Libra south node loves. Media is a big influence in this placement. A BIG shift from repressing what makes them feel uncomfortable or insecure in childhood to a lot of self help and self discovery in adulthood. This placement will learn to part ways with what no longer serves them, after a couple of mistakes learned the hard way, usually. Then, the Aries NN will go on to keep digging to discover themselves and where they may have gotten lost in childhood. This placement may put an emphasis on finding the one answer or the one thing that will make all of these uncomfortable feelings go away, but really it’s the Libra’s south node obsessions and perfectionism that is causing this placement so much heartache.

Libra, being an air sign, intelligence & debate are happy places for this placement. Loves to argue for their ideals, beliefs, and community. The placement feels validated in arguments by their own research and intellect and the people who support them. Conflict can grow too comfortable here.

Imposter syndrome could be strong here.

How to overcome: The nodes are axis points of fear, things we need to overcome to see the bigger picture. In tarot, these nodes are represented by The Fool & The Emperor or Empress. In particular to this placement, true healing comes from walking away from a fight, laughing at the ridiculous standards being imposed by media, choosing their own image and story, and having faith. This placement will actually have a lot of growth in the breakup of relationships and self determined individuals will use the trial by fire to keep moving in their interests and truth. This sign is fundamentally unique, a trailblazer, and a little quirky. This placement needs to believe in themself and get in touch with the fundamentals of who they are.

Also, Libra needs an outlet for all of that competition so go be the best at something (strong encouragement for competitive sport) and don’t worry what others think!! You got this!! You are enough and you were born with sound mind.

— Casper

[gavillain]

I was talking with @marciabrady the other night about ships and the aesthetics of our favorite couples, and it made me really want to do a break down of one of my obscure crossover OTPs:

Grimhilde/Cruella, a.k.a. EvilPuppies!

Because I feel like Grimhilde/Cruella, out of all my ships, looks the most like crack at first glance, but there is so much more to it than just sticking two random Disney Villains together.

So, first and foremost, I started shipping them because of Kingdom Keepers Book IV, Power Play:

Despite the fact that Frollo is on the cover of the book and was the heavily promoted new Overtaker before the release of the novel, the main villains of the novel are actually Grimhilde and Cruella. The premise is that after Maleficent and Chernabog were captured at the end of the previous book, the Disney Villains who are trying to take over the parks have had to take on new leadership to get Maleficent and Chernabog out of Imagineer-prison. Grimhilde is the next in the chain of command, so she's in charge and has Cruella De Vil as her companion who follows her everywhere. They are ALWAYS together in the book, and Cruella, naturally, has a very flirty and complimentary demeanor towards Grimhilde that the Queen naturally just adores. Their chemistry is great, and there is even one part where the main hero finds the two of them asleep together on an air mattress and a bundle of furs (it makes sense in context) and, well... yeah XD The novel really glued the two of them together in my head.

And that togetherness, as you can see above, blends over into the parks. Grimhilde and Cruella are the only two main Disney Villainesses who are out with some regularity as face characters in Disneyland. All of the villains in the Disney Parks have a familiarity with each other, and you can get similar gal pal dynamics with them and Maleficent (and Lady Tremaine) around Halloween time. However, because Grimhilde and Cruella are out together for so much of the year, they tend to carry the brunt of that sort of "evil besties" friendship, leading to cute photo op moments like this...

So Disney is already doing a lot of the leg work to make them come across as girlfriends and to give them chemistry and a ship dynamic. However, if that was all there was to it, I probably wouldn't love this ship as much as I do. I need that interesting and thought through layer of shipping, and thankfully, these two have it in spades.

So, despite being from different time periods and wildly different worlds, Grimhilde and Cruella are aristocrats through and through. Grimhilde is literally royalty, and Cruella an over-financed heiress to the remnants of England's aristocracy (and she's the head of a corporate fashion empire in the Glenn Close movies). The House of De Vil dates back to medieval times, and evidence of that extensive and wealthy history is littered all around Cruella's mansion.

Cruella is in essence, the remnants of an old world that no longer exists, one of royalty and station that Grimhilde herself was a part of, and though the times have changed, Cruella keeps that class and regality alive. In that way, I think it blends perfectly with her taking on a lover who is quite literally OF that time period, and it also helps tie Grimhilde in with the modern world, giving Grimhilde a sort of immortality and transcendence that I think she'd very much value with her desire to be eternally young and beautiful. And, along those same lines, they are both very strong examples of matriarchal authority and power with Cruella bemoaning the uselessness of men and the pitfalls of women losing themselves to marriage, whilst Grimhilde murdered her own husband in order to reign alone without a man over her. They fundamentally get the sort of twisted villainous feminism that they are peddling.

