#The Lodestone Files: The Things in the Shadows

[abnormalpublishing]

A Poem and Post: The Prelude

It's a wild #poem and #post about #aliens and a prelude to an #invasion. Woo! Prelude! Stuff!

When I did my other little ditty about “Time,” I had another spur of the moment kind of thing that led me to do the following piece.

This one, I felt I would include in my third or fourth book of The Lodestone Files: Among Us: Contact, Assimilation, Control, Extermination series.

Those moments I find enjoyable; random spurts of creativity, and one where I am not at war with my mind in focusing on…

[theonyxpath]

Hey folks! Chris Allen here; today, I’m bringing with me a bit of bonus content originally cut from The Pack, the first supplement for Werewolf: The Forsaken 2nd Edition.

When we were developing how Lodges would work in 2nd Edition, one of the core concepts I wanted to push was the idea that Lodges are cults. They’re weird groups of weird people doing weird things; they’re transgressive because those transgressions bond the adherents together and often give real power, and they’re secretive because they don’t want outsiders to know about those transgressions. They practice odd traditions and perform strange acts to strengthen the mystic power of the Lodge and its totem.

In order to really demonstrate this in practice, I wrote up a set of “Mysteries” for each of the sample Lodges in the book. These were going to replace the story hooks — indeed, you’ll see where some of the story hooks were repurposed for the Mysteries format — and serve as a direct presentation of the ways each particular Lodge was blasphemous, transgressive, tight-knit, or just plain odd. In the end, we kept with the story hooks format that was published due to a lack of time to insert the new Mysteries approach, but I kept the cut material and I’m glad to now be able to share it with you.

Ultimately, Lodge Mysteries best represent my vision for how to get across the nature of each of these Lodges, detailing the practices and mystic secrets that fuel rumors and suspicion among the uninitiated.

The Lodge of Garm: Mysteries of the God-Killers

The cult rejects the second tenet of the Oath of the Moon, the People do not murder the People. The Lodge believes the tenet is false doctrine spread and encouraged by a corrupt faction among the Lunes. Garm has bestowed the adherents with true wisdom — killing other Uratha can be righteous.

Garmir harvest slain Pure elders to make grisly trophies. The cult believes these steal the power the Pure Firstborn have invested in their Anshega champions. On the first hunter’s moon of the year, cultists gather and offer a tithe of such trophies to the sand-fleshed wolf spirits that serve Garm. Garm demands captive Pure elders are also offered up as sacrifices, usually by being burnt alive.

Fierce wolves and dogs guard cult property or accompany Lodge warriors. The cult feeds the flesh of fallen Pure enemies to the beasts in the belief that the canines thus steal the Anshega totems’ strength. When the animals perish, the Lodge consumes the bodies in bloody ceremonies.

To repay loyal spirits of strife or destruction, Garm orders Lodge cells to stir up conflict amongst mortal communities. His wolf-servants of sand and hieroglyphs judge disobedient cultists harshly, but sometimes gift successful cells with fetish weapons wrought from wolf-teeth and bronze.

The Lodge guards two secret forms of the written First Tongue, one a runic script and the other in hieroglyphs. The cult believes the runes and glyphs hold special power over wolf spirits and Uratha ancestor spirits. Garmir uses these sacred scripts to call and bind ancestral spirits of their enemies, denying the Pure their allies. Trapped spirits undergo terrible torments and inquisitions by the God-Killer’s brood.

The Thousand Steel Teeth: Mysteries of the Steel Teeth

Humanity owes the roads a debt; the spirit courts are eager to collect in blood on the asphalt. The Steel Teeth fight that ravenous appetite, chaining the road spirits with pacts to enforce restraint. They let the spirits collect only a small tithe of lives through accidents and deaths.

The spirits cause accidents as part of the tithe. When a driver survives through sheer luck or supernatural intervention, it weakens the pacts. The Smoke Drinker reaches through car radios and the pattern of raindrops on windscreens to its adherents when this happens, setting them on the hunt of the hapless survivors — and any entities responsible for causing the upset.

A gear dog who dies well on the high-speed hunt, perishing amidst hurtling metal and spraying gasoline and the scream of air rushing past, is her own offering to the road courts — forcing them to accept her blood in place of a thousand human lives.

When the phases of the moon and the stock market prices of the big car manufacturers align, it is time for the sacred Hecatomb. In these wild celebrations, one hundred cars must burn in a grand sacrifice to the Smoke Drinker — a night of thievery and high-speed chases as the Steel Teeth compete for the finest rides they can steal.

Cultists perform the iziga to repent after sinning through breaking Oath or ban or whatever minor traffic law the totem has declared sacrosanct. In this fiery ritual, adherents paint sigils of repentance on their flesh in oil or gasoline then set them alight, searing the sin away.

The guhkharraan is a holy pilgrimage of roads. A cultist seeking revelation or spiritual harmony begins with naught but the clothes on her back, eats only what she can glean from the roadside and listens to the oracular whispers of the spirits of road and fume. Some find hallucinatory revelation at the end of their journeys.

The Lodge of the Screaming Moon: Mysteries of the Screaming Moon

All banshees practice the kilisu-zithu, the ritual girding before the sacred hunt. The adherent wears terrifying trophies taken from her own kills; the bloodier and messier and the more screaming there was, the richer the resonance of fear. The Tyrant’s allied spirits pay honor to cultists with the most terrifying kilisu-zithu.

The Lodge sometimes kidnaps humans who possess second sight or psychic powers. The cult subjects such a hapless victim to endless terrors and maddening torments, aiming to drive him insane. Adherents believe this strengthens and purifies the prophetic power of such a lunatic visionary, and it links the victim to other such madmen held by the banshees across the world.

