#and we also ended up talking about my current issues in the job market and how a lot of them have to do with the fact that

[lunatic-fandom-space]

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa german people be normal about ex-soviet country immigrants challenge (IMPOSSIBLE)

[ettawritesnstudies]

in the tags on a recent post you said your day job is "mind numbingly simple" do you know if that's common of chemical engineering jobs?

(i am currently pursuing a chemical engineering degree and honestly don't know that much about chemical engineering jobs. but i would not mind a simple job that gives me mental capacity left to write at the end of the day)

So it strongly depends on the kind of engineering work you end up going into and any job will vary in complexity on a day to day basis but with a chemical engineering job you have a lot of different options!

Specifically I'm a R&D Applications Engineer/Technical Customer Service in a polymer science role for a big international corporation so I'm working with existing products in a company and figuring out how to make them work for customers who are having issues.

What this looks like on a project to project basis is that we get an email from the customer or the plant outlining the problem and what kind of material they're sending us to test, I design the experiments we need to do to validate all the variables and properties, and then I spend a few weeks in the lab churning out data, then plug it into an Excel spreadsheet, crunch the numbers, throw that in a PowerPoint, and send it off to the relevant personnel.

The mind numbingly simple part is the standing in lab running through tests because it's hands-on labor that requires very little thinking once you've established your parameters. I usually just put on an audiobook or a podcast to kill time. The design of experiment can get somewhat complex and you have to be very good at time management if you have multiple projects with time sensitive lab components going on at once, but the number crunching has never required anything more complicated than 10th grade algebra. I'm not doing much chemical formulation either, just following established recipes and procedures within my company, but I'm learning more specific stuff as I go.

Now I'm only a year out of college and I've never had an internship or anything that WASN'T in a non-lab setting, so I can't speak to how something like a Process Engineer spends their time. I knew I didn't like being out on the plant floor because it's often Loud and Dirty and Sensory Overload so I tried to avoid applying for those roles. You learn a lot more about the production that way though, just not my cup of tea. You also have chemical engineers who design entire chemical plants and control systems (which is very very cool and important but I was bad at those classes lmao). Some also go the biochemical angle and get into pharmaceuticals but medicine scares me.

That's just my personal take but I encourage you to talk to your professors and upperclassman and see what they have to say! Career fairs >>>>>>> linked in for getting anywhere in this hell of a job market if your school has them and I hope you have a better time of it than I did during the COVID times. 🫡

[namtanlovesfilm]

Why do you think cooking crush kinda flopped? OG are still pretty popular no? Or is it that the show is kinda basic, like something we’ve seen before? I also don’t remember seeing too much promotion but maybe I just missed it.

Also did u see off and gun saying they want to be doing what they’re doing now 10 years from now? I think that’s a good indicator that a “break up” isn’t on the way :)

I'm actually thinking of making a video on the topic on my channel lol, but to summarize I think there's so many elements:

1) cooking crush is a more basic show, and those tend to gather success only if they have a new ship attached to them that gathered attention (ex: 2gether, msp, etc.) also I think the trailers & promos did a bad job hooking people onto it.

2) the bl genre is now saturated. if cooking crush was released in 2019 or 2020 it would've been huge simply for having offgun's name attached to it. but now there's 100+ bl shows released every year, and statistically only like 5-10% will be a huge success.

3) offgun were never a "viral" ship. off mentioned it himself in an interview, and it's definitely what has kept them together for 8+ years, but it also means they've never had the kind of hype attached to them brightwin, fourthgemini or even kristsingto have had.

4) offgun are the oldest thai bl ship still together, so in this highly saturated bl market where there's a new ship popping up quite literally every week, they're likely seen as old & has-been by many. bc of their age they're also unlikely to touch new younger audiences of bl, which are the most outspoken & passionate types of fans. 14 years old are more likely to stan the 18/19 years old at gmmtv instead of the 30+ grown ass men for sure. also, even if that seems sad & mean to say, in this current bl economy, I feel like fans get tired of seeing the same faces for so long, which is why now the lasting of ships is shorter & shorter and just used to launch a solo career.

5) the marketing. imo the biggest issue is the show in itself that doesn't meet the demands of the bl fandom at the moment (either innovative or at least hypersexual shows, apart for the new ships having basic shows exception that I talked about (and that works only at gmmtv too)), but the marketing could've definitely helped. imo they should've added a lot more fanservice in the trailer to hook the fetishizing fans in if they wanted more viewers. the social media marketing was also quite poor but not the actual worst.

however, even though cooking crush "flopped" in terms of being a gmmtv show & an offgun show, imo it was successful in its own way. it still trended number 1 on X every week if that still means anything, and it was also a very good show. like... not every show can be life-changing, in fact romcoms very rarely are. the show did what it set out to do & was well executed until the end, which for me is a success in itself. so flop? maybe not. success? maybe not either lol.

and yes, off has been talking about babiis sticking with him for 30 more years back in 2019, so we still have a good few decades ahead :) what I do really want to see from offgun is a new innovative show from them bc atp this is the only thing that will be a success (and their age & experience will still likely be a baggage in our hyperconsumerist bl market). I'm even less confident that the trainee will even get as much attention as cooking crush did, so what I want to see is a show where offgun are dads navigating being queer parents, or as I said before a dark psychological thriller. not only could they pull it off, but they would absolutely BODY a more heavy show with more innovative aspects. bc atm cooking crush & the trainee are only catering to their fanbase, gmmtv's & the rare ones who enjoy more basic romcoms. they need something so uncommon & original it will rally the bl fandom behind them, bc sadly atp their name alone will not do it. however, I'm not confident in gmmtv at all, especially since they have 15 other ships they gotta give shows to. the dad show, though? if it ever happens, it NEEDS to be offgun 100000%!!!

xxx

[fayeandknight]

I went to check out another house today and oh boy was it a doozy.

It was originally built in 1881 and I could see from the photos that it was not habitable. But it sits on a half acre in an area I'm interested in. Also I can see the charm in the bones, so to speak. Like a half circle window with built in seating, which to me shouts book nook.

I brought my dad because he's knowledgeable about construction and built our family home from scratch.

Got there and it was immediately obvious that this place is way worse than advertised. The second story all season room looks ready to fall off, there's foam patching along sections of the underside of the roof, porch looks like it'd drop you faster than you could curse, etc. It would be a massive undertaking to make it livable.

But the yard is fairly level and partially fenced in from the neighbors. It's set a decent distance from the road and has ample space from neighbors on all sides. This is big for me because I intend to board dogs (through my current job) and I don't want to piss off neighbors with barking dogs.

And while this isn't a basis to buy such a house on, something about it calls to me in a way I haven't experienced before. More on this under the cut because it's spiritual woo woo talk.

When I do a drive by, I literally drive by. I cruise through the neighborhood and take my time. But I don't go up to the house. However between this place clearly not being occupied and my dad having older white dude audacity, we got out and walked around the yard. We went all the way around the house, he pointed out a test patch where someone investigated the siding and it's layers, stomped on the dilapidated porch, and found a well with a hand crank.

At one point I was standing close to the road while he was on the porch reading orange town issued notices posted on the front door. A guy working for the house across the street stopped to stare at us. My dad gave a friendly wave, the contractor returned it, and despite my fears of the cops being called on us, nothing happened.

I thought initially this might be a place that I buy, spend a few months of heavy sweat equity on and hire a contractor or two for major things. But ultimately could make livable while continuing to fix up within three months or so. In addition to major interior work, it needs rewiring/electrical work, a plumbing overhaul, a new roof and gutters, new siding, a new porch, new windows, and most likely just tearing off the all season porch at minimum. So yeah just a fuck ton of work.