Next is the themes of beauty and glamor. These are two women who are fundamentally motivated by vanity - Cruella wants to design her original Dalmatian puppy coat and stun the art world with her ruthless originality whilst Grimhilde wants to kill her stepdaughter so that she can reign as the Fairest One of All. For them, beauty and aesthetics are absolute, and they share a willingness to buy their glamorous ambitions with the blood of the innocent. They would fundamentally GET each other in that regard. However, and this is important, they GET that same motivation for vanity, but they don't COMPETE with each other. Cruella is a pretty woman, but she's older and she's a chain smoker whose habits have caused her to become a bit emaciated. She's beautiful in her own way, but she's never going to rival Grimhilde as the Fairest One of All. Likewise, though Grimhilde has extravagant fashions and jewelry, she's not setting out to be at the forefront of clothing design and art. She would certainly WEAR outfits Cruella designed for her, but she wouldn't want to supplant Cruella either. They're going to make the world kneel before their beauty, but they're going to compliment each other rather than rival each other or have to set aside their vanities for each other.

Then one of the big important elements that makes this ship appeal to me so much is the motif of DUALITY. Cruella is noteworthy for her hair that is half-black and half-white. It's her signature style, she's well known for it, it ties in with the black and white dogs, and it ties in with how she has her likable and admirable public face but also her sinister and dark side that the rest of the world doesn't see. Grimhilde also has the duality motif. Hell, she has BLACK HAIR as the Queen and WHITE hair as the hag, and the whole black and white motif shows up in her potions ("Black of Night" and "To Whiten My Hair, a Scream of Fright"). Grimhilde literally has two faces and two forms. She is two villainesses in one, which is such a tasty match for the woman with infamously two-toned hair. And what I like about that too is that Cruella BLENDS with both the Queen and the Hag. With the queen, she has the aristocratic and blue blood regality and beauty that I mentioned before, but with the hag, she has the cackling maniacal bloodthirsty side that would have an absolute riot bringing death to innocents. It's so symbolic, and they're the only Disney villains who have that duality motif in that fashion.

And the fact that they have all of these interesting parallels and motifs while also being from two different worlds and two different time periods (medieval and modern) is a lot of fun purely from a crossover perspective but also as ANOTHER manifestation of their duality motif! And THAT is the type of tasty shipping fuel that I LIVE for!

So with Grimhilde and Cruella being of two different time periods, they also simultaneously coexist in one time period. Cruella in the original animated film may have been released in the 1960s, but her animator, Marc Davis, designed her to be a throwback to the old Hollywood glamor of the 1930s. Most specifically Tallulah Bankhead...

And Marlene Dietrich...

Cruella is pure Old Hollywood 1930s glamor trapped in a late 50s/early 60s modern domestic setting. And you know whose movie was made in the 1930s and has a very 1930s cultural aesthetic to it?

And Grimhilde herself is designed based on ANOTHER 1930s film villainess, She (Who Must Be Obeyed):

A movie that was famous for its Art Deco sets, and Art Deco is one of the main aesthetic motifs attributed to Cruella in the Glenn Close movies. So stylistically speaking, the two of them despite coming from different time periods and different worlds coexist in a way that is very old Hollywood. And with that combined link to the 30s, it helps the two of them to coexist peacefully and harmoniously in the same time period. They meet in this glamorous and mythologized liminal space. Heck, with Cruella's aesthetic links to the 1930s, I personally headcanon that she grew up absolutely obsessed with old Hollywood and making a concentrated effort to emulate that energy in her own style. Since Grimhilde is kind of an Old Hollywood character come to life, it's almost like Cruella can be a fangirl of something that she's admired for her whole life when she gets with Grimhilde, and you know Grimhilde is gonna LOVE that attention.

In addition, I personally like to be very cognizant about my ships with regards to what the individual character is going to look for in terms of a romantic partner and why the character that I've chosen for them suits that specific need. With Grimhilde, we know that she was married to Snow White's father and that she killed him, so we know that she didn't have any real love for that man, possibly any man. She rules over her kingdom alone and doesn't want anyone to rule beside her. In the Snow White comics and deleted scenes from the film, she showcases a sort of romantic rivalry for Prince Florian, but her affections for him are never about wanting an equal. She wants him because he is young and handsome and compliments her beauty and elevates her image in a way that helps give her more power through her beauty. So for Grimhilde, she needs a lover who can fill that niche - not someone to rival her or rule beside her, but someone who can be a perfect accessory to her beauty. Cruella being all about fashion and style is absolutely that person. She's very cognizant of appearances and what can accentuate or take away from beauty and aesthetics. That inherent utility to their relationship means that it would be something that Grimhilde would be open to indulging, and from there deeper feelings can develop under the right circumstances in a way that they wouldn't without having that utility first.