Several times a year, adherents secretly gather beneath the new moon. They share their darkest and most important secrets and perform the ihinudu iduth. In this ceremony, an Ithaeur and Cahalith each have an eye put out, which they crush and then smear the gory result on the eyelids of the other cultists. This sacrifice conceals the Lodge totem’s nature as a Lune from those who would pry, unleashing madness or blinding infections on fools delving into the cult’s secrets.

Banshees collect the paraphernalia and remains of famous human murderers and serial killers. The Lodge builds eldritch shrines with these morbid relics, not in praise but as lures for copycats, full-fledged slashers and even stranger horrors all drawn to the shrines like iron filings to a lodestone. This provides fresh prey for cultists, and also creates potent resonance to feed the spiritual vassals of the Tyrant Over Fear.

The Lodge totem can see out of any white mask that an adherent wears, if it chooses to pay attention to that Uratha and the cultist has not broken the Lodge ban in the last year. During the gibbous moon, the Tyrant can do far more than that — it can use its spiritual powers through such a mask or even manifest part or all of its body, although this takes a heavy toll on the Lune.

The Temple of Apollo: Mysteries of the Sun

The Thebans possess several omphalos stones — fragments of carved stone pulsing with spiritual power. The cult believes these are from a major manifestation of Apollo in the distant past. Lodge elders have tried to tap into these stones to become an avatar of the Sun Wolf, but every elder who has thus far tried has perished.

The Temple of Apollo murders humans for oracular purposes as well as to feed the Sun Wolf. The pack uses simple auguries to select victims, who they abduct and drug with a concoction of poisons and Essence. The dying victim falls to hallucination and gibbers glossolalia, which the Thebans interpret. This ceremony serves as an extremely powerful form of the Read the World’s Loom Facet from the Insight Gift, although it takes at least an hour to decipher the ravings.

Spirits of the hyacinth plant are either close allies or rabid foes of the Temple. Thebans anoint human sacrifices with extracts of the plant as it has the favor of the Sun Wolf. Furthermore, anointing the animated dead with hyacinth allows Thebans to vomit a blazing soul out of their Lodge bond in a reverse of the sacred hunt, turning the undead into a Ridden bound to a twisted, distorted helion spirit.

Over the years, the Shadow of the temples slowly develops and deepens. Repeated Apollonian ceremonies and rites reinforce the Hisil, imbuing it with resonance of the sun. The oldest temples have sizeable Places-That-Aren’t, strange sunlit structures of mirrors and marble.

Meetings of the Culte de la Raison are often debauched and orgiastic, but the Temple carefully manages these evenings of vice to feed various allied spirits of vices and pleasure. The Temple also holds Lyceum meetings, when Culte members judged to have the greatest occult aptitude join an “inner circle” — the pack — and learn to participate in rites. The Masters of the Culte are all loyal Claimed, picked from the inner circle and subjected to ecstatic ceremonies to prepare them as vessels.

The Eaters of the Dead: Mysteries of the Ravening Wolf

The Eaters of the Dead keep several old spirits of hunger sealed away. Ritual feasts of gluttonous consumption occur at times and dates suited to the nature of each spirit, usually banquets of putrid meat and stale cast-offs. The Essence generated keeps the spirits in quiescent slumber.

Some Lodge hunters exsanguinate their undead prey, decanting the stolen blood from fanged corpses or ravenous monstrosities. Hidden temples to Ravening Wolf have galleries of clotted gore. Through smell and taste, the Ki Anagh learn many secrets of the unquiet dead. The Eaters are mapping bloodlines and ‘families’ amongst the dead, revealing fresh mysteries to investigate.

There is a schism in the ranks of the Lodge. Some Eaters favor close ties to the Lodge of Death; Chinese emissaries of the Lodge are offering alliance. Other cultists flock to a different banner — the Tesfurfarrahu, or Devourers. The Devourers are a small cabal claiming to have proof of an old, powerful pact that bound Isim-Ur, though she does not remember this. Devourer doctrine states there are other dead children of Mother Wolf that the Lodge must discover and devour as a holy duty, just like with Ravening Wolf.

Ravening Wolf is powerful and very much present; she runs among her new followers on hunts through the Shadow. She is looking for a mate among her adherents, a werewolf with enough primal power to survive her affections and begin a new spiritual family. Suitors court the totem with trophies and rotting carrion from their kills.

At Ravening Wolf’s command, the Lodge takes young orphans and conducts strange ceremonies over them, even going so far as to kidnap them from state custody briefly. In these cult rituals, the children are fed a drip of Isim-Ur’s blood or a fleck of her spirit-flesh. The totem promises that one day, when this crop of orphans comes of age, they will be powerful Wolf-Blooded fated for great things.

[cynicalclassicist]

Project Lodestone

Set during the events of Turn Left

Written by Felix O’Kelly

The Prime Minister walked up the stairs, passing the pictures of the previous Prime Ministers. He looked at Churchill, who had won the war. At Attlee, who had brought in the welfare state. The two greatest Prime Ministers of the last century, some would say. Then he passed Callaghan and lingered, looking at the man as if he felt a kinship for the Prime Minister who had never been elected, had presided over a terrible crisis and was now barely remembered. The woman after him, whose own Party had forced her out. His predecessor, Harriet Jones. And now he held the role.

