#Service restoration update

[waledxman123]

Microsoft Outlook and Teams Outage: What Happened and What to Expect

On November 25, 2024, Microsoft services, including Outlook, Teams, and the Microsoft Store, faced widespread disruptions. The outage began early in the morning, with reports surging around 8 AM ET, coinciding with the start of the workday for many users. Microsoft identified the root cause and began rolling out a fix. However, the resolution process has been gradual, with some services still impacted as targeted restarts take longer than anticipated. Microsoft has promised updates as they work toward full restoration.

This outage underscores the challenges of maintaining seamless operations for essential productivity tools, especially as businesses and individuals rely heavily on digital communication platforms. Microsoft advises affected users to monitor their service health dashboards for real-time updates.

For further details, visit sources such as Windows Central and Microsoft’s official channels【10】

read more in google news

Microsoft Outlook and Teams Outage: Detailed Insights

On November 25, 2024, users worldwide reported significant disruptions to key Microsoft services, including Outlook, Teams, and the Microsoft Store. This outage severely impacted businesses and individuals relying on these tools for communication and collaboration. Reports began surfacing as early as 4 AM ET, with a sharp spike at 8 AM ET as the workday commenced. By mid-morning, millions were unable to access emails, schedules, or Teams functionalities.

Timeline of Events

Microsoft began investigating the issue early and identified the problem affecting Exchange Online and Teams’ calendar functionalities. At 9:06 AM ET, the company acknowledged the outage on its Microsoft 365 Status account on X (formerly Twitter), assuring users that a fix was underway. Initial updates indicated progress in deploying patches, but the restoration process proved slower than expected. As of midday, manual restarts for affected servers were still ongoing, leaving many without full access.

read more in google news

What Caused the Outage?

While Microsoft has not publicly disclosed technical specifics, the incident underscores the complexity of managing cloud-based services at scale. Early reports suggest server configurations or software updates might have triggered the disruptions. Microsoft’s gradual rollout strategy aims to minimize broader impacts, ensuring stability during restoration.

Global Impact

The outage hit hard in regions where Microsoft 365 services are vital for productivity, including North America and Europe. Businesses dependent on Outlook for email and Teams for virtual meetings experienced delays and cancellations, forcing many to revert to alternative tools or communication methods.

Current Status

By late evening on November 25, Microsoft reported that its fix had reached 98% of affected environments. However, isolated issues persist, with Microsoft advising users to check the admin center for updates under the case number MO941162. Full restoration is expected soon, though no exact timeline has been provided.

read more in google news

Lessons and Considerations

This outage highlights the growing dependence on cloud services and the need for contingency planning. Organizations should evaluate backup communication tools and ensure staff are prepared for sudden disruptions.

For updates, users are encouraged to monitor Microsoft’s service dashboards and official communication channels. As the situation evolves, Microsoft’s response will likely shape customer trust and future service reliability.

[townpostin]

Railway Service Resumes After Howrah-Mumbai Mail Accident

Track Repairs Completed, Operations Gradually Returning to Normal Rail operations resume post Howrah-Mumbai Mail accident near Potobeda. Damaged tracks repaired, undergoing safety tests. Trains initially running at reduced speeds for precautionary measures. JAMSHEDPUR – Railway authorities have successfully repaired the damaged tracks following the Howrah-Mumbai Mail train accident near Potobeda…

[honorourflag]

Website : https://www.honorourflag.us

Honor Our Flag is dedicated to preserving the dignity and significance of the U.S. flag, particularly in the context of half-staff honors. The initiative advocates for a more respectful and meaningful approach to honoring citizens, emphasizing the importance of the flag as a symbol of national values and pride. By proposing changes to the U.S. Flag Code, Honor Our Flag seeks to restore the honor of this special gesture, ensuring it remains a powerful tribute to those who have truly served the nation.

Keywords: flag honor reform initiatives respecting the national flag u s flag protocol guidelines dignity in national flag display significance of half staff flag flag code revision updates patriotic flag respect principles integrity in flag tributes american flag pride advocacy understanding flag lowering guidelines preserving flag honor online awareness of flag etiquette advocating for flag code updates display principles for the flag honoring true service with flags preventing flag misuse online restoration of national pride raising awareness for flag respect criteria for flag lowering respecting the flag with tribute modernization of flag code reverence for the national flag reform in flag lowering practices awareness campaigns for flag honor advocacy for flag display protocols for flag lowering tribute initiatives for the national flag online awareness for flag respect initiatives for flag lowering reform uplifting national flag pride display guidelines for the flag importance of flag honor implementing flag code revisions upholding national flag dignity online resources for flag protocol national pride through flag respect guidelines for respectful flag display advocacy for u s flag honor promoting flag lowering integrity online awareness for flag code reform advocating for flag display principles u s flag protocol updates flag honor initiatives online enhancing national flag reverence modernizing flag lowering criteria promoting flag honor awareness advocacy for proper flag tribute online resources for flag code u s flag pride initiatives supporting national flag dignity flag protocol awareness campaigns respecting the flag through reform upholding flag honor principles online resources for flag awareness display guidelines for the national flag advocating for u s flag reform flag lowering integrity campaigns online awareness for flag pride advocacy for proper flag etiquette enhancing u s flag reverence modernizing flag honor criteria promoting flag lowering awareness

[bonetrousledbones]

fuck it since my birthday is in like one day i'm gonna use my birthday wish to tell y'all to look at the shit going on in southern Appalachia right now after Hurricane Helene. look at it and talk about it and spread resources about it like wildfire because nobody else fucking is and it feels like we're on our own out here.

