#also pricing here is no longer current

[kewpiekills]

a (mostly) front facing Valentine compilation

[sanchoyo]

oh also I wanted to mention a lot of why I can do the webcomic is bc my job is remote and really lax in the sense that I can set my own hours and I’m at my desk all day and can kinda doodle when things are slow. And like.. whatever else can be said about the company or the work itself (lack of health insurance, low pay that means I can’t afford to move out..) I’m also so grateful for that aspect of it being relatively low effort just like..mentally. When I was still working at Walmart or some other places, I’d be too mentally drained to draw most days when I got home, even putting aside how physically draining that job was (most days I’d come home shaky because they’d stick me in the heaviest depts like drinks frozen or chemicals ugh) like …I don’t do well with being in public for so long and my brain would be too fried to do much besides lay in a dark room and try to recharge my Brain Power shdjdjdk I have no idea if that makes sense. Mental illnesses. but I’m so grateful for the job I have now (I..had a bad string of jobs right before it, lol) it’s not my passion and given what field it is it prob won’t last forever, but it happened at just the right time for me to WANT to make a comic and also be able to be well enough after my shifts to draw most days which is exciting!!! It’s like it was… idk, very good timing and really lucky. Esp after working it for over a year now I’ve really found my groove with it, I’ll prob be really sad if I have to do a job that’s not so remote in the future. I feel kind of spoiled on this one 😭

[gothhabiba]

🍉🇵🇸 eSims for Gaza masterpost 🇵🇸🍉

Which eSims are currently being called for?

Connecting Humanity is calling for:

Nomad (“regional Middle East” plan): code NOMADCNG

Simly (“Palestine” plan)

Gaza Online is calling for:

Holafly (“Israel” and “Egypt” plans): code HOLACNG

Nomad (“regional Middle East” plan): code NOMADCNG (can now be used multiple times from the same email)

Airalo (“Middle East and North Africa” plan)

Sparks (“Israel” plan)

Numero (“Egypt” plan)

For Connecting Humanity: if you sent an eSim more than two weeks ago and it is still valid and not yet activated, reply to the email in which you originally sent the eSim. To determine whether the eSim is still valid, scan the QR code with a smartphone; tap the yellow button that reads “Cellular plan”; when a screen comes up reading “Activate eSIM,” click the button that says “Continue.” If a message comes up reading “eSIM Cannot Be Added: This code is no longer valid. Contact your carrier for more information,” the eSim is activated, expired, or had an error in installation, and should not be sent. It is very important not to re-send invalid eSims, since people may walk several kilometers to access wifi to connect their eSims only to find out that they cannot be activated.

If a screen appears reading “Activate eSIM: An eSIM is ready to be activated” with a button asking you to “Continue,” do not click “Continue” to activate the eSim on your phone; exit out of the screen and reply to the email containing that QR code.

Be sure you're looking at the original post, as this will be continually updated. Any new instructions about replying to emails for specific types of unactivated plans will also appear here.

Check the notes of blackpearlblasts's eSim post, as well as fairuzfan's 'esim' tag, for referral and discount codes.

How do I purchase an eSim?

If you cannot download an app or manage an eSim yourself, send funds to Crips for eSims for Gaza (Visa; Mastercard; Paypal; AmEx; Canadian e-transfer), or to me (venmo @gothhabiba; paypal.me/Najia; cash app $NajiaK, with note “esims” or similar; check the notes of this post for updates on what I've purchased.)

You can purchase an eSim yourself using a mobile phone app, or on a desktop computer (with the exception of Simly, which does not have a desktop site). See this screenreader-accessible guide to purchasing an eSim through each of the five services that the Connecting Humanity team is calling for (Simly, Nomad, Mogo, Holafly, and Airalo).

Send a screenshot of the plan's QR code to gazaesims@gmail.com. Be sure to include the app used, the word "esim," the type of plan (when an app has more than one, aka "regional Middle East" versus "Palestine"), and the amount of data or time on the plan, in the subject line or body of your email.

Message me if you have any questions or if you need help purchasing an eSim through one of these apps.

If you’re going to be purchasing many eSims at once, see Jane Shi’s list of tips.

Which app should I use?

Try to buy an eSim from one of the apps that the team is currently calling for (see above).

If the team is calling for multiple apps:

Nomad is best in terms of data price, app navigability, and ability to top up when they are near expiry; but eSims must be stayed on top of, as you cannot top them up once the data has completely run out. Go into the app settings and make sure your "data usage" notifcations are turned on.

Simly Middle East plans cannot be topped up; Simly Palestine ones can. Unlike with Nomad, data can be topped up once it has completely run out.

Holafly has the most expensive data, and top-ups don't seem to work.

Mogo has the worst user interface in my opinion. It is difficult or impossible to see plan activation and usage.

How much data should I purchase?

Mirna el-Helbawi has been told that large families may all rely on the same plan for data (by setting up a hotspot). Some recipients of eSim plans may also be using them to upload video.

For those reasons I would recommend getting the largest plan you can afford for plans which cannot be topped up: namely, Simly "Middle East" plans, and Holafly plans (they say you can top them up, but I haven't heard of anyone who has gotten it to work yet).

For all other plans, get a relatively small amount of data (1-3 GB, a 3-day plan, etc.), and top up the plan with more data once it is activated. Go into the app’s settings and make sure low-data notifications are on, because a 1-GB eSIM can expire very quickly.

Is there anything else I need to do?

Check back regularly to see if the plan has been activated. Once it's been activated, check once a day to see if data is still being used, and how close the eSim is to running out of data or to expiring; make sure your notifications are on.

If the eSim hasn't been activated after three weeks or so, reply to the original email that you sent to Gaza eSims containing the QR code for that plan.

If you purchased the eSim through an app which has a policy of starting the countdown to auto-expiry a certain amount of time after the purchase of the eSim, rather than only upon activation (Nomad does this), then also reply to your original e-mail once you're within a few days of this date. If you're within 12 hours of that date, contact customer service and ask for a credit (not a refund) and use it to purchase and send another eSim.

How can I tell if my plan has been activated? How do I top up a plan?

The Connecting Humanity team recommends keeping your eSims topped up once they have been activated.

See this guide on how to tell if your plan has been activated, how to top up plans, and (for Nomad) how to tell when the auto-expiry will start. Keep topping up the eSim for as long as the data usage keeps ticking up. This keeps a person or family connected for longer, without the Connecting Humanity team having to go through another process of installing a new eSim.

If the data usage hasn't changed in a week or so, allow the plan to expire and purchase another one.

What if I can't afford a larger plan, or don't have time or money to keep topping up an eSim?

I have set up a pool of funds out of which to buy and top up eSims, which you can contribute to by sending funds to my venmo (@gothhabiba), PayPal (paypal.me/Najia), or cash app ($NajiaK) (with note “esims” or similar). Check the notes of this post for updates on what I've purchased, which plans are active, and how much data they've used.

Crips for eSims for Gaza also has a donation pool to purchase eSims and top them up.

Gaza Online (run by alumni of Gaza Sky Geeks) accepts monetary donations to purchase eSims as needed.

What if my eSim has not been activated, even after I replied to my email?

Make sure that the QR code you sent was a clear screenshot, and not a photo of a screen; and that you didn’t install the eSim on your own phone by scanning the QR code or clicking “install automatically."

Possible reasons for an eSim not having been activated include: it was given to a journalist as a back-up in case the plan they had activated expired or ran out of data; there was an error during installation or activation and the eSim could no longer be used; the eSim was installed, but not activated, and then Israeli bombings destroyed the phone, or forced someone to leave it behind.