So that's Grimhilde's side of things. But what about Cruella? Well, we see Cruella's relation with love mostly revolving around this sort of one sided attraction that she has to Anita. And at first glance that seems contradictory to her getting with the queen, because Cruella is obviously going after a dainty and demure woman who she can kind of steamroll and collect as another fashion accessory. However, I think what makes this work so well is that it really showcases that Cruella has an attraction to traditional feminine beauty and women in general, and Grimhilde is of course is the fairest woman of all. The Glen Close movie adds an interesting dynamic to Cruella's attraction to Anita in that she enjoys the creative interaction that she has with Anita. Never really noticed Anita until the two of them started to collaborate creatively, and I feel like that's a big thing that Cruella needs and wants in a partner, someone who engages that creative side of her brain and understands her drive for aesthetics and beauty. And, as previously stated, who better to do that than the Queen of beauty herself? Grimhilde is a perfect model of unlimited dramatic creativity wrapped in a feminine and beautiful package that would set Cruella's heart ablaze.

Together the two of them fulfill that perfect niche for each other and foster a creative, beautiful, and bloodthirsty ruthless energy that would make them feel seen and supported. They effectively create their own little world of 1930s fantasy glamor when they come together, and that's just beautiful to me.

Those are the biggies, but some other really fun pieces of shipping fuel: *I love the aesthetic they have with them both being tall women with dramatic almost drag queen makeup and outfits that have tones of black, white, and red in their own signature styles. And Cruella has the flowing fur coat with the red liner and Grimhilde has the flowing cape with the red liner and so they can be very flouncy and twirly with their styles. *Grimhilde keeps a royal huntsman who can kill all of the animals for Cruella whenever she wants. *They both have similar structures to their stories - they start out on friendly or familial terms with the protagonists before they show their true colors, then they entrust men to kill the innocent creatures needed to enact their plan but those men fail them, forcing Grimhilde and Cruella to take matters into their own hands, and then the finales showcase them both transforming into frightening demented versions of themselves (old hag and crazy demon eyes Cruella during the car chase) madly pursuing their goals until they ultimate bring about their own defeats by the environment turning against them *Cruella has the green smoke of her cigarette which echoes the green and smoke of the Magic Mirror, and also Cruella's chain smoking being a sort of poison in and of itself links back nicely to Grimhilde's literal poisons. *OUAT gives Cruella magic powers and ties to the Author, and Grimhilde also has magic powers and is a literal storybook villain.

So, yes, at first glance, EvilPuppies may seem like just a crackship, but it's really not. There is SO much here in both their canon interactions and in their numerous parallels, and there are honestly probably even more that I'm forgetting. They are the crowning queens of femslash for me for good reason, and I adore them, darlings!

[bird-inacage]

Love Sea Episode 9: Lost at Sea before the Finale

Sigh. I had high hopes for this episode, which reached it's apex in the main conflict with Rak's dad (our honorary big bad). But yet again it's at a crucial juncture in the story, where writing and execution have fallen short when it really mattered.

Despite building tension for the past few weeks in service of this moment, it's swiftly deflated with little fuss. I thought the contract-tearing scene would provide a riveting layer of complexity for our characters to navigate. But it's barely a hiccup. The entire pay off we've been hurtling towards just unceremoniously fizzles out.

Here are my observations as to why this episode missed the mark (some of which I hope to dig into when I do a full review of the series).

The 'saviour' plot device. Where a character repeatedly saves the day in service of other characters (regardless of their credentials to do so). This is the role they've boxed Mut in. He swoops in - solves, fixes, pursues, soothes. He's faultless. He's unwavering. He's Rak's hero in shining armour. This isn't fundamentally bad except his capacity is reduced mainly to just that, and the cost is little to no development of his own. I take enormous issue with this because I dearly love Mut. He has great scope for a far more compelling trajectory. We had wonderful insights into his outlook on life in the earlier episodes, which have since taken a noticeable backseat. We are yet to see significant exploration of Mut's struggles, flaws or weaknesses. There appears to be some focus on this in episode 10, but why so little so late?

The women are rendered superfluous. Which isn't helped when we already have a lacklustre GL portrayal. As things go awry - Kwan, Vi and Mook are varying degrees of 'just there'. I would have loved to see the plot utilise the women who know Rak best, to contribute towards bringing Jak down. But the show's priority to aid Mut's heroic efforts, means the women are left with very little to do.

Mut VS Jak. If you compare the two men, Jak is taller and in fairly good shape. Physically, you'd expect more resistance in a fight. When Jak goes down, he barely tries to get up (even when Mut's back is turned). Thus, the outcome of the fight feels unearned, especially if we are to believe this man has violent tendencies that have traumatised his children. (He may not be murderously insane, but still volatile enough to maim his own son). By being so easily overpowered, the takeaway ends up being: 'oh, we needn't have worried'. And this exchange didn't have to be strictly physical either, it could have been psychological. Jak could have taunted Mut like he did in the café, and tried to chip at his resolve. Alternatively, if Rak were the one to overcome his father (in a bid to save Mut), it would show that Rak's love can power through his fear, and he'd gain that lesson through his own agency rather than Mut telling him he should no longer be afraid. (Another symptom of this series is subjugating Rak to a huge degree of passivity).