there are people who are stranded in hazardous areas that are still safer than trying to leave by driving on the increasingly hazardous roads. i'm personally going into my third day without electricity at this point, and haven't been able to get any gas for a generator to even keep our fridge working. there are very few places with power or running water, and cell service has just barely been restored in the last hour. ground crews are working hard to repair things, but there are many, many areas that are entirely inaccessible that may not receive these fixes for several more days if not weeks. i'm afraid my own neighborhood might become one of those areas if repairs don't get to us soon, and since we're much more rural i have a difficult time trying to be optimistic about it.

we're very far inland. i guarantee you damn near everybody here was expecting a little more rain and wind like we usually get during hurricane season, if they even heard about the hurricane beforehand in the first place since most people only got about a twelve hour notice before landfall- after several major areas had already been flooded. our terrain protects us from most major weather events- most locals have never encountered a single tornado or legitimate tornado warning in our entire lives. nobody i've talked to or heard from about it seems to have had any idea that it would be this bad. everybody's wishing that they took it more seriously, but we've never, ever had to before. i've seen people comparing it to Hurricane Katrina and honestly i'm not sure if that's all too inaccurate. today while looking for a single working gas station i drove by a military helicopter parked in front of the elementary school i went to when i was little.

please for the love of god, talk about us. talk about the good memories you had here or the beauty of our mountains, and talk about how devastated we are as we watch historic structures, buildings, and entire towns get wiped from the face of the earth like they were never even there. stop dismissing us as uneducated hicks and rednecks and hilllbillies and fucking help us.

r/Asheville resource/updates megathread (Asheville is the largest city in western North Carolina)

How to set up disaster roaming for cell service

WLOS Live updates

Duke Energy power outage map

WNC Landslide Map

Hotels accepting locals

Emergency shelter locations

I live in western North Carolina so all of my own resources are centered around that. If anybody from the other impacted areas has additional sources they'd like to add, please don't hesitate to do so.

[transformativeworks]

OTW Website and Donation Form Are Down

18:30 UTC on July 11, 2023

As of now AO3 is back up. However, in the past hour the OTW website and the donation platform have become inaccessible. We believe it is part of the same attack first made on the Archive. We will be providing updates via this account.

We also want to alert fans that on Twitter someone is using the name AO3_Status_ (note the second underscore). If you are on Twitter, please block and report this account. 

The fake account is impersonating our service status account and attempting to scam AO3 users out of money. Fans on all platforms should be wary of anyone soliciting money on behalf of the OTW or its projects at this time. (The real donation form is currently down due to a DDoS.)

Open Doors and Legal Advocacy pages are also not available at this time. Our Fanlore project is being worked on and should be back today.  Our Transformative Works and Cultures site has not been affected. Thank you for being patient while we restore services!

[genshin-impact-updates]

Co-op Mode Warning (RESOLVED)

Hoyoverse hasn't put out an official announcement yet, but this is a serious issue, so I'm taking some liberties here. Do not let anyone you don't know into your world for now! There is a recently discovered exploit that allows hackers to use Kaveh and a third party app to permanently remove content from your world. So far, it's only been recorded in Chinese servers, but until we have confirmation that it's fixed, I recommend rejecting random co-op requests to be safe. Video evidence here.

The removal is on the server side, so logging out or uninstalling the game will not restore lost content. Hackers can also use this to delete the Traveler, which locks you out of your account entirely.

For clarification:

Update: This issue has been resolved. If you lost any items due to this exploit, please contact customer service.

[reasonsforhope]

"Seven federal agencies are partnering to implement President Biden’s American Climate Corps, announcing this week they would work together to recruit 20,000 young Americans and fulfill the administration's vision for the new program. 

The goals spelled out in the memorandum of understanding include comprehensively tackling climate change, creating partnerships throughout various levels of government and the private sector, building a diverse corps and serving all American communities.

The agencies—which included the departments of Commerce, Interior, Agriculture, Labor and Energy, as well the Environmental Protection Agency and AmeriCorps—also vowed to ensure a “range of compensation and benefits” that open the positions up to a wider array of individuals and to create pathways to “high-quality employment.”  

Leaders from each of the seven agencies will form an executive committee for the Climate Corps, which Biden established in September, that will coordinate efforts with an accompanying working group. They will create the standards for ACC programs, set compensation guidelines and minimum terms of service, develop recruitment strategies, launch a centralized website and establish performance goals and objectives. The ACC groups will, beginning in January, hold listening sessions with potential applicants, labor unions, state and local governments, educational institutions and other stakeholders. 

The working group will also review all federal statutes and hiring authorities to remove any barriers to onboarding for the corps and standardize the practices across all participating agencies. Benefits for corps members will include housing, transportation, health care, child care, educational credit, scholarships and student loan forgiveness, stipends and non-financial services.

As part of the goal of the ACC, agencies will develop the corps so they can transition to “high-quality, family-sustaining careers with mobility potential” in the federal or other sectors. AmeriCorps CEO Michael Smith said the initiative would prepare young people for “good-paying union jobs.” 

Within three weeks of rolling out the ACC, EPA said more than 40,000 people—mostly in the 18-35 age range—expressed interest in joining the corps. The administration set an ambitious goal for getting the program underway, aiming to establish the corps’ first cohort in the summer of 2024. 