He thought he had seen the worst event of his Ministry after that incident at Canary Wharf and the Cyberman invasion, which had forced the Defence Secretary to resign. But the year had gone from bad to worse. The Thames draining. The Royal Hope Hospital. The incident with the lizard hatching, in which many more died. And then that horrible PMQs in the House, where that slimy Shadow Defence Secretary Daniel Claremont had sneered at those proposals for increased funding despite the recent disasters, saying that international organisations like UNIT took too much of their money anyway and the way ahead was to work with the private sector. Even some of his own MPs seemed to agree with this, leaving the Prime Minister worried that any day now he’d be facing a leadership challenge. He had been on the phone to the new President-Elect again just yesterday and was looking forward to working with him but wondered when the next problem would strike. And now UNIT had this plan.

The Prime Minister had read the files and was still wondering if this was an elaborate joke. Talk of time travel, parallel worlds, shapeshifting aliens. Reports from a journalist called Stevens. Reading the files had left him without time to prepare for that hammering in the house, one of the worst this year. He had thought of calling the meeting off. But somehow, he felt this wasn't a joke. In these strange times what could surprise him now?

Captain Magambo was waiting in his office. With her was a woman in her 60s, who introduced herself as Elizabeth Shaw.

"Is everyone here?" asked the Prime Minister.

"We are waiting for one more," said Captain Magambo.

There was a flash of light outside and a blond woman in her 20s entered.

"She’s here," said Captain Magambo.

The door burst open and a security man came in. "Prime Minister, it's..."

"Leave us" said the Prime Minister. "I trust Captain Magambo's judgement."

The man closed the door.

"UNIT has a proposal but for it to be finalised we need a significant increase in funding" said Magambo.

"UNIT?" The Prime Minister sighed. "What do you want money for now? People from my Party and the Opposition are snarling that we already pay too much to a UN organisation."

"But we can guarantee that this will help us," replied Liz Shaw. "I have been speaking to her over this!"

“May I know your name?” asked the Prime Minister.

“It’s better you don’t know” replied the blond woman.

The Prime Minister was about to argue but Magambo cut in, “We’re used to it by now.”

"What exactly is it you are proposing?" asked the Prime Minister, moving on to the matter at hand. “The report I read talked about time travel. This isn’t just a prank?”

"It's risky and you may think us mad" said Liz Shaw. "It involves the Doctor."

The Prime Minister allowed himself a smile at hearing of that incredible man. When the news had come of their death, nearly a year ago, he had been told by most people, the Cabinet Secretary, the Queen, his Predecessor and others the disaster this was. Of course, his warm feelings were partially because they had deposed his Predecessor. Harriet Jones had kept him on as Chancellor but without those words about her looking tired...

He was brought sharply back to reality by Liz Shaw. "According to our associate here the Doctor was not meant to die. Something... has altered the timeline. Events would have transpired differently. You'd probably never have heard of the lizard hatching."

“We intend to go back and prevent his death from happening,” said the blond woman. “We are trying out the exact point of divergence, but we might be able to manage it in a few months with the necessary funding.”

“Change history?” said the Prime Minister. A few years ago this would have sounded like nonsense but now...

"I've worked to get all the funding I can," said Magambo, quickly, before he could retort. "But resources are drying up. We hoped you could ask the Defence Secretary to divert more funds our way. They are supposed to be helping UNIT’s British branch."

The Prime Minister coughed nervously. "It’s tricky. If the Opposition gets a whiff, they'll be all over us. I know Claremont has always been vocal about how much we waste on UNIT."

"Then... we'll have to make sure they don't know" replied Liz.

“Can’t you get funds from the UN?” asked the Prime Minister.

“We’ve tried, but it’s difficult there as well,” said Liz. “Seen as a waste of time and money.”

“The amount you are asking, tens of millions of pounds before the end of the year, just to save this one man? You have to understand…”

"Please... this is important! We all need him!" said the woman, sitting forward sharply. "Do you remember three years ago, when those plastic monsters almost destroyed the country? The Doctor stopped them! Then next year, when the Slitheen took over Downing Street and tried to blow up the planet? He stopped that! I was in this building when he did that!"

The Prime Minister was amazed. "How did you know? Even I only found out..."

"Then he saved the world from slavery to the Sycorax! And when the Cybermen and the Daleks came... and almost destroyed everybody, he saved you all again! And he did it knowing he could die! He sacrificed himself just for me and came back! And he saved more than this planet, he'll save you again a hundred times, in the future, in the past, whenever!" She was passionate now, practically crying. "This isn't what was supposed to happen! The Doctor was supposed to survive, that night under the Thames. He'd have defeated whatever monster threatened you and sauntered away. But something has changed history. Something evil."

"How can you be sure history was changed?" asked the Prime Minister.

"I just know!" he was told. "In the world I'm from... it's ahead. We've worked out what’s coming, and we need him back! And right now, this country, this whole world is going down. And we need to do something! We need to save him! It's up to us!"

In all his 57 years, 25 in Parliament, the Prime Minister had barely heard a speech with such real passion. He was used to speeches which were false and hollow, there to make the worst option seem the better. But this...

Liz Shaw smiled. "I also remember the Doctor. Like her, the first time I met the Doctor he saved the world from the Autons. Then from a plague that could have killed millions. And more than that. I could bring you a hundred more stories..."

"Yes, thank you, I get the idea" said the Prime Minister. "All right, Captain Magambo. I will speak to the Defence Secretary. Hopefully she will give you the funding. For this Project Lodestone."

“Thank you, Prime Minister” said Magambo.

"But don't let anyone else hear of this... especially the Opposition! If that Claremont..."

“Don’t worry, Prime Minister,” said Liz. “We have made sure to do all the work outside London, miles away from anywhere.”

“I’ll be going then,” said the blond woman.