I'm not sold on Jak's character motivations, based on what we've seen. He's not quite smart or menacing enough to be a calculated sociopath, and he's a shade too conniving for an apathetic loser. If he's as lazy as we've been told, why would he go this far to secure Prin's money, when he's already syphoning finances from Rak and his mother? Couldn't he just sit back and continue to leech with no effort? If his desperation were a result of poor spending, it would at least ground his motive. Or if he's fuelled by the thrill of tormenting his family, we'd need to see mental depravity. Instead, much of Jak's actions feel - dare I say - 'because plot'? (Make your villains more formidable and their eventual downfall will pack more punch).

The few too many plot conveniences. The sillier one being how on earth Rak left the house without anyone noticing? The enormous glass staircase which sits front and centre in an open plan property makes it near impossible to go undetected. Unless he parkoured from his bedroom?

I'm gutted because the show veers towards the more questionable choices at their disposal. The set ups are there. The ideas are there. The parameters are there. It's what they decide to do with them that sadly misfires. This has caused my investment in the story to plummet towards the latter half.

I continue to watch for Fortpeat, and I feel for them because they've worked so hard. There's some lovely acting sprinkled throughout this episode but at this late stage in the series, the plot should be driving things home. Whereas the metaphorical tide keeps moving those goal posts in and out of sight. I hope they can at least round things off on a high note next week.

[babyangelsky]

This man's grief is not above his children's

This is the second time in two days where I've wondered if I, as someone who isn't a mother, fundamentally misunderstand what being a parent means and I've come to the conclusion that I don't actually. I understand perfectly well.

If I lost the person I loved and all I had left of them was a building and the only part of them still walking this earth was the babies we had together, I would not ever let go.

You do not abandon your child. You can walk away from a job, from a building, from a relationship, from an entire fucking continent if you like but you DO NOT WALK AWAY FROM YOUR CHILDREN.

I understand that this man was in grief. I understand that he was in excruciating pain after losing his wife because losing someone you love feels like being eviscerated. And I do believe that he loves his children but he has also failed them as a father.

He left Yei and Yak after they lost their mother and wasn't there to be the support that they needed when they needed it most. When Yei's mother extracted that deathbed promise from him, I'm sure she never could've imagined that her husband would leave their children to fend for themselves and that's exactly what he did.

He left Yei to raise Yak by himself, to run the gym by himself, to worry about their finances by himself. That's an intolerable burden to place on someone so young, someone who has just lost their mother. He got to fall apart and be a mess but what about them? Maybe Yak could a little bit because he had Yei, but what about Yei? He couldn't. He was not afforded that luxury.

And regardless of whether Yei and Yak's dad is actually showing up now, he isn't showing up for them. His wife is doing it instead! His wife is the one offering them a lifeline! The sum of the "help" that he offered was telling them to fight it out, he didn't offer them so much as an idea of how to sort their financial situation out.

HOW MANY TIMES IS THIS MAN GOING TO FAIL HIS CHILDREN?

Maybe it's my own personal experience as the child of a shitty father coloring my judgement but I refuse to accept redemption for this man. He may have been forgiven by Yak and Yei but he is not forgiven by me.

I am not a parent but I ain't gotta be one to know that he failed the assignment.

[spacetimewithstuartgary]

New SpaceTime out Wednesday

SpaceTime 20240925 Series 27 Episode 116

Discovery of more black holes than expected in the early universe

A new study using the Hubble Space Telescope has discovered far more supermassive black holes in the early universe that expected.

A new volcano spotted on Jupiter’s moon Io

Astronomers have discovered a new volcano on Jupiter’s moon Io.

Confirming the mass of the W boson

Scientists at CERN -- the European Organization for Nuclear Research -- have confirmed the mass of one of the fundamental forces of physics – the W Boson.

The Science Report

Tea, red wine, berries and even dark chocolate could help reduce the risk of dementia.

Fifty critically endangered night parrots found living in the far east of Western Australia's Pilbara region.

A new study has found that cats show signs of grief when fellow pets die – even dogs.

Alex on Tech: new iphone scam.

SpaceTime covers the latest news in astronomy & space sciences.

The show is available every Monday, Wednesday and Friday through Apple Podcasts (itunes), Stitcher, Google Podcast, Pocketcasts, SoundCloud, Bitez.com, YouTube, your favourite podcast download provider, and from www.spacetimewithstuartgary.com

SpaceTime is also broadcast through the National Science Foundation on Science Zone Radio and on both i-heart Radio and Tune-In Radio.