The corps members will work in roles related to ecosystem restoration and conservation, reforestation, waterway protection, recycling, energy conservation, clean energy deployment, disaster preparedness and recovery, fire resilience, resilient recreation infrastructure, research and outreach. The administration will look to ensure 40% of the climate-related investments flow to disadvantaged communities as part of its Justice40 initiative.  

EPA Administrator Michael Regan said the MOU would allow the ACC to “work across the federal family” to push public projects focused on environmental justice and clean energy. 

“The Climate Corps represents a significant step forward in engaging and nurturing young leaders who are passionate about climate action, furthering our journey towards a sustainable and equitable future,” Regan said. 

The ACC’s executive committee will hold its first meeting within the next 30 days. It will draw support from a new climate hub within AmeriCorps, as well as any staffing the agency heads designate."

-via Government Executive, December 20, 2023

-

This news comes with your regularly scheduled reminder that WE GOT THE AMERICAN CLIMATE CORPS ESTABLISHED LAST YEAR and basically no one know about/remembers it!!! Also if you want more info about the Climate Corps, inc. how to join, you can sign up to get updates here.

[vintagelasvegas]

Free Aspirin & Tender Sympathy at Union 76, Las Vegas Strip. Undated c. 1958. Slide scan by Charles Phoenix.

Alan Post’s Union 76 opened circa ‘57. The phrase “Free Aspirin, Tender Sympathy” appeared in their print advertising that summer, but the earliest dated visual we have of the sign is a traveler's 8mm film from Fall 1958. The sign was referenced in the newspaper later that year:

“A service station attendant got some of his own ‘free aspiring and tender sympathy’ last night on the Strip after he was slugged twice with a crescent wrench by two teenagers who attempted to rob him.”

– Man Slugged by Two Teenagers. Review-Journal, 12/9/58.

The S&H Green Stamps section of the sign was in place through the mid 60s when the station was owned by Wayne Nickerson. That section of the sign lost its neon in the 70s, and was used for painted lettering of later owners names: Jay G. Manning, 70's, and Kenneth L. Lehman, 80s.

The station closed in 2001 and the sign was donated to the Neon Museum. By this time the sign had no neon at all. In 2024 the Neon Museum oversaw a complete restoration of the sign. It was installed on W. Charleston Blvd in the Medial District.

Film from Danita Courtney. Dated Oct. 1958 by performer names in the film. Trees on either side of the sign are about the same size as the Charles Phoenix image.

Updated 10/18/2024.

[macleod]

The United States is about to embark on an experiment inspired by one of the New Deal’s most popular programs. On Wednesday, the Biden administration authorized the creation of the American Climate Corps through an executive order. The program would hire 20,000 young people in its first year, putting them to work installing wind and solar projects, making homes more energy-efficient, and restoring ecosystems like coastal wetlands to protect towns from flooding. ¹

Rep. Joe Neguse, a Colorado Democrat, said the program should pay “a living wage” while offering health care coverage and other benefits. ²

There are plans to link it with AmeriCorps, the national service program, and leverage several smaller climate corps initiatives that states have launched in California, Colorado, Maine, Michigan, and Washington. The White House also launched a new website where you can sign up to get updates about joining the program. ¹

The American Climate Corps is an interagency partnership between AmeriCorps, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the Departments of Labor, Interior, Agriculture, and Energy.³

Reviving the Civilian Conservation Corps is widely popular, with 84 percent of Americans supporting the idea in polling conducted by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication last year. ¹

¹ Grist, Sep. 20ᵗʰ 2023 ² Boston, Sept. 21ˢᵗ. 2023 ³ AmeriCorps, Sept. 20ᵗʰ 2023

[spockanalia-archive]

Spockanalia Archive Masterpost

With the help and guidance of Open Doors, we (@thegeminisage and @maulthots) digitized the first volume of Spockanalia and imported it to AO3, which you can view here. In order to meet AO3's terms of service, some of the content was edited or removed. The full version of the zine is preserved on this blog. Updated features include:

Text that has been retyped and can now be read with screen readers, and, if you are on a computer, resized. On all devices, line breaks will occur dynamically, meaning that you will not have to scroll back and forth to read a single line of text.

Images that have been restored to remove paper texture, noise, and ghost text from old scans, and rotated to correct sideways scanning. These images will also resize dynamically to fit any device screen. All images have alt text for screen readers.

A master list of each volume and chapter of Spockanalia can be found below the cut; since the digitization is still in progress, we will add links as they become available.

Volume I

Cover art by Kathy Bushman

Dedication art by Chester Malon

Copyright by Devra Michele Langsam and Sherna Comerford

Contents and Art Credits by Devra Michele Langsam and Sherna Comerford

Lettercol art by Sherna Comerford

The Territory of Rigel by Dorothy Jones; art by Juanita Coulson

Off the Top by Devra Michele Langsam and Sherna Comerford

A Most Illogical Song by Shirley Meech, Kathy Bushman, and Sherna Comerford; art by Sherna Comerford

Physiologica Vulcanensis by Sherna Comerford, Juanita Coulson, and Kay Anderson; art by Sherna Comerford and DEA

A Proposed Model of the Vulcan Heart by Sandra Deckinger; art by Sherna Comerford and Kathy Bushman

To a Vulcan by Sherna Comerford; art by Dick Flood

Also to a Vulcan by Devra Michele Langsam

The Vulcan Gambit by Shirley Meech; art by Sherna Comerford and DEA

Vulcan Psychology by Juanita Coulson; art by Sherna Comerford, DEA, and Kathy Bushman

Spock Shock by Sherna Comerford; art by Sherna Comerford, Devra Michele Langsam, and DEA