My dad and I agreed that this place was pretty far over our ability to renovate. But something makes me want to dig into it deeper anyway. While I highly doubt this place will turn into anything for me. I'm going to look into possible financing options. And I've set my dad to contacting the listing agent and the county office to see what's up.

My next step is digging into a renovation specific loan, the FHA 203k loan. Even though this place probably won't pan out I think it'll serve as a good test run of what I'd need. Cause let's be honest between the current economy and housing market, whatever I end up with will need work.

I don't typically talk about this, but I am pagan and consider myself a spiritual person. And while I don't see the mystical in the mundane everywhere, when I do I, I do.

When I hesitantly stepped onto the property I got a sense of the house. It's got a presence. Something quiet, mostly dormant, and not a little resigned to being torn down. But it's deep, having grown out from the house itself and into the ground around it. It felt like it cracked one eye half way open to regard me. It was very tired. But it also conveyed a feeling that if I restored it, it would be my house.

It would not only protect and shelter me like a good house should. But it would make sure I was happy there. It would pull on its deep connection to the land to make sure this was a place I thrived in. If I invested in it, it would invest in me with the shared goal of quiet, simple joy.

No bombastic promises of glory or great success. But a secure space to sing off tune while I bake bread. Sunny windows to dry herbs in. And love ingrained in the archways of architectures no longer in fashion.

It's not something I'm willing to use as a reason to immediately go all in on. But I'd be lying to myself if I didn't admit that it's part of the reason I'm investigating what it would take to make this place a home.

[sweetheradevil]

AUGUST COURT REPORTING THOUGHTS

Hiii :3 since court reporting takes up most of my time, I wanted to do a monthly write-up on my thoughts. I have a lot to say and I feel bad for subjecting all my friends to my yammering about it HAHAH

Current Speed: 140-160 WPM

The 2024 summer quarter has been the most challenging by far. This is the longest I've been stuck in a speed level (June-September) and I have had many, many frustrating moments with my typing abilities. I hit a wall for most of July, so I am currently two levels behind where I want to be. Fortunately, it looks like I'm just about to exit my 140s.

Despite my exasperation with my typing, I feel like this wall presented me with an opportunity to slow down and actually engage with the court reporting community as a whole and learn things about this career I wouldn't have considered if I had just continued speeding along.

In my stupor, I began talking to other reporters to learn why they pursued this career, what they struggled with as students, and also how things will start looking once I go out there and start working myself.

But before I get to that, I kind of wanted to talk about a realization I had about court reporting as a whole. I never doubted that this was the career I wanted, but I feel like being a court reporter in the era of misinformation takes on an entirely different meaning. With the rampant use of AI by people on the internet, peddling of malicious/false ideas, and the intake of large bodies of information, there's a distinct charm about being able to take down something verbatim. This is by no means me condoning the justice system (because as we all know, there are so many issues with it); however, I am glad that I'm a court reporter because should I come across injustices in court, I am taking that down on paper. I am preserving the history of the courtroom and in a time of rampant misinformation and downright manipulation of information, that is so important to me. I plan to work as an official in a courthouse (because to be so honest being my own boss sounds like hell on Earth) so I'll be present for so much stuff that happens.

The internet was once an endless source of knowledge, but now its function has been severely limited by incorrect information, censorship, and paywalls. I used to be in awe at the vast amounts of knowledge I had in the palm of my hand, only for it to be rendered insufficient by all of this bullshit that's out there. It almost feels integral to my values that I will be sitting and preserving a vital part of history in the justice system. Perhaps my efforts will be useful for someone who needs to look back on the record for evidence of various misdeeds, because god knows we need it.

Having to go through court reporting school is hellish, but because I believe it's for a good cause, it's worth it. It also pays handsomely, which I'm very happy about due to financial strife my family has in my adolescence, but that's a topic for another day.

That is one of my biggest inspirations for trekking through school. Another is the fact that this almost feels like a refuge from the horrible job market most people are at the whim of right now. Most reporters chose court reporting as a second career after they were made miserable by their previous jobs. Most of the court reporters I've spoken to are single mothers who had a better opportunity at life after pursuing this career. I'm on the young side for going through court reporting school (most of my schoolmates are middle-aged) but I'm glad to see that there are opportunities for people beyond university. I'm kind of relieved I'm not in a field dominated by men that will undermine my abilities, but rather with other women I have a lot of solidarity with. I really do love this community and the path I'm on.

I'm so, so excited. I think I am just about to pass out of my 140s, so let's hope I can make it to my 200s by the end of the year. Yippeee!

[economic-echoes]

Finding My Way To Economics

Suki here,

Many moons ago, when I was a mere 15 years old, I was choosing my A-Levels. I went looking for a shiny new subject that would combine all my skills and interests. Would it be sociology, psychology or maybe even business studies? Those classic subjects that all prospective A-Level students seem attracted to. 

To find the answer to my question, I decided to research the subjects I found most enjoyable and the ones that would go best with maths. The first place I decided to look was in my school library where I knew there were magazines designed specifically to help people choose their A-Levels. Having looked through several publications, while I found them all interesting, it wasn't until I picked up the November 2020 issue of Economics Review that I was truly entranced.

I stumbled upon an article that talked about the economics of pubs and evaluated their declining numbers. First the page examined some of the key economic issues involving the pub industry and then ended with a question: Should their fate be left to the market, or should the government intervene? I found this discussion very fascinating because I had rarely thought of the world through an economic lens much before, other than in geography case studies (which looking back, I enjoyed the most). The article introduced new themes to me like division of labour through the pin analogy from Adam Smith (Wealth of Nations) and how it can improve productivity. It also touched on topics like economies of scale and oligopolies. It was all so exciting and interesting, I found out there was a whole secret world behind the one I thought I lived in, and I was desperate to learn more.

To advance my knowledge in this subject I decided to find a book to read. After having googled economics books for beginners, I found myself enticed by Freakonomics by Stephen J. Dubner and Steven Levitt. I thoroughly enjoyed it as an introduction to economics because its humorous notes made it very entertaining. The authors also did an excellent job at helping me understand statistical concepts at an intuitive level, and how I could use the concepts to better understand the real-world problems discussed in the book.

After more research into the subject, I found out that not only did economics consist of microeconomics; the branch of economics that considers the behaviour of decision takers within the economy, such as individuals, households and firms, but also macroeconomics; the study of the actions governments and countries take to influence broader economies. So, this was where I decided to research next. At the time, ChatGPT had just been released and I was fascinated to know how this would affect the labour market. As part of my English GCSE coursework, we were assigned to write a speech on a subject of our choosing so long as it was compelling and interesting so then I decided to pick the topic The Economic Impact of AI. (I will upload this speech at a later date with current insights and reflections alongside).

Now I'm a 16-year-old amid my A-Levels; Economics, Maths, Further Maths, Computer Science. I'm getting stuck in and learning a lot.

[rachelbethhines]

60 Years of Doctor Who Anniversary Marathon - Davison 9th Review

Skaro: 20 Years of Time Travel Reviews - Fanzine

So what is a fanzine?

A fanzine is a fan published magazine.

Before the days of the internet, chat rooms, e-mails, forums, blogs, and social media, there was fan clubs, news letters, charity publications, and magazines. The fanzine was the primary way to share opinions, analyzes, fandom news, fan fiction, and fan art.

There have been several Doctor Who themed fanzines through out the decades; hundreds even. Skaro was one of the more professional looking ones that came out during the early 80s, and had connections with a fairly large fan club called the Doctor Who Appreciation Society.

While Skaro is no longer in print, the DWAS is still going and even publishes a different fanzine today... albeit digitally now. http://www.dwasonline.co.uk/

As for today’s issue, I manged to grab a copy off of ebay for eight bucks, and it came with a bonus issue as well.