SpaceTime daily news blog: http://spacetimewithstuartgary.tumblr.com/

SpaceTime facebook: www.facebook.com/spacetimewithstuartgary

SpaceTime Instagram @spacetimewithstuartgary

SpaceTime twitter feed @stuartgary

SpaceTime YouTube: @SpaceTimewithStuartGary

SpaceTime -- A brief history

SpaceTime is Australia’s most popular and respected astronomy and space science news program – averaging over two million downloads every year. We’re also number five in the United States.  The show reports on the latest stories and discoveries making news in astronomy, space flight, and science.  SpaceTime features weekly interviews with leading Australian scientists about their research.  The show began life in 1995 as ‘StarStuff’ on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation’s (ABC) NewsRadio network.  Award winning investigative reporter Stuart Gary created the program during more than fifteen years as NewsRadio’s evening anchor and Science Editor.  Gary’s always loved science. He studied astronomy at university and was invited to undertake a PHD in astrophysics, but instead focused on his career in journalism and radio broadcasting. Gary’s radio career stretches back some 34 years including 26 at the ABC. He worked as an announcer and music DJ in commercial radio, before becoming a journalist and eventually joining ABC News and Current Affairs. He was part of the team that set up ABC NewsRadio and became one of its first on air presenters. When asked to put his science background to use, Gary developed StarStuff which he wrote, produced and hosted, consistently achieving 9 per cent of the national Australian radio audience based on the ABC’s Nielsen ratings survey figures for the five major Australian metro markets: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, and Perth.  The StarStuff podcast was published on line by ABC Science -- achieving over 1.3 million downloads annually.  However, after some 20 years, the show finally wrapped up in December 2015 following ABC funding cuts, and a redirection of available finances to increase sports and horse racing coverage.  Rather than continue with the ABC, Gary resigned so that he could keep the show going independently.  StarStuff was rebranded as “SpaceTime”, with the first episode being broadcast in February 2016.  Over the years, SpaceTime has grown, more than doubling its former ABC audience numbers and expanding to include new segments such as the Science Report -- which provides a wrap of general science news, weekly skeptical science features, special reports looking at the latest computer and technology news, and Skywatch – which provides a monthly guide to the night skies. The show is published three times weekly (every Monday, Wednesday and Friday) and available from the United States National Science Foundation on Science Zone Radio, and through both i-heart Radio and Tune-In Radio.

[sunshinesmebdy]

Venus in Aries: Passion, Innovation, and a Pinch of Impulsiveness in Business

Calling all bold entrepreneurs and financially adventurous souls! Buckle up, because Venus, the planet of love, beauty, and prosperity, is setting hearts (and wallets) on fire with its fiery transit through Aries. This dynamic duo ignites a potent mix of passion, initiative, and a dash of impulsiveness, influencing how we approach business and finances from April 5th onwards.

The Aries Influence: A Bold Leap Forward — Taking Calculated Risks with Venusian Fire

Typically, Venus thrives in diplomacy and collaboration. But under the fiery influence of Aries, the ram’s sign, expect a more assertive and action-oriented approach. This is a time to chase exciting ventures, launch innovative products, and negotiate deals with confidence. Don’t be afraid to take calculated risks, but remember, calculated is the keyword. Aries’ impulsiveness can lead to hasty decisions, so thorough research and a well-defined strategy are crucial before diving headfirst.

Venus, in its usual celestial dance, prefers the harmonious tango of diplomacy and collaboration. It thrives in building partnerships, fostering agreements, and creating a win-win scenario for all involved. Think of Venus as the ultimate negotiator, charming its way to mutually beneficial deals.

But enter Aries, the bold ram. This fire sign is all about taking charge, initiating action, and pushing boundaries. When Venus finds itself nestled in Aries’ fiery domain, a fascinating shift occurs. The diplomatic charm takes a backseat, replaced by a more assertive and pioneering spirit. This isn’t about forceful domination; it’s about confidently pursuing your vision and taking decisive steps to make it a reality.

Here’s how this plays out in business and finance:

Chasing Exciting Ventures: The Aries influence awakens a thirst for adventure. You might find yourself drawn to groundbreaking ideas, innovative products, or untapped markets. This is a prime time to explore new business ventures that ignite your passion and set you apart from the competition.

Launching with Confidence: The usual Venusian caution around launching something new gets a makeover. Aries’ confidence is contagious, making you more likely to take the plunge and present your ideas to the world. However, remember, confidence doesn’t negate preparation. Develop a solid launch strategy, ensure your product or service is market-ready, and then go forth and conquer!

Negotiating with Fire: The collaborative spirit of Venus gets a dose of healthy assertiveness. When negotiating deals, you’ll be more comfortable advocating for your worth and confidently stating your terms. This doesn’t mean throwing out ultimatums, but rather, approaching negotiations with a clear understanding of your value and what you bring to the table.

The Calculated Risk Factor:

This is where the “calculated” part becomes crucial. Aries’ impulsive nature can sometimes lead to rushing headfirst into situations without proper planning. Think of a ram charging towards a tempting patch of grass, oblivious to the potential dangers lurking around.

Here’s how to maintain balance:

Research Before You Leap: Before getting swept away by your newfound entrepreneurial spirit, conduct thorough research. Understand the market, analyze potential risks and rewards, and develop a clear plan of action.

Seek Expert Advice: Don’t be afraid to consult with experienced professionals or mentors. Their guidance can help you navigate the complexities of your venture and mitigate potential pitfalls.