Vulcans and Emotions by Devra Michele Langsam; art by Sherna Comerford and DEA

Kirk and Spock by Ruth Berman; art by Sherna Comerford

'S Blood by Devra Michele Langsam and Sherna Comerford

Thoughts on Vulcan Culture by Devra Michele Langsam; art by Sherna Comerford and Kathy Bushman

Excerpt from the Young Vulcan's Handbook of Emotional Control by Shirley Meech; art by DEA

Record Review by Dorothy Jones; art by DEA

Star Drek by Ruth Berman; art by Sherna Comerford and Juanita Coulson

Acknowledgments by Devra Michele Langsam and Sherna Comerford

Postscript by Devra Michele Langsam and Sherna Comerford; art by Devra Michele Langsam

[emeritusemeritus]

No Good Deed. [George Weasley x Reader]

Title: No Good Deed. Part 1.

Pairing: {George Weasley x Reader} mentions of previous Fred Weasley x Reader.

Timeline: Set a few years after DH, loosely following Canon.

Summary: A few years after Fred’s death, the investors of Weasleys’ Wizard Wheezes demand changes to the name. All it would take is two years of a fake marriage to fix the issues, but no good deed goes unpunished.

Warnings: Fake marriage trope because we love the cliché. Mentions of death (Fred). Friends to lovers. Slow burn but mentions of kissing and eventual smut. Swearing. Tags will be updated with each chapter.

"How dare they! It's all I have left of him! I've already lost him once and now I have to lose him all over again?!"

You'd never seen George so angry as he stepped into the office, kicking a cardboard restore box under the table that stored this quarter's paperwork in sheer frustration. He tugged off his tie and ran his fingers through his flame red hair, trying to calm himself, his face downcast despite his anger. You silently stood in the doorway of the office, just observing him, not quite knowing what to say or how to comfort him after what had happened earlier that day in the meeting you'd both attended.

"Mr Weasley, there is one final notion on the mandate which must be discussed," the balding, sour-faced man says from the other side of the table, briefly looking up from his typed paperwork as he strains his neck once again, a habit you'd noticed him doing frequently during your hour long meeting which was thankfully coming to a close.

You'd accompanied George to a meeting with his investors in London, notetaking for him and assisting him with the figures that the investors required to see periodically throughout the year as per their contract. You'd always had an affinity for bookkeeping and had found your skills utilised upon employment at Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes just after you left Hogwarts, immediately taken onboard by your childhood best friends Fred and George Weasley.

After Fred's death and the end of the war, funds had been low due to the long store closure despite their best efforts at an owl postage service and once George was ready to reopen the shop, he had needed to take on investors in order to get the money to replenish products and reopen the store, giving them shares in the company and the overall profits. Fortunately, the business had immediately boomed once again when the store reopened, only increasing in popularity and therefore profit when Hogwarts reopened and Diagon Alley bloomed with old and new shops opening seemingly every day. The investors were largely silent, providing money without any input to the business, proud to be associated with the more popular store in Diagon Alley, at least until today.

"It has come to our attention that you are providing services under a false pretence which we must discuss," another man says, much harder in his expression.

Your eyes flick to George who looks rightly offended and confused at the vague notion, seeing him shift in his seat somewhat uncomfortably.

"As there are no longer two of you, the name 'Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes' is redundant, incorrect and therefore unmarketable as it stands. We propose that changes must be made to change the name to 'Weasley's', moving the apostrophe so that it denotes the true ownership. Mr Weasley, you have 30 days to make the necessary change or else our shares will be pulled and we will no longer be investing in your business."

The meeting had come to an abrupt end as the investors exited, leaving you with a seething George who had surprisingly held it together until you both apparated to the outside of the shop. You'd struggled to keep up with George as he bounded up the stairs towards the office, completely ignoring Ron and a few regular customers who had greeted him. You shot them apologetic smiles, wordlessly trying to excuse his uncharacteristic behaviour as you followed him to the office.

He threw down his jacket onto your chair as you entered behind him and immediately began tugging at his tie in frustration.

"I can't change the name! It was always me and Fred, I've already lost him once I can't lose him again, not like this," his tone was no longer filled with anger or rage but rather deep sadness and heartbreak at the thought. You closed your eyes for a moment, unable to watch any longer as his words hit you like a freight train, the pain overwhelming you not only at the mention of Fred but of George's evident sadness.

You hear him throw himself down into his chair and you open your eyes again to see him looking completely defeated as he clearly plays out his options in his mind to prevent this from happening.

"Ginny's about to become a Potter, Bill and Charlie aren't in the bloody country, Percy's… well, Percy and Ron can't join in as a co-owner, the deeds are in mine and Fred's name. Six, well, five siblings and not one of them can help. Unless there's a way of bringing Fred back through the bloody veil, which I've exhausted all options in my bloody mind believe me, then I'm fucked. Everything Fred and I built is ruined."

You watch as his long fingers run over his face, rubbing his eyes which you suspect are brimming with unshed tears judging by his emotion filled voice.

Your words flew out of you before you could even comprehend what you were saying, surprising even yourself for a moment.

"I'll marry you."

George looks utterly astounded by your words as his eyes shoot up to yours, confusion evident over every single one of his features as your words sink in.

"Eh?" His brief reply conveys every inch of perplexity that his features show and at any other time the look on his face would have made you double over with laughter.

"Angel, I don't think now's the time," he says with a gentle frown, clearly treading carefully with his words despite his confusion. You fight to get the words out to explain yourself, knowing that somewhere before your unexpected outburst there was solid reasoning in your mind.