But the Prime Minister had one last question. "In this… other version of events… am I still the Prime Minister?”

Liz laughed. “If the Doctor was here he’d say that’s just like a politician!”

The other woman gave a big smile. “Yes, if that’s any consolation.”

“So, do you have an answer?” asked the Prime Minister.

“Well… you’ll just have to see,” said the woman. “But surely there’s more important…”

“Yes… of course” said the Prime Minister.

“But we need to get the funding soon,” said the woman. “Before Christmas!”

“Well... I’ll see what I can do” said the Prime Minister. Margo was not the easiest to work with but had seemed the only person capable of being Defence Secretary after the hatching.

He stepped outside to see the Cabinet Secretary waiting, as if about to come in. “Gus?”

“Yes, Prime Minister?” said the civil servant.

“Tell the Defence Secretary to come here. I need a word with her.”

“And should I give a reason?” said the civil servant.

“If anyone asks it’s about cuts.”

“Prime Minister, may I remind you the defence of the realm cannot be cut. If you wish, I could arrange a meeting with Sir William from Defence, who will inform you, as I do…”

“I don’t have time for this!” barked the Prime Minister. “I need to see her now!” He softened slightly. “If it’s any consolation that will be the official reason for the meeting.”

“Ah.” Gus smiled knowingly. “At once.”

There was a flash in the office.

Gus turned. “Watching Flash Gordon in there?” At a glare he hastened to go.

As the Prime Minister went back into his office, he realised the blond woman had gone. “Where did she…”

“She does that,” said Magambo. “Says she can’t stay here too long. But she does insist we get the funding before Christmas.”

“Very well, I think that can be managed,” said the Prime Minister. He looked outside. Maybe things would be better in this new timeline. He wondered if he would ever remember what had happened here. If anyone would remember this. But if it made the world better then surely that was the most important thing.

It was at Christmas later that year that the ship came down on London, in a few seconds turning one of the largest cities in the world into a devastated wasteland. Among the casualties was the Prime Minister. Liz had been in Germany at the time of the crash but had been a casualty of the ATMOS Crisis.

Rose Tyler wished she could have done more. But there were limits to how far she could influence this timeline. Very few would know of the help this Prime Minister gave to them, in that room in Downing Street, now even less. But even though some of the best things Prime Ministers do can be forgotten, Rose remembered. And she was thankful for what he’d done. And besides… compared to the people in power now he was hardly that bad.

But soon, this nightmare the world was in would end. Things had seemed dark, even the sky seemed to be growing darker, but now, Rose could see a glimmer of hope ahead, as the Lodestone machine sparked into life. And for the first time all year she could see real hope on the faces of those around her, that things could finally get better…

[lordbaumeister]

Reviewing the Pages: The Lodestone Files: The Things in the Shadows

Reviewing the Pages: The Lodestone Files: The Things in the Shadows

Idris Sinclair lives a rather typical life; helping his family run their cherished diner. However, all the normalness he knows in life is about to go straight out the window when he happens to break into an abandoned van in the restaurant’s parking lot. He discovers a small weapon’s stockpile and various files, involving affairs foreign to him.  As night begins to set in, the family is involved…

[tt-review]

Google has just launched a new visual identity and redesign of its multicoloured logo. At the time of writing the new logo is shown on the Google homepage being drawn by an animated hand. They doubtless were Thark warriors who had been sent out to capture us, and we breathed a great sigh of relief that they were traveling in the opposite direction. Quickly lifting Dejah Thoris from the thoat, I commanded the animal to lie down and we three did the same, presenting as small an object as possible for fear of attracting the attention of the warriors toward us. We could see them as they filed out of the pass, just for an instant, before they were lost to view behind a friendly ridge; to us a most providential ridge; since, had they been in view for any great length of time, they scarcely could have failed to discover us. As what proved to be the last warrior came into view from the pass, he halted and, to our consternation, threw his small but powerful fieldglass to his eye and scanned the sea bottom in all directions. Evidently he was a chieftain, for in certain marching formations among the green men a chieftain brings up the extreme rear of the column. As his glass swung toward us our hearts stopped in our breasts, and I could feel the cold sweat start from every pore in my body. [caption id="attachment_9" align="alignleft" width="320"] We are committed to remaining by his side as a family for our champion.[/caption] And then the moonlight flooded the cave, and there before me lay my own body as it had been lying all these hours, with the eyes staring toward the open ledge and the hands resting limply upon the ground. I looked first at my lifeless clay there upon the floor of the cave and then down at myself in utter bewilderment; for there I lay clothed, and yet here I stood but naked as at the minute of my birth. The transition had been so sudden and so unexpected that it left me for a moment forgetful of aught else than my strange metamorphosis. My first thought was, is this then death! Have I indeed passed over forever into that other life! But I could not well believe this, as I could feel my heart pounding against my ribs from the exertion of my efforts to release myself from the anaesthesis which had held me. My breath was coming in quick, short gasps, cold sweat stood out from every pore of my body, and the ancient experiment of pinching revealed the fact that I was anything other than a wraith. Again was I suddenly recalled to my immediate surroundings by a repetition of the weird moan from the depths of the cave. Naked and unarmed as I was, I had no desire to face the unseen thing which menaced me. My revolvers were strapped to my lifeless body which, for some unfathomable reason, I could not bring myself to touch. My carbine was in its boot, strapped to my saddle, and as my horse had wandered off I was left without means of defense.  

