#The rest are on google docs or my computer's hard drive but there were some great entries that I never saved anywhere else
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ssa-daddyhotchner · 4 years ago
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The Struggle of Loving You - Chapter 22
Chapter Selection  
I stared at the ceiling, I couldn't wrap my head around that I would be graduating in two months. Everything I wanted and tried to be was going to happen. I was going to go to into the academy and train to be apart of the FBI. 
The fucking FBI. I had zero clue where I was going but that didn't matter to me. I could always work my way through the ranks. I'm a hard worker and always strive to do better with whatever I'm doing. But I needed to get a jump on things, needing to try an get ahead. 
The people there will be doing the same and i don't want to be behind. I took my phone off the bed side table and called Aaron, "Hello." 
I smirk to the sound of his voice. "Are you busy right now." I swung my legs off the bed and stood up. 
"Not at the moment." I started brushing my teeth. "Okay good, cause you're taking me shooting in an hour." 
"O- oh okay.... in a hurry?" 
"Not really, well kind of... you can't blame me for wanting to see my boyfriend."
 Aaron smiled, "No you're not, do you want me to meet you or am I going to pick you up." I finished my shower and threw on a black tank top with black ripped jeans. 
“Which ever you prefer." 
“I'll be there in an hour." 
We hung up the phone and I put in on the charger. Grabbing my laptop I needed to try and finish some assignments that were due at 5pm. I needed to go through my classes of Psychology and Victimology. Needing to write 3 papers for both classes. 
I would've done it the day before but I was busy with my work outs and Chloe had car trouble. The past few days had been hectic, but that's not an excuse. I just made it harder on myself. 
I brought the laptop into the kitchen and sitting on the stool. I didn't sit on the couch knowing if I got too comfortable I'd put it off more. While I waited for everything to load and start I got a cup of coffee. At this point coffee ran through my veins which wasn't good at all but I wasn't complaining. 
Getting in front of the computer I scrolled down the list. Needed two things done for each class, 2 papers with 3,000 words each. Fuck this, I groan out and loaded up Google Docs. Going to the rubric I looked at the requirements. 
The paper needed to be about rape and the other needed to be about social cognation.Turning my phone on airplane mode I took a sip and started typing. While writing I forgot about Aaron picking me up. 
After an hour of writing, Aaron was sitting in parking lot calling and texting me. Letting me know he was there, when I didn't answer he walked up the stairs and went to the door. 
Hearing the faint knock it broke me out of my concentration. I stood up and stretched over to the door. Aaron was about to knock again but I opened the door. "Did you not hear me calling you." 
I put a hand on my forehead, "Sorry I was doing homework, I turned off my phone." 
"That's fine I would've just liked a little notice before worrying myself." He chuckled and took a seat. I sat on his lap and turned the computer to face us. "What are you writing?", he rested his head on my shoulder, putting his arms around my waist. 
“Something for psychology... after I turn this in then I move on to Victimology." I had completed the paper for Psyc. After I turned it in I tapped his hand. Standing up and grabbing  my keys. 
Tugging on his hand, we walked out and I locked the door behind us. Getting into the car Aaron started driving over to the shooting range. His hand rested on my thigh and I put my small hand over his large one. 
Giving a small squeeze I glanced over to him. "Have you ever shot a gun?", I thought back to my childhood.
"A few times, with a friend. When my parents let me over there they would take me hunting. Got a few bucks but nothing special. If I remember my friends dad said and I quote I was the best shot he'd seen from someone my age." 
“How old were you?"
"Nine, like he said, I was the best." He chuckled and pulled into the raking lot. 
"Yeah well let's seen how you are without a hunting rifle." Since I was good with the rifle I didn't think I would have a problem with a handgun or really any gun for that matter. Except shotguns those had too much power for my liking. We walked in and Aaron handled everything with the guy working there. 
Heading into the range Aaron handed me the 9mm. Setting it on the gun and the clip on the table in front of me. "Go ahead." He nodded to me, we both put on the headphones before I did anything. 
Load the gun I aimed at the target ahead of me. Aaron stood behind me watching my form and how I shot.I held the gun in my right hand and supported with my left hand. "Don't put you're thumb on the trigger if you aren't ready." 
"I know", I said quietly and exhaled, pulling the trigger. The recoil hit me, forgetting how much a gun can kick. Pulling back, after the gun settled. I put it down and Aaron came to stand next to me, looking down the range.
Us being the only people in the room he took off his glasses and headphones, "Not bad... try bending your elbow slightly more." I nodded and he put his things back on. Picking it back up and aims down, following his advice and bent my arm more. 
Loosening my wrist a bit, I shot again. The recoil was slightly better, it wasn't so forceful. I got into a rhythm and forgot Aaron was standing behind me. Counting my shots, I stopped when the clip emptied. Checking the chamber to making sure it was empty. 
Aaron took the gun from my hand and pressed the button next to me. The target came towards us and we looked at where I hit. "You seem to have the hang of it. The way you were holding it made the bullets curve down a bit make sure you're arms aren't too loose." 
I turned to face him while he was talking. "Other than that... good job." He loaded another clip and handed it to me, he grinned at me. Leaning forwards I peaked his lips before going to shoot again. 
We stayed there for another hour, Aaron was making little changes on my form and giving me some tips. I appreciated his help with everything so far. He couldn't have been more helpful. 
Getting into the car he pulled out of the parking lot. "Thank you", he placed his hand on my inner thigh. "You don't have to thank me.... I would've ended up asking anyways. I want you to do great." 
Lacing my hand with his I earned my head back. "Do you have Jack tonight." "Hayley took him this morning", he already knew what I was going to ask. 
“Your place?", I saw a faint smile and he switched directions, going to his house. When we got there we walked through the front door. He grabbed my hand and guided me towards the shower. 
I dropped my things on his bed, "I don't have any clothes." Aaron looked around and walked to his closet. "You can wear me clothes... here." 
He handed me one of his older shirts and a pair of sweatpants. "Are you forgetting something?” 
He scrunched his eyebrows and went back to his drawer. Grabbing a pair of boxers and tossing them to me. I kissed his cheek and we got into the shower. His hands went my hips and his lips were drawn to my neck. 
"What are you doing?", I said smiling. "Nothing", me mumbled into my neck. I let out a soft moan and placed a hand on his chest, pushing him back. "How about... we actually take a shower." 
“You're no fun", he said chuckling. "Oh I'm plenty fun." The shower was spent teasing each other and poking fun. 
After finishing I changed into Aarons clothes and laid down on my side of the bed. Once Aaron got behind me I curled up to his side like a magnet. 
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paige-from-my-book · 4 years ago
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So I appreciate all the love Blade of a Traitor got! Hoping the numbers go up from there. I'm still working on that one, so stay tuned for more little samples of it. This next exerpt is from my recently finished story, Rescued. In Google docs, Rescued is 105 pages, so I'll be sharing it in small sections. Please be aware this book deals with some heavy topics like PTSD, sexual assault, drug addiction, and brief references to sexism and racism, so if any of that is a trigger for you, I'd advise against reading this. As with BoaT, this is a lesbian romance. As always, feeback is appreciated. Without further ado! Rescued, part 1:
"I walked into the office. My tan uniform fit well. I had tried it on about five times before this week. This job was a God-sent. I never expected to get a job in my field so soon after my associates degree was finished.
I walked up to the front desk and smiled brightly. “Hi! I’m the new hire,” I said with as much cheer as possible. This was my first day on the job and I wanted to give a good first impression.
The woman behind the desk was standing as she leaned over the desk and typed at the computer. Her black hair was up in a ponytail. If it wasn’t pulled up, it would probably go well past her shoulder blades. She didn’t even shift her dark brown eyes from the computer screen and her lab coat hung loosely off of her thin frame. Her thick, black-rimmed glasses sat perfectly on the bridge of her nose. Her dark skin contrasted deeply with her white coat and the black and green blouse underneath her coat brought out the flatness of her stomach.  She was thin, almost scrawny, and tall, probably at least four inches taller than me. Her small nose was lined perfectly between her round cheeks.
She didn’t answer for so long that I wondered if she didn’t hear me. I took a breath to repeat myself, but before I did, her eyes darted to mine, studying me. I could see her eyes fall on the sleeve on my left arm. After only falling there for a moment her eyes looked me up and down completely and then went back to my face. I could see her gaze shift to the side of my head and knew she was looking at my piercings. My industrial specifically probably stood out. 
“Did they tell you our policy about those?” she asked curtly, pointing to my ear.
“They told me as long as I can do my job, that it doesn’t matter,” I said, unsurely. Her scolding look made me wonder if they would be an issue. Her jaw clenched as she continued to stare at me.
“Have you ever retrieved animals before? You’ll be lucky if those don’t get ripped out,” she informed me condescendingly. I didn’t let her know I’d been wrangling wild animals since I was a kid. She seemed uninterested in my answer anyway.  “I’m just a vet here, I don’t know where you’re supposed to go or what you’re supposed to do,” she finally answered my first statement with a shrug. 
I nodded. “Right, I’ll just wait here then,” I offered, not meeting her gaze again. She was intimidating. I wasn’t planning on having to rely on old instincts in my new workplace.  I leaned casually on the counter, but this seemed to repel the vet.
She took a step back and looked at me with disgust. “Fine, I’ll get someone.” She strode off, her lab coat flowing behind her.
“Sorry,” a voice behind me startled me. As I spun around I saw a girl about my height, on the shorter side of average. Her straight blonde hair went just past her shoulders that were covered by a t-shirt with the vet logo on it. Her wide frame accented her short figure. “You’ll have to excuse Andrea. She’s always wary of new hires.”
She tossed me a friendly, gorgeous smile as she moved around the desk to the other side. She sat down in the chair and began typing at the computer that Andrea left behind.
“She’s very protective of her patients.  Also, she doesn’t really see the need in being nice to people when people haven’t been nice to her, you know? Anyway, what was your name again?”
“Oh, um, Hailey. Hailey Thompson,” I stuttered out, reminding myself to smile.  This was a new job, a new chance.  I needed to make this go well.
“Ah Hailey! It’s so good to have you on board. So it says here you have driving and first aid experience?”
“Yes. I drove for Deacon Institute.”
I saw the girl look up from the computer. As much as I tried to avoid giving the full name, she knew exactly where I had driven for. She knew what I was. But she quickly looked back down, like she didn’t want to upset me. Instead of commenting on that, she just replied, “I see.”
“I’m here for a new start,” I blurted. I desperately needed a new start. I needed another chance. I couldn’t go back. Not now, not ever. And my last job didn’t pay enough for me to make rent. It was hard enough to complete school while working sixty hours  a week. It’d almost been enough to make me turn back to- No. Never.
The girl smiled kindly at me.  “We do get a lot of that here. I will say, usually people just volunteer to get their community service out of the way.”
“I’m not most people,” I said sternly. “I worked for this. I want it.” I realized I was leaning in. “Plus, my community service has been done for over a year.”
She met my eyes. Her blue eyes searched mine. “Right. So our boss will be in soon, you can sit over there and wait for him.”
I nodded, smiling again.  “Thank you so much. Sorry, I didn’t catch your name?”
“Amanda.”
“Amanda, nice to meet you,” I offered my hand.
She took my hand, unable to resist my smile. “Nice to meet you, too, Hailey,” she said, offering another friendly smile of her own.
I went to sit down in a chair, nervous about finally meeting the boss.
When John came in, he introduced himself and shook my hand. His short brown hair was peppered with some gray, giving away his older age on an otherwise youthful face.
He seemed to not actually be so bad.  He didn’t even care that I had piercings, and just wanted me to spend the day meeting the animals on campus, providing basic care and interacting with them. After I played with the more tame animals and provided first aid for a few hours, he called me into his office.
“So, this is awkward, and I just want to get it out of the way,” he said as I took a seat.
“I know. I was in a bad place. It was an escape. I made a mistake,” I said, already knowing what he was talking about.
“Is it still an issue?” he asked.
“No. I haven’t done meth in years,” I muttered quietly.  “The stuff I went to prison for wasn’t even mine. Ever since I put myself straight, I’ve had one goal.  Make something of myself. I want more than anything to put that part of my life behind me. Animals help me do that. I just want to give back to them.”
He looked at me for at least a minute before nodding.  “I believe you.  But we do rely on our rescuers here.  I need to know I can trust you.”
“You will. Just give me a chance and I’ll be there.  I’ll show up every day on time.  I’ll do my job and do it well. If it weren’t for animals, I can’t imagine where I’d be. I want to give back to them,” I said. I couldn’t keep the pleading tone from my voice.
His light brown eyes studied mine. “So what experience do you have with animal control?” he finally asked, leaning back in his chair.
“I grew up on a farm. Animal control was my life. But also, as you can see on my resume, I was in charge of animal control at the prison I was at.”
“Yes, I talked with your warden.  He says you created the entire program?”
“They had an animal problem. I gave an idea to fix it, so they put me in charge of it,” I explained with a nod. My dark red bangs fell onto my face as I did, so I quickly brushed them aside, using my right arm so I wouldn’t bring more attention to the sleeve on my left. “With my conduct while I was in prison, they knew they could trust me with a project like that.”
His eyes widened a little and he looked over my portfolio.  “Sure. Well, first we’ll need to train you on our system so you can log the animals you bring in. I’ll set you up with Amanda to get that started.  After seeing how you interact with our animals I have no doubt that you’ll do great here,” he said standing up.  “And if your drive is anything like your parole officer described, you’ll do more than great.”
I smiled at him, happy that he was willing to look past my background. As I stood up to follow him, I straightened out my tan shorts and pushed my short wavy hair behind my ears. It sat just above my shoulders. I was anxious for it to grow out so I could put it back in a ponytail. I’d just gotten comfortable with looking more feminine again. Shorter hair typically meant less unwanted attention. I hated attention.
We went back out to the front desk and John introduced me to Amanda again, explaining what I needed to learn. Amanda nodded briskly and pointed to the chair on the other side of the room. I retrieved it and by the time I was sitting by her side, John was gone.
After a few minutes of her training me a person walked up with a leashed dog in their hand. Amanda turned to them and assisted checking them in. As she did, Andrea came back up, waiting behind Amanda for her to be done helping the customer.
“So, John seems to like you,” she said coolly. “They must be good at teaching you to lie in prison.”
I looked around to make sure no one was in earshot and looked back at Andrea. I felt my jaw clench.  It was hard enough to live with my past. I didn’t need her announcing to the entire office that I was a convict. John must have told her where I came from. I inwardly prayed that he didn’t tell the whole office.
“I didn’t learn anything there. Other than I never want to go back,” I said sternly. My hands slowly clenched into fists around the arm rests. Any mention of prison was too many. Here on my first day it’d already come up a handful of times. 
Breathe, Hailey. Keep everything under control. Everything is calm.
Andrea’s eyes darted down to my forearm, looking at the tree roots that had been inked into my skin.
“This was done before.  I didn’t get tattoos in prison.  Or piercings. I was there to pay for my mistakes. I’ve paid. Now I’m doing what I can to help those that helped me,” I said, leaning forward. She wasn’t the only one who could play alpha.
Andrea’s face didn’t show any emotion as she turned to Amanda, seeing that she was done helping the customer.  “John let me know you’re training her on our system. I wanted to show her a few things that would make it easier for the vets here if she knew how to do it.”
