#and if you have more than one wifi network saved into the phone it will reset itself constantly

[betwixtyiff]

Tbh I'm gonna go back to an iPhone

[heta-micronomics]

A couple more things that I've picked up and may be useful:

Don't get attached to your online account/url. If you have contacts you want to save, make sure to have a (preferably unwritten) backup plan so you can reach each other later. Having to delete several accounts and phone numbers has cost me a lot of friendships.

If you have important notes, write them down. Don't use a notes app. Have it physically down. Slip the paper between pages of a book or textbook. Thinner paper is better since it will cause less of a hump.

Be aware of how well your guardians can navigate safety settings, but also know them yourself. In and out. Apple (idk about others) tracks and shows what websites you traffic most often, so keep that in mind.

As mentioned earlier, peanut butter in particular is a great stashing food if you have access to it. It has relatively good nutritional value per serving compared to many other snacks/ingredients.

Y'know how some places have free sauce packets, salt and pepper, and other little things? Keep them. Not for you, but for trading in school lunchrooms if you don't have food yourself. They're small, easy to hide, and generally in demand. It sounds silly, but it works more often than you'd think.

If you use private tabs, especially on your phone, make sure to regularly switch out and use the normal ones as well, and leave them open. Don't exit out of them when you close the private tabs. It's tempting to make it look like you're not doing anything, but over time, it'll get suspicious.

Bedsheets may seem like a good hiding spot—large, layered—but it's one of the first places they'll look. It's easy to rip a bed apart and find things.

If you have a burner device, only connect to WiFi when absolutely necessary. It's not hard to see what devices are connected to a network.

Regular texts (not iMessage, messenger, etc) will usually still display the contact record on the bill. Even if the messages themselves are deleted, the carrier will document everything that comes through their network.

hey so protip if you have abusive parents and need to get around the house as quietly as possible, stay close to furniture and other heavy stuff because the floor is settled there and it’s less likely to creak

[klondikeairconditioning]

Why Programmable Thermostats Are Essential for Your Home

Summary:

Did you know that nearly half of your home’s energy bill goes to heating and cooling? Yet, many homeowners unknowingly waste energy by running their HVAC systems inefficiently. The good news? A programmable thermostat can change that—automating your home’s climate control, cutting down on waste, and saving you money without sacrificing comfort.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Why Smart Thermostats Are the Key to Energy Savings

Top Features to Look for in a Programmable Thermostat

1. Demand Response

2. Custom Scheduling

3. Wi-Fi Capabilities

4. Automatic Updates

5. Geofencing

6. Energy Monitoring and Reporting

7. Smart Home Integration

How to Maximize Energy Savings with Your Smart Thermostat

1. Customizing Temperature Settings for Optimal Efficiency

2. Using Scheduling Features to Control Heating and Cooling

3. Leveraging Geofencing and Smart Home Integration

4. Monitoring Energy Usage with Your Thermostat’s App

5. Regular Maintenance Tips to Keep Your Thermostat Efficient

End Note

Introduction

Keeping your home comfortable while saving on energy costs can be a challenge, especially with fluctuating temperatures throughout the year. While regular HVAC maintenance helps, one of the most effective yet often overlooked solutions is installing a programmable thermostat.

A smart thermostat does more than just regulate your home’s temperature. It learns your habits, adapts to your lifestyle, and optimizes energy usage, reducing waste and lowering utility bills. With automatic temperature control, remote access, and energy-saving features, a programmable thermostat is a must-have for homeowners looking to enhance comfort and efficiency effortlessly.

In this article, we explore the benefits of programmable thermostats to home comfort and HVAC optimization

Why Smart Thermostats Are the Key to Energy Savings

Installing a smart home thermostat helps optimize energy usage and comfort, making it a valuable addition to your home.

These devices can learn your schedule, preferences, and behavior over time, automatically adjusting the temperature to match your lifestyle. They reduce heating and cooling when you are away, reducing energy wastage.

Many modern thermostats provide insights into energy usage, helping you identify patterns and making informed decisions on climate control and energy optimization. These insights allow you to make adjustments to your temperature settings, resulting in energy savings and a reduction in utility bills.

Top Features to Look for in a Programmable Thermostat

If you are looking to buy a thermostat, here are some of the best programmable thermostat features that you should look for:

1. Demand Response

Demand response is a program hosted by utility companies. It gives them access to your thermostat, allowing them to adjust your temperature during peak energy demand times. This reduces your energy consumption and lowers utility bills.

2. Custom Scheduling

Scheduling allows you to set heating and cooling depending on the time of day. This feature ensures that you don’t heat or cool your home unnecessarily. According to the US Department of Energy, you can save 10% annually by setting your thermostat back 7-8 degrees for 8 hours a day.

3. Wi-Fi Capabilities

WiFi capability is a core feature of intelligent thermostats. The thermostat accesses the internet through your home network. This allows you to remotely control your home temperature from your smartphone.

4. Automatic Updates

Choosing a thermostat that supports automatic updates is an important aspect of futureproofing your home. This means you can keep your home thermostat up-to-date on key software changes without needing to buy a new model.

5. Geofencing

Scheduling is not perfect because not every household has a set schedule. Geofencing solves this with the use of the GPS on your phone. This feature allows all family members to link their smartphones to the thermostat, which then uses the GPS on your phone to determine if you are home or not.

Some thermostats can even detect when you are on your way home and prepare the temperature for your arrival.

6. Energy Monitoring and Reporting

Energy monitoring is an often overlooked feature of intelligent thermostats. This feature tracks energy usage and provides reports showing where you are saving and where you can be more efficient.

A sudden spike in energy bills is often the first sign of an HVAC issue. With energy monitoring, your thermostat acts as an early warning system, helping you detect problems and schedule repairs before they escalate.

7. Smart Home Integration

Smart home integration is a core feature of connected thermostats. It enhances convenience, comfort, and functionality. Imagine your thermostat working in harmony with your security cameras, smart lights, and voice-assistant systems.

This level of integration allows for a fully automated home environment. For instance, when your thermostat senses that you have left the house, it triggers your home security system and turns off the lights.

How to Maximize Energy Savings with Your Smart Thermostat

We live in a world where energy savings are crucial to environmental sustainability, cost control, and optimal comfort. Here are some ways to maximize energy savings with a smart thermostat:

1. Customizing Temperature Settings for Optimal Efficiency

One way to save money using intelligent thermostats is through precise temperature control. Your thermostat allows you to configure temperature settings until you find the right balance between comfort and energy efficiency.

Smart temperature devices also have adaptive learning capabilities, which allow them to learn your schedule and preferences, using that data to provide optimal heating and cooling operation.

2. Using Scheduling Features to Control Heating and Cooling

The best programmable thermostat lets you create custom schedules for your daily routine. For instance, you can program the thermostat to lower the temperature at night while you sleep and raise it before you wake up.

Turning on smart scheduling enhances HVAC optimization, heating and cooling your home only when necessary. This will result in substantial energy savings at the end of the month.

3. Leveraging Geofencing and Smart Home Integration

Geofencing takes energy efficiency to another level by using your phone’s GPS to determine whether you are home or away. When you leave your home, the thermostat switches to an energy-saving mode. And when you get back, it returns to your preferred temperature settings.

Also, smart thermostats can be integrated with other smart home devices, creating an energy-efficient home environment. For instance, linking with smart blinds can help regulate indoor temperature, blocking out direct sunlight in the summer and allowing it in the colder months. This enhances convenience and streamlines energy management.

4. Monitoring Energy Usage with Your Thermostat’s App

WiFi-enabled thermostats are equipped with energy usage reports. This report provides insights into energy consumption and your system’s performance. It offers a clear breakdown of energy consumption patterns, identifying peak usage times and potential areas for improvement.

By analyzing this data, you can make decisions on optimizing your HVAC system and adjusting your habits to enable energy savings and reduce utility bills.

5. Regular Maintenance Tips to Keep Your Thermostat Efficient

Smart thermostats are equipped with alert and notification systems that keep you informed of your system’s performance. If there are sudden or unusual temperature fluctuations, your thermostat will alert you to the malfunction. It also sends regular maintenance reminders such as filter replacements, battery changes, software updates, etc.

End Note

Smart thermostats are not just important for temperature regulation. They also provide energy efficiency reports, allowing you to optimize energy consumption and extend the lifespan of your HVAC system. These devices can also be integrated with other smart home devices, enhancing energy savings, reducing utility bills, and ensuring comfort and convenience.

Take control of your home’s comfort and energy efficiency today! Klondike Air will help you choose and install the perfect Wi-Fi-enabled thermostat tailored to your needs. Contact us now for expert advice and professional installation.

This blog was originally published at https://klondikeair.com/why-programmable-thermostats-are-essential/

[topupnation]

How to Reduce App Data Usage and Make Your Phone Credit Last Longer

Are you constantly running out of mobile data while using Netflix, Instagram, or WhatsApp? With a prepaid phone plan, every MB counts. Watching a quick YouTube video or scrolling through Instagram can eat up more data than you realize, forcing you to top up your phone more often. But don’t worry—there are simple ways to lower your app data usage and make your phone credit last longer.

Many smartphone apps run in the background, syncing, updating, and preloading content without your knowledge. This passive data consumption can silently drain your allowance, leaving you wondering where all your data went. Understanding which apps use the most data and how to control them is essential to staying within your limit while still enjoying your favorite online activities.