Each are about 8 by 5 inches, printed on thick matte paper, and are all in black in white. Despite being held together by obvious staples, each zine looks and feels more like a thin cover-less paperback than what you would think of as a magazine on a store shelf today.

As for the contents of the zine, this special 20th anniversary issue features reviews of each season up to that point by 20 different fans. 

It seems rather pointless to review a bunch of other reviews however, so I will just point out two things. 

First, the print and layout of the various articles and production photos was very well handled, easy to read, and pleasing to the the eye. Outside of the occasional typo and one or two tiny printing mistakes, I can see why this particular fanzine is well remembered in fandom.

The second matter, and perhaps my only real criticism of the issue, is that while by and large most of the reviews are full of love of the show, one or two reviewers couldn’t seem to stop nagging on the then current era.

I mean it’s an anniversary special for goodness' sake! You’re telling me you couldn’t find a single fan in all of the UK who enjoyed season 18 enough to write a positive review of it?

I’m fine with people voicing dissenting opinions, but there’s other times and places for that. Not at the anniversary celebration though.  

The next issue gives a look at what the magazine normally featured and I gave it a quick glace through.

We start off with an introduction by the editor and some legal copy-write disclaimers and footnotes. Then comes an assortment of fan letters talking about fandom things, the DWAS, and expressing general appreciation for the magazine.

Following from that we get an article from a fan gushing over the Brigadier and how awesome his BrOTP with the Doctor is. Then we’re treated to more reviews, this time of three individual episodes from season 13. While the next submission is a more heady piece of intellectual analysis discussing gray morality in the series as a whole.

We also get treated with some fan art and the third part of a three part story featuring Nyssa and the Doctor. Sadly, I shall not bother reading this particular fan fic as I have no way of obtaining the rest of it.

After that we get a particularly whiny bitch complaining about Doctor Who ‘catering to Americans too much’ because JNT dared to make the next companion from the US and had the gall to advertise the show to overseas markets! Yes, how dare a TV producer do his job! Worst Show-runner Ever!   

Moving past that outdated unpleasantness, we come to the ‘advertising’ portion of the issue, which is just listing previous issues and talking about what to expect in the next.

We end the zine on yet another fan pointlessly complaining about JNT and how ‘the show is not as good at it used to be’, and finally the most interesting piece in the entire publication, an actual interview with the then editor of the official Doctor Who Magazine and one of the professional Doctor Who comic artists. Out of everything here, I’m most likely to go back and properly re-read that instead of just speed reading it. 

So is the Skaro fanzine something worth getting?

Not really.

There’s a certain amount of novelty in reading a fanwork that is physically older than you are. It’s like uncovering a time capsule. But, nothing therein isn’t anything you haven’t heard before elsewhere on the web. 

The most unique things here, the ones really worth preserving are the fanfictions and you can’t even read the entire thing in a single issue. And issues can run ridiculously high, most averaging around $25 and some going up to even $50.

Unless you’re a collector of fanzines specifically, it’s not really worth it. I lucked out on finding two issues for ten bucks (once you count shipping), and honestly I wouldn’t pay much more than five dollars for an issues anyways. 

[adventuresinclientservice]

Will you lose your job to A.I.?

When I was in Bucharest last October to speak at the International Advertising Association’s “Creativity 4 Better” annual conference, I got to hear two presenters perform:  DI Mayze spoke on “What’s next for Generative AI and the creative industry?” followed by Seth Dobrin, who outlined “A 9-Step Formula for Safe Generative AI.“ 

Listening to those two made me realize just how inescapable A.I. is for everyone, especially those of us in advertising and marketing.  In fact, there are ad people - staffers working in Strategy, Creative, and Account Management, perhaps you – who wonder if a bot is going to replace them. 

A few would say “Yes;” more would say “Probably;” many would say “Possibly.” 

New York Times Opinion columnist David Brooks would say “No.”

In a recent Times piece Brooks writes:

“Many fears about A.I. are based on an underestimation of the human mind. Some people seem to believe that the mind is like a computer. It’s all just information processing, algorithms all the way down, so of course machines are going to eventually overtake us.”

He goes on to point out that human knowledge is “unconscious and instinctual,” recognizing that A.I. “has access only to conscious language.” 

I’ve been thinking about the implications of A.I ever since Chat GPT seemingly burst on the scene November 2022.  It admittedly is a low bar, but I wondered if A.I. would do a better job writing Adventures than I ever could.  What about something longer?  As I perpetually struggle to find that next book idea, could Chat GPT crank out 50,000 – 60,000 words that readers would like and buy?

After reading Brooks’ article, I (sort of) realized there’s an answer to these questions embedded in what I previously have written, not recently, but from years past, before ChatGPT and other large language models even were a concept.

Chapter 20 of Brain Surgery for Suits, published 25-plus years ago as the precursor to the three subsequent editions of The Art of Client Service, had as its title, “Judgement Overrides any Rule.”  Chapter 34 of the first and second editions of Art had the identical title, as did Chapter 37 of the current, third edition.

The content of the chapter evolved over time, but consistently asserted a fundamental principle:

“This is a book of rules, but an account person works in a world of exceptions.  No rule can accommodate every situation, and no list of rules is exhaustive.  In the end, the only rule you can rely on is this:  judgement rules.”

Among not just Account and client-service people, but also everyone else who works in advertising, it is judgement that defines and differentiates much of what we do, judgment that cannot be replicated, because it cannot be anticipated; judgment that:

Empowers you to say or write exactly the right thing at exactly the right time to diffuse an issue or identify an opportunity. 

Allows you to ask after a client’s children, or to discuss a vacation, or talk ball scores from a recent contest. 

Tells you to pick up a phone or get on a plane when you sense something is not quite right with the work, the relationship, or anything else that might be amiss.

In his story Brooks points out:

“Sometimes I hear tech people saying they are building machines that think like people. Then I report this ambition to neuroscientists and their response is: That would be a neat trick, because we don’t know how people think.”

The brain is a mysterious thing.  My former Digitas copywriting colleague Nancy Harhut has made a business out of decoding it, then writing a book about it. Just about everyone is striving to better understand how the mind behaves. 

No one can predict how things will unfold, and I cannot say how A.I. will evolve, but if you’re lying awake at night thinking about the future, let me reassure you the things that make the mind so elusive are the very things that remain a step beyond A.I.’s grasp.

Wherever you are in your career, whatever your ambition, regardless of the path you choose to pursue, what makes you you is distinctive, singular, and unique, insulating you from the predations of A.I.

My suggestion, then, for that insomnia you might be experiencing:  turn off the light and go back to sleep.

[gatekeeper-watchman]

The Right to Life

          “The Right to Life”, the title given to the very important issue of abortion prevention, seems to especially come to life at the beginning of every election cycle, used by certain politicians as a tool to arouse and exacerbate the emotions of the electorate in an effort to secure votes. In between election campaigns, it seems we hear very little about the issue. It only comes up when Joe Blow wants to run for office or be re-elected. I’m sorry, but this aggravates me to no end. This issue should not be politicized. Especially significant is that the most, if not greatest, support for this issue comes from the “Christian Right”.

Now, let’s be clear about this–let there be no doubt. Although, at times not a very good one, I am a Christian; and I firmly believe in the right to life. I am opposed to abortion, except in those cases when it is medically necessary, where the pregnancy is the result of incest, or, arguably, some other extenuating circumstance is involved. Babies can always be placed for adoption, for which, the Lord knows, there is always a continuous and raging market. As we speak, Black Market Profiteers are kidnapping babies, raiding nurseries in hospitals, and stealing them from wherever they can be found. There is especially no need to kill them when there are plenty of those who want them and will love and care for them. The right to the sanctity of life demands the right to life, as redundant as that may be sound.