"You need another Weasley and the only way you can override the shared deed is by entitlement, like by marriage," you say, moving forward to stand in front of him before taking a seat on his wooden desk. Your leg brushes against his as you hop up and you don't miss how his eyes briefly flicker to the point where your legs touched just for a second.

"I've seen it with my parents, when my mum and dad divorced she was entitled to the interest of his business as a matrimonial asset. We'd have to check if there's a time limit on that but with Fred gone, it's the only way you'd be able to get another shareholder in his place."

You were trying to keep your explanation simple, pulling from your firsthand experience in similar matters but as you fought to explain yourself, you found yourself rambling a little under George's intense gaze.

"If we got married you wouldn't have to change the name, I'd take your name and we'd both be Weasley by law, cancelling out their demands. You'd have to put me on the business documents but we could draw up some sort of contract that doesn't actually entitle me to any money or profit from the business, but they don't need to know that."

Your words hang in the air for a few moments, tense silence lingering between you as your words replay over and over in your mind, wondering if you'd gone too far and made things too awkward.

"I couldn't ask you to do that," George says quietly, averting his eyes.

"Georgie I'd do it for you without a second thought, it might be the only way you could keep the business exactly as it is," you say, reaching out to touch his shoulder, trying to urge him to listen to you.

He fell silent again for a few more tense moments and you could see the conflict on his face as he considered his options, allowing your proposal to sink in. He's quiet again when he replies and if anything he looks a little timid as he speaks.

"But you and Fred," he weakly argues, his words making your stomach lurch painfully. You sigh, closing your eyes for a moment. You hadn't considered this part, the mental and emotional conflict of your proposal. You and Fred had been something throughout your later school years and a little while after, but had never wanted to make anything official, a secret shared between you both that never allowed you to commit to each other.

"Are in the past," you unwillingly admit with a sad sigh, "Fred's gone, it's taken me a really long time to mostly accept it, but if this means keeping his memory alive just as it is then I'd do anything, for him and for you."

Things were a little awkward for a couple of days following your outburst and each time you saw or crossed paths with George you inwardly cringed. You'd shut yourself in the office most of the time, trying only to see him before store opening and packing up and rushing off just before close, ensuring you wouldn't have to spend any prolonged time together.

"I know you're avoiding me," A familiar voice behind you says as you gather your bag and mug off the desk just before the end of the day, 3 days after your outburst. You turn slowly and see him leaning on the door frame with a little knowing smirk on his face, though his eyes look sad. You bite your lip, knowing you'd been caught out and flick your eyes to your bag, to the clock on the wall and then back to George, not really knowing how to respond.

"It's okay, I understand," he says, taking a slow step into the office, "but there's no need to feel awkward, not with me, I don't take it personally that you regret offering."

"I don't regret it," you reply quickly with a frown, effectively cutting him off. Your words make his eyebrows shoot you a little in surprise, or maybe it was the conviction in your voice that surprised him. "I've been avoiding you because it's been painfully awkward to offer yourself like that and be rejected."

"I didn't reject you," he replies quickly but with a gentle tone, now cutting you off. Your eyes widen a little at the quickness of the reply and you can't help but look into his eyes, seeing his tongue poke out and wet his lip as he looks nervously back at you.

You both look at each other for a moment as a little tense silence falls and you both breathe out a chuckle at the awkwardness in the room.

"So to make it clear, I could still marry you?" He asks, walking forwards towards you.

"I think the agreement was that I'd marry you," you teased, smirk tugging at your lips which earned you a roll of his eyes. "But yes," you said, now with a more serious and honest tone. "My offer to get married is still very much open, for the sake of the business."

He stands before you and you crane your neck upwards towards his familiar height and there's an intimacy that passes between you both that had never existed before as you look at each other, communicating only with your eyes.

"Then I accept your proposal," George says, taking your hand mockingly and you gasp at him, pulling your hand away to smack his arm lightly.

"I didn't propose to you!"

"That's not what I'm going to tell our grandkids," he jokes, pulling you into a hug. You can't deny that even though his words were mocking, your tummy did a little nervous and excited flip at his words.

"Thank you, so much," he says as you pull apart, completely serious as he looks at you with such intensity if makes your knees a little weak. "This means so much to me."

"And me."

It was Saturday night and you'd invited George around to your flat after work, to talk over your agreement. You'd opened a bottle of wine and ordered a takeaway, a benefit of living in muggle London that you loved, and started writing out some plans to your agreement as you both sat on the sofa beside eachother, the coffee table littered with notebooks and paper.

"We should move in together, make it believable," George says, taking a sip of his wine. You look at him in surprise, not having expected those words to fall from his lips.

"Who are we trying to convince?" You ask, a little confused at how deep this was going.

"Oh yeah, right," he says, looking away, taking another sip of wine. You immediately felt a little bad seeing his apparent negative reaction to your words and considered his idea for a moment, thinking of the implications.

"Unless the investors ask for character references," you said, picking up your own glass. "I suppose it's possible, we'd have to tell your family wouldn't we."

George nods slowly, on the same wavelength as you.

"Would your family be able to lie if they were questioned?" You ask, looking up at George.

George snorts into his glass and shakes his head in reply, "About hiding Harry, yeah, about this? No way."

"Then we'll have to convince your family that we're actually married," you say, feeling a little uneasy at the thought of lying to the family you cared very deeply for. George made a vague noise of agreement and placed his empty glass down onto the coaster on the coffee table, smoothing the creases in his trousers out with his long fingers.