Embrace Calculated Risks, Not Recklessness: Taking calculated risks is a fundamental part of business growth. However, there’s a fine line between calculated and reckless. Use your Venusian charm and finesse to assess risks objectively, only venturing into situations with a well-defined strategy for success.

By harnessing the assertive energy of Aries while maintaining the strategic planning of Venus, you can leverage this transit to turn bold ideas into thriving ventures.

Financial Flair with a Competitive Edge: Investing with Venusian Fire in Aries

Venus, the planet of love and beauty, typically steers us towards indulging in the finer things. We might treat ourselves to luxurious experiences, invest in timeless pieces, or simply appreciate the finer things in life. However, when fiery Aries enters the picture, this Venusian indulgence takes on a more competitive and action-oriented twist.

From Retail Therapy to Investment Savvy:

The usual urge to splurge on that designer bag might still be present, but a stronger pull towards financially empowering activities will emerge. This transit ignites a desire to see your money grow and work for you. Here’s how this financial flair manifests:

The Rise of the Side Hustle: The entrepreneurial spirit of Aries awakens a desire to create additional income streams. This could be the perfect time to launch that side hustle you’ve been dreaming of, whether it’s monetizing a hobby, offering freelance services, or starting a small online business.

Calculated Moves in the Market: The Venusian influence on investments gets a makeover. While Venus usually favors stable, long-term investments, the boldness of Aries encourages you to explore options with higher growth potential. This could involve diversifying your portfolio with stocks in innovative companies or exploring calculated ventures like angel investing.

Remember, Responsible Risk is Key:

It’s important to remember that responsible risk-taking is a world away from reckless gambling. Don’t be tempted to throw your money into the first flashy opportunity that comes your way. Here’s how to maintain a balanced approach:

Do Your Research: Before investing, conduct thorough research. Analyze the potential risks and rewards, understand the market trends, and ensure the investment aligns with your overall financial goals.

Start Small & Diversify: If you’re venturing into unfamiliar territory, start small and diversify your investments. This way, you can limit potential losses while still experiencing the thrill of potentially higher returns.

Seek Professional Guidance: Don’t be afraid to consult a financial advisor before making any major investment decisions. Their expertise can help you navigate complex financial instruments and develop a personalized investment strategy.

Think of yourself as a Venusian investor with an Aries twist. You appreciate the finer things in life, but you’re also driven to make your money work for you. By channeling your financial gusto towards calculated investments and strategic ventures, you can leverage this transit to build long-term wealth and achieve your financial goals.

Who Will Feel the Heat Most?

While everyone will experience this transit to some degree, some zodiac signs will be particularly affected:

Fire Signs (Aries, Leo, Sagittarius): Get ready to shine! This transit fuels your natural confidence and leadership qualities. Network aggressively, don’t be afraid to chase ambitious goals, and watch your business flourish.

Air Signs (Gemini, Libra, Aquarius): Your innovative ideas and communication skills are in high demand. Collaborate with fire signs to bring their bold visions to life.

Libra: Normally diplomatic Libra might find themselves being more assertive in negotiations. Channel this newfound confidence to secure those lucrative deals.

Harnessing the Venusian Fire: Striking a Balance for Success

Venus in Aries presents a unique opportunity to propel yourself toward your financial dreams with a potent blend of passion, confidence, and strategic action. Here’s how to harness this powerful energy and turn it into a recipe for business success:

Embrace the Fire, But Don’t Get Burned:

Ignite Your Passion: This transit is a time to reconnect with the spark that ignited your entrepreneurial spirit in the first place. What are you truly passionate about? How can you translate that passion into a thriving business venture? Let your enthusiasm be the driving force behind your actions.

Fuel Your Confidence: The assertive influence of Aries bolsters your belief in yourself and your ideas. Don’t be afraid to showcase your unique talents and confidently present your vision to potential partners or investors. This newfound confidence will be infectious, attracting others to your cause.

Channel Your Drive into Action: Venus in Aries thrives on action. Don’t let your ideas languish in the realm of “what ifs.” Develop a clear plan of action, set achievable goals, and take concrete steps towards achieving them. Remember, even small, consistent steps forward lead to significant progress over time.

Temper the Fire with Strategic Planning:

Don’t Confuse Passion with Recklessness: While passion is essential, it needs a strategic partner: planning. Before diving headfirst into any venture, conduct thorough research, analyze competitors, and develop a clear roadmap for success.

Refine Your Venusian Charm: Venus is the master of diplomacy and collaboration. Use this charm to build strong relationships with potential partners, investors, and clients. Focus on win-win scenarios and leverage your natural charisma to create a network of support.

Embrace Calculated Risks: Calculated risk-taking is an essential part of business growth. However, impulsive decisions can lead to disaster. Use your Venusian finesse to objectively assess risks and only take calculated steps with a well-defined strategy for mitigating potential losses.