Amanda nodded and backed away, signaling that Andrea could show me what she needed to. Before I could scoot in, Amanda got up and walked away. Andrea took her seat and grabbed my chair by the armrest, pulling me in so I could see better. My chair bumped into hers and I tried not to notice how our arms were touching. My first instinct was to pull away, but I didn’t want Andrea to think that she could intimidate me or that I saw her as above me.
“So, you need to open this window,” Andrea started.  She didn’t even look at me, assuming I was paying attention. 
I took out my notepad and started scribbling notes on what she was teaching me on how to log the animals I would bring back. Her smooth, clear voice made the training easy for me, all of it making sense so that I knew I wouldn’t forget it. I took notes anyways.
“Make sense?” she asks, finally turning to look at me. Her face was so close. Her dark eyes searched mine and I couldn’t help but notice just how beautiful she was, but the way she asked was so condescending that I couldn’t stop myself from glaring at her.
“Mhm,” I confirmed through clenched teeth.
She stared at my face for a while, her dark chocolate eyes running up and down my face for a few seconds before she got up and left. 
After my first day I went home, riding my motorcycle. It was one of the first days that I’d been able to ride this year, the winter finally giving way to spring.
When I finally got into the driveway, I sighed with disappointment. My roommate was home. I didn’t even need to open the crooked front door before I could hear the music blaring. I knew I’d never fall off of the wagon again, but boy did she make it difficult.
“Hailey!” my roommate exclaimed as I walked in. There were five people crammed into our tiny kitchen.
“Hey, Grace.”
“Come in here, I told my friends all about you!”
“I’m actually pretty tired. I had to get up early for work and I have to again tomorrow.”
“Man, you’re no fun anymore,” Grace pouted, her blue eyes pleading with me. 
“Well, almost dying of an overdose will do that to a person,” I said, walking up the stairs. I couldn’t wait to have enough money to move out. Grace was nice enough, but she had no issues staying where she was in life, and that wasn’t where I wanted to be. 
I plopped down onto my bed, throwing my helmet to the other side of the room. Maybe I could sell my car, I thought. But I knew that wouldn’t be enough. My car was such a junker it wouldn’t get me more than a few hundred dollars. Until I saved up, I was stuck here. 
I laid back onto my bed as I let out a heavy sigh. As I laid there, I vaguely wondered if Amanda was looking for a roommate. She seemed nice enough. A little timid, but nice.
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lockdownuk · 4 years ago
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Lockdown Diary Part 8
A personal account during the lockdown in the UK due to the Covid-19 outbreak.
23/03/2020 8:30pm Boris Johnson, UK Prime Minister, gives a live address to the nation to, effectively, put the country on lockdown to stem the spread of the deadly coronavirus strain, Covid-19.
Many of us have been self-isolating for days but this latest development within the UK in reaction to the pandemic feels very serious and very scary. I decided to keep a simple diary and where better but online.
Day 211: I stayed up till 5am last night. The last thing I watched was Ronny Chieng, a Malaysian comic in the states. It was a Netflix comedy special and bloody funny. Other than that, a quiet night, nowhere near as fucked as Friday night. As I type, I am about to finish off spicy af sausage cassserole for tea and watch a film - all quite sedate. I’ve work tomorrow, after all!
Day 212: Every time I try and watch something on Amazon Prime, it errors or doesn’t load so I have to uninstall and reinstall, which is a pain the fucking arse. Glad I don’t pay for it. I watched half of the Tom Hanks film last night, A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood, based on a real life children’s TV actor. It’s good but weird. I’ll finish it tonight. Jo Broom called and told me (well, reminded me of, actually) some good info, especially about insulin lasting 4 hours and the liver producing sugar for when you wake up). Day 213: I didn’t watch the rest of that Tom Hanks film last night, doing so right now. I got a call @5.30pm from Tall Tom asking to pop round which he did (social-distancing at the front door). He dropped of a canvas print he’d ordered of on eof my pictures from FB. Fucking gobsmacked! That’s how much he likes them. I am still in shock. What a brilliant thing to do! Day 214: Finished  A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood last night, I enjoyed it. Today has been standard. Half way through the third week back from furlough and, while I am still very glad to be working, I now also relish pasrt of being paid 80% for fuck all! My walks have been tentative today, I have done something to my right ankle, it feels sore but OK when walking at pace. My phone and Google Fit are playing up - I am suddenly walking 8km/h! Day 215: Phoned Dad - Rita sent an email a couple of days ago telling of a lump in his ear which he had removed and they are going to check for cancer. When I spoke with him it was usual dad - nothing to worry about. He spoke very highly of the staff at Stamford Hospital where he had it done. They took skin from his nesxk to put on his ear lobe where they performed the op.  I had pie and veg tonight. It’s a real change and I am stuffed as I type this. SB pee-ed me off at work big time late this afternoon. Diary updated! Day 216: Dan’s in court today for his drink driving escapade. I think he’s pleading not guilty - I’m not sure, neither has he been each time I have talked to him about it. It was scheduled at 4pm and he’s meant to let me know how it went. As I type, it’s just gone 9pm. Fuck knows what’s happening. I guess he’ll let me know in his own time. Meanwhile, work was OK, nothing hectic, I am on my first Friday beer, just about to eat meatballs and pasta and watch Taxi, a film written by Luc Besson. End of my 3rd week back and it’s a bit like I wasn’t furloughed for 6 months!
Day 217: I switched off that Taxi film after 30 minutes. It was bollocks. Dan got a 20 month ban (reduced to 15, if he does a course, which he says he will) and £1100 fine. At least it’s over and done with now. I got up at gone 2pm today. I have to cut this late sleeping habit out at the weekends. That being said, it’s 8.40pm, just about to dive in the shower, eat and then get on it. Clocks go back later so I’ve an extra hour to play with!
Day 218: Still managed to stay up stupidly late last night, up at before 1pm (but in real terms, that’s just before 2pm!)  Had a video chat with Fog - I was meant to go up to his yesterday to listen to the footy but, ‘cos I was up so late, I didn’t. Anyway, during our chat, we’ve decidied to go to Honolulu when it’s safe, specifically to go to McDs. It was a bizarre conversation - I can’t actually remember the details!
Day 219: The lady (I think it’s a lady) from the Oundle Chronicle emailed to say she didn’t think William (the student) has contacted me (he has but is fucking useless), so she’s found some questions for me to answer and wants me to pick my favourite 4 (hi-res) photos. I’ve written a couple of paragraphs that answer her questions and I was to pick photos that have had the most likes on FB - finding that info out, without trawling back over my posts, is easier said than done! Got the car tyres sorted today - an advisory from the MOT that Julian did last week.. I do like Oundle Tyre and Exhaust centre. Work was fine. Marke had to deal with Eileen Baxter and chatted to me about it. I had it all the week before last. She’s delightful but the least IT savvy person I have ever known in a workplace whereby a computer is integral to the role!
Day 220: I’ve been doing press-ups and toe tocuhes after each exercise for a little while now. 7 press-ups, doesn’t sound much but when I did it before and rapidly increased the numbers (up to 22), it played havoc with my shoulder which I thought was becoming frozen. So, I will icrease the amount slowly. I can just about touch my toes now. When I started, I barely got past my fucking knees! Work was standard today and I had an interesting chat with a recruiter about a job at Jagex, a computer game firm responsible for Runescape which is, apparently, a big deal. Posh playing tonight. At one point, when leading at home to Burton we were top. Now it’s 2-2 with minutes to go and we’re third with fucking Lincoln top. Day 221: I sent an email to Shirley from HR (re) asking about the salary discrepancy between mine and Mark’s. She’s going to talk to me tomorrow about it. I had a lomng chat with Barrzy tonight, always good to catch up and reminisce. I’ve just had two sausage rolls (on the cheap shelf from Co-Op, Dauphinoise dotatoes (ditto), mixed green veg and onion gravy for tea and I am fucking stuffed.
Day 222: Typing at gone 4pm on day 223! Had a meet with Shirley. No dice on the pay until it can be reviewed next year. All pay reviews are on hold. She explained that the salary offer was based on available budget rather than a pay grade or bench mark. Day 223: Typing this very late on day 224. Usual Friday. Work, beers, bed at 5am. went up Fog’s for a couple and watched Train to Busan. Day 224: I swore blind, when I woke and got up (2.24pm) I would have a day off from exercise. Stair climb and 10km walk done! Leigh from Oundle Chronicle messaged chasing my answers for the article. Last night, someone posted such great pics on the Oundle Chatter group that it makes me think twice about posting my photos. I tell everyone I just point and snap with my phone camera and, while it is the phone camera, I do so much pissing about with Google photos I feel like a con, it doesn’t sit well with me. Made lasagne for tea. Fucking lush - lardons, scothc bonnet and an Oxo cube really helped, I think. It’s 11:44pm as I type, 15 mins and I’ll deliver K’s birthday card. Not sure what I am hoping to come out of that, really. Just can’t let go! Day 225: Stupidly late one again last night. Up at 2pm. I’ve responded to Leigh at the Oundle Chronicle - why I make it so hard, I do not know, I really overthink some things.  Eye appointment tomorrow, 9.50am, which Sam, Mr. Minos’s secretary offered me when she called on friday. Sueanne was very cool about it when I checked it was OK. So, now I am fretful of what will happen! More lasering, I reckon.
Day 226: Eye clinic was not great. I need lasering in my right eye, so that will be both eyes. Mr. Hussain, the consultant that ive seen loads including today, explained that the field of vision is affected that it can mean I am not allowed to drive. In one eye it doesn’t matter, in both the DVLA will order a test and, if the field isn’t wide enough, means I won’t get a license to drive. Shit! K WhatsApp to thank me for the card plus some ‘chat’ which ended uninvitingly (i.e., end of conversation!). I just replied that I was glad she liked it (the card),
Something is up with my left thumb, it’s sore by the nail, as if it’s ingrowing, but it isn’t. Fuck knows what it is and it’s really bothering me, very painful. Pretty shit day, all in all. Day 227: Called the surgery about my thumb and Dr. leijsen called me back, asked some questions about the photo (I had to take a pic and send it in), including whether there’s any pus, and then said she’ll prescribed anti-biotics. Later today, it started to leak pus, and feel better! But, it’s still not right so I’‘l take the course. Looks like I have got an interview for the IT support job at Jagex, got a call from the recruiter today, just need confirmation. Spoke with Shirley from HR about the fact I might not be able to drive in the future. She was pretty cool about it in a kind of cross-that-bridge way and suggested I run it past Sueanne.
Day 228: Spoke with Sueanne about my impending eye lasering which is on Friday ay 3.30pm, the hospital called to let me know, she was very cool about it and even suggested I take Monday off! More importantly, she spoke of the non-driving as no factor to worry about job wise, especially as we are all WfH nowadays. I have an interview at Jagex, well, Zoom, but it is on Friday, 1pm.
Day 229: Told Mark at work about the lasering adn potential non-driving. I think it shocked him a little. I am worried about tomorrow, big time, although it’s just lasering - I’ve had it done before. I cannot wait for this time tomorrow (9.40pm). I have been trying to concentrate on preparing for the interview but it’s all too easy to get distracted. Day 230: Interview went OK. Eye appointment was horrible but bearable. The doc wants me to book in for more laser but, only so it can be reviewed and ‘topped up’ if need be. Better than a going for a check up and having to book another laser appointment thereafter. It’s near enough 9.00pm and I am going to enjoy a bear or two.
Day 231: No after affects to speak of from the eye appointment but I know lasering has occurred. It’s like I haven’t got the full set of cells recieve information from yje pupil. It’s intangible but still perceptible. Great walk today, took some cracking photos - very pleasing. More booze and draw tonight and, hopefully, up tomorrow before the 2.20pm wake up time of today. Posh beat Oxford away (1-2) in the FA Cup 1st round.
Day 232: 2pm by the time I got out of bed. I’ve got to curb this habit. Missed calls from Dad but answered one from Rita just before going for a walk when I promised to phone tomorrow. Day 233: I think SB wa surprised was at work today. I ordered two rugs (from irugs.co.uk). They are 8x5″ and were 75% off, £58 ea. One for under the table (desk) and I put one in the spare room. Hopefully keep the house a tad warmer. Getting into Barry on Sky Comedy. Barry’s a hit man. It’s darkly intriguing. I took a couple of pics of a solitary poppy today, icuding a couple of macros. They turned out OK so will post one on Wednesday (11/11).  Talking of photos, two people (one is Alison Brighty) asked for a jpeg of one of the photos I posted on Saturday so they can get it printed. 
Day 234: Spoke with dad today, let him know the situation with my eyes which, I think worries him, so I hate to do it but, also, he needs to know, just in case.
Day 235: The poppy pic I posted was very well received, over 160 likes on the Oundle chatter page and Jo Langford wants the original (why she can’t take it of FB?) to print off, which is nice. I am working on Saturday - gotta attend a meeting at 8am. FFS! SB also agreed for me to back on call, cool!
Day 236: Average sort of day. I really wish I wasn’t working on Saturday! OH, Dan messaged...first I’ve heard from him for over two weeks...he’s got two days of so he can watch all the US Masters which started today, and was good watching. So, not that average a day afterall, now that I think back on it. Day 237: Woke up at 9.14am today, yikes! Messaged with Dan a lot as he is home watching the US Masters...told him abbout my eye issues and the fact there’s a chance of losing my driving license. Also, in a silly facebook post and comments, about me not being able to drink tonight ‘cos of work tomorrow, Scottish Ricky asked if I was OK. I replied, not really, meaning that I’m pissed off I can’t get pissed. He messaged to say if I ever need to chat. Fucking great bloke. I rang him to let him know I was not being serious on FB and we chatted for 30 mins or so. Top man. still, it does remian that I am missing a beer this Friday - roll on tomorrow night!
Day 238: Work thsi morning was OK, finished at midday. Watchung golf, having abeer or two right now (just gone 8pm). Posh lost away to Crewe 0-2. Day 239: Up at 2pm after a good few drinks last night (and some silly video posting on FB of me  trying shit lager - Corrs Light - with hot sauce). Just settling down to watch Dustin Johnson win the Masters - he’s -20 with 2 to play, no one near him.
Day 240: I ordered some slippers from Amazon that arrived today. They were also returned today. I’m destined to never find a decent, non-expensive pair.
DJ did win the golf.
I watched Jojo Rabbit this evening. A first class film.
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thisnerdsadventures · 5 years ago
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i graduated.
i graduated yesterday from MIT!! with a BS in computer science and engineering :)  a few of my friends and i celebrated over zoom with my mom in the background as they played video after video on the commencement live stream while only taking 10 minutes to scroll through our names lmao. the ceremony was done and done after 12pm PST, and i spent the rest of the days watching suits.
cw: protests, police brutality
I wanted to spend a good amount of this post talking about how it feels to graduate and what I’ve learned over the past 4 years. I’m still going to do that, but I want to start with how I felt this morning, as I watched protest videos on Twitter and tapped through an endless stream of call to action posts on Instagram. In the hours around commencement, I didn’t feel as happy as I should’ve, probably because the world we are graduating into is an actual Hot mess. We should’ve graduated onto Killian Court, with the sun out and hope and optimism with the world smiling upon us, but instead we graduated at home, separated by a global pandemic that our country refuses to take seriously and surrounded by protests and anger and racism, sent out into a world where people refuse to take a virus that has killed over 100,000 people in the US seriously and where a white police officer can literally kill an unarmed black man on the streets in broad daylight and nothing will happen without an actual public uproar. 