"How long would we have to be married for?" George asks with a frown and you can't help but feel a little stab in your chest at his words, as silly as it was.

"Oh I don't know, until the investors drop the demand? Or maybe get new investors?" You ask, placing a strand of hair behind your ear that had fallen into your face. George watches your every move and you can't help but stare back at him, seeing him paying close attention to you.

"How far away would we be from being able to do away with the investors? Business is good right, maybe I could cash in their shares and become sole owner," he says, flicking his eyes down to your work bag by the door, knowing that there's his accounting documents in there.

"Good idea," you say, placing down your glass and moving over to reach for your bag. You begin calculating the investors shares against the profits of the business and try and work out a timeline for how long it would take for George to earn the money to buy out the investors, assuming business stayed as good as it was now.

"Looks like two years, based on the projections," you say, placing down your pen. "If business stays at the rate it is, you'd be clear from all investors in just under two years."

"Is that, is that okay with you?" George says, looking up into your eyes, his voice suddenly quieter and a little more timid.

You smile at him and nod in reply, genuinely okay with that. "What about you?"

"Of course," he smiles, chuckling to himself a little as he picks at the tweed of his trousers, "you're doing me the biggest favour imaginable, I have the easy deal."

"You have to be married to me, I'd say that's not easy," you tease, picking up your glass and drinking the last sip of wine left.

"I don't know, I can think of many worse things than being married to you," he says with a grin, reaching out to refill both of your glasses. Butterflies erupt in your stomach at his words, a warmth spreading through your chest as you bite back a smile.

"I have to admit," George says, handing you back your glass, "I feel as if I'm treading on Fred's toes a little, he'd probably be conspiring to turn my eyebrows purple if he knew I was stealing his woman, that or he'd shave them off whilst I slept," he says with a laugh. You chuckle, picturing the scene in your mind but it doesn't stop the little pang of sadness running through you. You wanted to tell George the whole truth but you couldn't, especially not now and so you simply allowed yourself to laugh and took another sip of wine.

"He'd understand," you say, perhaps a little quietly as you try to tell yourself that it was the truth, trying to justify your actions in your mind. George makes a sound of agreement and just as his glass reaches his lips, the buzzer rings out alerting you that the food had arrived.

"So, we have to convince your family that we're getting married, without dating beforehand?" You say, both of you still chatting as you eat your Chinese food. At this point you were feeling a little buzzed from the wine and everything felt a little easier to get out, the hesitation and trepidation of your words no longer bothering you.

"Good point, though we've always been really close so I don't think they'd think it was too out of the ordinary," George says, taking a huge bite of fried rice. "Did anyone know about you and Fred?"

"I don't think so," you replied, thinking of all the time you'd spent at the Burrow and of each family member, "I think Ginny had her suspicions but she never asked me about it. Thank god you were identical, we could always lie and say it was you if anyone did notice something," you chuckled, earning an enthusiastic laugh from George.

"How do we explain the divorce though?" You asked after a few minutes of comfortable silence, your thoughts drifting into all possible outcomes. "I don't want to lose your family because I become your horrible ex-wife," you say, feeling sad about the potential of that.

"You'd never be horrible, not to me and not to them," George says, reaching out to touch your hand. "We could always say we were just better off as friends? That marriage was too constricting for both of us? That way no ones to blame."

"Yeah that could work," you say, feeling a weird sense of sadness at the concept of divorcing George.

"On a serious note though," he says, temporarily placing down his cutlery as he looks at you, his eyes staring intensely into yours. "If you don't want to do this, I completely understand. It's asking too much of you and I'm very aware of that. It would mean no open dating or seeing anyone else until everything was over," he says carefully. You hadn't really considered that but it was a price you were willing to pay. The fact that George had said no open dating had made you feel a little off, knowing he intended to still date even though you were married, which of course was normal in the circumstances but it still made you feel a little funny.

"You'd still want to date?" You asked, the words falling from your lips before you could stop them, immediately mentally cursing the wine you'd drank that had apparently released your filter.

"Merlin no," he says with a little self deprecating chuckle, "I meant for you."

"I don't want to," you said, perhaps a little too quickly as it earned you a confused flicker of a look from George. "I mean, everyone would think I was cheating on you and I couldn't do that, not to you."

He seems to understand as he nods his head, once again picking up his fork and loading it up with the food.

"We can cross that bridge when we come to it," he says, with a determination in his voice that seemed to settle your anxious thoughts. "So, I suppose we really should move in together."

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[khanger]

Today baisn AlBalawi The Sister of Mahmoud AlBalawi Reached out to me and Kindly Asked Me to help Them in their campaign .

From the Page of the Campaign

Hi world , it’s Mahmoud Please read this as if you were in my place, what would you do?! If your family lived with death at every moment! I'm a Palestinian from Gaza. I have 5 siblings and I have 5 nephews and nieces, Help me and my family to be in a safe zone from this genocidal war. we survived 6 wars in Gaza . And now, I don’t know who will survive this genocide war. Fear of bombing and destruction, including the inability to access essential items like Water, Electricity, Healthy food, or Gas, has become part of our day. In addition, my father and my mother both of them are suffering from chronic diseases (Cartilage in the vertebrae, blood pressure, diabetes, and also my father has heart stents) they must have medical care and medicine, and they are struggling to obtain the necessary medications, so resorting to long waits in clinics for subpar alternatives if found.