Now, let us get back to the “Christian Right”. They are professed Christians, born again, just as I professed, above, for myself; but, let me tell you one thing about Christianity. You can’t profess one segment of Christ without, also, accepting the other beliefs that go along with the faith. You cannot. You cannot pick and choose what you want to believe. To do otherwise is downright hypocritical. You can’t have one part without the other.

What am I talking about? I’ll get down to it. It’s this. When it comes time to go to the polls, many voters will vote for a politician based upon this one issue, or perhaps it might be another. I've used this issue, “The Right to Life” for a reason, but it is only as an example. The point is, there are others–other singular issues on which a voter may choose to focus. Too many of us don’t look at the “big” picture when we vote. We are very myopic in our views.

Back to my example–that politician who is so vigorously proclaiming the right to life in order to get your vote, is also supporting other issues on his platform which the voter simply chooses to ignore. On the one hand, he, the politician, will vote to support the saving of millions upon millions of lives from abortion; while, on the other, he will choose to ignore, in times like these, the plight of the forty-seven millions of us living in poverty, with twenty million unemployed or underemployed, including an approximate million homeless women and children as well as men, sleeping on the streets, under bridges and/or in their automobiles. In these times when there are three people unemployed for every job opening and a job is extremely difficult to find (impossible for some), he will vote against the extension of emergency unemployment benefits; he will vote for the reduction, if not elimination, of the food stamp program (while, in the same instance, vote for "welfare" grants to millionaire farmers [some of whom are members of Congress] under the guise of subsidies); he will vote for the reduction of Medicaid; he votes against national healthcare. Also, just an afterthought, what would our nation’s condition be if the twenty millions of us in the prisons (this is on top of the forty-seven million in poverty), were to come into the unemployment lines (Of course, not all, but the release of many prisoners is currently under consideration)?

I could go on and on, but I’m sure you understand what I am saying. This whole political process is broken. It makes no sense at all–and much of it, unfortunately, has been cast in the name of Christianity; which, Christianity it is not. Warfare is not Christianity. Torture is not Christianity. Lying, cheating, stealing, fraud, and deception are not Christianity–no matter how you cut it. Soon, we will again have an opportunity to vote–our next election is just down the road. Look at and study the real issues. Be careful for whom you vote. What you think you see, might not be what you get.

From: Steven P. Miller, @ParkermillerQ, gatekeeperwatchman.org Founder and Administrator of Gatekeeper-Watchman International Group Sunday, July 28, 2024, Jacksonville, Florida., Duval County, USA.  X … @ParkermillerQ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/Sparkermiller.JAX.FL.USA, Instagram: steven_parker_miller_1956 #GWIG, #GWIN, #GWINGO.

[tenzinclimateblog]

Beautification and Gentrification: Grappling with the Consequences of Strengthening Adaptation in Urban Cities

New York City. The city that never sleeps, home to the world’s most diverse neighborhoods, eclectic and iconic spots… and exorbitant rent prices. For a city so unique, it’s disappointing that the one commonality it shares with almost every other metropolitan hub is its rising prices.

Where do I get off talking about rent when I’m living for free with my parents? Well, as I’ve made clear to all the people in my life, I’m a born and raised New Yorker. It’s obviously something I have a lot of pride about. And why shouldn’t I? For all its flaws, NYC has one of the best and most extensive public transportation systems in the US. I have access to food from all over the world (thanks to globalization, I guess). From the looks of it, I’m living the sweet life.

These days though, my conversations about living in New York are weighed down by clouds of uncertainty and anxiety. I unfortunately cannot live with my parents forever. So as my grad program comes to a very fast-approaching end, I am scouring the internet for jobs that fit my interests and pay a living wage. As I cross my fingers and submit application after application, I hope and pray that an employer will pick up my file from the online resume void.

Having to face the rising cost of living is definitely not an issue unique to me: a recent NYTimes article reported (a study conducted by Columbia University and Robin Hood) that 23 percent of NYC residents were unable to afford basic necessities like food and housing. Additionally, climate change continues to raze through waterfront and low-income communities that do not currently have the proper infrastructure to adapt to rising sea levels.

Back in undergrad, I created a podcast episode for my Architecture and Environment course about what I called the aesthetics of climate resilience in NYC. In the podcast, I argued that resilience efforts in NYC are embedded heavily in capitalistic efforts and thus need optics to promote the city as a climate-progressive space. I am not sure that I hold the same pessimistic view that I had just last year, but I do think that adaptation to climate change is a priority that NYC must address.

In a society entrenched in capitalism, any sort of infrastructural or architectural improvement in an urban city comes with harmful consequences. Green or environmental gentrification occurs specifically when urban greening projects have an impact on the housing market. Even outside of urban greening, any efforts to fortify or beautify the city will be exploited by those who can afford to. But where does that leave the people who can’t?

Displacement is rampant in NYC and to my knowledge, is not getting any better. Cultural institutions that have served residents for decades are being replaced with soulless profit-centered chains. Sorry to say it, but the city is looking like one big blocky glass house (and not a cool one like the original Crystal Palace in London or even the Farnsworth House by Mies van der Rohe). Gray and without charm, the city is slowly becoming my worst nightmare.

Last class, we discussed what our climate visions were. Of course, I dream of a world where we can achieve > 1.5℃ and completely decarbonize societies. I think my climate vision incorporates those goals. Ultimately, I would like for cities to be able to build climate resilience and beautify without gentrification. As much as this is a climate issue, my climate vision requires stringent housing policy and protections for lower-income NYers. I also don’t think that my climate vision is impossible. Everybody should be able to live in a city with efficient and equitable public transport and affordable housing.

Building climate resilience through adaptation initiatives is crucial now and in the near future. We see communities that are still recovering from Hurricane Sandy, over ten years after the fact. This is unacceptable. My climate vision for eco-cities devoid of unreasonable housing prices is absolutely possible. To do so though requires grassroots organizations and constant criticism of our local governments to do better. In my opinion, our current mayor (Eric Adams) could focus a lot less on building up the NYPD and more on addressing the pervasive inequalities that are more than evident across the city: affordability and access to basic amenities like public transport, housing, food, education, etc.

Affordable and climate-smart housing must be in the blueprint of NYC and other urban planning. Everybody deserves to live in nice, readily maintained neighborhoods. Living a quality life should not come at such a hefty price. Our prompt for Applications asked us what our climate visions are and what tools we might use to put them into action… The reality is that we need to mobilize to pressure local governments to care and enact change. We also need to empower our peers and communities and convince them that a future with beautiful and affordable cities is possible.

Affordable and climate-smart housing must be in the blueprint of NYC and other urban planning. Everybody deserves to live in nice, readily maintained neighborhoods. Living a quality life should not come at such a hefty price. Our prompt for Applications asked us what our climate visions and what tools we might use to put them into action… The reality is that we need to mobilize to pressure local governments to care and to enact change. We also need to empower our peers and communities and convince them that a future with beautiful and affordable cities is possible.

[newlifemortgages]

The Bank of Canada Says 'Hold Your Horses': What It Means for Your Mortgage

January 25, 2024 | Posted by: Dallas MartinReady for a fresh scoop from the finance world? No, it's not about a lost calculator or a misplaced pie chart. It's more intriguing - the Bank of Canada has held its target for the overnight rate at a whopping 5%.

Why should you care? Well, let's break it down in plain English, shall we?

A Peek into the Crystal Ball

First, let's gaze into the future. According to the experts, the Bank of Canada is likely done raising rates and will hold them at 5.00% for at least six months. And here's where it gets interesting: predictions are swirling that the Bank will start slicing rates in June.

'But wait,' you might say, 'what does all this talk about benchmark rates have to do with my mortgage?' Good question! Let's break it down.

