#I should get a QR code to the website for ease

[foldingfittedsheets]

Shoutout to the lesbian barista at Starbucks who saw my Morningwitch jacket sleeve and instantly texted her girlfriend the shop name.

[skarya-archive]

The QR code redirects to the following website containing a fictional story about the place:

“The Party

(not on Biltstraat, but I didn't know anyone there either)

“Take it off?”

You tug at my white wig. I push the synthetic bob back into place on my head. I don’t know why I do that. The wig now looks more like a dead tired long haired guinea pig than a head of hair. Taking it off would be better. “I asked the escalator to remember us but they wouldn’t. So I’m forced to keep this wig on forever. That’s how I know you were really there,” I say. You pinch my arm, I say “ouch” and you say “I had to check to see if you were real.”

We roll up the Jaarbeursplein escalator that works for once. Exceptions exist, apparently. The night is full of them. Why else would I be standing on this escalator with a man with “pub shoes”? Your white blouse hangs open further than it should, but I am more forgiving than your house elder. He would certainly call you a “cunt.” Besides: it is so late, but not early enough for the mosque to sing. That means your blouse can hang open. Even further than it should.

We get off the escalator and your phone rings. You push the caller “Boele” away, “Boeie Boele”, you say. I smile, little waves next to my eyes and my teeth exposed. Maybe there’s lipstick on it. I quickly close my mouth again and slide my tongue along my front teeth. “Nobody knows where I am”, you say and you pull a lock of my wig again. “Nobody knows where I am”, I say, “but aren’t they worried about you, boy?” I pull a lock of your hair. “Do you have your own door yet?”

“Together we are lost,” you answer, “so no door,” I note in my memory. Maybe that information is useful for later. “Where are we going then?” you ask. With the question you take a step closer to me. Bacardi comes out of your mouth and pores. In the distance there is the future smell of lubricant. You are going to fumble with the condom wrapper, I can feel that. It doesn’t bother me. I smell a little bit of Clearasil. The desire to destroy more than just your imperfections arises.

“Where are we going then?”, you say again. You beam and spit against my body, but you don’t kiss me.

Don't you dare?

Is being five years older really that much?

No, that's nonsense, you're close to me.

I push away the doubt and my hands in your pockets. I feel cigarettes, a lighter, a public transport chip card and – I pull it out – a receipt. I study the inscription, an extra strong cappuccino from the Kiosk. You study my neck. I feel your breath, hot, because my neck is ice cold. Actually, I can't take you home with me. This meeting feels like a glitch in the Matrix.”

Besides: you are way too young.

Besides: I have to get up early tomorrow.

Besides: I was late for work last week too.

Besides: I already brought someone along last week.

Besides: you are too young.

Besides: “Where are we going then?” you ask my ear.

My mouth says: “To a party somewhere on the Bilstraat where I didn’t know anyone.” You don’t understand that reference. I put the receipt back and say: “We’re going to the Biltstraat.” Maybe you want to tell me a tasty anecdote about guard pigs. But you don’t say anything, you pretend you’ve never been there. As if you don’t know that Biltstraat. I can’t imagine that, maybe Boeie Boele lives there. What does it matter anyway? We are laying a solid foundation for shared silence. Of course you can, everyone where you come from can.

That something we are starting together tonight has the shape of cooked spaghetti. You can tie knots in it that you can smooth out again with the same ease. Breaking is still a long way off, everything is flexible. So you can:

have strong hands,

but also not,

you

may read, the books your house elder recommends, frugal

and you cook

for your house

because you have to.

I don't know

which party you voted for

(but I have a hunch)

and what your parents did and whether you leave

noodles

in the sink . It's too early to put your cards on the table. You probably have an opinion too. After all, I wandered around a house party on a weekday Thursday with a party shop wig. A house party where I had no business being. I tripped over it on the way from the failed date with the Rabobank employee in café West to my house. The door was wide open. That was an invitation from the universe, I thought. The alcohol I had drunk earlier to drown out the talk about working in the financial sector did its job. Before I knew it, I was walking up the creaking stairs. When I entered the overcrowded upstairs apartment, I grabbed the wig from the table and put it on my head. “That’s how I fit in,” I thought, but in a room full of strangers I didn’t stand out to anyone. The night, I could still wrap her around me like a blanket. I walked to the table where a large bowl of indefinable alcohol with fruit was standing. “Don’t worry, there’s also a vitamin B12 pill in there,” a girl wearing a glittering sequin dress said to me. “From Vitakruid. Arie Boomsma uses it too. Then it’s good for you anyway.” (What is this generation’s obsession with health anyway?) Just as I was ladle in the bowl, I heard behind me:

“I want to taste you”

The bowl hadn’t said anything about tasting. Right? That XTC pill from last weekend was still in my pocket, wasn’t it? I felt it and found it was in the same place. So no hallucination. I turned around and there were green-blue eyes that said: “Wow, girl”. I thought that was funny, because I wasn’t a girl anymore.

“Strange start”, I said.

“What do you mean? Taste is pretty essential, isn’t it”, you said.

In the festivities there were once friends somewhere that you wanted to impress with your opening line. You turned around, but they were nowhere to be found. “Too bad if no one’s watching”, I said. I expected red cheeks, but nothing in your face changed. You had me firmly in a grip with those green-blue bastards. “A blessing in disguise”, you said and I didn’t know which of the two I was, the blessing or the curse.

That's why I say:

"I don't know anything about you."

"I don't know anything about you either. If you take off your wig, I'll say my name," you say.

"No," I say.

"Can I taste you first?" you ask.

"Just my hair then," I say.

You eagerly took a lick of the white hair. Your face contorted and you spat out the synthetic fake hair, just a little too close to the bowl of indefinable liquor. I laughed. You held out your hand and said: "Hello," without saying your name. I shook your hand with the pill in my palm. You pushed the pill back and said: "I don't need synthetic infatuation."

Now in that same hand next to the pill is in my pocket. We walk under the nature fact in the bright station light ("Today in nature: Day-glo eyes stop flying as autumn progresses"). I don't know what time it is. I don't know a lot.

I don't know how you kiss

with a lot of tongue or just a little,

hungry or with a soaking wet mouth,

a kiss that I have to direct with my head

or one that I fall into carelessly,

like a dive

that it's too cold for outside now.

So it's fair that you don't know my hair, because that's what I know about you. Less than nothing. Only the shape of the caricature that I made of you is still standing.

I already know that in a few days I'll still feel you in my body. That I don't want to wash my sheets until you come back. That I'll wait with the wig on my head. Until I'm stuck together with cobwebs and really have to open a window.

When everything is out:

on the Biltstraat the last streetlights go out,

the pubs of the Nachtegaalstraat have emptied out over the silent city

and a first sweeper carefully ventures

onto the tiles.

The minaret sings,

the sleepers still hang in the eyes of the singer.

The escalator falters again,

nothing testifies

of two bodies in the late night.

As if it had never

been there.

When everything is off:

and your leg is on my hip.

I take off the wig.

I put my finger on your lips:

“What should I do with your name?

Let's not make it unnecessarily complicated” “

Original tale at:

https://eenbegineeneinde.wordpress.com/2024/10/04/het-feestje-niet-op-de-biltstraat-maar-ik-kende-er-ook-niemand/

Mystery box

Found at Utrecht Jaarbeursplein

Utrecht - Netherlands

[smoakmonster]

G is for Gadgets and Gimmicks {3/3}

A/N:‌‌ ‌Well‌ ‌folks,‌ ‌the‌ ‌conclusion‌ ‌to‌ ‌my‌ ‌little‌ ‌bookstore‌ ‌AU‌ ‌is‌ ‌finally‌ ‌here!!‌ ‌Sorry‌ ‌for‌ ‌the‌ ‌extreme‌ ‌delay‌ ‌in‌ ‌finishing‌ ‌out‌ ‌this‌ ‌series.‌ ‌I‌ ‌appreciate‌ ‌all‌ ‌of‌ ‌your‌ ‌sweet‌ ‌responses‌ ‌to‌ ‌this‌ ‌fic.‌ ‌There’s‌ ‌just‌ ‌something‌ ‌so‌ ‌precious‌ ‌about‌ ‌fluffy‌ ‌Olicity,‌ ‌isn’t‌ ‌there?‌ ‌I‌ ‌hope‌ ‌you‌ ‌enjoy‌ ‌the‌ ‌wrap-up!‌ ‌Thank‌ ‌you‌ ‌again‌ ‌for‌ ‌reading!‌ 

‌Special‌ ‌thanks‌ ‌to:‌ ‌‌pleasantfanandstudent‌ ‌for‌ ‌this‌ ‌adorable‌ ‌cover‌ ‌art!‌ ‌

(Part‌ ‌1)‌ ‌(Part‌ ‌2)‌ ‌(Read‌ ‌on‌ ‌AO3)‌

***

com∙pro∙mise (v.)

3. to cause to become vulnerable or function less effectively

***

“Hey, the QR code on the door isn’t working, so do I still get the coupon?”

Oliver glances up from meticulously arranging rows of his latest mini-soufflé experiment to find a gangly teenage boy (probably a college freshman) watching him with expectation and just a hint of entitlement. 

He frowns, stifling a sigh. “The what?”

This has been happening a lot lately. Interruptions. Deep down, Oliver knows that any form of interruption is a good interruption, that droves of customers, albeit annoying ones, do not detract from his work, but rather are the purpose of it. Strangers mean business. They mean another day where he gets to make payroll and keep his archaic practice of second-hand bookselling from dying out. 

He’s not sure when or why or how his antiquated cardboard box of a business managed to draw this sudden influx of cantankerous college kids buried in cancer-causing gadgets, but he has his suspicions. Perhaps it has something to do with this QR...something? While Oliver may not understand ninety-percent of the latest digital discourse, he does know what a coupon is. And he’s pretty sure he would remember issuing said coupon. 

As though the fringes of his very thoughts have pulled her forth by a string, the oh-so-familiar staccato of heels on old wood flooring tears Oliver’s attention.

“I’ve got this,” Felicity says brightly, with a brief hand on his arm. She inserts herself into the conversation with ease, brushing past Oliver to smooth things over with the impatient customer. 

Her touch is so quick that for a second he thinks he might have imagined it. Only the warm buzzing just below the surface of skin is proof that it was real. In truth, her touch has become a more regular occurrence. This marks at least Number 10. Not that he’s keeping track. Not that his body even remembers. Every reaction is like the first time.

Simple, innocent little touches that cause his mind to stray to dangerous places. She probably has no idea the effect she has on him. 

Felicity suddenly peeks his way and shoots him a quick wink. Or more like her attempt a wink. The squinty-eyed delayed blink is so endearingly Felicity that Oliver has never had the desire to correct her. 

So maybe she has some idea.

Oliver shakes his head with a soft smile. He’s not sure when this happened, either, but somewhere along the way Felicity and he stopped exchanging the usual social greetings and formal pleasantries. Now, she just barges into his store with as much zeal and belonging as Thea. 

The conversion taking place directly in front of him quickly devolves into Domain Lookup and Cloud Networking, and a mere five sentences in Oliver finds himself on the periphery. Feeling inept and oddly foolish, as he so often does in the presence of Felicity Smoak, and yet also a bit bereft that this kid can keep up with her whirlwind trail of thoughts and he cannot, Oliver decides to venture into the nonfiction recesses of the store. The only safe haven he has left apparently. 

Oliver finds himself gravitating towards the cramped little nook nestled alongside the brick fireplace that’s been inoperable since Plymouth Rock (Thea’s words, not his). Last year on a whim, Oliver tried cleaning out the old fireplace and ended up drowning himself and the entire back of the store in soot. He spent days washing soot out his hair. Thea got a real kick out of that, dubbing the incident Gray Day.

Even now, it is not uncommon for the occasional customer to find a book sprinkled with the stuff and mistake it for dust. 

The conversation up front grows muffled, lending a calm stillness to this part of the store. Hardly anyone ever ventures back here, partly because the aisles are more narrow and the lighting is poor, and partly because according to Rene it smells like a murder happened here. As if the kid knows what a murder smells like. 

Personally, Oliver kind of likes the pine and leather aroma. It reminds him of simpler times, when Dad and he would go camping in the woods every summer. Oliver chuckles, remembering what a poor sport he could be and how patiently Dad taught him how to start a fire and set up a tent. He’d give anything to get more days like that with his father. More days at all, really.

What would it be like to get away like that again? Even just for a weekend? To go somewhere off-grid, no cell reception, no emails, no internet or WiFi or QR Codes or...

A flash of yellow binding catches his eye, and Oliver spots a book haphazardly stuffed on the third shelf. Carefully, he yanks the book out and reads the cover. Beginning Programming for Dummies. 

A huff escapes him. It seems he can’t get away fast enough. 

Curiosity getting the better of him, Oliver flips through the book, hopelessly searching, but not really wanting anything to stick. Maybe something in here will remind him of Felicity. Maybe if he can find even one word embedded in all these hieroglyphics, he’ll be able to make more sense of her world and actually be able to communicate with her about the things that are important to her. 

But with every turn of the page, every heading and diagram just serves to confuse him all the more. With a frustrated groan, Oliver slams the book shut and attempts to shove it back into its tight crevice; at this point, he couldn’t care less if the book’s misshelved. 

“Hey, what did that book ever do to you?”

Oliver stills. Her voice both jars and soothes him. 

Feeling strangely guilty, he turns around but has trouble meeting her gaze, stuffing his hands into his pockets, as though he’s been caught cutting up in Mrs. Hannoven’s fourth grade class again. “Sorry,” he mumbles. 

Felicity tips her head, wearing that adorably confused pout of hers. “I’m not sure I’m the one who needs you to apologize.” 

“Oh. Um…” Does she seriously want him to apologize to a book?

“What I mean is…” She takes several steps closer to him and has the decency of a saint to wait until he’s looking her in the eye before she continues. “Oliver, I’m sorry.”

“What?” What on earth could she possibly have to be sorry for? 

“I shouldn’t have pushed for the QR codes. I knew it was too soon, but I just got so excited after all of my contacts agreed to help sponsor your website. And then, during a webinar last Thursday there was this study that said QR codes can help increase foot traffic by upwards of 30%. And I thought, ‘Hey, that seems like it could work for my friend Oliver’—I hope it’s not too presumptuous that I called you my friend. We are friends, right? Of course we’re friends, what else would we be? It’s not like we’re exactly colleagues or anything—”

“Felicity.” He rests his hands on her shoulders, effectively halting her ramble, a tried and true tact. And if she happens to shift a bit closer to him as a result, well, who is he to stop her?

He likes this about them. That in this one, predictable way he can give her the same sense of quiet security she gives him.  

“Yes, we are friends,” he says, giving her a slight smile, the finality of the word friends sinking into his gut. After all, it’s like she said. What else could they be? She is so many leagues out of his league. He's t-ball, and she's the Seattle Mariners. He doesn’t even own a digital watch, much less a smart watch. What could she possibly want with a guy like him?

Clearing his throat, Oliver moves on, “And I don’t know if I’ve said this to you yet, but...thank you. I really do appreciate everything you’ve done to help me out here.”

“Really?” That tentative, searching look makes him want to pull her close and wrap her up in his arms. She only wears that look when she’s seeking approval. She wears it a lot around him. Though why she’s still aching for his approval is beyond him. She’s had his approval and more since that first rainy Sunday. 

“Yeah. Although I do have to ask…”

Felicity raises her eyebrows. 

“When did I start offering coupons?”

“Oh. Um...since last week?”

“Uh-huh,” he nods, not wanting to cave just yet but secretly pleased. It’s a smart ploy, even if it was never part of his original plan. So much of their relationship and business schemes are way outside the bounds of his original plans. And he’s a better person for it. 

Looking a little too pleased with herself, Felicity reaches into her pocket, pulls out a slip of memo pad paper, and hands it to him.

“What’s this?”

“It’s a list of all the computer science books you need to stock up on before the Starling University summer quarter starts up. There’s an Advanced Algorithms course that’s only offered once a year, and I have it on good authority that the college bookstore never carries enough textbooks. And let’s be honest, your computer science section is lacking. Pretty much all of your STEM material, actually.”

Oliver huffs a laugh. “What are you, my sales rep?”

“I could be.” She gives him a knowing look, telling him he can either waste time arguing with her about this or just accept the inevitable. 

And after altering all the basic mechanics of his store, what are a few additional books really going to do? 

“In the meantime, let’s see this little guy back to his proper home.” Felicity proceeds to extricate his paperback nemesis and saunter further down the narrow aisle, looking for the right Dewey Decimal destination. 

“I also think we should advertise at the grad school,” she calls over her shoulder.

“We?” he replies, following her down the aisle.

“Yeah, bring in some study groups. Do you know there is a perfectly good History and English Literature study hall that meets at the Starbucks around the corner, when they could be meeting here?”

“No. No. I don’t do study groups.” He’s caved on a lot of things, but there has to be a line somewhere. And so help him, if this is the hill he has to die on to preserve even one ounce of dignity, then so be it. 

“Since when?”

“Since always. Felicity, they’re a bunch of toddlers who leave scone crumbs all over the floor and never actually buy any books.”

Felicity just chuckles at him, and if he were in a better mood he might actually be able to enjoy the sweet sound. “Oliver, stop being such a grumpy old man.” 

“No, Felicity, I think—”

She’s already moving up the ladder before he can stop her. The rickety, unstable pile of firewood that technically qualifies as a ladder he’s been harassing Rene about pitching for months. Honestly, he’d all but forgotten it was still tucked away back here. 