An eSim that was sent but couldn’t be used is still part of an important effort and learning curve. Errors in installation, for example, are happening less often than they were in the beginning of the project.

Why should I purchase an eSim? Is there any proof that they work?

Israel is imposing near-constant communications blackouts on Gaza. The majority of the news that you are seeing come from Gaza is coming from people who are connected via eSim.

eSims also connect people to news. People are able to videochat with their family for the first time in months, to learn that their family members are still alive, to see their newborn children for the first time, and more, thanks to eSims.

Some of this sharing of news saves lives, as people have been able to flee or avoid areas under bombardment, or learn that they are on evacuation lists.

Why are different plans called for at different times?

Different eSims work in different areas of the Gaza Strip (and Egypt, where many refugees currently are). The team tries to keep a stockpile of each type of sim on hand.

Is there anything else I can do to help?

There is an urgent need for more eSims. Print out these posters and place them on bulletin boards, in local businesses, on telephone poles, or wherever people are likely to see them. Print out these foldable brochures to inform people about the initiative and distribute them at protests, cafes and restaurants, &c. Also feel free to make your own brochures using the wording from this post.

The Connecting Humanity team is very busy connecting people to eSims and don't often have time to answer questions. Check a few of Mirna El Helbawi's most recent tweets and see if anyone has commented with any questions that you can answer with the information in this post.

[ms-demeanor]

I would like to address something that has come up several times since I relaunched my computer recommendation blog two weeks ago. Part of the reason that I started @okay-computer and that I continue to host my computer-buying-guide is that it is part of my job to buy computers every day.

I am extremely conversant with pricing trends and specification norms for computers, because literally I quoted seven different laptops with different specs at different price-points *today* and I will do more of the same on Monday.

Now, I am holding your face in my hands. I am breathing in sync with you. We are communicating. We are on the same page. Listen.

Computer manufacturers don't expect users to store things locally so it is no longer standard to get a terabyte of storage in a regular desktop or laptop. You're lucky if you can find one with a 512gb ssd that doesn't have an obnoxious markup because of it.

If you think that the norm is for computers to come with 1tb of storage as a matter of course, you are seeing things from a narrow perspective that is out of step with most of the hardware out there.

I went from a standard expectation of a 1tb hdd five years ago to expecting to get a computer with a 1tb hdd that we would pull and replace with a 1tb ssd to expecting to get a computer that came with a 256gb ssd that we would pull and replace with a 1tb ssd, to just having the 256gb ssd come standard and and only seeking out more storage if the customer specifically requested it because otherwise they don't want to pay for more storage.

Computer manufacturers consider any storage above 256gb to be a premium feature these days.

Look, here's a search for Lenovo Laptops with 16GB RAM (what I would consider the minimum in today's market) and a Win11 home license (not because I prefer that, but to exclude chromebooks and business machines). Here are the storage options that come up for those specs:

You will see that the majority of the options come with less than a terabyte of storage. You CAN get plenty of options with 1tb, but the point of Okay-Computer is to get computers with reasonable specs in an affordable price range. These days, that mostly means half a terabyte of storage (because I can't bring myself to *recommend* less than that but since most people carry stuff in their personal cloud these days, it's overkill for a lot of people)

All things being equal, 500gb more increases the price of this laptop by $150:

It brings this one up by $130:

This one costs $80 more to go from 256 to 512 and there isn't an option for 1TB.

For the last three decades storage has been getting cheaper and cheaper and cheaper, to the point that storage was basically a negligible cost when HDDs were still the standard. With the change to SSDs that cost increased significantly and, while it has come down, we have not reached the cheap, large storage as-a-standard on laptops stage; this is partially because storage is now SO cheap that people want to entice you into paying a few dollars a month to use huge amounts of THEIR storage instead of carrying everything you own in your laptop.

You will note that 1tb ssds cost you a lot less than the markup to pay for a 1tb ssd instead of a 500gb ssd

In fact it can be LESS EXPENSIVE to get a 1tb ssd than a 500gb ssd.

This is because computer manufacturers are, generally speaking, kind of shitty and do not care about you.

I stridently recommend getting as much storage as you can on your computer. If you can't get the storage you want up front, I recommend upgrading your storage.

But also: in the current market (December 2024), you should not expect to find desktops or laptops in the low-mid range pricing tier with more than 512gb of storage. Sometimes you'll get lucky, but you shouldn't be expecting it - if you need more storage and you need an inexpensive computer, you need to expect to upgrade that component yourself.

So, if you're looking at a computer I linked and saying "32GB of RAM and an i7 processor but only 500GB of storage? What kind of nonsense is that?" Then I would like to present you with one of the computers I had to quote today:

A three thousand dollar macbook with the most recent apple silicon (the m4 released like three weeks ago) and 48 FUCKING GIGABYTES OF RAM with a 512gb ssd.

You can't even upgrade that SSD! That's an apple that drive isn't going fucking anywhere! (don't buy apple, apple is shit)

The norms have shifted! It sucks, but you have to be aware of these kinds of things if you want to pay a decent price for a computer and know what you're getting into.

[soaps-mohawk]

Summary: Task Force 141 operates successfully without an omega, at least that’s what Price has been saying since its formation. Two alphas and two betas balance the pack just fine, and they have the numbers to prove it.

It works for a while, until the Omega Initiative is born and the 141 find themselves having to adjust to the sudden addition of an omega to their pack. Fresh out of an institute, you’re hardly fit for their secretive, dangerous world, or so Price thinks. 

As each member of the team gets closer to you, things begin to come to light, not only about you but about the decision to force you into their lives.

Maybe, just maybe, Price was wrong and the 141 does need an omega after all. 

Pairings: Poly 141 x reader, Price x Gaz, Ghost x Soap

Warnings: Alpha/Beta/Omega dynamics, NSFW content, explicit smut, fingering, oral (m and f receiving), knotting, biting, claiming, mating cycles, Alternate Universe, a/b/o typical classism and sexism, age differences, military inaccuracies, canon typical violence, blood, weapons, language, no use of Y/N, brief torture, hurt/comfort, let's be real this is so unrealistic but it's a/b/o you're not here for accuracy.

Chapters containing smut are marked with a *

Join my Patreon for exclusives -> HERE

This fic can also be found on my Ao3 -> HERE

I will no longer be using a taglist for this fic, please follow THIS BLOG and turn on notifications