Unable longer to resist the temptation to escape

This horrible place I leaped quickly

The crisp, fresh mountain air outside the cave acted as an immediate tonic and I felt new life and new courage coursing through me. Pausing upon the brink of the ledge I upbraided myself for what now seemed to me wholly unwarranted apprehension. I reasoned with myself that I had lain helpless for many hours within the cave, yet nothing had molested me, and my better judgment, when permitted the direction of clear and logical reasoning, convinced me that the noises I had heard must have resulted from purely natural and harmless causes; probably the conformation of the cave was such that a slight breeze had caused the sounds I heard. I decided to investigate, but first I lifted my head to fill my lungs with the pure, invigorating night air of the mountains. As I did so I saw stretching far below me the beautiful vista of rocky gorge, and level, cacti-studded flat, wrought by the moonlight into a miracle of soft splendor and wondrous enchantment. Few western wonders are more inspiring than the beauties of an Arizona moonlit landscape; the silvered mountains in the distance, the strange lights and shadows upon hog back and arroyo, and the grotesque details of the stiff, yet beautiful cacti form a picture at once enchanting and inspiring; as though one were catching for the first time a glimpse of some dead and forgotten world, so different is it from the aspect of any other spot upon our earth.

I decided to investigate, but first I lifted my head

Unable longer to resist the temptation to escape this horrible place I leaped quickly through the opening into the starlight of a clear Arizona night. The crisp, fresh mountain air outside the cave acted as an immediate tonic and I felt new life and new courage coursing through me. Pausing upon the brink of the ledge I upbraided myself for what now seemed to me wholly unwarranted apprehension. I reasoned with myself that I had lain helpless for many hours within the cave, yet nothing had molested me, and my better judgment, when permitted the direction of clear and logical reasoning, convinced me that the noises I had heard must have resulted from purely natural and harmless causes; probably the conformation of the cave was such that a slight breeze had caused the sounds I heard. I decided to investigate, but first I lifted my head to fill my lungs with the pure, invigorating night air of the mountains. As I did so I saw stretching far below me the beautiful vista of rocky gorge, and level, cacti-studded flat, wrought by the moonlight into a miracle of soft splendor and wondrous enchantment. Few western wonders are more inspiring than the beauties of an Arizona moonlit landscape; the silvered mountains in the distance, the strange lights and shadows upon hog back and arroyo, and the grotesque details of the stiff, yet beautiful cacti form a picture at once enchanting and inspiring; as though one were catching for the first time a glimpse of some dead and forgotten world, so different is it from the aspect of any other spot upon our earth. As I stood thus meditating, I turned my gaze from the landscape to the heavens where the myriad stars formed a gorgeous and fitting canopy for the wonders of the earthly scene. My attention was quickly riveted by a large red star close to the distant horizon. As I gazed upon it I felt a spell of overpowering fascination—it was Mars, the god of war, and for me, the fighting man, it had always held the power of irresistible enchantment. As I gazed at it on that far-gone night it seemed to call across the unthinkable void, to lure me to it, to draw me as the lodestone attracts a particle of iron.

[jornalvistolivre-blog]

Life’s challenges force us to harden up. Relationships, work, children, family and finances all combine to put us under a lot of pressure and the way we are expected to deal with these is to develop resilience and to some extent indifference. We are required to be tough.

To teach our kids to be tough and with each blow life delivers to knock us down, we need to get up, dust ourselves off and pick up where we left off. The more times we start again, the colder and more jaded we become.

What you truly desire. Imagine what you could

Some people believe that showing tough love is an important way to ensure that their children are able to take care of themselves in the future. If you were the recipient of this approach on a regular basis, you might even believe that this has had a positive impact on your life.

Everyone’s parents criticize from time to time.

Perhaps what’s needed is a shift in attitude. To become stronger and resistant to the tribulations of life, maybe the answer is that we need to become softer not tougher. Maybe what the world needs is more nurture.

If you don’t know much about your subscribers, you could consider running a campaign asking them for more details through a simple preference centre. You may wish to consider offering an incentive or freebie in exchange for this information, which will help boost your response rates.

Do something that pushes your boundaries, something that you wouldn’t ordinarily do. Take a calculated risk and allow yourself to crumble a little.

All parents occasionally pick on their children, but when the so-called jokes become commonplace, this can be a huge problem. You do not need to accept this type of behavior just because your parent has always joked about something such as your height or weight.

A great place to start is with a minimal template and if you’re looking for a quick fix, check out Dynamite – it’s a great example of how an elegant design and the use of whitespace can be highly effective in highlighting what you are promoting.

Tips For Increasing Employee Motivation

Without injuring others or placing your own life in danger, it’s healthy to let go sometimes. You don’t have to be irresponsible to release responsibility and embrace freedom for a change. When life is becoming too burdensome and the weight of obligation and duty seems suffocating, do something that allows you to release yourself from what can feel like a prison.

It’s easy to forget that your subscribers are people with likes and dislikes (not just leads). Firstly, always watch your open, CTR, unsubscribe and complaint rates. That’s the fast way to gauge whether your email was engaging or not. When appropriate, use what personalisation you have at your disposal.

If you want to take it to the next level and gauge subscriber sentiment, you could generate feedback by adding a simple “Did you find this email useful?” line in your footer that leads subscribers to a survey. Keep it short and concise though; you’re not after War and Peace.

If a survey seems like too much commitment, check out this fun widget. You never know, this feedback may just generate the next idea that takes your email program to the next level.

Most email service providers have inbuilt mobile optimized templates, but if yours doesn’t/you want something custom and have budget to spare, consider hiring an email marketing developer on Envato Studio or Upwork. Just ensure you do you research and ask for previous work examples before you hire.

Focus on process-oriented ideas

Did you grow up believing that your parent was physically or emotionally abusive to you because you deserved it? If so, you may still be justifying the terrible behavior of others at your own expense.