While she makes her way up the rungs, Oliver latches onto the base, holding the ladder firmly in place. With an excruciating amount of restraint that he barely even knew he had in him, Oliver watches her heels lift up and settle on each rung, all the while discreetly avoiding a glance at her pencil skirt. Not even a peek.

The ladder shakes as Felicity engages in a wrestling match with the top shelf. “It. Won’t. Go. In,” she says through gritted teeth. Finally, on the third push, Felicity lets out a strong exhale of relief. After wiping her hands, she makes her descent. 

Like a hawk following its prey, Oliver keeps his gaze glued to her feet. Even so, he’s still not quite prepared when one of those black t-straps slips, throwing her off balance and tumbling straight into his arms. 

“Oliver!”

He catches her easily, pulling her soft frame snuggly against him. Felicity wastes no time in wrapping her arms tightly around his neck. “Hey, I gotcha. I gotcha.” 

Her head plops against his shoulder, her warm, rapid breaths tickling his neck. He tightens his own grip around her back and under her knees, as if to reassure himself that she’s alright. 

“You okay?” he finally asks.

Her only answer is to press her cheek more deeply into his shirt, her soft hair nuzzling against his jaw. He catches a faint whiff of her strawberry shortcake shampoo.  

“My hero,” she breathes without a trace of humor. 

I’m no hero, he wants to say. It’s his gut reaction any time a single mom commends him for his “Cool Books” section that finally got her teenage son to try a book of his own accord. As though selling books can compare with saving lives every day. His greatest risk comes in the form of avoiding papercuts. And rescuing toppling patrons apparently. 

Selfishly, he’s currently enjoying the feel of Felicity in his arms a little too much to be considered a hero. Can she feel his own racing heartbeat beneath her ear? 

He clears his throat but fails to put any real distance between them without releasing her. He’s not ready for that just yet. He’ll prolong the sweet agony for as long as physically possible. 

“Well, this is a bit compromising,” he admits. 

“Compromising?” She snickers, lifting her head, a spark of mirth shining behind her eyes that wasn’t there before. “What are you, a Jane Austen character?”

“Blame Thea. She made me read them. It was in our original founders’ agreement. I have the contract to prove it.”

If you’re going to own a bookstore, Ollie, then you have to know who Mr. Darcy is. It’s a requirement. Plus, it’s catnip for women. Nothing gets girls more excited than if you acknowledge the perfection of Jane Austen protagonists.

That knowledge has never served him until this moment. Until Felicity.

He still hasn’t liberated her, and she seems in no hurry to be free of him. His ego far too eagerly takes note of that. 

“Are you making an actual joke, Mr. Queen?” Her smile is contagious. “You know, if this were a novel, this would be the part where we would um…” She flushes, her gaze suddenly faltering to his mouth. 

His heart jumps to his throat, pounding with misguided hope. While he’s not an avid reader, despite his self-appointed line of work, he can read between the lines now. And he knows Felicity well enough to know that she only ever blushes over accidental innuendos.

She can’t really mean it. Can she?

“Where what?” he asks gruffly, not trusting himself to crave more than she is ready to give him, yet aching for a way to turn fiction into a reality, to give Felicity Smoak her happy ending. And maybe find his own in the process. 

She doesn’t pull away. She doesn’t correct her misstep. She just watches him with a strange and quiet expectancy. 

Oliver gently shifts his hold, bringing her a bit closer, leaning down to meet her. The tip of his nose brushes against hers, and when she lingers there with him, it’s all the invitation he needs…

“Hey, boss, we got a spill behind the counter!”

Felicity starts in his arms, and Oliver very nearly groans. Of all the times for Rene to interrupt him. The spill is probably minor. How many times does he need to remind his employees that if you make a mess, you should just clean it up yourself?

“Ollie?” calls Thea. Her voice comes from far too nearby for his comfort. It must be a real pickle if Rene’s managed to rope his sister into the ordeal. 

Reluctantly, Oliver loosens his grip on Felicity, and she slides right out of his arms with a graceful plop, returning their difference in height to its usual status. The top of her head aligning with the level of his heart. 

“I uh…” His entire vocabulary seems to have vacated his brain at present, leaving him feeling ten times more abashed than he was ten minutes ago. 

Felicity tucks a golden strand behind her ear, still dodging his regard with robust persistence. “Yeah, you should go...take care of that…”

He nods once, not that she notices. As he slowly turns to walk away, she stops him with a simple question. 

“Same time tomorrow?”

He really should not put much stock in the hope her voice carries. But he can’t seem to stifle the grin spreading over his face when he glances back over his shoulder. “Same time tomorrow.”

***

Thea pulls out a small chalkboard from under the counter, erases the number ‘1’ with her fist, and then writes a ‘2’ in its place. The sign now reads “12 Days Since Last Attempt To Date.”

Scowling, Oliver is almost too afraid to ask. “Thea...what is that?”

His sprite of a sister proudly places a hand on her hip. “This, dear brother, is a record of the number of days since you last tried asking Felicity out on a date.”

“What?” A flicker of panic rushes through him. What does she know? She can’t know about the almost-kiss. Besides, that wasn’t twelve days ago. Again, not that he’s keeping track. He opts for being as evasive as possible. “And when was the last time I supposedly did this?”

“That day you bought Big Belly Burger for the entire staff as a thank you for staying late to reorganize the science section. You gave Felicity the burger with extra pickles that mysteriously ended up in the bag—even though, last I checked, she does not work here.”

She gives him that pointed look, the one she usually wears when she’s guarding a straight. They really need to have a discussion about the merits of a refined poker face. 

“That wasn’t a date, Speedy.”

“Hence the word attempt.”

Oliver shakes his head, returning his focus to the monotonous task of counting the till. Where was he again? Oh yeah, the fives. Five, ten, fifteen, twenty, twenty-five…

Once he’s got that row tallied, he finally tells Thea, “Felicity and I...we’re just friends.” The words burn his throat. Felicity might think of him as nothing more than a chum, but after that near-kiss nestled behind the dusty stacks, Oliver has ceased lying to himself about his feelings, resigned to this new, unrequited reality. 

“Sure.” He can feel her eye roll. “Friends who just happen to spend all of their free time together and buy each other beverages and have inside jokes—”

His head snaps up. “We don’t have any inside jokes.”

“Really? Then how do you explain this?” Thea holds up the cassette player tape dispenser Felicity got him as a gag gift. He still has no idea where she stumbled upon the trinket. Using her internet prowess no doubt. 

Oliver snatches it out of Thea’s hands while purposefully searching for anything in need of repair, as if to justify its very existence. “Our old tape dispenser broke.” 

“Uh-huh. And what about that little emoji keychain you bought her? The one with the glasses on it?”

Oliver shrugs. “It just...reminded me of her, that’s all. It didn’t mean anything.”

Thea is clearly ready to keep arguing, but Rene wanders over with a pastry order for one of the offices across the street. For once in his life, Oliver is grateful for Rene’s keen ability to interfere with his private conversations and begins boxing up the order. His heart does a strange flip when he recognizes the usual list. 

Unfortunately, Thea remains undeterred. “Hey, Felicity works there, right? I’m sure you could swing by for a quick visit.”

“Thea.”

“Don’t ‘Thea’ me. This is a good idea! Just tell her you were in the building and wanted to see if she’s available to go out to dinner this weekend. Easy.” 

“I work on the weekends. You know that.”

“And you could schedule yourself some time off once in a while. You are the boss. Plus, you’ve built this place so that even Rene can practically run it with his eyes closed.”

Both Rene and Oliver shoot her a look. 

“Alright, I said practically.”

Rene grunts his agreement, stuffing the to-go box to the brim with chocolate chip muffins. “You know, she’s got a point. You could think of this delivery as a trial run. You bring the order across the street, while Thea and I monitor the store. If all goes well, then you might feel comfortable enough to take a more extended break in the future.” 

“You’re just trying to spend more alone time with my sister, aren’t you?”

Rene smiles, guilty as charged. “There’s no reason why we can’t both be winners here.”

Oliver sighs. “Thea?”

Thea chuckles, crossing her arms. “Don’t worry, Ollie, I can handle him.”

Still he hesitates, running his thumb back and forth over the box, the box he’s supposed to bring to her workplace. He has so much more riding on this than a mismanaged store in his absence.

“I’ll be back in twenty minutes. Do not burn down the store while I’m gone.”

***

“Ms. Smoak?”

“One second, Curtis. This alphanumeric algorithm isn’t going to crack itself.” Huddled in front of the monitor and nibbling on the remnants of a Twizzler, Felicity has been doing the digital tango for the last hour. 

“Well, I hope you get cracking in the next ten minutes, because Coffee and Coding is about to start.” 

“We have Coffee and Coding on Wednesdays,” she dismisses without tearing her gaze from the screen. 

“It is Wednesday,” says Curtis.

Felicity darts a glance at her IT Director, who just lifts his eyebrows in confirmation. Flustered, she pushes up her glasses. “But who ordered the pastries?”

“I did,” Curtis admits. “Don’t worry, I didn’t forget to call your favorite little coffee shop around the corner. Or across the street in this case. Can you believe they still don’t have online ordering?”

A pang of disappointment flutters through her. While it’s not much, Felicity has come to treasure her little Wednesday morning ritual, an easy excuse in her routine to spend more time with Oliver. 

Still, it’s not like they don’t see each other an ample amount of time during the week anyway. Though after The Incident a few days ago, things between them have been different, more uncertain than usual. He hasn’t been avoiding her exactly; he just seems a bit...distant. Like he’s carrying a secret he doesn’t know how to share yet. Takes one to know one. The mystery has been driving her crazy. 

She’s also been racking her brain for the perfect scenario to recreate that heated moment they shared after her Humpty Dumpty debacle. But the trouble is...as soon as she hints at the depth of her feelings, she’s going to have to tell him everything. 

Hey Oliver, so you know how you assumed that I was an Executive Assistant, and I never corrected you? Well, the thing is I’m actually more like the CEO of a product-pushing conglomerate that is slowly encroaching on everything you know and love. Do you want to go out sometime?

Ugh. A stealthy flirter she is not.

So maybe today’s mishap is for the best. A chance for her to rally some gumption and figure out how to phrase her affections while still salvaging their fledgling friendship. 

The workshop will likely provide plenty of opportunity to strategize. Denise tends to drone on and on about the benefits of heapsort every time it’s her turn to talk, so the redundant lecture will afford Felicity added time to do some real romantic brainstorming. 

Sufficiently mollified, Felicity pops up out of her chair and strolls towards the conference room. 

“The food just arrived,” says Jerry as soon as she’s outside her office. 

She stumbles to a halt, blinking at her executive assistant. He says it so casually, as though her entire, perfectly orchestrated little enterprise isn’t coming crumbling down around her by one bakery blunder. 

“What? Now? Here?” She’s pretty sure she’s having a stroke. Although her ability to remain upright negates that possibility. But what good is logic at a time like this? 

Of all the truth-telling scenarios she had running through her head, this was not one of them.  

This is why she never asked for delivery! Why she personally has placed and picked up every order.

Okay, no need to panic. This is no different than any of the other work-related conflicts she has resolved in the past. Of course, those were mostly software issues, but surely the skills are transferable. She’ll just have to insist that Rene not breathe a word of this to Oliver until she has a chance to talk to him later. This afternoon, in fact. She can come up with an adequate confession by then. 

That cursory idea gets zapped the moment she turns the corner and finds the apropos man of the hour waiting in the hallway. Oh frack. 

Every blessed thought evaporates straight out of her skull. Only one person on the planet has this effect on her. 

As though it’s been days and not mere hours since she’s seen him last, hungrily her eyes feast on every part of him, from his golden-brown hair with little flecks of gray that he likes to pretend aren’t there, to those broad shoulders and sturdy arms beneath that favored blue henley. She remembers far too well what it’s like being wrapped up in those arms, all snug and safe and wonderful.

Then she starts to catalog his overall uneasy demeanor, hands stuffed into his pockets, shoulders rigid with discomfort. 

Guilt pricks her heart. He looks a little lost. 

She tries to observe her office through his eyes. Surrounded by glass walls, open and exposed. Screens scrolling with tech lingo. Not a single paper product in sight or dusty nook to duck behind. Everything is quite literally the opposite of his usual environment. And it has never been more apparent how contrary their lives are. 

All this time, she’s been invading his world and never once has he stepped into hers. Because she wouldn’t invite him. Not until she was ready. She’s driven them to this precipice. Her little lie is the grain of sand slowly corrupting the motherboard, eroding their communication from the inside out. Some friend she is. 

And yet, him braving the unknown and everything he opposes just to come and see her has to mean something, right? 

“Should we wait for you?” asks Curtis.

Felicity shakes her head, keeping her focus on Oliver. “I’m not going to make the meeting.”

“Well in that case, can I have your muffin? Because you know I’ve been working out in the mornings, and my tummy is a rumblin’—”

“Curtis!”

“Okay. Okay.”

Footsteps retreat into the conference room, until at last the door closes, encasing them in peaceful silence. 

Swallowing, Felicity hedges closer to him, the clank of her heels echoing down the long hallway. “Hi,” she says when she’s standing just a foot away from him.

“Hi.” He’s looking at her in that soft, affable way of his, making her heart short-circuit. 

She has a masters degree in cyber security, and she’s taken many a profit-hungry board member to task, so why can’t she seem to come up with a better conversation starter than ‘hi’ ?

But Oliver, her sweet friend, saves her from her own awkward web of absurdity. “So...” he begins, nodding to the wall in between the elevators. The wall covered in bold, betraying letters Smoak Technologies. 

Oh crap on a cracker. He knows. Already. Duh, Felicity, he walked into your building, you know this. The man can read. What did you expect? 

Felicity slams her eyes shut and blurts, “I can explain.”

“You don’t have to explain.”

“I know it was wrong. And I hope you know that I would never want to take advantage of your friendship, and that my lying to you has nothing to do with you and everything to do with me. I was afraid that if you knew the truth that I would lose you—”

“Felicity, hey.” Oliver’s hands, solid and steady, grip her shoulders. She has no right to draw from his comforting warmth. “You’re not going to lose me.”

She licks her lips, daring to meet his gaze again. She’s startled to find those bright blue eyes looking back at her full of sympathy, absent of judgment. “Are you sure? Because I’m pretty sure I’ve broken every cardinal rule in the friendship book.”

His face softens. “I don’t care that you lied to me. I don’t. I care...that somehow I made you feel like you had to.” He sighs, his voice deepening to a near whisper. “Why didn’t you just tell me?”

Felicity fights a wince and loses. “Because I...I kind of liked not being a CEO for a few minutes a day? It was nice. Freeing. And I didn’t know how you would react to the fact that basically my entire livelihood stands for everything you hate—”

“I never said I hated it.”

Felicity tilts her head playfully. “No, you just loathe the mere suggestion of technological advancement.”  

Oliver chuckles. “Fair enough.”

“So you’re not mad?” 

As he shakes his head, relief and elation spill through her. 

Not for the first time, Felicity is grateful that her charming literary companion is truly a good person. And not just the kind of good where he’s friendly toward impatient customers or gracious with incompetent employees—although, he is that, too. But his integrity runs so much deeper; it’s the core of who he is. Modest and generous. Forgiving to a fault. 

Oliver fundamentally embodies all that her corporate associates do not. Is it any wonder she was so drawn to him from the very beginning? 

She may have ruined her chances for anything more than friendship to develop between them, but as long as he remains in her life, she’ll be happy. She can settle for cordial camaraderie. Besides, it won’t feel like settling with him. Not really. Not completely. At least, she’ll convince herself of that sooner or later. 

Oliver withdraws his hands, leaving an alarming coolness tingling on her arms. Instantly she misses his touch. 

She watches in puzzled silence as Oliver shifts his weight, clears his throat, and suddenly evades her look. He’s nervous, she realizes. How did she not notice sooner?

Because you’ve been a little too preoccupied with yourself, Felicity, that’s how. 

“Listen, Felicity…I came by because I was in the neighborhood. But I guess I’m always in the neighborhood. You don’t need to be told that.” 

Felicity bites her bottom lip to hold back a smile. He’s awfully cute when he’s flustered.

“I know I’m just an obsolete bookstore owner, with no degree, and you…” He glances around the hallway, as though the point he’s trying to make is engraved on the walls somewhere. 

“And I what?” she prompts, a sudden burst of panic flaring in her chest, more terrified than anything that he’s never going to finish that sentence.

Oliver studies the screens for a long time, his gaze finally coming to rest back on her, and what she sees there makes her want to hold on to him and never let go. “You’re going to change the world,” he says. “You’ve already changed mine. For the better, I might add. But, I don’t know, maybe our worlds are just too different.”

“But I don’t care about the differences, and I thought you didn’t either.”

“I don’t!”

Everyone in the conference room can probably hear their conversation by now, but that is a low priority issue. All she cares about is Oliver. 

“Okay, so then what are we arguing about?”

“Felicity…you should be with someone who deserves you, someone who won’t hold you back.”

“That’s what you came up here to tell me? Oliver, what I deserve is up to me.” 

He dodges her look again, and she can feel him retreating, feel the invisible barrier he’s erected between them. 

Not one to forfeit so easily, Felicity calmly sidles up to him and lays a bold hand on his chest, right over his heart. “Please, Oliver,” she whispers. “Ask me what you really came here for. Whatever it is, I’ll say yes.”