**This fic is currently in progress**

NAVIGATION PAGE

CRCB DIRECTORY

Part 1 - The Omega

Chapter 1 - The Introduction

Chapter 2 - Adjustments

Chapter 3 - Speak Their Language

Chapter 4 - You Can Be Useful

Chapter 5 - What I Want *

Part 2 - The Bond

Chapter 6 - One Step Closer *

Chapter 7 - Sweet Strawberry

Chapter 8 - The Thing About Ghost

Chapter 9 - Save Me

Chapter 10 - Treat Me Gently*

Part 3 - The First Heat

Chapter 11 - It's Coming

Chapter 12 - Fire In My Veins*

Chapter 13 - Piece Me Back Together*

Chapter 14 - The Aftermath*

Part 4 - The New Normal

Chapter 15: Bonnie*

Chapter 16: Big Brown Eyes *

Chapter 17: Alone

Chapter 18: Don't Let Me Go

Chapter 19: Daddy Issues

Chapter 20: The New Normal *

Chapter 21: Crime and Punishment *

Chapter 22: I Won't Be Gentle

Part 5 - A Pack of Five

Chapter 23: Regrets

Chapter 24: The Last First Time *

Chapter 25: Animals *

Chapter 26: Fuck *

Chapter 27: Drown In It *

Chapter 28: Two Is Company, Three Is A Party *

Chapter 29: There's Something Wrong With My Omega

Part 6 - The Tragedy

Chapter 30: Butterfly's Wings

Chapter 31: Forced Proximity

Chapter 32: The Tragedy

Chapter 33: Ghosts of the Past

Chapter 34: The Whole Truth

Part 7 - The Aftermath

Chapter 35: Threads

Chapter 36: To The Sea

Chapter 37: The Silence

Chapter 38: Shattered

Chapter 39: Life

Part 8 - The Next Chapter

Chapter 40: Where Do We Go From Here

Chapter 41: Revenge

Chapter 42: Comfort and Joy

Chapter 43: Lies

Chapter 44: Little Shit

Chapter 45: Heat of the Moment *

Chapter 46: My Girl *

Chapter 47: The Reunion

Chapter 48: Wild Times *

Chapter 49: Reforming Bonds *

Chapter 50: Flashback *

Part 9 - Finding Home

Chapter 51: Back To The Start

Chapter 52: The Rucking Princess

Chapter 53: Meeting the Family

Chapter 54: The Farm

Title card made by the beautiful @141wh0re

Chapter 55: Finding Home *

Chapter 56: Making Home *

[celestialprincesse]

𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ𐀔

When Simon had given you his work address, and the password for the door to get in, you’d scoffed at the thought of needing to use it. You’d grown comfortable in your quiet life, no longer plagued with the urge to run, with the fear of being caught up with. 

You and Charlotte. 

You’d never been able to picture your position now, shaking fingers prodding at the keypad, a crying Charlotte on your hip. So absorbed in your fear, which had struck you the moment you’d returned from Charlotte’s school pickup to see your apartment door open, that you don’t even see the bearded man opening up the door from the inside for you. 

“Everything alright, Miss?” He questions in clear concern, ushering you into the entry hall with blue eyes darting between yourself and your wailing daughter. 

“I’m here - Simon said i could find him here if I needed anything.” You hiccup, not even having noticed the tears ebbing down your cheeks, so consumed by the realisation that you need to get out. Find safety. Find Simon. Maybe even that other man you met once - Mac something.

Too distraught to protest, you allow yourself to be ushered into some sort of reception room, noting the way the older man looks behind you with a vigilant scan before shutting the door. "Is Simon Riley here?" You plead with him again, terrified at the thought of being unable to see your neighbour, having someone to soothe your wailing daughter whilst you yourself calm down.

Before the blue eyed man can get a word out, two other men are barrelling into the reception area, one of them, thankfully, being Simon. You can't help but choke out a relieved sob when he tentatively comes closer, allowing you the chance to deny his approach, which you don't.

"What happened? Can you take some deep breaths for me?"

The entire room seems to pick up into a flurry of activity the minute the other two men in the room, Simon's friend you'd met that one time, and the other man, seem to realise that not only do you and Simon know one another, but also that you and the little tot in your arms are important to him.

Simon quickly ushers you to one of the worn leather couches, although he never forces you to sit, seeing how high strung you are at the current moment, the way you clutch Charlotte to your chest like she'll be ripped from your grasp at any given moment. Meanwhile, MacTavish looks on in concern, checking the car park you'd just come in from, and the other man slowly guides a glass of water into your shaking hand.

"Door was open when I got home." You manage to choke, letting Simon ease your vice grip on your daughter, just enough to hoist her up on his hip, before pulling you into his chest.

"S' okay, yeah? Promise you're in good hands here." He soothes, rocking the three of you from side to side, taking the opportunity to share a look between Price, Soap and himself. "Listen, the boys will go and have a look, okay? Promise they won't touch anything or mess anything up, just make sure everything is okay."

You give a hesitant nod, sniffling into Simon's chest as another taller, leaner man walks into the room, his handsome features immediately twisting into concern at the odd sight.

Over the next few hours, you, Simon, Charlotte and the sweet man you'd come to know as Kyle wait out on base, nervously awaiting the return of Captain Price and Simon's closest friend Johnny.

Admittedly, your situation is terrifying, and you're still not quite sure where to go from here, but at least you're in good hands. Four pairs of them.

𓂃 ࣪˖ ִֶָ𐀔

[colombogramme]

This is the 4th time the US has stopped a permanent ceasefire. It is the ONLY country to be against it while 14 nations are in favour. Read the sentence again. Take it in. The most powerful country in the world wanted a settler colony to continue their genocidal agenda. Continue the blockade and let the manufactured famine persists. Diseases will spread, prices will increase, and more lives will be lost.

How can they enjoy a full-on meal while many families are digging through expired food to eat? Don't they deserve a proper meal? Don't they deserve to taste the flavour and have their stomachs full?

At the same time, there are many institutions complicit and they make sure Palestinians don't have access to the financial resources to sustain themselves. PayPal is one of them. On October 7th, the crowdfunding platform has announced that they have shut down fundraising services. Those with an existing one will need to complete their goals by January 12th, 2025.

Iyad Sobhe (@iyadsgaza) and Ruba Abushahan (@rubashsblog) are raising funds with PayPal ever since GFM has either terminated their fundraiser or made them lose access. Iyad has lost 11K while Ruba can no longer withdraw the 27K They cannot afford to start all over when PayPal is their last resort. So we have less than 2 MONTHS to raise the entire amount of 60K. Please donate and share! Donations have slowed down significantly, resulting in 1 or 2 donations per day, when we should be raising $600!

You can match my friend! She has given $10 USD, but you're more than welcome to give any amount. Even $1 USD! You can also participate in an art raffle hosted by @/transformers4palestine . The 3rd round of winners will be declared on November 27th, so check it out, join in, and be part of the fun!

Verification: #90 for Ruba and #173 for Iyad in the Spreadsheet. (Keep in mind that the document has not been updated and does not reflect the current fundraiser. You can learn about it here)

[opencommunion]

"The story of  'John Doe 1' of the Democratic Republic of the Congo is tucked in a lawsuit filed five years ago against several U.S. tech companies, including Tesla, the world’s largest electric vehicle producer. In a country where the earth hides its treasures beneath its surface, those who chip away at its bounty pay an unfair price. As a pre-teen, his family could no longer afford to pay his $6 monthly school fee, leaving him with one option: a life working underground in a tunnel, digging for cobalt rocks.  But soon after he began working for roughly two U.S. dollars per day, the child was buried alive under the rubble of a collapsed mine tunnel. His body was never recovered. 

The nation, fractured by war, disease, and famine, has seen more than 6 million people die since the mid-1990s, making the conflict the deadliest since World War II. But, in recent years, the death and destruction have been aided by the growing number of electric vehicles humming down American streets. In 2022, the U.S., the world’s third-largest importer of cobalt, spent nearly $525 million on the mineral, much of which came from the Congo.

As America’s dependence on the Congo has grown, Black-led labor and environmental organizers here in the U.S. have worked to build a transnational solidarity movement. Activists also say that the inequities faced in the Congo relate to those that Black Americans experience. And thanks in part to social media, the desire to better understand what’s happening in the Congo has grown in the past 10 years. In some ways, the Black Lives Matter movement first took root in the Congo after the uprising in Ferguson in 2014, advocates say. And since the murder of George Floyd and the outrage over the Gaza war, there has been an uptick in Congolese and Black American groups working on solidarity campaigns.

