#church under $100K

[centrally-unplanned]

I find myself interested in how ineffective integration was for Ireland vis a vis the UK in the 19th century. Certainly after 1832 voting reforms and the 1829 repeal of the ban on Catholics serving in parliament (UK-wide but ofc hitting Ireland the hardest), the Irish were at more-or-less equal footing as the English or Scots when it came to voting rights and the legal system (I think most people don't know this! They think the Irish couldn't vote in the 19th century!) And it wasn't even an "on paper" deal for voting rights, Irish were active in government (they even had Irish PMs, though ofc Protestant), by the latter half of the 19th century economic regulations were equalized, and they got within a hair's breadth of Home Rule before some munitinous unionists and WW1 got in the way. Despite the rep a lot of countries have gigantic ethnic minorities, and liberalism/equal franchise is actually pretty decent solution to that problem. Why didn't ~100 years of representation in the House of Commons, in the era when "nation building" was at its peak, not work?

From what I can tell, timing is of course part of it. At a simple level, World War One was such a nationalist godsend; it created the "radicalism cascade", a weakened center and domino revolutions inspiring everyone with a cause with a sort of temporal Schelling Point. Without it, would the 1912 Home Rule have just been implemented in due time, and Ireland would be like Scotland today? At a more structural level, the timing was particularly rough because WW1 was the tail end of the age of religion in Europe. So much of the conflict was over Protestant vs Catholic, and after WW2 if Ireland was united under one home rule government in the UK it's hard to imagine the secularizing age powering so much conflict. Had they "held on" a few more decades you could see it calming down.

I think those are true enough but you do gotta dig down to another level. "Protestant" wasn't really just a religion in Ireland - it was the Protestant Ascendancy, a ruling class of combined English settlers and converted Irish who, during the imperial era before the 19th century, built an entirely separate ruling class in Ireland. And it was a deep ruling class - Catholics were barred from voting in even the Dublin local parliament, they were banned from being judges or lawyers, inheritance law was rigged to privilege Protestant sons while converting away from the Anglican church came with property confiscations. Depending on what counts, at its peak in the 18th century up to 30% of the country had opportunistically converted, in a system rigged top to bottom against the Catholics.

Imagine for a second India was given representation in the House of Commons and given self-rule. Just ignore the distance and demography issues for now, this obviously wouldn't actually work, instead think about what that transition would look like. The British "Indian Civil Service" would have to be dismantled...which was like 10k brits vs over 100k Indians. Actual british military officers in the country in the 19th century was less than 100k - and it was a rotating duty, they didn't all live there. Dismantling that really isn't that hard! Those people just go home. The core that ruled was deeply integrated into the country, but it was tiny - the vast majority of India was ruled by Indians, in the name of the Crown. They would just...keep going but now be in parliament.

That was impossible in Ireland. Britain had actually launched one of the most intensive cultural conversion programs of a foreign nation around in the 17th and 18th centuries, it was nowhere close to the "light imperial touch" of elsewhere. But it never...worked. Instead it just built this gigantic ruling class, deeply enmeshed in both Ireland and England, completely dependent on that superiority economically, but seen as outsiders by the Catholic Irish majority. "Protestant & Catholic" is at least half a gigantic class war. And in the 19th century the UK brought "laissez faire liberalism" to Ireland and was like "look, we are equal now!" after two+ centuries of rigging the system. It was literally the "kicking out the ladder after climbing up" equality meme.

This was why Home Rule was so bitterly contested, why Protestant Anglo-Irish officers threatened to mutiny in 1912 if it was implemented. They understood that the first acts of Home Rule were going to be, essentially, reparations. Which the Irish almost surely deserved. But Imperial, Liberal, 19th Century UK was not going to give reparations to the fucking Irish, it was not ready to dismantle its dejure and defacto aristocrats in that way - or at least not until it was too late, some land reform for example did begin in 1903. Scotland didn't need it, Wales was too weak to fight it, but Ireland was in the sweet spot of being weak enough to be oppressed but strong enough to oppose it and fight back once the culture changed.

Or at least that is my current read, this is a low-confidence post. Curious to learn more!

[withonly-sweetheart]

prompt 22 from this prompt list !!! AHH TYSM FOR REQUESTING IT @ekurie987 THIS IS AN EXCERPT FROM MY 100K LEON KENNEDY FIC... NO SERIOUSLY I WROTE IT AS A BDAY GIFT FOR MY FRIEND

said friend if you see this... this year for your birthday it'll be fully edited trust!! im not writing another one.

fic under the cut! wc: 787

Leon and I catch our breath atop the steeple, watching the zombie horde below. But suddenly, the infected stop their mindless moaning. Heads tilted as if listening, the dead villagers stand motionless.

Then, on the faint breeze, a church bell begins to toll in the distance. As if summoned, the zombies shuffle off down the street, drawn towards the sound. Within moments, the village square is empty once more.

"Where's everyone going?" Leon scoffs, glancing around the barren streets. "Bingo?"

I roll my eyes but allow myself to admit that Leon's earned my trust, since we're both still alive, but I can tell by the suspicious look in his eyes that I haven't earned his, which is perfectly fine. I never liked cops anyway.

We shuffle past the rotting bodies and go the opposite way of the villagers, not wanting to confront them again. Leon looks strangely nervous, which is concerning, but I don't say anything about it. What really bothers me is that he's still following me, which won't end up being good for either of us.

"What's your endgame, huh?" I ask in desperation, wildly turning to confront him. "There's no bounty on my head, no treasure in my company!"

"Are you saying you've got an issue with that?" Leon retorts flippantly, the tiniest hint of something like pain flickering in his eyes. "Am I some bothering you or something?"

"Those things, especially their leader," I frantically explain, words spilling out of my mouth like water from a broken dam. "They're all after me!"

"But you seem to be handling it well," Leon counters, his voice filled with an unfounded faith in my abilities, making me yearn for the simplicity of being an ordinary guide. But I'm far from that.

"Can't you see?!" I shriek, my voice bordering on the hysterical, praying the fear in my eyes will send him packing. "Stay with me, and you're signing your death warrant!"

"How can you be so sure?" Leon asks, disbelief coating his words as if he thinks I'm weaving tales just to get him off my back.

"Because," I hiss, my voice a tight whisper. "I've seen it play out. Over and over again."

Leon looks at me, confusion etched on his face. "Not me. I won't die."

"But I can't promise that," I insist, desperation clawing at my words. "If you get hurt, I... I don't know if I can live with myself."

"What makes me different, huh?" Leon insists, hands on his hips, not waiting for an answer. "You knew from the get-go you were leading lambs to the slaughter, and yet you did it anyway. There's no reason for you to be attached to me either, it's barely been an hour since we met, so why should my well being concern you so much?"

"I..." Leon raises a hand, cutting me off, and my voice fades into nothing. Strange of him to use lambs to the slaughter. I've heard that somewhere before.

"I'm law enforcement," he says monotonously. "I can handle myself." His words echo someone from my past life, a life I thought I'd left behind, and all those years come rushing back to me within a matter of seconds. Before I can stop myself, I'm rushing towards him, crushing him in a desperate embrace, my sobs soaking his shoulder.

I want to stop, but at the same time, I can't. The way Leon's arms feel around me is strangely similar to that of... oh no. I left that past behind. Everything with it, too. I can't believe that I don't even remember the name of the boy that risked everything in his life to save me; naturally brown, close-cut hair, eyes that never stayed one color, sometimes a spectral navy, sometimes bronze.

And how did I repay him? I didn't. The regret still eats away at me to this day.

I expect Leon to push me away or something, but he's more like a wall supporting me, strong arms snaking around me and holding me tight, as if he'll regret letting me go. We stand like that for a while, my head in the crook of his neck, and soon enough I realize what an intimate position we're in. It must not seem like that to him, because he doesn't make any move.