“Promise?” 

Her inability to read his face scares her more than anything. “Promise.”

He sighs, and an anxiously long time passes before he says, “Felicity, would you like to go camping?”

She starts. “What? You want to drag me out into the woods with your sister—”

“Thea will not be there.” 

“Oh.” Nibbling on the inside of her cheek, Felicity processes this information before it dawns on her. “Oh.”

Oliver nods faintly, as though he can hear the flurry of questions her heart is suddenly screaming. 

“Are you asking me out on a date? Like an actual date? Like a date...date?”

“I mean, the implication with me standing here…” He bobs his head around, like he can’t really decide whether to confirm or deny that. She’s really put the poor guy through the ringer today. 

“Or we could go hiking,” he suggests with a shrug. 

“Hiking?”

“Yeah, there’s a great trail about an hour north of the city. My dad and I used to go there all the time. There are waterfalls and plenty of wildlife.  I should warn you, though, that it’s near impossible to send or receive phone calls in our spot.” 

He wants to take her to his special haunt? Her heart twists with bittersweet excitement. She deceives him, and he rewards her by sharing yet another coveted piece of his history. 

How can this man think he’s not worthy of her? If anything, their situation is exactly reversed. What are gadgets and gizmos compared to goodwill and grandeur? 

With more boldness than she thought herself capable of, Felicity meticulously wraps her arms around Oliver’s waist, leaning her head way back to keep eye contact with him. “Well, Mr. Queen, that sounds perfect. So...am I forgiven?” she whispers, pinching her lips together.

His own lips twitch as he follows her movements and pulls her close. “Always.” 

***

“I like you like this,” Felicity tells him, following his lead down the winding, rocky trail, her hand snuggly wrapped around his. 

“Like what?”

“I don’t know, sort of Man Versus Wild.”

He laughs, a loud, rich melody that vibrates through the core of her being. 

She’ll admit she was curious to see what side of Oliver the great outdoors would bring forth, and reality did not disappoint. Out here, away from the chaotic noise and hustle and bustle, he seems so...free. Happy. Like he’s really alive for the first time. And she feels privileged that she’s the one he chose to let so close to him.

The perks of the great outdoors have surprised her, too. Not once has she missed the ding of her cell phone. 

They stop for a break on a small cliff ridge (small according to Oliver, anyway) overlooking a waterfall and a trickling stream. The views today have been glorious. All of the views, she thinks, sneaking a peek at the man beside her. 

Though he doesn’t turn, he squeezes her hand once, and there’s a slight flicker at the corner of his lips, acknowledging that he can feel her ogling him unabashedly. She gets to do that kind of thing now, though. 

“I’m thinking of closing the bookstore,” he admits, causing her to trip over a branch in shock. His grip steadies her, and then he motions towards a large rock. Once they’re sitting beside each other, he continues. “I’ll turn the business into a full-time bakery and cafe. It’s something I probably should’ve done a long time ago. You were right.” He glances her way, wearing a reluctant half-smile. 

Reeling, all Felicity can say is, “Are you sure?”

“I’m sure. You were right about the QR codes, too.” He leans in conspiratorially. “Our weekly customer traffic is up 25%, and the sales reflect that the majority of those purchases are from the coffeeshop. Just seems like the smartest decision.”

“But Oliver, don’t you love the bookshop side of things? Helping people find their next go-to read?” 

He shrugs. “Sure. But I love staying in business more.”

Felicity doesn’t understand it, but the thought of never smelling second-hand pages or stumbling over disarrayed book stacks sends a pang of longing through her. “Well, it sounds like you’ve given this a lot of thought.”

“I have,” he confirms. 

“But will it make you happy?”

He hesitates. “It’ll give me some stability to put Thea through college. That’ll make me happy.”

He’s so selfless, it breaks her heart a little every time she beholds that soft underbelly of his gentle nature. She wonders what other secret dreams he’s sacrificed over the years to provide for his sister and his employees. And maybe even for her. If she gets her wish, she plans to return the favor and help make his tucked-away dreams come true. First she has to discover what they are.

Shuffling closer, Felicity rests her head on his shoulder. “You know, I hate to break this to you, but bakeries are just as liable to collapse as bookstores. You can never fully predict the market, even in the most stable of economies.”

“I need information about what I don’t know,” he says in her ear. 

She perks up. “What about a compromise?”

“Compromise?”

“Yeah, it’s where two parties agree on a mutually desirable outcome.”

He chuckles, the hearty sound warming her down to her toes. “I know what a compromise is, Felicity. What did you have in mind?”

“Well, you’ll be happy to hear that I have converted the entire IT department over to the ways of Verdant-roasted coffee. We could make you the official sponsor of our weekly Coffee and Coding. Think of all the free advertising that will bring.”

“I don’t want any handouts, Felicity.”

“It’s not a handout if it’s good business,” she argues, pleased to see him giving it some genuine consideration. After a long time of companionable silence and sharing a water bottle, she says, “And if all else fails, there’s always the kindle route.”

She giggles at the dismissive look he shoots her before growing serious again. “Don’t give up, Oliver. Your little bookstore...it’s changed my life. You opened up my heart to ideas and worlds that I didn’t even know were possible.”

Pulse hammering in her throat, she wonders if he catches her accidental revelation, that the depth of her urgency has far less to do with treasured paperbacks than it does her utter dependency on him. 

“A compromise. It could work.” He nods to himself. “Speaking of…” He slips his hand into his back pocket. 

“What are you doing?”

Oliver pulls out a phone. A shiny, non-retrograde phone. 

Felicity gasps. “Since when do you have a smartphone?”

“Thea got it for me after she spilt a latte on my old phone. I’m choosing to believe it was an accident.”

“That is very sensible of you.”

“We could take a photo,” he suggests.

“You mean with the front-facing camera? That, my friend, is called a Selfie.”

He scowls. “I don’t think I’m ready to say that word. Baby steps.” After an arduously humorous struggle, with Felicity patiently helping him navigate all the buttons, Oliver finally manages to snap a photo or two or twelve. 

While she’s fairly certain the majority of the photos turn out blurry, they take an unnatural amount of fun in making ridiculous faces at the camera anyway. “Okay, you have to delete that one.” She points to a photo that paints her in a particularly unattractive light. 

Oliver studies the picture fondly. “Can’t. I don’t know how.”

“Here, then let me.” 

He holds the phone out of her reach. “Oh, so you can delete all of them?”

“Not all of them, just the ones that make me look bad.”

“Felicity…” he says her name as if it explains everything. And suddenly he’s not laughing anymore, though his eyes still carry a spark of secret amusement. “Let me have this keepsake.”

Keepsake. Such an old-fashioned word from this unconventional man. If Oliver were a book, he would be just like those scuffed up, intimidating volumes he’s always trying to convince novice readers to sample. Judged for his strange and rough exterior, yet guarding a mysterious sweetness and—more than he will admit—gooey epicenter. You just have to crack the spine and ruffle a few pages to get there. 

“Felicity…” Just the way he says her name makes her feel like she could do anything so long as he’s with her. 

He leans in just enough to let her know his intent, but stops halfway, leaving the final choice to her. What a gentleman he is. And like all the great heroines, Felicity doesn’t let him do all the work. She meets his kiss eagerly, pouring out in little touches what they’re both unsure to say out loud at this early stage.

But she knows it. Deep down in her bones, she knows she loves him. And she can feel his love in the way he responds. 

What a risk she’s taken, giving her heart to the most anti-technology human on planet earth. She has a feeling the dividends will be well worth it. 

***

Tag Team: @angelalafan / @austencello / @dust2dust34 / @emeraldoliverqueen​ / @hope-for-olicity​ / @mel-loves-all​ / @memcjo​ / @releaseurinhibitions​ / @scu11y22​ / @smoakqueenz​

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RocketBook Flip - a rare review and it’s not a game!

Before I go any further, I feel I must point out that I don’t have any financial connection to RocketBook whatsoever – this isn’t a piece that was requested or courted by RocketBook or affiliates and I’m not receiving any reward or sponsorship either in product or direct payment for this article. I just like the damn thing and love it when an innovative piece of tech (in this case quite low key) just works. Hi I’m Paul, and I have a bit of a problem with notebooks – A4 lined, sketch, reporters, Black & Reds (ohhhh the sheer number of B&Rs), goofy ones, serious work ones, battered ones, pristine ‘for best only’ ones – and they all fill at an alarming rate. I make notes on everything. Working as a sound engineer and designer, there’s always mix notes, soundscape plots, ideas, VO notes and scripts, SFX ideas etc etc. At home it’s a very different story – it’s much worse. Game notes; blog notes; hurriedly scribbled quiz questions spurred by watching another episode of Mental Floss’ 500 facts about cheese; RPG notes and story ideas; my own script writing; world building; sketches; other creative ideas; song/music notes and ideas; and that’s before we get to to-do lists; and the dreaded ‘things I must remember’. So my journal life is many, varied and plenty. The usual issue is… ‘what frakking journal did I put that amazing idea in????’, and that’s way before we get to the utter horror that is possibly losing a whole journal or forgetting to bring one home from work. I’m 53, I forget more than I recall, and journals help bring some semblance of order to a massively chaotic and fertile brain. What I’ve needed for a long time is some way of organising all this info or centralising it in some way. Sure I’ve looked at apps – I used Things, Evernote, Notes, and One Note for years, and they are really, really good, but they relied on either having a charged device exactly when I need it (yeah – me too) or net access, which for a new-ish theatre, is surprisingly a bit of an issue at work. And the most important part – I actually enjoy the physical act of handwriting long-hand. I still write actual physical letters to people, it’s adorable and a bit creepy in this age, but I call it charming and leave it at that. Handwriting, for me, allows me time to think and process in a way that typing just doesn’t. Handwriting is slower, I rarely cross anything out, and so I always have the whole of the thought. So what I’ve ideally wanted for years, was a reliable way of organising all my notes and storing them electronically so I have access even without the actual journal, with OCR so they’re editable, and still being a tactile handwritten experience. I’m naturally a sceptic (I actually subscribe to Fortean Times – yeah – I card carry!) and so online ads and particularly FaceAche ads are a field day for critical thinking triggers. I don’t think I’ve ever received from Wish, exactly what I ordered from Wish. And so when an ad from RocketBook constantly kept popping up on my timeline a few weeks ago, I was naturally “it’ll never work” But their website looked legit enough – they had a dedicated UK shop, it was relatively steep to buy in but not so wild that if it didn’t work I wouldn’t be crying too much about the money wasted, and at the end of the day it was a 10th the price of a ReMarkable 2 which is actually what I thought would solve my problem. I’m furloughed at the mo and though I could argue the case for £300+ notebook (test me, I could), I just couldn’t justify it now. And RocketBook had a good summer intro offer. I ordered on the Wednesday, and the impressively glitzy and graphic-design-playbook poly package was dropped on my doorstep just 2 days later by my cheery postie who yelled up the drive “Package for ya, looks very exciting!!!!” I like that our postal service is still invested in the hopes and dreams of their customers. It was exciting. All the instructions for getting started with my new Teal RocketBook A4 Flip were right there before you even open it. The main body houses the pad and a cleaning cloth, and a clever little side pocket houses the supplied Pilot Frixion pen.

RocketBooks come in several models, all configured slightly differently. I have the Flip which is a top spiral-bound softback pad with 21 double sided ‘pages’ giving 42 pages in total. The Flip has lined paper one side, and dot paper on the reverse (great for D&D maps, impromptu tables, mixer channel plots etc)

DELIVERY & FIRST IMPRESSIONS The pads are nicely made, with sturdy covers (available in some really nice colours too) and a solid, thick plastic ring binding. Initially, The RocketBook does feel a bit odd. Its ‘pages’ are actually a synthetic polyester blend and feel quite shiny to the touch. The sort of surface you just instantly feel is not going to be great for ink! Each page is edge-to-edge lined or dotted with a heavy black border. At the bottom is a prominent QR code used for scanning and some very feint icons. These 7 icons are the key to the ease of use of the RocketBook series. But more later.

THE APP

The pads work with a companion app, that is absolutely free and available for Apple & Android. In fact, RB even do downloadable printable pages so you can try the whole system absolutely free before you buy – I didn’t, I just bought one, y’know. The app allows you to set up your destination locations, your preferences and does the actual scanning. Just one quick note, I have the app on both my phone and iPad and had to set-up the app the same for both, there appears to be no way of swapping preference settings between devices, though I can see why this may be intentional.

Currently, the RocketBook allows you to choose from the following locations to send files to: GoogleDrive, box, EverNote, DropBox, slack, OneNote, iCloud, OneDrive as well as simply to an email (or multiple) addresses and iMessage. Impressively, these are not fixed either, so you could choose your 7 destinations to be 7 email addresses of team members. These 7 locations are the icons at the bottom of each page. To select a destination for your file, you just make a mark in that icon box (tick, circle, something unsavoury) and that page will be sent to whichever you select. This makes the system very flexible indeed as not every page is necessarily sent to every destination. You always decide every time you fill a page. Change your mind on a second revision? No problem, add or change icons at any time and re-upload.

There’s a really handy table on the inside front cover for you to note what icon sends what where. This is also wipeable, so can be changed anytime.

I have mine set by default to:

Rocket > main email address (either as PDF, JPG, OCR embedded or as separate txt file)

Diamond > GoogleDrive (you can specify exactly what folder too)

Apple > iMessage

Bell > OneNote

That actually still leaves me 3 spare: shamrock; star; and horseshoe.

The app took me maybe 20mins to set-up, that included decision time for destinations and setting up a few target folders. It also included a few ‘test firings’. I didn’t get everything right first time and a few things didn’t send, but crucially, a tiny bit of digging revealed very simple troubleshooting (including the aforementioned issue with no sync’ing of phone and iPad), and all in I was finding the files in all the right destinations within about 30 mins. The website, FAQs and community are immensely helpful with any other issues as well. I had a tiny issue with OneNote seeming to take ages to sync, but I think that’s an issue with my OneNote settings, everything else was almost instantaneous. You can also handily set the app to auto-send as soon as it scans, or allow for manual review.

CLEAN UP ON AISLE ROCKETPAD The main reason I wanted to look at the RocketBook was the issue of reusability. My journal shenanigans are by no means the biggest ecological disaster on the planet, but if we are to believe Tesco (who probably issue as many receipts at our local Tesco Express in a day as journals I’ve ever used), every little helps. If I could find an ecologically better solution, I should at least take a look. The RocketPads work by partnering with Pilot pens called Frixion. The really clever bit is RB’s paper technology and how it works with the Frixion ink. At present, the pads only work with the Frixion pens – except the RB Colour which works with Crayola’s dry-erase crayons. When you write on the ‘paper’ with a Frixion pen, it remains wet for a few seconds and then dries pretty quickly. There’s no smudging whatsoever in transit, which is pretty cool. From then on, it may as well be permanent, until you have transmitted your page and decide you don’t want the text anymore.  To wipe the page clean, you can dampen the supplied cloth and just wipe the surface clean, it’s weird but it works! But then damp cloth in your bag? So I use kitchen roll to dampen, then wipe dry with theirs. Others even have an adorably kitsch spray bottle in their kit. RB reckon if you are not going to use the pad for a few months, to clean the pages as the ink can get trickier to shift after a long time, but for day-to-day use, I’ve tried writing and wiping well over 20x and the page hasn’t become discoloured or tarnished at all. The only pad different in the range is the Wave which cleans by microwaving! Do NOT do this with any of the others, bad things will happen. The ink doesn’t take scrubbing or any time to come up, I clean my pages in about 10-15s. The page can feel a little tacky when it’s damp, but leave a minute or so and the page will be back to normal. RB do say that odd things can happen if the book is left near a heatsource or in a hot car, vis-à-vis, the ink can completely disappear horrifyingly enough. They say that putting the pen or the pad in the freezer for a little while will actually restore the ink, but I’ve not tried it yet so can’t confirm or deny how that goes. Handy for spies in hot countries though, so there’s another target market. If you are always going to send your pages to the same places, then don’t erase the marked icons, and the page is ready for new notes straight away, otherwise, scrub them too.

I CAN’T READ YOUR WRITING – ARE YOU A DOCTOR? Initially, the RB pads send their files as scans of the pages in high contrast monochrome (colour is available) when you snap the page in the app (which auto-frames for you and takes maybe 10s to capture). The formats are either as images or PDF. If that had been it, I would have been quite happy, but the RB pads have another trick up their sleeve. Firstly, they have a function called ‘Smart Titles’ which allows you to name your files directly from the page by writing a filename between double hashtags ie ## this is my scrawl 24/8/20 ## and the file will pop up in your destinations with the filename “this is my scrawl 24/08/20” – this is insanely handy – there’s no protocol except your own and the hashtags, and it makes your files super easy to search. You can even send groups of pages as a single PDF. But the notebooks go even further. They actually offer full searchable OCR which the app can be set to send embedded in the PDF or image, or more usefully, as a companion separate .txt file. Now, my handwriting isn’t the neatest, but it’s not bad so I was prepared for some editing to be necessary, but impressively again, the OCR was about 90-95% accurate. In a page of text it missed maybe 3 or 4 words and even those not badly. This is all considering their full OCR is still only in beta! It gets confused with diagrams on the page, but that’s to be expected.