Our house in Nuseirat It was included approximately 90 people of our relatives and friends who were displaced from Gaza, and then were displaced together to Rafah when Nuseirat was invaded, and bombed, leaving behind us nothing but memories of laughter and dreams unfulfilled. Our house was damaged and most of the devices I used to work on as a graphic designer were destroyed by shrapnel from the bombing.. Refugees or displaced! I do not know what is the right name for us now.. After months of war on Gaza, all essential life requirements have been destroyed. Life after the war will also be challenging, as it will take months, even years, to restore essential services like electricity, water, and the gas - food. So Leaving for Egypt is not an easy choice, but it's the only way to get back to life and salvage a semblance of our lives. I appreciate your help in donating and sharing this link to help my family escape genocide in Gaza and start anew in Egypt. But Actually, the situation is very complicated to do this because the Egyptian government requires a person to pay $5,000 - $8,000 to cross the Egyptian border. Any additional donations It will help greatly. I will not forget your support and efforts to help me.

Vetted By@90-ghost

UPDATE €31,199\€50,000 (6 AUGUST)

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[kawaiijohn]

Good morning. Where do I even start today- trying to keep up with disaster relief is tough since a lot of my normal sources are without power or incredibly focused on doing the actual recovery.

I guess I'll start with one of the sources I get a lot of breaking news from and what he said yesterday:

Ryan Hall is a YouTube weatherman with an incredible team that delivers free weather broadcasting through his YouTube lives during major events. He's from east Kentucky and is very invested in Appalachia weather recovery and awareness. The man's a local and he's part of the reason I'm even aware of the risks heavy rains can bring in this region of the states.

And this post from the national weather service office in Greenville - Spartanburg SC, that serves a wide area around it;

"this is one (forecast) we wanted to get wrong. this is the worst event in our office's history."

This thread concludes: media was sent to Florida and so a lot of people don't quite know what's going on in appalachia- if you can I suggest reading this person's entire thread, which is too long for me to type or try to post on here and keep it readable, so try the second link under here for an unrolled thread that'll be easier for screen readers;

Minor update from yesterday's post: the governor of Tennessee finally fucking declared a state of emergency after his shitty day of prayer and fasting announcement. It took him like six hours to get off his ass and do it.

The power is still majorly out as of this morning in a vast area of the states. As you can see, a majority is in Appalachia, central Georgia, and the Florida big bend. Florida, I know for a fact, has tons of electrical technicians working to restore power and cell service.

This map really highlights the state divide from eastern Tennessee/Kentucky and the Carolinas too.

Despite the doom and gloom, a few things are starting to get better.

Quite a few dams managed to hold, and some roads in west NC are more passable, but there are so many people reporting that it was taking them upwards of seven hours to get out of Asheville, which is a major city.

Below has a few pics and statements about the state of roads late last night/early today.

The end of this tweet says "this is an absolute mega disaster for Western NC on the order of hurricane Katrina."

With how long the recovery might actually take, I'm certainly hoping it's handled better. One of the responses on this thread mentions no military presence/help as of 20 hours ago, but this has since changed with the national guard finally deploying in some areas.

Overall, fooding hit historical levels in a lot of states, with Atlanta GA even declaring a flash flood emergency at one point, which is the highest risk level of a flash flood warning - it means "get out and get up high NOW"

Rescue and recovery operations are on the way.

Local groups, storm chasers, and organizations are on the way. The national guard is deploying and helicopters are coming from volunteers and the military alike in the most affected areas.

Chris Hall, a storm chaser who works with a lot of organizations, has been driving around doing things like setting up starlink access in Asheville and helping serve hot food with a Florida based disaster recovery group since Friday.

Hell he even posted this, which if you know the waffle house index, is a little neat to see- for context, fema will look at waffle house closures in areas hit by natural disasters to gage preliminarily relief need.

Waffle houses are infamous for never closing. So for a limited menu to be served, it means this spot in GA was still hit pretty hard.

If you want to and can, here is one place with local donation resources for west NC

And different organizations and weather community types to help that are boots on the ground type volunteers with a bit more of a national focus;

If you are good at adding alt text or doing text description for screen readers, please help me with these posts. It is incredibly hard to do those sorts of things on mobile due to my own limitations.

Please be safe.

[theygender]

Donation Drive for Palestine

Hi everyone! I just passed 10,000 followers. I want to do something to celebrate this moment, and after some consideration I've decided that the thing I would most like to do for this milestone is host a donation drive for Palestine

I will be donating 1¢ in support of Palestine for each of my followers and YOU get to decide where this money goes. At the time of this post that totals to $100.19 from 10,019 followers, but I will continue counting additional followers towards the goal until this poll ends

Here's how it works:

I'll be donating 1¢ for each of my followers. New followers will continue to be counted until either this poll ends or I can no longer afford it

You can vote in the poll below to decide where the money should be donated. I've selected 10 charities that are supporting Gaza and I'll be donating amounts to each of them based on my follower count and the percentage of votes they receive (ie. 10% of votes with the current total of $100.19 = $10.02 to that charity)

Once the poll ends, I'll make my donations and post an update with the final amounts donated to each charity

All of the charities are described and linked below the poll and I encourage people to make their own donations as well. If everyone who votes (and is able to donate) gives even $1 to the charity they vote for then it could add up quickly. Let's drive those donations!