The Art of Balance:

The key to harnessing the Venusian fire lies in balance. Let your passion fuel your drive, but don’t let it cloud your judgment. Channel your confidence into assertive action, but anchor it with strategic planning. Remember, the Venusian charm is a powerful tool for building relationships and collaborating with others. By combining the fiery spirit of Aries with the strategic finesse of Venus, you can create a winning formula for business success under this astrological influence.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

The Big Four accounting firms are one (more) scandal away from collapse

One of the wildest features of the crypto wipeout is that all of these “multi-billion-dollar” firms never bothered with an independent audit, and they all turned out to be lying about their balance sheets.

Amidst this carnage, it’s easy to forget that the Big Four accounting firms are terrible enablers of fraud, and the fact that they sign off on your books is no guarantee that you’re not a giant scam waiting to implode.

This is just wild to consider. After all, independent auditors are the lifeblood of capitalism. Rich people really need to know that the people they trust with their money aren’t lying about their finances. Usually rich people get their way.

But not with accounting. Accountancy has dwindled to four massive, structurally important, terminally conflicted companies: EY, KPMG, PWC and Deloitte, and all four make more money selling “consulting” to companies than they do for signing off on their books.

https://pluralistic.net/2021/02/18/ink-stained-wretches/#countless

That means that the Big Four routinely sign off on fraudulent books, because a failure to make nice with companies that are cheating the taxman and/or their investors and/or their creditors will cost the Big Four those fat consulting contracts.

Besides, the Big Four have a sweet gig: when they sign off on fraudulent books — as all four did for Carillion, the company that went bust in 2018 after billions went missing — they are the only companies big enough to oversee the bankruptcies. All four made millions off of Carillion’s bankruptcies.

Shorn of any consequences for wrongdoing, the Big Four are hotbeds of corruption. Who can forget when KPMG’s top management was fined millions…for helping their auditors cheat…on ethics exams (!!!!).

https://pluralistic.net/2021/06/04/aaronsw/#crooked-ref

There is a contradiction at the heart of “consulting” and auditing. The consultant’s job is to help a company obscure its bad deeds — for example, helping it hide its tax fraud, or its wage theft — while an auditor’s job is to bring transparency to a company’s financials. These two activities are fundamentally incompatible with one another, and the fact that the Big Four make more money from cooking books than from uncooking them means that they forever lurch from scandal to scandal.

Those scandals are getting worse, and if a very big one should break, it could bring down the whole sector and with it, large swathes of the economy. Writing for The Dig, Jim Peterson describes the system risk:

https://thedig.substack.com/p/tipping-point-the-financial-fragility

The problem lies in the fact that the Big Four are “voluntary private partnerships to which individual accountants commit their energy, reputations and personal capital.” If a scandal threatens the business, partners who quit might get away clean, while those that stay behind will be mired in scandal and financial ruin.

That means that when disaster looms, each partner is better off individually running for the doors, even though a disciplined stay-and-hold posture might let the firm weather the storm. This is exactly what happened at Arthur Andersen during the Enron collapse, and the risk to other firms was identified by “Study on the Economic Impact of Auditors’ Liability Regimes,” a 2006 EU report:

https://www.iasplus.com/en/binary/europe/0610audit.pdf

The thing is, each partner at a big firm knows exactly how much dirty laundry they have personally buried in the company’s garden, and they have well-founded suspicions about what their partners have buried out there, too. When someone starts digging, they’re all gonna scarper.

Which is to say that if a firm faces sufficiently steep litigation damages or enforcement penalties, it could precipitate a sudden collapse of one of the remaining Big Four firms. That wouldn’t just be bad news for the firm — its clients would struggle to land another large auditor to sign off on its books.

Remember, most of the world’s auditing capacity has been gathered into four giant, brittle, opaque, compromised firms — if one of them goes bust, the remaining Big Three won’t have the capacity to take on its orphaned clients.

Peterson: “another collapse would strand significant numbers of the world’s large public companies, leaving them unable to procure the audit opinions required for their securities listings and regulatory compliance, from any source and at any price.”

Peterson’s written a fascinating-sounding book on the structural problems with monopolized accounting, “Count Down: The Past, Present and Uncertain Future of the Big Four Accounting Firms,” which is in its second edition:

https://www.emerald.com/insight/publication/doi/10.1108/9781787147003

Image: Vectorportal.com (modified) https://vectorportal.com/vector/business-deal-illustration/23215

CC BY 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Inspired by an illustration by Matt Kenyon for the Financial Times https://www.ft.com/content/07184d86-81cf-11e2-b050-00144feabdc0

[Image ID: Two business-suited male figures seen side on; each has a bomb for a head, and each is holding a lit lighter that has ignited the other's fuse. Each bomb is wearing a green accountant's eyeshade. In the background is a fiery mushroom cloud.]

