#Lottery Podcast

[heswrongshesright]

Father and Daughter Ramblings - HWSR Ep 131

In this special He's Wrong She's Right podcast episode, ‘Father and Daughter Ramblings’, hosts Andrew and Chloe dive into various intriguing and hilarious topics ranging from pervasive taxation to AI conspiracy theories. They discuss financial literacy gaps in the education system, the concept of a 'penny saved is a penny taxed,' and the intricacies of the banking system. Amidst financial rants, Chloe addresses misconceptions about their podcast team being AI-generated voices, leading to a fun father-daughter dynamic peppered with quirky interruptions and humorous banter. This episode also includes talk about school projects, future aspirations, and a funny detour into the world of terrible taxidermy.

Watch our latest episode here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL143tthLyKksSpobT1DBRCuM83GB-JkEx 

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00:00 Introduction and Tax Talk

01:02 Podcast Troubles and Setup

01:41 Father-Daughter Episode Begins

02:39 Discussing the State of the World

03:17 Taxes and Financial Literacy

06:24 Money and Banking Explained

07:35 School and Education

14:03 Lottery Dreams and Moving to Texas

19:00 Falling Behind in Education

19:25 Chinese Education and Policies

21:48 Dream Destinations

24:31 Career Choices and School Projects

29:41 Space and Time Relativity

35:14 Closing Remarks and Future Plans

#VeteranPodcast #AmericasPodcast #CouplesPodcast #MarriagePodcast #RelationshipPodcast #AndrewLemacks #NonaPhelps #HesWrongShesRight #HWSR #ImRightHesWrong #FatherDaughterPodcast #PublicEducationPodcast #TaxPodcast #LotteryPodcast #PowerballPodcast #SpacePodcast #DeathAndTaxesPodcast

[dysfunctionalcreature]

so I'm not really into the Hilbert x Lovelace ship (cause they just give mlm/wlw hostility to me lol), but everytime I listen to Little Talks by Of Monsters And Men I start to get it and understand the appeal of the tragedy that is their relationship, like I think if I just sat in that feeling and listened to this song on repeat for long enough I would actually start really shipping it

[thoughtportal]

Every week, one in eight Americans places a bet on the dream of a life-changing lottery jackpot. Americans spend more on lottery tickets annually than on video streaming services, concert tickets, books, and movie tickets combined. The story of lotteries in the United States may seem straightforward: tickets are bought predominately by poor people driven by the wishful belief that they will overcome infinitesimal odds and secure lives of luxury. The reality is more complicated. For a Dollar and a Dream shows how, in an era of surging inequality and stagnant upward mobility, millions of Americans turned to the lottery as their only chance at achieving the American Dream.

[confessionsofanarcadeaddict]

And it's Christmas eve eve at the Arcade! I was thinking that it was going to be either busy or five kinds of dead today, imagine my surprise when I saw how busy it was and continued to be. Families coming in, three, four, sometimes five deep. But there is still room for you, and what's more, we're open normal business hours tomorrow from 2pm to 8pm!

Now, onto me. It's been stressful week in several ways, not the least of which is financially. Thanks to a mess up by DHHS, I have not been able to get paid for the Homecare I did for one of my clients last month so I'm short until it gets straightened out. Christmas is going to come late for my son.

Because of all of that, I haven't been able to focus enough to get episode 70 edited and posted. I'm going to work on it tomorrow once I get laundry and other stuff done. Hang in there folks, this is how my life goes sometimes.

[gracefully33]

Fama in Houses/Signs

* Inspired by @astrosky33

* Based off MY OBSERVATIONS

Fama in Aries:

Being famous for being an athlete, doing wild things, taking leadership, Hair influencer b/c Aries rules the head, etc.

Fama in Taurus:

Being famous for being a singer, eating, etc.

Fama in Gemini:

Being famous for giving unpopular opinions, communicating with the public, could have your own podcast/channel where you give your opinion, etc

Fama in Cancer:

Being famous for your family, cooking, making videos in the home, etc.

Fama in Leo:

Being famous for being an actor, entertainer, etc.

Fama in Virgo:

Being famous for vlogging, being a perfectionist, relatable, known for being giving, etc.

Fama in Libra:

Being famous for your beauty/aesthetic, makeup influencer, known for your fashion, etc.

Fama in Scorpio:

Being famous for being a c*rn star/only fans, your money, sex appeal, etc.

Fama in Sagittarius:

Being famous for your knowledge, wealth, traveling videos, etc.

Fama in Capicorn:

Being famous for being a business owner, leader, hard work, etc.

Fama in Aquarius:

Being famous for being a social media influencer/blowing up online, being different/unique, known humanitarian, etc.

Fama in Pisces:

Being famous for your spirituality, glamour, psychic Abilities, exposing the hidden, etc.

✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨

Fama in 1h:

Known for your beauty, being a rapper, athletic, etc.

Fama in 2h:

Known for your money, singing voice, and material possessions, etc.

Fama in 3h:

Known for sharing your thoughts, could get popular from doing videos with your friends at school, showing off cars, etc.

Fama in 4h:

Known for your household, parents, doing real estate videos, etc.

Fama in 5h:

Known for your talent, exploring your inner child, winning the lottery, etc.

Fama in 6h:

Known for your daily life/lifestyle, being healthy, going viral for doing videos at work, etc.

Fama in 7h:

Known for being in a relationship with a famous figure, being a model/sponsorships, etc.

Fama in 8h:

Known for being an astrologist, witch, occult leader or following, sex appeal, etc.

Fama in 9h:

Known for your college videos, traveling vlogs, getting in trouble with the law, TV show host, etc.

Fama in 10h:

Known for your legacy, achievements, accomplishments, etc.

Fama in 11h:

Known for your friend group, social media influencer, having a manifestation page, being in a club/organization, politician, etc.

Fama in 12h:

Known for being expressive about your mental health, people could invade your privacy a lot b/c you don’t share much, known for spiritual practices, manifesting your fame, etc.

[official-wales]

Any advice for first language English speakers trying to learn Welsh?

sacrifice yourself to y ddraig goch and ascend into her kingdom of fire

Diolch yn fawr iawn! I'm a second language South Walian myself, so my Welsh is gonna be different to a first language North Walian, for example. But, we roll with it.