Frustrated, helpless, sad, angry are a few of the things I’m feeling. I feel frustrated because I know the community I grew up in and currently am in is a part of the problem. (For those of you who don’t know, I grew up in Orange County, California, which is surprisingly conservative for California, and has a lot of middle to upper class Asian and white people who are the types to denounce things like affirmative action, black lives matter, taxing the wealthy. Obviously not everyone here is like this, but actions like this make me remember why i wanted to leave :/ -- https://www.reddit.com/r/orangecounty/comments/gt7ift/oc_sheriff_department_raises_blue_lives_matters/) And I feel helpless because I don’t know how to help - if we were back on campus, we’d take the T out to Park St or even just walk there to Boston Common protesting, marching to City Hall, but we’re dispersed now, and not as many of us can drive out to the nearest big city protest, esp with COVID. So it begs the question of what we can do from our laptops, our homes?
Here’s some links that I’ve seen recently and have found really great:
Where you can donate, and where you can learn, a summary.
The Minnesota Freedom Fund is an organization that helps pay for immigration bonds and bails, but I think they’ve recently posted that they’ve gotten a lot of donations, and are now encouraging people to donate to other local organizations [x] and George Floyd’s family [x]. 
As an Asian-American, I recognize the privileges in society that we benefit from, and it’s our responsibility to stand up in solidarity now and actively fight anti-Blackness today. Here is an awesome Medium post I read yesterday, listing out some of the ways we can help -- https://medium.com/awaken-blog/20-allyship-actions-for-asians-to-show-up-for-the-black-community-right-now-464e5689cf3e
One thing that I’ve been thinking about lately is how much anti-blackness actually appears in our own families and communities - I know I’ve heard many many racist comments from the people around me, so now more than ever, it’s important to have these conversations and educate one another on how we can do better. Another thing I found really interesting was reading about where the model minority myth came from, why it exists, and the damage it does. NPR article. tl;dr educate one another, educate oneself
I also just stumbled upon this google doc that is so in depth, so if you want to read more about more actions you can take, look here -> [x]
welp. that’s all i can really say on that, or at least I think the links do a better job.
1) So going off of that, the first thing i guess i can say MIT did for me was instill a drive to action. I remember before college, I was mostly in this socal bubble, shit in the world definitely happened (ok maybe not global pandemic level) but we didn’t see its effects as much. When I moved to Boston and started meeting people from different backgrounds, that changed. These people here are so inspiring in the way that they don’t sit around or mope or ignore the problem, they choose to do something about it, whether its a pset, the next MIT admin shitshow, or COVID. They go up and beyond what’s expected for them to make the world the better place, and I think that’s something i learned to do a bit of.
2) Another thing I learned was to forgive myself - we all have to forgive ourselves for being less perfect and for whatever dumb stuff we’ve done in the past. Like you might not even realize it’s happening to you, but taking stuff out on yourself way harder than you should might be a product of you just being angry at yourself for mistakes in the past. Everyone wants to be perfect, that’s just a product of who we are as people, a product of the environment we’re in. But the sooner we forgive ourselves for not being perfect, the faster we can move to growing and being better.
3) We are all pretty valuable people. It angers me to no end when people settle for less than they should, whether it's out of fear that something else might not come along, or they just don’t know their own self-worth. A big example of that is how often people will accept lowball offers and fail to negotiate salaries at all. And it drives me up the wall that it happens to people I know and love because it makes me wonder if they can see how much they really are worth. So much of our time at MIT is spent just wondering if we’re enough. But once you leave the MIT bubble, you realize how open you options are, and that maybe we should spend more of our time advocating for ourselves and believing in our own worth than letting people define that for us.
4 and 5) i learned that moving too quick to label people as completely good or completely bad never ends well. Same goes for companies, organizations, issues, everything. This was a hard lesson to learn, I had to learn it, relearn it, unlearn it, learn it again, and I made mistakes after mistakes after mistakes. When confronted with a bit of bad, I closed my doors, thinking I had all the good in the world I needed. But what I really needed was perspective. That maybe there was some x, y, and z, and those were bad, but there was also a, b, c, d, f, g and those were all so, so good. I can get pretty angry in the moment - I did this again just the other day, when I was projecting my anger towards someone to the whole two year relationship. But this time, I had another friend watching my situation on a balcony three floors up who heard and listened to all the good they had done for me and reminded me about it. This is why its points 4 and 5, that its also so important to have friends around that will listen to you, not just during the bad, but also the good, so they can tell you when you’re being irrational and to really be there for you when you dont even know you need someone to be there.
6) one of the things i learned the hard way was how to know when someone is your friend, and how to know when friends truly have your back. something that my experiences have shown me (and 11.011, ngl) is that when it seems like someone has your back, they might not, and when they have to choose sides, they may very well not choose yours. But here’s the thing I have learned: when faced with that, good close friends do not leave. They show up. Do friends fight? hell yeah. and they apologize and grow from it. They confide in you and answer your call at 1am. They know you better than you know yourself, so when you start losing sight of your true self, they remind you. There is no condition to your friendship, no prereq. When a crisis happens like COVID, they show up, they help you pack, they calm you down when you’re panicking, and if they’re not there in person, they reach out, they ask how you’re doing, and they offer support. When you graduate, they send you surprise gifts or join your zoom party or at the very least, remember the date and text you congratulations. Turns out, good, real friends are hard to find in this world, but it’s important to remember to not give up on finding them. it might take a couple years longer than you had thought it would for finding friends in college, but that’s ok. someone once told me that although the journey was hard, it led me to this point, and that that’s what made it worth the struggle.
So yeah, graduating was a lot to deal with. I’ll be back in the fall for my masters and im starting my internship in 2 weeks, so there will still definitely be updates on this nerd’s adventure!
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wordsfromafangirl · 7 years ago
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A 3 part Jeriday Fluff?
Part 1 Part 2 
Warning Part 3 is a bit lengthy: 
“You’re where Jeremy? I can barely hear you. Speak up, dammit!” Doc yelled into the phone at his ear.
Jeremy sidestepped in the well hoping that spot would give him better reception. “I’m in the well!” he yelled. “I had one of my feelings about Bobo so I wanted to come check on him, but it didn’t go so well.”
There was silence on the other end of the line so Jeremy wasn’t even sure his message went through. Being in the bottom of this well wasn’t so hardcore after all. There was nothing hardcore about the feeling of dread. The darkness also had this way of slowly vignetting itself until finally you were completely enveloped even though if you looked up you could still see a sliver of light in the sky. Jeremy shivered and cursed the pieces of metal in his body. He should have taken more precautions, but he was more worried about the fact that Bulshar may have been lurking about the well. He wasn’t necessarily protecting Bobo, but Jeremy also didn’t want the demon getting his hands on the powerful revenant. Too late for that now. Bulshar and Bobo are probably congregating with the rest of the revenants as the darkness of the well enveloped Jeremy some more.
Suddenly, a rope dangled before his eyes. He wasn’t sure if he saw it, but he reached his hand out and it touched something. “Man, I failed this in PE, but here goes nothing.” Jeremy began to lift himself up the rope, realizing that someone else was also helping pull from the top of the well. “That’s gotta be Dolls,” Jeremy murmured to himself.
To his surprise it was only Doc Holliday lifting him up and out of that well. “I am putting cement in that well. In fact, I am going to get me some dynamite and blow it to smithereens.”
“Give me a moment to breathe Doc. Just give me a moment.” “Of course, Jeremy. As you wish. Do you need anything else? I’ve got water in the back seat of Charlene. I’ve also got a blanket.”
“A blanket. I don’t need that right now. Right now I need to find a way to make myself immune to Bobo’s telekinesis powers. I have metal in my hands, my knees, and my head, Doc. Three of the worst places possible. I thought maybe the distance between up here and down there,” Jeremy points at the bottom of the well. “I thought it would keep me safe, but it didn’t. Bobo was able to manipulate the metal in me, Doc. He used my hands to pry off the wood and after that it was all a blank. I don’t know how he got out exactly because it was me pushing off the wooden door and then darkness. The bottom of that well, is so not hardcore Doc. I’m sorry, if I ever trivialized that experience.”
Doc simply reached for Jeremy’s shoulders and grabbed him into a hug. An emotional gesture that Doc didn’t express too often. Jeremy on the other hand desperately wanted this hug for a multitude of reasons. The number one reason currently being that it felt safe here in Doc’s arms. The second reason being that it just dawned on Jeremy that Doc came racing to him the second he called for help. The third reason being, man it felt so safe in this cowboy’s arms. Jeremy resisted the urge to kiss Doc’s mustached face, because a part of him knew that it wasn’t the right time. He’d have to work on the timing for that some where down the road.
“Doc, as much as love this little squeeze fest, I really gotta get back. We need to locate Bobo and see what he’s up to,” Jeremy tried to wiggle from Doc’s grasp. He loosened a bit but kept a hold of Jeremy by the shoulders as if he were afraid Jeremy was going to lose his equilibrium at any moment.
“We’re going to stand right here and you’re going to tell me Jeremy, why you would come here and do such a stupid stupid thing?” Doc had that dad voice going on and Jeremy had to bite his tongue for a moment. Biting his tongue was his way of turning on his filter guard. Otherwise sometimes if he didn’t then it was “no filter Jeremy” spewing out useless facts or even spewing out awkward and embarrassing flirtations. It’s the story of my life, Jeremy thought.
“As you know, I sense things Doc. It’s just how I’ve always been. I sensed that Bulshar was going to be here to release Bobo from the well, but I never foresaw my role in that escape. In fact, I wonder if I was given a false premonition by the demon. Doc, please, can we get away from this well now? I want to start working on something, maybe a serum of sorts to like cloak the metal within me, because Doc I do not want to feel the influence of another on my mind or limbs ever again. I do not want to see the bottom of that dark well ever again.”
“I like to see that Jeremy Chetri is being very hardcore about this,” Doc smiled. Impressed by Jeremy’s calm attitude. “I’m very happy, but I still think you should spend the night with me at Shorty’s again. Just in case. Even just one night in the dark can stir a whole slew of nightmares.”
“Okay, Doc, whatever you say. Let’s get out of here,” Jeremy grabbed him by the hand and dragged him to Charlene. Doc let him but before they got in the car he had one more thing to remind Jeremy of.
“Jeremy,” Doc looked to him over the top of the car. “You know I won’t let Bobo harm you. You don’t have to worry about him. It seems I might have to figure out more creative ways to keep the bastard from causing trouble. He’s going to wish he were still at the bottom of that well.”
Jeremy stared at Doc for several moments as if he were in recharging mode. Then he finally muttered, “You’re still a gorgeous idiot. Now, drive.”
“Doc, I only spent ten minutes or so in that well and sure it felt like eternity, but I’m not sure all of this light is necessary. Besides, when did you get all the candles?” Jeremy looked around the small apartment upstairs from the bar.
“Just earlier when you were debriefing Dolls about the Bobo situation. I knew you were coming over here and so I went to that small store on the corner of Main and bought some candles. Lord knows I needed all the light when I emerged from that damned well.”
Jeremy was moved by the gesture yet confused by the suddenly caring Doc who was giving him attention since Wynonna bolted for a bit. Also Rosita disappeared, but Jeremy wasn’t even sure if that meant Doc was single. Why did it matter anyway? There might be small moments that you could cling to like this one right now, but it wasn’t like it was going to be something solid. In your dreams, Jeremy.
“Well,” Jeremy sighed. “If I end up sleeping here tonight we’re going to have to put these out. It’s a fire hazard waiting to happen. For now, we can enjoy it.” Jeremy sat down at the small table designed for two in the kitchen. Doc took the chair across from him.
“Jeremy, ten minutes in that well is long enough. Over 100 years is far worse than you could possibly imagine so I am thankful for the technological advances of this world such as the cellphone that you called me on.”
“Doc, I told you I’m fine. I’ll live through this. I just feel horrible for being the one that let Bobo out,” Jeremy admitted. “Dolls reamed me. And not in the good way.”
Doc gave Jeremy a perplexed look, but then the joke sort of clicked in his mind. “Was that a sexual remark about Deputy Marshal Dolls?”
“Probably,” Jeremy said. Sometimes words came out of his mouth but he hadn’t processed saying them.
“Well, the Deputy Marshal, will forgive you. All of us don’t blame you. You followed a gut instinct. That instinct wasn’t entirely wrong,” Doc explained.
“Thanks, Doc. You’re always sticking up for me,” Jeremy grinned.
“Now are you sure you’re all right? Nothing else that we need to talk about.”
“John Henry Holliday, for the love of Optimus Prime, I am fine! You’re the one who spent over 100 years in that well and did a stint in Hell so please feel free to talk to me when you’re ready.”
“I do not deserve that sympathy,” Doc told him. “Especially coming from a man such as yourself. One I could rely in any life time.”
“Indeed you can, Doc. I’m here to stay.” Jeremy froze to his chair as Doc stood from his. The blue-eyed cowboy stood in front of Jeremy a moment. “What are you doing?” Jeremy’s voice was barely audible. It sounded more like a squeak escaping his lips.
“Something I might regret later, but hell we’re one fucked up family anyway,” Doc laughed and leaned in closer. Jeremy could feel the mustache on his face then lips on his. It was a small kiss. Nothing wild. Jeremy liked it that way. A small kiss. Doc stood back up.
Jeremy remained stuck. To. the. chair. Unmoving. “I feel like a prince who just received his fairy tale wish. My cowboy with two shiny guns and pointy knives finally kissed me in real life.” Doc shook his head and half-smirked. This boy and his trains of thoughts were something. Half the time Doc didn’t know what Jeremy was talking about but he usually ‘googled’ it later or looked at the Wikipedia for it.
“Doc!” Jeremy blurted out. “What!” Doc blurted back from inside the fridge. He had a hankering for a glass of sweet tea.
“Am I dreaming?” Jeremy asked. “No, sir, you are not. I just kissed you. Now, don’t get your knickers in a twist about it. I wanted to do it and I sensed you’ve wanted it for awhile now.” Doc sipped his tea.
“Let’s not over analyze…it’s just a crush. A crush…” Jeremy started to sing a song. It wasn’t one of his favorites. He actually preferred Kanye but his mind stored an overabundance of music like a computer hard drive. There was a song in particular about Doc that he played over and over in his mind.
“Save a horse, ride a cowboy,” Jeremy chuckled to himself, still stuck in wonderland as he sat, stuck to that same chair.
“Excuse me, Jeremy. Was that another sexual remark?” “Youtube it,” Jeremy giggled and looked at Doc. “I can’t believe you kissed me.”
“Want me to do it again?” Doc rolled his eyes and pulled Jeremy up from the chair by the strings of his jacket. He pressed his lips to Jeremy’s again.
“My god, that’s amazing.” Jeremy said proudly. “So amazing, but that mustache really does tickle my face. It’s something Wynonna thought too but was always afraid to tell you.”
“Good to know,” Doc smirked. “That doesn’t mean Jeremy wants me to stop kissing him?”
“Uh, no, absolutely not. I’d have that mustache tickle me all day if that means your lips are on mine. Thank you very much,” Jeremy did his little awkward bouncing on his feet. Doc went in for another kiss. “Hey, Doc,” Jeremy interrupted by pressing against his shoulders. “Do you think you could give me more shooting lessons? I’ve already worked up defensive fighting lessons with Dolls, but I think I need to work more on my firearms as well. Maybe even a little knife throwing, speaking of which, I was thinking about how we also need to make your knives immune to Bobo’s powers so we don’t get a knife in your hand scene all over again. Also, I think-“ Doc put a finger to his lips.