How to Check Your App Data Usage on Android

If you don’t have unlimited data, keeping track of how much each app consumes is essential. On an Android phone, you can monitor your app data usage by following these steps:

Open Settings.

Navigate to Network & Internet and tap on Mobile Data.

View your total monthly data usage.

Tap App Data Usage to see which apps are consuming the most data.

Set a Data Alert and Limit to receive a notification when you’re close to using up your data.

By regularly checking your data consumption, you can identify the biggest data-draining apps and adjust your usage accordingly. Android also allows you to set data restrictions for specific apps, preventing them from using mobile data when running in the background.

How to Check Your App Data Usage on iPhone

If you're using an iPhone, you can also monitor and control data usage for individual apps. Follow these steps:

Open Settings.

Tap Mobile Network and scroll down.

View a list of installed apps and their respective data usage.

Toggle apps to WiFi Only mode to prevent unnecessary mobile data usage.

This simple adjustment ensures that apps don’t eat into your mobile data when you’re on a 3G or 4G connection. Additionally, you can reset your mobile data statistics every month to track your usage more accurately.

Which Apps Use the Most Data?

Understanding which apps consume the most data can help you stay within your limit. Here are some of the biggest data-hungry apps:

Netflix

Streaming video content is one of the fastest ways to use up data. Here’s how much Netflix consumes per hour:

Low quality: 0.3GB

Medium quality: 0.7GB

High quality: 3GB

Ultra HD: 7GB

To save data, download episodes while on WiFi and watch them offline later. You can also lower the video quality in the Netflix settings to reduce data usage.

WhatsApp

If you use WhatsApp for video calls or send a lot of pictures and videos, your data usage can quickly add up. On average, WhatsApp consumes around 6GB per month. Reduce WhatsApp’s data usage by:

Setting media downloads to WiFi only.

Lowering call quality in the settings.

Turning off automatic chat backups unless connected to WiFi.

Instagram

Scrolling through Instagram can use around 100MB per hour, adding up to about 3GB per month. This is mainly because Instagram preloads videos for smoother playback. To lower data consumption:

Open Instagram settings.

Go to Mobile Data Usage.

Enable Use Less Data.

For best results, try using Instagram only when connected to WiFi.

YouTube

Video streaming is one of the biggest data drainers, and YouTube is no exception. Here’s how much data YouTube uses per hour:

144p – 240p: 80MB

360p: 300MB

480p: 500MB

720p HD: 1.5GB

1080p HD: 3GB

To save data while using YouTube:

Lower the video quality manually in settings.

Download videos to watch offline.

Use YouTube Data Saver Mode.

How to Reduce Background Data Usage

Background data usage is when apps continue to use mobile data even when you're not actively using them. This can happen when apps update content, sync messages, or refresh feeds in the background. To limit background data usage:

On Android:

Go to Settings → Network & Internet → Mobile Data.

Tap App Data Usage.

Select an app and turn on Restrict Background Data.

On iPhone:

Go to Settings → Mobile Data.

Scroll down and toggle off Background App Refresh for individual apps.

You can also enable Data Saver Mode (Android) or Low Data Mode (iPhone) to reduce background activity across all apps.

Other Ways to Save Data on Your Phone

Aside from managing app settings, here are additional ways to minimize mobile data usage:

Use WiFi Whenever Possible

Connect to a secure WiFi network at home, work, or in public spaces like cafés and libraries. Ensure that large downloads and updates only happen when connected to WiFi.

Disable Auto-Updates for Apps

App updates can consume a lot of data. To prevent automatic updates:

Android: Open the Google Play Store → Tap your profile → Settings → Auto-update apps → Select Over WiFi only.

iPhone: Open Settings → App Store → Toggle off Use Mobile Data for Updates.

Limit Cloud Backup and Syncing

Services like Google Drive, iCloud, and Dropbox constantly sync files in the background, consuming data. Configure backups to run only when connected to WiFi.

Compress Web Pages in Your Browser

Some browsers offer data-saving features that compress web pages:

Google Chrome: Enable Lite Mode in settings.

Opera Mini: Use the built-in data compression mode.

Need More Data? Top Up Instantly!

If you find yourself running out of data often, you can top up your prepaid phone instantly at Topupnation.co. Whether you need an EE top-up, Lebara top-up, Giffgaff top-up, Lyca UK top-up, O2 top-up, Three top-up, Tesco Mobile top-up, Talk Home Mobile top-up, or Now Mobile top-up, we’ve got you covered.

Your top-up will be delivered via email in seconds, so you can get back to streaming, chatting, and browsing without interruption. Stay connected effortlessly with Topupnation.co!

By following these tips, you can significantly reduce your mobile data usage and make your prepaid credit last longer. Take control of your data today and enjoy a hassle-free mobile experience!

This blog was initially posted here.

[castogrande]

It is essential to turn off your mobile phone’s WiFi when you leave the house – steps to improve your smartphone’s security

Smartphones are basically the Swiss Army Knife of modern life —small, packed with useful features, and something we rely on daily. But there’s one issue most people don’t think twice about: connectivity. When we leave the house, we often keep Wi-Fi on without a second thought, which can open the door to serious security risks.

That’s why it’s a good idea to turn off Wi-Fi when you’re out and about. Doing so helps you avoid connecting to sketchy networks, protects your personal data, and even makes it harder for apps and services to track your location. A little awareness goes a long way when it comes to keeping your device (and your privacy) safe.

Why you should turn off Wi-Fi when leaving home

One of the most common habits when it comes to managing our device’s connectivity is leaving Wi-Fi on all the time, so it reconnects automatically when we return home. On the surface, this seems like a smart and convenient choice —after all, no one wants to burn through their mobile data just because they got caught up in an intense Call of Duty: Warzone Mobile match.

But here’s the issue: keeping Wi-Fi constantly searching for networks puts your security at risk. Your phone isn’t just looking for your trusted home network —it’s scanning and interacting with all kinds of open networks, some of which could be malicious. This means that your location and personal data could end up exposed without you even realizing it. Sometimes, the best way to stay connected is knowing when to disconnect.

Your Wi-Fi knows more about you than you think

Location tracking isn’t just something out of a spy movie—it’s a real concern. We’re creatures of habit, and chances are, we visit the same spots over and over: our favorite café, the shopping mall, the subway station. Over time, our phones collect a long list of remembered Wi-Fi networks, passively revealing where we go and when.

That’s why it’s worth rethinking how we protect both ourselves and our devices. A simple but effective step? Clear out the saved networks on your phone and only connect manually when you need to. This small change reduces the risk of automatically linking to unsecured or malicious networks and keeps your digital footprint a little less predictable. In a world where data is currency, sometimes the smartest move is to stay off the grid —at least until you actually need Wi-Fi.

A few extra steps for extra security

For Android users, there’s an additional layer to consider. Simply turning off Wi-Fi and forgetting saved networks isn’t always enough —many Android devices also use Bluetooth for location tracking. That means your phone could still be pinging nearby devices and revealing your whereabouts, even when Wi-Fi is off.

To stay in control, take a moment to dive into your settings and check under Location or Bluetooth to see which features are active. From there, you can decide just how much freedom your phone actually needs. The same goes for apps that track your location. It’s always a good idea to review which apps have access to your whereabouts and make sure that only the essential ones are enabled. Unless an app truly needs to know where you are, it’s best to keep that info on a need-to-know basis.

At the end of the day, it’s worth asking how much we actually need Wi-Fi when we’re out and about. If you’re just listening to music you’ve already downloaded or chatting on WhatsApp or Messenger, relying on mobile data might not be such a big deal.

Of course, it depends on the situation —sometimes staying connected is a must, and other times, cutting the cord (or at least the signal) won’t make much of a difference. A little awareness about when and why we use Wi-Fi can go a long way in keeping our devices (and data) safe.

source: El Adelantado De Segovia

[transienturl]

The iPhone 16e is more of "we killed the iPhone SE and there's now a slightly cost-cut 16 without magsafe and one of the cameras" than anything.

For the most part I think that's exactly what we all expected; magsafe being one of the omissions is definitely surprising to me and kind of smart, imo. You want to cut features many people never use and keep the ones that make a good experience for everyone; a lot of people charge their phones with a cable (less heat!) and don't attach their phones to anything magnetically. A lot of people probably don't switch to the wide angle camera. A lot of people live in an area without much millimeter wave 5G signal, which I didn't even mention because by "a lot" I mean "basically all." A lot of people don't have wifi 6e routers (that one being cut kind of sucks because 6e devices on 6e networks help with congestion, but oh well).

It's kind of odd not to do more cuts and drop the price more, but I can't really think of anything else to cut. For device longevity and reducing e-waste, you shouldn't cut the chip (and memory I guess; something something AI). You shouldn't cut satellite emergency communication. You shouldn't cut battery (it might be bigger, actually). What else are you going to cut? The display is an existing part. A "cheaper" external build might not even be much cheaper to make, with Apple's volume/scale, and anything less durable is worse for the user (iPhone durability these days seems top-notch; planned obsolescence is still the silliest conspiracy theory). Don't cut waterproofing. I suppose you could cut Face ID, but I have to assume the usage numbers on it are really good and fundamentally changing the device unlock system... yeah, no. I'm a bit surprised they didn't do a 64GB storage option for $549, but that might be a good thing; 64GB gets tight quickly in my experience, and again, longevity.

edit: no UWB (precision airtag finding), also. weird!

Oh, well. It's basically an iPhone 16. Sure. Kudos for not intentionally making it look garish/juvenile or feel cheap just to drive conversions up the ladder, like many companies do with certain lower-end products.