Start small

I don't know if you're in Wales, or elsewhere, but just introducing little Welsh phrases is a good place to start, like greetings. Don't worry about making mistakes, or being misunderstood. Everyone will know what you mean, and most people will be pleased you're using Welsh!

Hello - Shwmae/Helo

Good bye - Hwyl fawr

How are you? - Sut dych chi? (very formal), Sut wyt ti? (less formal)

Thank you (very much) - Diolch (yn fawr)

Please - O's gwelwch yn dda

Good morning - Bore da

Good afternoon - Prynhawn da

Good night - Nos da

Welcome - Croeso

If you ARE in Wales, look out for people wearing little orange speech mark badges in public places, like shops. These mean they are fluent, or learning Welsh, and will be happy to talk with you in the language.

2. Understanding pronunciation

Sometimes English speakers get tripped up by Welsh spelling, especially when mutations are involved. You've probably heard the old "it's just a keyboard smash language!", when honestly Welsh makes more sense than English (every letter is pronounced the same every time, unlike English, where it's a lottery).

Here's some major-ish differences to the English alphabet:

a - "ah" (apple)

ch - like a gutteral cat hiss? Or like you're trying to get phlegm out of the back of your throat.

dd - "th" (these)

e - "eh" (elephant)

f - "v" (velcro)

ff - "f" (fantastic)

i - "ee" (queen)

ll - like you're blowing air out the side of your tongue, while the tip is just behind your teeth. May take some practice, but it's a VERY common sound

r - roll that letter, baby. like an Italian

rh - like a breathy r. Use your teeth

u - "ih" (hit)

w - "ooh" (spoon)

y - "uh" (under) or sometimes "ih" (inside)

(there is no j, k, q or v in the Welsh alphabet. But that doesn't stop some anglicised words like "jam")

3. Mutations

Mutations are ways Welsh words change, depending on what comes before or after them. There are loads of mutations, but you can be understood without using them/forgetting them, so don't worry too much. They're quite easy to learn too.

For example:

Diflas - Boring

Mae Owen yn ddiflas - Owen is boring

The 'd' changes to a 'dd'. Because mutations. Don't ask me why.

Here's a guide to mutations that can explain it better than I can.

4. Find some sick Welsh media

Maybe you're into podcasts, or soap operas, or rock music, or food blogs, or children's books, or Eisteddfod poetry, or-

HERE'S SOME HANDPICKED STUFF FROM YOURS TRULY:

Hansh on Twitter, YouTube and iPlayer - comedy and more platform. Quite random.

Adwaith - Welsh-language, all-female, indie rock band from Carmarthenshire. Won the Welsh Music Prize in 2022.

Duolingo Welsh course - Recently, Duolingo announced they were going to stop updating the course, which led to some BIG OUTCRIES in Welsh news. Worth looking in to.

Learn Welsh - resources, schemes, audiobooks and more to help people learn Welsh in a way that suits them. 16-25 year olds can learn for free. You can book face to face lessons, online self-learning, learn with other learners, search courses near you and loads of other stuff. Good to explore.

Ap Treiglo and Ap Geiriadur - free apps to help with mutations and vocabulary. Ap Geiriadur is designed by Bangor University.

Siarad - Voluntary scheme to help people increase their confidence using Welsh. You're matched with a fluent Welsh speaker, and can go through three levels of proficiency. You arrange to meet up, or learn online - whatever suits you!

S4C - The Welsh language broadcasting service. Has everything: news, Gogglebocs Cymru, drama, documentaries, you name it.

Doctor Cymraeg - really successful tiktok and instagram account. Teaches about bitesized Welsh language facts, vocabulary and funny things. Also always films them when out on a walk, with the expression of a high school teacher who's just watched his pupils try and fail to make the leaning tower of pisa out of gluesticks. Classic.

5. TYMBLR

There are LOADS of people learning Welsh on here for the first time, and interacting with them is one of the best ways to get into the language online. #dysgu cymraeg is a good tag.

Sorry for the long post, but ta da! I am by no means an expert, but with your help anon, we can get everyone speaking Welsh by nightfall. The plan is in motion. Godspeed.

[putschki1969]

Happy 6th Solo Anniversary, Wakana💗

❗This is Fan Club EXCLUSIVE content❗ ❗PERSONAL USE ONLY❗ ❗Do NOT SHARE on other sites❗ ❗Join her FAN CLUB! Check out my detailed TUTORIAL ❗

Wakana is celebrating her 6th anniversary as solo artist today so she uploaded a little video on her fan club page to show her gratitude. Aside from reflecting on her anniversary, she also shared some video snippets of her recording the latest episode of "Wakana's Talk Garden" which will be uploaded on February 10th. This time, we'll get the podcast in video format. BANZAI! Since she was replying to as many messages as possible, the podcast turned out super long. Wakana feared it would be hard to follow this much audio content so she wanted to provide some visuals for us to make the experience more fun. Awwww! Bless her!!! Always thinking about us!! This is surely gonna be a lot of fun. Look at her tearing up! 🥹 »»—— CLICK ME 🎁 CLICK ME ——««

Wakana Spring Live 2025 Details

《Performance Overview》 [Date/Time] April 10, 2025 Open 17:45 / Start 18:30 [Venue] Hulic Hall Tokyo [Performers] Vocal: Wakana Music Director/Keyboard: Takebe Satoshi Drums: Tsuruya Tomoo Bass: Hamasaki Kenta Guitar: Ueda Koji Manipulator: Maeda Yugo [Ticket Price] 8,800 yen (+additional drink fee of 600 yen) ＜FC Advanced Ticket Lottery＞ Ticket platform: SKIYAKI TICKET Application limit: 2 tickets per person Application period: February 6, 2025~February 11, 2025 Result announcement: February 14~ Payment deadline: ~February 21

2025/02/06 Blog post by Wakana 6周年を迎えました✨〜Wakanaのドウガ！をアップしたよ〜

❗This is Fan Club EXCLUSIVE content❗ ❗PERSONAL USE ONLY❗ ❗Do NOT SHARE on other sites❗ ❗Join her FAN CLUB! Check out my detailed TUTORIAL ❗