Throughout it all, the inequities faced by Congolese people and Black Americans show how the supply chain highlights similar patterns of exploitation and disenfranchisement. ... While the American South has picked up about two-thirds of the electric vehicle production jobs, Black workers there are more likely to work in non-unionized warehouses, receiving less pay and protections. The White House has also failed to share data that definitively proves whether Black workers are receiving these jobs, rather than them just being placed near Black communities. 'Automakers are moving their EV manufacturing and operations to the South in hopes of exploiting low labor costs and making higher profits,' explained Yterenickia Bell, an at-large council member in Clarkston, Georgia, last year. While Georgia has been targeted for investment by the Biden administration, workers are 'refusing to stand idly by and let them repeat a cycle that harms Black communities and working families.'

... Of the 255,000 Congolese mining for cobalt, 40,000 are children. They are not only exposed to physical threats but environmental ones. Cobalt mining pollutes critical water sources, plus the air and land. It is linked to respiratory illnesses, food insecurity, and violence. Still, in March, a U.S. court ruled on the case, finding that American companies could not be held liable for child labor in the Congo, even as they helped intensify the prevalence. ... Recently, the push for mining in the Congo has reached new heights because of a rift in China-U.S. relations regarding EV production. Earlier this month, the Biden administration issued a 100% tariff on Chinese-produced EVs to deter their purchase in the U.S. Currently, China owns about 80% of the legal mines in the Congo, but tens of thousands of Congolese work in 'artisanal' mines outside these facilities, where there are no rules or regulations, and where the U.S. gets much of its cobalt imports.  'Cobalt mining is the slave farm perfected,' wrote Siddharth Kara last year in the award-winning investigative book Cobalt Red: How The Blood of the Congo Powers Our Lives. 'It is a system of absolute exploitation for absolute profit.' While it is the world’s richest country in terms of wealth from natural resources, Congo is among the poorest in terms of life outcomes. Of the 201 countries recognized by the World Bank Group, it has the 191st lowest life expectancy."

[kurgy]

having to make this sucks when i wasnt even planning to move, but when trying to renew my lease, my landlord increased my rent exponentially, and i can no longer afford to live here. i essentially have 2 months to find somewhere affordable to move as there is no one able to take me or my dogs in currently. the base price of my rent was increased to $1070 officially now, and that on top of constantky fluctuating utilities and electricity, internet, etc., my shitty 1 bedroom is now over $2000 a month. i cannot afford this, i am disabled and currently experiencing some serious health complications on a federally fixed income that elon musks fake department is trying to be rid of and its fucking up every aspect of trying to receive and keep benefits. my only option right now is to move.

ive found several possible places to look at, my biggest hurdle if i find an affordable place in time is any application fees ranging from it looks like $40 to $60, deposits are the biggest chunk, pet deposits, and extra fees, on top of the costs of moving in general; a truck, boxes, tape, etc., i can cover some of this after i pay my last months rent, but even after paying my current rent im left with at best $5 in my account for the month to work around. i was honestly not expecting to or prepared to move at all. i figured my rent would increase, i just was not expecting how much our new management would increase it (neither were any of my neighbors apparently lmao??) and i just cant afford to stay here once my lease is up july 31st.

literally any help is appreciated, any. im worried, and stressed, any help would mean the world while trying to figure everything out.

i have some links if any can or would like to help

Paypal.me/kurgyy

venmo @ kurgy

cashapp $kurgyyy

and i also have a Patreon you can join for as little as $1 a month for access to wips, illustrations, full speedpaints, animations, etc.,

[youryurigoddess]

Hungry for Good Omens 3 crumbs of information? Let’s see what I’ve found and speculate a bit about cast members, filming locations, and… trees! As always, please tag accordingly, share only with the fans consenting to know potential spoilers, and get yourself something to drink since it’s going to be a longer read.

News flash: both Ned Dennehy (well-known to Good Omens fans as Hastur) and Sean Pertwee (recently revealed to star in the Finale as Brian Cameron) admitted to have been working on location in Tenerife during the film’s production time slot (January and early February, respectively). In Dennehy’s case, even providing a rather intimately close look at his character.

The location alone isn’t particularly surprising, as the Canary Islands and Tenerife in particular are currently experiencing an influx of international productions, including several TV shows by global streamers, making use of the favourable weather and prices. But Dennehy’s post, additionally liked by a Good Omens crew member, seems somewhat suggestive.

In the Instagram story above, Sean Pertwee called 14 January 2025 his last day on the shoot in Tenerife and subsequently traveled to London and Edinburgh, from where he shared another video three weeks later.

Now, technically the Tenerife film set could be a part of Pertwee’s NCIS: Tony & Ziva job he started last autumn. However, that would imply that he plays a greater role in the upcoming production than the currently available promotional materials imply, and the location stamp in the bottom right corner, Drago Milenario, is too deliciously Good Omens coded to overlook it.

It isn’t even a place, really, but a living organism. A plant. A tree.

Meet Drago Milenario, also know as El Drago, a natural monument and symbol of Tenerife. The oldest and largest living specimen of the endemic Dracaena draco (dragon tree), it is said to be a thousand years old and stand at 18 metres high with a 20-metre perimeter. “Great big bugger,” as Aziraphale would say.

There has been much debate over the age of the tree, and some even say that it may be over 5000 years old; more recent estimates seem more conservative and suggest that El Drago is no more than 800 to 1000 years old. It is difficult to say unambiguously, because the traditional method of counting rings is not applicable in this case — dracaena has no rings.

Its home, the Millennial Dragon Tree Park, or Parque del Drago, in Icod de los Vinos, is a sacred place and a burial zone of Tenerife’s original inhabitants, the Guanches. Members of the Guanche people venerated El Drago as a divine tree; a symbol of wisdom and fertility, believed to have magical powers, granting longevity and warding off evil spirits. Its blood-red oil or sap is called dragon's blood and historically used to treat wounds and embalm corpses. According to local legends, that’s because slain dragons don’t actually die, but rather turn into dragon trees like this one.

The dragon part of the story sounds objectively cool, but if we overlook it for a second, we might notice why the connection to Good Omens is so strong here. When asked about trees in the show’s context, one’s first point of reference is quite naturally the Garden of Eden scene and the shot above featuring the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. The thing is, it wasn’t the only one.

According to the Bible, the very reason why Aziraphale was even stationed in Eden (possibly with a few other armed angels) was to protect the Garden from the newly exiled humans. More specifically, his “apple duty” meant that he was supposed to guard a very particular and yet unseen tree:

“The Lord God made garments of skin for Adam and his wife and clothed them. And the Lord God said, ‘The man has now become like one of us, knowing good and evil. He must not be allowed to reach out his hand and take also from the tree of lifeand eat, and live forever.’ So the Lord God banished him from the Garden of Eden to work the ground from which he had been taken. After he drove the man out, he placed on the east side of the Garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the Tree of Life.” (Genesis 3:21-24)

In the apocryphal Apocalypse of Moses, the tree of life is also called the Tree of Mercy. Adam, the first human, famously sent his son Seth and wife Eve back to the gates of the Garden to beg God and His angels for some oil of the Tree of Life to save him from his deathbed by granting either full immortality or longer lifespan. They were obviously denied, but in another part of the Bible — the Book of Revelation, on which most of the official Good Omens plot is based, Jesus announces the details of His Second Coming, including who and when will get the right to enjoy this forbidden fruit:

“Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to reward each one as his work deserves. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end. Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they will have the right to the tree of life, and may enter the city by the gates. (Revelation 22:12-14)

The Catholic Church in particular believes that the Tree of Life mentioned above is the Eucharist and often combines the image of the Tree with the Cross of Christ, both literally and figuratively (see above: The Tree of Life printed by John Hagerty, 1791) granting the immortal life to His Chosen Ones:

And he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. There will no longer be any curse; and the throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and His bond-servants will serve Him; they will see His face, and His name will be on their foreheads. And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illuminate them; and they will reign forever and ever. (Revelation 1-5)

In his Roll Play BAFTA interview published on 10 February 2025, while talking about his work for the Good Omens Finale, David Tennant himself has specifically referred to the possibility of Aziraphale and Crowley spending eternity together. But where? Well.