Get In Touch With Emotions

Discover how you really feel about things. It’s easier said than done. Instead of maintaining the status quo and keeping the peace.

Instead of following the herd and making the predictable and reliable decisions that you are expected to make, ask yourself.

What you truly desire. Imagine what you could accomplish, if failing wasn’t an option.If there was no fear of being judged and no adverse consequences.

If there was no fear of being judged and no adverse consequences reliable decisions.

Learning to acknowledge and express our emotions freely may seem like weakness in a culture that requires us to be tough, but in actual fact it takes a strength far more valuable and honorable than living in denial.

Use the “Spaced Repetition” technique

Try the “Pinch Yourself” hack

Schedule learning sessions before bedtime

Study the content, not the language

This technique was introduced by Maneesh Sethi, a frequent traveler who mastered four foreign languages as an adult. His approach was based on the fact that negative stimuli massively boost self-improvement.

Soft is the new hard

When you think that a situation requires you to be tough, to stiffen your upper lip and puff out your chest in the face of something difficult or even traumatic, consider if you have another option. Maybe for a change it’s time to wallow in the tragedy of your experience and really feel what it is to be human. Striving for mental toughness may close you off to a world of emotional development and progress that you may otherwise live through if you let yourself open up for a change.

Ways to beat stress at work

How you can use this for language learning?

Get a set of flashcards for memorizing vocabulary or grammar.

Master the hard pinch (it should be quite hard) to activate your body’s threat response.

Review a category of flash cards (such as adjectives or group of words). Don’t pinch yourself at this stage.

Review the same category, now adding the pinch for each vocabulary word. Spend some time studying the card before moving to the next one.

Softening your perspective towards yourself and others; allowing yourself to experience tenderness and nurturing instead may seem counterproductive, but in the long run, may reap more abundant rewards.

Tough is just bravado. Softening up is a new normal you should try.

You may feel sadness more intensely, or anger. Disappointment, fear, grief. The flip side is you may discover joy like you’ve never allowed yourself to feel before. You may laugh harder, feel more inspired, encounter wonder and awe at things you previously took for granted.

Multishow apresenta novas participantes do Casa Bonita 3 que estreia 4 de julho #BelladaSemana #CasaBonita Life’s challenges force us to harden up. Relationships, work, children, family and finances all combine to put us under a lot of pressure and the way we are expected to deal with these is to develop resilience and to some extent indifference.

[abnormalpublishing]

Kindle Deal - Lilah's Guide to Hoyle On Sale 6/12 — 6/18

#KindleDeal for the #novel Lilah's Guide to Hoyle. On Sale 6/12 — 6/18. Check inside for a free preview and details. #Murder #ActionAdventure #Witches #Demons

Hey folks.

I just wanted to drop a line while I am digressing from some writing to say that Lilah’s Guide to Hoyle will be on sale for $0.99 6/12, and will then be $1.99 on 6/15. Finally, the price will return to 6/18.

If there’s ever been a time to get your Kindle copy, it’s coming up. Unless you’re already a Kindle Unlimitedmember, then you can already get it for free, you lucky dog. If…

[abnormalpublishing]

What's New?

What's New? A brief post about what's coming up, #preorders, #paperbacks, #Bob, and #Blizzcon

Hey, folks.

RJM here, dropping a quick line about some new stuff coming up.

Paperback copies of the following titles will be soon available on Amazon:

The Lodestone Files: The Things in the Shadows

The Lodestone Files: The Cat, The Mouse, and The Thing From Another World

Abnormal Side Effects

Pre-orders for The Chronicles of Bob: The Chronic Suicidal will open up soon. It will have a placeholder…

[abnormalpublishing]

We're Taking it on the Run...This Thursday With the Release of Book Two.

We're Taking it on the Run...This Thursday With the Release of Book Two. #bookrelease #scifi #aliens

August 31, 2017, marks the release of The Lodestone Files: The Cat, The Mouse, and The Thing From Another World.

This title offers more backstory on Mac, as well as exactly how the contact between the alien homeworld and Earth was established. Also, we see how the newly reformed “James” begins his pursuit of the boys and Murdoch.

The exciting game of cat and mouse starts hard and fast with book…

[abnormalpublishing]

Pre-order Book Two of The Lodestone Files Now Available

Pre-order Book Two of The Lodestone Files Now Available. #SciFi #Aliens #Fiction #Politics

Hey folks,

The pre-order for book two of The Lodestone Files: The Cat, The Mouse, and The Thing From Another World is now available.

“It’s going to be a long road for us…”

This story picks up immediately after the end of The Lodestone Files: The Things in the Shadows. Book two marks a great setup for the following events and provides some more backstory on a few of our characters and overall…

[abnormalpublishing]

Lilah's Guide to Hoyle — February Amazon UK Promo

It's our #ValentinesDay #Kindle #Promo. It's STD-free. Good for your home.#urbanfantasy #ebook

Hi, everyone.

I’m just dropping a brief post on my Valentine’s Day promotion for Amazon UK customers. You can get the urban fantasy novel, Lilah’s Guide to Hoylefor only £0.99, February 12th through the 18th. That’s so much in savings [60%!] you could help fund the proposed wall to—wait, what? We aren’t going to talk about American politics?  We aren’t going to discuss how we’re degrading…

[abnormalpublishing]

The Lodestone Files: The Cat, The Mouse, and The Thing From Another World [Paperback]

The Lodestone Files: The Cat, The Mouse, and The Thing From Another World [Paperback]

The paperback edition of The Lodestone Files: The Cat, The Mouse, and The Thing from Another World by Robert J. S. T. McCartney.