6th Anniversary✨〜I Uploaded a FC Video〜

Today, it's been 6 years since my solo debut! ! ＼＼\٩( 'ω' )و //／／

I was able to reach this day because of all of your continuous support for me ✨ Thank you so much. I made a video where I tried to convey my gratitude to you‼ ︎･゜ﾟ･:.｡..｡.:･'(ﾟ▽ﾟ)'･:.｡. .｡.:･゜ﾟ･

Actually, I'm planning to post the next "Wakana's Talk Garden" episode in video format! I've uploaded a sort of digest, so I hope it will get you excited 😊💕

Also, the details for my upcoming Spring Live were announced! The advanced FC ticket lottery starts today‼ ︎･:*+.(( °ω° ))/.:+ I haven't decided on a title for the concert yet😂 Please wait a little longer! Find all the details in the link below. https://wakana-fc.jp/contents/888654

The music director is Takebe Satoshi, and the musicians are also my regular band members 😆♪ (They accompanied me at "Wakana 5th Anniversary Live ~The"VOICE"Stories~" as well 😊) Let's all enjoy music together for the 6th year in a row! ＼(^o^)／

I think this every year, but the past year has been an irreplaceable and precious time for me. It is because of all these experiences that I have been able to transition well into the next year. In the future, I will continue to have many thoughts, I will worry, I will cry, but I will also laugh out loud and feel happy.

I think I will have many joyful opportunities to meet you in various places so I am looking forward to that. I hope all our moments together will be filled with music and happiness 😊✨

I am once again grateful that we have reached this day, February 6, 2025.Thank you so much, everyone, for everything ☺️

＊＊＊Wakana＊＊＊

2025/02/06 Instagram post by Wakana

Today marks the 6th anniversary of my solo debut 🥳🎉 I'm very happy to have safely reached another anniversary 😊 I was able to reach this day because of all of you who continue to always support me. Thank you ✨

In the past year, I've been happy, laughing, crying, and worrying about many things.

At the core of my being is always the feeling of, "I love singing more than anything." That's why I want to sing. I want music by my side 😊

I will continue to sing and never give up on sharing my music with all of you. I am truly grateful for this 6th anniversary. Thank you so much 🧚✨ (Source 1 and Source 2)

[starsreality]

do u have some ways/explanations I could logically become rich and wealthy? I wanna be a billionaire but I just can’t imagine doing that without being unethical…

I was just thinking of this question a few days ago and consulted with ChatGPT, so I have the answers ready and loaded!

Ways to become super ultra rich without having to resort to unethical or immoral methods/practices:

› Entrepreneurship: Start your own business in a growing industry. Identify a gap in the market, create a product or service that meets a need, and scale it. Focus on innovation and customer satisfaction.

› Investing: Educate yourself on investing in stocks, real estate, or other assets. Consider long-term investment strategies, such as index funds or rental properties, which can compound wealth over time.

› Build a Personal Brand: Create a strong online presence in your field. Share knowledge through blogs, podcasts, or social media, and leverage your brand for consulting, speaking engagements, or product endorsements.

› Develop Valuable Skills: Acquire skills in high-demand fields like technology, finance, or healthcare. Expertise can lead to high-paying job opportunities or freelance work.

› Networking: Build relationships with influential people in your industry. Networking can lead to collaborations, partnerships, and opportunities that can significantly boost your wealth.

› Innovate and Create: Focus on research and development in emerging fields, such as renewable energy, biotechnology, or artificial intelligence. Invent new products or improve existing ones.

› Real Estate Development: Invest in real estate, starting with rental properties or flipping houses. Learn the market and focus on areas with potential growth.

› Passive Income Streams: Create sources of passive income, such as writing books, creating online courses, or investing in dividend-paying stocks.

› Franchise Ownership: Consider investing in a reputable franchise. This can provide a proven business model and brand recognition while allowing you to operate your own business.

› Philanthropy and Ethical Investing: Invest in socially responsible businesses or initiatives. This can lead to both financial returns and positive societal impact, enhancing your reputation and network.

Ways to “stumble” into wealth without (directly) hoarding wealth:

› Inheriting Wealth: Unexpectedly inheriting wealth from a distant unknown relative or family friend.

› Winning the Lottery: Not a very sustainable source of income but it works.

› Discovering Hidden Talents: Uncovering a unique skill or talent that becomes highly valued—like writing a bestselling book or creating viral content.

› Investing Early: Accidentally investing in a promising startup or stock that later skyrockets in value.

› Networking: Making a valuable connection at a social event that leads to a lucrative job or business opportunity.

› Crowdfunding Success: Launching a project that resonates with a broad audience, leading to substantial financial backing.

› Accidental Invention: Creating a product by chance that fills a market need, like a popular app or gadget.

[papayajuan2019]

have you guys listened to normie podcasts lately, with the injectable ads. i listen once in a while to get a feel of the land. theyre riddled with gambling ads now. not just draft kings shit, but also like lottery app shit. grim stuff

[drowsinginspace]

Off Menu Tag

I've been listening to a lot of Off Menu Podcast these days, so I've tried to think about my own Dream Restaurant Menu, and I've decided to transform it into a tag. I'm not sure if it existed before on tumblr, but still, if you're unsure about it go listen to some episodes too, if you want!

You're in the dream restaurant and a genie waiter is ready to take your dream meal order:

Where does your dream meal take place? I would love to say something romantically beautiful like "in space" or "on the seaside", but the truth is it has to be indoors and without many distractions, otherwise I can't enjoy it as much, I'm not going to lie.

Still or sparkling water? Still, please. Room temperature is fine unless it's summer, then I'll get a iced tea instead.

POPPADOMS OR BREAD? Bread, and it has to be a particular one from my town's bakery, because they make it heavenly. Although in 2020, before the pandemic, one particular restaurant blew my mind by serving us extravirgin olive oil to eat with the bread: ate it only once since because the surprise was never the same, and it's just oily bread afterwards. But a nice surprise the first time nonetheless.