The visual symbolism of an apple tree seems so important for the Good Omens 3 plot that it’s even represented on the exclusive mug design shared on 30 April by one of everyone’s favourite production crew spouses, Carla Scott Fullerton (fullercoaching on Instagram):

For those who missed the original discussion, the reverse side of the complimentary mug gifted to Good Omens 3 crew members and depicted above contains a photo of slate number 100, scene 59 of the production with a quote “We’ve come to a decision…”. A typical feature film of this length consists of around 60 scenes, so it’s definitely the ending or one of the scenes directly preceding it.

Which means that the story ends, as it began, in a garden. And with a very specific apple tree, adorned with initials AZ and CR in two little hearts as hinted by the drawing in the background.

There’s a specific crew member though — one of the firsts to be confirmed for the upcoming production, actually — that has shared a Good Omens themed work with an apple tree a whole year earlier.

Here you can see Michael Ralph’s (i.e., Good Omens production designer’s) concept art depicting Neil Gaiman’s version of heaven on earth – “Heaven is a Library” – at LA music venue, The Wiltern, for The Art of Elysium’s Heaven 2024 charity gala. It’s got Va Va Voom yellow walls, red carpet, spiral stairs, a centrally located oculus, and lots of plants with an apple tree with a swing in the middle. In case this image wasn’t suggestive enough, it’s worth to focus on the twin display tables with Cupid statues on top, direct copies of the one from A. Z. Fell and Co. bookshop in Soho.

It’s not even subtle — and wasn’t meant to be, considering how Event Eleven, the creative agency behind the gala, typically organises high budget premiere events and promotional campaigns for Amazon Prime TV shows, and to this day it’s the closest we’ve got to a Good Omens 3 public celebration.

While this one was for charity and officially not affiliated with the studio, it took place only three weeks after the official announcement of Good Omens 3 and involved not only this curious simulacrum of Aziraphale’s bookshop as a setting, but also Jon Hamm on stage as the guest of honour, referencing the co-leads of the TV series and reciting an excerpt from the 1990 novel in an approximation of their characters’ voices, and the Ukrainian artist Katya Zvereva was commissioned to make an installation for the gala called literally “Tree of Life” (above).

If you remember my bookshop meta, you will probably find the official explanation of the event’s theme particularly interesting:

“Heaven is two things that are, perhaps, the same thing. Heaven is both a library, the place where we go for knowledge, wisdom, advice and for stories, and heaven is also a refuge, somewhere that we can go, whoever we are, for safety and protection. Heaven contains librarians and refugees, shelters the helpless, and gives them — us — somewhere quiet to sit and read or listen.”

Not incidentally, the only iteration of the Tree of Life in the actual show so far has been built into the layout of Aziraphale’s bookshop (left). Its Kabbalah depiction (right) is a representation of the entirety of creation, composed of ten spheres — referred to as the Sephiroth/Sefirot as a whole — each denoting a universal quality, such as wisdom or beauty. To quote The Golden Dawn: The Original Account of the Teachings, Rites, and Ceremonies of the Hermetic Order by Israel Regardie:

This altar diagram shows the Ten Sephiroth with all the connecting Paths numbered and lettered, and the Serpent winding over each Path. Around each Sephirah are written the Names of the Deity, Archangel and Angelic Host attributed to it. The Twenty Two Paths are bound together by the Serpent of Wisdom. It unites the Paths but does not touch any of the Sephiroth, which are linked by the Flaming Sword. The Flaming Sword is formed by the natural order of the Tree of Life. It resembles a flash of Lightning. Together the Sephiroth and the Twenty Two Paths form the 32 Paths of the Sepher Yetzirah or Book of Formation. The Two pillars on either side of the Altar represent:

1. Active: The White Pillar on the South Side. Male. Adam. Pillar of Light and Fire. Right Kerub. Metatron.

2. Passive: The Black Pillar on the North Side. Female. Eve. Pillar of Cloud. Left Kerub. Sandalphon.

[supportingedream]

Urgent appeal for help 🙏🥺🥺🥺

✅️Vetted by @gazavetters , my number verified on the list is ( #538)

Update// Israel will occupied the rest of Gaza and will have no place to go to. Also hunger is killing us slowly here. Can you imagine that the flour is 600$ for one bag. My family is 8 person and now we don't find anything to eat please help my family and support us. Everything is so expensive and unbelievable 💔💔💔.Guys we need you in this harsh conditions I'm begging you. 😭😭

I’m Inge Kassab 22, dental student in Alazhar university Gaza, I have finished three years of my studies at the university and unfortunately my university has completely destroyed due to the war in Gaza and I can’t go abroad the city to continue my studies because all boarders around us were closed and I forced to live her under bombing.

For almost a whole year and half I have been living in Gaza, where wardestruction and chaos spread everywhere in Gaza.

I am currently in Deir El Balah after I have displaced from my city Gaza , trying to save money to rebuild home to live in a safe place with my family. My father is an old man who lost his work and my mom also lost her work. I need you to support me and my family to build our life again.

Because of the war, it has become impossible to provide money to live, buy food, clean and drinkable water, and education here. This money will be used to provide what the war has destroyed for us, and also to provide a place to stay, especially since we are now approaching the winter season, where we need winter clothes, repair the damage to the house, and provide what protects us from the cold and hunger of winter.

Gaza has become a place full of destruction and is no longer suitable for any opportunity here. Diseases have spread in the Gaza Strip, especially those skin diseases for which there is no treatment due to the war. The water here has also become polluted water and has spread, and there is not enough food for everyone here.

I created this campaign to ask for help and support from you. As a human being who lived an entire year and half under the flames of war, destruction, and tragedies, I am addressing you and asking you for help, to help me get a chance to survive war, death, and hunger with my family, and to start from scratch. A new journey of living and recovering from those traumas and painful memories that we experienced in the war. So we stayed in the Gaza Strip under the genocide to live in difficult conditions and complete our studies with the least available means. Before the war began, I was at the beginning of the clinical stage and the beginning of my work on patients, but the war came and destroyed all my dreams, as I lost my university and my dental tools, which cost my father more than $1,000, and I lost my future. But now I am trying to return again in order to complete the number of study hours and graduate. Therefore, I need your help to complete what remains, as there is only very little left to graduate and go out to work and help patients.

This money will also help me to cover our living expenses and buy food in Gaza. Buying food and groceries in Gaza is something we cannot afford every day because of the high prices, and there is no opportunity to work here. The money will also be used to buy available cooking gas, wood and firewood which will also be used to provide fires for cooking and also to keep warm from the cold at night in the coming days.  Also I want to build my own clinic after graduation.

I hope you will hear my voice and help me get a chance to evacuate from here, and a chance to evacuate from Gaza if we can . 🥺❤️

So Please Help Me to Put (Dr.) before my name please make this post viral 🥺❤️‼️

Inge Kassab.

Please help here

or directly here

[alpaca-clouds]

A Reminder of the Fact, that Billionaires are not Real

I know. I know. Most people right now expect me to do more historical write ups. But please listen to me for a moment. This is kinda important. Because with Trump trying to make himself a fucking god emperor or some shit, I need y'all to understand this one thing.