The Lodestone Files: The Cat, The Mouse, and The Thing From Another World by Robert J. S. T. McCartney follow up on the events of The Lodestone Files: The Things in the Shadows [Book One of the Among Us: Contact, Assimilation, Control, Extermination Series].

It offers…

[abnormalpublishing]

The Lodestone Files: The Things in the Shadows [Paperback]

The Lodestone Files: The Things in the Shadows [Paperback]

The paperback edition of The Lodestone Files: The Things in the Shadows by Robert J. S. T. McCartney.

This book is Book One of the Among Us: Contact, Assimilation, Control, Extermination Series.

[abnormalpublishing]

The Lodestone Files: The Things in the Shadows [Digital]

The Lodestone Files: The Things in the Shadows [Digital]

The digital edition of The Lodestone Files: The Things in the Shadows by Robert J. S. T. McCartney.

This version is compatible on Kindle, Android devices,

[jornalvistolivre-blog]

Life’s challenges force us to harden up. Relationships, work, children, family and finances all combine to put us under a lot of pressure and the way we are expected to deal with these is to develop resilience and to some extent indifference. We are required to be tough.

To teach our kids to be tough and with each blow life delivers to knock us down, we need to get up, dust ourselves off and pick up where we left off. The more times we start again, the colder and more jaded we become.

What you truly desire. Imagine what you could

Some people believe that showing tough love is an important way to ensure that their children are able to take care of themselves in the future. If you were the recipient of this approach on a regular basis, you might even believe that this has had a positive impact on your life.

Everyone’s parents criticize from time to time.

Perhaps what’s needed is a shift in attitude. To become stronger and resistant to the tribulations of life, maybe the answer is that we need to become softer not tougher. Maybe what the world needs is more nurture.

If you don’t know much about your subscribers, you could consider running a campaign asking them for more details through a simple preference centre. You may wish to consider offering an incentive or freebie in exchange for this information, which will help boost your response rates.

Do something that pushes your boundaries, something that you wouldn’t ordinarily do. Take a calculated risk and allow yourself to crumble a little.

All parents occasionally pick on their children, but when the so-called jokes become commonplace, this can be a huge problem. You do not need to accept this type of behavior just because your parent has always joked about something such as your height or weight.

A great place to start is with a minimal template and if you’re looking for a quick fix, check out Dynamite – it’s a great example of how an elegant design and the use of whitespace can be highly effective in highlighting what you are promoting.

Tips For Increasing Employee Motivation

Without injuring others or placing your own life in danger, it’s healthy to let go sometimes. You don’t have to be irresponsible to release responsibility and embrace freedom for a change. When life is becoming too burdensome and the weight of obligation and duty seems suffocating, do something that allows you to release yourself from what can feel like a prison.

It’s easy to forget that your subscribers are people with likes and dislikes (not just leads). Firstly, always watch your open, CTR, unsubscribe and complaint rates. That’s the fast way to gauge whether your email was engaging or not. When appropriate, use what personalisation you have at your disposal.

If you want to take it to the next level and gauge subscriber sentiment, you could generate feedback by adding a simple “Did you find this email useful?” line in your footer that leads subscribers to a survey. Keep it short and concise though; you’re not after War and Peace.

If a survey seems like too much commitment, check out this fun widget. You never know, this feedback may just generate the next idea that takes your email program to the next level.

Most email service providers have inbuilt mobile optimized templates, but if yours doesn’t/you want something custom and have budget to spare, consider hiring an email marketing developer on Envato Studio or Upwork. Just ensure you do you research and ask for previous work examples before you hire.

Focus on process-oriented ideas

Did you grow up believing that your parent was physically or emotionally abusive to you because you deserved it? If so, you may still be justifying the terrible behavior of others at your own expense.

Get In Touch With Emotions

Discover how you really feel about things. It’s easier said than done. Instead of maintaining the status quo and keeping the peace.

Instead of following the herd and making the predictable and reliable decisions that you are expected to make, ask yourself.

What you truly desire. Imagine what you could accomplish, if failing wasn’t an option.If there was no fear of being judged and no adverse consequences.

If there was no fear of being judged and no adverse consequences reliable decisions.

Learning to acknowledge and express our emotions freely may seem like weakness in a culture that requires us to be tough, but in actual fact it takes a strength far more valuable and honorable than living in denial.

Use the “Spaced Repetition” technique

Try the “Pinch Yourself” hack

Schedule learning sessions before bedtime

Study the content, not the language

This technique was introduced by Maneesh Sethi, a frequent traveler who mastered four foreign languages as an adult. His approach was based on the fact that negative stimuli massively boost self-improvement.

Soft is the new hard

When you think that a situation requires you to be tough, to stiffen your upper lip and puff out your chest in the face of something difficult or even traumatic, consider if you have another option. Maybe for a change it’s time to wallow in the tragedy of your experience and really feel what it is to be human. Striving for mental toughness may close you off to a world of emotional development and progress that you may otherwise live through if you let yourself open up for a change.

Ways to beat stress at work

How you can use this for language learning?

Get a set of flashcards for memorizing vocabulary or grammar.

Master the hard pinch (it should be quite hard) to activate your body’s threat response.

Review a category of flash cards (such as adjectives or group of words). Don’t pinch yourself at this stage.

Review the same category, now adding the pinch for each vocabulary word. Spend some time studying the card before moving to the next one.

Softening your perspective towards yourself and others; allowing yourself to experience tenderness and nurturing instead may seem counterproductive, but in the long run, may reap more abundant rewards.

Tough is just bravado. Softening up is a new normal you should try.