Dream starter: Last May I had a "vitello tonnato" (veal with tuna sauce) so good at a restaurant that I had to go there again just to buy some more of just that. I never used to eat that before, and if so, I'd prefer turkey instead of veal, but that one was very good. And it was served as if they were little roses as well!

Dream main course: So, since we have "first" and "second" course here, and both are main courses, I am not really sure what to say. I cannot choose a pizza if we're counting the rest of the meal because that's just going to be two meals, and I physically cannot do that. I'll have to choose pasta, then. Very Italian of me. I'll choose spaghetti with the vegetable sauce my mum makes because they're delicious. The sauce has some tomato, carrots and zucchini in it.

Dream side dish: Just every vegetable you can find. Broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, potatoes, boiled, roasted or grilled, in any way. BUT also those little snacks we call "salatini", maybe a little German sausage in some of them, just for fun, and some guacamole. Little delicacies like those.

Dream drink: I don't drink alcohol, because I don't like how it tastes in my mouth, so I'll get a mocktail. I really liked the virgin mojito I tasted on holiday last July, but I think I'll get something fruity and sweet for this particular meal.

Dream dessert: In 2019 I went to a course outside of my region by train and when I came back I stopped for dinner at my favourite pizzeria: the dessert I got then, I NEVER found since. It was a WONDERFUL cherry millefeuille and it was PERFECT. A perfect end to this meal as well.

Tagging, with no pressure whatsoever: @2minutes2midnight, @agentofship, @andmethefivefooter, @cryingatships, @pollodigitale,

@mycatisatool, @an-imaginary-raven, @the-sky-the-stars-the-sea, @hismercytomyjustice, @laurengoesforaspin

@stitch-me-not, @linameka, @the-eclectic-wonderer, @genetic-lottery-unicorn, @apathbacktoyou, @thepondstogether

I also tag whoever is reading this! (just tag me if you do it! I love reading menus and stories!)

And friends, if you feel uncomfortable talking about food or about your relationship with it, you are definitely allowed to skip this post altogether <3

I hope you all have a lovely day! :)

[camlannpod]

Hi!

Finished catching up with the episodes this week and first of all congratulations it was fantastic every bit of them, this has become one of my favorite podcasts I’ve ever listened to!

Second of all I was talking with my boyfriend this afternoon about people we know that have story names and would have powers in the Camlannverse and we were wondering, only one person of each story name survived the Cataclysm, or every one with the same name is alive and kicking? As in, for example if there were another Arthur in the same area at the time of the Cataclysm could he possibly go and compete against the one we know for the knights?

Also, are you planning on releasing the music of the show? I really enjoyed the different songs that play at the beginning of the episodes!

Thank you for sharing your art with the world, hope you all have a great weekend! <3

Hello hello!! Thank you so much for the incredibly kind words, this is wonderful to hear!!

Many more than one person with each name survived! At first, the reason the group only know one person of each name is just that they've encountered so few survivors. Like, there are 67 million people in the UK, and by the start of series one, Dai, Morgan and Perry have seen about 300 people in nine months. By the end of the series, Arthur and his Knights have only seen about 1,000. So with those numbers, every name is relatively unique.

But (spoilers) - as confirmed by the end of the series, there are many more survivors than the gang previously believed. And this means many more duplicates! In Arthur's case, he is actively hunting any rival Arthurs and getting rid of them, because he recognises them as a threat to his power. For the others - it's a mixture of luck and fate. A Gwaine by himself wouldn't last as long as one who'd found an Arthur, or other Knights, and could be killed by a different story (as we see nearly happen with Perry and the dogs). So it's kind of a lottery as to who's survived, even if they have magical names.

Also, we are planning on releasing the music! @tincanaudio will be releasing a soundtrack album on bandcamp later this year, the exact date is TBA. We'll be using proceeds to help fund s2!

Though it's worth noting we won't be able to release the vocal tracks for two reasons. One is that each song is a folk song and we'd need to come up with our own new original arrangement for each one, which is a buttload of new unpaid work for both Amber and our singers, and second is that we'd need to arrange recording all that, which again just isn't practical from a financial POV.

However! All the instrumental original scoring that Amber has done throughout the series will be on there, and there's a Spotify Playlist of the folk songs if you ever want to listen to them.

Thank you so much for the lovely ask, and for sharing your art with the world!

[elliss-stuff]

Ten people I'd like to know better

I'm a little late on this but thank you @myteavsricochet and @fallenleavesofautumn for tagging me💕💕💕💕

Last song: no music in the last days, but crime podcasts 🕵🕵‍♀️

Favorite color: blue and green, and light blue🩵

Last book: The lottery by Shirley Jackson

Last movie: Carry on, on netflix (liked a lot)

Last tv show: Squid game 2 (a little boring at the beginnig, but then better and better)🐙

Sweet/Spicy/Savory: sweet...always

Last thing I searched for online: weather forecast because it' s fucking cold here!

Current obsession: always the same, Rwrb and everything/everyone related

Looking forward to: doing nothing for the entire afternoon 😝

Tagging @amnesiaa-on-ice @anti-homophobia-cheese @lfg1986-2 @valeblue @mylucayathoughts @potato-jem @hot-multifandom-mess @mossy-fae @made-by-han @almightaylor @alittlefrenchtree ....maybe many of you already done this, sorry...and as always everybody wants to play!

[spidereggs888]

Miguel’s new secretary ooh-la-la

(lol /j 💀)

Miguel O’Hara & y/n, any gender or non gender. Very casual writing style. TW Dark humor, dangerous situations, 18+. Y/n are sorta attracted to Miguel (why else would you be here?) but he doesn’t know you lol

This is a loooong read so make sure you have time or something. Also, there’s an illustration in the middle of the chapter! Enjoy

≋≋≋≋≋≋≋≋≋≋≋≋

MIGUEL & YOU

ACT 1 | ALGORITHMIC LOTTERY

It's the year 2110.

You are maneuvering through traffic in a sputtery fashion, the lifter problem in your engine getting so bad it almost sounds like you got rocks under the hood. The podcast is going on about alligators in Nueva York sewers.

“Couldn’t be more wrong,” you mumble, “there’s CROCODILES in the sewers, not alligators.”