This is a reminder: Billionaires are not actually real. As in: There is not a person who has a ten-figures amount of money on their bank account or anything like that. Nobody. Not Elon Musk. Not Jeff Bezos. Not Zuckerberg. Nobody. They are valued in the billions, but they are not actually billionaires. In fact some of them might not have so much as a million on their bank account from all we know.

So, why are they billionaires?

Because they own assets. Everyone who is really, really rich does not own money, but assets. Those assets are:

Real Estate and land

Luxury vehicles, yachts, private jets etc.

Art

Investment portfolios

Shares in companies

Stuff like mines and natural ressources

Patents and Copyrights

General stuff Marx would call: "The means of production"

The "net worth" that gets thrown around is just what people estimate the stuff those people own is valued at. But again: Very for of them have more then a few million actually on their bank accounts. And this also is the reason why right now we have so many billionaires.

Because since the entire bullshit in 2008 (for those who just turned 18: The real estate bubble burst and what not - watch "The Big Short" for more context) something has been happening called "the asset inflation". Basically the worth of all those assets has shot up in price BY A LOT, which made people who had been "just" multimillionaires before into billionaires suddenly.

But what you need to understand is, that this is just... It is fictional. It is a mirage. And if we all could just agree on that, they literally would have nothing. Because you cannot eat a yacht. You cannot eat company shares. You cannot do shit with any of that. You cannot even buy something with that.

You know how billionaires buy stuff? They go to a bank and go: "Hey, look at all this shit I have. I want to buy XY, so if you give me the money to do that, I will tots pay you back. And if I don't, you tots can take some of my shit, fair?" And the bank will go: "Yeah, whatever. Here. Have 20 billion fantasy dollars."

But all of this just works, because everybody agrees that if the billionaire or the bank sold whatever assets the billionaire offers up to someone else, they would actually get the money.

I wrote about this before: This is why we cannot get away from fossil fuels. Because right now everyone who has the money to invest in energy has not actually real money, but just valued assets - and those assets are oil pumps, and coal mines, and gas plants. And if we all agreed that we no longer want oil, gas and coal, those would be worthless - and those investors would no longer have money. Because their "money" is just the worth that those mines, pumps, and plants have.

And that is also, why they are so much against the "capital gains tax". It is more than it appears to be on the surface. See, a capital gain is, when those assets you hold gain in value. Which currently happens at an alarming rate. Some of them gain literally 20 or more percent in value each year. So if you implement proper capital gains taxes, those "billionaires" would have go give some part of the theoretical monetary gain they made each year from the inflation of those assets - and obviously newly gained assets - as money to the government.

Just look at our most hated billionaire: Elon Musk. In 2023 he had a net worth of 180 billion, in 2024 he ended the year on 410 billion. That is a gain of 230 billion. Almost all of it falls under "capital gains taxes". Now, let's say we implemented a really, really soft capital gains tax of just 5%. Which is nothing in terms of tax. You and I pay more taxes on our salary. But 5% of 230 billion is 11.5 billion. And because you cannot pay taxes in assets, Elon would need 11.5 billion to actually pay his taxes. And he does not have that. Nobody does. Again, I doubt that there is really anyone who has more than a billion in liquid assets (= actual money or anything that can be used as flat payment). In fact I doubt that most billionaires have actually a billion in liquid assets. Some might have several hundred million, sure, but nothing more. Again, this is basically monopoly money.

And if they would implement a capital gains tax this entire fantasy construct would come down. Because, yeah. Nobody actually has the liquid assets to pay the taxes. And they would have to admit that.

Right now their influence is build mainly on the fact that most people do not understand how "rich people economics" work. Which is why you need to understand it.

They do not have money. They have just assets. And those only are worth billions, because people let them get away with claiming this.

You know. We can just... adjust for that.

[batshit-auspol]

have we talked about the woolworths debacle yet?

Sigh.

Alright kids strap in, because the culture wars are back and stupider than ever.

So there are two characters you need to be familiar with in this story before we continue:

Woolies (i.e. Woolworths) - One of two supermarket chains in Australia. Not related to the giant Woolworths chain that used to exist overseas, other than the Aussie one swiped the name because the original forgot to trademark the name 'Woolworths' here. Biggest company in Aus, and also the biggest employer. Not a brand anyone with more than two braincells would pick a fight with.

Peter Dutton - Man with less than two braincells, and current leader of the political opposition in Australia. Best known for bearing a passing resemblance to a potato and once demanding that a homophobic song get played for balance when a football halftime show performed 'Same Love'. His reputation is so bad that if you told an Australian that Dutton's favorite pastime was drowning puppies, they probably would believe you.

And to prove our point, here's the best headline a friendly newspaper could come up with to try spin his image:

The third thing you need to know is that in Australia we have a national holiday called "Australia Day" which is basically a scheduled day for everyone to get into a giant argument.

This is because for the last 30ish years it has been held on the anniversary of the British claiming the land around Sydney as a colony which was:

a) More the founding of an English prison then the founding of Australia, and more importantly

b) from the perspective of the people who were already living here, kindof a very shit day

Now not everyone agrees on this, and even those that don't 'celebrate' will often still have a get together with friends, but it can't be denied that we've shifted a long way from the days when the country used to celebrate Australia Day by kitting ourselves out in Aussie flag budgie smugglers, drinking enough beer to drown Harold Holt, and partying like it's 1789.

(Now a brief break for a real photo of Peter Dutton at a press conference)

Good luck sleeping tonight. Anyway back to the story.

As a result of this shift away from the trend of showing your patriotism by wearing Australian flag underpants, this year Woolworths decided that they were no longer going to be rolling out their box of southern cross thongs - on the grounds that "this kitschy shit never sells" and they are far too busy with more important things like blaming price gouging on inflation and installing self-checkout machines that think your canvas bag is a crime against humanity.

Never a man to miss an opportunity to act like a massive twat, upon hearing that Woolies had dumped their flag merch, Peter Dutton rushed onto the airwaves to declare that Woolworths had "gone woke" (paging 4chan circa 2009) and called for the country to boycott the store, a story which Australia's media have gleefully put on loudhale for over a week now in order to drive outrage clicks.

We at this point remind you that Woolworths is a company which, as we previously mentioned, basically has a monopoly on selling food in this country. Not exactly something you can boycott.

(Another real Dutton photo break)

Needless to say Dutton's dumbass plan did not immediately put Woolies out of business, however the relentless media campaign by Rupert Murdoch's minions did result in a bunch of innocent low-wage floor staff being harrassed by The Dark Lord's fanboys and a few Woolies stores were graffitied.

Allegedly being the 'free market' guy, Dutton also kindof snookered himself by demanding the free market not decide the fate of Australia day, but logic was never one of his strong suits.

Anyway, in the end we're just going to keep having this dumb circular argument every year, fulled by a media who love fanning the flames, until a politician has the guts to shift the date to May 8 (pronounced m8), and everyone promptly forgets this was ever a thing.

All in all, that's the long and the short of it. As a final touch we'll leave you with this real tweet by Opposition Leader Peter Dutton, in all its batshit glory.

We look forward to the absolute dumpster fire of comments this post is going to generate - as is the Australia Day tradition.

[aceecee]

Apartment 08 - Prologue

ABANDONED WORK - will revamp in future

Synopsis: The tenant in apartment 08 always remained a mystery to the residents. Rumours about the individual living there always floated around.

A member of the mafia syndicate.

Leader of the mafia syndicate.

The ghost they were all sure haunted the building.

And so many more. Until a select few of the residents get up and close with the tenant herself.