I wait for him to pull away. It doesn't happen. Instead, my heavy breaths echo through the empty area. I'm surprised there isn't a horde of zombies stumbling towards us right about now.

"S-Sorry," I untangle myself from his embrace, feeling embarrassed as his intense gaze watches me, unwavering and resilient.

"Don't be," he murmurs, his voice sounding far away. "I'm sure you do this all the time."

[endueringfire]

hello, hello, it's mist (she/her/they/them) here again! this time it's my fuckboy park byunghee (27, actor&soloist&social media personality&ex-professional boyfriend). there's more info under the cut, but you can find his profile and his career. just like with rhiannon, i also did a plots page with five important plots for byunghee. like this post and i'll hit you up, or you can find me on discord @ moonpsy!

TW: infidelity, bullying & a guy being a guy

park byunghee was born in seoul, south korea, on april 13, 1996. both his parents are blue-collar workers and byunghee grew up pretty poor.

he got a scholarship for a fancy kids rich school and suffered intense bullying there for a long time. not only was he angry but also very envious of how the rich kids could just get away with anything simply by having money. set his mind into becoming famous one day.

wanted to audition right after school but had to do his military enlistment. left, got three part time jobs to pay for singing and acting classes and managed to audition for a bunch of companies, only making it into a very, very tiny one.

debuted in 2017 in a very flop bg that sold approximately 1k copies through the two and a half years they were active. company went bankrupt in 2020 and byunghee made about 100k won that entire time.

not one to give up, went back to three part time jobs to pay for more classes. an ex-manager, who was now working under secret garden, hooked byunghee up with a private audition and they accepted him as an actor.

started acting but clearly wasn't the focus of the company so he kept doing web-dramas that were very niche (including a bl). begged his manager to get him something bigger to participate in, ended up in love lab experiment, a netflix dating show (think single's inferno-esque).

got a relationship and a career out of that and started making, out of a single sponsored post, more money that he had ever seen in his life.

relationship ended for reasons of byunghee being a Guy and cheating and immediately he started seeing a decrease in interest for him. pivoted into releasing solo music, banking on his skills and the 2 million instagram followers to sustain him and his debut did moderately well. now byunghee is trying to find other avenues through which he can keep his status and his income.

personality:

an extroverted introvert, if that makes sense? enjoys a good party and being around friends, but won't seek out connections and definitely gets drained when spending too much time outside.

super fucking dedicated to anything he sets his mind to. has a "i want it i got it" mentality.

on the other hand, has never heard of an impulse control.

both a fuckboy and extremely possessive in relationships, which bleeds into his friendships as well.

such a jealous and envious person. will wish upon your downfall if he finds out you're somehow doing something he does better/more successfully than him.

he's a caring person, though, with the people he likes. a hype man in every way possible. surprisingly a decent mentor.

somewhat of a devout catholic. goes to church every sunday with his mama and originally learned how to sing in church.

[transgenderer]

Tonga's current king, Tupou VI, traces his line directly back through six generations of monarchs. The previous king, George Tupou V, born in 1946, continued to have ultimate control of the government until July 2008

Tonga's economy is characterised by a large nonmonetary sector and a heavy dependence on remittances from the half of the country's population who live abroad (chiefly in Australia, New Zealand, and the United States). The royal family and the nobles dominate and largely own the monetary sector of the economy – particularly the telecommunications and satellite services. Tonga was named the sixth-most corrupt country in the world by Forbes magazine in 2008.[60]

King Tāufaʻāhau Tupou IV and his government made some problematic economic decisions and were accused by democracy activists, including former prime minister ʻAkilisi Pōhiva, of wasting millions of dollars on unwise investments. The problems have mostly been driven by attempts to increase national revenue through a variety of schemes – considering making Tonga a nuclear waste disposal site (an idea floated in the mid 1990s by the current crown prince),[35] and selling Tongan Protected Persons Passports (which eventually forced Tonga to naturalise the purchasers, sparking ethnicity-based concerns within Tonga).[36]

Schemes also included the registering of foreign ships (which proved to be engaged in illegal activities, including shipments for al-Qaeda);[37] claiming geo-orbital satellite slots (the revenue from which seems to belong to the Princess Royal, not the state);[38] holding a long-term charter on an unusable Boeing 757 that was sidelined in Auckland Airport, leading to the collapse of Royal Tongan Airlines;[39] and approving a factory for exporting cigarettes to China (against the advice of Tongan medical officials and decades of health-promotion messaging).[40]

In mid-2003, the government passed a radical constitutional amendment to "Tonganize" the press, by licensing and limiting freedom of the press, so as to protect the image of the monarchy. The amendment was defended by the government and by royalists on the basis of traditional cultural values. Licensure criteria include 80% ownership by Tongans living in the country. As of February 2004, those papers denied licenses under the new act included the Taimi ʻo Tonga (Tongan Times), the Keleʻa, and the Matangi Tonga – while those permitted licenses were uniformly church-based or progovernment.

The bill was opposed in the form of a several-thousand-strong protest march in the capital, a call by the Tuʻi Pelehake (a prince, nephew of the king and elected member of parliament) for Australia and other nations to pressure the Tongan government to democratise the electoral system, and a legal writ calling for a judicial investigation of the bill. The latter was supported by some 160 signatures, including seven of the nine elected, "People's Representatives"

tonga is a small island nation of about 100k people, 70% of which live on the largest island of tongatapu. its politics are kind of crazy

[i-spam-stuff]

Compilation of Posts I've Spammed

✅ = finished! ❗ = you can still spam these [deadline not passed/non-existant] 💥 = this has multiple set goals, some are achieved and some are not

✅ first drafts (15k)

✅ sleep schedule (1k -> 5k)

❗ sandman (N/A)

✅ book snippet (1k)

webcomic (15k) [deadline passed]

multi (10k) [deadline passed]

✅ tw: sui ideation (30k)

finish 'atpwh' (20k) [deadline passed]

✅ two songs (20k)

under a golden moon (10k) [deadline passed]

✅ poetry & latin (10k)

✅ pfp change (10k)

✅ old ff idea (7k)

mc builds (2763) [deadline passed]

✅ squishmallow ff (5k)

chap 2 & 3 (1,666) [deadline passed]

✅ finish 3 wips (10k)

songs (10k) [deadline passed]

❗ containment breach (10k)

✅ sell art (10k)

✅ lyrics (3k)

✅ tw: sui ideation (2k -> 10k)

✅ sleep schedule (10k)

💥 write a song, produce it (7k, 10k) [deadline passed]

posting art (1.5k) [deadline passed]

❗ stinky boy (10k)

✅ multi (2k)

✅ excerpts (250)

💥 multi (5k, 6k, 7k, 10k, 20k, 30k) [deadline passed]

✅ sideblog (1k)

✅ multi (5k, 6k, 10k)

❗ multi (20k)

✅ poems & classics (5k)

❗ therapist (30k)

gymnastics /s (9929459949281) [deadline passed]

dance (20k) [deadline passed]

✅ positivity (10k -> 20k)

✅ evil shadow version (10k)

✅ fibromyalgia diagnosis (15k)

✅ multi (3k)

✅ multi (2k, 5k, 7k)

✅ multi (100, 500, 1k, 2k, 3k)

✅ drawing (2k)

❗💥 multi (2k, 3k, 5k, 7k, 10k)

✅ oneshot wip (1k)

✅ psychiatrist (10k)

❗💥 coming out as trans (20k -> 50k)

✅ better health (10k)

✅ post love song, send to crush (2.5k, 3.5k)

❗💥 writing process (1k, 5k, 10k, 12k)

❗💥 leave church, come out (5k, 10k)

dyspraxia diagnosis (5k) [deadline passed]

❗💥 multi (various)

❗ multi (5k, 7k)

❗💥 multi (250, 500, 1k, 5k)

❗💥 multi queer (100, 500, 1k, 10k, 100k, 1M)

❗ german boy shitpost (10k)

❗ boredom (5k)

❗💥 multi (50, 69, 1k, 2k, 3k, 4k)

fun fact 10k (10k) [rbs turned off]

✅ dress pic (5k)

❗ the hubris (N/A)

coming out (1.5k) [blog deactivated]

❗ is there a secret code language (10k)

❗ cheese grater (10k)

❗💥 blood moon write, oneshots (400, 500)

✅ multi (500, 1k, 2k, 3k, 4k, 5k)

✅ stop boymoding (80085)

❗️ cthulu pussy connoisseur (N/A)

❗️ ate a lemon to feel smth (10k)

❗️ call cat a pussy (10k? 20k? 100k???)