You aren’t looking forward to this interview. How the heck did you manage an audition for office secretary to the CEO of Alchemax?!

“I don’t know,” you say aloud to your other self, “but if I get the job, Imma upgrade to a better ride than this heap of Maglev shit…”

But there’s other bitches who want this position. Two of them you are aware of: Syd and Brody. Syd is a real suck up who will say any damn thing to get the position. She out-groveled you and got the lead PR accounting job you wanted. Suck-up Syd is what you call her around your friends. Brody on the other hand is opposite; he thinks he can strong-arm his way into anything and he pretty much has. He’s kicked people down, screwed people over, and there’s a rumor he filed a sexual harassment charge on his friend Ashton just to get the promotion before Ashton could.

These two skanks are gonna be tricky, but that’s the least of why you loathe this whole thing. You also heard that Miguel O’Hara is a hard ass. When he came into power a few years ago, he immediately fired the former secretary for talking about his father in a positive light. Then he proceeded to chew and spit out people who ever had the misfortune of being in that job position.

“Or maybe they just cut their losses after raking in half a billion,” your friend Speshall guessed the last time you seen her, “they prolly couldn’t take the heat for that long so they waited until they were set for life then said something stupid on purpose to get him to let them go. What a retirement plan! To work for the sexiest man of the year then have him berate you on your way out!”

She was always like this.

Anyway, now your car is not being validated in the automated parking center.

“What the HELL?!”

“Sorry, your credit has been declined.”

“Oh fuck me-“

You fumble your lanyard of data sticks. You are looking for the green one, which has a small amount of credit you procured from test playing phone games. You lean out of your car window to bring the green stick drive near the wireless reader.

“Sorry, we cannot accept credit from online gambling. Please use another method of payment.”

“Oh fuck you!”

≋ ≋ ≋ ≋

Now you are walking. You had to park where they don’t give a shit about where your money is from. Alchemax is trying to create a good precedent by not accepting dirty money, but Alchemax, as far as you know, does dirtier stuff for pay. Why the hell is “gambling money” any different?!

Scowling so hard, you almost didn’t notice there’s some douchebag trying to walk close behind you. He probably saw the lanyard of data sticks around your neck, so you fluff your scarf around until they are covered.

“I don’t have any money, muh guy” you say in your heaviest Nueva York accent along with this generations lingo.

“Oh I’m not afta you. I was tryna tell ya there’s this otha weirdo following ya. I’m tryna group up here.”

You know better than to look back. That’s what this fucko wants you to do. He’s probably a flasher, so you walk into traffic.

“Hey that’s dangerous, yo!”

You don’t listen. Cars flying past is not as scary as going up to see the freakin CEO of Alchemax.

No cars hit you, so now you have to face reality. You walk into the Alchemax Business Bureau building (one of hundreds), and wave your ID at the receptionist in the lobby. The receptionist is preoccupied with a lady who has one hand on her hip and the other holding out a holo watch. It’s projecting a screen with a giant hourglass animation flipping over and over.

“I don’t know why it’s so hard to get a damn cup of coffee around here, I just don’t!”

“C’mon it’s not necessary to bring security here, ma’am.”

He remains standing behind his desk and grimaces at you. You really need to get him to validate your ID so you won’t be stopped by security, so you pull up your phone and say to the woman, “you want some coffee coupons for Dunkin Donuts?”

“What?”

You open your savings app and hastily air-swipe several coupons to her holo device like someone flicking bills at a stripper. She stops to look at them.

“A regular frap for half off? Oh woooow, how- will they really honor this?” She asks.

“Yeah! It’s good for two more days, so you may wanna hurry over to the kiosk at the west end.”

“Really?”

“They sell all brands of coffee, they’ll honor it.”

“Well, nevermind, then,” she says curtly to the receptionist as she turns her shoulder away, “Didn’t want hours-old coffee anyway.”

She turns on her fancy heel and trots away. You grin stupidly at the receptionist who rolls his eyes and snatches your ID card from you. He swipes it near his card reader then flicks it back without a word.

After a nod, you swiftly leave down the lobby to the elevator area. You round the corner and see an open elevator closing. It's the only one since the other two are under construction. You rush forward as fast as your legs will allow.

"Wait wait WAIT WAIT!"

The doors are closing and you see the face of Suck-up Syd with her smoky eyes and faux fur capelet. She smiles and does nothing as the doors close.

"Shocking typical," you grumble. But you know where the other elevator is. You take off to the other end of the building for the second set of elevators.

You make it onto the elevator with two other people, some white chick and an Indian dude. The lady sees your pass.

"Going for the secretary job?" She asks.

"Yeah."

“Me too. If I don’t get this, I’m going to jump from this building,” the lady jokes.

“If I get this, I WILL jump from this building,” you add.

“Either way, it's gonna be job security for the custodian department,” the Indian guy says. All three of you chuckle politely.

The elevator lets more people in. You check your phone. You are fucking late by 20 minutes, but so is the lady who wants this job or else. You assume it would have taken a while anyway, since there was about 15 people going in for this very same job. Could it be you?! Could you land this job?! What if your mom was wrong?! And what if O’Hara says yes? What if you are set for life?

The final floor of this elevator is reached. You wobble on your way out. The lady doesn’t move.

“Actually, I can’t do this. I’m going home.”

The elevator doors close and she goes back down. You hear a faint byeeeeeeeeeee as the elevator descends to lower levels. You pay no heed and follow the Indian man into the massive hall.

There’s already chaos. One guy is being escorted out of the lobby by his shirt collar, and he's spouting obscenities. Some lady had dropped all her paperwork and she’s too numb to pick it up again. Two ladies near her are sarcastically wishing each other luck, one of them is Suck-up Syd. She looks 10x more desperate today with her tight-fitting outfit and belt buckle the size of a plate. Her overly fake smile gives you no esteem or hope. You almost sit but realize there’s barf on the chair.

Okay, surely everyone is overreacting in here.

“Man I’m not scared at all. There’s a trick to facing down Alpha males,” says a guy who you didn’t ask.

“Ah, cool.” you say through a grin. It’s Brody. You don’t even have to see him to know he’s there with his overwhelming presence of snobbery.