MC x Reader x Love Interests

Set in our modern time. No evols. 

Masterlist

Settled into the heart of the city, resides an apartment building. Vastly different from the numerous skyscrapers around it, the building isn’t tall - housing only twelve apartments and nine floors - it maintains the old vintage look. The building is nearly two hundred years old, the red bricks used to build it have become washed out over time but the owners like it that way. This doesn’t take away from its beauty. The outside is covered in beautiful plants, vines are left to grow naturally and flowers bloom on the grounds. 

The current owner is a seventy year old woman named Lottie. Her ancestors had been exploited for their labour and had built it. Her grandfather worked hard to gain the deed to it and succeeded. Promising to never show the sickening greed its previous owner had, rules had been set for whoever would own it. One such is to keep the rent at an attainable price and to never sell out to the big corporations. Luckily a decade ago, the building had been granted a historical landmark status which made this easy for poor old Lottie. Fighting those vultures had been easy when she was younger but she no longer had it in her now.. 

It’s these attributes that make the building very sought after, many wanted to live in it even offering to pay ten times the rent. But Lottie researched each tenant well. A tenant's job, age, sex, none of it mattered to her. She cared for who the person was. Each current individual residing on the floor was handpicked by her. So, if you find yourself before her, never show greed. 

When one enters through the dark oak doors at the entrance, they are greeted by the lobby. You’ll be walking on shining hardwood floors, the janitor takes his job seriously. Even more so since Lottie lets his entire family live here. Unlike most buildings that have bright white lights that give you a headache, the lighting in here is warm, like the sun embracing you with its rays on a nice hot day. There’s a gorgeous chandelier right in the middle of the room. If you walk a few steps inside, you’ll find the reception desk where two twins by the name of Luke and Kieran will greet you. Lottie had adopted them when they were children. You might be a little confused at the masks they wear but it's none of your business so move on. Lottie will warn you that they can be a little mischievous with a soft smile on her face. Regardless, the twins take their job very seriously and will always be there in times of crisis. 

Next to the reception desk, you’ll find cubes mounted to the wall. The labels on them starting from 01 to 012. This is where any mail or parcels get delivered to. You might gape in shock at what you see next. The beauty of the grand spiral staircase is indescribable. There’s a deep red rug fitted into the stairs, which are made of marble themselves. The railings are gold. The staircase spans up to the highest floor but we’ll get to those soon. To the side of the staircase are elevators, a recent addition that Lottie felt was necessary. The tenants thank her for it. The elevators are disguised to fit into the wood of the walls, only the outline of them can be seen but the buttons make it easier. 

Also in the lobby is a gym and a laundry room. Not much to say about them so…

If you choose to take the elevator, you’ll be greeted with the option of nine floors. The option are as follows:

G - the garage

L - that’s the lobby, you’re already here silly!

F1 - apartment’s 01-02 are on this floor

F2 - apartment’s 03-04 are on this floor

F3 - apartment’s 05-06 are on this floor

F4 - apartment’s 07-08 are on this floor

F5 - apartment’s 09-10 are on this floor

P1 - penthouse one

P2 - penthouse two

If Lottie has agreed to you being a tenant, then congrats! That must mean you gave her a good impression. Here, let us tell you about the other residents.

Apartment 01 houses our janitor, Miles. He lives there with his wife and three-year old son. Not much to say about them but they are very nice people. Miles’ wife, Karla, will show up to your door with a dish in hand from time to time. She likes cooking for people, just let her know your dietary requirements.

Apartment 02 houses Lottie herself and the twins. Many thought she would take one of the penthouses for herself but Lottie doesn’t like the colour of the walls in there.

Apartment 03 has a nice old couple living there. Samson is a little snappy at times but he means well. He once beat up a man that was stalking the girl next door. Him and his cane are a very dangerous duo so don’t make him angry. But if you do then bake him some chocolate chip cookies and all will be forgotten. His husband, Pierre, loves to gossip. If Samson is quiet then Pierre is loud, they are such opposites that you might question how they’ve lasted this long. But then you see the way they look at each other and the question fades away.

Apartment 04 has a young college student living there, Anjali. She’s a bit of a hopeless romantic but to her misfortune, she ends up meeting terrible men and women. It’s okay, Samson is always there to beat them up for her.

Apartment 05 has a handsome police officer. His name is Xavier. He’s very illusive, often away at work but when you do see him, he’s always sleeping. It’s common to find him knocked out in weird places so either put a blanket on him or drag him to his apartment. 

Apartment 06 houses a pair of adopted siblings. The older one is a man named Caleb. He’s a pilot so he’s gone a lot. You’ll find him at the gym downstairs a lot, make sure to say hi, he’s very friendly. His sister, Mara, is actually Xavier’s colleague. Well, work partner is more fitting. Just like her brother, she’s very welcoming. She has the best snacks so if you befriend her, she’ll share them with you.

Apartment 07 has a cardiologist living in it. Zayne is a kid genius, already Chief in his department while most people his age haven’t even become residents. You’re more likely to meet him in the hospital as a patient then as a tenant. Just kidding, if you work very early or come back very late then it’s more likely you’ll meet him. He has a bit of a sweet tooth, if you want to exploit it.

Apartment 08 houses our mystery. No one knows who lives there. No one has seen the individual, many thought it was vacant but Lottie herself confirmed it. When asked about it, she didn’t answer. She believes it's not her place and who are we to argue with her on that. The insane rumours circulating can all be attributed to Mara, who had come up with theories as to why no one has seen them. None of them are true in case you were wondering.

Apartment 09 has a newly wed couple in it. Lisa is currently working as a Librarian, at a bookstore she owns. She used to go to a very prestigious school when she was younger. Her love for knowledge is why she works, her library is popular, you’ll find a lot of rare books in there. None for sale but she’ll be happy for you to come in and read them. Her wife, Jean, is a captain in the military. Jean is away on business a lot but the two make it work.

Room 10 is currently vacant. It has been for a while. Rumor has it that a girl used to live in there until she was brutally murdered and now her ghost haunts the building. Probably not true.

Penthouse 01 has a man named Rafayel in there. He’s… eccentric. You might recognise his name, his paintings are well sought after. It’s common for him to spend days holed up in his penthouse, working on his art. Don’t disturb him when this happens. He might seem harmless but don’t believe that. 

Penthouse 02 is the top floor. It’s occupied by a man named Sylus. He owns the giant conglomerate, Onychinus. I’m sure you’re confused as to why Lottie let a man who goes against what she stands for live in her building. Truth is no one really knows why. He’s the one who’s lived in this building the longest. Some say it was him who introduced the twins to Lottie, maybe that's why she allowed him to stay.

The mystery in Apartment 08 still remains. Maybe it’ll be answered one day.

[slasherslittlesimp]

Just A Little Longer (Bob Reynolds X Reader)

Despite living in the tall and luxurious Avengers tower- a tower that has hosted numerous different heroes throughout the years and is a staple in history- the people currently living in it don’t act as if they have everything they could possibly want or need at their fingertips.

They do everything on their own, never sending an assistant or anyone to do things for them. They clean their own clothes, cook their own meals, wash their own dishes. And the one thing that needs to be done the most often is grocery shopping. Feeding three super soldiers takes a lot, and food quickly runs out. They all usually take turns going out to get groceries- though Alexei has been banned from going alone due to him bothering strangers in attempts to get recognized by pointing out their specially branded cereal with their faces printed across the front.

And today, for the first time since moving into the tower, Bob gets to leave to go grocery shopping alongside Yelena.