“Jeremy, has anyone ever told you that you talk too much?” Doc pressed his finger harder to Jeremy’s lips. “That is a question that does not need to be answered. For the love of Optimus Prime would you shut up.”
“You said Optimus Prime. Did you watch Transformers? Did you?” Jeremy couldn’t resist.
“Oh, I give up. Chatter away my adorable friend,” Doc sank into the kitchen chair nearest him. This was going to be a long night.
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cuddlequxxn · 8 years ago
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Abandoned Soul - Chapter 1
I’m trash. I wrote another ml fic while i should be updating how they perceive you. its witch mari and demon chat (((the actual title of the google doc))).
enjoy my dudes
Read on AO3 Here // Continue Reading Below the Cut
Ladybug was one of the most well know witches in Paris. If you happened to be out and about during the night, you might be able to catch her flying around the city on her broomstick. She wasn’t hard to spot, since her spots gave her away. She wore a a black hat with a red and black dotted ribbon tied at the base. The inside had a red lining, more saturated black dots, since the inside didn’t ever see the sun. Her black cape almost engulfed her while she was on the ground, whereas in the sky it flapped powerfully in the wind. A ladybug clip sat at the collar of the cape, a clear indicator that it was indeed her.
Without her cape you would be able to see the rest of her outfit more clearly than the blurred images of her riding on her broom. She wore a long, wine-red top with two black bars near the top of the bicep, the black appearing again at the wrists and the collar of the shirt. Ladybug wore pants, something becoming more common in modern day, but most witches still obeyed to the skirt or dress stereotype. She wore black jeans, simplistic and easy to wear with anything, that made changing from everyday girl to witch extremely easy.
The girl behind the famed witch was Marinette Dupain-Cheng, baker’s daughter, and fashion designer. Magic ran in both sides of the family: traditional Chinese magic from her mother, and French magic on her father’s. Although both of her parents had quit using magic for everything, they still used it from time to time and supported their daughter in her endeavors. When Marinette wasn’t spending all of her time in the fashion house or flying around Paris, she helped out in the bakery. Her parent’s bakery had grown in popularity over the years, the amount of orders and people coming in almost doubling in the past year alone.
Since Marinette was a busy girl, flying around Paris wasn’t the most important thing at first. Eventually the niche community obsessed with the girl grew, and the mayor of Paris requested that she help with the growing supernatural problem within the city. The police could handle the amount of crime, but since the number of supernatural appearances in the city had increased over the past few years, it was becoming too much for the police to handle. When Ladybug had spoken with the mayor, he didn’t seem too keen on allowing a young witch to be in charge of dealing with the supernatural, since she was apart of the supernatural community herself. After she had explained that she was not apart of the witch community that was pushing the more evil supernatural beings to show themselves, his body relaxed and he told her that if she ever needed anything that she was free to ask.
All of that now lead to where she was now, flying over the Seine, following her wand’s direction after she had cast a ghost detecting spell. Most ghosts were harmless, accidently appearing and scaring civilians. Ladybug knew of no harmful ghosts that roamed around the main part of Paris, filled with tourists and whatnot. Any resentful spirits were probably put to rest by witches before her time.
Ladybug’s wand was sending her in the direction of the abandoned Agreste mansion. No one had lived in there for years, the original owners leaving after some supernatural activity began in the place. No magical entity wants to set foot in the place, the bad vibes sending anyone in the opposite direction. Ladybug, however, wanted to try and deal with any and all supernatural disturbances in her city, so she was brave enough to go near it.
The mansion had ivy growing up the walls, giving it a hauntingly beautiful look despite being abandoned. Ladybug landed in front of the property, resting her broom against the concrete wall attached to the gate in front of her. The iron was rusted, the black bars dotted with red. A chain hung around the bars with a lock in the center, keeping the abandoned building away from the general public. Ladybug looked the chair over, flipping it around in her hands. It looked easy to manipulate using her magic, but whoever had locked it obviously didn’t want anyone getting in. The gate didn’t look hard to jump over, but the rust made it an unwanted option. Ladybug hopped back on her broom, flying up and over the slightly cracking concrete wall. Landing gently on the other side, Ladybug walked up to the front doors of the mansion.
The front doors also had a lock and chain on them. Ladybug huffed and pointed her finger at the lock, it clicking and falling to the ground with the chain still connected. The witch proceeded to unlock the front doors too, knowing well that at this point every door until she was inside was going to be locked. After hearing a click, Ladybug pushed the door open and made her way inside.
The mansion was extremely grand on the inside, marbled floors leading straight to the magnificent staircase in the center. A large painting hung on the wall covered by a large drape. Doors lined the entire bottom floor, and seemed to continue onto the top floor from what Ladybug could see. Following the directions of her wand, Ladybug made her way up the stairs and towards what she assumed to be a bedroom. The entire room was bigger than her parents entire apartment.
A large rock wall adorned the wall above where the door she entered from was. Next to the door were two ramps that could be considered either for skate boarding, or for sliding down on when you tired of the rock wall. Next to those was what seemed like both a used and unused A large bed was next to the ramps, a computer and desk just past it. On the other side of the room from the witch was a television, a couch, and a foosball table. Of course one could not forget the giant window of a wall giving a view of the buildings across the street and the city behind them. A spiral staircase lead to the library on the second floor of the room, as well as the rock wall on the other side.
Ladybug walked around in awe. The room looked like it was made for a teenage boy, yet also looked like it was barely touched. If this room was an example of the rest of the mansion, it seemed more like a house than a home.
Ladybug walked up the stairs and admired the bookcases, letting her fingers gently glide against the spines of the hardcover books. Looking down at the moonlight filling the dark room reminded her of why she continued to do this. She always ended up in dark and scary places to normal people, but the moonlight always seemed to make the places more beautiful to her.
A sudden dark energy entered the room and Ladybug stiffened, her movements stopping and her entire coming to a halt besides her ever beating heart. The moonlight seemed to dull against the marble floor, the room suddenly becoming darker as if the moon had been covered. Ladybug pulled her wand out, standing at attention for whatever might want to attack her.
“Whoever is there please know I mean you no harm,” Marinette said to the physically empty room, hoping whatever was there wasn’t dangerous. “If you want to speak with me, I’ll come down the stairs and speak to you.”
Ladybug made her way down the stairs, one hand on the handrail and the other tightly gripping her wand so that if anything wanted to try and grab it, they wouldn’t be able to. As she made her way onto the first floor of the bedroom, she heard a rustling coming from the area she had just been in. Taking a few steps backwards, Ladybug looked up towards the bookcases.
Only to see books being flung towards her.
Ladybug dodged the books, and ran back to the staircase. Climbing up the twirling stairs, Ladybug peaked her head up to see a dark mass near the books stop its movements. She could feel it looking at her and neither of them moved. In an instant, a book was thrown at where her head was, as she ducked at the same moment to avoid the object. The dark mass moved towards the stairs as Ladybug ran towards the middle of the room, the mass seeming to follow her. As her movements slowed, so did the mass’s, its form slowly coming into view.
It seemed to be a male, tall with what seemed like blond hair in the dark grey mass. He had bright green eyes, the only color to come off brightly in the moonlit room. He was dressed nicely; what seemed like either black or grey slacks and a button up. He also wore black dress shoes, a hint of reflection coming from the moon.
He seemed handsome, except that was the only thing Ladybug could think of him at the moment.
She knew nothing about him, what he wanted, or why he was there. The whole reason she was there was to deal with an evil spirit that seemed to be driving every witch in the area away, with her being the only one brave enough to come inside. Whatever he was, he wasn’t up to anything good just by the impression the house was giving to the outside world.
“What are yo-”
“Why are you in this house and how did you get in?” the man said, cutting Ladybug off.
“I am here to put an evil spirit to rest, or at least reason with it enough to not drive every supernatural entity in the city away from this general area,” Ladybug stated, still gripping her wand.
“How did you get in, though? There were so many locks that a human would have given up after the first one at the gate.” The man replied, hard features present in his face but curiosity in his eyes.
“I’m a witch, I have a wand, I know how to use magic. I think those are valid reasons as to how-”
“Get out,” he interrupted.
“Excuse me?” Ladybug asked, stepping forward.
“Get out. You’re not welcome here, and I don’t want you poking around my room.”
“This is your room?” Ladybug questioned, her face soft and welcoming.
“Well,” he paused, looking up towards the ceiling, “it wasn’t my room originally, but I’ve claimed it now so that makes it my room.”
“I guess that makes sense,” Ladybug thought, stepping even closer to the dark mass and looking up at him as he stood about a head taller than her, “except how did you get here in the first place.”
“Ya know what,” he said, hunching down to be at eye level with her, “I don’t want to tell a witch anything about me. Witches have only fucked me over, and I don’t want another one to do the same.”
Ladybug stood there for a moment. This, whatever he was, had been hurt by a witch, and that was why he didn’t want any coming near him. All of them had gotten the signal that they weren’t wanted, except her since she ignored it and went in anyway.
She needed to have him trust her at the very least.
“I’m not here to do anything mean to you, I want to help.” Ladybug lifted her hand to grab onto his arm, moving her thumb back and forth to try and show that she was, in fact, safe to talk to. She was more surprised to find mass to hold onto, and to not have her arm fall through him.
He looked her up and down for a moment before stopping at her eyes. They stood like this for a moment before he sighed, and moved to sit down on the bed. He looked at her for a moment before tilting his head to the side to motion for her to sit down next to him. As she sat down, she adjusted her cape, the room seeming to get colder as she got closer to him.
“I won’t give you the full story, since I don’t know if I can trust you yet. Basically, I used to be a cat. I just so happened to be a witch’s familiar, but she seemed to have other plans for me. After she would do the normal pet care, she would test things on me and eventually I died from her not caring that I wasn’t a test dummy but a living, breathing creature. I died so resentful that before I was given a chance to go to wherever my final resting place would be, a demon thought it would be a funny joke to turn me into one too. I now haunt this house since she practiced her magic in the attic.”
Ladybug felt so bad for him, that he had been wronged that bad and could never rest peacefully except in this house. She rested her hand on his knee, drawing circles with her thumb.
“How was she able to practice her magic when there have been people living in this house almost the entire time it’s been standing?” Ladybug asked, not looking up to reach his eyes.
“I was also the family’s cat,” he said, eyes looking towards something that wasn’t there, and a smile beginning to settle on his lips. “They treated me so well. They found me outside the property and the wife decided to take me in. She fed me everyday, and when I started to get sick from the witch’s treatment, she tried to take me to a vet to try and save me. I was the whole reason the witch was able to sneak into the attic and how they never found out she was even there in the first place. She is also the reason they moved.”
Ladybug looked over to him, only to find sadness in his features. His eyes were shined over with tears he couldn’t shed, his features distant. Even though she didn’t know much about him or his story, she felt sad for him. He was wronged by someone and she couldn’t help with that, and that hurt her the most. She wanted to make him feel better, but couldn’t seem to find an answer in her thought-filled brain. All she could do was squeeze his knee and let him know she was there for him.
“What’s your name?” Ladybug asked, looking him in the eye.
“The witch wasn’t good with names, you see. She named me Chat Noir because my fur was the darkest black she had ever seen on a black cat. I know that’s one of the reasons I became her familiar, but other than that I don’t know why she picked such an unoriginal name.” Chat Noir looked almost bitter at the name he was given.
Ladybug laughed, however. She giggled at the unoriginal name, looking up at him and noticing him soften for a moment before chuckling. “We live in France, for god’s sake! Naming a black cat “black cat” in french isn’t super original lady,” he continued, a small smile on his face. Ladybug continued to giggle for a couple more seconds before calming herself, able to finally look at him without going back into another giggle fit.
“Well, Chat Noir, I was sent here to deal with a bad vibe, and instead I’m coming out with a good friend,” she said as she stood up, a large smile spreading across her face.
“About that,” Chat said, Ladybug’s smile faltering a bit, “You’re still a witch, and I still don’t like witches. Even though you’re nice and all, I would prefer if you didn’t come back here.”
“Oh,” Ladybug said, smile fulling falling. “Of course. I’ll be on my way out then.”
“Allow me to help you at least.” Chat said, holding out his hand.
“Oh, I don’t need that. I know my way back dow-” Ladybug said before being cut off, a force pushing her through the air and stopping right in front of her broom where she left it next to the front door. Ladybug turned around to see Chat standing there, hand behind him scratching at his neck nervously.
“Thank you,” Ladybug said. Chat smiled at her and began walked closer as he began to talk.
“It has really been lovely meeting you Miss…” He looked at her again for a moment before the decision lit up his face, “Miss Ladybug. Yeah, I’m calling you Ladybug.”
“Haha, that’s what Paris likes to call me, since no one can seem to get a good picture of me without only seeing my spots,” Ladybug said, giggling and looking down at the ground nervously.
“Well, Miss Ladybug, you have been lovely to me aside from holding your wand at a death grip the entire time,” Chat said before leaning closer and bringing his mouth to her ear, “Don’t come back unless you want to deal with a different side of me.”
In an instant, the same force that pushed her out of the bedroom and to the front door shoved her out of the front door with her broom in hand and wand in the other. She had never experienced anything with a demon in her magical experience. In her readings, it was said that demons were powerful, evil entities. Chat, however, seemed to be different. Nicer than she had expected when she walked in.
As Ladybug hopped back on her broom and flew around the building back in the direction of her home, she looked at the giant window of a wall and saw Chat follow her with his gaze as she flew away into the night.
She thought about what had happened that night. She originally went for a case of an evil entity that was sending witches away left and right. All she found was a misunderstood demon who just needed someone to listen to him for once. Yes, she knew nothing else against him. Yes, she didn’t know if he was lying to her the entire time. What she did know, though, was that he was interesting. She could feel a sort of connection with him in some way. Romantic? Of course not, he was a demon and she was a witch that was unthinkable. Plus, he seemed to guarded for her to even want that. He seemed more like the type to joke around with her, if the jokes about his name was anything to go off of. He seemed like a good guy, but the demonic outer shell would always turn her away if she ever ended up going back to the place.
She needed to learn more about the demon that piqued an interest in her mind and soul. She needed to get closer to him, since it seemed like the strings of fate were leading them to each other. Her duty was to help him, and to learn as much as she could about the odd demon as she could.
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lesbianrewrites · 8 years ago
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The Martian Chapter 9
*disclaimer* This is a project done for fun, and none of these characters/works belong to me. I do not claim to own any of the material on this page.
This is a Lesbian edit of The Martian by Andy Weir.
Chapters will be posted every day at 2pm EST.
Google doc version can be found here. The chapter can also be found under the cut. Enjoy!