“See, as a Sigma male,” he continues, leaning on the back of the barf chair to talk to you, “I don’t adhere to the Alpha’s orders. That’s how the pack survives! One guy is an outlier so like if the Alpha fails in his role as leader, the Sigma will show by example and the rest of the females and Betas will follow him-“

“BRODY!”

You and Brody see Ashton in the doorway you came from. Ashton beelines across the room with his briefcase raised high. He brings it down on Brody with a loud clunk and they grapple and exchange blows. You go ahead and sit down perfectly still.

"Oh my GOD!" Suck-up Syd muses. She only sees this as two less competitors. You wince as the men start yelling obscenities at each other in their struggle. The guards who took out the last guy come back in and see this happening and they both huff angrily.

"Next!"

"Ah, that's me!" Syd says, “you guys are welcome to leave, I probably got this in the bag.”

She gets up and thrusts her capelet onto the lobby assistant.

.˳˳.⋅ॱ˙˙ॱ⋅.˳ ˳.⋅ॱ˙˙ॱᐧ.˳˳.

Four hours pass. Brody and Ashton were escorted from the building, those bozos didn’t even get an interview, but it was funny watching Brody get dragged down to hell by a demon he wronged.

Suck-up Syd walked out in tears and a forced smile. You felt bad for making fun of her in the past. She’s just kinda desperate and a little pathetic. You assume groveling doesn't work on the boss.

Other people came and went swiftly. The cheerful Indian man from earlier left looking surprised at his failure. The lady who dropped all her crap earlier apparently already had an interview and was reeling from her bad luck. You understand their disappointment since being chosen for this position was like winning the lottery, except you don't know if you won or not.

“Next!”

Your stomach twists but you refuse to be like them. This is just a job. You’ll be answering phones, emails, and possibly even mailing some dry cleaning. No big fuckin deal.

You thank the lobby assistant but she ignores you and walks away. She is just doing her job. She looks very tired of everyone else’s shit and is probably glad it's over. You walk to the elevator where the second to last person is taking baby-steps, talking on his phone with someone nursing his wounded pride. That could be you in a minute.

I'm probably not gonna get it either, you think, but I'm going down with some dignity.

You work yourself up as you step into yet another elevator, this one glass paneled. You stare across Nueva York as you ascend, contemplating your future. So what if you don't make it? You will simply fall back to your job and go about your life. Your mom will say she's right about the invitation being a fluke. You will go back to paying off debts and supplementing your food budget by testing mobile phone games during work hours and before you go to sleep. You see your own reflection, no longer as young as you used to be, and you sigh.

The glass doors open behind you. You walk through another set of foggy glass doors. Despite your self pep talk, you are still not looking forward to this. You've seen pictures of Miguel O'Hara before; over 6 feet tall, wide shoulders that could support an ox yoke, and a presence so large one would think he could go toe to toe with Godzilla. How will the interview go? You imagine fire. You expect a demon sitting behind a black marble desk in the darkness, a horrendous mob boss wearing Scarface attire, spitting fiery facts and passing cruel judgment, his horns ascending at the heavens with searing indifference and contempt for mercy. You expect a fax machine in the corner that will print out your death.

This is not what you see.

There he is, in this meager temp office sitting behind a tiny desk covered in empty water bottles. His shoulders are wider than the desk, but he's scrunching them in to seem normal. He's wearing a regular dress shirt, no tie. No fancy jewelry either, just some off-brand oversized watch on his left wrist. He looks disappointed already, but not at you. He’s squinting down at some of the tiny desks’ interactive holo-projections. You see your name on one of the files he’s peering at through comically large anti glare glasses.

You don’t sit. You are too stressed. He hasn’t noticed you. He picks up one of the water bottles and carefully opens it with his monster hands. They look travel-sized compared to him. He sips it and notices you.

“Hello!” You greet.

He finishes it in two gulps and sets it down slowly, as to not disturb the other bottles.

“Okay I don’t have a lot of time left, so let’s cut through here… you work for the guys in the PR department-“

“Ah yeah, they are a very friendly bunch down there! That is until you get to know them!” You blurt out. He looks up at you with tired eyes and swipes through the files without looking at them.

“Says here you were demoted from vice head PR accounting a while back, but you attached a note saying you have an alibi? Let’s hear it.”

“Uhhh.”

“C’mon I don’t have all day.”

“There was a payment discrepancy, uh, I was given a raise but I noticed my boss didn’t update it for a whole month. He was on vacation and wasn't answering my calls, so... since he left the finances to me I updated it myself… And I got into trouble BUT it was technically not embezzlement, so I was given an ultimatum to either move to a lower department or get fired, so-“

“Self-reliant. Got it. There's a note from your current department head saying she's been notified anonymously that you've been paying for Alchemax home services with gambling money, what do you have to say about that?"

"I- that is a th- thing with SoloGameMedia, ah, they are a parent company to a gambling franchise, therefore every transaction from them is registered as gambling profit- but I test games with- from them directly! It's a side hustle- thing, I- that, I DO NOT playtest games during work hours! Only on-"

"Why do you think I should hire you?”

You are caught off guard by the most basic interview question.

“Hhhhhh WELL… because you need a secretary now?”

He’s already looking back down at the files again. You can see NYPD files, apparently he’s now looking at your small criminal record. You also notice his shirt is unbuttoned on the top. For curiosity's sake, you discreetly raise up on your toes to see down his cleavage. It's deeper than you expected. One mighty flex and that shirt will send buttons flying everywhere. He looks back up as you quickly drop back down on your heels.

“Yeah. Mmm. Ok. So you are way in over your head in college and credit debt, you have been gambling as a means to get by- really don’t care about that, and you did not dispute your boss's ultimatum when you had the chance."

"Wait, what?"

"Four years ago, when your boss gave you the ultimatum to get demoted or get fired. His proposal was ILLEGAL."

Your gut twists.

"That- that was illegal?!"

"You had six months to report him and you didn't. Why?"

"Be- because I just thought he was being fair, I-"

"I'm sorry, but you got screwed."

He looks sincere behind those nerdy lenses with his pout lips. You really want to throw something right now.