You may feel sadness more intensely, or anger. Disappointment, fear, grief. The flip side is you may discover joy like you’ve never allowed yourself to feel before. You may laugh harder, feel more inspired, encounter wonder and awe at things you previously took for granted.

6 Products You’ve Seen on Instagram That You Need IRL Life’s challenges force us to harden up. Relationships, work, children, family and finances all combine to put us under a lot of pressure and the way we are expected to deal with these is to develop resilience and to some extent indifference.

[jornalvistolivre-blog]

Life’s challenges force us to harden up. Relationships, work, children, family and finances all combine to put us under a lot of pressure and the way we are expected to deal with these is to develop resilience and to some extent indifference. We are required to be tough.

To teach our kids to be tough and with each blow life delivers to knock us down, we need to get up, dust ourselves off and pick up where we left off. The more times we start again, the colder and more jaded we become.

What you truly desire. Imagine what you could

Some people believe that showing tough love is an important way to ensure that their children are able to take care of themselves in the future. If you were the recipient of this approach on a regular basis, you might even believe that this has had a positive impact on your life.

Everyone’s parents criticize from time to time.

Perhaps what’s needed is a shift in attitude. To become stronger and resistant to the tribulations of life, maybe the answer is that we need to become softer not tougher. Maybe what the world needs is more nurture.

If you don’t know much about your subscribers, you could consider running a campaign asking them for more details through a simple preference centre. You may wish to consider offering an incentive or freebie in exchange for this information, which will help boost your response rates.

Do something that pushes your boundaries, something that you wouldn’t ordinarily do. Take a calculated risk and allow yourself to crumble a little.

All parents occasionally pick on their children, but when the so-called jokes become commonplace, this can be a huge problem. You do not need to accept this type of behavior just because your parent has always joked about something such as your height or weight.

A great place to start is with a minimal template and if you’re looking for a quick fix, check out Dynamite – it’s a great example of how an elegant design and the use of whitespace can be highly effective in highlighting what you are promoting.

Tips For Increasing Employee Motivation

Without injuring others or placing your own life in danger, it’s healthy to let go sometimes. You don’t have to be irresponsible to release responsibility and embrace freedom for a change. When life is becoming too burdensome and the weight of obligation and duty seems suffocating, do something that allows you to release yourself from what can feel like a prison.

It’s easy to forget that your subscribers are people with likes and dislikes (not just leads). Firstly, always watch your open, CTR, unsubscribe and complaint rates. That’s the fast way to gauge whether your email was engaging or not. When appropriate, use what personalisation you have at your disposal.

If you want to take it to the next level and gauge subscriber sentiment, you could generate feedback by adding a simple “Did you find this email useful?” line in your footer that leads subscribers to a survey. Keep it short and concise though; you’re not after War and Peace.

If a survey seems like too much commitment, check out this fun widget. You never know, this feedback may just generate the next idea that takes your email program to the next level.

Most email service providers have inbuilt mobile optimized templates, but if yours doesn’t/you want something custom and have budget to spare, consider hiring an email marketing developer on Envato Studio or Upwork. Just ensure you do you research and ask for previous work examples before you hire.

Focus on process-oriented ideas

Did you grow up believing that your parent was physically or emotionally abusive to you because you deserved it? If so, you may still be justifying the terrible behavior of others at your own expense.

Get In Touch With Emotions

Discover how you really feel about things. It’s easier said than done. Instead of maintaining the status quo and keeping the peace.

Instead of following the herd and making the predictable and reliable decisions that you are expected to make, ask yourself.

What you truly desire. Imagine what you could accomplish, if failing wasn’t an option.If there was no fear of being judged and no adverse consequences.

If there was no fear of being judged and no adverse consequences reliable decisions.

Learning to acknowledge and express our emotions freely may seem like weakness in a culture that requires us to be tough, but in actual fact it takes a strength far more valuable and honorable than living in denial.

Use the “Spaced Repetition” technique

Try the “Pinch Yourself” hack

Schedule learning sessions before bedtime

Study the content, not the language

This technique was introduced by Maneesh Sethi, a frequent traveler who mastered four foreign languages as an adult. His approach was based on the fact that negative stimuli massively boost self-improvement.

Soft is the new hard

When you think that a situation requires you to be tough, to stiffen your upper lip and puff out your chest in the face of something difficult or even traumatic, consider if you have another option. Maybe for a change it’s time to wallow in the tragedy of your experience and really feel what it is to be human. Striving for mental toughness may close you off to a world of emotional development and progress that you may otherwise live through if you let yourself open up for a change.

Ways to beat stress at work

How you can use this for language learning?

Get a set of flashcards for memorizing vocabulary or grammar.

Master the hard pinch (it should be quite hard) to activate your body’s threat response.

Review a category of flash cards (such as adjectives or group of words). Don’t pinch yourself at this stage.

Review the same category, now adding the pinch for each vocabulary word. Spend some time studying the card before moving to the next one.

Softening your perspective towards yourself and others; allowing yourself to experience tenderness and nurturing instead may seem counterproductive, but in the long run, may reap more abundant rewards.

Tough is just bravado. Softening up is a new normal you should try.

You may feel sadness more intensely, or anger. Disappointment, fear, grief. The flip side is you may discover joy like you’ve never allowed yourself to feel before. You may laugh harder, feel more inspired, encounter wonder and awe at things you previously took for granted.

A renewed classic eichler by Klopf Architecture Life’s challenges force us to harden up. Relationships, work, children, family and finances all combine to put us under a lot of pressure and the way we are expected to deal with these is to develop resilience and to some extent indifference.