✅ come out as trans (10k)

❗️ kimi no toriko (2k)

❗️ writing 'you please' (876941)

❗️ i could fix her -> government debt (10k)

❗️ yuri (10k)

this will be updated as frequently as i can manage.

[automatismoateo]

Church of Sacred Synthesis is trying to use freedom of religion to sell Shrooms as a church sacrament via /r/atheism

Church of Sacred Synthesis is trying to use freedom of religion to sell Shrooms as a church sacrament First, apologies for the link to Law Talk With Mike. It is the only source I have for the content. The essence of the case covered in the video is the Church of Sacred Synthesis appears to be selling magic mushrooms under the guise of being a church sacrament. They are selling sacraments online. They claim protection under The federal religious freedom and protection act of 1993 as well as a Texas version of the law. The church does seem to be practicing as a religion. They are using pseudoscience to back up their claims. They are embracing conspiracy theories to explain opposition. They are using intimidation to silence the critics of their religion. I think the case is interesting because it illustrates how churches can use "religious freedom" laws to cover all types of behavior. Here are timestamps for significant moments in the video: Time Explanation 3:05 Circumstances of the case. The Church of the Sacred Sacrament has a sacrament that includes the active agent in Shrooms. A group of researchers exposed the "secret ingredient" in the sacrament, and the church is suing the researchers. 14:19 A member of the church who is an attorney appears. He talks about his "spiritual journey." This is one reason I think the church does see itself as a legitimate church. 18:36 The church has 2000 members and is getting about $100K a month in membership fees and sacrament sales. They are probably tax-free. 35:06 The judge has to deal with the situation in a professional manner. Submitted May 30, 2024 at 03:00PM by dudleydidwrong (From Reddit https://ift.tt/vTDGhL5)

[greyssub]

Cornerstone bible church westfield in

CORNERSTONE BIBLE CHURCH WESTFIELD IN FULL

CORNERSTONE BIBLE CHURCH WESTFIELD IN PRO

CORNERSTONE BIBLE CHURCH WESTFIELD IN PRO

Internal applications, then our B2B based Bizapedia Pro API™ might be the answer for you. If you are looking for something more than a web based search utility and need to automate company and officer searches from within your WHAT'S INCLUDED IN THE ADVANCED SEARCH FORM? Utilize our advanced search form to filter the search results by Company Name, City, State, Postal Code, Filing Jurisdiction, Entity Type, Registered Agent,įile Number, Filing Status, and Business Category. If your looking for Religious Organizations in Westfield, Indiana - check out Cornerstone Bible Church Of Westfield, Inc. While logged in and authenticated, you will not be asked to solve any complicated Recaptcha V2 challenges. Cornerstone Bible Church Of Westfield, Inc is located at 720 Liberty Dr Westfield, IN 46074. In addition, all pages on Bizapedia will be served to you completely ad freeĪnd you will be granted access to view every profile in its entirety, even if the company chooses to hide the private information on their profile from the general public. Fain, III co-pastors Cornerstone Reformed Church in Greenwood, Indiana. Cornerstone Bible Church has quite many listed places around it and we are covering at least 54 places around it on. In order to qualify for the PPP loan amount received, Cornerstone Bible Church Of Westfield, Inc's 2019 payroll expenses are estimated to be at least $383,520.Your entire office will be able to use your search subscription. He attends Cornerstone Bible Church in Westfield, Indiana. Cornerstone Bible Church (Church) is located in Hamilton County, Indiana, United States.Address of Cornerstone Bible Church is 720 Liberty Dr, Westfield, IN 46074, USA. Why Katy The story of Cornerstone Bible Church is just beginning, but by God’s good and guiding providence the desire for a church plant in Katy has been unfolding over many years. Please Note: Information on estimated payroll and compensation based on PPP rules is provided for informational purposes only.īased on the standard PPP eligibility formula, it may be possible to estimate the payroll expenses represented by a company on their PPP application (see details above). With this as our model and aim, on February 6th, 2022 we sent out Pastor Daron Roberts with several families from Founders to plant Cornerstone Bible Church in Katy, Texas. Cornerstone Kids Student Ministries Young Adult Ministry Older Adult Ministry Mulch for Missions Missions.

CORNERSTONE BIBLE CHURCH WESTFIELD IN FULL

Additionally, because this standard calculation is based on the maximum loan eligibility, it will under-estimate payroll costs if the business did not apply for the full amount of loan to which it was entitled based on its 2019 payroll expenses and other variables described above.Because salaries for PPP eligibility purposes are capped at $100k, businesses with highly-compensated employees will yield an under-estimation of actual payroll costs.This estimation assumes that the PPP recipient applied for the full amount for which they were eligible, and no other variables affected the loan amount received. Situations may exist in which it may not be accurate to estimate a PPP recipient's payroll expenses based on the amount of PPP loan received. A call to eldership is evidenced by godly. pastors and overseers) serve the church by devoting themselves to the ministry of the word and prayer and caring for God’s people with joy and eagerness. Subscribe to Newsletter Annoucement Requests 720 Liberty Dr. SES - Senior Executive Service Pay Calculatorįor Cornerstone Bible Church Of Westfield, Inc, the calculation used to estimate payroll costs is shown below: God designed the church to flourish under the servant-leadership of qualified men who lead, feed, care, and protect his flock.FWS - Federal Wage System Pay Calculator.

[somtochukwusamuel]

The struggle.

Your ernest desire is to be free from the debt that beset you like monsters that circle you, pressing your neck. It weakens your cognitive strength and you feel the effect like a heavy ice block has been installed in the middle of your brain and disrupts the flows of thought and you feel blank most of the time.

Your brain aches to the point of pain.

You've gotten yourself in a mess, you owe the shepherd 200k and over the past few months have been able to gather crumbs together to reduce the weight of the debt by half. 

But as e dey be now, e be tins.

When you started doing POS business, you bought an infinix phone for 92k. You lied to your mother that you needed 100k to support the business, and she gave you and was willing even gather money from her meeting group and make it 200k. God bless that woman that gave birth to you. You've sworn say na she go chop your money. 

Your phone crashed and you bought the infinix. Fix one or two things in the house, billings close to 60k. Last four months you lost 45k from your POS business. One benin woman handed you her ATM card and told you to withdraw 45k. You slid in the card, pressed digits and when it's approved, handed her 45k and headed back to base. 

On you way, something clicked and you checked history and found out you omitted a zero: you withdrew 4.5k. You dart back to the spot but it's too late. She's no where to be found in the entire market. 

Damn, you felt drenched, too weak to tell anybody because everyone that asked only wanted to gain information to tittle about to extend their vacation from boredom. 

So you gulped it down.

Last three weeks, 10k disappeared from your capital just like that.

Now you've eaten more than you're given and you're growing backwards.

Every Wednesday and Friday and Sunday that your head gets under the roof of the church, tension follows. It worsens when the congregation gets on their feet and starts clapping, waiting for the pastor to mount the podium.