I updated my table of iPhone weights; it's listed as a 3 gram weight savings.

also iPhone 17 mini please please please. there definitely isn't going to be one but come on Apple you've changed your mind on things before

[kley-blog]

A Few Handy Tips . . . 1. If you ever get caught sleeping at your desk at work just say "they told me at the Blood Bank that this would happen. 2. When the power goes out search for wifi networks on your phone to see if everyones power is out. 3. Quelling road rage by pretending that every asshole driver really has to poop. 4. If you want to maintain good posture, pretend your nipples have lasers that shoot out of them and you have to keep them aimed at people’s heads. 5. Wiping the water off of your body with your hands in the shower before getting out and towel-drying. 6. If you want to attract better people, focus on, think about, read about, and go find them 7. If your car is overheating, turn your heat on full blast. When you turn the heat on in a car, it pulls heat from the engine into the cab, thus cooling the engine. 8. Hit "s" while watching Netflix on a computer to skip the intro. 9. If you don’t know whether you should use the word effect or affect, simply use impact. 10. When buying bedsheets, look for striped ones. It will make it much easier to find the long and short sides. 11. If you accidentally press the spacebar and scroll down the page, you can press Shift+Space and go back to where you were. 12. Don't save your banking information on online stores. Makes impulse buying much more difficult if you have to track down your wallet. 13. If you keep a baseball bat in your car for protection, put a sock over it. If they grab the bat, they will only get the sock, and you will get another swing. 14. Filling in the 'to' field of an email last. 15. When buying online, leave items in the shopping cart for a while. There is a good chance that the website is tracking this, and will lower the price overtime to entice you into buying. 16. If your coworker ever calls in sick for work, you can do the same 1-3 days later. Your boss will think you have the same thing and it's "going around the office." 17. Blink eyes rapidly for a minute before bed to tire yourself out. 18. When lending a pen or marker hand it over without the cap, you are much more likely to get it back. 19. If you have somewhat of a double chin or you want your jawline to be more defined in a picture, put your tongue on the roof of your mouth. 20. Whenever you accidentally set off your smoke alarm, give your pets a treat so they learn to come to you when there actually is a fire and you need to escape. 21. Remember that one 18-inch pizza is more pizza than two 12-inch pizzas.

[openmindedcare1]

How to Find the Best Mobile SIM Plans

Getting a SIM-only plan can save you money and can be more convenient than a phone contract. There are a variety of SIM tariffs available, including 30-day plans and 12-month deals.

The best mobile sim plans offer a good amount of data for light users, and the best ones include unlimited talk and text. Some plans also offer hotspot usage.

Mint Mobile

Mint Mobile offers a number of great plans that are cheap to use. Its family plan pricing starts at three months, which is the shortest contract they offer. This allows you to test out the service before committing to a longer term.

All of their plans come with unlimited talk and text, Wi-Fi calling, and hotspot data. They also feature free calls and texts to Mexico and Canada. In addition, they allow you to add on extra LTE and 5G data allotments at a rate of $10 for an additional 1GB or $20 for an additional 3GB.

The company recently boosted its data plans, offering 5GB, 15GB, and 20GB options.

However, all of these are subject to throttling after exceeding the high-speed limit. In addition, the service has a seven-day money-back guarantee.

Lycamobile

Lycamobile offers a range of pay-as-you-go plans based on users’ usage and budgets. These plans include prepaid data and talk time options as well as international calling features. The company also offers a free app that makes it easy to manage your account.

The company uses T-Mobile’s network in the USA, and its plans offer competitive pricing. They cater to a diverse user base with different needs. In comparison, Airalo focuses on travel-centric eSIMs with global coverage.

Customer service is a key element of any best mobile sim plans provider, and Lycamobile is no exception. Many users, including long-term customers like Gaurav Mamgain, have praised the company’s straightforward support and effective problem resolution.

However, others have reported issues with delays and unprofessional behavior.

Customers should verify their phone compatibility before switching to Lycamobile.

Tello

Tello operates on T-Mobile’s network, making it a good choice for people who want a low-cost phone plan that doesn’t require a contract. Its plans range from no data to 35GB of high-speed data per month. All of its plans include unlimited texts and WiFi calling. Tello also offers a monthly data refund if you overuse your data.

If you need more data than Tello’s plans offer, consider Mint Mobile or US Mobile.

These two carriers offer plans with more premium data and a 5GB mobile sim plans hotspot.

They also offer no-contract plans and the flexibility to change or cancel your plan without penalty.

Tello is a great option for users who don’t need a lot of data, like students or travelers who use their phones in the US. Its plans are inexpensive and its Build Your Own plan allows customers to customize their plan with the data they need.

RedPocket

Red Pocket offers prepaid plans on select networks. Their GSMA and GSMT plans have unlimited data, while their CDMA plan has limited data but still with free global texting. Unlike other MVNOs, they don’t charge overage fees or slow your data speed after you’ve used up all of your allowance for the month.

The cheapest plan is 1GB per month and includes hotspot access. This plan costs $10 at full price, but is 50% off the first month.

The best way to save money on your cellular plan is by using Wi-Fi as much as possible and limiting data usage. You can also save money by avoiding the most expensive major carriers and choosing a prepaid or no-contract plan. In addition, you can also save money by comparing different plans and providers.

Google Fi

Google Fi is a great option for anyone who travels extensively. It offers a variety of benefits that make it unique among prepared carriers. Its Unlimited Plus plan includes perks such as shareable data for tablets, full connectivity to compatible smartwatches, six months of YouTube Premium, and free texting abroad. Its price is a little higher than that of comparable MVNOs, but its international features make it worth the extra cost.

Fi also offers a Flexible plan for those who don't use much data, with a soft data cap of 15 GB. This plan is available on a variety of phones, and you can add an additional data-only SIM to use in any other device. You can claim a phone from the Fi app or website, and you only pay for what you use.

[merulast]

Overland to Tokyo Day 6

After an long and sleepless night feeling homesick, the day started as shitty as it could. The credit card was gone. I could not even believe that. Searched my whole stuff 3 times. Then even called at home. I just could remember that It took me an hard time to place the card on an secured place. One that is not together with other important things. Tuned out I found the most save place in the world: At home. On my desk. Great. Great….

It's about the moneys

This is not the 2000s anymore. Back then german debit cards worked on solid 60% of the would out of the box. Even on chinese ATMs. But that changed because the Maestro Network had been shut down and germans missed the train to create an solid alternative. 50% of the banks are now in the V-Pay network. The other half uses .. nothing at all? I mean they could just had fused with one of the other big networks of the world. But noo. Lets make our OWN payment network with blackjack and hookers. V-Pay works in aall EU nations plus Turkey and some others. Great. Not great.

So if you want to leave the EU, like I would do on this day. It's just a piece of plastic junk. Worthless. You need an credit card. I got myself an credit card for this reason. But I left it at home… Okay. Lets take an deep breath. Calculate how much I've got with me and how long I have to live from that. I need in in Georgia, Russia, Kazakhstan for sure. In china I could open an Alipay account and maybe transfer something over. But let expect it to not work. In Korea and Japan I expect my Google Wallet to work.

After long thoughts I decided to continue. Well knowing, that if I turn around now, I would probably never start over again.

Bus bus bus

I packed all my stuff. Gave mental middle fingers to many of the other people living in the hostel and headed to the Bus Central again. It's solid 40 minutes to walk. But full packed, its more than this. The good thing on the Bus station are the people on the counters. You tell them a city to go. They tell you a time and how much. Done. Burgas. Here we come! The Ticked was about 6€ and the tiny bus, that had not even my ticket checked, was old, rusty and ew. But did the job perfectly fine.

And again. So far nobody failed me. (too much) All the routes that I found on the internet exists and work on an solid base. Quality aside. For example nothing ever had Wifi - even thought they tell so on the internet. I don't even care for the excuses anyway. And the 'bus' entertainment had never been switched on once. You spend the time by watching the green landscape anyway.

Burgas

Did I said that Varna was pretty clean and wonderful? Well Burgas is licked! Hooly shit! The entire inner City is in a state where I wish that german towns would be like that all the time. Its amazing!

The Train Station and the Bus center are 20 meters apart from each other and both are hot af. The inner city starts just over the street like somebody actually spend time think things over! All the people there seemed to have an wonderful time and. Wow. Burgas. The hidden Gem. Too bad that I would have not too much time to spend it here.

After relaxing for one hour or two, having an meal and soaking some more money from my soon worthless piece of plastic, I started heading to the harbour. The company has GPS coordinates on his homepage, as well on all e-mails replies. They locate exactly to the position of the ship! It was already waiting.

BUT.

They do not point to the office where you have to pay and get the ticket itself. That office is about 400 meters more on the south. You cannot miss it. Its basically the only building that is not an harbour hall and has some furniture in front of it.

You can guess it. Yes. I walked the way twice. With all my stuff. I hate having stuff. Walking to far starts to become an repeating pattern. In my perfect world I would travel with nothing but my mobile phone and my two hurting feet alone.

The progress is too difficult to gasp. You find the left door (the very left one!) Wait in front of it as the sign tells you. They want the passport. Then they send you up to the first floor to pay for the ticked. No cards. Only Euro. Don't forget to show them your passport again. It could be that someone else loves to spend 200€ on you and that would be crazy! So they check it again. Then you walk back down, and get the ticket. The staff was very friendly, but stressed. No wonder. They have to take care about 1-2 meters of paperwork just besides you.