See, the Bank of Canada's benchmark rate is like the conductor of a financial orchestra. It sets the tempo for the lending rates that banks and other financial institutions offer consumers and businesses. So, when the benchmark rate changes, so do the interest rates on things like loans, credit cards, and your mortgage.

Banks typically hike their interest rates if the benchmark rate goes up. Why? Well, it's more expensive for them to borrow money, and they pass those costs onto you. This means your mortgage payments could go up if you've got a variable-rate mortgage or coming up for renewal.

Conversely, borrowing becomes cheaper for the banks if the benchmark rate goes down. Theoretically, they should pass these savings onto you, which could mean lower mortgage payments.

So, whether you're hunting for a new home or just keeping tabs on your current mortgage, remember to keep an eye on the Bank of Canada's benchmark rate. Because, like it or not, the Benchmark Rate affects us all!

The Global Picture

On a global scale, economic growth is hitting a slow stride, and inflation is starting to put its feet up across most economies. Our friends in the U.S.? They're bracing for a slower pace in 2024. Less spending and less investing are on the agenda.

As for Europe and China? The euro area is feeling a tad under the weather, and China's wrestling with some confidence issues and policy uncertainty.

But wait, there's good news! Oil prices are lower than we thought they'd be. So, we've got that going for us, which is nice.

Oh Canada

Back here in Canada, our economy has hit the snooze button. Growth is expected to hover near zero through Q1 2024.

Why the economic naptime, you ask? Well, Canadians are closing their wallets in response to higher prices and interest rates. Business investment has also taken a tumble.

And what about jobs? Even though the labour market conditions have eased, wages are still climbing.

What's Next?

So, what does the future hold for our economy? Economic growth is expected to pick up speed around mid-2024. By the year's second half, we should see an uptick in household spending, exports, and business investment.

Inflation? It ended the year at 3.4%. The Bank expects it to hover around 3% for the first half of this year before it starts to take a breather, aiming for the 2% target in 2025.

The Bank of Canada has decided to keep the policy rate at 5% and continue normalizing its balance sheet. They're keeping their eyes peeled for any risks to the inflation outlook and are committed to restoring price stability.

In short, the Bank of Canada is telling us to hold onto our hats, hoping for smoother sailing ahead. But remember, when it comes to interest rates, it's a bit like a rollercoaster ride. So buckle up, keep your hands inside the vehicle at all times, and try to enjoy the ride. Stay tuned for more updates!

[cabin-in-the-sunlight]

The Struggles We Face: The Difficulties Transgender Students Encounter

Transgender people are often marginalized in society today. That is a fact shown by statistics. Whether by simple headcount, socioeconomic status, or historical representation, transgender individuals have always been the minority. Being a minority comes with a lot of hardships. Those difficulties do not spare someone just because they are a college student, either. In this blog, I will talk about the struggles transgender students face in affording and approaching college. The first difficulty we face that comes to my mind is the lack of support. There is a lot of stigma surrounding gender nonconformity and transgender individuals in society today, based on the idea of the gender binary and cisnormativity. This idea tends to be prevalent in older generations, meaning that a significant portion of parents of current college students believe in the gender binary and cisnormativity, largely due to the society they grew up in. With a firm belief in these ideas comes the inability to understand and accept gender nonconforming and transgender individuals, and in a lot of cases, this is no exception for the children of those believing in cisnormativity. Transgender children whose parents believe in the gender binary are at risk of facing retaliation and loss of support if they were to come out to their parents. Given the current economic situation and the never-ending upward trend in tuition costs, it is challenging for students to support themselves through university. This issue applies to transgender students as well, who are much more likely to be denied financial support from their parents due to their gender identity. Thus, the issue becomes that transgender students, on average, may have a harder time affording college. This issue is further exacerbated by the fact that workplaces, especially in more conservative areas, tend to refrain from hiring transgender people. The stigma towards transgender people impacts the job market, making transgender people even more susceptible to being financially burdened and making access to college education even harder.

Another major issue affecting the accessibility of college for students is the countless bills that are being introduced across the United States. Since 2015, several hundreds of legislation targeting transgender rights have been introduced, with over a hundred of them passing and becoming active laws. While the pushback against these bills targeting transgender people is ongoing, with a handful of such laws being shut down in court cases, the sheer number and intensity of the limits imposed by these legislations are enough to both intimidate people and practically limit students’ access to college. One example of the impact of these bills is the limit on transgender students’ participation in sports. Countless laws across the United States limiting transgender people to compete in sports have been introduced. Such bills severely hinder transgender athletes who have transitioned from participating in their events. This is another obstacle for athlete students trying to access college, especially given that many universities in the United States provide support for athlete students. Another example of these bills’ effect is the limit on people’s access to gender-affirming healthcare, including hormonal therapy. Limit to gender-affirming hormone therapy not only negatively affects transgender people’s mental health in the form of heightened anxiety, depression, and feelings of helplessness, but it also prevents them from achieving the bodily changes they desire. This puts them at a greater risk of facing stigma from others, as people often tend to assume others’ gender identity just by their appearance. Relating to the previous issue, transgender students might face stigma and prejudice from others at their universities, such as faculty members, staff, or even their peers. One example of this was the repeated misgendering I faced, mostly from my peers, where people kept referring to me as “he” even though I had told them that I go by she/her pronouns. Even though the majority of these incidents were caused by forgetfulness or ignorance, it does demonstrate the point that some people at universities will assume someone’s gender just based on appearance or what’s written on legal documents. I also encountered several instances where other students showed aggression towards transgender students. For instance, one of my transgender friends had a classmate constantly misgender him and ask him uncomfortable questions about his relationship with his boyfriend. Such aggressions, mostly in the form of repeated and deliberate misgendering, intrusive questions and comments, or unintentional microaggression through insensitive statements, often cause transgender people to have a hard time adjusting to and accessing their college’s community. The issues I have detailed in this blog are just scraping the surface compared to the myriad of difficulties transgender students often face in real life. Times are hard for us transgender students. However, some people are helping transgender students in need, giving them hope and assistance. For example, Transgender First Scholarship strives to hear the stories of transgender students who need help as the first national scholarship dedicated to helping underserved transgender students get affordable access to college. You can check out their website here: https://www.onlinedegree.com/transgender-first-scholarship/. If you are a transgender student in need of financial support, do check out their programs, and if you’re willing to support transgender students in need, consider donating to the scholarship program. Transgender people all over the world are facing difficulties. We are all struggling against an ocean of societal designs and obstacles that want to oppress us and wipe our existence into history. But people are fighting for our rights, a lot of transgender people included. As we stand united, we will hold out through these dark times and walk into the dawn of a brighter future together. Thank you for reading, and happy New Year, everyone.

[melancholybliss92]