You can't concentrate on the man if you owe him. You try as much as possible to distract yourself away from the enigma that reminded you of your trouble.

You've endured this for so long, so fugging long, long and long.

One day, one sunday morning, you stood before the wall, your face reaching in the center of the mirror. Protruding from the base of the mirror was a space for the brush and paste to lay their head. You pick both, smear the paste over the brush and head for the sink.

It's on your way to bathroom that you remembered when you used to live with mum and you didn't have a sink there; you brushed in kitchen metal sink. You feel free now. You had what your mum never had, yet you didn't pay for it. You feel grateful.

Back then in mama's house, you had nothing, expect a rickety Gionee phone to which, when you finally bowed to society's pressure, you used for graphic design. Didn't you later give up on it when you started giving lesser fucks about the opinion of the society?

You remember how you got the house. You're on your own o, chilling in the space that one meets when he opens the door to the flat. It's that same space that, if you go left, leads you to the sitting room where the pastor is always present, proudly carrying brandishing his hairy trunk, saggy breast and potruding tummy. 

He always sits on the floor with a remote handy, his back rested on the solfa, eyes fixed on the wall screen TV, watching wrestlemania, not everytime, but mostly.

You're seated in the veranda, your phone was on a low stood beside you and your legs where stretched hight up to the handle of the banister. You're actually avoiding the parlor so that you're not seen too often to the point of redundancy. Your phone rang and, by reflex, you looked left, downwards. The caller was Chidera, your good friend. You picked the phone and swiped your thumb over it, to the right, then place the phone on your ear.

"Hello bro." Came his voice.

"My man, how you dey na."

"You still need house?"

Your eyes widen at this question because, in the deepest of your hearts, you need house. But in the deepest of your pocket, na 200 naira dey dia. So you hesitate, before you answer, "house dey?"

"Yes house dey. You need am?"

"How much na." This came with a smirk on you because you know you no get money. Hahahaha.

"Na juss my guy sha. Nothing much, e wan comot for the house and e don pay for 1 year rent. E say e need person wey go stay for the house."

Because, ironically, broke men always think about money, you ask again, "how much I go pay?" Again, you're asking because the only money you have is the one you'll use to travel back home when you feel your presence in the house is becoming normal. When you're no longer a visitor. They send you to go fetch water, and add "please." They call you to come collect dinner in the kitchen by yourself.

When this starts happening, you pretend to want to go see how mum is doing so that they'll know you actually have a house, that you're just staying here because you want to be close to the church. So that when you're sure they're missing you, you'll return and stay for a week or two until the cycle starts to repeat.

"Sha hold like 12k for hand." Chidera replied.

Long story short, a month later, you're parking into a one-room self-con, fully furnished, with a bed, gas-cylinder, curtain, etc. You only needed to bring your bag, guitar and study table. 

It's a full room. And you only paid 12k to own the house. 

That's how good the Lord has been to you. The paste on your brush is drying up while you're lost in thoughts.

You brush really quickly and enter the back. Your hand turns a faucets on the wall and water starts pouring down your body. You're grateful to God. A small boy of 20, without a mature skill, living in his house with all this privacy. This could only be God.

Sometimes when you return home from a stressful day, you undress and position your body beneath the shower so that it can rain you, the blessing of the Lord rains on you.

You know you have no problem at all. You know you're a blessed man. You know God doesn't need to remember you, because you're always in his mind.

[hometoursandotherstuff]

Oops, I did it again. When someone sends me something via message, I tend to answer forgetting that deletes it, and I didn’t credit the sender. I was so happy to get this, it’s my all-time favorite church conversion, b/c it’s DIY- absolutely no fancy remodel. I posted it awhile ago and have been looking for it ever since. I can’t believe it didn’t sell. 

It was built in 1903 in McKeesport, Pennsylvania. They did have to repair the exterior. But, McKeesport, unfortunately, is ranked #4 of the most dangerous 100 cities to live in by the National Council for Home Safety and Security.  

I just love it so much, though, just the way it is, but look at the price changes it’s gone thru: $70,000 ~ Reduced to $69,950 ~ Reduced to $69,500 ~ Increased to $79,500 ~ Reduced to $77,500 Increased to $83,000. Now it’s $99,000. Maybe the neighborhood got better?

If it wasn’t in such a dangerous area, it could be a phenomenal gothic palace. 

It’s a crying shame. Look at this huge altar in the kitchen. The owner is leaving a Viking stove and appliances that the buyer would have to install. 

It’s being sold as-is and there’s some code work to do before moving in. The furniture is fabulous, and it’s not included, but the owner is willing to sell pieces.

The building is huge- this is the main bdm. There are 4, altogether.

Some of the flooring has to be replaced. 

One of 2 baths.

Check out this old wood stove.

The owner also wants cash- no exceptions. Are those organ pipes against the wall?

Well, i must say that no one’s broken in and taken the antiques. The owner must be living here, or someone is, b/c I even found it listed on Apartments.com.

There’s a very large rounded basement.

A nice side yard.

And, a deck. No one’s messed with their wrought iron table or the grill. 

I don’t know what to think. If I hadn’t looked it up, I would never think that this neighborhood was bad. It looks so nice.

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/1501-Union-Ave-McKeesport-PA-15132/245290952_zpid/

[itsevanffs]

🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻🌻

my brother in christ you really went for nine, huh. alright

i'm christian! like, for real. believe in the one and only god etc etc, cross around my neck, no going to church but that's just because waking up early is a pain in the ass and also going to sit in mass in the cold while tired for an hour every week just isn't my cup of tea, as much as the tea they tend to serve afterward is, pun pun pun.

but yeah i got a rosary that i don't stuff up my ass, listen to gregorian chants for fun and pray to god whenever my plane has turbulence. typical white guy stuff.

--

my favourite drink that i can guzzle by the litre is split between green ice tea and a (non-alcoholic) mojito. usually ice tea, though, since fizzy drinks hurt my mouth.

--

i pretty much cannot eat anything in the morning without gagging (yay), so if i am tired and prickly between the hours of 9am to 3pm, that's why

--

i have a pretty intense priest kink and my sims 4 cc reflects this.

--

i'm dutch! as in the nationality. but you might have already known that.

--

i used to buy a lot of hp merch but stopped pretty much the second i found out about jkr's transphobia. i also try to, cough cough, less than legally acquire all her creative property (like books and movies) whenever possible. still got some wands, and while i'm not gonna buy any more unless they're second hand from ebay or something (fuck amazon) i won't be throwing them away, either. these cost a pretty penny. btw word of advice; if you hate an author, don't buy a book to burn it. they still get the money. sometimes they really shouldn't.

--

i celebrate my birthday on october 28th.

--

i've been writing and drawing since i was nine, and i have a total wordcount of about 550k under my belt from the last four ish years, which translates to just over 100k a year. not bad, right? that's like three whole novels!

--

i've been trying to livewrite every week in my server and so far it's going,,, reasonably? link to join up in the aboves of my blog, and also here. every so often you get to vote on what i write next, so it might be worth joining if only just for that <3

[ambiguouspuzuma]

Code Red

You had to have a code. You know, even if only because it sounds good when you say it out loud. People are suckers for that sort of thing. I kill people. Oh no! But I have a code. Oh, that's all right then. It doesn't really matter what it is: some vague banalities, a handful of platitudes that everybody follows anyway. It gives the impression that your work is underpinned by some veneer of morality, or at least the rules of civilisation. That's good. Nobody wants to hire a savage.

With a code under your belt, you aren't just a soulless murderer who would do anything for the right price. Of course, the irony is that talking about the code is great for business, like a USP to differentiate yourself from the common or garden hitmen out there, to make your clients think they're getting a more prestigious service. A killer with discretion. Somebody they could trust, even though the whole thing is basically a scam.