To my surprise I was allowed to to board right away, since I had no vehicle on me at all. I decided to do so. And even thought all the people expect from you that you know what to do and where to go, I was able to make it without much issues. In the end you are up and on board. Write you name into the list, ignore 'we are number one!' singings in your head, and go to the room. I took an default 4 bed's room. It's bigger than the 4 Beds on the train, and you have your own Bathroom with shower. So you could say its way above the quality of all the hostels. And, this time, I was lucky with the other people. They are bikers from France and nice guys :)

You even can hatch supper if you check in before 6pm. It was .. alot. Wow. The meals here are no joke. They might be not top notch quality. But they are solid and big. Pretty big.

Following the Schedule the ship should leave some when in the night, when everyone is on board. Deep in the night our last person joined the sleeping room. Babbeling something in german. And I remember that one of the french guys (Michele) was making pretty cartoonish stunts with the ladder, when he wanted to climb up to his bed ^^

So!

The whole day was 206€. Finally a sum that can give you something nice from lego. Eh? How about the 10274 Ghostbusters Ecto 1 ? Its around this price and hey. This car should worth as much as 3 nights on a ship including food and drinks!

[paypant]

10 Ways to Listen to Audiobooks for Free

I love audiobooks, but they can get expensive. Luckily, there are plenty of ways to listen to audiobooks for free! Here are ten tips and tricks that will have you listening to your next favorite book while saving money.

Borrow audiobooks from your public library.

Check with your local library to see if they offer audiobooks. Many libraries do, and many of them are free. Even if you're not a library member or don't live near one, it's worth checking out—sometimes libraries will let you use their services even if you aren't a resident or member. Most libraries' audiobooks are digital, meaning you can download them directly onto your phone or tablet without needing physical CDs or DVDs (though some still offer these options). If the audiobook is available in both formats, I'd recommend opting for the digital version since it's more accessible and easier to move around than physical copies. Audiobooks usually come with time limits—you may have only three weeks (or one month) after check-out before they expire and must be returned. Be aware of this when choosing what books to borrow from your local library—you might not want something that'll leave you disappointed after only a few days.

Use digital services like Overdrive and Libby.

Here are some ways to listen to audiobooks for free: Use digital services like Overdrive and Libby. If your local library or school district offers audiobook borrowing through these platforms, you’re in luck! You can borrow ebooks and audiobooks from your library using this service. You only need an internet connection and a device that supports the Overdrive app (iOS, Android, desktop). Download podcasts about books. Loyal Books has hundreds of free podcasts for readers who want more information about books they read or are thinking about reading (this is my favorite). Open Culture also has many free podcasts on its website that discuss books in detail.

Check out your local library's site and download any apps they have.

Your library may have audiobook apps. The best way to find out is by checking the library’s website and searching for “audiobook” or “audiobooks” on their app page. Ask them if they can make one if they don't have one. If your local library doesn't have an app available, you can still listen to audiobooks on your phone through apps like Audible, Overdrive (which works with many libraries), and iTunes. You can also listen to audiobooks on your computer and tablet using these same methods.

Get audiobook apps on your smartphone or tablet.

Find audiobook apps. If you’re looking for an app that will let you listen to audiobooks, search the Google Play Store or Apple App Store for “audiobook.” You can also check out Audible and Overdrive. They both have similar features and are great places to start your search. Look for an app with a user-friendly interface that is easy on your eyes and ears. The first thing that attracts me to an audiobook app is its design—a simple layout with large fonts makes it easy to read while driving or doing other tasks around the house. What's more important than design? The sound quality, of course! Ensure it has clear speakers, so no buzzing noises disturb your enjoyment when listening on headphones (or better yet: earbuds). Download free content from public libraries or buy individual episodes or entire series as downloads through these apps when possible so they don't eat away at data limits when streaming over cellular networks. Especially if you're paying per MB with plans like T-Mobile ONE Plus International plan, which offers unlimited high-speed data abroad but charges $25/GB after reaching 50GB each month domestically—and always requires WiFi connection everywhere else except those regions where cellular coverage exists like Japan where all providers offer 4G LTE speeds indoors.

Free trials for audiobook subscriptions.

Take advantage of free trials for audiobook subscriptions. Listen to audiobooks for free on Amazon. Listen to audiobooks for free on iTunes.

Use the free audio content on YouTube.

Listen to audiobooks on YouTube with a free trial of Audible. YouTube has a vast collection of free audiobook content that you can access with your computer or phone. You can use YouTube's built-in player on your desktop or download the app from Apple or Google Play and listen directly. You'll be able to find new releases and classics alike, as well as multiple versions of each title (audio only, text-to-speech reading of the book). The selection's not too bad either—there are over 75,000 books available. One caveat: many readers will be marked "properly licensed" when they're not, so if it bothers you that some authors aren't getting paid enough money for their work (or at all), skip those.

Join a podcast community focused on literature.

If you deeply love books and want to surround yourself with other like-minded people, joining a podcast community focused on literature may be just what you're looking for. Many podcasts focus on literature, some more educational and some more entertaining, but all of them will help keep your love for reading alive. Some focus on different genres of literature, such as memoirs or poetry, while others focus on specific authors and their works. Still, others are more general and cover everything from the writing process to how best to approach particular topics in our daily lives (such as love or death).

Invest in Audible.

Consider investing in Audible to get more flexibility with audiobooks. If you'd like to get the most out of your audiobook collection, consider signing up for a monthly subscription service like Audible.

Not only does this give you access to thousands of titles that aren't available elsewhere, but it also provides the option to cancel at any time and restart or extend your membership later. You can try the service with a complimentary 30-day trial before committing yourself.

Download for free from Loyal Books or Open Culture.

If the book is in the public domain, you can download it for free from sites like Loyal Books or Open Culture. Public domain means that a work has expired and can be used freely. This includes books whose copyrights have expired or been forfeited by their owners, which means they're available to anyone who wants them—including you.

The Internet Archive has an enormous collection of public domain books, organized by categories like "French children's literature," "Russian literature," "Utopian novels" (which is my favorite), and more. Some full-text versions are available at Gutenberg Project, but if you want the audio version, try one of these other sites instead.

Non-fiction books with Free Audiobooks.

Non-fiction books are a great place to start with free audiobooks because there are many great ones. You can find a lot of great non-fiction books on the internet. The website Librivox has over 15,000 audiobooks in the public domain, and they're all available for streaming or download as MP3s. You can also find plenty of non-fiction books in your local library. Go to their website, check the catalog, and request the text you want to listen to! Libraries often have more than one copy of each title (sometimes many), so don't be afraid that yours might not be available when you call them up and ask for it.

Best Free Audio Books

There's no question that the best free audiobooks come from Librivox recordings of public-domain texts. The oldest are from the 1900s, and they all have a unique feel with different readers and styles. These are an incredible value since they're free but high quality simultaneously. For these reasons, these free audiobooks should be your first stop when looking for great things to listen to for free.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is there a free version of Audible? The short answer is that there isn't a free, unlimited version of Audible. However, some ways exist to enjoy listening to audiobooks without breaking the bank. If you're an Amazon Prime member, you can get two free monthly books and listen to them on your phone or computer with the Audible app. Of course, there are some limitations to this version of Audible: they're restricted to two books per month, and they'll expire at the end of that month. But if you're a voracious reader and want to get in on all those great deals before you start paying for books, this option is perfect for you. How can I download audiobooks for free? The best way to download audiobooks for free is through a podcast. Podcasts are audio files that you can subscribe to on your phone or computer and listen to at any time, usually while you're out walking or driving. The big disadvantage is that they are usually very short (5 minutes or less) and come out very infrequently (usually just one per week or month). Related article: 17 sites to get paid to read e-books Which is the best audiobook app? Audible is a subscription service that costs $14.95 monthly for one book (plus a credit on the site for buying additional books). You can find more than 100,000 audiobooks from popular authors like JK Rowling, Tom Clancy, James Patterson, and Suzanne Collins here. The app has a nice interface—you can easily search for everything available or see what's new and trending. You can also browse by genre and subject matter, so it will be easy to find if you're looking for something specific. How do you listen to audiobooks from the library? If you want to listen to audiobooks from the library, you'll first need a library card. You can get one at your local library branch, or if you live in the U.S., you can sign up online at your local library's website. Once you have an account, the most common way is to download them instantly onto your computer or phone (or other listening devices) using OverDrive, which is free and available for many devices. It may take a little time for OverDrive to process your request (they give a processing estimate with each book), but once it's ready, it downloads and stores the file. Then you have to plug in your phone or computer (or whatever device you're using as a player) and listen away. What is the cheapest way to get audiobooks? There are plenty of ways to get audiobooks for free or nearly free. Here are some of my favorite resources for getting audiobooks for cheap: Your local library – Your local library is a great resource for free audiobooks. Each library varies in how many they have available. Still, most should have many fiction and non-fiction titles you can borrow and download to any device you have (computer, tablet, smartphone). Audiobook apps – Many apps let you download audiobooks onto your phone or tablet. What equipment do you need to listen to audiobooks? You don't need any special equipment to listen to an audiobook. Obviously, an audiobook is a recording of someone reading out loud, so all you really need is a way to ensure that you aren't listening to anything else–like music–while listening to your book. The easiest way to ensure this doesn't happen is just to plug in some headphones and go about your life.

Summary.