CHAPTER IX
LOG ENTRY: SOL 79 It’s the evening of my 8th day on the road. “Sirius 4” has been a success so far. I’ve fallen into a routine. Every morning I wake up at dawn. First thing I do is check oxygen and CO2 levels. Then I eat a breakfast pack and drink a cup of water. After that, I brush my teeth, using as little water as possible, and shave with an electric razor. The rover has no toilet. We were expected to use our suits’ reclamation systems for that. But they aren’t designed to hold twenty days worth of output. My morning piss goes in a resealable plastic box. When I open it, the rover reeks like a truck-stop men’s room. I could take it outside and let it boil off. But I worked hard to make that water, and the last thing I’m going to do is waste it. I’ll feed it to the Water Reclaimer when I get back. Even more precious is my manure. It’s critical to the potato farm and I’m the only source on Mars. Fortunately, when you spend a lot of time in space, you learn how to shit in a bag. And if you think things are bad after opening the piss box, imagine the smell after I drop anchor. Then I go outside and collect the solar cells. Why didn’t I do it the previous night? Because trying to dismantle and stack solar cells in total fucking darkness isn’t fun. I learned that the hard way. After securing the cells, I come back in, turn on some shitty ‘70’s music, and start driving. I putter along at 25kph, the rover’s top speed. It’s comfortable inside. I wear hastily made cut-offs and a thin shirt while the RTG bakes the interior. When it gets too hot I detach the insulation duct-taped to the hull. When it gets too cold, I tape it back up. I can go almost 2 hours before the battery runs out. I do a quick EVA to swap cables, then I’m back at the wheel for the second half of the day’s drive. The terrain is very flat. The undercarriage of the rover is taller than any of the rocks around here, and the hills are gently-sloping affairs, smoothed by eons of sandstorms. When the other battery runs out, it’s time for another EVA. I pull the solar cells off the roof and lay them on the ground. For the first few sols, I lined them up in a row. Now I plop them wherever, trying to keep them close to the rover out of sheer laziness. Then comes the incredibly dull part of my day. I sit around for 12 hours with nothing to do. And I’m getting sick of this rover. The inside’s the size of a van. That may seem like plenty of room, but try being trapped in a van for 8 days. I look forward to tending my potato farm in the wide open space of the Hab. I’m nostalgic for the Hab. How fucked up is that? I have shitty ‘70’s TV to watch, and a bunch of Poirot novels. But mostly I spend my time thinking about getting to Ares 4. I’ll have to do it someday. How the hell am I going to survive a 3,200km trip in this thing? It’ll probably take 50 days. I’ll need the Water Reclaimer and the Oxygenator, maybe some of the Hab’s main batteries, then a bunch more solar cells to charge everything… where will I put it all? These thoughts pester me throughout the long boring days. Eventually, it gets dark and I get tired. I lay among the food packs, water tanks, extra O2 tank, piles of CO2 filters, box of pee, bags of shit, and personal items. I have a bunch of crew jumpsuits to serve as bedding, along with my blanket and pillow. Basically, I sleep in a pile of junk every night. Speaking of sleep… G’night.LOG ENTRY: SOL 80 By my reckoning, I’m about 100km from Pathfinder. Technically it’s “Carl Sagan Memorial Station.” But with all due respect to Carl, I can call it whatever the hell I want. I’m the Queen of Mars. As I mentioned, it’s been a long, boring drive. And I’m still on the outward leg. But hey, I’m an astronaut. Long-ass trips are my business. Navigation is tricky. The Hab’s nav beacon only reaches 40km, then it’s too faint. I knew that’d be an issue when I was planning this little road trip, so I came up with a brilliant plan that didn’t work. The computer has detailed maps, so I figured I could navigate by landmarks. I was wrong. Turns out you can’t navigate by landmarks if you can’t find any god damned landmarks. Our landing site is at the delta of a long-gone river. If there are any microscopic fossils to be had, it’s a good place to look. Also, the water would have dragged rock and soil samples from thousands of kilometers away. With some digging, we could get a broad geological history. That’s great for science, but it means the Hab’s in a featureless wasteland. I considered making a compass. The rover has plenty of electricity and the med kit has a needle. Only one problem: Mars doesn’t have a magnetic field. So I navigate by Phobos. It whips around Mars so fast it actually rises and sets twice a day, running west to east. It’s isn’t the most accurate system, but it works. Things got easier on Sol 75. I reached a valley with a rise to the west. It had flat ground for easy driving, and I just needed to follow the edge of the hills. I named it “Lewis Valley” after our fearless leader. She’d love it there, geology nerd that she is. Three sols later, Lewis Valley opened into a wide plain. So, again, I was left without references and relied on Phobos to guide me. There’s probably symbolism there. Phobos is the god of fear, and I’m letting it be my guide. Not a good sign. But today, my luck finally changed. After two sols wandering the desert, I found something to navigate by. It was a 5km crater, so small it didn’t even have a listed name. But to me, it was the Lighthouse of Alexandria. Once I had it in sight, I knew exactly where I was. I’m camped near it now, as a matter of fact. I’m finally through the blank areas of the map. Tomorrow, I’ll have the Lighthouse to navigate by, and Hamelin crater later on. I’m in good shape. Now, on to my next task: Sitting around with nothing to do for 12 hours. I better get started!LOG ENTRY: SOL 81 Almost made it to Pathfinder today, but I ran out of juice. Just another 22km to go! An unremarkable drive. Navigation wasn’t a problem. As Lighthouse receded into the distance, the rim of Hamelin Crater came into view. I left Acidalia Planitia behind a long time ago. I’m well into Ares Vallis now. The desert plains are giving way to bumpier terrain, strewn with ejecta that never got buried by sand. It makes driving a chore; I have to pay more attention. Up till now, I’ve been driving right over the rock-strewn landscape. But as I travel further south, the rocks are getting bigger and more plentiful. I have to go around some of them or risk damage to my suspension. The good news is I don’t have to do it for long. Once I get to Pathfinder, I can turn around and go the other way. The weather’s been very good. No discernible wind, no storms. I think I got lucky there. There’s a good chance my rover tracks from the past few sols are intact. I should be able to get back to Lewis Valley just by following them. After setting up the solar panels, I went for a little walk. I never left sight of the rover; the last thing I want to do is get lost on foot. But I couldn’t stomach crawling back into that cramped, smelly rat’s nest. Not right away. It’s a strange feeling. Everywhere I go, I’m the first. Step outside the rover? First person ever to be there! Climb a hill? First person to climb that hill! Kick a rock? That rock hadn’t moved in a million years! I’m the first person to drive long-distance on Mars. The first person to spend more than 31 sols on Mars. The first person to grow crops on Mars. First, first, first! I wasn’t expecting to be first at anything. I was the 5th crewman out of the MDV when we landed, making me the 17th person to set foot on Mars. The egress order had been determined years earlier. A month before launch, we all got tattoos of our “Mars Numbers.” Johanssen almost refused to get her “15” because she was afraid it would hurt. Here’s a woman who had survived the centrifuge, the vomit comet, hard landing drills and 10k runs. A woman who fixed a simulated MDV computer failure while being spun around upside-down. But she was afraid of a tattoo needle. Man, I miss those guys. I’m the first person to be alone on an entire planet. Ok, enough moping. Tomorrow, I’ll be the first person to recover a Mars probe.LOG ENTRY: SOL 82 Victory! I found it! I knew I was in the right area when I spotted Twin Peaks in the distance. The two small hills are under a kilometer from the landing site. Even better, they were on the far side of the site. All I had to do was aim for them until I found the Lander. And there it was! Right where it was supposed to be! Pathfinder’s final stage of descent was a balloon-covered tetrahedron. The balloons absorbed the impact of landing. Once it came to rest, they deflated and the tetrahedron unfolded to reveal the probe. It’s actually two separate components. The Lander itself, and the Sojourner rover. The Lander was immobile, while Sojourner wandered around and got a good look at the local rocks. I’m taking both back with me, but the important part is the Lander. That’s the part that can communicate with Earth. I excitedly stumbled out and rushed to the site. I can’t explain how happy I was. It was a lot of work to get here, and I’d succeeded. The Lander was half buried. With some quick and careful digging, I exposed the bulk of it, though the large tetrahedron and the deflated balloons still lurked below the surface. After a quick search, I found Sojourner. The little fella was only two meters from the Lander. I vaguely remember it was further away when they last saw it. It probably entered a contingency mode and started circling the Lander, trying to communicate. I quickly deposited Sojourner in my rover. It’s small, light, and easily fit in the airlock. The Lander was a different story. I had no hope of getting the whole thing back to the Hab. It was just too big. It was time for me to put on my mechanical engineer hat. The probe was attached to the central panel of the unfolded tetrahedron. The other three sides were each attached with a metal hinge. As anyone at JPL will tell you, probes are delicate things. Weight is a serious concern, so they’re not made to stand up to much punishment. When I took a crowbar to the hinges, they popped right off! Then things got difficult. When I tried to lift the central panel assembly, it didn’t budge. Just like the other three panels, the central panel had deflated balloons underneath it. Over the decades, the balloons had ripped and filled with sand. I could cut off the balloons, but I’d have to dig to get to them. It wouldn’t be hard, it’s just sand. But the other three panels were in the damn way. I quickly realized I didn’t give a crap about the condition of the other panels. I went back to my rover, cut some strips of Hab material, then braided them into a primitive but strong rope. I can’t take credit for it being strong. Thank NASA for that. I just made it rope-shaped. I tied one end to a panel, and the other to the rover. The rover was made for traversing extremely rugged terrain, often at steep angles. It may not be fast, but it has great torque. I towed the panel away like a redneck removing a tree stump. Now I had a place to dig. As I exposed each balloon, I cut it off. The whole task took an hour. Then I hoisted the central panel assembly up and carried it confidently to the rover! At least, that’s what I wanted to do. The damn thing is still heavy as hell. I’m guessing it’s 200kg. Even in Mars gravity that's a bit much. I could carry it around the Hab easily enough, but lifting it while wearing an awkward EVA suit? Out of the question. So I dragged it to the rover. Now for my next feat: Getting it on the roof. The roof was empty at the moment. Even with mostly-full batteries, I had set up the solar cells when I stopped. Why not? Free energy. I’d worked it out in advance. On the way here, two stacks of solar panels occupied the whole roof. On the way back, they would be a single stack. It’s a little more dangerous; they might fall over. The main thing it they’ll be a pain in the ass to stack that high. I can’t just throw a rope over the rover and hoist Pathfinder up the side. I don’t want to break it. I mean, it’s already broken, they lost contact in 1997. But I don’t want to break it more. I came up with a solution, but I’d done enough physical labor for one day, and I was almost out of daylight. Now I’m in the rover, looking at Sojourner. It seems all right. No physical damage on the outside. Doesn’t look like anything got too baked by the sunlight. The dense layer of Mars crap all over it protected it from long-term solar damage. You may think Sojourner isn’t much use to me. It can’t communicate with Earth. Why do I care about it? Because it has a lot of moving parts. If I establish a link with NASA, I can talk to them by holding a page of text up to the Lander’s camera. But how would they talk to me? The only moving parts on the Lander are the high gain antenna (which would have to stay pointed at Earth) and the camera boom. We’d have to come up with a system where NASA could talk by rotating the camera head. It would be painfully slow. But Sojourner has six independent wheels that rotate reasonably fast. It’ll be much easier to communicate with those. If nothing else, I could draw letters on the wheels, and hold a mirror up to its camera. NASA’d figure it out and start spelling things at me. That all assumes I can get the Lander’s radio working at all. Time to turn in. I’ve got a lot of backbreaking physical labor to do tomorrow. I’ll need my rest.LOG ENTRY: SOL 83 Oh god I’m sore. But it’s the only way I could think of to get the Lander safely onto the roof. I built a ramp out of rocks and sand. Just like the ancient Egyptians did. And if there’s one thing Ares Vallis has, it’s rocks! First, I experimented to find out how steep the grade could be. Piling up some rocks near the Lander, I dragged it up the pile, then down again. Then I made it steeper, etc. I figured out I could pull it up a 30 degree grade. Anything more was too risky. I might lose my grip and send the Lander tumbling down the ramp. The roof of the rover is over 2 meters from the ground. So I’d need a ramp almost 4 meters long. I got to work. The first few rocks were easy. Then they started feeling heavier and heavier. Hard physical labor in a spacesuit is murder. Everything’s more effort because you’re lugging 20kg of suit around with you, and your movement is limited. I was panting within 20 minutes. So I cheated. I upped my O2 mixture. It really helped a lot. Probably shouldn’t make that a habit. Also, I didn’t get hot. The suit leaks heat faster than my body could ever generate it. The heating system is what keeps the temperature bearable. My physical labor just meant the suit didn’t have to heat itself as much. After hours of grueling labor, I finally got the ramp made. Nothing more than a pile of rocks against the rover, but it reached the roof. I stomped up and down the ramp first, to make sure it was stable, then I dragged the Lander up. It worked like a charm! I was all smiles as I lashed the Lander in place. I made sure it was firmly secured, and even stacked the solar cells in a big single stack (why waste the ramp?). But then it hit me. The ramp would collapse as I drove away, and the rocks might damage the wheels or undercarriage. I’d have to take the ramp apart to keep that from happening. Ugh. Tearing the ramp down was easier than putting it up. I didn’t need to carefully put each rock in a stable place. I just dropped them wherever. It only took me an hour. And now I’m done! I’ll start heading home tomorrow, with my new 100kg broken radio.
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plazaswanboats · 6 years ago
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Disney College Program Fall ‘19 Application Process
So I may or may not have forgotten about this blog for the millionth time, but it’s okay because nobody reads it anyway, so it’s not like anyone is complaining about the fact that I never post. I did write a sappy tribute to Illuminations/post reflecting on how the parks continually take out essential components of my childhood. I finished it in January after what I thought was the last time I’d ever see Illuminations, and then never posted it. Spoiler: I sat on a planter and cried for a solid hour after the show ended.
Anyway, it turns out that I am in fact going to make it back to WDW to see Illuminations again, because I’ve been accepted to the Disney College Program for Fall Attractions. I am currently in consideration for a PI as well, so I’m just waiting to find out whether I’m moving to Florida in June or on August 5th. Nobody asked for this, but I spent a ton of time searching Tumblr and the rest of the internet for people’s DCP application experiences while I was going through the process, so I figured I’d pretend I’m reviving this blog by writing up my own experience to add information to the desperate quest to understand how applying to the DCP works.
I applied on January 31st (the second week of applications, I think?) and received the confirmation email at 7:28pm. I got the WBI email that same night at 7:31pm. I have concluded that this entire process is fake, meaningless, and very random. Advice all over the internet will tell you to make your job descriptions a certain length, use buzzwords in your application, and rank a certain number of positions in specific ways. I did none of this.
I listed three work experiences (two biology research positions and tour guiding) with one sentence for each, basically adapted from what’s on my resume (so I didn’t even write full sentences). My resume was uploaded because I’d applied to the PI, but I have no idea if they look at that. I did not use any “buzzwords”, unless they happen to look for people who list being a tour guide as part of their work experience, which I guess is technically possible.
My role rankings were as follows. High: Attractions, Merchandise, Photopass Moderate: Bell Services, Character Attendant, Front Desk, Monorail Low: Custodial, Houseperson, QSFB
I figured I would put low interest for the high volume roles (except Lifeguard, because I have zero experience and didn’t want that responsibility), just in case that helped my chances. I also applied only to WDW, with Fall Advantage as my first choice (I later changed this during my interview just in case the dates changed on me since I was only available to move in on 6/3). In any case, somehow this application netted me a WBI mere minutes after submitting it.