I'm so excited !! I will be going to look at a house next year. It's not available on the market yet until the 16th. I am set on this house because of the area so I will wait to see what it looks like inside. I am set on it so I'm really hoping it's not a fucked up house. Whether I'm in a relationship or not I will have my OWN house. Unlike them homeless hoes that seek a relationship to have a place to stay. Or that stupid fat Italian bitch the crazy 40 yr old was with . If he wanted to be with her, he would have stopped her from moving when she was In philly. And also when she moved and he came to visit for 2 weeks . He would have rented an apartment already to prove he serious. I looked up rent in kansas its cheaper than philly. She know she ugly as fuck and she in denial and making herself sound like she's wanted. And also he tried to string me along saying stay with him in the current house for 5 years so when he sells it he makes more money to buy a bigger house. I'm already seeing alot red flags with him and his stupid ass homeless hoe family. Hes not speaking up for me .The sister and husband is unstable welcoming more runaway homeless bitches and then lying and making corny post to make them look good . That's the only bitch her fat son can get. A homeless hoe that is submissive because the min she argue with them she will be kicked out. They all liars and hoes looking to breed and get married so they have a place to stay .they said her family is rich, own properties, own a nail salon etc. but why is the bitch inside a fat dudes parents house to this day. If they are so rich why don't they get her an apartment or give her a house. Why does she have to park and stay in someone else's house for 2 years . They fronting and lying . I don't like people who ask about me behind my back, spying on me out of jealousy, making snide comments about my business but their shit stinks. and then hyping an actual loser bitch up. Her actions speak for herself and his neice is still homeless in her moms basement. I see why they both best friends. Two corny homeless bitches go hand in hand . Trust me , if her family is rich. They will never ever let her stay in some fat dudes parents house in the hood. They will make sure she goes to college and she has a place to stay. I don't lie like that and I don't need to hide my business . I'm praying if my realtor can check for an earlier date. The faster I get out the faster i feel like im free with my own space. I know the ugly ass fat bitch in kansas is jealous because i look better and is smarter she waiting for the relationship to end. He still has pics of me and him on fb. He can either apologize to me or be alone in his small piece of shit house. U can be in a relationship with other people and visit them from your own house. I'm done living with another piece of shit. It's all types of issues when one isn't working and doesn't have a life and their family is jealous of u and he's not speaking up. I didn't ask him for money back in early August 2020. This was before I even pass my exam and got thus job. We both decided he goes back to his mom's house to play his stupid league of legend game. The man downstairs didn't make any noise at that time because I wasn't really working. The man downstairs is another one of them welfare disability people that doesn't work they stalk u all day and watch your routine. I stopped talking to him at night for only one week. He hurried up and came back right away to open another internet in my apartment . Thats on him . He's crazy . If he didn't open internet in my house, I already have Comcast. We wouldn't see each other or argue. If I don't get that house I'm going to see then I will be really sad. But I don't know yet. Gotta wait till it hits the market .

[anxietyfilledpsychologist]

Life is Truly Odd...

The last time that I posted on here, I had recently married my high school sweetheart after being together 6 years. This year, 2023, will be 12 years of being together, and 6 years married. To say that things have gotten better would be a lie but oddly enough, I still love this man more than anyone and could not imagine my life without him. We have truly been through some of the worst things together and in the end, we have still chosen each other. We still fight, but my husband is currently in therapy and on medication to help his mental issues.

In my first point, I talked about financial issues we were facing. While we are still paying off debt, we were lucky enough to get our debt consolidated and will have all $17k of debt paid off next August. We also bought a house in 2021 which is something I never thought we would be able to do. My husband’s truck is paid off and I feel like we are doing okay financially. We do not have a savings account but that is something we plan on doing soon. We have both gotten promotions at our jobs and feel that we are in better head spaces financially. 

The year that I posted last, was actually the year that I become pregnant with my first child, a daughter who is now almost 4 as well as a son who is now 1. It was actually only two months before I conceived almost to the day. If I could sum up everything that has happened in the past four years, it would be “beautiful chaos”. I didn’t think I would ever be able to provide for a family and yet, it just all ended up working out. There were a couple tough times, but we got through it. Due to our rental going up on the market around the time my daughter was 1 1/2, we had to move into my husband's parent’s while the home we were purchasing was going through escrow. The day after our offer was accepted on the home, we found out we were pregnant with our son after 6 months of trying. We officially closed on our home on our daughter's second birthday. It was a rollercoaster, but it was kind of fun. 

I am even more alone now than I was when I wrote last. Little did I know that the friends that I did see then would stop coming around all together once I had my daughter. I have one friend, but she moved about 5 hours away. I get to see her a couple times a year. Everyone else I had then I have not seen or hung out with since. This is the part of adulthood and parenthood that no one talks about. I have NO ONE. Everything I said in this section remains true still. Why Bother? 

So, in conclusion, the amount that your life changes in a few years is astronomical. I look back on my last post and remember just how hurt I was. How angry I was. I would not change my life for anything. I have learned so much from my husband and my children that have really put things into perspective. Take it from me; you never know what tomorrow is going to bring. I hope reading this update compared to my previous post is evidence to just how much can change, even when you don’t think it will. Life Sucks, and Then We Die. Why not enjoy the rollercoaster and throw your hands in the air? 

[awkwardknight]

I can't really get myself to write this currently so instead I will type out some ideas like I used to do for my spidey noir blog. Spoilers for Gravity falls ahead.

Arrives some time before the show begins, maybe about winter the year before. Ends up at the mystery shack somehow after hiding his ak gear in a duffel bag in the woods. Stan catches him shoplifting food, realizes he's a homeless teen with nowhere else to turn to (seeing a bit of a young Stan in him) and basically says "alright you're staying with me, work at the shack and I'll pay you and stuff workers like"

He immediately forms a union with Soos and Wendy

Doesn't find Gravity Falls that strange because Gotham is also like that, is completely and totally ready to mount a unicorn's head on the wall, especially after how they treat Mabel in the Season 2 episode. Probably has free access to the monster black market because he's a Gothamite (and the suspected titan serum but we don't talk about that)

He's actually super lonely, before summer starts the only people he interacts with are Stan Soos Wendy and the odd customer. His job basically consists of filling in where necessary

He was Mr. Mystery once under the name Mr. E, and has never done it since because he tried fighting a tourist for "asking stupid questions". Following the reveal of his massive anger issues, Stan puts him more in a backstage role.

The twins come along and he is immediately defensive, he is convinced Stan's going to boot him soon, and is suprised when it never comes to that. Dipper and Mabel's first impressions of him were "there is something deeply and undeniably wrong about you, you are clearly dangerous, avoid at all costs" and "huh what a weird guy" respectively.

Mabel thinks he's deep and mysterious (not in a crush way, in an almost Dipper way). She realizes he's just a normal kid like the other teens in Gravity Falls in a new episode about a "no clowns" rule in the shack. The twins learn he's from Gotham. Mabel decides he must be homesick and going forward will do her best to make him feel better. Dipper just has his fears confirmed because everyone from Gotham is weirdly dangerous like you don't survive Gotham as a pacifist.

Speaking of surviving Gotham, he's obviously got a lot of scars. There's some he can hide, he always wears long sleeves, a bandana around his neck (it changes design each episode like Mabel's sweaters), a facemask, and gloves, he also tends to keep his hand with the missing fingers in his pocket. There are still scars he can't hide like the ones over his eye (not the branded one), and a few on his forehead that aren't quite hidden by his hair. Only Stan has seen his scars.

Dipper eventually reaches a breaking point when he and Jason are the only two in the shack. He grabs a knife, points it at Jason, and screams "WHO ARE YOU? WHAT ARE YOU?" Jason goes quiet and responds, "legally dead." This does not help things. He manages to ground Dipper from completely freaking out, and when Dipper is himself again he takes off his facemask and explains that he's a real person, he promises, it's just that a lot of bad things have happened to him and he's trying to rebuild away from where it happened but not somewhere so completely different he's surrounded by things he's never known growing up. Dipper's sympathetic and apologises for freaking out. Jason apologises for making things worse. By the time the rest of the mystery shack inhabitants come home, Dipper's showing Jason the journal.

Wendy ends up introducing Jason to her friends. He spends some time doing normal kid stuff, but comes away still feeling like he doesn't belong.

He fucking despises Gideon, what he would give to punt that child across the lake. The day he finds out how Gideon was acting towards Mabel, Soos had to physically restrain him from going to the prison and doing something drastic.

He likes McGucket, and because McGucket has an honestly shit memory, he feels free to talk about some of his own technilogical creations with him, including the Cloudburst tank.

Dipper ends up looking up to Jason quite a bit after Little Dipper. Jason's short but he's still strong, he's short but he uses it to his advantage in fights and in games, he's short and he's fine with that. (Jason isn't actually fine with that but he'd never let Dipper know because he knows Dipper's also insecure about his height)

When Waddles moves in, Jason was very averse to him at first, wanted nothing to do with that pig (he was reminded about Pyg), but slowly grew to appreciate him when he realized he no longer has to force himself to eat everything he's offered because if Waddles eats it then it won't be wasted.