The good news is that there are many places where you can find free audiobooks. With the rise of digital books and e-readers, more people are turning to audiobooks for entertainment and information. If you’re looking for an alternative format that won't cost much but still offers excellent content, audiobooks may be just what you need. Read the full article

[i-love-love]

Re: college, if you can’t get financial aid by going through your parents you may be able to qualify for a dependency override waiver. This is what paid for three years of my college education after I had a massive explosion with my parents ending it getting kicked out. At my school, you went through the case management office to do this. There’s paperwork involved stating that you are a victim of exceptional circumstance (things like abuse, foster care, emancipation, etc.) and from there you can file the FAFSA based on your own income rather than your parents’; you parents’ financial info doesn’t even enter the equation. When you’re working part time at minimum wage, you qualify for a lot of grants and need based scholarships, so you don’t even have to take out loans.

You may also, depending on your state, qualify for a homeless waiver. I was in Florida at the time and staying with my ex’s family. The case management officer I worked with opened the conversation with “so I did some looking at the rules, and great news, you’re homeless!” Even though the situation was stable (because my ex’s mom is a saint), legally it was classed as couch surfing. At my university, being homeless meant you were exempt from paying tuition, and because the dorms were only open 9 months of the year, staying in them didn’t nullify this benefit.

The end result was that I was exempt from paying tuition, but receiving enough merit and need based scholarships to pay for my dorm, my health insurance, my books, and enough left over to stick in a savings account which ended up paying for furnishing my first apartment and moving across the country for a job after graduation.

If you’re in college already, you can get in touch with your counseling center, student support center, case management, etc. (it’ll vary by school, but if you don’t know where to go you can always ask a professor/advisor/dean and they can point you in the right direction) and they can walk you through this process. If you’re not in college yet, you can apply (some even have a fee waiver process to make this part free) and then get in contact with case management/financial aid after you’re accepted to work out the details of getting an override. I don’t know if this is available everywhere, and it’s not something they like to advertise to prevent people from abusing the system, but it was a really easy process at my public university.

As far as surviving the situation while you’re stuck in it… money is obviously the biggest determining factor here. If you can get a job or have an allowance that’s ideal, because money buys you access to distractions.

Getting a separate phone can be a big help, since you can use it to access resources and information they don’t want you to have as well as for hobby stuff like tumblr. Make sure you never connect this phone to their home WiFi network. It’s also simpler if it uses the same charger as your “real” phone so you don’t have to field questions about why you have two kinds. Tracfone and similar companies sell cheap smartphones and you can buy data/minutes in small increments. If you have a way to get a card number for digital payments, you could even sign up for one of the budget carriers (I’ve used Mint since a week after I was kicked out and it’s never done me wrong). A prepaid Visa gift card (a reloadable one is even better) works for this, for the record.

Find stuff to occupy your mind. A hobby, a TV show, whatever works. Having something to think about other than your situation makes it a lot more bearable. I made it a hobby to learn everything I could about “adulting” so I’d be ready as soon as I was on my own— read up on things like how to get health insurance, financial literacy, finding a safe apartment, housekeeping, cooking, effective grocery shopping (this pairs with cooking— if you can cook anything, it’s a lot easier to shop according to the sales/coupons/weekly ads), job interviewing, safe dating (this is a big one since growing up in an abusive home primes you for abusive relationships later and it’s important to be able to recognize the signs and red flags), health, first aid, buying a car, etc. This will make the transition out a lot smoother when you get there, it’s not so scary to be on your own if you know what you’re doing. I’m about to turn 23 and I’ve never run into an “adulting” situation I didn’t feel completely competent handling because I spent so much time as a teenager learning how these things work.

Even if you plan to/have to stick it out until you’re old enough to leave, having a bug-out bag and plan can be a big comfort. I had a backpack in the back of my closet where I started slowly stashing food, clothes, scissors, etc. My best friend and I had a little mantra, whenever things were rough we’d just repeat the number 183 back to each other because that was the cost of a bus ticket from my city to hers. I had a plan for the steps I’d take if things got to be too much— I’d finish packing the go bag, go out the back door, walk two miles to the dollar store to buy hair dye, cut and dye my hair in a gas station bathroom, hitchhike to the greyhound station, and ride up to meet my best friend a few states away. It wasn’t a perfect plan (I was 15, what can I say) but having it in the back of my mind that if I ever couldn’t take it anymore I wasn’t totally trapped helped me a lot.

This sucks and I’m sorry you’re in this situation but it does get better once you get out.

i know i KNOW this has nothing to do with what you do. im sorry. but do you have any resources for surviving an abusive situation? (surviving, not getting out. i can't leave [its parents, not a partner])

hey red alert gang can we get some advice/resources for this person?

[gale-gentlepenguin]

ML Fic: Soulmate Survey Part 35

(Master post)

(Insert excuse on why it took so long) (Insert comedic joke on why I didn't update sooner) (plea of trying better) (Heartfelt compliment on why all of you are awesome and patient)

Okay so now that we got that out of the way. But in all seriousness. Thanks for your patience and I hope you enjoy.

If you do enjoy the fic, please Comment and reblog. Reblogs are like Gold on Tumblr and being a writer and posting to Tumblr is difficult. So every little bit helps.

Alright so now lets get to it.

_____________________________________________________________

The nurse heard the commotion going on in the halls. She knew that shortly after Chloé left, things outside the office became… restless. She turned off all the lights and locked the door to the nurse’s office. She did her best to stay quiet and not draw attention to the room. She knew those akuma were out there and she needed to focus on stabilizing her patient.

“I hope that Chloé managed to get that message out.” The nurse whispered to herself.

The woman felt weird pinning her hopes of escaping this place on a spoiled teenager, but at this point, beggars can’t be choosers.

She heard someone approach the door. The nurse felt her blood turn to ice. She refused to move a single inch. She hoped and prayed that the person would go away. She could hear the screams of students outside. She knew the akuma, whoever they were, were out there, and they were taking anyone they could find. Right now, all she could do was pray they don’t check.

“Please… for all that is good… let them leave.” She prayed under her breath.

After what felt like an eternity, she heard the sound of footsteps away from the door and everything returned to eerie silence.

She felt her essence sigh in relief.

She got up from the ground and went to go attend to the unconscious woman in the cot.

“Its strange for someone so young to be so exhausted… but then again, when I get into the line of work I am hoping for, it is likely I will be seeing a lot of cases like this.” Angela joked, trying to keep herself in good spirits. “Society is such a mess.”

Angela checked Nathalie’s pulse. It was present, but it felt off. It was weaker than she was expecting from someone of her age. Perhaps she has a much more serious medical condition. Angela would probably recommend that this woman see a professional when this is all said and done. Though for now, she was stable and calm, which was a very good sign.

The nurse considered that maybe she wasn’t getting an accurate reading, was something off with the assistant’s breathing? She would need to check. The nurse grabbed a stethoscope and moved closer, getting ready to check again.

“Ow!” She yelped as she felt something grab her arm. Nathalie had awaken and she had a firm grip on the woman's wrist.

“What are you doing!?” The surprised assistant exclaimed

“You're awake!? Oh, thank goodness.”

“Awake?”

“Yes, you passed out at a most stressful time. Right now, I recommend we keep our voices down.” The nurse hushed.

‘S***’

Nathalie mentally cursed to herself. She knew it had to be Masquerade. Her little episode resulted in her being far too late to get in and out without issue. She was planning on getting Adrien out of here before things went south.

She got up from the cot she had been laying in.

“Hold on a second.” Angela called out. “You need to stay and rest. I am glad you are conscious. But that sudden fainting spell could be indicative of…”

Nathalie did not have time for this. She gave an ice-cold glare at the nurse.

“If you intend on making me stay here, you will need to do so by force!”

The nurse felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up. This woman’s eyes clearly showed intent on fighting. Angela was not a fighter, she helped people, not hurt them.

“You are my patient, and there is a lot of danger outside. You are in no condition to go out there.”

Nathalie had to respect the woman’s guts for standing up to her, despite the nurse’s knees shaking as she maintained eye contact.

“Okay, so how will we deal with the akuma breaking in then.”

“What!”

Angela turned her back to Nathalie, who took full advantage, giving the school nurse a fierce chop to the neck. Causing the nurse to drop like a sack of potatoes.

“Rest up.”

Nathalie put the nurse in the cot that she had previously been resting in.

“Seems I don’t have time to be subtle. Duusu.”

The blue Kwami popped out.

“Nathalie! Do you want to play?”

“Yes Duusu, the game is find Adrien and get out of here.”

“Horray!”

“Duusu! Spread my feathers!”

_____________________________________________________________

“Get down!” Ladybug dived into Chat noir, helping them both avoid the pause symbols and deadly bubbles headed their way. The akuma on both sides of them managed to avoid the incoming attacks they had sent towards the heroes.

“Thanks LB.” Chat noir thanked. “While you are the second person I want to be dancing with. We can't keep dodging forever. Even if their moves are predictable. Maybe those masks are the key to stopping them."

“Hardly a dance, its ettiquette for the boy to lead if it is. And I don't think so. Those masks appear to be unbreakable and impossible to remove” Ladybug said as she pulled her partner quickly back up, both noticing the akuma were ready for more.

“We still haven’t tried cataclysm.” Chat noir comments as he runs and jumps over a trashcan to avoid getting nailed by Bubbler’s attack bubbles.