No children or animals. That's always a good one. As if anyone would hire you to off the neighbour's chihuahua, even if it was being particularly yappy. Few people have any desire to hurt someone's kids or pets - and even if they did, they're pretty easy prey without professional help. Nobody hires a high-level assassin for that kind of job, and so the rule is never actually tested. That's the beauty of making a big deal about your code. You can get rewarded for the stuff that you were doing anyway.

The rules can be as arbitrary as you like. I don't hurt innocents is another one of mine, like anyone's itching to shell out five figures to bump someone who hasn't done anything wrong. I'm not looking to kill any saints, or martyr any new ones, but I've never actually been asked to. There's always a reason behind the hit, always some real or imagined guilt, even if the client's verdict wouldn't exactly stand up in a court of law. I never said I had the same burden of proof.

Only quick, clean deaths is another one that makes me sound like a world-class empath, when really I just like to get the job done as efficiently as possible. I'm not about to make a mess when I can shoot the target in the head. Why would I? That's just piling more risk onto my own back. I'm not doing the dead guy any favours in making it quick, removing any chance for him to defend himself, to raise the alarm for the police, or get my DNA under his fingernails. I'm only being merciful to myself.

Nothing less than $10k is just me looking after my bank account, but it does help to present yourself as exclusive. People want a premium service. They might have been happy to pay that anyway, but not as keen to commission a clean, professional hit from somebody who's also a back-alley butcher for those clients on a budget. I know, it's messed up, but I don't make the rules. Or I only make my own ones. You know what people are like. If it exists, customers will be snobs about it.

Then there are the weird ones, just to pad out the list. No jobs on Sundays. I'm not even religious, but it really adds that extra façade of dignity, doesn't it? Nobody over retirement age. That just brings some symmetry to the kid thing. There's definitely a market of people wanting old-timers dead, but it's not a massive chunk of the business, and I'm happy enough to let nature take its course. No veterans. It's good to seem like a patriot. Besides, I'm always less keen to go after a guy with combat experience.

But then I got the offer. It came in a letter, unsigned, promising $100k on completion of the job - ten times my minimum rate, and enough to keep me in ammunition for the foreseeable future. In fact, I would barely need to use any more for a while. But the job itself was weird. Some old major from the Navy, with specific instructions to hit him on his way to church on Easter Sunday, two weeks from now.

That's a handful of my rules in tatters all at once. One or two might be an accident, clients who forgot a detail or didn't bother to read my terms, but the three least important ones, the ones I'd simply made up, and none of the rest? I don't see many jobs like this, with that level of specificity, coming around by coincidence. Somebody has asked me this on purpose - with that price calculated to tempt me just enough to bend the code I claim to keep. Like they're seeing what I'll say. Like it's some sort of test.

[ancient-debris]

A bit about Vonsul Marsia (Socioeconomics)

In The Grand, there are social/economic classes, but for most people they are not at all static and are at-times "mixed". There are people who willingly work long hours at jobs that would be considered lower class, yet still spend a couple of days a week living a very "luxury" lifestyle. Or vice versa. Part of the reason behind this is due to the provisional legality of motivated non-brutalistic crimes, such as pick-pocketing and theft. Another factor related to this is natural resources being very varied and in constant supply, and the way companies and Towers govern themselves. Often they operate in a highly utilitarian and unionized way, giving out bonuses to people in a semi-random fashion, targeting mainly the most dissatisfied and the most productive workers. There is also minimal amounts of personal debt as there is a hard cap (100k per person), as well strong societal "safety net" programs in the majority of towers. There are many opportunities for both upwards and downwards socioeconomic mobility, something akin to a game of snakes and ladders. There is also a bit of an invisible divide between people who have new-money, having struck it lucky once or twice and not having a history of generational or established wealth, and those with generational/established wealth from birth. There are a large collection of phrases and expressions, often in parts, that are not typically written down or shared except among old-money types. These form a sort of super-formal system of slang and shibboleths called "Sculpted Prose" or "Glasswork Words". Likewise, people who engage in criminal activity have their own slang-language, akin to Thieves' cant, which is unique to the nation and simply called "Jackle". It is very hard to tell a person's class simply from the way they dress. People in Vonsul change clothes on average about 3 times per day and there are very few clothes that do not have a cheaper version of the same made for them. It is much easier to tell a person's status from how they talk and act with others in different situations. There is low but rapidly rising undercurrent of class tension in the Towers. However all citizens of a Tower are afforded the same equal basic human rights. Marriage is not something the government is involved with anymore, only getting involved with name changes. The majority of people still get married, with documentation related to such often being kept securely with churches and/or the related families vaults. It is worth noting that stealing documents, including most papers in general other than stock certificates, is not covered legally under provisional statures, since it only covers items that derive the majority of their value from "objective, nonspecific" means, such as money, trade goods, gemstones and related luxury goods. Paintings are a special case in which stealing them must not have been done out of merely a personal vendetta. So for example, if you discover a painting you really like and steal it just to have it, that is allowed. If you steal a painting to sell it, that is also allowed. But if you steal it from a certain person because they once previously stole from you or killed someone you knew, then that would likely land you with jail for at least three months.

[chasingshhadows]

Advice for writing about small towns

So I come from a small (midwestern) town. And I mean - an actual small town (less than 1,500 population). I’ve lived in towns of under 500 population, and in towns of about 2,500 population, and in towns of 15k population, and in cities of 100k, and currently in a 700k city. 

So here’s some things about small towns you might not know if you’ve never lived in one:

If it’s got a population higher than 30 thousand, it’s not a small town. It’s just a town. Hell, I’d probably argue that if it has a population higher than 10 thousand it’s not small town, but I’m being generous. However the people in towns 30k--50k probably think they’re in a small town (they’re not).

The experience is vastly different depending on how far you are from a small-large city. And by that I mean - the people are vastly different. 

Are you less than 60min drive to a city of 80k+ population? the people are probably less likely to be farmers, more likely to work in said small-large city and commute (which doesn’t mean that everyone commutes or that no one is a farmer). The people probably lean slightly to the right of the closest city, but aren’t necessarily staunch conservatives. The town sizes probably bottom out around 2k min. 

Are you more than 2hrs drive from a city of 80k+ population? The town is more self-sufficient. Most work within their small town or a nearby small town. Depending on the terrain, more people are farmers. They’re probably mostly conservative, both socially and fiscally. The town sizes could be as small as 300 people.

The farther from the city, the more likely to be conservative, more likely to be farmers (depending on the terrain).

Population 15k+:

This town probably has a (singular) hospital, several doctor’s offices, probably a dozen department stores - and if it’s rural enough, probably a couple kinds of hardware/diy type stores (lowe’s, menard’s, home depot etc.)

There are several options for vets and at least one emergency vet 

1-2 dozen hotels

If it’s got anything touristy, double the hotels (2-3 dozen) - touristy being water, especially large lakes, hiking trails, fesitvals, nearby ski resort - any thing that would draw people there on vacation, even if it’s only people from that region 

Also add a “down town” area - boutiques, nice restaurants, probably a theatre

It has at least 4 options of elementary schools, and 3 options each for middle and high schools. It might have a community college (but probably not). There are private or charter options, specifically for religious students

There are multiple denominations of churches (catholic, lutheran, baptist, episcopal etc). Depending on ethnic make-up, it may or may not have a synagogue. It probably won’t have a mosque.

If it’s in a rural-ish area (the closest towns are all smaller) it probably has some kind of shopping mall. If it’s the smaller town, it may not.

It’ll have several bars, probably clustered in a central location, with a few others a little farther out from that area. 

This town has a few coffee shops (3-10), but may or may not have an actual starbucks. At least one is a local place, at least one is a chain (starbucks, dunkin, biggby). 

People drive everywhere. There is a bus system, but only the “down town” area would have issues finding parking. Most businesses/hotels have their own parking lot.