I took the WBI on February 3rd around 3pm. I did a lot of research before this, and was for some reason more nervous than I was about the PI. Probably because in an interview, you can at least explain yourself rather than be subject to the whims of a computer-proctored test. I put mostly strong opinions, but I did a fair amount of neutrals as well, with a few of the in between options. The main thing about the WBI, in my opinion, is that you have to think about what Disney wants. This might be mean, but I’m astounded that people manage to fail this. Why would you willingly admit to having negative traits? I went into it with the mindset of representing myself at my best and the kind of worker I would strive to be as a CP.
In all fairness, there were a good number of questions that I truly didn’t know what Disney would want. I just tried to be consistent and made it through in the end, and I suspect some of them don’t matter as much since there’s a variety of roles to fit different preferences of working. Again, I would just keep in mind the kind of person Disney would want. But also, if you really don’t think you can be that person, it might not be worth applying. I’m not always the most energetic and bubbly person, but I’ve also learned from my time as a tour guide that I can bring that personality when I need it, no matter how bad (or hungover, shout out to that July 5th tour this past summer) I feel.
I was definitely surprised when I was in the rhythm of answering WBI questions and suddenly got to a page telling me I passed. I scheduled my PI for February 12th at 6pm, because I wanted plenty of time to prepare. This consisted of looking up and compiling as many questions online that I could, including ones related to my chosen roles. I didn’t watch any videos because I’m not a huge fan of Youtubers and I thought it would stress me out, but I did look up tips online. I answered all the questions in a Google Doc and reviewed them periodically. I do pretty well with saying things on the fly, and I know that if I get familiar with the material, I’ll kick into autopilot. I also tried to stay excited, rather than nervous. This was my chance to show Disney why they should hire me!
The day of, my school closed early for snow so I got out of my afternoon three hour class. I was glad to have more preparation time, but once it hit about 4pm, I was just ready for it to be over. I used this time to prepare some more, and ended up writing out my key selling points (organized by topic) on two notebook pages so I could easily refer to them. So I had some bullets for what I would get out of the program, my best traits, lists of stories from my prior experience that I could use, the Four Keys (I don’t think I remembered to say any of them), a list of my role rankings, etc. I also left space to take notes. I didn’t actually end up using my notebook at all besides writing down my recruiter’s name.
While I waited, I listened to my Disney playlist and lit a nice smelling candle to keep myself calm. I wore one of my favorite sweaters to boost my confidence, but stayed in sweatpants wrapped in a blanket because I was cold and I like to be comfortable when I do stressful things (nice clothing usually just makes me uncomfortable, hence just the sweater). I also put my Figment plush on my desk to give me something to smile about because I Love My Boy (and promptly knocked him on the floor when the phone rang, so there went that idea). I also kept some water close by just in case.
My interview was at 6pm, but I got the unknown number call at 6:08. In total, the call lasted twenty-one minutes (I got the feeling she was starting to rush me once 6:30 approached so she could move on to the next person). My recruiter was Amy, who was really nice and easy to talk to. We started by going over my application, which got weird when she asked something about my work status and I briefly panicked and went, “Wait, did I say I’m not an American citizen on the application???” (I didn’t; she was just confirming the information was correct. That was probably my only really awkward moment but she didn’t seem to mind.) I was also able to change my program preference to Fall.
We then spent a while talking about my prior work experience. Surprisingly, she was interested in the research I do (which I didn’t have listed on the application, so I have no idea how it came up). I told her about the sea anemones I study, and she commented about how it’s a hard word, and I seized my chance and said, “Right, it’s like that one scene in Finding Nemo where he can’t say it!” She laughed and agreed, so it was nice to get a little confidence boost from that moment. She did ask if I would be interested in working in The Land or The Seas because of my research, to which I enthusiastically said yes, I love Epcot and those pavilions. She noted that and said we’d come back to it later (we didn’t, RIP).
I got asked a variety of questions about the roles I’d listed, focusing on Attractions and Merchandise. I also got asked about Photopass, as well as Bell Services/Front Desk, Custodial, and Houseperson. In particular, we had a long conversation about safety, in which she mentioned it must be important in my lab and asked me to talk about how I approach it. So I went on about chemicals and being aware of your surroundings. I had no idea at the time that was an Attractions question! She did mention my experience with chemicals for Custodial/Houseperson, and said something about the high volume roles, but I just said I’d ranked them low interest because I didn’t feel I was as good a fit for them. I remember being asked about dealing with an unhappy guest (I talked about Overbearing Tour Moms because I don’t have any customer service experience), and I think there was a part when I talked about answering difficult questions as a tour guide as well. I definitely emphasized my ability to learn spiels and confirmed that I am able and willing to drive a company vehicle (this was some stuff for parking, so I’m half convinced that’ll be my role...people say it’s fun but I want to be in a park and I told her I love Epcot...). I didn’t kill the Merchandise questions because I have zero experience, but I emphasized that I was really willing to learn what I needed to. I thought I did well on the resort-related questions, talking about how I’d love to be able to connect with Guests and do my part in making their vacation memorable. I did get the “how do you feel about being the first CM they see” question, to which I said I found that really exciting. I also got asked a little about my photography experience and willingness to carry heavy equipment for Photopass.
At the end, I asked about my ability to take Disney classes since I’m graduating this May, and as we talked I also asked about networking events. She gave me a website to look at, and I thanked her by name at the end. She wished me a magical day, and I told her I hoped she also had a magical day, which she seemed to appreciate. And then it was over, and I spent the next three days mentally critiquing my answers and checking my email once an hour, terrified of the NLIC email.
They say that if you’re going to get NLIC’d based on the interview, it’ll be within forty-eight hours, which makes sense. If you did so badly they know they don’t want you, then why would they wait? I was paranoid so I mentally extended that timeframe by a day, and then finally relaxed a little once three days had passed. I didn’t check my dashboard and I didn’t watch Twitter because I thought that knowing when waves happened would just make me more anxious.
I ended up getting accepted exactly a week later, in the smaller wave on February 19th. That was the second wave after my PI. I found out literally three minutes before I was leaving for class, and hurriedly logged onto my laptop to see my role, which was Attractions! That was my top role and the role I’ve always dreamed of having, so I was actually shaking. That was not a fun three hours in class that day.
I’m lucky to have gotten through the process quickly, and I truly don’t know what it was about my application that earned me an instant WBI. Despite making it through with an acceptance, I’ve still been doing a lot of reading on the process, because it’s so mysterious and frustrating. I really don’t think there’s any rhyme or reason to it and there’s a decent element of randomness. I heard that acceptances tend to be based on what specific role they’re looking to fill on any given day, so it seems like a lot of it is largely timing. Some people wait months after their PI, and I’ve seen people who only waited four days, which also has to be in the timing of everything. I feel terrible for the people who are stuck at any point in the process, but it definitely doesn’t seem like all hope is lost until the end.
Anyway, it’s still pretty bizarre to me that I’m doing the DCP. I first learned about it in high school, and dreamed of doing it as an Attractions CM. When I got to college, I realized that my major had to come first, and I also liked being an executive for my marching band too much to give that up. I wasn’t willing to leave the school I love so much for any length of time, so I put my DCP dreams aside. When I got to my junior year, I started thinking of taking a gap year before grad school, because I’m really burned out on academia. I knew I wanted a Disney PI, but I figured I’ll never have another chance to do the DCP and work for Disney, so why not just go for it as a backup? I was in disbelief once I submitted my application, but pretty confident throughout the process that I could make it in on the first try. It ended up working out for me, so now all that’s left to do is wait for the PI people to ask for an interview, and count down until August. It feels good to have concrete post-graduation plans, and I’m trying not to worry too much about deviating from the Usual Life Trajectory that you’re supposed to follow. There’s no timeline in life, and I think I’m going to be really glad I took a chance and followed my dreams to do something I’ve wanted for so long.
This blog will probably still remain in limbo for a while. I do, as always, want to write more posts and commentary, though I guess I’m sitting on the one post I have written since it’s no longer accurate. I would like to make a few more DCP-related posts, since reading other people’s experiences is always interesting to me. Then again, literally nobody reads this blog because I don’t do enough with it to attract attention so...whatever! I mostly do this for fun and as an outlet to complain about the parks, so I’m not really bothered by the lack of readership. If you happen upon this post in the DCP tag, feel free to talk to me about the DCP or whatever! I’ll probably make another post about planning the move sometime later in the summer, and I’ll try to be better about using this blog since I have a real life reason to now!
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krishnaidc · 6 years ago
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Blog Entry #4 - Placement
These past few weeks were busy. My partner, Elaine, and I worked day and night on our placement. Our placement teacher requested a few things that were both mandatory and optional. Her original website was made using the old Google Sites and consisted of a game widget that no longer worked, and a Day by Day list for two out of the three courses she teaches. She wanted to replace the game widget since it no longer worked, but it was not the main priority. She wanted a Day by Day list for the one class that does not have one, and she wanted to find a way to link her files directly to the list. She also wanted to learn how to download videos from YouTube because sometimes the videos she uses as resources are removed from YouTube. In addition, she wanted to use Google Classroom, but she wanted to know the advantages and disadvantages of it. She was also running out of storage space on her computer. Finally, the last people who worked on her website did not give clear instructions on how to use her website and Google Classroom if it would be advantageous for her.
This was quite a bit of work for us, but less than what we expected to receive. There were so many little details that our placement desired and this was Elaine and I’s first-time using Google Sites, so we did a little research and experimented using both the old Google Sites and the new Google Sites since it is friendlier for both the website creator and the website user. There were setbacks from the new Google Sites though. You can’t upload game widgets, the themes weren’t the same, and, most importantly, the list feature was gone! *gasp* However, our teacher was not tech savvy, so after making sure multiple times if she was okay with it, we converted her old site to the new Google Sites. Let’s just say that we did not expect such a drastic change from her old website. Of course, it looked cleaner and had a more modern look, but we knew our teacher would have quite a shock.
The list feature that was available on the old Google Sites was converted to an Excel file into the new Google Sites, and new pages were made for each file that was uploaded on the old site. It was a disaster. We spent an entire week cleaning it up and researching some other features included in the new site. We needed to figure out how to create a similar looking Day by Day table since that was the main priority. We couldn’t create a table directly on the website, so we used Google Docs and upload that onto her website. However, we couldn’t link files directly to the table, so we scratched that idea out. Next, we tried making 3 separate text box columns to recreate the Day by Day list, but it got too messy and unorganized once started adding more to the list. After another few days of just experimenting what’s working and what’s not, we decided we can use a numbered list in a text box since the original Day by Day table was also numbered.
After the first week and a half week of figuring this out, the rest of the second week consisted of getting started on all the small details – downloading videos, linking files from Google Drive to the website, writing the instructions, researching Google Classroom, and scheduling meeting times with our placement teacher.
I did not enjoy this experience. There were so many little requirements that we needed to meet, but were almost not able to. It was a very stressful placement because of those small details. In the beginning I thought that this placement would be a breeze, but after we did the research, there was quite a bit work to do. Especially the instructions. We made 24 pages of instructions and by the time we were done, we looked like zombies! I only enjoyed the placement when we were done and clicked that Publish button.
Whether the placement was a success or not is a question that is still lingering in the air. Elaine and I believe it to be a success based on our placement teachers needs, but we all had a difference of opinion on one small issue. Elaine and I believed that the website would look even more organized if we created sub pages for each unit for each class, but our placement teacher did not like the idea of making multiple pages because it would be hard for students to navigate, and for her as well. Nonetheless, we respected her choice and she gave us approval. We created a new URL for her, just in case she ends up hating the new site, so she can always go back to her old site. I couldn’t tell if our placement teacher was satisfied with the overall outcome of this project, but she kindly accepted the fact that we made her wishes come true.
I want to leave a personal message for future IDC students:
Dear IDC students,
If you get the same placement teacher as Elaine and I did, and she requests similar tasks for her website, check if the new Google Sites has updated and gives you more freedom with more tools. If it does, then use it! Try to make it look neater and better! Always ask for permission if you are going to create a new page because she does not like having multiple pages. Otherwise, her website is okay as it is.
Sincerely,
Krishna Gandhi
A sleep-deprived student at the present moment😊
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averagequeerstuff-blog · 7 years ago
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Christmas Eve
12/24/2017
10:25
The universe does not want me to make this post tonight. This is my third fucking time restarting my writing. The first time my browser decided to randomly refresh and I lost a nice long entry I was just about to post. I learned the lesson that I should probably type my entries in Word before pasting them into a Tumblr text-post. The second time I unplugged my laptop on accident when I got up to get Meatball off of the T.V. stand. She was knocking shit off, like cats do. You can stare at them and say “No!” while they make direct eye-contact with you as they swipe shit off and onto the floor. Pesky little shit. While I was getting up, I unplugged my laptop by accident which needs to be plugged in to stay on. Needless to say, Microsoft Word proved to be incredibly useless and it didn’t save my progress. So now I’m moving onto Google Docs. This has been a not-so-relaxing night of failure and lessons learned. I’ve also been reminded I need a new computer really fucking badly. It doesn’t stay turned on unless its plugged in. The charging cable easily falls out. Letters are skipped while typing. I thought writing was going to help me relax, but really it's just made me realize how much I hate technology. I spent almost two thousand dollars on this laptop, it’s not even 2 years old, I have taken pretty damn good care of it, and here we are. Sigh. Without further adieu, I start this entry for a THIRD time, nearly an hour later from when I first started at 9:30 pm. Hopefully it’s as detailed and good as the first two times, but I’m giving myself some slack. Feet don’t fail me now.
It’s Christmas eve, as you can probably tell by the date on the top of this post. I’ve been listening to Dolly Parton’s Hard Candy Christmas on repeat for almost an hour. It’s starting to get just a LITTLE old at this point, but Dolly Parton is a queen and I always have time for her. I don’t really like Christmas and my dad doesn’t really celebrate it either, so whatever. I’m sitting alone in the room I’m staying in typing and scrolling aimlessly through Scruff and Grindr. Probably not the best idea to be on these apps. I’m just horny, sad, and in a small very sparsely populated state. Probably the worst combination in the history of all combinations, ever. Once again, the universe is out to make me miserable.
Can you tell how dramatic I am yet? It’s pretty fucking incredible.
Yesterday I went to Riverton for two reasons: the first reason, to visit my grandma Peggy. The second, to meet up with two friends, Robert and Shayna, at a 2-spirit meeting on the reservation in Fort Washakie. It was great to see my grandma. She looks a lot older than I remember her looking, and it made me a little bit sad. I really need to get better about staying in touch with my family members. I got busy in college and neglected a lot of relationships. You live and you learn, I guess. I’m going to start committing myself to calling the family members I love. I need to hold myself more accountable for this. Her dog Cesar recently passed away from problems with diabetes. He was the same breed as my dog, Cleo (Get it, Cleo and Cesar, cute right?) who also currently lives with my grandma. I sent Cleo there when I left to college because I figured my grandma could take better care of her than my dad could. My dad doesn’t hate animals, but dogs in particular take a lot of love and affection to be happy and healthy. My dad is not the most affectionate person on earth. Although, he seems to really care about the pets that live in his house now. I think he regrets a lot of things in his life, how he used to not care about animals being one of them. My dad and Cynde have 3 cats... Bubbles (my good boy who I grew up with. He is getting old now) Miley, and Maximus. Miley and Maximus are scared of everything. They are also aggressive self-petters... Meaning, if your hand or appendage is dangling from an arm rest, they will come up and aggresively rub their faces on it and “pet” themselves. Miley gets really into it. Maximus is more cautious than she is. My grandma is a total animal lover, and has a big yard and garden for Cleo to run around in. Cleo was happy to see me, and she definitely remembered who I was. My grandma also has a lot of cats and another dog named Shorty. They are all fucking adorable. My favorite cat of my grandma’s is one named Gravy. He is 2 years old. He’s a soft and sleepy boy. He’s very cuddly, too. His mouth falls open when he’s really relaxed and sleeping. I took a picture:
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My grandma seems happy and healthy. She made us a big dinner last night… Turkey, mashed potatoes, green beans, bread, and pie. It was tasty and my dad and I brought a lot of leftovers back to Greybull.