Text Generated by OCR: ## Blog post och test Aug 2020 ## This is a little demonstration of the OCR capabilities of the Rocket Book pads and app. I've told the lovely people that the hit rate is about 90-95% so please dant let me down here flip pad. Hopefully the file name will also prove another point further up in the section and not make me look like some charlatan or snake-oil salesman.Hope you enjoyed this demonstrahen, now go away and leave me to write the next great novella.Bye!

HOW MUCH? On average, I pay anywhere from £4-8 for a decent A4 notebook/journal, so at £30-37 (dependent on model), the RocketBook pads are not a whim purchase. That said, I get through a lot of journals in a year, and given that I would expect to easily get 2-3 years out of a RocketBook pad, then I’ve saved money. Will it replace all my notebooks? No. You need to be thinking of carrying this round as a kit: pad, Frixion pen (at least 2), and cloth.  RB do a series of portfolio sleeves for the pads but it does push the price up a bit still, but for a rep, engineer or salesperson, this still makes sense. They’re less bulky than a normal A4 pad too. What I would say is Tesco and Sainsbury’s currently stock Frixion pens and at much better prices than buying them from RB directly, I just paid £3 for 3 pens on offer at Tesco compared to £10 from RB. You get one pen with the pad, but you’re going to want more soon, so stock up next time you’re shopping for truffle oil crisps. If you use whiteboards a lot, RB also have you covered. Instead of the pad, £16 will get you a 4 pack of ‘beacons’ – little self-adhesive triangles that effectively do the same thing as the QR code in the pad. You don’t have the icon options obviously, but if you’re looking to distribute quick meeting or group notes, this would be a boon. CONCLUSION Considering this was a fairly speculative purchase on my part, my early experiences with the RocketBook Flip have been really impressive. The flexibility, the ability to store every page in a different location if you really wanted to make it fantastic for organising my notes, which can save me hours of finding the right ^^$&^$&$ notebook in the first place, then scouring that for the one paragraph I was looking for etc etc. The searchable text facility, in-app history for re-sending etc and last but no way least, functional handwriting OCR, makes the RocketBook not only novel, but actually useable! Would I buy another? As a second notebook – yes. I look forward to seeing what the actual longevity of the product is once I come off furlough and start cramming my day bag with all my junk and a notepad again, but yes, I’d probably just have one at home, and one for work, but make the last 5 mins of each day, scanning and sending work notes so I have them with me wherever. Impressively, the RocketBook Flip just works and it works well. ‘Er Across The Table has already sold several folk at her work on the idea and she doesn’t even have one herself yet! I love it. It’s taking a little adjusting to, but it’s all good. The most important thing though is the writing experience, and I have to say, the combination of the Frixion pen/ink and the polymer technology of the Flip, again, just works. It’s smooth, doesn’t skip or smudge for me (I know some right to left users and left handers have reported some issues) and feels great to write on. If anything I have to slow down a bit as the contact is so smooth that your writing can get a bit ahead of you! RocketBook have produced a cracker of a product. It might not seem like much, but if practical working journals are your thing (ie not create and keep things) then I can highly recommend the RocketBook series.

[kseniasobchakxox]

2020’S Best CBD Pain Creams & Topicals

2020’S Best CBD Pain Creams & Topicals

Nowadays, CBD merchandise can be found all over our culture. Since President Trump signed the 2018 Farm Bill, it has been legal to buy and sell industrial hemp throughout the United States. After all, CBD that stems from hemp is not the same as marijuana derived CBD. While each product comes from cannabis, hemp has less than 0.3% THC, which is not enough to give a person the euphoric high often associated with mary jane. Yet, CBD items, such as creams and topicals made from hemp still allows folks to manage their stress, relaxing their minds and bodies.

“No pain, no gain,” right? No, not anymore. Now what we are in a new decade, there is no reason that men and women cannot or should not take full advantage of the top CBD creams and topicals to comfort any and all suffering. Whether you have been exercising for hours or your body is just getting stiff from sitting on the sofa for too long, the best CBD pain cream available can be a lifesaver when it comes to eliminating soreness.

Not only can the powerful pain cream put an aching body at ease, but CBD also helps people manage everyday stressors, from dealing with unruly children and traffic jams on the highway to handling rude customers and ungrateful coworkers. Every day, various CBD products are helping individuals through long days at the office when keeping a positive frame of mind is often easier said than done. Fortunately, depending on the top CBD cream can make all the difference in the world.

To get the most out of calming CBD cream for pain, you simply apply it whenever necessary to a broken bone or an arthritis-stricken hip. The time of day the cream is put on makes no difference, whether it is after your morning shower, during your lunch break or when you climb into bed. Regardless of the time of day or the last time you ate, CBD pain cream is exceptionally soothing.

1 Just CBD Pain Cream

Since opening their doors for business back in 2017, JustCBD has grown into the most recognized provider of powerful CBD products for sale, including the best CBD cream for pain. Operating out of the Fort Lauderdale area in South Florida, the company has a top notch reputation for selling the most effective CBD treats for the lowest prices. At the same time, the staff is known for being open and honest with both their long-term customers and potential buyers. According to countless reviews found on the internet, JustCBD representatives are continually polite, while making knowledgeable and helpful suggestions.

Made with nothing but the finest natural oils supplied by Mother Earth, including aloe and comforting coconut oil. the cream is completely organic. Ensuring those with skin or smell sensitivities can take advantage of the Just CBD cream, there are no fragrances added. Now available in 100 mg and 250 mg containers for $20 and $40 respectively, JustCBD Pain Cream is said to be the most soothing ointment on the market. In fact, it’s the cream of the crop.

Just CBD also sells cooling CBD Roll-On cream for fast pain relief in 200 mg and 350 mg options for around $40 and $48 respectively. After applying the top CBD cream for pain onto your skin, it immediately increases blood flow to all applied areas. This affect can be marvelous for helping ease tension throughout the body. The minty scent and icy sensation released by the roller ball helps a person feel totally revitalized, while a user’s frame of mind will become completely laid back.

On top of the best CBD oil cream for pain, JustCBD is known to sell everything from the top gummies and oil tinctures to vape pens and bath bombs. A buyer can even pick up some yummy CBD treats for dogs and cats. All of Just CBD’s hemp-based merchandise is made in the U.S. and ships around the world. That means the cannabis doesn’t have enough THC to give a user a psychoactive high. Too bad the THC-rich CBD goodies that stem from marijuana can’t say the same. Meanwhile, everything created and sold at JustCBD is laboratory tested to ensure consumer safety.

Check out Just CBD Pain Cream today.

2 Charlotte’s Web Hemp Infused Topical Cream

Besides JustCBD, Charlotte’s Web is perhaps the most popular company that sells cannabidiol goods. Offering merchandise grown and sold in Boulder, Colorado, Charlotte’s Web offers full spectrum hemp infused cream created with a nourishing extract that includes vitamin B5, aloe and coconut oil. Buyers can choose between the Soothing Scent and Unscented hemp infused cream.

Both men and women tend to like the Charlotte’s Web hemp infused cream. It seems to be great at softening itchy skin. Yet, Charlotte’s Web’s topical feels extremely thick compared to more oil based lotions people use on their hands and feet. Some folks think it is too thick and greasy because it takes a while to dry. After 45 minutes or so, rough and dry patches feel nice and smooth. Skin then stays nice and soft for hours at a time. Even aching feet become manageable. Reviews on the web also claim that the hemp infused cream has a faint, but pleasurable smell. Both men and women appreciate that it doesn’t possess a menthol scent, unlike many topical creams out there.

A 2.5 oz tube 750 mg of hemp extract sells for $49.99 on the Charlotte’s Web business website. Each tube has 300 mg of hemp per oz. The site says that everything it sells is laboratory tested. However, consumers like me can’t find any info on such testing. Is it done in-house or sent out to a third party lab? Of course, curious buyers can always call their phone number or submit an email, but who has the time or patience? Buyers have to use the batch numbers on their products to gain online entry to such information. But that access only comes with a purchase. Doh! Why doesn’t Charlotte’s Web share the lab results on the packaging or the internet?

3 PureKana Topical CBD Ointment

Another leader in the CBD industry is PureKana. Located in Scottsdale, Arizona, the company has been around since 2017. They made a name for themselves selling potent oil tinctures grown on farms in Kentucky. Pure Kana’s original mission was to help men and women, including senior citizens, cope with all the stressors of their daily lives. Today, the goal of PureKana’s topical ointment is to get into a person’s skin to give a hydrating, refreshing feeling.

Supposedly, the CBD product successfully moisturizes and rejuvenates users’ skin, in addition to enhancing its elasticity and inner-cell walls. Redness and inflammation can be significantly decreased. Buyers claim it is convenient and easy to use too. I particularly like the fact that PureKana only uses organically grown hemp from the U.S. Pure Kana then uses their own technology and CO2 in its extraction process to make their CBD ointment with a precise amount of THC. Apparently, there are no toxins, like fertilizers and pesticides, in their CBD goodies. It’s also cool that everything is tested in a third party laboratory.

A 3.4 oz bottle of Pure Kana topical ointment with 600 mg of CBD sells on the internet for $80. Personally, I like the fact that Pure Kana only works with certified companies, and that everything they sell is tested at a third party laboratory. Online customers appreciate the 30 day satisfaction guarantee. Consumer feedback likes the fact that anyone can see certificates and laboratory reports on the business website. It looks like PureKana meets all of the government’s requirements and industry standards. Of course, there are a few negative opinions too. Some buyers feel Pure Kana’s topical isn’t as effective as many of its competitors, especially for its high price. Users have even complained about figuring out the right amount of ointment they are supposed to apply to their skin.

4 Green Roads Topical Creams

Headquartered in Deerfield Beach, Florida, Green Roads has operated as a successful family business since 2013. It all began when a pharmacist, Laura Baldwin Fuentes went on a mission to create a cure for a friend’s addition to opiates, not to be confused with opioids. Her mission was a success and she now works as CEO of Green Roads. A wide variety of the award winning company’s broad spectrum formulas are now found in doctors’ offices, fitness centers, yoga studios and retail shops across the nation. Consumers can also shop for Green Roads’ topical cream on the internet.

Some of the selling points for Green Road’s creams is that they are all made from non GMO hemp that is grown in the U.S. I also like Green Roads’ undeniable transparency, as they share plenty of information about its modern extraction process on their website. A visitor like me experiences no trouble finding important information, including QR codes that link to online lab reports from a third party, on each of their CBD products for sale. In fact, a visitor can find lab sheets to go with all of the merchandise. At the same time, everything is tested by a third party. The biggest problem for Green Roads’ topicals seems to be the high prices. Folks have also complained about rude customer service representatives and poor packaging.

A buyer can choose from Green Roads’ 150 mg and 300 mg in 1 oz containers of Soothing CBD Topical pain cream for about $35 and $63 respectively. While the pieces of CBD are a bit expensive, there’s simply not enough “bang for your buck” there. At least Green Roads guarantees their retail goods. They also sell CBD infused Muscle & Joint Heat Relief Cream with 250 mg and 500 mg of CBD for about $49 and $70 respectively.

5 Lord Jones High CBD Formula Body Lotion

Lord Jones High Formula Body Lotion from Southern California has been marketing their CBD merchandise as deluxe and classy since 2016. The hemp-derived lotion is supposedly rich enough to fight off redness in both dry and oily skin. Made by a knowledgeable team of professionals, Lord Jones’ CBD Body Lotion is made with broad spectrum CBD oil. Besides soothing CBD, the ingredients include vitamin-rich shea butter and zero gluten or alcohol. The body lotion is also vegan. A buyer can relax knowing that every ointment sold by Lord Jones is created in the United States and lab tested.

It is meant for individuals to hydrate dry skin, whether it is in the palms of their hands, on their bellies or the bottom of their feet after wearing high heels all day. According to feedback on the web, it allegedly helps skin get back to normal after baking in the sun for hours and even fights off painful cuticles. People appreciate the Lord Jones cream for minimizing small pains of irritated skin at the heels of their feet. You know, the aches that sink in after you’ve been standing up all day. Individuals rub the lotion and it feels like Lidocaine with a damp odor. That’s why some folks claim to use it for neck pain as well. As far as negative critiques for Lord Jones’ CBD body lotion, internet reviews discuss its ineffectiveness for deep tissue pain.

A 1.69 oz bottle of Lord Jones High Formula Body Lotion with 50 ml of CBD costs $60. Every pump releases 1 ml of lotion carrying 2 mg of CBD. A buyer can choose the fragrance free or the signature fragrance with hints of sage, mint and green citrus. It may be chic, but folks end up spending big money on nothing more than a mediocre product with extravagant packaging.

6 Fab CBD Topical CBD Cream

Located in Tampa with offices in the U.K., Fab CBD has been earning a name for themselves in the completive cannabidiol business since 2018. As a team, they have a combined 25 years of experience in the health, fitness and supplement industries. Their CBD pain cream is produced with full spectrum hemp extract to minimize joint and muscle pain. Everything is created naturally on a farm in Colorado.

The Fab CBD website has plenty of good information. It contains all the data that a potential or repeat buyer would search for. I also like the content on Fab CBD’s business site, as you’d expect from a company that only sells three products, its CBD topical cream, edibles and tincture oil. Rather than trying to impress readers with scientific lingo and big words that are hard to follow, it feels like the writer is just telling me the information I am curious about. A visitor can easily click on a photo of the label to read all the ingredients, from aloe vera leaf extract and vitamin E to CO2 extracted hemp oil. The site also has plenty of photos shared by real buyers. I like that. It makes the CBD merchandise feel real, as I see people like me using the pain cream.

A 2 oz container with 600 mg of CBD oil runs for $49, and the only flavor I could find on their site is Fresh. At least its organic. According to their website, the cream is three times stronger than the average cream for pain relief. I don’t think so. The site also claims the topical ointment has a shelf life of 365 days, as long as you keep it unopened and away from extreme heat, cold and moisture. Again, I wouldn’t trust any cream in a jar that can be left open for 12 months.

7 Premium Jane Topicals

Since opening their doors in Los Angeles back in 2018, Premium Jane has become one of the major players in the CBD game. Using hemp from Oregon farms and operating out of Arizona, Premium Jane now stocks a large supply of CBD oils, CBD capsules, CBD gummies and CBD bath bombs, along with topicals. The CBD topicals are meant to be massaged into the skin. By doing so, you are administering the CBD in a fast and effective way, and you never have to worry about the pain cream being exposed to your digestive system.

As an avid shopper of CBD goodies, I know how to spot quality merchandise. For instance, I appreciate that everything sold by Premium Jane made is with various parts of the hemp plant. Sometimes it is the leaves and stalk, while other times it is the flower. That’s why the color of the cream sometimes varies. Who cares, as long as the moisturizing components assist with ongoing hydration for a user’s dry and/or damaged skin? You can rest assured that there are no fertilizers or pesticides in the cream.

There are two CBD creams for sale on Premium Jane’s business website. First, the 1500 mg of Cocoa Butter CBD Topical Salve is priced at $125, while the 750 mg of Eucalyptus cream runs for $75. The prices are not as high as Green Roads or Lord Jones, but the praise isn’t as consistent as Just CBD. It’s too bad that I couldn’t find much customer feedback on Premium Topicals. But that’s to be expected from any new company, whether they are selling powerful CBD ointments, athletic shoes or pogo sticks. At least consumers can feel safe knowing that everything is tested for both quality and safety at ProVerde Labs. In fact, there are laboratory results posted on the business website.

8 CBDfx CBD Topical Creams

CBDfx can already be considered veterans of the game, as the Southern California company has been in business since 2015. Selling natural hemp grown in the United States, they stock everything from CBD vape juice, gummies, drinks, waxes and tinctures to CBD treats for pets and topical creams. It is all produced on modern farms in Kentucky with their own line of CBD oil. All of CBDfx’s creams are meant to prolong the life of amino acids and natural vitamins in a user’s skin.

CBDfx markets their recognizable cannabidiol creams as pharmacist formulated, thanks to the inventor’s previous profession. I was immediately eerie because the last thing I want in my CBD merchandise is pharmaceuticals. Upon further investigation I realized that the topicals are made with quality CO2 extracted CBD, along with other organic ingredients, like plant derived caffeine to stimulate blood flow for faster results. The white willow bark extract acts as an anti-inflammatory. There is also menthol extracted from the mint plant that can dull irritated skin, while leaving a faint but refreshing menthol smell. Supposedly, the ointment moisturizes and nourishes the skin without making it greasy.

The price of CBDfx topicals are rather reasonable. A 50 ml bottle (1.7 oz) with 150 mg of full spectrum CBD is $39.99 online, and a 30 ml (1 oz) bottle of 100 mg full spectrum CBD is $29.99. Consumers appreciate CBDfx’s quality customer service, as well as their wide range of products that ship free anywhere in the nation. The harshest feedback that people can read on the internet is that CBDfx’s topicals only last 3 hours or so at a time, but the company instructs users to apply it every 4 to 6 hours. Why even bother when you can just buy a CBD topical that actually works for 5 hours or more.

9 Highland Pharms CBD Therapy+ Hemp Lotion and Cream

Despite the name, Highland Pharms’ CBD Therapy+ Hemp Lotion is made with natural ingredients. So why do they use the word “Pharm” in the title? It’s to stress the point that is uses rather high levels of CBD. Okay, whatever works. Apparently, something is working, considering Highland Pharms has been in business since 2015. With retail locations in the state of Washington, the company uses nothing but organically grown hemp from Colorado. Supposedly, all of Highland Pharms’ CBD goodies are extremely strong, thanks to their own hemp extract.