During the Bottomless Pit, he tells the story of how he stole Batman's tires then hit him over the head and managed to get adopted. Soos calls his bluff because "Batman's not real, dude."

In the Boyz Crazy episode, he makes an offhanded mention about Riddler using that brainwashing technique, adding "but it's fine because Riddler's a skinny bitch and super easy to beat". This raises some questions for Stan that he leaves unasked for now.

He stays at the shack for the land before swine episode because he would have solved that problem immediately with a gun no one knew he had until that moment

He calls Bill Cipher an iscocoles twink in the dreamscapers episode, he also calls that this definitely isn't the last they'll see of him. During the fight he chucks dream molotovs at Bill.

He then spends most of the Rise of Gideon wondering how worth it a murder charge would be, heavily considers bringing back AK. So heavily in fact that he goes out to the woods and digs up the bag. He eventually decides against it, but doesn't hide the bag as well as he did the first time.

Real quick I should mention after Mabel gets her grappling hook, he sneakily steals it for a few days and modifies it so it can actually be a grappling hook, because in this version it's a bit shit at first because it's from a tourist trap's gift shop.

So when the twins fall and Mabel uses her grappling hook, he is running to them, thinks he's just out of time, and then sees that line and knows that his little bit of immaturity in giving a twelve year old a fully functional grappling hook saved them.

Between S1 ending and S2 starting, Dipper manages to find the bag with the AK gear in the forest. He recognises the helmet from a newspaper article belonging to Jason and takes it to the only Gothamite he knows. Jason, who also immediately recognises it because he built that damn thing, flips out and asks Dipper where he found that. Dipper takes him to the bag and he starts panicking like fuck fuck fuck, Dipper thinks Jason's panicking because he thinks what is almost a Gotham Rogue is on the loose in Gravity Falls. Jason takes the helmet and the bag, tells Dipper to not mention even a whisper of this to anyone, which Dipper finds weird, and Jason takes the bag back to his room in the shack, hiding it under a floorboard he pried open.

He is absent from scary-oke, but shows up again in Into the Bunker, where Shifty tries to take his appearance but doesn't realize the brand scar is there so doesn't copy it. When Dipper, so far the only one other than Stan, points out he's missing his big obvious scar, Wendy wacks him, and Shifty scuttles off, returning minutes later to take Wendy's form.

After the bunker incident, Wendy, Mabel and Soos are like "Dipper mentioned a scar, what's it like?? Is it cool?" And Jason's a little hyper so he just pulls off his facemask, laughing, and everyone is totally shocked about the brand. Mabel starts crying and hugs him, and Jason slowly calms down and realizes oh right, she's a pretty sensitive kid from a regular place. He ends up telling the gang + Stan some of his background (non graphic) that night, revealing that the no clown rule isn't entirely to do with him just being a Gothamite, but because a clown did this to him in the first place. The cast have a newfound understanding for him and what he's been through

He sleeps through the Golf War, then briefly appears in Sock Opera helping Mabel make her puppets. He does not have his mask or gloves on this time, and doesn't have one hand jammed in his pocket the whole time.

After Sock Opera, he goes to Dipper all like hey if you're having troubles you can talk to me about them, thinking Dipper's suicidal, and then Dipper's like "Bill's back, he possessed me, and tried to kill me." Jason reacts as such: "CALLED IT!- I mean, I am so sorry he did that."

Soos briefly speaks to him in Soos and the real girl. The conversation goes as such. "How do you talk to women?" "I don't." (The bandana he is wearing in this episode is a rainbow one)

Sees Stan with his glowing wrists without hands and is like "you pissed off the hand witch, huh?" Then makes a joke about her doing "this to [him]" while he holds up the stubs of his one and a half missing fingers.

Doesn't appear in Society of the Blind Eye.

I will be completely honest, I haven't watches Blendin's game. I don't know how, but it completely slipped my radar when I was watching the show, I have no clue what happens in it other than more time shenanigans.

Doesn't properly show up again until Northwest Mansion Mystery, at which point he says "hard pass" on the idea of going to a gala to bust ghosts, adding "Dipper, the people at those events are usually so old they are bordering on ghosts themselves, and you can't bust those people, or you'll go to jail. You don't want to go to jail, do you Dipper?"

In Not What He Seems, when the agents arrest Stan they also seize Jason's AK gear, though he himself slips under their radar, he spends most of the episode trying to get it back, until he runs into the twins again and helps them get into the basement.

His first words to Ford are: "six fingers? Don't you think that's a bit much?" Then holds up his hand with the missing fingers and adds, "I mean, leave some for the rest of us, man." He is delighted by Ford's existence because he can just tell, this guy is trouble but in the best way.

That doesn't mean he isn't still close with Stan. Right after Stan and Ford's old man conversation in front of the mirror, he catches Stan and says "You lied to me. But I've lied to you. I say we're even."

Ford has no idea about AK so when he gets the agents to go, they accidentally leave the crate with the gear behind. Ford moves it into the basement where Dipper eventually finds it in DD&MD. Dipper says "oh man Jason'll flip when he sees you have this" and Ford's like "why?" So Dipper explains that Jason's from Gotham and that the armour in question belonged to a guy who tried to invade Gotham to kill Batman. He has to backtrack and also explain Batman. Ford is highly suspicious when he learns the lengths Jason went to to hide this stuff and how stressed he was when Dipper found it in the firstplace.

During the Stanchurian Candidate, Ford pulls Jason to the side (into the basement) and asks about the goings on in Gotham over the past thirty years. Jason catches him up, and then Ford asks, "and what about the Arkham Knight?" And Jason freezes, he knows Ford suspects him, and realizes that him freezing is just confirming things. So he confesses.

Having only known Ford for like a few weeks at max, he goes into a lot of detail about everything, about the torture, about his mindset, about how in the end he couldn't kill Batman, the man he once thought of as his father, a man he still loved and wanted to be cherished by as the son B claimed him to be. Ford tells Jason about some of his multidimensional crimes, and promises not to tell anyone. He gives Jason the gear back, and during the Last Mabelcorn, Jason goes out and hides it in the bunker. Ford assures him that he's changed, he's not the same person anymore. Jason tries to believe him.

He goes along on Roadside Attraction, mostly just surveying the areas and wondering how good of a backup plan they would be if living in Gravity Falls falls through.

In Dipper and Mabel vs the Future, he goes back out to the bunker, intending on giving AK a funeral of sorts. He then finds out about Weirdmagedon, and dons pieces of the suit again in a sort of Jason AK hybrid suit I will draw later.

And it is almost midnight I will talk about Jason vs Weirdmagedon later

Gravity Falls Arkham Knight crossover. Jason goes to Gravity Falls after the invasion fails

[thebibliosphere]

So I'm currently unemployed because I got fired for taking too much sick leave (it was legally sketchy blah blah blah but in the end I just can't work and take care of myself and investigate my mystery health problems at the same time). So I've been spending more time writing!

I really admire your writing and loved Hunger Pangs. I'm looking forward to the poly elements developing and I'm wondering if you have any advice for writing about poly. I've made one of my projects a snarky take on "write what you know" ... Apparently what I know is southern gothic meets Pacific northwest gothic, chronic illness pandemic surrealism, and falling back-asswards into threesomes.

I know this is a very open-ended question and I don't expect an answer, I'm just curious about it if you have the energy. As a writer, trying to write honestly / realistically about polyamory/enm, I'm curious if you have any thoughts on what's different about portraying monogamy or nonmonogamy in books, romance or erotica or otherwise.