[mulderscully]

I do wish y’all would stop acting like 2016 was some turning point for America. As if hila*ry wasn’t a literal war criminal whose husband was also a rapist whose victims’ lives she personally destroyed. As if jimmy carter “the good president” hadn’t allowed zbigniew brzezinski to help create the taliban that lead to 9/11 and its aftermath and to now where little girls are used as currency in Afghanistan after biden’s disastrous withdrawal. Obama and his full scale death and distraction conglomerate I won’t even mention. Every single one US president helped and supported, aided and abetted and financed is*real’s monstrosities every step of the way since 1940s. Since Truman Every single US president has fundamental changed and more than likely completely destroyed the world and way of life for someone somewhere. Hell probably even before Truman

I do pray you don’t reelect that monster because I don’t even want to imagine how that would go both home and abroad but please stop acting as if he came about fully formed from a racist’s mind and is not a culmination of US policies since its inception

And I am sorry to come into your inbox like this I can only assume how extremely stressful all this is for you and yours and I’m truly sorry everything is so shitty. I too wish I could just not care about elections in the us. I guess I just think some perspective would be useful so that we can all try and not repeat history for once. I don’t hold my breath on America reckoning with its past in my lifetime but one can hope

and when did i say or deny any of that? i'm talking about the present moment because the election is exactly a week away.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Don Moynihan at Can We Still Govern?:

Imagine you have earned science, engineering and business degrees from MIT and Oxford. You are interested in climate and sustainability, and so you choose to work for government. at the U.S. International Finance Corporation, as the Director of Climate Diversification. You are paid $172,000 per year, which is not bad, but likely much less than you could earn in the private sector. And then Elon Musk, whom President-elect Trump has tapped to run the Department of Government Efficiency, says that you have a fake job, boosting a tweet from an anonymous right-wing poster that says you should be fired. You have never met Musk. He has no idea what your job entails or whether you are good at it. The most likely reason he decided your job has no value is that “diversification” is in your job title, and Musk is too lazy to figure out that “diversification” and “diversity” are different things.

Ashley Thomas, the government employee in question, does technical work on how to make agriculture more robust under conditions of extreme weather. This seems like pretty important, with a classic public goods justification — the government is trying to figure out and share solutions to a problem that affects lots of people, and for which the market is unlikely to generate a solution by itself. But of course none of this matters if you are fundamentally incurious about what government does, and absolutely sure that you know better. That combination of ignorance and certainty is generally a bad condition for democracies, but a disaster when it characterizes whose who govern us. To give a sense of scale, 33 million people saw Musk’s post. Ashley Thomas has since made her social media accounts private after the wave of online harassment from Musk’s followers. She is one of an increasing number of public officials who are learning that bullying and intimidation is part of the game plan for how the right governs now. She might reasonably infer that she will be fired from her job for no reason other than the fact that one of Trump’s courtiers wants to show that he can follow through on his threats.

[...]

Outsourcing Public Sector Reform to People Who Hate the Public Sector

Of course, Musk is the one holding a fake job, since there is no real Department of Government Efficiency. In fact, we don’t really know what form his group will take. The obvious answer is that Muskawamy would serve as a Federal Advisory Committee, which is a standard way to structure input from outside advisors. But perhaps not. In an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal, Musk and Ramaswamy say: “We will serve as outside volunteers, not federal officials or employees. Unlike government commissions or advisory committees, we won’t just write reports or cut ribbons.”

The problem with Federal Advisory Committees is that they must follow some basic transparency rules about how they operate. A shared belief between Musk and Trump is: “Transparency for thee, but not for me.” After railing against the corrupt deep state for years, Trump is refusing to explain who is funding his transition operation, a break with existing norms. Musk released “the Twitter files” to portray a (massively exaggerated) case that the website was co-operating too closely with the government. Now that he and his website helped to elect Trump and implement his policies, he has no problem with such close coordination. As Mike Masnick pointed out “Turns out for the “Twitter Files” crew, “creeping authoritarianism” isn’t so creepy when it’s your team doing the creeping.”

The Federal Advisory Committee Act has some persnickety language requiring fair balance and minimizing conflicts of interest, values that again do not score highly in the Trump or Musk worldview. Trump also saw some commissions he formed delayed and halted because they failed to follow these legal requirements, such as fair balance on a commission on law enforcement. Trump even issued an Executive Order to cut the number of number of Federal Advisory Committees in his first term. For all of the above reasons I am increasingly skeptical that Muskawamy will operate under any kind of federal oversight or supervision.1 Instead, it will be an unofficial working group feeding ideas to the White House and Congress. Trump’s head of OMB, Russell Vought, has declared he will work with Muskawamy. But the Federal Advisory Committee Act is also supposed to extend to outside actors that agencies communicate with to avoid the type of shell game that Muskawamy seem to be pursuing. In other words, if Muskawamy are acting like a Federal Advisory Committee, they can be sued as if they are such a Committee, regardless of what they call themselves.

Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy’s DOGE is nothing more than fake job pretending to a real cabinet agency.