As a consumer, I was a bit bothered by the thought of purchasing CBD lotion with pharmaceuticals in it. But I quickly got over it. Then the big problem was finding information on the product. If there are no pharmaceuticals, then what is the CBD Cream made of? I consider myself pretty handy with Google, but I still couldn’t find any information online to show me that the lotion it is not a pharmaceutical medicine. Also, all of the little misspellings on their business website annoyed a writer like me. My professors would have a fit if they ever read the Highland Pharms site. At least all of their CBD cream is professionally tested for heavy metals or potentially harmful pesticides by ProVerde. This allows buyers to feel safe, unlike when they purchase CBD goods from China, if not a stranger on eBay.

A 2 oz jar of Highland Pharms CBD Therapy+ Hemp Cream with 100 mg sells for about $40 on the internet. 200 mg of the CBD Therapy+ Cream is almost $60. Meanwhile, a 4 oz bottle of Therapy+ Extra Hemp Lotion with 400 mg of CBD costs $59.95, and an 8 oz bottle with 800 mg of CBD is $89.95. Ouch! From everything I could find, Highland Pharms CBD lotions and creams simply do not justify paying such high prices.

10 cbdMD CBD Topicals

Sticking the same pharmaceutical-like name that I don’t care for, cbdMD CBD has been operating out of Charlotte, North Carolina since 2019. Before picking the ideal location to build their plant, they visited 14 different countries on three continents before choosing the best climate for growing hemp twelve months a year. cbdMD’s hemp-derived Revive CBD Topicals are now available in three different types. Everything is vegan, non GMO and are created with broad spectrum CBD containing no THC whatsoever. Various sizes of cbdMD’s comes in either a tub or a squeeze bottle.

For starters, there is cbdMD’s Recover inflammation formula, along with CBD Freeze rollers and squeeze bottles. The CBD Revive Squeeze is a thick moisturizing lotion that is made with organic material, such as aloe vera and coconut oil, that is great for dry, inflamed skin. Reducing redness and swelling, CBD Revive can be used on things like burns, bruises and irritated skin, but not on open sores. cbdMD’s CBD Revive Squeeze is available in three different strengths, 300 mg in a 2 oz bottle for $29.99, while both the $69.99 750 mg and $99.99 1500 mg are available in a 4 oz container. What I appreciate about cbdMD’s products is their natural ingredients, including acai berry, rice bran, and shea butter.

Online feedback mentions that the creams take only 5 to 10 minutes to moisturize the skin and can last up to 6 hours at a time. The smell has hints of cinnamon, peppermint and citrus. Buyers also mention that cbdMD’s goods are neither thick nor greasy. Everything is grown in the U.S. and third party tested for quality. Unfortunately for cbdMD, the internet is packed with negative reviews. Customers complain about various problems, including ineffective merchandise, rude customer service reps, lost Fed Ex packages that will not be refunded and receiving items without batch numbers.

Want to know more about the top CBD pain creams? Discover some of the most frequently asked questions…

IS IT LEGAL TO BUY CBD CREAM FOR PAIN?

Yes, it is now 100% legal to purchase CBD pain cream in all 50 United States, thanks to the 2018 federal Farm Bill. A consumer just has to make sure that his or her CBD goods stem from hemp, as opposed to marijuana. By definition, hemp has a THC level of 0.3% or less. On the other hand, mary jane contains more THC, enough to give a user the psychoactive high that most folks associate with pot. That’s exactly why CBD from marijuana isn’t legal across the nation, as opposed to hemp products, which are known to be smarter and safer for users.

WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF CBD CREAM?

To begin, CBD is a strong antioxidant. That means CBD cream can protect skin from free radicals and UV rays that cause both aging and illness. At the same time, CBD can interact with the cannabinoid receptors in a person’s skin to help the healing process. In other words, CBD can be rather effective in managing everything from dry skin and acne to daily stressors. Hemp derived CBD topicals consist of several nutrients, including vitamins, minerals, fatty acids and protein that assist with repairing damaging skin. Oil production then becomes restricted, leaving skin feeling nice and tight, as well as soft and smooth.

IS EVERY CBD PAIN CREAM ON THE MARKET THE SAME?

No, all of the different CBD products for sale, including pain creams and topicals, are not created equal. For starters, a buyer must depend on CBD merchandise that is made domestically in the United States and laboratory tested. If not, you could end up paying big money for a useless lotion that won’t do anything but make your skin greasy. It may help for consumers to read different reviews, articles and blogs online related to the best CBD goods available. Remember, just because an item works well for one buyer, it may not have the same positive affect on your skin.

WHAT’S THE SMARTEST WAY TO GET CBD EVERYDAY?

There is no one “best way to take CBD,” as every individual’s system is different. CBD merchandise that works wonderfully on one person may be completely ineffective on another. That’s why it is always important to experiment. There are literally countless individuals who rely on various CBD products on a daily basis, including gummies, vape oil pens, bath bombs, tinctures and more. While one guy may like using a 350 mg CBD roll on, his neighbor may prefer applying a 250 mg CBD infused pain cream to get rid of soreness and achy skin.

WHAT SHOULD YOU SEARCH FOR WHEN BUYING CBD PAIN CREAM?

When the time comes to purchase real CBD cream for pain, it is always smart to know what to look for. For starters, make sure your safety is covered by confirming the CBD product is laboratory tested and made in the U.S. Then you can read labels to make sure every ingredient is organic. When it comes to purity, effectiveness and potency, many buyers read professional blogs, along with customer feedback on the web to figure out the top CBD pain creams that are now available.

HOW DO I CHOOSE THE RIGHT CBD CREAM FOR PAIN?

When looking to buy CBD pain cream, it is wise to know what you are looking for, like how many milligrams of CBD you want in your product. If you are a first time user of CBD goods, it is best to start out slowly. You can try 100 mg of CBD infused pain cream and work your way up to a stronger option, such as 250 mg of CBD. A consumer can also use a CBD roll on, whether it is a 200 mg or a 350 mg option.

HOW MUCH CBD PAIN CREAM SHOULD I USE?

While there is no one ideal dose, it is recommended that a first time user starts off slowly by applying a little CBD pain cream anywhere on his or her body. It is suggested that people place a little amount, half the size of a nickel, to the sore or dry parts of their skin. Then they should thoroughly simply rub it in with their fingertips and wash their hands. The CBD skin cream can be reapplied whenever necessary. To figure out exactly how much CBD cream and how often to apply it to your skin, it is always best to rely on a little trial and error.

WHERE SHOULD I APPLY CBD PAIN CREAM?

Cannabis has been used to manage painful skin conditions around the world for centuries. Today, all types of CBD creams, lotions, ointments and salves are applied directly to painful and problematic area of people’s skin. Unlike CBD gummies, protein bars and other edibles, you should never put the cream in your mouth. Thankfully, applying the topicals directly to damaged skin causes the CBD to be absorbed incredibly fast. The best CBD products have multiple uses, such as helping with muscle pain, joint swelling, inflammatory skin conditions, psoriasis, dermatitis, rashes and bacterial infections.

CAN I USE CBD PAIN CREAM ON MY FACE?

Yes, a person can use CBD cream on his or her face. High quality CBD cream is created to hydrate dry and sensitive skin, regardless of what part of the body it is used on. The top CBD creams for pain relief can help with everything from burns and irritations to itchy rashes and bug bites. Whether it is after a man shaves or when a woman returns from tanning at the beach, simply apply a small amount the targeted area on the face and add more CBD cream when needed. Don’t worry, it’s not like you can overdose on legal CBD cream.

DO CBD PAIN CREAMS HAVE SIDE EFFECTS?

Like all CBD products, the pain creams are generally safe for the human body and any side effects are minimal. The CBD merchandise contains a small amount of THC, but not enough to make a person feel high. Of course, it is still wise to test a little bit of the CBD cream on your skin before applying a hefty amount. Although rare, allergic reactions have occurred from time to time. Even if someone does experience an allergic reaction, it may not be from the cannabinoids. Rather, some CBD pain creams possess additives that cause unwanted reactions to the skin. As long as your CBD is completely organic, you shouldn’t have any problems using it on your skin.

DOES CBD PAIN CREAM HAVE TO BE LABORATORY TESTED?

Yes, it is very important that you only buy CBD pain cream that has undergone third party laboratory testing. The overall quality of different CBD products often varies. One retailer may only sell the best CBD merchandise, while another vendor can simply dress up cheap lotion in fancy packaging. One’s overall safety can even become a concern, as there are no government regulations. That is why it is so important that you only buy quality CBD goods with third party testing and their ingredients listed. Simply by reading online reviews, you should be able to tell which companies are reliable.

DOES HEMP DERIVED CBD HAVE THE SAME EFFECTS AS CBD FROM MARIJUANA?

No, hemp derived CBD is not the same as CBD from marijuana, even if they both come from the cannabis plant. By definition, marijuana has at least 0.3% THC, and hemp contains less than 0.3%. That means there is not enough THC in hemp to intoxicate users or to give them the psychoactive high that is commonly used for recreational purposes. In other words, you can enjoy the same marvelous benefits of marijuana without impairing your mind or body. Cheech and Chong may not think it’s cool, but using CBD products from hemp is a win-win.

CAN CBD PAIN CREAM SHOW UP IN A DRUG TEST?

While it is unlikely, there is always a possibility that CBD will appear on a drug test, whether it is from a skin cream, an edible or a vape pen. A majority of employers only test for marijuana, rather than CBD. While they both stem from the same cannabis plant, only marijuana has enough THC to make a user high. Regardless if the test is performed on your hair, mouth or urine, you may want to use caution if you may be subject to any type of drug test. Even the smoothest skin imageable can be a disappointment when you’re standing on the unemployment line.

HOW MANY DAYS WILL CBD STAY IN A USER’S BLOOD?

Generally speaking, CBD stays in a person’s blood for five or six days. It doesn’t make much of a difference if the CBD is rubbed into the body as a skin cream, through an oil tincture, vaporizer or as an edible, it all gets flushed out in roughly the same amount of time. Keep in mind that time can increase all the way up to ten days for regular users of CBD products. Still, the time that CBD can be seen in your system is minimal when compared to marijuana that can last about 30 days at a time.

[digitalcouponsolution2-blog]

Bang for the Buck With Mobile Coupons

Digital Coupon Solution

Mobile has surfaced on the scene quicker than any other brand new medium within the previous 90 years and mobile coupons would be the category to watch.

Mobile Coupons

Mobile voucher are, permission based promotions where merchants send electronic vouchers to some subscribers' mobile phones. Unlike other kinds of electronic couponing (email / internet ) mobile coupons are read immediately using a 95 percent read rate. Mobile coupons might be sent at a verity of electronic forms, such as QR or information matrix barcodes, Universal Product Code (UPC), or via special coupon code. The vouchers can then be redeemed through particular barcode scanners that read them or simply by inputting the exceptional number into a relevant website or a point-of-sale (POS) machine that prints out a newspaper coupon. Typically with small businesses the customer is required to just showing the coupon in a retail outlet or restaurant to redeem the voucher.

Mobile Coupon System

Advantages of Mobile Coupons vs Classic Coupon

Mobile vouchers (m-coupons) are considerably more effective in both delivery and cost than paper coupons. ) Using newspapers and coupon books delivered via the U.S. mail don't provide any direct link between your business and the person who uses the coupon. A legitimate mobile coupon campaign is permission based, yet another words, there is an immediate connection between your business offering the mobile coupon and the person choosing to use it. Thus, promotions and advertising using mobile coupons have a higher value and offer a direct link to the person with the coupons. Because of this cellular coupon promotions result in a fantastic loyalty program.

In contrast, paper coupons cost anywhere between $0.25 and $0.40 per mailed coupon, with typical redemption rates of around 1-3 percent, according to Frost & Sullivan, a market research company. Based on Frost & Sullivan, effective m-coupon solutions may benefit from high redemption rates. Email coupons possess a redemption rate of 8% but lack the instant open speed of M-Coupons. For instance, in August we launched a multi-channel campaign with Amigos Tex-Mex Restaurant which resulted in 24% redemption rate or 109 guests exude the m-coupon, also through a'refer a friend campaign" we included an extra 70 new subscribers throughout the 30 day campaign. A&P supermarket chained launched a m-coupon campaign with double digit redemptions prices and recently iHOP's m-coupon redemption hit 12% according to Mobile Commence Daily.

Business ROI

"For businesses, m-coupons supply a great ROI," said Peter Conti, junior executive vice president at Borrell Associates, Richmond, VA."Redemption prices are 10 times that of email - or newspaper - distributed vouchers. Small companies are adapting to the cellular channel because it's cost effective and drives results. By way of example,traffics been a messenger recently, you can invent and execute a m-coupon advertising in a matter of moments (no printer or mailer required) and should you consider 95% of text messages are read within a 30 minutes of receipt you can see double digit results within hours, depending upon the value proposition of your promotion of course. My small company customers are on average are getting a 12-15 percent increase in visitors just a single channel cellular promotion (not radio or print ).

Consumers Benefits

According to Frost & Sullivan, consumer expectations from cellular coupons can be outlined as follows:

- Convenience of reliability - consumers Don't Have to carry paper coupons with them - Ease of use (redemption) - No additional costs to Get supplies - Privacy protection - Non-intrusive coupon delivery (junk mail) - Single interface to get multiple offers - Powerful storage and demonstration of coupons that are delivered - Automatic updates - Enhanced interactivity options - Straightforward device requirements

Challenges of Mobile Coupons

The challenges related to m-coupons are how salvation is handled to prevent misuse and how to achieve mass distribution. Unlike direct mail where you can basically spam your neighborhood with newspaper coupons both email and m-coupons need the user to provide permission or"chosen into" the m-coupon campaign.

Redemption Abuse

Redemption abuse or voucher is when a guest or even a client presents the identical coupon multiple occasions to redeem the offer. Unlike paper coupons, the merchant or restaurant can not actually collect the voucher upon salvation, unless they utilize bar code scanners, hence the coupon may be redeemed again and again or forwarded on to friend to be used again. Paper coupons don't encounter this issue however they do have a big problem with counterfeit coupons.

In my experience most small companies I consult to create m-coupon programs do not experience wide spread abuse. Best practices demand all promotions to have a challenging expiration date, coaching staff on the advertising as well as also the redemption requirements and monitoring the redemptions, typically with a designated"promo" key on the POS or register. Adding unique coupon codes is another affordable way to monitor redemption although it requires your staff to document the code manually. The current development of QR code scanning programs, you can download to your smart phone will be the solution to beating the issue.

In addition, we have to keep in mind the purpose of a marketing is to push businesses and if a customer gets off with redeeming a m-coupon twice that means they made two purchases, that's the point of the campaign anyhow.

Assembling Your"Mobile VIPs"

To be able to achieve mass distribution you need to construct your subscriber bases, the more clients which opt-in to your mobile marketing program the higher your reach, hence the greater your distribution. Mobile subscriber lists aren't as easy to build as an email list as most people don't have spare mobile phone numbers such as the perform email addresses. Mobile works best within a muti-channel effort. Another words, such as your brief code (5 or 6 electronic number) and keyword (text"Pizza") on your print advertisements, Facebook page, website, radio campaigns and your email campaign with a distinctive value proposition for opting in key. Depending upon your current marketing plan and marketing budget, a company needs 60 to 90 days to build a decent mobile subscriber app. Restaurants that now use mobile phone pager systems have an advantage. They have the guest mobile number so as to seat themnow they just send a follow up message that provides a promotion in the event the guests subscribers to their"Mobile VIP" program. Assembling that initial data base is essential going forward and by picking out the ideal mobile advertising partner will determine just how successful you will be in the long run.

The Forecast

Market researchers have found a strong correlations with the rise of smart mobile users and m-coupon usage. We are aware that the iPhone revolutionized the mobile phone as the Swiss Army knife for both consumers and businesses and the adaption of smart phones will increase exponentially within the next 3 to 5 years. In terms of cellular coupon utilization, more than 300 million users across the globe will have used cellular coupons by 2014 and this use will generate a redemption value close to $6 billion worldwide, according to a prediction and report by Juniper Research. Do your clients have mobile phones, if so offer them the chance to receive and receive your mobile coupons.

[usalishachinaiusa]

How Do I Talk To a Cash App Representative? To Get An Way To Activate Your Card

Cash App card activation is an easy procedure that a cash app account holder must complete as carefully as possible. Hence, if you are one of those who are looking to activate a cash app card, you must have a cash card. In this blog below, the interested users can find out clear specifications for getting your card activated. 

All you need to do is to read out the blog post and find out some feasible ways regarding the same. In case of any issue while doing the activation process, you should Talk To A Cash App Representative.

How To Activate Your Cash App Card To Make Payment And Withdraw Money?

There are two different ways through which you can consider activating your Cash app card without any problem. 

Here are some following methods that you must be aware of:-

Method 1:-

How Can I Activate My Cash App Card With The QR Code?

To activate your Cash app card with the QR code, you should go through the following instructions:

First of all, you should open the Cash App on either iPhone or an Android mobile device. Hereafter, you need to go to the icon of Cash Card from the bottom page of the Cash app.

Now, you should find out and then tap on the ‘Activate Cash App Card’ option. Hereafter, you will need to make use of your mobile camera so that your QR Code can be scanned easily. After scanning the QR code, you will be able to activate your Cash App Card. Furthermore, it is also ready to use to make payments or withdraw money.