He’s been restricted to the tower for safety reasons up until now due to his inability to control his powers, but the others managed to not only convince Valentina that he’d be fine, but to also persuade him into going by telling him that everyone else was too busy to help Yelena and he was the only one that could go. And Yelena is the one person Bob would force himself out of his comfort zone for.

So that’s how he finds himself in a seemingly massive grocery store, eyes flickering about nervously while he fiddles with his fingers, awkwardly following behind Yelena as she tosses miscellaneous items into the shopping cart while crossing them off the very long list in her hand. About halfway through the list she suddenly stops and groans, making Bob immediately ask what’s wrong.

“We already passed the aisle with one of the items in it.” She huffs slightly in annoyance at the idea of having to go back.

“I can go get it.” Bob offers, the words tumbling from his lips before he can even fully think them through.

“Can you, please?” Yelena looks up at him, her eyes filled with relief at his offer. “It’s only a few aisles away. I promise I will stay right here and wait for you.”

Once she tells him what the item is and which aisle to find it in, he nods in determination before walking away to go find it. However, the further he gets from her the more his confidence wavers. By the time he reaches the correct aisle, his mind is racing and he’s all but forgotten what it was he was supposed to be grabbing. His eyes quickly search the shelves in hopes of jogging his memory, and eventually he spots what it was he was supposed to be getting. The problem? There’s many different brands with many different prices. He knows money isn’t technically a problem, but he still doesn’t want to grab the most expensive one. Higher price doesn’t always equal higher quality, as well.

It feels like hours pass by as he stands there, staring at the items lining the shelves as if the correct one to choose will just jump out at him. It gets to the point where he feels bad about making Yelena wait for him for so long so he just blindly reaches out to grab a random brand, simply hoping that it’ll be good though. Just as his hand goes to grab it, Bob finds his breath hitching in shock when his fingertips brush against another persons hand.

He recoils instantly, yanking his hand away as if he’s been burned. He hadn’t even noticed that someone was standing next to him, too lost in thought. And he wishes he had been paying more attention because now he likely just sent a complete stranger into a horrible memory like he did to the others all those weeks ago. He’s practically spiraling at this point, thinking that he completely messed up and that it was a mistake to leave the tower.

Until he hears a voice.

“Are you okay?” The voice snaps him from his thoughts, making his eyes flicker to the stranger that he had accidentally brushed hands with. Bob half expects the person to look at him in fear, but instead he finds nothing of the sort. Instead, their eyes are shining, a soft smile on their face as they look at him with nothing but kindness.

You’re looking at him like… like he is worth looking at.

When Bob doesn’t respond to you, you simply hum in understanding, recognizing the look in his eyes- the look of someone who has experienced so much pain in life and expects too experience so much more. So, instead of pressuring him, you reach out, gently taking his hand into yours as you place the item you both reached for into his palm before closing his fingers around it. You don’t say anything. Just place it into his hand, giving his hand a soft pat, and then flash him a kind smile before turning and walking away.

It takes a moment for Bob to snap out of it. To realize what you did. He can just barely feel the warmth of your touch lingering on his skin. And as he watches you walk away, he finds himself a bit upset that he couldn’t even say anything to you. That all he’ll know you as is the kind stranger with a gentle touch and soft smile who looked at him in a way that made his heart flutter.

Bob stands there in the aisle for a while longer, still staring off at the direction you left in. And it isn’t until he hears his name being called by Yelena that he finally looks away. She questions him, asking what was taking so long and if he was alright. And all he can do in response is nod, a shy smile tugging at his lips as he thinks about the stranger he hopes to see again one day. And maybe next time he’ll actually work up the nerves to say something to you. Something that will get you to stay by his side just a bit longer.

Taglist: @rubyyym

Wrote this in one sitting at 1am and did not proofread it at all. Hopefully it’s good 🙏 there will be another part at some point

[cosmicplexus]

Random Astrology Observations

🌻I wasn't feeling lazy today so this is a bit longer than the usual observation posts🌻

🦋And finally the pricing catalogue is here...at the end of the observations 🦋

Thank you so much my sunflowers🌻your support has been everything. I try my best to respond to your messages and requests. If you haven't received a response, I'm coming 🤍✨

And I tried my best to be reasonable with the prices. Also, I'm not yet doing full chart readings as I am a student with two majors and I'm already struggling with balancing things. In time I will do them. Free one question culture requests are still open, but please don't request for things you see on the pricing catalogue like a big three reading...

I don't want to bore you all too much so here we go🧚🏾‍♀️🦋🌻✨

Astrology Notes...

~4th house Gemini makes for someone who develops family-like bonds in friendships.

~taurus risings tend to be possessive due to the influence of their scorpio 7th house.

~pluto at angular houses 1st, 7th, 4th and 10th is a huge indicator of someone who has had intense experiences in the respective key areas of life and there's spiritual lessons to be learnt regarding that area through transformation.

~libra venus placements may find it really hard to stay single

~7° and 19° venus or moon signs may struggle with the theme of physical perfection and wanting to attain it.

~virgo moons have a tendency of creating problems if they don't have any current ones to solve

~capricorn risings really do look older in their younger days and younger when they're older.

~moon and neptune in 1st house natives may give off the perception that they need saving and may attract people with a martyrdom complex.

~sagittarius, 9th house, 9° and 21° mercuries may have an affinity to music in foreign languages while cancer, 4th house, 4°,16°,28° may enjoy music in their mother tongue

~jupiter in 2nd house and 10th house is heavy lotto winner vibes. Literally and figuratively.

~mercury in 2nd house and at Taurean degrees(2°,14° and 26°) are the born singers

~the 22nd degree is an underrated fame degree...I have a bey's🐝 fame analysis I've been sitting on for a while. That's a conversation for another day.

~pisces venus and mars are the most romantic people in the world which makes me kind of believe the astrology theory of neptune being the higher frequency of venus.

~leo moons really take their hair seriously and may feel out of loop if their hair is not well done.

~want to easily impress a cancer mars man??? Sing praises to your mom. Be dotting around kids.

~girls with 9th house, 9° and 21° Venus are so magically beautiful. Abundance of beauty.

~To a decent degree, liberation of women in society came at the expense of gemini, sagittarius and aquarius venus women being slut-shamed(This is not at all saying other women did not contribute to the liberation of women 🌻✨ That's a conversation for another day)

~neptune plays a huge role in beauty trends and that's why neptune dominant women are usually the beauty influencers which explains why beauty standards are mutable and ever changing.

~jupiter in 7th house can go two ways... extreme luck in meaningful relationships or someone who never has serious relationships and is forever on the look...

~pisces/12th house mercuries and mercury afflicted by neptune are often under fire for being the liars when the real culprit is the sagittarius/9th house mercuries and mercury-jupiter hard aspects.

~I personally view the north node as a jupiter variant. While the general consensus is that it is the purpose we're working for, I do believe that it's also an indicator of our birthrights, innate gifts and where we're lucky.

~Cosmic Plexus🌻🤍

§~PRICE CATALOGUE~§ ~PAID READINGS COMMENCE ON THE 16th of May 2024 🦋DETAILED BIG THREE READING ~ $6.00

🦋5 IN-DEPTH SYNASTRY QUESTIONS READING ~ $9.00 🦋OVERALL SYNASTRY ADVICE ~ $3.00

🦋SPIRITUALITY AND PURPOSE FOCUSED READING ~ $6.00 🦋CAREER ADVICE ~ $3.00 🦋 RELATIONSHIP REMEDY TIPs $3.00

Let me know your thoughts...

~Cosmic Plexus🤍✨🌻🦋©️