Most people live in houses but there are a few (3-7) apartment complexes, most of which are several buildings

There will be lots of restaurants, mostly chains or small mom & pop places, with at least a couple niceish options

This town might even have its own airport, but likely only serves regional flights to “nearby” larger towns/cities. Regional means like, less than 2hr flights, so that’s probably a bigger distance than you’d think.

There are dozens of gas stations and at least a dozen fast food places

Is it on a freeway? increase the gas stations, fast food places, department stores etc. 

This town probably has a rec-type center with a community pool and courts and what not. There are several options of gyms.

Population 10k ish:

May or may not have a hospital - if it does, it’s small. A few doctor’s offices, a couple of department stores, at least one hardware/diy type

A few vets, may or may not have an emergency vet

a dozen or so hotels. again - double that if it’s got smth that would attract people, especially water.

may or may not have a “down town” area

2-4 options at least of elementary, 2-3 options of middle and high school. No community college.

Still at least a few options of churches. Still might have a synagogue, still probably doesn’t have a mosque.

Probably doesn’t have a shopping mall, but might have a “business district - basically a few intersections with most of the stores, hotels, and restaurants.

Probably has at least two, maybe three coffee shops. At least one is a chain.

Probably doesn’t have its own bus system unless it’s near enough to a town of 15k+ or more - people drive everywhere. There’s plenty of parking.

Most people live in houses, but there are a couple of apartment complexes. Mostish of the houses have yards, but some might not.

A few options of restaurants, but maybe only 1-2 niceish places. A couple chain, a couple mom & pop. 

It would be strange for this town to have an airport. May have a landing strip at most, but unlikely.

There are probably half a dozen to a dozen gas stations. Several fast food places.

Is it on a freeway? increase the gas stations, fast food

This town might have a community rec center w/pool. Still a couple options of gyms.

Population 5k ish:

This town doesn’t have a hospital. It probably has 1-3 doctor’s offices. At least one department store

2-3 vets, likely no emergency vet

3-8 ish hotels or inns 

Might have a quaint but very small “down town” area

Likely only 2 options of schools, maybe only one high school. Possible to go to school with same people your whole life

2-3 options for churches. Probably doesn’t have a synagogue unless there’s a large Jewish population 

There’s no shopping mall of any kind, but probably has an area where most of the businesses are - at most 2-3 intersections worth

Probably has a coffee shop or two, but might not. Could be a chain or a local - but probably a local.

There’s no bus system unless it’s near enough to a town of 15k+. People drive everywhere.

Most everyone lives in houses. Most if not all have yards. There might be 1-2 apartment complexes but maybe not.

There are a few restaurants - mix of chain and mom & pop places. Might have a nice restaurant, but only one.

There’s no airport.

There are probably 2-6 gas stations, maybe 1-2 fast food. 

Is it on a free way? increase the gas stations and fast food.

Likely does not have its own rec center/pool, but probably has 1-2 options of gyms.

Population under 2k ish:

No hospital. Probably has one doctor’s office, but might not if it’s close enough to a larger “small” town. No department stores, but probably at least one, maybe 2 decent grocery stores. Could be a local chain or a mom & pop.

Probably has a vet’s office, but just one. 

1-2 inns/motels. If it’s an older town, it has like, a street that’s mostly made of older style buildings and is the “down town” - just a couple of blocks

Just one school system - elementary through high school. Everyone goes through the same school - you probably graduate with the same people you went to kindergarten with

1-2 churches. Probably no synagogue

There is probably a generalish area where the store/post office/school/etc is, but those are probably just as surrounded by homes and yards as everything else.

This town probably doesn’t have a coffee shop, and if it does, it’s local, not a chain.

There’s no bus system unless it’s close enough to a town of 15k+. People drive.

There might be an apartment complex. Everything else is houses. The houses pretty much all have some kind of yard.

There are probably two restaurants, probably both local. Nothing fancy. 

No airport.

Probably 2ish gas stations.

Is it on a free way? add a gas station and a fast food restaurant.

There’s no rec center (unless maybe an outdoor like, field type rec center), but still likely has at least one gym.

I could keep going down but I think you get the idea. If you’re writing about an actual town, do research on its population. If you’re making up a town, think about what size you need it to be to have the things you want (or don’t want). 

If your “small town” has more than one hospital, it’s not a small town. If it’s got a population above 10k, there is definitely more than one (and likely, many) hotels. 

Is it near decent-sized water (largeish lake, ocean)? People probably have vacation homes there. That increases property value and tourism. Even if it’s not a like, nationally-known vacation spot, people within 100-200 miles could likely make weekend trips there.

Is it the largest town within 75-100 miles, even if it’s under 20k? it’s probably got more department stores and other such industry bc it’s serving a population greater than its own. if there are other towns nearby of equal-to-larger size, it might need less of those things.

[theurbansquared]

Guide To Avoiding A Loser Brokerage

by James Hill | theurbansquared

Brokers can be bastards and some even get better at it while other brokers are legitimate life-changing business Sherpas

A broker is supposed to guide you through a career in real estate much like a coach or pimp - offering protection and how to understand a complicated system better and direct it to revenue  without getting your neck broke while playing the game. I created and ran the most well-reviewed, largest full-service brokerage in the fastest-growing city in America.  This gave me access to nearly ever broker and their broker's pay structure and innovations. I also got the agent's version of my same broker buddies brokerages when they eventually joined my brokerage; hovering anywhere from 20–60 agents. Trending insider chatter has blame going to real estate brokers of decades past (and current) and how they’ve managed their agents - - letting unsupervised  agents with no experience run wild on the streets practicing on the public wearing out Realtor love and making a need for all the Mountain Dew-made Zillow-y options that currently exist.

Brokers are out of touch more than ever with today’s current media load, having to understand and use social media platforms for their advertising (since the private Town & Country affair that real estate once was is forever over and the landscape is a bit more like a half Juggalo, half programmer flea market).

Let’s dive into some situations and tenets that most agents don’t consider when choosing a brokerage.

Sales Volume

This is a bit of negotiating psychology and due diligence. Simply ask how much sales they (the brokerage) did last year and how much they’re currently at. If they don’t know these numbers they’re goons. If they don’t give it, you guessed it - they’re hiding something; their lack of revenue. I’ve hired and fired hundreds of agents and in interviews so few ask this question but it’s one of the most important questions you can ask as an agent and you need the information. An agent that doesn’t ask this has already given a tell that they’re not a top producer since they’re not interested in the production capacity of the team they may join. No bueno. Creep the brokerage as well obvi -- reviews, FB & IG engagement and current running ads, and make sure the company Christmas Party isn’t catered by Chic-fil-a at a Burnet Road dive bar.

Office

40% of your learning and 350% of your work will be done at the office. Those numbers will make sense 90% of the time after a few years in real estate. The rest should be on the streets - your car, properties, driving 75 mph talking and sending out docs, gorging on breath mints. Office, home, tiny homes, motorhomes have all blended into one larger conversation where work/live ethos are all in re-definition.

But, when you do need a more savvy moment in any market when people talk about borrowing or selling something that’s over $100K they don’t want to hear some bullshit too loud pedantic conversation seated right next to them at Starbucks or the local kooky coffee shop. In real estate Murphy’s Law is always in effect. The super important listing sign off that has to go well and they want to hear you pitch again before deciding? There will be someone (at this super ‘caj’ coffee house meeting) there projectile vomiting, or throwing cats, or something else tiresome or bad that takes more calls.

Speech and body language are massive parts of sales so when the entire set is thrown because a barista is running through a whole Sublime album. You want the most inviting cool office you can ever pull off at any given moment in real estate . Was that ever a question? There's a balance  -- you can't afford that year one or three, but it’s called real estate for a reason. Sexy, exciting buildings is what the brochure said when I joined. Also, it’s about style not size.