“Right, but that would leave you exposed. Call it a hunch, but we will need to save it for later.” Ladybug responds as she jumps away and opens a door to block several pause symbols. "Besides, do you want to be mask-less at this Akuma calamity?"

“I was going to say it was more like a Masquerade ball. And no I would not."

Ladybug rolled her eyes at the lame joke, but still had a bit of a smile. Lightening the mood.

"Silly kitty"

"But seriously, we need a plan. If we can’t free them, what can we do?”

Ladybug focused for a moment. She noticed the way they were attacking, it was predictable and slow. Normally the akuma change up their attacks, or at least seem more aware of what the heroes are doing. The akuma were acting a lot more like controlled puppets. Much like when she had to deal with Puppeteer. Seems this akuma had some drawbacks that could be exploited. This was where Ladybug realized there was a way to deal with them.

“We disarm them. Break Bubbler’s wand and I will terminate Lady Wifi’s phone plan. Their reflexes are way more sluggish than usual. My bet is that having so many servants is starting to have a drain on the effectiveness of her forces. We just need to act quick.”

“Alright, sounds good to me.”

“On my mark we charge.”

Ladybug kept an eye on both akuma, after they sent a flurry of attack, they would usually have to take a moment to recharge. Bubbler would need to dip his wand back into his bubble pack and Lady wifi would have her hand cramp after sending 10 swipe symbols and would need to pull her hand back.

“Now!”

Chat noir and Ladybug both pounced at the two akuma, moving fast enough that their foes couldn’t retaliate as the heroes swiped the weapons from their respective wielders.

“Sorry to burst your bubble.” Chat noir joked as he snapped the bubble wand.

“And you’ve reached your data limit for the month.” Ladybug chimed in as she crushed Lady Wifi’s phone.

Both akuma began swinging their fists at the heroes, trying to turn the fight into a bare-knuckle brawl. But Ladybug’s assessment was correct, their attacks were too predictable. Ladybug caught Lady Wifi’s fist and flipped her over her shoulder to the ground.

Chat noir ducked under bubbler’s punch and slipped behind him. The cat used his staff to swipe at the feet of the forward moving akuma and knocked him mask first onto the floor.

“Alright, their disarmed. Now what?”

“Move him over here.”

Chat noir picks up the akuma by his bubble pack and throws him over to ladybug like a curling stone.Ladybug uses her yo-yo to tie the two dazed akuma back to back.

“Let’s put them somewhere where they won’t cause any trouble.”

_____________________________________________________________

“Next!” Masquerade called out in annoyance.

She had gotten her akuma servants to capture as many teachers and students as possible. She had the element of surprise and with the amount of akuma she had at her disposal, it was easy to capture several. Though she figured none would escape and cause panic, Timebreaker was guarding the parameter and kept her informed of any people she ‘Tagged’. Horrificator finished sealing all of the exits so no one would be able to come in or out.

She figured there was a good chance for adding more akuma to her rank. The problem was, most of the akuma sucked. She ended up developing a system for them. If they turned out to have no useful ability, she would humiliate them, have reflekta turn her into replicas of herself and then have Princess Frangrance spray the rejects to turn into obedient servants, this way she had something useful out of them. Make them get snacks or whatever. There were multiple uses for mind-controlled students and teachers. So far, she didn’t find a single one worthy of her time.

“I SAID NEXT!” Masquerade shouted louder.

Masquerade sized up the black-haired girl that one of the Reflekta duplicates had pushed forward. She recognized the shy smile from television. She was one of the weather girls on the KIDZ+ network. That was a contest Lila would have KILLED to have been a part of. She mentally told herself she would have won if she had entered.

“Your Mirelle aren’t you?”

“Y-Yes, please don’t hurt me.” She pleaded.

Masquerade rolled her eyes.

“Let’s, see what the deepest parts of your mind hold.”

“Stop!’

Masquerade stopped to turn to the person that shouted.

“Well, well, well, seems we have both weather girls that go to this school.” Masquerade commented. “What a coincidence.”

Masquerade’s eyes went to the honey blonde weather girl. The akuma had to respect the fierce glare the girl was giving her.

“Aurore don’t.” Mirelle tried to plea.

“Fragrance, shut her up.”

The perfume akuma moved from the wall and sprayed the shy weather girl.”

“No!”

Masquerade felt her bracelet glow, indicating that there was an akuma victim present.”

“So, stormy weather, does this rain on your parade?”

“Don’t call me that!” Aurore spat with disgust.

“That loss still bothers you. How the city voted and you were blown out of the water.”

“I know your trying to get under my skin, it won’t work.” Aurore said. “I’ve dealt with Chloé, and she is way meaner.”

Masquerade kept her smile.

“You’re right, that wouldn’t bother me. The comments by everyone else questioning why you are there would. All of those people wondering what the point of that vote was. So now you have to constantly push harder and harder to prove you deserve to be there with Mirelle. It has become your obsession; the way people perceive you. You need to be the perfect weather girl, with the good looks and the good grades. You can’t let anyone begin to doubt your ability.”

Aurore felt her heart shatter at the comment. It was like this akuma had reached into her chest and pulled her heart out. She could see her biggest fear.

“Shut up! I am good enough! You can’t tell me otherwise.”

Masquerade felt a twinge of annoyance, but a sinister idea came into her head. She touched the perfume bottle charm, her colors shifted to match the color scheme of the Perfume akuma.

“Mirelle, tell her what she needs to here.”

The controlled weather girl felt something intrude in her mind, for a brief second, she winced, before turning into a creepy smile.

“Mirelle?”

Aurore felt her skin crawl as she turned to see her coworker and friend staring at her, a creepy smile on her face.

“You aren’t good enough. You were never good enough. You tried so hard to be charming and cute, but the network thinks your redundant. They were going to get rid of you as soon as they could. I hear they are aiming for the end of the month.” She sing-songed.

Aurore dropped to her knees. Her confidence shattered. She broke down, tears streamed down her face. She covered her hands to cry. To hear her say those awful things, was it true? Was she gone? Was all her work for nothing?

Mirelle’s creepy forced smile stayed, but from the corner of her eye, a single tear began streaming down her cheek. Unbeknown to Aurore, Masquerade was using the controlled teen like a ventriloquist dummy.

“Excellent work.”

Masquerade shifted back to her original colors and grabbed a mask from her dress before she flung it right at the depressed weather girl. She took joy in watching it clamp onto her face like an alien face-hugger. There was a brief moment of struggle, but Aurore was no more. Stormy weather had taken her place. Masquerade laughed as a new charm appeared on her bracelet.

“Finally, some better servants. And these powers are no joke.”

Stormy weather raised her umbrella at Masquerade.

“Oh? Are you trying to resist?”

The akuma’s arm was shaking, but then dropped. Her body becoming inactive, like a toy robot with its batteries removed.

“And there goes the last of your resistance. Now go out and find Ladybug and Chat noir. Lady Wifi and Bubbler haven’t returned.”

Stormy weather nodded and headed out of the classroom.

Masquerade noticed the cowering captured students and took a moment to appreciate the power she wielded. Sure, she would have preferred to have been loved by the school, but being feared is a close second.

Her joy was cut short when something pinged into her mind.

Requirements met for new akuma. Confirm merge?

‘Merge?’

Masquerade tried to figure out what that meant. What was merging.

‘The components for the akuma Oblivio are now available, would you like to merge the two akuma to make new akuma?’

“Oblivio? I don’t remember an akuma by that name?” Masquerade said to herself. “Well, if two people are needed to make it and it is making something new, it must be good. Confirm!”

A new charm appears on her bracelet, one in the shape of a question mark.

"Creating Lady Wifi, Bubbler, Oblivio fusion.'

“I wonder what this will bring.”

_____________________________________________________________

Hawkmoth got felt a sudden shift in the mood of his akuma.

"So Lila found a way to merge akuma with multiple different forms into one. And now she is able to create a completely new akuma. Perhaps Ladybug and Chat noir have finally met there match."

The butterfly villain rubbed his hands smugly as he continued observing. Though part of him wondered if Nathalie was able to secure Adrien safely.

_____________________________________________________________

“Okay, these should work.” Chat noir exclaimed as he opened two empty lockers.

Ladybug removed her yo-yo that had tied the two akuma together and shoved the two of them inside each locker before slamming it shut.

“We need something to lock them in for a while.” Ladybug exclaimed as she held the doors closed. The akuma started trying to break free. Moving in any way they could to bust out.

Chat noir looked around, looking for something to shove in front of the lockers.

“Ugh, there is nothing to barricade them with!” Chat noir exclaims.

“Just seal the doors.”

“Right!”

Chat noir put his hand on the lockers where the doors would open, he focused all his strength into his hands and crunched doors by the lock, making it impossible to open in the conventional way.

“That should hold it.” Chat noir exclaimed with relief.

Ladybug slid down the door as resistance finally ceased.

“I think they realized they can’t escape.” Chat noir eased.

Ladybug got up from the floor. They give each other a fist bump on their success.

“Well thankfully that deals with two troublesome akuma. Now we need to get to Lila before we get overrun with them.”

The two heroes quickly leave the locker room.

"By the way, you mentioned earlier I was the second person you wanted to be dancing with. Who is the first?"

Chat noir felt a faint blush on his cheeks.

"How about we talk dances later." Chat noir dodged the question.

Both heroes hurrying down the hall to try and get to Masquerade.