“I… oh…”

"Look, the most I can do is re-open your case," he says as he pushes his glasses back up his nose bridge, "You might get a small settlement out of it, but even that isn't guaranteed."

"So... I'm not getting the job?"

"How do you expect to get hired with such an unexceptional history of white collar crime and a meek attitude that's gotten you nowhere? Hey Lyla? Is this all we have?”

An AI assistant pops up from the interactive desk.

“This is the last one, sir.”

“Okay, cool. Look I’m sure you’re actually great at your job, but I have places to be-“

“Wha- well so do I!”

“Uh huh, nice talking to you,“ he scoots his chair back and hits his knee on the tiny desk, sending empty bottles scattering all over the room. He cringes.

“Well if I’m so unexceptional, why was I accepted for an interview?!”

“I’m gonna guess because of some algorithmic lottery? Probably to do with the amount of experience you have in your department, I dunno,” He guesses as he attempts to gather the bottles by sweeping them under the desk with his shoes, “If you wanna blame someone for the short interview time, thank those other time-wasters who came before you. I gotta go.”

“Now WAIT a… minute”

He stands up from his tiny desk as you say that. He’s towering over you with a tired expression and loose strands of hair about his face.

“What?” He asks, all friendliness gone.

“Can we continue this interview at a different time? You obviously haven’t found a secretary you want, but you still need one, right?! I could be the one you need even if I’m not the one you want!”

It takes every inch of your being to not slap yourself on the forehead. He is scrunching his nose, squinting down at you with mild contempt. You get a good look at his sharp, broad temples and cheekbones, complete with a hardened jaw. His thick dark lips are pulled to one side in annoyance and are accentuated with a pair of jowls that look poised to bite at any time like some kind of deep sea angler fish. His eyes are very dark. They almost look red…

His expression goes blank as he sighs.

“Okay.”

“Great! Ah, when?!”

“Tomorrow, same time.”

“Grabsolutely- Great- fantastic! I won’t let you down!”

“Uh huh.”

He leaves. You assume you should leave too. You awkwardly follow him. He grabs his coat off a nearby chair, and you get a brief display of his amazing body shape as he flips the coat over his shoulders. You avert your attention to the floor, already feeling disrespectful after having looked down his shirt. Now you are both in the elevator. You are doing all in your power not to pass out over your small lucky break.

O’Hara pretends you aren’t there as he looks at his phone and chats with his AI assistant.

“Lyla, push the evening meeting to tomorrow as well, except an hour earlier.”

“Roger that!”

“I need coffee.”

“Roger that also!”

“Please, PLEASE tell them to not add cream. I really hate when they do that.”

You wanna ask him if he’s lactose intolerant but you already pushed your luck today.

Apparently he is exiting the building in the same way you are going, but he's booking it with long ass strides and it's difficult to keep up. You both end up on the same elevator again, this time with other people. He awkwardly acknowledges you with a blank smirk and brow raise, then promptly looks back down at his phone. Everyone else is trying not to bother him.

"Hello, Mister O'Hara, I didn't realize you were here! Hi!" says a lady who is shooting her shot at a social connection (she totally knew he was there.)

"Ah, hey. Miss...?"

"Stacy Brian! We met at the Student Festival earlier this year."

"Oh, right, right! Miss Brian, how are you?"

"Doing well! I didn’t know you wore glasses!"

"Oh- I totally forgot these were on my face," he admits while taking them off and trying to find a place to stash them, "I actually don’t wear glasses, it's- um, I have issues with bright computer screens."

You discreetly watch him in the elevator wall reflection as he quickly swaps the lenses out for a pair of red sunglasses. The elevator doors open and everyone flows out into the foyer. You realize you never got his card.

"Hey one more thing, sir!" You call out to him.

"What?"

"I don't have your number! What if we need to reschedule?!"

"Ah, right. Get your phone out, please."

He turns back around and searches for something on his phone. With a swift flick of his hand, he air drops his ID and number to your device.

"Thank you!"

"¡De nada!"

He swiftly leaves through the front doors and trots down the steps. You watch this huge marvel of nature hail a cab. The automated transporter car is so small that he has to bring his shoulders in tight to fit through the doorway. This seems to have more to do with him not wanting to snag his nice jacket.

A man of this position and wealth... hailing a cab? Must be in THAT much of a hurry. You look down at the data he sent you. His ID photo looks like they took his picture after pulling an all-nighter, and his half-hearted smile reveals his crooked teeth. But somehow he still looks great in an unconventional way.

•°《💀》°•

You drive home, feeling both anxious and also deflated. Miguel O'Hara was a mixed bag of what you expected. Speshall hyped him up as a sexy hunk of the year and Brody felt so intimidated that he went on an unwarranted Alpha Male rant, but the guy was so awkward with his tiny desk and water bottles and weird glasses, and he was whining to his AI helper about his coffee. He’s a large… finicky… lactose-intolerant nerd, but he's also got the moxy to move mountains. What’s more, now ya gotta think of what to say to him in the next interview. What could be expected of a guy like that? What if he cancels the meeting and your chance is lost forever?

Your car makes it home and you sit in it for a moment. Speshall left you a text asking about the interview.

Went weird, you text back.

"Welcome back, tenant 27," the AI apartment valet greets.

You open your car door and notice you've been parked over the grates again. You remember when you last dropped your phone in this spot, the fucking thing went right in between the grate holes and you couldn’t get it back for a week. You have the presence of mind to upload the latest bit of information (O'Hara's phone number) to your data cloud.

You walk through the parking garage. You know all the safe routes. It didn’t matter who you were, Nueva York was never safe at night.

You hear footsteps to your left but it’s just a couple of people walking together, a man and woman trying to huddle. The garage opening is just ahead. You go ahead and march out, not looking back.

You step out into the warm breeze of middle-class Nueva York. The wind is artificial, billowing from the hydro-electric plants that keeps this city running. It took you forever to get here, a lot of cheap-skating, white lies, and debt piling to maintain this life, but you are here! Unapologetic holo screens buzz near you as you walk, begging you to spend money as they light up the way to your apartment. There's no point in tapping their "no" buttons since that just wastes your time. The screens showcased brand-new cars, beautiful clothes, and radiant health. If you had more money, at least some of that could be yours. You hate that people roll around in all the wonderful things this world has to offer while you have to make do with decade old clothing and over-processed food. Where the hell is everyone getting it all from? When the hell will you get yours?