If you haven’t lost business to coffee house back pressure you really haven’t failed at agency properly.

Social IQ

Social reach is the only conversation now. Many brokerages won’t make it as the lead generating aspects of the industry aren't powered by a private MLS anyone and the publicly-hated ‘Realtor’ designation have both brokers and agents guessing about tomorrow. Calendars, best practices and free shitty tips & templates are the du jour of the day for anyone trying to get an agent's eyes. You can Google and get all the ‘basic’ social media dance steps, but with everyone at the same happy hunting spot, you’re being covered up, which leaves all your new artistic efforts fruitless and also squandering winning time.

Traffic, leads and engagement are all separate areas that have to be fulfilled properly and even this is in flux with historic corporations and current start ups all on the same advertising playing field. Social reach and engagement is about going to the consumer direct and becoming their friend with soft bribes -- free food, gifts, prizes (trips, events tickets) or industry work tools. The great news is, real estate has always been mostly consumer direct - start up a convoy at the grocery store (bar, church, meetup) and you’re in the car that weekend looking for houses with a new client. While you, your brokerage and the world are figuring out their exact social media mix, you need to make sure a brokerage isn’t lost on social media since many won’t be able to stay in business in the next few short years. Your brokerage needs to have a plan and and at best some presence on social media. Plus, they should be running low-cost performative marketing ad campaigns to get a feel for what and if set user groups are responding to ads. Anyone can post on IG but people engage on IG when they become inspired. A brokerage should have some sort of inspiration and relationship tied in with the local allure of their city --  or heading that direction.

Mentoring

Much like a neurotic buyer chasing an interest rate for their home mortgage (and then never buying a house) agents too focused on commission may miss the essential career need for mentoring -- for their clients and career. I had a 5 deal minimum for my new agents before they were ever unsupervised and received more commission. I've had new agents with celeb clients in hand and celeb agents with no clients in hand. No one wants to do business with someone with absolutely has no, experience but they do it because they like you as a friend or fam. Your mentor is the person riding shotgun with you at the beginning of your career. On many levels you want to be this person since they embody the position and role. You're literally and figuratively are borrowing experience from them and they deserve to be paid for it. You always have to strengthen your brand outside of your brokerage but if you don’t have any experience your brand doesn’t have ‘strength’ you simply have a logo and a drag & drop website where you're possibly talking about yourself and love of unicorns or football shit but the big boat deals you dream about in bed aren’t gotten this way. Remember, no unicorn could ever throw a football good without a lot of practice and a good mentor.

Support

Support in a brokerage is really communication and solutions for small problems, and systems for managing bigger ones with people. Most of the annoying things in real estate happen outside of the deal - contracts, calls, emails, docs, signatures, more docs. You typically want a super admin, broker, or agent manager that you can call and they pick up the phone. It’s pretty simple. With a mentor, admin, or broker you’re going to have a n 8:30 PM question or deal that’s going down. You’ll need printer help. Real estate always happens now (this was one of the main mantras in my office). Printing, prequal, weekend support and constant post dinner shenanigans.

Training

Meet Frank Miller, David Mamet, the Sex Pistols, Tony Robbins, Wayne Dyer, Hendrix, Tom Hopkins, The World’s Greatest Detective and Conan The Barbarian. We had a lot of different inspirations for the style and ethos of our urban brokerage. The World’s Greatest Detective is Batman. It was a moniker that became popular in the seventies. We used this example about how important due diligence and proper Fact Finding techniques are for serving and closing deals for clients. (It’s almost essential to be inquisitive in real estate esp about property/development to have success). Training is largely your sales meeting(s). Although I don’t come from a car background I’ve mentored many car guys transferring to real estate (they typically are out of the industry within 2 years and are there only for boom markets). Car guys have meetings every morning 6 days a week and they’re not at 9 or 10 am. They’re already working.

free module: The Burger King Phenomena: Why Agents Do Less Working For Themselves Than If They Were Working At Burger King

Many brokerages have no training/meeting schedule (monthly doesn’t count -- that’s a meet and greet company pump and catch up meeting). If a brokerage doesn’t have training on a schedule then there is no training. You’ll possibly be thrown a 3-ring binder, or given some PDF’s, or links to old bizarre training videos or a soup sandwich of all three and sometimes even a bill for the training. An agent’s training/meetings and their attendance to them are the difference between an agent making it or not when you’re 24 months or less in the role as an agent especially in the fast turbulent waters of the current 2021 market where brokerage and agent purpose and pay are under attack. From my experience, new agents that hide die.

Media

Having a background as a creative director I’m aware with great detail of agency and brokerage media needs, the cost and time they extract, and the corresponding revenue they’re projected to bring back. Brokerages are looking for their purpose now as simply having a brokerage doesn’t bring in leads like it used to. This is fitting, since the digital dumbass brokers that that didn’t understand the importance of ‘the web’ rickshawed our MLS data and sold the agent/broker centric real estate system for their benefit while current agents are left with an empty greasy enough to-go box to curl up with. Brokerages were never media houses or ad agencies but now that consumer level graphic programs and website builders are ubiquitous and any agent after being licensed for 10 days can drag & drop a website up in 4 hours and make it look like a brokerage that’s been around for years. I know I’m going wide on the subject here but stay with me because this is the crux of where the industry and consumer are renegotiating roles.

A brokerage’s value proposition has changed drastically with the telecommute revolution that was only sped and strengthened by Covid. Also, generational knowledge base gaps in technology are more apparent than ever with technology as younger agents can often be more media savvy than their broker. The market is flooded with self appointed companies or gurus that are taking on the role of the classic ad agency (Mad Men) or media production house. Also beware of real estate coaches with little or no real estate experience offering to guide you in social media. Okay media can’t be used in apex situations (such as the luxury listings you’re after) and doesn’t draw apex listings. Beware of tapioca room temperature tips and general lists from companies that can appear informative but are really boilerplate low grade data to get your attention to ultimately upsell you on a paid service.

As an agent or a brokerage, consumer level graphic and website building programs can be a death ticket to your business as your competitors have the same tools and are cranking out the same type of style of messaging you are now. Now agents, principals, admins and in art class creating flyers. This has been done since the nineties as the valleys of dead agent careers is full of 2-day Microsoft Word (or any of their shitty office offerings) seshes to produce nasty flyers and presentations. These programs are fun and making bad flyers absolutely work related - the kind of work you don’t want’ related to your business because it’s adult crayon coloring. Activity does not equal production. Staying busy doing the wrong things doesn’t make money in real estate. Rather than spending agent winning time staying in the wrong lanes for way too long, get with a team or brokerage that are providing the most exceptional visual media you can find in your market. It used to be cool 2 years ago, now it’s the only thing that matters. Visual content.

free module: Better Agent Media, Less Agent Money (media tips and hacks).

Access

This is access to your broker. Brokers with families are typically less available. Your best bet as an agent is looking for a grinder broker who sleeps on the couch at their office. This person doesn’t have kids to build into so they’ll build into your career and you’ll get the most out of these brokers. Beware of cheesedick, apathetic, rich boy, bored brokers not around and more concerned with projects like a shitty vanity wine brand that their wife’s forced them to launch since she’s not living her best life anymore as an agent.

Style

What kind of style is your brokerage? Is there an opportunity to bring more style sophistication to the market -- standout in a smaller market? Or, are you in an ultra stylish market currently and butt hurt because you already have a little story about how you’re going to keep it real and be a Dockers wearing slob for eternity? The thing about style in agency is you always need to look like you can list a million dollar house. Oh, is it really that simple? Yes it is. You complicated it. Clients always care about their housing a little bit more than they care about your real estate career. They don’t have time to figure out why you’re wearing shoe styles from 7 years ago. Don’t make it hard for people to do business with you. If you’re ugly, even better. It can be a massive advantage. Everyone on the planet loves when someone who doesn’t fall into our general current ‘attractive’ spectrum doesn’t give af, looks great and puts themselves together in a stylish way that the viewer can understand (can I get away with Teen Wolf?). A great side benefit from this step in the right direction is it’s a great way to make someone who is conventionally attractive insecure.