A funny story that involves both my grandma, AND the pie: my grandma is sort of a conspiracy theorist. She would never call herself that, however. One of the first things she did when I got to Riverton was hand me a packet telling me how I can spiritually awaken myself during the holiday season and how now is the best time to do so... Anyways- back to the pie. She recently purchased this small plastic tube, I’m assuming from the internet… I tried not to ask a lot of questions because I didn’t want the conversation to go on for hours. My grandma explained to me and my dad after pouring us two glasses of water that this water in particular was better for you than regular water because it had been run through this “device” (the tube). Apparently it helps purify the water and add oxygen to it. Cool I thought, all fine and dandy. But then she started talking about using the tube to restructure unhealthy foods by blowing into one end and circulating the air you’re blowing out of it around the food on the plate. She said it can help restructure the molecules within the pie to make it a little healthier and draw out the toxins in your body and the heavy metals in your brain from bad food and vaccines (You can’t make this stuff up). My dad and I just humored her and nodded our heads, trying to make the conversation end. I love my grandma, but I worry about her being on the internet sometimes.
The drive to Riverton yesterday morning was pretty rough. We had gotten up at 7 am to drive about 2 hours there and the weather was less than ideal. Thankfully my dad was driving because I had spent the night before getting drunk at Ashley’s. Ashley and I had made plans that night to go out “bar-hopping” in Greybull. Yeah. It was EXACTLY as you’d expect. Disappointing. I believe there are 4 bars in Greybull. The Silver Spur, the Smokehouse, Lisa’s, and another one whose name I can’t remember right now. The Silver Spur and the Smokehouse were like, grossly well-lit, and no one in the bar was under the age of 40. Bars… If you want to help your business and attract a younger crowd please do 3 things:
Turn off the bright, ugly, fluorescent lights. Ambient lighting is nice.
Don’t be in Greybull, Wyoming.
Stay open past 10 pm.
We ended up going to Lisa’s, a locally owned bar and restaurant. Honestly, not bad. I had two Chimney-Rock Margaritas, and a lot of chips and salsa. I saw two of my classmates from high school. One I used to have a crush on, the other, well, let’s just say, the good ol’ high school glory days are DEFINITELY over. That’s all that needs to be said. It's always nice to see people who used to relentlessly bully you go way down hill after high school. Karma, maybe? We went back to Ashley’s that night and I got progressively more drunk off of gin and La Croix (sounds white, I know). I think I ended up leaving her house at like 4:30 am after her brother Josh woke me up after I fell asleep on the basement couch. I got home, sadly ate some Ruffles potato chips in bed, and woke up an hour and a half later to sit in a cold car and drive to Riverton. Everything ended up being okay, thank god. I take good care of my body, obviously.
Like I said at the beginning, I also went to Riverton to meet up with friends. Robert and Shayna work for Wyoming Equality and have done some pretty amazing things for LGBTQ+ people in our state. They invited me to go with them to a 2-spirit meeting on the reservation in Fort Washakie. It was really amazing to gain a new perspective from a community I previously did not have a lot of knowledge about. I listened to everyone’s stories and experiences. It felt important. It IS important. There was a gift exchange of hand-made gifts when the meeting was over. I made a drawing to contribute:
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I unofficially named it “There is power in a limp wrist”. I made it to kind of serve as a reminder to take pride in queer identity. I believe there is power in queer identity. I believe queer people are special.
After the meeting we went with everyone to a new Hookah bar in Riverton. The bar owner is black and queer. I think it is pretty great Wyoming has something like that. I’m happy that a black and queer business owner is being supported in Wyoming. It’s things like this that give me hope when I feel like the whole country is going to shit. Later that evening we went and ate at the Wind River Casino. After dinner, I put a dollar in the penny slot and won 5 dollars. A 500% profit. Go me. It paid back half of my meal. I had a good time. A little bit of my faith was restored yesterday. As I said, there is power in queerness.
It’s 11:20 now. Almost Christmas day.
Happy Holidays.
-E
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writerspink · 8 years ago
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The Last Dream of the Old Oak
by Hans Christian Andersen (1858)
IN the forest, high up on the steep shore, and not far from the open seacoast, stood a very old oak-tree. It was just three hundred and sixty-five years old, but that long time was to the tree as the same number of days might be to us; we wake by day and sleep by night, and then we have our dreams. It is different with the tree; it is obliged to keep awake through three seasons of the year, and does not get any sleep till winter comes. Winter is its time for rest; its night after the long day of spring, summer, and autumn. On many a warm summer, the Ephemera, the flies that exist for only a day, had fluttered about the old oak, enjoyed life and felt happy and if, for a moment, one of the tiny creatures rested on one of his large fresh leaves, the tree would always say, “Poor little creature! your whole life consists only of a single day. How very short. It must be quite melancholy.”
“Melancholy! what do you mean?” the little creature would always reply. “Everything around me is so wonderfully bright and warm, and beautiful, that it makes me joyous.”
“But only for one day, and then it is all over.”
“Over!” repeated the fly; “what is the meaning of all over? Are you all over too?”
“No; I shall very likely live for thousands of your days, and my day is whole seasons long; indeed it is so long that you could never reckon it out.”
“No? then I don’t understand you. You may have thousands of my days, but I have thousands of moments in which I can be merry and happy. Does all the beauty of the world cease when you die?”
“No,” replied the tree; “it will certainly last much longer,— infinitely longer than I can even think of.” “Well, then,” said the little fly, “we have the same time to live; only we reckon differently.” And the little creature danced and floated in the air, rejoicing in her delicate wings of gauze and velvet, rejoicing in the balmy breezes, laden with the fragrance of clover-fields and wild roses, elder-blossoms and honeysuckle, from the garden hedges, wild thyme, primroses, and mint, and the scent of all these was so strong that the perfume almost intoxicated the little fly. The long and beautiful day had been so full of joy and sweet delights, that when the sun sank low it felt tired of all its happiness and enjoyment. Its wings could sustain it no longer, and gently and slowly it glided down upon the soft waving blades of grass, nodded its little head as well as it could nod, and slept peacefully and sweetly. The fly was dead.
“Poor little Ephemera!” said the oak; “what a terribly short life!” And so, on every summer day the dance was repeated, the same questions asked, and the same answers given. The same thing was continued through many generations of Ephemera; all of them felt equally merry and equally happy.
The oak remained awake through the morning of spring, the noon of summer, and the evening of autumn; its time of rest, its night drew nigh—winter was coming. Already the storms were singing, “Good-night, good-night.” Here fell a leaf and there fell a leaf. “We will rock you and lull you. Go to sleep, go to sleep. We will sing you to sleep, and shake you to sleep, and it will do your old twigs good; they will even crackle with pleasure. Sleep sweetly, sleep sweetly, it is your three-hundred-and-sixty-fifth night. Correctly speaking, you are but a youngster in the world. Sleep sweetly, the clouds will drop snow upon you, which will be quite a cover-lid, warm and sheltering to your feet. Sweet sleep to you, and pleasant dreams.” And there stood the oak, stripped of all its leaves, left to rest during the whole of a long winter, and to dream many dreams of events that had happened in its life, as in the dreams of men. The great tree had once been small; indeed, in its cradle it had been an acorn. According to human computation, it was now in the fourth century of its existence. It was the largest and best tree in the forest. Its summit towered above all the other trees, and could be seen far out at sea, so that it served as a landmark to the sailors. It had no idea how many eyes looked eagerly for it. In its topmost branches the wood-pigeon built her nest, and the cuckoo carried out his usual vocal performances, and his well-known notes echoed amid the boughs; and in autumn, when the leaves looked like beaten copper plates, the birds of passage would come and rest upon the branches before taking their flight across the sea. But now it was winter, the tree stood leafless, so that every one could see how crooked and bent were the branches that sprang forth from the trunk. Crows and rooks came by turns and sat on them, and talked of the hard times which were beginning, and how difficult it was in winter to obtain food.
It was just about holy Christmas time that the tree dreamed a dream. The tree had, doubtless, a kind of feeling that the festive time had arrived, and in his dream fancied he heard the bells ringing from all the churches round, and yet it seemed to him to be a beautiful summer’s day, mild and warm. His mighty summits was crowned with spreading fresh green foliage; the sunbeams played among the leaves and branches, and the air was full of fragrance from herb and blossom; painted butterflies chased each other; the summer flies danced around him, as if the world had been created merely for them to dance and be merry in. All that had happened to the tree during every year of his life seemed to pass before him, as in a festive procession. He saw the knights of olden times and noble ladies ride by through the wood on their gallant steeds, with plumes waving in their hats, and falcons on their wrists. The hunting horn sounded, and the dogs barked. He saw hostile warriors, in colored dresses and glittering armor, with spear and halberd, pitching their tents, and anon striking them. The watchfires again blazed, and men sang and slept under the hospitable shelter of the tree. He saw lovers meet in quiet happiness near him in the moonshine, and carve the initials of their names in the grayish-green bark on his trunk. Once, but long years had intervened since then, guitars and Eolian harps had been hung on his boughs by merry travellers; now they seemed to hang there again, and he could hear their marvellous tones. The wood-pigeons cooed as if to explain the feelings of the tree, and the cuckoo called out to tell him how many summer days he had yet to live. Then it seemed as if new life was thrilling through every fibre of root and stem and leaf, rising even to the highest branches. The tree felt itself stretching and spreading out, while through the root beneath the earth ran the warm vigor of life. As he grew higher and still higher, with increased strength, his topmost boughs became broader and fuller; and in proportion to his growth, so was his self-satisfaction increased, and with it arose a joyous longing to grow higher and higher, to reach even to the warm, bright sun itself. Already had his topmost branches pierced the clouds, which floated beneath them like troops of birds of passage, or large white swans; every leaf seemed gifted with sight, as if it possessed eyes to see. The stars became visible in broad daylight, large and sparkling, like clear and gentle eyes. They recalled to the memory the well-known look in the eyes of a child, or in the eyes of lovers who had once met beneath the branches of the old oak. These were wonderful and happy moments for the old tree, full of peace and joy; and yet, amidst all this happiness, the tree felt a yearning, longing desire that all the other trees, bushes, herbs, and flowers beneath him, might be able also to rise higher, as he had done, and to see all this splendor, and experience the same happiness. The grand, majestic oak could not be quite happy in the midst of his enjoyment, while all the rest, both great and small, were not with him. And this feeling of yearning trembled through every branch, through every leaf, as warmly and fervently as if they had been the fibres of a human heart. The summit of the tree waved to and fro, and bent downwards as if in his silent longing he sought for something. Then there came to him the fragrance of thyme, followed by the more powerful scent of honeysuckle and violets; and he fancied he heard the note of the cuckoo. At length his longing was satisfied. Up through the clouds came the green summits of the forest trees, and beneath him, the oak saw them rising, and growing higher and higher. Bush and herb shot upward, and some even tore themselves up by the roots to rise more quickly. The birch-tree was the quickest of all. Like a lightning flash the slender stem shot upwards in a zigzag line, the branches spreading around it like green gauze and banners. Every native of the wood, even to the brown and feathery rushes, grew with the rest, while the birds ascended with the melody of song. On a blade of grass, that fluttered in the air like a long, green ribbon, sat a grasshopper, cleaning his wings with his legs. May beetles hummed, the bees murmured, the birds sang, each in his own way; the air was filled with the sounds of song and gladness.
“But where is the little blue flower that grows by the water?” asked the oak, “and the purple bell-flower, and the daisy?” You see the oak wanted to have them all with him.
“Here we are, we are here,” sounded in voice and song.
“But the beautiful thyme of last summer, where is that? and the lilies-of-the-valley, which last year covered the earth with their bloom? and the wild apple-tree with its lovely blossoms, and all the glory of the wood, which has flourished year after year? even what may have but now sprouted forth could be with us here.”
“We are here, we are here,” sounded voices higher in the air, as if they had flown there beforehand.
“Why this is beautiful, too beautiful to be believed,” said the oak in a joyful tone. “I have them all here, both great and small; not one has been forgotten. Can such happiness be imagined?” It seemed almost impossible.
“In heaven with the Eternal God, it can be imagined, and it is possible,” sounded the reply through the air.
And the old tree, as it still grew upwards and onwards, felt that his roots were loosening themselves from the earth.
“It is right so, it is best,” said the tree, “no fetters hold me now. I can fly up to the very highest point in light and glory. And all I love are with me, both small and great. All—all are here.”
Such was the dream of the old oak: and while he dreamed, a mighty storm came rushing over land and sea, at the holy Christmas time. The sea rolled in great billows towards the shore. There was a cracking and crushing heard in the tree. The root was torn from the ground just at the moment when in his dream he fancied it was being loosened from the earth. He fell—his three hundred and sixty-five years were passed as the single day of the Ephemera. On the morning of Christmas-day, when the sun rose, the storm had ceased. From all the churches sounded the festive bells, and from every hearth, even of the smallest hut, rose the smoke into the blue sky, like the smoke from the festive thank-offerings on the Druids’ altars. The sea gradually became calm, and on board a great ship that had withstood the tempest during the night, all the flags were displayed, as a token of joy and festivity. “The tree is down! The old oak,—our landmark on the coast!” exclaimed the sailors. “It must have fallen in the storm of last night. Who can replace it? Alas! no one.” This was a funeral oration over the old tree; short, but well-meant. There it lay stretched on the snow-covered shore, and over it sounded the notes of a song from the ship—a song of Christmas joy, and of the redemption of the soul of man, and of eternal life through Christ’s atoning blood.
“Sing aloud on the happy morn, All is fulfilled, for Christ is born; With songs of joy let us loudly sing, ‘Hallelujahs to Christ our King.’”
Thus sounded the old Christmas carol, and every one on board the ship felt his thoughts elevated, through the song and the prayer, even as the old tree had felt lifted up in its last, its beautiful dream on that Christmas morn.
The Last Dream of the Old Oak was originally published on PinkWrite
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garynsmith · 8 years ago
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How to move your entire real estate business into the cloud
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If you’ve followed along through entries one, two, three and four, you’ve pretty well stopped generating paper. Your calendars, notes, lists and transaction docs are in the ether.
But paper still comes your way (not everyone is as technologically astute as you!) And you still have scads of old files, memos, notebooks and other valuable documents on paper. Let’s move toward the end game and complete the transition to a truly paperless existence.
Buy a scanner
You’ll need a good scanner. If you want one for your home or personal office, PC Magazine shows some options here.
Your scanner will get heavy use right off the bat as you scan in all the paper docs you want to save and moderate use thereafter as you scan and send to recycling whatever paper lands on your desk, so it’s probably worth a few bucks to get something sturdy and capable.
Many of them allow you to scan directly to Dropbox and other apps, which can be a great convenience.
Find a cloud storage app
And you’ll need somewhere to scan to. Dropbox, Microsoft OneDrive and Google Drive are all examples of cloud storage applications (and there are many others).