Method 2:-

How Do I Activate My Cash App Card Without Making Use Of The QR Code?

Do you want to activate your Cash app card without using the QR code? 

Here are some easy instructions that you should go through carefully:-

Start your mobile device to open your Cash App account. From the bottom of the Cash app home screen, you have to tap on the ‘Activate Cash card’ option. To start the activation process, you need to tap on the ‘Missing QR Code’ option.

Furthermore, you need to opt for the ‘Use CVV instead’ option and then enter some of your card’s information.

Enter your CVV code Expiry date available on your Cash card. After entering the details correctly, you will be able to get your Cash card activated and is ready to use. By making proper utilization of any of the mentioned methods, you can activate your Cash app card with ease.

Moreover, you might come across some loopholes due to the lack of information and proficiency. In such a case, you should immediately contact Cash App support and find out the right professionals. Here, they will provide you with the best possible solution, right from the comfort of your home.

How Do I Talk To A Cash App Representative?

Here is how you can talk to your Cash app representatives:-

First off, you should reach out to your Cash App home screen by entering your login credentials. Now, you need to scroll down the active page and then you should tap on the ‘Cash Support’ option. Hereafter, you will need to tap on the ‘Something Else’ option and then go to your issue.

Furthermore, you should need to opt for the ‘Contact Support’ option.

In this way, you can contact the Cash app support geeks who will let you know the right way to deal with your problems.

Can I Talk To Someone At Cash App?

Of course, you can do the same even on your own without any kind of hassle. For that, you need to refer to the above-mentioned instructions. Besides, if you look for more information about the same, you should go to the official support page. Here, you will find out the required assistance to talk to someone at your cash app.

How Can I Talk To A Live Person At Cash App?

To Talk To A Cash App Representative, you should keep in mind that there is no direct way. Besides, there is an alternative way through which you can do it without any kind of hassle. On the other hand, you can also navigate through https://cash.app/contact to know how to do it with ease. Moreover, if seeking more information regarding the same in a hassle-free manner, you should refer to our website.

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[activate-chime-card]

How to activate the Chime card- here is an easy process?

Here in this article we are going to discuss how to activate a chime card. It is important to know that getting a Chime debit card is totally free. And there are no charges for activation, setup, or money withdrawal at ATMs. Chime customers can create Chime online bank accounts and enjoy many benefits. Chime debit cards can be used to make different types of payments. It is more convenient than other bank debit cards for users.

It doesn't charge weekly, monthly, or yearly fees. You will not be able to use the debit card if you have to pay any fees. This should be a warning sign to switch banks and get Chime online banking.

How to get a new Chime Visa Debit Card?

If you are ready for us to send you a new Chime Visa Debit Card:

Call Chime at and press 3.

At the prompt, confirm that your card has been lost or stolen.

Enter your nine (9)-digit Social Security Number.

Once we have found your account, please press 1 to confirm that you would like a new card sent to the address in the file.

In 7 business days, replacement cards will be delivered in plain green envelopes. They will be sent from Salt Lake City in Utah.

Can I activate my Chime Card online?

You can activate your Chime card online. Online activation means using the Chime payment application to activate your card. If you have any problems activating your Chime Card, you can contact Chime support. With the assistance of Chime support experts, activating your card can be done with ease.

Particularly, card details are required for the Chime card activation process. The QR code for the Chime Visa card is not included, unlike the Square Cash App. This means that there is no way to activate your Chime card automatically. The Chime regional head said that the feature of scanning a QR code to activate a Chime Card might be available soon. Chime is considering this feature to make customer service easier. You have one choice, which I will explain in the next section.

How do I activate the Chime card on my phone?

It takes only two minutes to activate your Chime card. After that, you only need to use the card details printed on your card. It is easy to activate a Chime card via phone by following this step-by-step process:

Logging in to your Chime account is the first step.

Next, click on the "Card Status" tab on your home screen.

Next, click on the "Activate Card" tab to continue.

Follow the screen instructions step-by-step.

Be careful when entering card information such as card number and CVV number.

You will also need to provide your personal information.

You will activate your Chime card immediately if you follow all the steps.

How to activate your Chime card without an app?

Following are the steps that you need to take to activate the Chime card without an app:

Logging in to your Chime account is the first step.

Next, click on the "Card Status" tab on your home screen.

Next, click on the "Activate Card" tab to continue.

Follow the screen instructions step-by-step.

Be careful when entering card information such as card number and CVV number.

You will also need to provide your personal information.

You will activate your Chime card immediately if you follow all the steps.

How to activate my Chime card without the card?

Visit chime.com. Click on "Login" at the top right of the screen after opening the website. Log in to your Chime account by entering your registered email address and password into the appropriate field. Follow the steps to activate your card on the next page.

[hauntinggroundfan]

Revisiting Haunting Ground's website in 2022 - [2/2]

As soon as you click to go to the Japanese page this pop-up ad appears. The general gist is that that Demento content has been added to Capcom's mobile service 'Keitai'. You could download photos and Hewie's music as a ringtone(?). Scanning the QR-code yields nothing because Keitai was discontinued a few years ago.

Finally, a start page! There are a lot of things to go through, as you can see. Notice that faint '☿' symbol next to GOODS? As you navigate the site it continues to flash in hopes that you click on it. We'll get to that later.

I'm skipping STORY because it's the same as the English page save for the Japanese text.

When you click on CHARACTERS you can choose between all of the characters unlike the English page. I clicked on Daniella and the first thing you hear is her "Azoth, essence of life..." monologue. Clicking on WHOLE BODY reveals her full character model. The movie attached shows the cutscene where Daniella becomes the designated enemy.

If you check out the other characters you'll see text quickly flashing or text filling up the entire screen. It's seriously awesome.

Now for the ACTION. This page details every action you can take to evade the stalker as Fiona. That includes hiding, tackling, even kicking a door closed on the stalker. Clicking on any of the above reveals videos showcasing each action (Kick, crouch, backstep, charge, push background objects). This is the same tutorial from the game after Fiona gets dressed.

On Hewie's page his commands are explained, same as the in-game tutorial.

Moving onto ESCAPE details what you can do when you want to, well, escape. At this point you can probably guess what it's going to be about. I'm just impressed that they put a lot of details into everything.

One thing that really stands out is the Q&A section. It's two pages containing questions that any players may have. I love that they updated the site as time went by. Let's take a look at some of the questions and answers.

The translation may be completely off, so sorry about that!

"Q(uestion). Fiona gets tired too soon.

A(answer). By crouching and hiding at evasion points, Fiona calms down from a panicked state much faster. Alternatively, having Hewie nearby will help Fiona feel at ease and she'll recover from a state of panic faster than usual. If you're about to panic, call out to Hewie."

"Q. What is the purpose of the bisque doll dropped by Debilitas?

A. Until he met Fiona, Debilitas kept the doll close to himself. He instinctively tried to catch Fiona, but when he saw the doll, he seemed to remember the love he once poured into the doll. For example, put the bisque doll on the floor when you're chased by Debilitas. While Debilitas is distracted by the doll, you may be able to sneak away.

In addition, if you place the doll on the fragile place of the balcony that is likely to collapse and lure Debilitas, you may be able to break the scaffolding with Debilitas. Even if Debilitas takes the bisque doll, it should be kept in the hut because it's important to him."

There are some quite interesting tips even I didn't know about, mainly the answers surrounding Hewie's friendship level.

The GOODS section feature official merchandise such as the original soundtrack CD...

...and strategy guides. The bottom tinted box contains links to two physical magazine issues from June 2005:

CGWORLD, June issue: "A commentary on the CG production by a Demento designer and an interview with director Naoto Takenaka."

DTMmagazine, June issue: "An interview with the Demento sound staff has been posted."

The journey to the past is about to end as we click on the '☿' symbol.

The words "I am completed." appear on the screen, fade out, and this shows up. This SECRET section mimics the secret room of the game. You might have already read the official Dementopedia before, a wiki crucial to fully understanding the game and character motives. It was translated into English.

COSTUME mentions the ability to change costumes. You can view videos of the Fiona the Frog, Texas Cowgirl and Illegal In Some States costumes in action. They have been written in English but have been translated as Frog suit, Cowgirl and Bondage. the last one o_o?

I'd like to show everything but due to Tumblr's photo limit I entice you to go check the website out. It's still worth visiting despite my previous objections concerning the missing content etc. There's a lot of content I haven't covered so definitely do it.

Note that you can only access the website with Flash Player installed. It won't work otherwise. If you're still having trouble try to refresh the page.

LINK

Revisiting Haunting Ground's website in 2022 - [1/2]

When Haunting Ground was announced in late 2004 Capcom launched a website teasing the game (there's also another website by Capcom U.S.A.). It continued to be updated even after the game's release. The website was up for years until Flash Player was discontinued. I used to visit it a lot back when I contributed to the Clock Tower wiki, so I'm happy to explore it once again.

Sadly, not everything works as it once did. Some videos and pages fail to load and many links lead to dead ends. The site also runs slow, but I suspect it can be traced back to the web crawler.

Let's visit the site nonetheless.

The site is available in Japanese and English, as seen on the front page. You may have seen the quote from other promotional material. The quote acted as an explanation of the game's title (Demento). Too bad they couldn't keep the name in the west.

The home page wouldn't load so we'll jump straight into STORY.

Nothing new here... but love the dramatic description of Fiona's arrival to the castle.

Select between Fiona, Hewie and Debilitas in the CHARACTERS section.

Hewie and Debilitas' pages wouldn't load so this is what I can provide.

In the SCREENSHOTS section we are treated to stills from the game. The first three pages showcase some cutscenes, the last page showcases gameplay. As you can see the section was updated, possibly around October 2004(?).

The PRODUCTION NOTES section is entirely dedicated to Naoto Takenaka, who directed the cutscenes and provided motion capture for Riccardo and Lorenzo. A legend!

Lastly, the MOVIE section provides us with two trailers you've probably already seen before. Fiona and Hewie | Insanity

And that's all there is to the English page. Next up is the Japanese page which provides far more information about the game.

[pfollowersus]

Buy Instagram Custom Live Comments- Pfollowers- Helps to Make Your Instagram post Look Famous.

Instagram is also the biggest social site. Where people like to share their photos or videos with their friends, family, and other Instagram users who like to view their posts. Instagram change their features on time to time by public demand like Facebook social media platform. Maybe the biggest reason Instagram is the best social media is the opportunity for potential customers to get to know your brand organically. Facebook refocused its efforts to connect friends and family.As we know that Today, Instagram is the fastest growing social platform around the globe.

You can get comments in Instagram with a particular necessary for you text for any publicly accessible posts of users of this social networking website, and not only for your personal ones. Thus, one can buy custom comments even as a gift to some relatives

Why Prove That Instagram Best For Business?

Here are plenty of social media networks out there and some of them enjoy great popularity among the target audience. However, if you ask, which social media platform is best for building my brand? Most business marketer answer will be Instagram. What makes Instagram the best social media platform is not its user base! After all, Facebook has more users than Instagram, but when it comes to engagement, ease of use, and target market penetration, Instagram reigns supreme.

Here You Can Enjoy Better Customer Engagement

Instagram allows you to build your brand image through pictures and videos far more effectively than Facebook or Twitter or any other social media website. You may say, “But I can upload photos and videos on Facebook, what makes Instagram better?” Instagram is special because of its UI. When someone checks Facebook from a PC, he gets to see photos, links, sidebars, chat screens, and a lot of other stuff. On the contrary, Instagram, despite having a website, is mainly accessed through the official mobile app by 700 million users all over the world. They see only images and videos. It is a completely clutter-free User Interface and thus, as a social media marketer you enjoy better customer engagement.

Instagram users are active and they spend a lot of time: Now this is where Instagram outshines any other social media network. A study has revealed that Instagram users are fifty-eight times more likely to comment, like, or share a picture compared to Facebook. That is the ultimate level of consumer engagement. The more your content gets shared and the more comments you get, the better it is for your business. Another huge advantage of Instagram is users simply love this social media network and they spend hours here. And you can also share live videos on this place because some people want to share a live video post. So you can do this and can get live comments easily from your friends & fans.  Promoting your posts can be done quickly on Instagram as long as you have a business account. Each post will the blue “Promote” button available when viewing it. Then you can choose if you want to send people to your profile or site, or reach people near a certain location. Either can help you get more comments.

If you are contemplating your SMM plan for 2021, Then Instagram should be on the top of your list.

Instagram is very strict about fake accounts like LinkedIn. And they make sure that your brand name gets a verified sign so that people can identify the brand they love so much. It is important to have a presence on all social media platforms. Instagram just gave users a more exciting messaging experience to stay connected to those that matter most to you. Watch Together feature is going to make hanging outs even more fun on your favorite social platform.

So, next time you update your Instagram app, you and your friends can tune into IGTV, Reels, TV shows, movies, or trending videos in real-time over a video chat.

To Start Using Watch Together:

 .  Go to an Instagram video chat

·  Tap the media button in the bottom right

·  Select the ‘TV & Movies ‘tab.

·  Choose your favorite content

·  Enjoy watching

The main goal here is for businesses to help users easily scan the code, open their Instagram account, and explore the products they offer, store info, or just follow the company’s account.

To Include QR Codes in Your Marketing Strategy, Follow These Steps:

.   Open your Instagram account and go to the Settings menu in your profile

·   Tap on the QR Code option and modify the code to look

·   Save the image and share it with your followers

Instagram’s Home Screen Navigation Just Got a Fresh New Look

After the increased craving for short and entertaining videos and more people buying online and relying on creators for shopping recommendations, Instagram announced adding the Reels and Shop tab to users’ home page. The goal of the Reels tab is to make it more straightforward to discover short, funny videos from creators, while the Shop tab provides you with an easier way to connect with your favorite brands and buy the products you love.

Instagram’s team hopes that this new design will give the app a much-needed refresh while focusing on its core value – simplicity.

Definitely, You Can Believe Our Online Service

If you are an Instagram marketer and now you want to show to your Instagram public that you have more genuine comments on your videos live post but you don't want to tell that you buy Instagram custom live comments from online service providers. So you don't need to take tension because we give you a hundred percent full guarantee that we never share your privacy.  

Promote Your Instagram Livestream Post in Advance

Let your followers know about your live video ahead of time rather than having an impromptu session. This will maximize the number of viewers who tune in. It’s great that Instagram does its own part in notifying people to join your live stream while they’re in the app. But it’s your job to ensure that more people are online when it’s time to go live so they receive that notification.

Promote your live video via your Instagram stories or with posts in your feed – whatever fits best with your content strategy. Start promoting at least a week in advance, depending on how important your live stream content is.

Sometimes the number of comments happening during a live broadcast can be overwhelming and detract from the purpose of your video. Ask viewers to send direct messages so that you can get back to them once the live broadcast is over. Personal and business accounts are looking for a convenient way to increase their credibility and visibility. Purchasing Instagram comments for your posts has the potential to increase the traffic to your profile and increase your popularity within a short period. New Instagram profiles can also get a boost by purchasing Instagram custom live Comments. Your profile will be ranked high up on the platform and you will get the opportunity to gain more followers and active users as well.

Remember, Instagram live is not a serious marketing that involves a monotone plug for your business. Rather Instagram is a place where people go for some fun so ensure you are having fun as well! If you’re not, your viewers will be able to tell. Allow your personality to shine through, make fun of yourself, and do not get anxious about mispronouncing a word or making a mistake. Instead, acknowledge it, laugh at yourself, and move on. Your followers appreciate the authenticity.

So let loose, connect, have fun, and don’t take yourself too seriously because if you are enjoying yourself your followers will too.

When a post receives a ton of likes and comments, this signals to the Instagram algorithm that your post is quality, engaging content that more people will want to see, so the Instagram algorithm will show it to more users. But it isn't always about how much engagement a post receives. Comments are the easiest to communicate. It’s just the easiest way to find people with similar interests,” Ashley said. In fact, she met her best friend in the comment section of Instagram. After noticing some particularly witty comments, she clicked on the girl’s profile, followed her, and began starting conversations in the comment section of her Instagram photos. The two hit it off, and they’ve been tight ever since.

For years, custom live comments on Instagram were secondary to the photo and video posts that make up the app’s main feed. But recently, Instagram comment sections have begun to eclipse the photos they sit below.

A Best Way For Getting More Comments on Instagram

One best proof way to get more comments is to make the most of what you’ve already got on your posts. Reply to the comments that other users have left. Not only will this up to the comment count (people won’t automatically see that half the replies are from you), this can generate more discussion. And more discussion means more comments. If you need to gather social proof and you want more comments on a particular post, the promoted post option is a pretty good one. It will send your post skyrocketing into greater visibility, and the more people who see your posts, the more likely you are to get comments on your Instagram live post.

When give your order for purchasing Instagram custom live comments. We are one of the only providers of relevant comments from high quality profiles. Comments helps boost the engagement on your posts, and encourages others to engage. Combining this with likes is a powerful combo, which helps increase rankings and reach.

[lynnmavis]

Design for Inclusivity - Digital Technologies to Empower Everyday Living Event Reflection

The second design event I attended was “Designing for Inclusivity – Digital Technologies to Empower Everyday Living”.

The first segment was “Inclusive Design for Education and Work Readiness” shared by Mr Francis Tan, Chief Executive Officer of Trampolene. The second segment was “Inclusive Design using Conversational AI” shared by Mr Ianton Tan, Chief Executive Officer of MoWin Digital.