You want to be in the same style as the people in your area but the secret is you need to lead that style pack if you can -- you always lead and dress apex. Years ago this was anecdotal but after over 100K hours in real estate a good suite (tailored) saved my ass and literally got me business. I listed the largest house in east Austin because of a suit (and got a front page story on the newspaper real estate section for free because the owner saw me walking into the next door neighbor’s house).

Offices, dress, logo, email signature are all elements of you and your brokerage’s style. Style in and of itself isn’t enough to be a top producer in real estate. I’ve had stylish and even celebrity agents that didn't do zilch, but style often is a fingerprint to something more.

Picking the right elements for your agent style is an art because you have to offer something from yourself that’s unique enough as well as something familiar (a bridge to your uniqueness). I have a background as a musician and also as a merchant sailor. Fortunately those are easy convo starters. You could be a philatelist and have some challenges, but regardless it absolutely will take a year or three to develop your own angle and style towards the market as you learn it and the agent role more.

Things that look attractive and familiar puts client’s psychologies at ease. So, if skinny jeans are in you better get in them (that’s like five years old now). You’re on stage. You don’t wear what the worker people behind the camera wear. If you want to wear boring shit get on the other side of the camera. If you want less leads saddle up to a forgettable brokerage. People have hard days. They want you to put an effort into your real estate agency role. Currently it’s a fried role so you’re dealing with that too. People love to be smiled at and sold and especially from someone who smells good. It doesn't ever get old. Don’t make them beg for your charm. Be a nice charming person with a shirt that fits good, it’s a powerful combo.

Get My Damn Paper

If you’ve never seen a werewolf in daylight mess with an agent’s commission after the deal’s done and funded. Admin? Who is the damn person who does the admin? (accounts payable is the icey pro word if you like). That person that you contact to get your commission check cut? If that person is a weirdo, or there’s an unfriendly or sketchy quality to the office or admin staff, do not go forward (don’t confuse this with new people or industry jitters). Grab some free coffee, leave the smarm and jet to the next brokerage blind date.

Software

CRM is an annoying conversation. Here’s the things with CRM’s - for all the work CRMs curtail, because of their complexity and existence and the work(time) they take to interact with you need to consider how much work you’re putting into operating the CRM software verses how much time it’s saving. Many times brokerages have expensive yearly subscriptions with per agent fees for their CRM which can make the brokerage have a zealot meth thing for the ‘team’ software and promise you can’t have a career without taking a bump too. To understand CRM better before it was a name, Client Relationship Management is what analog Proximity became. Let me explain -  being close to people in Church, bar, school, same building -- all give proximity. This becomes familiarity, then ease, then trust. People do business with people they trust & like. Once people disconnected physically and started using other means more contact attempts have to be made to work for or ‘prove’ worth.

Follow Up is a large component of most CRM’s and there are gobs of money for agents who follow up meticulously. Simply ask the broker what CRM they use and research it. Something to remember - unless you’re extremely busy with your career you don’t need a CRM. You can manage & database your clients & leads ‘by hand’ and strap it to the cloud with G-Suite/Google Sheets.

Brokerage Name

A small but important aside, if a brokerage have named themselves after a precious metal or a gem, or if it says elite in the name then it’s not elite. If it has the words prestige or worldwide or international it may not be any of those either. I know a handful of exceptions to this rule but this is a great dirty primer to use when choosing a brokerage that’s going to propel your career and have shrimp options at the Christmas Party.

[shioritsumi]

Updates on my Traveller, Rafael the God

“I would sell you to satan for one corn chip, Paimon.”

“I did not think you could solve those puzzles on your own without me...how odd...” “Kaeya, if you thought those were actually difficult, you are prime himbo territory. I mean, Paimon couldn’t solve them, but dude she can’t solve her own pants.”

“This is Razor. He’s my son. No I’m not taking any complaints.”

“You, there! Thief! Stop!” “Try me, bitch! I AM YOUR GOD!” “Rafael we gotta run, we’re busted!” “....yeah, I guess I could do that, too....”

“You look a little young for alcohol, I mean...” “I have like 100k in my pockets right now, I don’t think it matters how underage I am if I buy you out.”

“Venti, we may have our differences, but I will 100% support you if you want to punch a nun. I’ll punch her for you if you want, even. Hell, I’ll punch her even if you don’t-I just haven’t asserted my godhood on the church yet. ”

“She didn’t even blink....” “That’s okay, Venti-they don’t believe I’m a god either. We’ll smite them together.”

“Why is a god being forced to run idle tasks just to get a goddamn DRIVER’S LICENSE for my FAKE WINGS. I used to have six real ones, you know. You should be paying me tribute for using fake wings.”

“Oh god, Beidou-for the crimes of uneven jiggle physics, you are under arrest and banished from the active line-up.”

“Once upon a time, I declared myself god of a different world. And that world’s god said NO U, so she took my sister. I intend to punch this world’s gods until they agree to help me punch that one god. Because that’s how teammates work.”

“Why do I have to sneak? What if I just beat everyone up? No one would see me steal the lyre if I just....y’know, killed everyone. I mean. Incapacitated them. I’m a kind god who does not murder, obviously.”

“Stop trying to tell me I don’t want to steal, script! You know damn well I do!”

“Stairs are for losers and weak people. And mortals. I am a god, not a stair-taking pleb. Look at Diluc over there, taking the stairs like a loser.”

“Is Venti really a god? He used the stairs. Why would a wind god, of all things, use stairs EVER?”

“Venti, you’re the anemo god?! That’s....you know your statues of yourself are, like...practically naked. I didn’t recognize you with clothes on.”

“We call him raptor because he flies so quickly and with such great agility!” “....Raptors, uh....you know raptors don’t fly, right? You know that? You don’t know that, you don’t know that. How is this city still standing, can’t even recognize raptors don’t fly....”

“Ten parts wisdom, 7 parts nerve, 90 parts courage!” “Amber that’s not how math works.” “But with that gap you jumped, it seemed more like 99 parts courage!” “Every time I think I can’t be more disappointed in you, Paimon...”

[yarnings]

I’m rapidly losing faith in my government’s ability to open up safely (I mean, aside from how badly things were handled initially. While I agree that too many services were “essential”, I also think that most of the criticisms I saw were over estimating how many things we could shut down, partially because many of them under-estimated how long we needed to shut down for). Most of the province is supposed to be going to phase 2 reopening, based on where infection rates are the worst. This includes where I am. i.e. where we have 75 official active cases (15 per 100k), and we’re not only climbing the ranks for which health units are doing the worst, our number of cases is going up fairly rapidly. (We’ve been “top” 10 all along, now we’re “up” to number 7).

And what’s happening means that either we (as a household) open up along with the province or get left behind. Sure, it’s very clear that we shouldn’t go to church unless we feel safe and well. But when that comes with an announcement that there’s no more streaming... (Also, they’re not going to have space for everyone who wants to go. Even if 30% capacity allows us to meet the physical distancing requirements, that’s still not enough space.)

Obviously we don’t have to join a 10-person bubble. But if we don’t, will there be any bubbles left by the time it’s safe?

It isn’t just that I don’t want to have to properly isolate. (Although having to put up with only online shopping for up to 10 weeks or longer would be hell.) If my husband gets sick, the lab has to shut down for 5 days. And that will shut down everyone’s work, not just the work that’s done on site, because the work on-site is feeding everyone’s data. So that’s a lot of people I’d screw over if I got sick. (I’m also not sure that the lab can run without him for long, although I suppose he might be able to do a lot of it from home.)