The magic is in the accessibility: as with your calendars and to-to lists, anything you save to one of these resources will be available on any device that’s connected to a network.
If you want to function paperlessly with maximum efficiency, you’ll need to stop saving things to a physical location such as your phone’s storage or your computer’s hard drive, and instead send everything to the cloud.
Just as we created notebooks in our note-taking app to stay organized, you’ll want to create folders in your chosen cloud storage app so everything will have a proper place to go. And just like on your hard drive, you can make subfolders so there is an orderly hierarchy.
For example, I have a Dropbox folder named “Transactions,” and in that folder are individual folders for each client.
Eliminate paper
Now, it’s time to roll up your sleeves. Block out some time when you can work without interruption. Decide where you want to start, and begin scanning. I went through my file cabinets first.
I encourage you to approach it the way you might approach a move: now is a great opportunity to “cleanse,” get rid of what you don’t really need and just save what’s important.
I used the one year rule; anything I hadn’t accessed or needed for a year or more (except client files), I probably didn’t need at all, so those things went straight to recycling without scanning.
The rest I scanned to my email, then saved to the new folders I was creating in Dropbox. After the file cabinets came notebooks, binders, memos and all the other flotsam that had been accumulating over the years.
It’s really as simple as that. Trust me, I was as intimidated by all that stuff as you probably are, but what I found was that the whole process went much faster than I had expected (I did nearly all of it in one day) and that the cleansing part was badly needed.
So I not only got rid of all that paper but also got myself completely up-to-date and reorganized in terms of what I needed and what I didn’t. And lots of random stuff that had been sort of hanging around without a proper home found its way into an orderly system.
Move ahead
Going forward, when something comes to you on paper, just scan and save it to cloud storage (or your note-taking or email app), and send that paper to the great recycler in the sky.
Now, some people hang onto some “security blankets” and keep this or that paper doc or notebook. There really isn’t any harm in that, but on the other hand, think about what you’re trying to accomplish — real paperlessness — and how keeping those things stands in the way of that ultimate goal.
I can absolutely assure you, from experience, that there truly isn’t anything that you need to keep on paper! If you do retain some security blankets, at a minimum give yourself a deadline for giving them up.
At this point, you can go have a beer because — guess what? You’re now wholly paperless. This puts you in a select class that is ahead of the curve, that is higher-functioning and more productive and has a greater capacity for stellar client service.
You notice we haven’t even talked about a CRM. You probably need one for your business, but as we’ve seen you don’t need one to be paperless. And there are myriad other apps that can make you even more efficient without paper than you ever were when using it.
These include helpful items like “scan to PDF” apps for your phone, with which you can take pictures of documents that will be automatically centered and turned into PDF files, “sketching” apps that let you draw or write freehand on your tablet or phone and many more.
When you find you have a need or some part of your system is lacking, look around — there’s probably an app for it.
Preach!
Here’s the final step: go become an evangelist for paperlessness yourself. Spread the word, and show your colleagues how easy and liberating it is to work without paper.
As we discussed in the first entry, it’s almost impossible to argue that paper is better, so most who haven’t made the change are probably experiencing some complacency and some fear of the unknown. Give ’em a nudge.
Congratulations on your progress, and cheers for taking the initiative to grow. I sincerely hope this has been helpful and that you’ve made changes that will help you do better work.
Brian Walker manages a top-producing Indianapolis branch office for Indiana’s largest independent real estate firm, the F. C. Tucker Company. Connect with him on LinkedIn.
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lesbianrewrites · 8 years ago
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The Martian Chapter 10
*disclaimer* This is a project done for fun, and none of these characters/works belong to me. I do not claim to own any of the material on this page.
This is a Lesbian edit of The Martian by Andy Weir.
Chapters will be posted every day at 2pm EST.
Google doc version can be found here. The chapter can also be found under the cut. Enjoy!
CHAPTER X
LOG ENTRY: SOL 90 Seven days since Pathfinder, and seven days closer to home. As I’d hoped, my inbound tracks gave me a path back to Lewis Valley. Then it was four sols of easy driving. The hills to my left made it impossible to get lost, and the terrain was smooth. But all good things come to an end. I’m back in Acidalia Planitia now. My outgoing tracks are long gone. It’s been 16 days since I was last here. Even timid weather would clear them out in that time. On my way out, I should have made a pile of rocks every time I camped. The land is so flat they’d be visible for kilometers. On second thought, thinking back to making that damn ramp… ugh. So once again I am the desert wanderer, using Phobos to navigate, and hoping I don’t stray too far. All I need to do is get within 40km of the Hab and I’ll pick up the beacon. I’m feeling optimistic. For the first time, I think I might get off this planet alive. With that in mind, I’m taking soil and rock samples every time I do an EVA. At first, I figured it was my duty. If I survive, geologists will love me for it. But then it started to get fun. Now, as I drive, I look forward to that simple act of bagging rocks. It just feels nice to be an astronaut again. That’s all it is. Not a reluctant farmer, not an electrical engineer, not a long haul trucker. An astronaut. I’m doing what astronauts do. I missed it.
LOG ENTRY: SOL 92 I got 2 seconds of signal from the Hab beacon today, then lost it. But it’s a good sign. I’ve been traveling vaguely north-northwest for two days. I must be a good 100km from the Hab; it’s a miracle I got any signal at all. Must have been a moment of perfect weather conditions. During the boring-ass days, I’m working my way through “The Six Million Dollar Man” from Commander Lewis’s inexhaustible collection of ‘70s tripe. I just watched an episode where Steve Austin fights a Russian Venus probe that landed on Earth by mistake. As an expert in interplanetary travel, I can tell you there are no scientific inaccuracies in the story. It’s quite common for probes to land on the wrong planet. Also, the probe’s large, flat-panel hull is ideal for the high-pressure Venusian atmosphere. And, as we all know, probes often refuse to obey directives, choosing instead to attack humans on sight. So far, Pathfinder hasn’t tried kill me. But I’m keeping an eye on it.
LOG ENTRY: SOL 93 I found the Hab signal today. I have a solid bearing and direction to go. No more chance to get lost. According to the computer, I’m 24718 meters away. I’ll be home tomorrow. Even if the rover has a catastrophic failure, I’ll be fine. I can walk to the Hab from here. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned this before, but I am really fucking sick of being in this rover. I’ve spent so much time seated or laying down, my back is all screwed up. Of all my crewmates, the one I miss most right now is Beck. He’d fix my aching back. Though he’d probably give me a bunch of shit about it. “Why didn’t you do stretching exercises? Your body is important! Eat more fiber,” or whatever. At this point I’d welcome a health lecture. During training, we had to practice the dreaded “Missed Orbit” scenario. In the event of a second-stage failure during MAV ascent, we’d be in orbit, but too low to reach Hermes. We’d be skimming the upper atmosphere, so our orbit would rapidly decay. NASA would remotely operate Hermes and bring it in for rendezvous. Then we’d get the hell out of there before Hermes caught too much drag. To drill this, they made us stay in the MAV simulator for 3 miserable days. Six people in an ascent vehicle originally designed for a 23 minute flight. It got a little cramped. And by “a little cramped” I mean “We wanted to kill each other”. Once we got out, Commander Lewis declared “what happened in Missed Orbit stays in Missed Orbit.” It may seem trite, but it worked. We put it behind us and got back to normal. I’d give anything for just five minutes of Missed Orbit training. I’m really feeling alone lately. Up till this road trip, I’ve been too busy to mope. But the long, dull days with nothing to do really drives it home. I’m further away from other humans than anyone has ever been. Man, I hope I get Pathfinder working again.
LOG ENTRY: SOL 94 Home sweet home! Today I write from my gigantic, cavernous Hab! The first thing I did when I got in was wave my arms wildly while running in circles. Felt great! I was in that damn rover for 22 sols, and couldn’t even walk without suiting up. I’ll need to endure twice that to get to Ares 4, but that’s a problem for later. After a few celebratory laps around the Hab, it was time to get to work. First, I fired up the Oxygenator and Atmospheric Regulator. Checking the air levels, everything looked good. There was still CO2, so the plants hadn’t suffocated without me exhaling for them. Naturally I did an exhaustive check on my crops, and they’re all healthy. I added my bags of shit to the manure pile. Lovely smell, I can tell you. But once I mixed some soil in, it died down to tolerable levels. I dumped my box o’ pee into the Water Reclaimer. I’d been gone over three weeks, and had left the Hab very humid for the sake of the crops. That much water in the air can cause any amount of electrical problems, so I spent the next few hours doing full systems checks on everything. Then I kind of lounged around for a while. I wanted to spend the rest of the day relaxing, but I had more to do. Suiting up, I went out to the rover and dragged the solar cells off the roof. Over the next few hours, I put them back where they belonged, wiring them into the Hab’s power grid. Getting the Lander off the roof was a hell of a lot easier than getting it up there. I detached a strut from the MAV platform and dragged it over to the rover. Leaning it against the hull and digging the other end into the ground for stability, I had a ramp. I should have brought that strut with me to the Pathfinder site. Live and learn. There’s no way to get the Lander in the airlock. It’s just too big. I could probably dismantle it and bring it in a piece at a time, but there’s a pretty compelling reason not to. With no magnetic field, Mars has no defense against harsh solar radiation. If  I were exposed to it, I’d get so much cancer, the cancer would have cancer. So the Hab canvas shields from electromagnetic waves. This means the Hab itself it would block any transmissions if the Lander were inside. Speaking of cancer, it was time to get rid of the RTG. It pained me to climb back into the rover, but it had to be done. If the RTG ever broke open, it would kill me to death. NASA decided 4km was the safe distance, and I wasn’t about to second-guess them. Driving back to where Commander Lewis had originally dumped it, I ditched it in the same hole and drove back to the Hab. I’ll start work on the Lander tomorrow. Now, to enjoy a good, long sleep in an actual cot. With the comforting knowledge that when I wake, my morning piss will go into a toilet.
LOG ENTRY: SOL 95 Today was all about repairs! The Pathfinder mission ended because the Lander had an unknown critical failure. Once they lost contact with the Lander, they had no idea what became of Sojourner. It might be in better shape. Maybe it just needs power. Power it couldn’t get with the solar panels hopelessly caked with dust. Setting it on my workbench, I pried open a panel to peek inside. The battery was a lithium thionyl chloride non-rechargeable. I figured that out from some subtle clues: the shape of the connection points, the thickness of the insulation, and the fact that it had “LiSOCl2 NON-RCHRG” written on it. I cleaned the solar panels thoroughly, then aimed a small, flexible lamp directly at them. The battery’s long dead. But the panels might be ok, and Sojourner can operate directly off them. We’ll see if anything happens. Then it was time to take a look at Sojourner’s daddy. I suited up and headed out. On most landers, the weak point is the battery. It’s the most delicate component, and when it dies, there’s no way to recover. Landers can’t just shut down and wait when they have low batteries. Their electronics won’t work unless they’re at a minimum temperature. So they have heaters to keep the electronics warm. It’s a problem that rarely comes up on Earth, but hey. Mars. Over time, the solar panels get covered with dust. Then winter brings colder temperatures and less daylight. This all combines into a big “fuck you” from Mars to your lander. Eventually it’s using more power to keep warm than it’s getting from the meager daylight that makes it through the dust. Once the battery runs down, the electronics get too cold to operate, and the whole system dies. The solar panels will recharge the battery somewhat, but there’s nothing to tell the system to reboot. Anything that could make that decision would be electronics, which would not be working. Eventually, the now unused battery will lose its ability to retain charge. That’s the usual cause of death. And I sure hope it’s what killed Pathfinder. I piled some leftover parts of the MDV into a makeshift table and ramp. Then I dragged the Lander up to my new outdoor workbench. Working in an EVA suit is annoying enough. Bending over the whole time would have been torture. I got my toolkit and started poking around. Opening the outer panel wasn’t too hard and I identified the battery easily enough. JPL labels everything. It’s a 40 Amp-hour Ag-Zr battery with an optimal voltage of 1.5V. Wow. They really made those things run on nothin’ back then. I detached the battery and headed back inside. I checked it with my electronics kit, and sure enough it’s dead, dead, dead. I could shuffle across a carpet and hold more charge. So I knew what it needed. 1.5 volts. Compared to the makeshift crap I’ve been gluing together since Sol 6, this was a breeze. I have voltage controllers in my kit! It only took me 15 minutes to put a controller on a reserve power line, then another hour to go outside and run the line to where the battery used to be. Then there’s the issue of heat. It’s a good idea to keep electronics above -40C. The temperature today is a brisk -63C. The battery was big and easy to identify, but I had no clue where the heaters were. Even if I knew, it’d be too risky to hook them directly to power. I could easily fry the whole system. So instead, I went to good old “Spare Parts” Rover 1, and stole it’s environment heater. I’ve gutted that poor rover so much. Bringing the heater to my “workbench,” I hooked it to Hab power. Then I rested it in the Lander where the battery used to be. Now I wait. And hope.
LOG ENTRY: SOL 96 I was really hoping I’d wake up to a functional Lander, but no such luck. Its high-gain antenna is right where I last saw it. Why does that matter? Well, I’ll tell ya… If the Lander comes back to life (and that’s a big if) it’ll try to establish contact with Earth. Problem is, nobody’s listening. It’s not like the Pathfinder team is hanging around JPL just in case their long dead probe is repaired by a wayward astronaut. The Deep Space Network and SETI are my best bets for picking up the signal. If either of them caught a blip from Pathfinder, they’d tell JPL. JPL would quickly figure out what was going on, especially when they triangulated the signal to my landing site. They’d tell the Lander where Earth is, and it would angle the high-gain antenna appropriately. That there, the angling of the antenna, is how I’ll know if it linked up. So far, no action. There’s still hope. Any number of reasons could be delaying things. The rover heater is designed to heat air at 1 atmosphere. The thin Martian air severely hampers its ability to work. So the electronics might need more time to warm up. Also, Earth is only visible during the day. I (hopefully) fixed the Lander yesterday evening. It’s morning now, so most of the intervening time has been night. No Earth. Sojourner’s also showing no signs of life. It’s been in the nice, warm environment of the Hab all night, with plenty of light on its sparkling clean solar cells. Maybe it’s running an extended self-check, or staying still until it hears from the Lander or something. I’ll just have to put it out of my mind for now.
PATHFINDER LOG: SOL 0 BOOT SEQUENCE INITIATED TIME 00:00:00 LOSS OF POWER DETECTED, TIME/DATE UNRELIABLE LOADING OS… VXWARE OPERATING SYSTEM (C) WIND RIVER SYSTEMS PERFORMING HARDWARE CHECK: INT. TEMPERATURE: -34C EXT. TEMPERATURE: NONFUNCTIONAL BATTERY: FULL HIGAIN: OK LOGAIN: OK WIND SENSOR: NONFUNCTIONAL METEOROLOGY: NONFUNCTIONAL ASI: NONFUNCTIONAL IMAGER: OK ROVER RAMP: NONFUNCTIONAL SOLAR A: NONFUNCTIONAL SOLAR B: NONFUNCTIONAL SOLAR C: NONFUNCTIONAL HARDWARE CHECK COMPLETE BROADCASTING STATUS LISTENING FOR TELEMETRY SIGNAL… LISTENING FOR TELEMETRY SIGNAL… LISTENING FOR TELEMETRY SIGNAL… SIGNAL ACQUIRED
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