But after they left, the lockers they had left the akumas in started to shake wildly…

_____________________________________________________________

“Heads up!” Viperion exclaimed as he pulled Ryuuko out of the Akuma’s range. The vanishing miracular was a far more difficult opponent then both reptilian heroes were expecting. The akuma vanishes just before Ryuuko could retaliate.

“Every time we lose sight of her, she vanishes and I can’t get a clean hit!” Ryuuko grumbles.

Viperion looks around frantically.

“Yes, but I do believe we have some interesting intel. The akuma seems unable to use both her powers at the same time. She needs to turn visible in order to try and attack us with those Tonfa of hers” The snake hero explains

Ryuuko backs up, looking around to see if she can notice anything that could help her locate the sneaky servant.

“And whatever its other power is seems to involve using those Tonfa. Call it a hunch but we can’t let her use it on us.” Ryuuko discussed her instinctual feeling.

“Guard my back, she can’t sneak up on us if our backs are covered.” Viperion instructs. “Her strategy is very straight forward. We just need to wait for an opening”

“Got it.” Ryuuko says just as she notices something from the corner of her eye. “There you are.”

Ryuuko makes a charge at what appeared to be a wall, but her sword contacted Miracular’s tonfa. Forcing her visible again.

Viperion took noticed of the poor stance that Miracular had while blocking Ryuuko. He wasn’t an expert but even he could see that an unexpected hit would knock her off her feet.

He threw his lyre right at the akuma’s knees and made contact, the force causing her to buckle and Ryuuko disarmed the akuma by parrying her tonfa.

Viperion caught the weapons and broke them over his knee.

“Well that takes care of her weapons.”

Ryuuko noticed the akuma tried to get away but she dove tackled her before she could turn visable.

“Nice work. But what are we going to do to stop her from getting in the way?” Viperion inquired.

Ryuuko band the akuma's face repeatedly against the floor in order to break the mask. Sadly there was not even a scratch on it.

"Well this mask is durable. Might need to lock her somewhere."

The snake hero thought for a moment. he remembered back to a previous akuma attack. Chat noir had put him in a locker to be safe. He still remembered the playful wink the cat gave.

"Any ideas Viper piper?" Ryuuko inquired as she maintained her hold on the akuma.

"Huh? Oh right. Why not take to the locker room and throw her into a locker. She isn't super strong so we could easily just toss her in and lock it. Also, what is with the nickname?"

"I heard that giving people nicknames helps endear people to you."

"Okay, well you can keep trying, but I don't play pipes. What other ones do you have."

"... That was the only one I had... Ill try and come up with more as we go."

"Looking forward to it ... Dra-girl"

Ryuuko paused to look at him as she stood up with the akuma.

"Yea... It felt wrong as soon as I said it. Lets just go."

_____________________________________________________________

Chloé had given most of the akuma she encountered the slip. Not from expert hiding of fighting skill, she simply walked passed them. A normal individual would realize how amazing it was that as long as you don’t freak out, the akuma basically don’t notice. But to Chloé, it felt insulting. Did the akuma seriously believe she was not worth chasing?

“Un-be-lievable.” Chloé huffed. “Most of these akuma would have been chasing me like crazy by now.”

She grumbled to herself as she made it to the front entrance, which she realized had been slimed on.

“EWW, they got that nasty slime monster on their side.”

The mayor’s daughter felt a mix of disgust and annoyance. With this door sealed, she would need to get to one of the other exits, on the other side of the school.

“This would be a really good time for Ladybug to show up and let me be Queen bee.” Chloé stated aloud.

But the area she was in was practically empty.

“Figures.” Chloé sighed. “Why do these gross rejects always have to make things so annoying!”

Unfortunately for her, her complaints did attract some attention from a group of Reflekta copies roaming the halls.

“We order you to come with us!” The three reflektas sang in unison. Chloé didn’t know or care if the original was among them.

“How about no.” Chloé scoffed. She pushed one of them down and walked past them. The other two rushed to her to capture her. But Chloé easily knocked both of the reflektas down easy. The servants were not use to walking in heels. They may be controlled, but Chloé can tell when an amateur walking in gaudy heels from a mile away.

“You 3 need to learn how to walk and a lesson on fashion before you can even THINK of taking me hostage.” Chloé flipped her hair and smugly continued walking, as the three reflektas tried to get up.

Hidden from view, hiding in what appeared to be an abandoned janitor’s cleaning cart, an old man popped his head out slightly.

“Ladybug does need all the help she could get right now…But would she be the right choice?”

_____________________________________________________________ (End of Part 36.)

What other akuma will be joining Masquerade's ranks?

Will Ladybug and Chat noir be able to face the old and new threats?

Will Mayura cause more problems or solve em?

Also, what do you think this new akuma fusion will look like?

I would love to see your takes.

[brattyfics]

Cape Disappointment | Part One

Pairing: Miguel Galindo x Black!OC [Chantel Williams]

Summary: Miguel doesn’t rescue a damsel in distress because Chantel Williams is not a damsel in distress.

Warnings: None yet.

Chantel Williams was a lot of things. Quirky, witty, sarcastic. Condescending, impulsive, sometimes even chaotic. She could be all those things and more, but she refused to be anyone’s victim.

“I’m not a damsel in distress. I’m not a damsel in distress…” She chanted over and over in a low tone. 

On the side of a low traffic road, snow raining down on her head, Chantel willed the words to be true. Unfortunately, she remembered very little of what her Papa taught her about cars, eyeing the confusing parts under the hood with frustration.

Papa was a school teacher but he worked as a shade tree mechanic on the weekends to be able to afford dance classes for little Chantel. Teaching was his passion through and through. He would talk her ear off in the car on the way to recitals or while she did homework on the bench in his workshop. Being a bratty kid, she learned to tune him out when the topic didn’t interest her and not for the first time she regretted not soaking up more of Papa’s wisdom before he passed. 

If she had, maybe she wouldn’t be stuck on the side of the road with no solution in mind. Empty handed and no closer to fixing the car, she shuffled through the snow. It wasn’t much warmer inside the car despite the thick North Face coat she wore with a matching hat and pair of gloves. She was sure she resembled a wet dog as she shook the snow off, not wanting the ice to melt into water droplets that would surely sting. 

Just a week earlier, she’d splurged on the fanciest new smart phone after losing the older model at a dinner party. Even with all its promised features, it was useless. No signal and no nearby WiFi networks to connect to meant she couldn’t call her sort-of-sometimes boyfriend for help even if she wanted to. She couldn’t even call a tow truck! 

Pride. 

Another one of Chantel’s many traits. She liked to think of it as a positive thing. It kept her from being desperate, saved her from being dependent on others for her happiness. No one else seemed to agree her pride was a good thing. 

Among the naysayers was her sort-of-sometimes boyfriend, Adam. Pride was what had led her to take off from the Yurt they shared on their week-long winter break getaway to race back to her industrial loft in the heart of Seattle despite the weather advisory. She would never admit it to anyone else, but she realized her pride didn’t always serve her well. 

If not for her bruised ego, it would have been funny that her car had chosen to break down a few miles north of Cape Disappointment State Park. It was where she had been staying with Adam. The yurt was too far away to walk back to in the snow but still close enough that it only made sense to stay there for the night once the car issues were resolved. She wasn’t looking forward to ending the night with him. 

Remembering Papa’s belief in God showing up when most needed, Chantel sent up a quick prayer. She really hoped she wouldn’t have to wait long for someone else to come down the otherwise deserted road. Winters in Washington were fairly mild so she wouldn’t lose her extremities to hypothermia or anything crazy like that, but she’d certainly suffer by way of the shivers. 

Any sane person was cuddled up next to the fireplace in their cabin with a bowl of chili, or participating in heat-inducing sexual activities in their yurt to keep warm, not on the road driving. It was only natural for her thoughts to snowball into all the types of un-same people she could run into. 

Indigenous women from Washington and Canada went missing far too often on roads just like the one she had so conveniently broken down on. Chantel had a bad habit of researching everything there was to know about topics when they peaked her interest and she knew too much about human trafficking in the area to not feel a considerable amount of fear. 

“That would be my luck.” She muttered meanly to herself, resolving that whatever happened would be her own fault. 

It wasn’t like a whole lot of people would come looking for her anyway. She had a large group of friends in Seattle, but she kind of had a reputation for taking off without saying much. She hadn’t even told anyone about the weekend excursion to Cape Disappointment! The family she had left she wasn’t close to, and by the time Adam realized she hadn’t made it back home it would be too late. 

Yellow headlights bathed the narrow road, the light blinding her the closer it got. Her hazard lights blinked red, signaling that she was broken down, but Chantel second guessed whether she wanted the help. 

“I’m going to be a sex trafficking victim all in the name of independence. Way to go, idiot.” 

Her fingers fumbled around in the gigantic backpack she’d been using as a purse for the weekend, hastily pulling at the zippers until she found what she was looking for. A purple taser she purchased on Amazon for a whopping ten dollars. She doubted it would stop anyone in their tracks, but it was better than nothing. 

It turned out the man who knocked on her window wasn’t an axe wielding serial murdering rapist, or at least he didn’t appear to be. She tucked the small device into her side as the ridiculously handsome middle aged man with a salt and pepper beard smiled at her through the foggy glass. 

He looked harmless enough, sporting a pair of smart designer glasses and what Chantel knew to be a really expensive cashmere turtleneck sweater underneath an equally expensive Canada Goose coat. She wasn’t shy about looking him up and down as she assessed the risk. What if the male model was a decoy?

His neatly manicured eyebrows twisted down in confusion and she thought it was one of the cutest things she had ever seen. 