“Hey! Wanna buy a shared data cloud?!”

You are now being bothered by a salesman. You say nothing and keep walking. Even saying no opens more dialogue. He gives up but another comes at you.

“Wanna be a part of the elite task force that edits any and all articles about Thor?! It’s a paying job! $100 an hour!”

As dystopian as it sounds, $100 an hour won’t get you far in Nueva York, not in this era of quadrillionaires.

“Hey, I saw ya on da street earlier! Ya walked into traffic!”

You accidentally glance over at the familiar voice talking about the familiar subject. He’s got you. Your eyes are fixated on a creepypasta face, his irises flashing in a hypnotic pattern. This was way worse than the idea of the guy being just a flasher.

He’s a black market demon. The worst street hawker known to man.

You can’t remember much else besides him taking you by the hand and leading you away.

_________________________________________

Next: ACT 2 | BLACK MARKET DEMONS

[the---hermit]

16|05|2023

13/50 days of productivity

Rainy day, still feeling sick. I didn't sleep that well, but this morning I was more energeting which gave me hopes. In the afternoon I got super tired so I did the bare minimum. Especially because my eyes are burning a lot today. Hopefully I'll start to have some progress with how I am feeling tho, cause I need to get over this week.

Productivity:

updated my reading journal

watched and annotated the history of religions lecture I missed yesterday

finished highlighting my history of religions notes

practiced my protohistory presentation twice once by myself and once with my dad to see if I was making sense (I am starting to feel more comfortable with what I'll have to say so yaay)

highlighted all my protohistory notes

Self care:

read first thing in the morning

again completed my tasks according to how I was feeling and how much energy I have since I am still very much sick

chilled in my room in the dark while listening to a podcast because of a headache + eyes burning combo (and it really helped!)

📖:The Lottery and Other Stories by Shirley Jackson

🎵:this playlist has been the background of my last couple of study session

[iantimony]

tagged by @pngjpeg slash @girlfriendsofthegalaxy to list nine books to read this year! went through my expansive goodreads to-read list and it took me longer than I expected to pull these together.

I taggggg @ceruleanvulpine @delta-orionis and @celestialtourguide, if you all want :3

more on each book beneath the cut:

The Dispossessed (Ursula Le Guin) - technically cheating because I read about 30% of this last year

After the People Lights Have Gone Off (Stephen Graham Jones) - horror short story collection that's I go "oh I should read that" every time I remember it's on my list

The Haunting of Hill House (Shirley Jackson) - should be a quick and fun read, I enjoyed the tv show adaptation and have been meaning to read the book ever since. when I realized it was the same author as "The Lottery" I was like whoaaaa

The Gnostic Gospels (Elaine Pagels) - I read most of her book on the concept of the devil. I have a passing familiarity with gnosticism and its ideas and this feels like a good academic source to start with book-wise for some more history.

The Master and Margarita (Mikhail Bulgakov) - I think this is my primary Serious Literary Fiction(tm) choice for the year.

Strange Practice (Vivian Shaw) - seems like a fun little urban fantasy.

Orlando (Virginia Woolf) - my mom got me a copy of this when I was 12 or so and I bounced off of it HARD. so I would like to try it again as an adult.

Kabbalah (Gershom Scholem) - one of my few physical copies this year probably! I bought this at a used bookstore in 2022 I think, maybe early 2023.

Moths, Myths, and Mosquitoes: The Eccentric Life of Harrison G. Dyar, Jr. (Marc Epstein) - was mentioned on the Astonishing Legends podcast at some point? seems like a guy of all time

[puckpocketed]

hello my neighborhood AIHL reporter!

just found out the Central Coast Rhinos have a (what seems) kraken inspired uni. i love it!!!!!!!! do you have any thoughts on them as a team? thinking about following them just based on uniform alone hehe…..

hope you’re having a good day/night love u my sweet cheese <3333

hellooo mia . i have some (coughs up microplastics) News. they are. hrghh. Not Very Good i fear…! i love them very very much for this (sharks enjoyer) but if you plan to watch them to avoid the pain of our squids flopping, i will have to disappoint you </3

Exhibit A:

Exhibit B:

As far as i know. they have never been very good (cursed franchise) finishing last or close to last for every season of their existence </3 and between 2009-2012, and 2013-2021, they um. did not play at all. idk if they were relegated or simply non-operational but!! yeah sakajfkglh

wanna hear something incredible and very fucked up? This past week, they FINALLY broke a 5796 day home game winless streak. The last time they won at home was in 2008. against MY CBR Brave — who were actually operating under a different franchise name the Canberra Knights 😭👍 if you think the kraken loss streak was awful — can you imagine being fans in their home barn and not seeing a win since before the last recession <3

Listen to me my darling clam chowder do NOT let this stop you from loving them. I of all people don’t have a fin to stand on when it comes to supporting losers. 5/8 of my nhl teams were lottery teams this year!!!

They DID get a new coach this szn, and they’ve actually been doing a bit better!! despite the HORRENDOUS scores I’ve shown you jsjfjjg. they aren’t last in the standings as of writing (my Brave, hamstrung by having our best players poached for the national team, have this honour <3)

Here is their instagram

Here is their season preview from HockeyhypeAustralia

Here is a podcast interview (spotify) with Rhinos forward Mackenzie Bolger

@sregnarkroywen Charlie here is a KNOWN Rhinos enjoyer so please shoot them a follow if you do pull the trigger on loving this flop ass team <3 Charlie also covers the euro leagues and is currently rooting for our beloved Grubi on team germany 🥺 they are very nice, and they’ve been fighting the good fight (following the rhinos/aihl) for much much longer and would have much more info for you if you’re interested!

and to answer your last question — I am having the time of my life watching nhl playoffs, worlds, and my flop teams’ prospects in their playoffs games <3 no end to hockey in sight im a pig in mud im a worm in dirt im a shark in blood !!!!!!! thank u for popping in holding fins and tentacles and hooves forever weeeeeeeeeeeeeeee