Trampolene 

Mr Francis Tan began by sharing how websites and application are usually built for neurotypicals. However, there are many products that are not catered to the needs of the physically disabled, youths with special needs and elderly. Therefore, he emphasises the need to understand your clients and users well. He goes on to list some examples such as:

- How many wheelchair accessible swimming pools are there in Singapore?

- How does a child with muscular dystrophy use a toothbrush?

- How does a person with visual impairment travel to work everyday?

This reminded me of the usefulness of rigorous interviews and testing to ensure a product is useful. As designers, we might not be aware of certain issues even if we put a lot of effort into the design considerations. Therefore, user feedback is very important. In designing an application to aid wheelchair users, do we then have to consider if the user is speaking from the view of a manual wheelchair user or a battery-operated wheelchair user or others? Is there then a significant difference and should additional options be given for the users to toggle? This is where rigorous interviews, testing and follow-ups is necessary as it allows us to ask why and understand the reasoning behind their actions – in turn building a more effective product.

In the sharing by Mr Francis Tan, he gave a case study on the application called iGAIN. iGAIN is a software which uses gamification to help children and young adults with learning difficulties and special needs to learn different skills such as language and numeracy. He mentioned that many special education schools are typically half-day. This means the application can continue to engage them when they return home. In developing this application, he mentioned that it is important to understand the target audience and figure “who are you trying to serve” and also what are their challenges. In the development, Trampolene invited caregivers, allied professionals and teachers to design the content. 

Linking back to a past experience interning at a Special Education school, I find this application extremely useful. During the internship, I had to hand cut and laminate certain cue cards and attach Velcro to the cards. For students who needed more assistance, most of their activities included matching different pieces with the Velcro stuck on them. This also meant that as educators, we were unable to switch up the difficulty level or content of the learning resources easily. With this application, the content can be modified easily and customised according to a student’s learning style and ability. This will also save a lot of time and resources. Furthermore, it is important to engage with the educators because they know the triggers of their students well. This could be helpful in designing with certain modes such as volume or vibrancy restrictions as certain students are very sensitive to sound and colours.

I think something we (or I) might tend to overlook is other potential users (of e.g. an application) aside from the main target users. For instance, linking it back to the individual project – I think it is important to not only consider the target users of the application but also the brands that will be interested in the application. As my individual project work towards building a tool for users to shop and dress easier, one main stakeholder will also be the apparel brands that will want to feature their products on the application. Therefore, it is valuable to seek feedback from participating brands to offer target users an even seamless shopping experience. For instance, as I incorporated a “Scan to Add” feature on the application, it can only be useful if the majority of online and physical retailers incorporate a QR Code on their product tags. As a hybrid application, it is not only a shopping tool but also an application with social networking features. For brands which wish to create a public account, how can they host a live try-on easier on the application? Are there some features that these retailers might need to facilitate live purchases?

In another case study shared by Mr Tan, smartBFA is an application that provides real-time barrier-free access navigation for wheelchair users. Mr Tan mentioned that wheelchair users have to consider more things while planning for a trip outdoors. For instance, they have to leave with their battery full because if a route is obstructed, they might have to take a much longer, wheelchair accessible route to their destination. Since wheelchair accessible toilets are not ready available, wheelchair users also tend to drink less water and minimise consumption of food before they begin their journey. These are many things that we might fail to consider as a designer. In general application design, it might be more useful to consider the concerns of the designer, client and the user. However, in inclusive design, it seem that a heavier focus should be on the actual user themselves.

MoWin Digital 

In the sharing by Mr Ianton, he spoke on ALEF which is one of their martech products which involves the use of conversational AI. More importantly, ALEF also involve one additional element – vernacular. This refers to the consideration of the dialect spoken by people in the country or region. Using conversational AI, Ianton also shared some examples of application such as unmanned customer service kiosk for hotels and contactless intelligent elevator control. That said, I feel that designers have to be careful with it. Aside from undergoing rigorous testing to make the product better, I believe it is also a necessity to provide alternative options for the user. For instance, a customer might want to get a drink from the concierge which could count as a simple task and could have been done faster when spoken to the staff. However, unmanned customer service might bring some complications and miscommunication if the kiosk is unable to identify the request of the user. Building on to the previous blog post on the importance of customer touchpoints, a miscommunication with such solutions might end up destroying a smooth user experience. Therefore, a set of criteria has to be fulfilled by the design. For instance, ease of use and whether the design is intuitive enough for a first-time user to navigate through. After all, many hotel guests are usually not regulars. Personally, I am easily excited when I get to use new technologies and if I can complete a task I set out to do rather easily in a contactless manner. However, I can imagine someone in a rush to be very frustrated if they are unable to convey their message to an unmanned customer service kiosk and if there is no one around to help. Also, I think it is useful to be mindful of whether the target audience are largely tech savvy or not.

Mr Francis Tan also raised the possibility of using conversational AI to help individuals with speech deficit. Real life scenarios can be simulated for the individual to practice their speaking skills in a public setting. This was a rather innovative idea. Together with the above hotel example, I find context one of the most crucial considerations. The speech deficit example made me realise that the opportunity to improve on a skill you are lacking privately might be more useful and less intimidating. Likewise, in the hotel kiosk example, it might be more useful if users can complete their task or request for a service privately. If there really is a miscommunication, the user need not be frustrated due to more people queuing behind him. In designing a product, it is therefore important to not only test but also follow through how a user will use the product potentially, and consider as many types of scenarios and setting as possible – peak hours, non-peak hours, seasonal, weekday or the weekends etc.

Towards the end, Mr Francis Tan also shared that Trampolene conducts a lot of ethnographic research as they have to observe their users in real life scenarios. As mentioned above, one key takeaway was the differing points of emphasis for different types of design. For inclusive design, I feel that it is almost always necessary to conduct ethnographic research as you are building a product that caters to a specific group of users. This is why more than just an interview, it might be much more useful to follow and observe a user closely using actual, real-life scenarios.

[quikkloan]

Things You Should Know About DigiLocker

A digilocker is a thoughtfully launched initiative by the Government of India that leads to paperless and digital governance. To overcome the problems related to physical documentation, the government has made provision for digital documentation and e-signing. All your official documents used as valid identity and address proof can easily be stored in a digilocker via aadhaar authentication. Now no more worries of losing your original valid documents and attesting the same by a gazetted officer as a digilocker keeps all your documents safe in electronic format.  You firstly need to create a digilocker account linked with your aadhaar to upload, store and e-sign all your documents such as Aadhaar, PAN, Passport, driving license, educational certificates, marriage certificate, insurance policy, etc. These documents can also be shared through the app when required. The QR code present on the document can also be used to check the authenticity of the document. What is a DigiLocker A digital locker system that securely stores all your valid documents to minimize the ease of carrying physical documents. It is linked to a person’s aadhaar number that can securely store e-documents hence provides secure and easy access to all government-related documents anytime. A person can easily scan and upload documents like aadhaar, PAN, passport, driving license, educational certificates, marriage certificate, insurance policy, etc. to a digilocker and e-sign them instead of self-attestation. It is a cloud-based storage under the Digital India campaign that keeps all important documents in one place.  How to Login/Sign Up for DigiLocker  You simply need to visit the official website of digilocker.gov (https://digilocker.gov.in/)Create your new digilocker account by either entering your aadhaar number or mobile numberOnce your account has been created, you can use your username and password to login to your DigiLocker account next time. Alternatively, you can also use your Aadhaar number and OTP for login and authentication. Two Options for Authentication: OTP and Fingerprint OTP Sign Up:  OTP can be used only if your mobile number is registered with UIDAI. On entering OTP and clicking on the “Validate” button, the user is taken to set the username/password page to complete the sign up.  Fingerprint Sign Up: To use this option, you will have to put your thumb impression on the fingerprint device. If the fingerprint is valid, then the user is taken to set the username/password page to complete the sign up. Note: An individual can only have one digilocker account linked with the aadhaar.  How to Upload Documents in Digilocker Step 1: Once the registration process is completed, you can upload documents from inside your ‘Uploaded Documents’ section Step 2: Click the upload icon to start uploading a document. In the file upload dialog box, locate the file from your local drive and select 'open' to complete the uploading. Step 3: To assign a document type to your uploaded file, click 'select doc type'. This will show a pop up with a drop-down selection of various document types. Step 4:  Choose the appropriate document type and click 'save'. Step 5: You can also edit the name of the file using the edit icon next to the filename. Note: On successful upload, the document will be listed under the 'Uploaded Documents' section. How to Get Documents Issued in DigiLocker You can not only upload but also get your documents issued by the relevant government authority such as the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), Income Tax Department, CBSE, Indane, etc. via digilocker. In case you want to get your document issued, select the issuing agency and enter your details and the document will be issued and uploaded in your DigiLocker account. Which Documents to be Issued in DigiLocker Aadhaar cardPAN CardPassport Voter’s CardDriving License and RC Educational CertificatesMarriage Certificate Insurance PolicyBirth CertificateIncome CertificateDeath Certificate, etc. Additional Documents and Certificates in DigiLocker IssuerDocument(s) IssuedNew India Assurance Co. Ltd.Insurance policy documentsMinistry of Petroleum and Natural Gas(IOCL)e-Subscription Voucher for LPG connectionsBPCLe-Subscription Voucher for LPG connectionsHPCLe-Subscription Voucher for LPG connectionseDistrict Uttar PradeshBirth, income, caste certificates, etc.Greater Chennai CorporationBirth and death certificatesDepartment of Food, Public Distribution & Consumer Affairs (PDS)Jharkhand PDS CertificatesFood and Supplies DepartmentRation cards for HaryanaNIELIT, New DelhiNDLM CertificatesMinistry of Skill Development And EntrepreneurshipITI CertificatesDirectorate of Provident Fund (GPF), RanchiGPF Statement for Govt. Employees of JharkhandDepartment of Sainik Welfare, Govt. of PondicherryDependency CertificatesNational e-Governance DivisionNeGD Training Certificatese-District DelhiIncome, caste, marriage certificates, etc. How to Do Digital Signing or e-signing of Documents in Digilocker With the help of digilocker you can e-sign any document and share it with the concerned authorities through email or post. Talking about e-sign, it is similar to self-attestation, in which the individual affirms that the document produced is not a duplicate or fake. Earlier, you had to get photocopies of original documents attested by a gazetted officer to use as a valid identity or address proof. But with digilocker, things have become easy, safe or rather authentic.  Currently, e-signing can be done by e-KYC services of aadhaar which are enabled through OTP or fingerprint authentication. E-sign is extremely handy for self-attestation, income tax e-filing, bank account opening, vehicle registration, driving license renewal, admission in educational institutes, etc, and so on.  Features and Benefits of DigiLocker Empowers the citizens digitally.Ensures easy availability of documents online.Reduces the use of physical documents and fake documents.Offers authenticity of the e-documents.Provides secured access to documents issued by the government.Reduces administrative costs of government departments and agencies.Provides fast access to documents anytime and from anywhere.Enables easy sharing of documents across departments and agencies.Ensures complete privacy of residents’ data. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Q.How can I sign up for DigiLocker? A.Signing up for DigiLocker is easy - all you need is your mobile or Aadhaar number. Your mobile/Aadhaar number will be authenticated by sending an OTP (one-time-password) followed by setting your security PIN for 2-Factor authentication. This will create your DigiLocker account. Q.I want to link Aadhaar with my DigiLocker, but my mobile number is not updated in my Aadhaar. How can I get this done? A.Firstly you need to link your mobile number with Aadhaar. And, for that  you can visit any nearest Aadhaar Kendra or you can do the same online at the official website of aadhaar. gov. Once your mobile number is linked with aadhaar, you can then start uploading the same document in your digilocker by scanning your original aadhaar. Q.I have registered on DigiLocker and I want to change my username, is there any way to do so? A.Username once created in DigiLocker cannot be changed currently. Q.I have forgotten my DigiLocker username/password. What should I do? A.You do not require username to login anymore. You can type your mobile number or Aadhaar instead of username and after providing the OTP, you will be able to login to your account. Q.What are issued documents and what are uploaded documents? A.Issued documents are e-documents issued by various government agencies in electronic format directly from the original data source and the URI (link) of these documents is available in the issued documents section of DigiLocker. Whereas uploaded documents are those documents that are uploaded directly by the DigiLocker user. Q.What is the meaning of URI? A.A URI is a Uniform Resource Identifier generated by the issuer department, which is mandatory for every e-document of the DigiLocker system. This unique URI can be resolved to a full URL (Uniform Resource Locator) to access the actual document in its appropriate repository. Q.How can I upload documents to my DigiLocker account? A.You can upload the documents by logging into your account. You simply need to visit ‘Uploaded Documents’ section under account and follow a few simple steps to upload the documents Q.What type of files can be uploaded? A.File types that can be uploaded are - PDF, JPEG and PNG. Q.What is the maximum allowed storage space to upload the documents? A. You will be allotted a storage space of 1 GB linked with your Aadhaar number.  Read the full article

[acnl1am]

Hello! Mayor Emma here!

I’ve decided to make a guide for anyone who could use a couple tips for the game. I’ve been playing Animal Crossing New Leaf for a couple of years now and when I first started I really didn’t know what I was doing. The first day I got the game I went so far as googling how to walk around (it took me 10 minutes to figure out it was the circle pad... oops!). Over the years I’ve learned so much about the game. I have learned how to build up my town, landscape, make bells, and truly get the most out of my experience. 

So, without further ado, here is my acnl guide!

(feel free to reblog so any of your followers who are just starting out can see!)

Starting out the game

First of all, welcome to your town! It is so exciting beginning a fresh new town to work with! Having two copies of the game has allowed me to start three towns from scratch and each new beginning was so fun!

The first thing you need to do is get tools. This is vital because to earn money you must use the tools. Sell fruit, shells, and items fallen from trees to save up for the tools you need. Purchase them at Nook’s store or get them during Isabelle’s tutorial. Use the tools to fish, catch bugs, dig up gyroids and fossils, and pop balloons (can be popped with slingshot or shovel at edge of cliff) and sell those to make money.

Pro tip! -Want to shake trees to find bells and items but don’t want to get stung by bees? Open your town’s gates to prevent the beehives from falling. (to open the gates you must first get your photo id taken)-

Now if you want to start your game with the intention of landscaping, your second task is clearing your entire town. If you have a second town or a friend that has the gardening store, purchase axes. You will probably need more than four. Don’t have either of those connections? Don’t worry! One of the greatest assets to any new leaf player is the trade network. @acnltrades is the place to go to trade to obtain items you don’t have yet! 

Clear out all the trees but save at least one basket of fruit. Sell the rest. By clearing all the trees you now have room for paths! Paths are very important to the organization of your town. They will keep you from running around and killing flowers and wearing down grass and make it easier to navigate your town. Using one of the designs the game comes with, start laying paths throughout your town, connecting houses and buildings. 2x2 tiled paths are easiest and wide enough to run on, but some people prefer 1x1 or 3x3. You can also mix up the width of the paths throughout your town. Feeling bold? Try diagonal paths! They’re a great way to make your town unique. 

Pro tip! -Unlock the sewing machine by talking to Sable for multiple days in a row. The sewing machine allows you to scan in QR codes with custom designs, perfect for paths and clothes.-

Now that you’ve cleared your town of all trees and laid your paths, time to organize flowers. This step can be done any time during your animal crossing career. I’ve had my towns with messy flowers for years and only recently I’ve cleaned up all the flowers. I’m so glad I did.

Pro tip! -If you want to landscape right away but don’t feel like watering your flowers all the time, enact the beautiful town ordinance! Not only does it prevent flowers from dying, it keeps trash out of the rivers and makes your villagers happy. You will also earn perfect town status easier.-

Most towns have two beaches, a bottom beach and a side beach. These beaches will be devoted to your flowers. Start with one type of flower, say red roses. Collect all the red roses in your town and put them all on your side beach, closest to the top of the beach. Move onto the next color (white roses, yellow roses, etc.). As you go along, leave a 1x1 path where you don’t put flowers so you have a place to walk/run. 

Your bottom beach will be for breeding flowers, if you choose to do so. This leaves wide open space to lay out and water your flowers. By putting flowers on the beach, they are safe from villagers planting flowers and people running on them.

The best way to arrange flowers for breeding is in a diagonal checkerboard pattern. This allows flowers to grow in the middle of the other flowers

Water your flowers and come back the next day. You may find a hybrid!

Here is a good guide for hybrids.

Landscaping

So you’ve got a completely empty, pathed town? Start planting the fruit you’ve saved. Planting fruit trees is the easiest way to landscape with trees since fruit is so easily obtainable. Plant trees one tile apart each along your paths, or make a grove in some empty space. 

Pro tip! -Take fruit from island tours. These fruits are non-native fruits and they are the easiest to obtain to add variety to your town.-

Another way to jazz up your town is bushes and bamboo. Bushes can be planted in rows up to 12 and directly next to trees and bamboo. They MUST be planted one tile away from buildings, cliffs, rocks, and pwps (public work projects). They CANNOT be planted on the beach (sadly). When in doubt, refer to this guide. Bamboo is super messy to deal with (since it grows like weeds) but can make your town look cool if you know how to control it. It works best in closed off areas (such as surrounded by a path like a planter, or next to trees/bushes). Chop the bamboo for different looks. While the growing bamboo is still brown (2nd day of growth), chop it for brown stubs. On the third day of growth, the bamboo is partially green, so chop it for a half green half brown stub. The fourth day is when the bamboo is fully grown. You can leave it be or chop it down for green stubs.