She rolled down the window with a nervous smile.

“Hey.”

“Hi.” 

She hated how breathy the words came out but he was truly stunning. 

Tall, fit, well-dressed. 

“Are you alright? It looks like you’re having some trouble.” 

A gentleman.

“What would make you think that?” Chantel spoke before she thought it through, but the stranger didn’t seem to take offense if the amused smirk on his face could be trusted. “I’m kidding. Yeah, no. I’m not alright. The car was making weird noises so I pulled over and now it won’t turn back on. I looked under the hood but I have no idea what’s wrong.”

He nodded attentively while she spoke, watching her lips with interest. She noticed him staring and licked them.

“I don’t know how much of a help I’ll be.” His bronze skin reddened with the admission and she wondered if he was blushing or if the cold was getting to him. “I don’t know anything about cars but I can give you a ride wherever you want.”

She’d like a ride alright. In his cushiony truck that may as well have been a royal carriage considering the circumstances. Or on his handsome bearded face that she couldn’t stop staring at. 

Chantel wondered if he could tell what she was thinking. 

Movement caught her eye and she noticed an identical black SUV pulling off the road to park behind the one Prince Charming departed from. Her hand squeezed around the taser instinctively. 

Was the sexy stranger bait to catch naive, unsuspecting girls? 

“...but I’m sure we’d both rather leave it to the professionals.” He gestured back towards the dark truck and paused, noticing they weren’t alone. Her breath caught in her chest when four bulking men slammed their doors shut and started walking in their direction.

“I apologize. That’s my security team. I left without telling them.” 

Hmm. A kindred spirit. 

Who was he to have a security team? Was he telling the truth? Or just stalling? 

She wanted to believe him. To trust that it was in human nature to help one another without some ulterior, sinister motive. 

Did she even have a choice? How long would she have to wait on the next passerby? There was no guarantee they would be any better than the (so far) kind stranger and his friends.

Chantel Williams was a lot of things, but she was not naïve. With surprising coordination, she swung the door open, knocking the man back several steps. Her boots crunched as she landed in the snow. 

“Back up or I’m going to tase you!” She warned, putting space between herself and the stranger while keeping an eye on the approaching men. 

The corners of his mouth turned up as he fought back a smile. 

Chantel scoffed. He wasn’t taking her seriously. 

“I’m not fucking around!” She insisted, charging up the small device. The buzz felt more powerful than she remembered. The man seemed to think so too, changing his approach. He spoke in a soft tone. “Can we slow down?” 

“Don’t patronize me. Just back up like I said. No, this way!” She ordered until he stood across from her with his back to his men. 

Behind him, they speed up their approach but they could only move so fast in the snow. Following her gaze, the strange man looked over his shoulder and gestured for the men to stall at the front of his truck several feet away. One of them shouted at her to put the taser away from his position. He sported two braids and a cut in his brow. Chantel shouted back at him to ‘shut the fuck up’

Mr. GQ gave another signal and like he was the conductor of an orchestra, all noise ceased. Well, all external noise at least. Chantel swore she could hear the sound of her heart ringing in her ears. 

“Hey!” He demanded her full attention. His hands were up in a defensive position. “What are you looking for here?” 

It was a great question but she had no answer for him.

Trouble maker. Fire starter. Full-time agitator.

Chantel was that way even as a child, responding to normal adolescent teasing with violence. Sharp bites in the classroom or royal rumble style fights on the playground were her specialty in grade school. She made anyone stupid enough to provoke her regret it whether big or small, male or female. That wasn’t to say she was organized or calculating in her plans. She acted and dealt with things as they came. 

She had no idea what the endgame was when she pulled the taser, but she had to stick with it. The crowd of onlookers made her feel more justified in her rash decision.

“I don’t think you really want to hurt me.”

“Now, what would make you think that?” Chantel asked incredulously. He didn’t know her from Eve. 

She was even more steadfast in pointing the taser in his direction but he didn’t seem phased.

“When you want to hurt somebody, you don’t wait around or warn them. You just do it.”

“Are you suggesting I should’ve tased you?”

He shrugged as if they were discussing the weather.

“That certainly would have been more effective.”

Was he serious?

“I mean I still can. If you keep talking I just might.”

He had the gall to laugh in her face. 

Hysterically. 

And it wasn’t fleeting or sarcastic. It was genuine laughter from deep down in his gut. She hated how beautiful he was, even in the middle of showing blatant disrespect for her ability to harm him. 

“Seriously?” She griped, fighting against the way her face muscles twitched. 

Giggle box.

When somebody at church mispronounced a word during the announcements or when her aunt murdered a hit song, she giggled uncontrollably. Papa chastised her for it, but it couldn’t be helped. When the urge struck and she got that itch in her throat, she had to laugh.

So naturally, like two birds of a maniac feather they shared a laugh in four (and counting) inches of snow.

***

GENERAL TAGLIST

@woahitslucyylu @briannab1234 @sheeshgivemeabreak @breakingnewsin-no-oneasked @angelreyesgirl @blessedboo @glimmerglittergirl @apantherinmypastlife @brownsugarcoffy @marvelmaree @starrynite7114 @scuzmunkie @thewarriorprincessxo @sadeyesgf @pearlkitten33 @imanerdychubbyqueen @literaturefeen @ourlittlesecretsoveragain @everyhowlmarksthedead @yourwonkywriter @trulysuccubus

MIGUEL TAGLIST

@thesandbeneathmytoes @taylortheeshowpony

[notwiselybuttoowell]

I've had it up to here with technology, I'm just losing my mind. Tumblr is still crashing or loading the newest posts right in the middle of the app or browser. Multiple browsers. Multiple devices too. The tumblr team's suggested fixes that I have tried have not worked. Some of then weren't even an option given on my end though that could just be my stuff's continued deviation from reality. I put the Support route to a solution on pause months ago. I've updated what I can. Still no luck. In fact tumblr will specifically tell you your browser is unsupported and out of date in chrome. But I can't update chrome. Because it updated to the newest version two weeks ago.

My phone definitely needed updating. Apparently the auto-updates hadn't been working for some time. I go through a series of updates that require my permission to continue. This takes about 8 hours as I recall, but it could be longer. My initial memory was of it taking a whole day but that might not account for me needing to sleep in the night. I get to one update that tells me it will wipe out a lot of my information if I agree. However a smattering of the core things can be saved to the cloud. But samsung cloud is imminently being discontinued. I get notices of this frequently. I've downloaded the photos I have there twice. I thought it worked the first time but I got another message. I hope I've got it right this time.

I've signed up for a vpn that is supposed to stop all disconnects you might have from the internet. But I still experience them, apparently. I don't realize that about half the time my replies to messages in the gmail app don't go through until I talk to the person or they come to me asking for a response. I get messages in one of my samsung apps that say I'm not connected on a regular basis, despite the fact that I demonstrably am. I found a thread for someone seeking help with that issue. None of the suggested fixes there worked for me. A moderator at the end of the thread said that if op was still having problems they should download the Samsung members app and send in a feedback message. I try for myself but I am not able to download the app at all.

I've gone round and round with my service provider. Their system kept telling me to refresh the modem from afar. That never worked. They've been out twice. The first time they added a new faster modem. That didn't fix my problem in the end but they went away thinking it did because my problem is intermittent. Afterwards my laptop won't connect to the internet at all, whereas before it was just disconnecting on a frequent basis and I had no option but to constantly manually reconnect. It is suggested by an existing forum thread that exactly detailed my situation (my wifi networks simply don't show up anymore) that it needed an update of the driver. For the person in question it worked. As I said, I've gone through all the updates I can - this I tried too, plus all optional updates. It doesn't work for me and my laptop is still plugged into the modem with an ethernet cord.

I called my service provider again. There's no way to set up appointments otherwise than to go through a long wait and to talk to a real person. This time the man tells me it's too late in the day to set up an appointment through him but I can get a scheduled callback in the morning. I agree and he sets it up for me. I wait all day the next day and never recieve a call. I go through the call and wait again. This man connects me to an advanced tech for the first time. She is very knowledgeable, and this will be the best service I will end up having in this process. She watches one of the devices disconnect right before her eyes. It must be an outside node problem. She schedules an in person appointment for a few days out, which is fastest option I will end up having in this continued pattern.

I get a call the next day from one of their people who want to troubleshoot it over the phone. I actually had one of these come in from the first appointment, but the audio was so bad and the background so noisy I was thinking it could very well be a scam. I told him that I couldn't hear and would have to call back. I tried very hard to ascertain at the time whether it was a scam but only got conflicting answers online. The woman who wants me to avoid an in person appointment looks at her info and tells me that someone has done some work in the area and my internet is fixed. I check my phone and it seems to be working. I agree to cancel the appointment. The problem comes back.

I have to go through the wait and call process again. When the tech does come back he can find no problem with the outside node. He tries to separate the 2.4 and the 5 strands of my network. He goes through the sites and apps I have problems with on my phone on his. It works perfectly for him. I still have problems. He thinks it's very mysterious and calls some people. They don't know what to think. He gets down all the details he can from me and says he'll let his supervisor know. It has been a more than a month and I've not heard anything from them and nothing has changed.

In a way it doesn't matter. I spent several days at another location (albeit one with this same service provider) and still have the same tumblr problems across multiple devices and that same app tells me I'm not connected to the internet.

Yesterday the tumblr app started to intermittently refuse to reblog things. For hours at a time. I'm tired.