I'm trying to read examples but it's hard to find examples that fit the niche I'm looking at. Excuse me if this question is nonsense, it's the cluster headaches.

I'm sorry to hear you've been dealing with all that and solidarity on the cluster headaches. But I'm glad you're finding an outlet through writing! And I hope you're happy with an open-ended ramble in response because oh boy, there's a lot I could talk about and I could probably do a better job of answering this sort of thing with more specific questions, but let's see where we end up.

There's definitely a big difference between writing polyamory/ENM (ethical non-monogamy) and what people often expect from monogamous love stories.

Just even from a purely sales and marketing standpoint, the moment you write anything polyamorous (or even just straight up LGBTQIA+ without the ENM) you're going to get considered closer to being erotica/obscene than hetero romances. It's an unfair bias, but it's one that exists in our society. But also the Amazon algorithm and their shitty, shitty human censors. Especially the ones that work the weekends. (Talking to you, Carlos 🖕.)

So not only do you start out hyper-aware that you're writing something that is highly stigmatized or fetishized (at least I'm hyper-aware) but that you are also writing for a niche market that is starving for positive content because the content that exists is either limited, not what they want, or is problematic in some fashion i.e. highly stigmatized or fetishy. And even then, the wants, desires, and expectations of the community you're writing for are complex and wildly varied and hard to fit into an easy formula.

When writing monogamous love stories, there is a set expectation that’s really hard to fuck up once you know it. X person meets Y. Attraction happens, followed by some sort of minor conflict/resolution. Other plot may happen. A greater catalyst involving personal growth for both parties (hopefully) happens. Follow the equation to its ultimate resolution and achieve Happily Ever After. 

But writing ENM is... a lot more difficult, if only because of the pure scope of possibilities. You could try to follow the same equation and shove three (or more) people into it, but it rarely works well. Usually because if you’re doing it right, you won’t have enough room in a single character arc to allow for enough growth, and if ENM requires anything in abundance, it’s room to grow.

And this post is huge so I’m going to put the rest under a cut :)

There's also a common refrain in certain online polyam/ENM circles that triads and throuples are overrepresented in media and they may be right to some extent. Personally, I believe the issue isn't that triads and throuples are overrepresented, but that there is such minuscule positive rep of ethical non-monogamy in general, that the few tiny instances we have of triads in media make it seem like it's "everywhere" when in actuality, it's still quite rare and the media we do have often veers into Unicorn Hunter fetish porn. Which is its own problematic thing. And just to be clear, I’m not including this part to dissuade you from writing "falling back-asswards into threesomes." If anything, I need more of it and would hook it directly into my brain if I could. I'm just throwing it out there into the void in the hope that someone will take the thought and run with it, lol.

I’d love to see more polyfidelitous rep in fiction, just as much as I’d like to see more relationship anarchy too. More diversity in fiction is always good.

Another thing that differs in writing ENM romance vs conventional monogamy is the feeling like you need to justify yourself. There's a lot of pressure to be as healthy and non-problematic as possible because you are being held to a higher standard of criticism. Both from people from without the ENM communities, and from the people within. Granted, some people don't give a shit and just want to read some fantastic porn (valid) but there are those who will cheerfully read Fifty Shades of Bullshit and call it "spicy" and "romantic," then turn around and call the most tooth-rottingly-sweet-fluff about a queer platonic polycule heresy. That's just the way the world works.

(Pro-tip for author life in general: never read your own reviews; that way madness lies. I glimpsed one the other day that tagged Hunger Pangs as “ethical cheating” and just about had an aneurism.)

And while that feeling of needing to justify yourself comes from a valid place of being excluded from the table of socially accepted norms, it can also be to the detriment of both the story and the subject matter at hand. I've seen some authors bend so far over backward to avoid being problematic in their portrayal of ENM, they end up being problematic for entirely different reasons. Usually because they give such a skewed, rose-tinted perspective of how things work, it ends up coming off as well... a bit culty and obnoxious tbh.

“Look how enlightened we are, freed from the trappings of monogamy and jealousy! We’re all so honest and perfect and happy!”

Yeah, uhu, sure Jan. Except here’s the thing, not all jealousy is bad. How you act on it can be, but jealousy itself is an important tool in the junk drawer that is the range of human emotion. It can clue us in to when we’re feeling sad or neglected, which in turn means we should figure out why we’re feeling those things. Sometimes it’s because brains are just like that and anxiety is a thing. Other times it’s because our needs are actually being neglected and we are in an unhealthy situation we need to remedy. You gotta put the work in to figure it out. Which is the same as any style of relationship, whether it’s mono, polyam or whatever flavor of ENM you subscribe to* And sometimes you just gotta be messy, because that’s how humans are. Being afraid to show that mess makes it a dishonest portrayal, and it also robs you of some great cannon fodder for character development.

Which brings me in a roundabout way to my current pet peeve in how certain writers take monogamous ideals and apply them to ENM, sometimes without even realizing it. The “Find the Right Person and Settle Down” trope.

Often, in this case, ENM or polyamory is treated as a phase. Something you mature out of with age or until you meet “The One(tm).” This is, of course, an attempt to follow the mono style formula expected in most romances. And while it might appeal to many readers, it’s uh, actually quite insulting. 

To give an example, I am currently seeing this a lot in the Witcher fandom. 

Fanon Netflix!Jaskier is everyone's favorite ethical slut until he meets Geralt then woops, wouldn’t you know, he just needed to find The One(tm). Suddenly, all his other sexual and romantic exploits or attractions mean nothing to him. Let's watch as he throws away a core aspect of his personality in favor of a man. 

Yeah... that sure showed those societal norms... 

If I were being generous, I’d say it’s a poor attempt at showing New Relationship Euphoria and how wrapped up people can become in new relationships. But honestly, it’s monogamous bias eking its way in to validate how special and unique the relationship is. Because sometimes people really can’t think of any other way to show how important and valid a relationship is without defining it in terms of exclusivity. Which is a fundamental misunderstanding of how ENM works for a lot of people and invalidates a lot of loving, serious and long-term relationships.

This is not to say that some polyam/poly-leaning people can't be happy in monogamous relationships! I am! (I consider myself ambiamorous. I'm happy with either monogamy or polyamory, it really just depends on the relationship(s) I’m in.) But I also don't regard my relationship with a mono partner as "settling down" or "growing up." It's just a choice I made to be with a person I love, and it's a valid one. Just like choosing to never close yourself off to multiple relationships is valid. And I wish more people realized that, or rather, I wish the people writing these things knew that :P

Anyway, I think I’ve rambled enough. I hope this collection of incoherent thoughts actually makes some sense and might be useful. 

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*A good resource book that doesn't pull any punches in this regard is Polysecure by Jessica Fern. It's a wonderfully insightful read that explores the messier side of consensual non-monogamy, especially with how it can be affected by trauma or inter-relationship conflicts. But it also shows how to take better steps toward healthy, ethical non-monogamy (a far better job than More Than Two**) and conflict resolution, making it a valuable resource both for someone who is a part of this relationship style***, but also for writers on the outside looking in who might have a very simple or misguided idea of what conflict within polyam/ENM relationships might look like, vs traditional monogamous ones.

** The author of More Than Two has been accused of multiple accounts of abuse within the polyamorous community, with many of his coauthors having spoken out about the gaslighting and emotional and psychological damage they experienced while in a relationship with him. A lot of their stories are documented here: https://www.itrippedonthepolystair.com/ (warning: it is not light material and deals with issues of abuse, gaslighting, and a whole other plethora of Yikes.) While some people still find More Than Two helpful reading, there are now, thankfully, much, much better resources out there.

*** Some people consider polyam/ENM to be part of their identity or orientation, while others view it as a relationship style.It largely depends on the individual.