Mix and match flowers, trees, bushes, and bamboo for your desired look.

Remember all the flowers you’ve been storing on the beach? Now’s the time to pepper your landscape with them! You can group them by color or type, add them around houses and trees, and put them in rows or patterns. 

The best part is since you store the flowers on the beach, they’re super easy to go get and put around your town, rather than having to search all over town for another white lily. 

Making Bells

Making money in this game is pretty important. You need bells to buy and upgrade your house, buy clothes, furniture, trips to the island, improve your town, and even to unlock things. Here are some tips (pun intended) for earning those sweet bell bags.

When your first start out, selling things around your town is going to be your #1 income. However, as you progress through the game you can get money other ways. The best way to earn bells without hacking or trading is through the island. After 7pm, beetles show up at the island. By taking one trip to the island and catching enough beetles to fill up your entire basket, you can easily make 100,000 bells. 

Pro tip! -Go ahead and scare off low priced beetles by running at them. It’ll leave more opportunities for other beetles to spawn.-

With the bell boom ordinance you can make even more money. Here is a handy beetle price guide (the guide is for prices without bell boom).

Pro tip! -Retail closes at 11pm so be sure to finish catching beetles before then!- 

Another way to make money is selling items. Often times event items (bunny day set, snowman set, etc.) will sell for more than regular items. Every once in a while, go through your drawers and sell items you don’t need such as out of season clothes and reorderable items. 

The way I made the most money is through acnltrades. Seriously, check it out. There were many opportunities to get free bells and items as well as being able to sell items and put out ads for things I needed. I’ve also made many friends and fulfilled badge and traveling requirements. However, trade at your own risk. I haven’t run into any problems but it’s always a possibility.

Pro tip! -When selling things at the retail auction, always put the price for items up for 4x the suggested price minus 1 bell. This will guarantee that you will get the highest price possible for the item. The -1 bell is to prevent the villagers from complaining how expensive it is and refusing to buy it. I’ve made a lot of money from The Roost coffee beans this way.- 

House Decorating

Now that you’ve made some bells, it’s time to make your house more you! If you have a theme picked out, start searching for items! What I usually do is I go look through my item catalogue at Timmy and Tommy’s to see what I already have, then make a list of things I want for the room.

Another way to do it is make an account on moridb, a great website for searching all the items in the game. This website is free, and it is really helpful if you plan to do trades on acnltrades.

Pro tip! -If you own the game Happy Home Designer, you can get ideas for your house from there!-

When designing your house, it is best to first buy the secret storeroom. You will need to at least have your main room at full size and paid off your upstairs room. When you have the storeroom unlocked, you can use the lower screen to pick up furniture and move it around with ease like in Happy Home Designer! It will literally save you hours of work, trust me. 

On a last note, it really helps talking to Lyle in Nook’s store for tips on designing your house the right way. He will help you earn the most possible points for your rooms.

Storage

Ah, storage. Something I struggled with the most. As a frequent trader and avid user of @acnldelivery (check that out too, totally worth your time), I constantly had items sitting around my town due to full drawers. Through the years I’ve gotten pretty good at learning how to store items. Here are a few of my tricks.

Your drawers are best for storing things you’ll use frequently. Items like clothes, extra tools, your wetsuit, and wrapping paper/letter paper should go here since it is easy to access (find your drawers in the train station locker wherever you go). 

Pro tip! -It is super important to keep your drawers organized! It will save so much time searching for things if you organize them!-

The next step up from the drawers is the secret storeroom. This is a good place for your furniture since it can only be accessed through your house.

The last place is the museum exhibits upstairs. Put all your odds and ends there. Things that you just HAVE to keep but don’t need to access quickly (such as unorderables you’re not using). This is another good place for seasonal outfits like the santa suit and festival outfit. You can also store extra wrapping paper there just in case the store isn’t open and you’ve gotta wrap a present for a birthday. It’s a pretty good place to store things since it’s open 24/7 (thanks, Blathers!).

Pro tip! -Want more pocket space? Store your extra items in your letters! I use this trick on a daily basis because it’s so easy and convenient.-

Time Traveling

Oooooo the forbidden cheat. 

It’s really not that bad. In fact it can often be helpful! Its practical use is to change the time (I traveled over the summer and entered a different time zone so had to change my town’s time) but can also be used for things such as going back to a missed event, getting the mail delivered sooner, or skipping through time to visit a different season. 

To time travel as safe as possible, try not to travel more than 2-3 times in once go. The rule of thumb I’ve heard is for every 3 days you travel, it counts for a day you’ve missed not playing. This means that there is the possibility that someone can move out! So basically, it’s not too bad if you jump a month ahead, but if you travel one day at a time a month ahead all in one sitting, you’re asking for trouble. 

Something I always worry about is villagers moving in on top of my landscapes. Boy, is that frustrating! Thank you Nintendo for the update where they can’t move on your paths anymore because this helped me develop a helpful trick.

When you know you’ll be time traveling a lot or won’t play in a while, cover your town in QR tiles. As long as you make sure there is no 3x3 open plot of land, you won’t have to worry. Don’t forget to put them next to trees and in flower patches too because I’ve made that mistake many times and have some houses in my gardens (I’m looking at you, Biskit).

Pro tip! -Time traveling for a long period of time will also cause clover growth, which can look pretty cool! Be careful, it will also cause weeds!-

Taking Photos

Taking photos of your animal crossing experience and posting them on Tumblr can be fun! Here are some tips on how to do it! 

Before you take a photo, click the up button on the control pad to clear the date and time bubble. If you’re gonna take a photo using one of Shrunk’s expressions, you cannot take a photo looking up. Your photos should be saved to your memory card so while your 3ds is off, take out the memory card and insert it into your computer. The file should be a DCIM file (the photo example is on a Mac).

If you’re a Mac user (sorry, I can’t speak for Windows users), double click the photo you want. This will lead you to the preview of the photo. Click “file” then “duplicate”. Save the duplicate photo. Now you will have a version on your computer. 

Looks kinda grainy, right? Not to worry! Use waifu2x to make your photos smoother! Here’s a comparison with the original on the left and the edited on the right.

See? Even the colors are more vibrant! This website is so helpful and easy to use.

Another way to take photos is with the animal crossing amiibo camera. 

This was from a hiking trip I took. 

You can also take an amiibo pic with a black background (cover the camera with your hand) then using photoshop or an editing program to remove the background and insert your own (that’s how I did the header on this post). 

References 

Here are some websites I use frequently: 

Thonky for info

Animal Crossing Wiki for info

acntrades for trades

acnldelivery for item sets

moridb for the item list

QR codes on Tumblr

thulinma for making QR codes (this one is super cool)

waifu2x for photo editing

The animal crossing app (on the app store for iOS) for coffee orders

I hope this helps! Feel free to message me with any additional questions! 

Good luck!

-Mayor Emma

[cecillewhite]

What to Expect in a Channel Partner LMS

If you’re responsible for your company’s sales partner performance, I bet you agree that channel education involves a very special set of technology considerations. If not, just ask anyone who’s tried to serve partner audiences with a standard employee LMS. It’s like trying to squeeze a massive round peg into a tiny square hole.

Why Choose a Specialized Channel Partner LMS?

The goal of a partner LMS is to help distributors and resellers sell more – by empowering them to sell more easily, more effectively and more consistently.

Keep in mind that sales partners have the freedom to be fickle – especially if they represent products from multiple companies. You can’t force reps to engage with your LMS. Instead, you must draw them into your learning environment and give them a good reason to stay.

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If you don’t offer instant access to relevant content that’s packed with value, sales partners aren’t likely to show up or come back.

So, exactly how can you build the kind of channel mind share and training participation that lead to a competitive advantage? The right kind of LMS is a foundation that makes a big difference.

For instance, it can help you:

Attract and engage reps on their terms

Drive ongoing usage

Expand your global partner network and

Boost sales performance in measurable ways.

As an independent learning tech consultant, I know it pays to choose a system that fulfills your unique partner training requirements. But with more than 1000 available learning systems, how do you find the best solution for your particular needs?

In my opinion, the best recipe for channel partner LMS success is one-part marketing, one-part learning and a whole lot of business savvy. How does that translate into system requirements? Here are the 15 most critical capabilities:

15 Must-Have Channel Partner LMS Features

15) Ease-of-Use

Hello, 2002? Please come take back your employee LMS. Today no one tolerates a slow or confusing online learning experience – especially channel salespeople. Most reps are only occasional LMS visitors, and they’re too busy for lengthy instructions or user training. This is why your partner learning environment must feel simple, coherent and cohesive from end to end.

14) Personalization

One of the best ways to improve usability is through automation that personalizes the learning experience. Everything should be tailored precisely to the visitor’s persona. This includes branding, look-and-feel, available functionality and recommended content.

In the past, personalization was limited to branding and generic user roles (by job, title or location). Now, systems can base personalization on behavioral criteria as well, such as training content progress, past topic and media preferences, social interactions, survey responses and recommendations from others, to name a few.

What’s more, today’s best personalization engines can also leverage a user’s actions outside the LMS environment. For example, some systems can leverage data from a channel rep’s website path behavior, document downloads, tradeshow attendance, product purchases, contract status and much more.

13) Dynamic Grouping

Partner organizations are constantly changing, and so are their reps. That’s one reason why you’ll want to create groups of users whose individual profiles can be dynamically updated as needed. For example, when a salesperson completes a course or receives a promotion, the rep’s data is automatically updated in the LMS.

This significantly improves the accuracy and timeliness of learning status reports. It also lets you develop user segments based on common criteria, so you can offer personalized communication and training recommendations and compare performance across groups.

12) Gamification

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Great channel learning systems drive engagement by motivating learners to complete relevant content through gamification. This includes support for intangible rewards such as digital badges, awards and certificates that demonstrate expertise and give the owner bragging rights.

Gamification also includes the concept of contests and leaderboards, so reps can compete and learn on a friendly basis. For example, you can recognize individuals who are first to complete a course, or teams that are first to complete a certification. In addition, it provides access to powerful tangible incentives such as gift cards, special products and cash rewards for the winners.

In an employee LMS, gamification may only be a nice-to-have option. But when educating competitive channel professionals, gamification is absolutely mandatory.

11) OJT Checklists

An on-the-job-training (OJT) checklist lets you develop an observable training activity that can work alone or embedded in a course, curriculum or learning journey. As the learner performs this activity, a designated observer answers a series of questions on a predefined OJT checklist.

For example, imagine that you’re a home electronics manufacturer. As a product certification requirement, each of your distributor’s reps must learn to perform a routine set-up procedure. This skill must be confirmed by a service manager.

To verify that the assignment was completed correctly, the observer may upload pictures, videos or other materials to the LMS, along with the OJT checklist submission. Channel partner LMS platforms often include an approval workflow for OJT checklist documentation.

10) Mobile Delivery and Mobile Apps

More than any other learning audience, channel reps rely on LMS content for performance support. In the field, reps typically use smartphones and tablets for on-the-go access to product information, how-to videos, maintenance instructions and more. A mobile-first or mobile-responsive system provides easy access to just-in-time learning content without forcing users to squint, scroll or wait until they’re sitting in front of a laptop.

In addition, specialized mobile apps provide capabilities like:

QR code scanning for easy access to online product training and information

Content downloads for offline consumption

Tools to manage and document OJT activities and

Support for social learning interactions and other engagement via application notifications and text messaging.

9) Virtual Classrooms

Creating great learning content can be time-consuming and expensive. However, this obstacle can be overcome through live online training, delivered via virtual classroom capabilities.

By recording regular sessions and making them available on-demand, even time-strapped, budget-conscious organizations can build a substantial training library over time. It’s a great way to get started.

Several channel partner LMS vendors offer their own proprietary virtual classroom. However, most systems require integration with a third-party platform.

If you need to add a virtual classroom, look for 2-way integration. This means you can set up and assign sessions from within the learning system. Also, after the event, attendance data can be updated automatically in the LMS.

8) B2B eCommerce

Channel learning programs are often a valuable source of business revenue. By charging partners for training and certification, you can transform a cost center into a self-funded, profit-driven growth operation.

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Although it’s possible to manage B2B financial transactions through third-party applications, the best channel platforms build ecommerce capabilities directly into the LMS.

This includes solo and bulk purchasing features, coupon codes, organization codes, subscriptions, discounts, bundles, specials, shopping cart and checkout functionality, the ability to accept different payment types, payment gateways, taxation support and more.

7) Delegated Administration for Partner Organizations

If you sell content in bulk to channel partners with employees, then you need a channel partner LMS with delegated administration.

Within your LMS, delegated administrators can manage their organization’s users, assign content, monitor training consumption progress and generate program performance reports. The best channel LMS providers offer a subset of easy-to-use administrative tools, dashboards and reports that let partners manage their learning activities with a minimum of LMS admin training or overhead.

6) Remote Content

Many partners have their own LMS. They’re often consuming training from multiple suppliers, so asking their learners to use multiple learning platforms isn’t practical. These organizations simply want your content to run on their system.

However, if you lose control of your LMS content, you won’t have access to critical training-related data. Plus, updating content in other systems is a nightmare. Remote content solves these problems.

Remote content lets you share SCORM, xAPI, LTI and other content packages with channel partner systems, but the content is actually stored in a central location. The content package simply “points” to source content.

This lets your administrators update content in one location, and automatically publish those updates to all channel partner systems. Plus, tracking and reporting from across your sales network is just as easy as it would be if all learners were using your LMS.

5) In-App Embedding

Channel reps need lots of just-in-time performance support. In-app embedding makes it easy to integrate course descriptions, courses, reference content and specific LMS functionality into other systems. This is achieved with special HTML embed codes vs. setting up a full, custom, impractical API integration.

With in-app embeds, you can display learning content in a channel partner LMS, website, proprietary software product, mobile apps and more. That means you and your partners can finally say goodbye to “your LMS is an island” issues.

4) Intra-LMS Authoring

You’re training channel reps to understand and sell your products and services, not to master Microsoft Excel skills. That means almost 100% of channel training content is proprietary your LMS. Therefore, you’ll not only want to import training created in third-party authoring tools, but also to create learning content within the LMS environment, itself.

Like all LMS functionality, built-in authoring is available in multiple flavors, from basic assessment and survey publishing, to page-turner creation features, to scenario-based learning development tools. Some channel LMS solutions even include a content management system and content repository with a full team authoring workflow.

Regardless, you’ll want to find a channel partner LMS that lets you create and maintain content without requiring sophisticated technical skills.

3) Advanced Integration

Channel learning solutions don’t work well in isolation. Instead, they need to share data and content with a variety of other business systems and resources in an always-custom learning ecosystem. I often see integrations with these specialized systems:

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CRMs like Salesforce.com, Microsoft Dynamics, Hubspot and others

Partner Relationship Management platforms (PRMs)

Web traffic analysis tools, like Google Analytics

eCommerce, gateways, taxation, accounting and fulfillment systems

Multiple authentication and SSO mechanisms

Social media and portable learning lockers

Customer service applications

Marketing automation

Virtual classrooms, LCMS, authoring tools

Partner HR and financial systems

SMS for text notifications

Virtual and live proctoring

Event management

Video platforms

Content distribution networks

With strong integration capabilities, you can also embed courses, schedules and additional LMS content into web portals, customer support systems and other digital environments. This gives partners multiple ways to access instructional information in their normal flow of work.

2) Analytics and Dashboards

If you can’t measure, report and analyze partner performance, how will you know if your channel learning program is actually creating business value? Customizable reporting tools help you prove which reps have completed specific courses or certifications, and which have not.

You’ll also want to compare training progress with changes in sales volume or customer satisfaction scores. This will help you correlate learning content with partner performance at an individual or organizational level. The more freedom you have to slice-and-dice the data and create your own reports, the more effective you’ll be at proving your program’s impact.

1) Certification Management

Certification is mission-critical for most channel programs. That means your LMS must be able to award and track points, certificates and/or continuing education credits whenever reps complete a course or curriculum.

Certificates are typically awarded for a limited timeframe. When recipients need to complete refresher credits or courses to recertify, the LMS should automatically notify them, as well as channel program administrators. Sophisticated systems also support prerequisites, equivalency courses and multiple certification paths.

Conclusion

Whew. That’s all? This “top 15” list may seem extensive, but it only touches on the baseline capabilities I recommend for a channel partner LMS. Regardless, it demonstrates why channel education programs benefit from specialized solutions.

Your organization may require additional functionality. For example, you may want to consider globalization/localization, collaborative learning capabilities, instructor-led training management, assessments or evaluations.

But remember:  The ultimate goal of your channel LMS is to drive more and better partner sales revenue. So if you’re in the market for a channel learning system, I suggest taking a step back before you contact vendors.

First, consider your audience segments. Have you evaluated their needs, as well as your own business goals and realities?

Start by developing partner profiles. Then outline the appropriate training and certification journey for each segment. If you document these use cases carefully, they can help you prioritize requirements for a channel LMS that will transform your partner sales performance.

Thanks for reading!

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Gary Brashear, VP of Marketing, Sales and Customer Success at BlueVolt

Laura Pierce, Director of Marketing Communications at Shurtape Technologies

You’ll find out what makes real-world partner programs work. Including:

Strategies that position your brand as an industry expert

How to link partner education with increased sales and brand affinity

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How to establish key metrics, measure progress and analyze results

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