Children Not Numbers: An organization providing immediate support and long-term rehabilitation for children in Gaza, as well as evacuating children to states equipped to manage their healthcare needs

Crips for eSIMs for Gaza: A fundraiser organized by the Disability Visibility Project which purchases eSIMs for Gaza to allow Palestinians to maintain contact with the outside world

Direct Aid Initiative & Encampment: An initiative organized by Operation Olive Branch to provide direct aid to families in Gaza and establish a family encampment which will house ~300 displaced individuals. (Operation Olive Branch also hosts a spreadsheet of verified fundraisers which spotlights different ones, found here)

Gaza Emergency Appeal: A fundraiser by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) which serves to provide families with lifesaving food and water and repair UNRWA shelters. (Also remember to click for Palestine)

Life for Gaza: A donation drive organized by the Municipality of Gaza to help them reinstate essential water services

Medical Aid for Palestinians: An organization that provides immediate medical aid to those in great need while also developing local capacity and skills to ensure the long-term development of the Palestinian healthcare system

Palestinian Children's Relief Fund: A humanitarian organization in Palestine providing urgent medical care and humanitarian aid to children in Gaza

Palestinian Red Crescent: A National Society in the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement which provides humanitarian assistance and health and social services to Palestinians

Revive Gaza's Farmlands: A project organized by the Arab Group for Protection of Nature which aims to rehabilitate Gaza’s agricultural sector and restore local food systems to combat famine, counter the blockade, and build food sovereignty

Vegetables, Food, and Water for Palestinian Families: A fundraiser organized by the volunteer group Ele Elna Elak and shared by Bisan which provides food, water, and other necessities to families in Gaza

[covid-safer-hotties]

U.S. to resume mandatory reporting of COVID hospitalizations - Published Sept 6, 2024

Hospitals in the United States will soon be required to report hospital admissions related to COVID-19, restoring a mandate which was lifted earlier this year, according to federal officials. The new rules are due to take effect on November 1.

Hospital data about COVID-19 was often cited as an alternative when many states stopped releasing COVID-related data, including case counts. But those reports became voluntary on May 1, with only 33% of hospitals choosing to participate.

Beginning November 1, hospitals will once again be required to report COVID-19 data, as well as information about influenza and RSV, according to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) at the U.S. Department of Health.

“The information required to report includes confirmed infections of respiratory illnesses, including COVID-19, influenza, and RSV, among hospitalized patients; hospital bed census and capacity; and limited patient demographic information, including age,” a CMS spokesperson told BNO News.

CMS is proposing updates on a weekly basis, though the final decision about the exact frequency is up to the Secretary of Health, Xavier Becerra. His office did not immediately respond when asked about the frequency of updates.

The U.S. is currently in the midst of a summer wave with nearly 178,000 COVID cases reported last week alone, along with more than 1,000 new deaths. Data from the 33% of hospitals participating in the voluntary survey showed 5,357 Americans in hospital with COVID-19. The actual number is believed to be higher.

So far this year, more than 4.9 million COVID cases have been reported across the U.S., causing at least 348,034 hospitalizations (limited data from May 1) and 38,563 deaths, according to BNO’s COVID data tracker. bnonews.com/index.php/tag/weekly-u-s-covid-update/?swcfpc=1

[genshin-impact-updates]

Resolution Regarding the Recent Plug-In Usage in Genshin Impact

Dear Travelers,

It has come to our attention that some Travelers have been using plug-ins to tamper with game data and intentionally disrupt the gaming experience of other Travelers: In Co-Op Mode, they were found using plug-ins to remove items from other Travelers' open world, preventing them from playing under normal circumstances.

The relevant issues have been fixed on August 25. By August 26, our developers had fixed the accounts of the Travelers who encountered this error and contacted Customer Service for assistance. We have also notified Travelers regarding the status of the fix through Customer Service. We will continue to monitor this issue after it has been resolved. Currently, Co-Op Mode is working as intended and Travelers can continue to proceed as normal.

*Currently, some items in a small number of accounts may not be restored yet. This will not affect Travelers' normal game experience. This issue will be fully fixed in a future update, and we will notify affected Travelers via in-game mail.

If you have recently encountered a similar problem, you can report it to us via our Customer Service with the detailed location of the item in question. Upon verification that said problem is caused by a similar plug-in, our Customer Service will contact you as soon as possible.

Additionally, if you experience any other issues or notice any violations that involve the usage of third-party plug-ins or tools, you may also contact our official Customer Service (when reporting a violation, please attach the UID of the player violating the rules, the reason for the report or other relevant information), which will allow our developers to better locate the issue and correct it.

Using such plug-ins to remove items from other Travelers' open world via the tampering of game data has seriously affected their gameplay experience. To maintain fair play and protect the rights of Travelers, we have banned accounts using these plug-ins and will take legal action against developers, users, and disseminators of such plug-ins.

Currently, we have confirmed that developers and users of this plug-in are posting content in the community or on video sites disguising themselves as victims to confuse the public and incite panic. We will deal with such actions in accordance with the "Terms of Service," "Privacy Policy," and applicable laws and regulations.

Thank you for your continued support and accompaniment of Genshin Impact. We have always strived to maintain a healthy and fair gaming environment, and any attempt that jeopardizes the fairness of the game through improper means is strictly prohibited. At the same time, the development team would like to hereby declare that any game vulnerabilities have no relation to the design of the game, its plot, or characters. Please refrain from making unwarranted associations to negatively affect the experience of other Travelers. We hope that all Travelers can boycott plug-ins, third-party tools, and other unethical behavior to maintain a fair and friendly game environment together.

▌ Contact Genshin Impact Customer Service

Email address: genshin_cs@hoyoverse.com