#if you have age theories and propositions of your own that's also fine

[delimeful]

Lime lime lime I’m obsessed with so many of your stories. But also what is everyone’s approximate ages in tktsaaiw ? I’m so thinking about it

i don't have specific set ages from them, but i've personally been envisioning them as in their twenties, and not all that far apart from each other. i do know that patton's the oldest (group dad), roman is the youngest, and logan has been in space the longest.

[orangepanic]

Why do you think that Asami has no friends at the beginning? With Korra it’s because she grew up in isolation and with Mako and Bolin it’s because they were homeless- but why doesn’t Asami have any friends? A girl like her should’ve had a million friends

First of all, bless you, anon. I'd literally opened up a window to talk to some friends about how alone in fandom I feel these days because so many people have moved on or stopped creating and interacting. Then I saw this message! Don't underestimate how motivating it is to get asks about characters and headcanons, or even just to know someone else is interested in your thoughts and wants to talk about mutual interests. You really brightened my day. I hope I can do the same.

As for Asami, I have three theories. The most likely and most boring of these is that it's simply convenience on the part of the writers. In book 1 we didn't see much of her personal life outside of interacting with the Krew so there was no need to waste precious screen time on Asami's other friends. After the show got renewed the writers had to scramble for reasons Asami would still be around - because let's face it, who winds up hanging out with your ex and the girl he left you for as your main friend group? IMO there's zero reason for Asami to be in the show after the first season if she has other friends and sources of support.

A more interesting proposition and the one I mostly go with in my own fics is that Asami did have other friends initially, but that they all abandoned her after her father's arrest. She'd have gone to a fancy private school full of other rich kids with other rich and important parents who'd know that a connection to the daughter of a convicted felon was now social suicide. Suddenly nobody returns her calls, everyone is busy, that invite to Su Li Lim's party happens to go astray, etc. With so many social doors now shut to her, hanging out with the former Fire Ferrets makes more sense. She might even do it initially out of spite in a "well FINE, I'm gonna go be important to the Avatar and go fight crime and be awesome" kind of way.

My last theory is that Hiroshi Sato didn't really let Asami have friends. Acquaintances, sure, but he wouldn't want her growing too close to any dangerous benders and there wasn't an easy way to do this without it being obvious that's what he's doing so he didn't let her grow close to anyone. I think of this as the Victorian novel scenario where Asami is disincentivized from doing kid stuff to "take care of father" and from an early age assumes some of the duties her mom had taken on in terms of household management. She's somehow always too busy for friends. When the class field trip comes around her dad needs her for something important. This might also explain how an 18-year-old thought they were qualified to be CEO of a huge company. She's already managing half the staff at the estate as well as the vendor contracts. How hard could it be?

But what do you think?

[togglessymposium]

I notice that I’m confused. Adjusting for inflation and population, 75% of the 2023 Unites States GDP is… the economy in 2015 or 2016. From $76,000 per capita down to $57,000. Hardly the dark ages! This has pretty much always been true, right? At least in the modern era. If your entire economy is growing by a 4% a year, that compounds very quickly, and cutting a linear percentage off of that means going back in time a relatively modest amount. During the postwar boom, that would shrink down to only a couple years!

Going back in time to 2015 by making 3/4ths as much stuff (per capita) doesn’t even mean making 3/4ths of any given good; you can grow just as much food and offload the reduced production in to other stuff. In particular, you can trim down positional goods with a fairly minimal impact on quality of life, although I don’t know how much of the physical actually-real economy really is in that category. That seems like a difficult thing to measure, but I wouldn’t be enormously shocked to discover that some 15-20% of the actually-real economy gets thrown down the bottomless well of red-queen-race competitions; for example, shrinking the amount of wealth sunk in to advertising agencies would probably leave the relevant firms in basically the same relative position they are in now, with a slightly higher quality of life for the rest of us. And in a free market, allocation of resources should in theory take care of this ‘mostly automatically’, with the price of advertising rising faster than the price of food since demand for the latter is inelastic, perhaps helped along with some farm subsidies like we already have. So I don’t think that even necessarily puts you back the entire 25%, not in a way that matters!

Now, some of this may just be that economic growth numbers are basically fake, I suppose. Like, if the stock market goes up 10%, that doesn’t mean that the community has 10% more stuff to go around, it just means that a larger fraction of that stuff is controlled by the sort of people that own lots of stocks. But on paper it can look like the economy ‘grew’ for a bit, at least until inflation reaches its new equilibrium. But quite a lot of it is also real improvements in ‘worker productivity’, that is, in the force multiplier that technology offers to the typical man-hour in an aggregate of productive firms. And at least in principle, shrinking the overall labor-hour pool by 25% doesn’t seem like it would also tank the rate at which we reap these technological and capital gains; if we could grow at 4% per year in 2015 when the GDP per capita was $57,000, I don’t see why we couldn’t grow at 4% per year in 2023 if the GDP was $57,000 per capita. So we’d ‘keep pace’ in that sense, staying a fixed few years ‘behind schedule’, in exchange for workers getting an extra ten hours a week of leisure for their own use.

Now, this isn’t an argument that this plan is fine and we should just wave our magic wand and reduce full-time employment to 30 hours, because contra OP I do have a certain faith in the proposition that this stuff actually is complicated, even if robber barons do love to hide behind that complexity to justify their own evils. I’m not assuming this model is right. If nothing else, this would have to break as you cut back to really short work weeks like five hours. But I am saying that merely ‘making 25% less stuff’ doesn’t seem nearly as bad as it sounds, unless the GDP numbers are just wildly dissociated from the facts on the ground. For a 25% cut to be really scary, it seems like a great many other things have to be false, including most of what people point to to justify the current ordering of state power.

I'm up to the "I dunno maybe children working 13 hour shifts is bad, guys" part of Capital and it feels important to inform people that haven't read it yet that capitalists in the 19th century were not by any means wringing their hands and twirling their mustaches about employing children to squeeze out profits, they were hiring "experts" to write newspaper articles for them, explaining how "well, the socialists have these big demands about an 8-hour work day, and taking Saturdays off, but it's actually just so complicated, it's too complicated for most people to understand, we just NEED to hire children for night shifts because the stamina of their strong, youthful bodies is the only way we can survive as a business! It's science, you see. Economics doesn't work like that, just ask our economics professors at Oxford. You CAN'T turn a profit only working people 8 hours! Trust the experts, they know. It's just so complicated..."

That exact infuriating cadence that you read in New York Times articles, in the Atlantic Monthly, in the WaPo and all the other bourgeois rags where "everything is so complicated, and it's actually a lot more complicated than you think.." that has been around since the beginning. It is nothing new. So the next time you see some op-ed from Matt Yglesias or any of those other guys huffing their own farts about how "complicated" everything is, and how "unrealistic" a 30-hour work week is, remember that Marx was dealing with that exact class of "intellectuals" "explaining" how working 13 hours at age 10 was "vital" to the "moral fibre" of those poor kids.

[insufferablelust]

THE ARTIST AND HIS MUSE (vi)

okay but that gif sent me to blazing hell, anyways! this is the 6th installment to the series! i hope you enjoy! it’s kinda a filler chapter to make straighten the plot line, thank you for reading! MASTERLIST for earlier chapter.

WARNINGS : Dom!Spencer x Sub!Reader, no actual smut, allusions to sex and pre-BDSM talk, traumatic past, Huge Build up (sorry loves), Cheesy fluffs.

I would also like to say that, some aspects of this story is not consistent with the actual series, i make some changes to fit the plot lines better. Full credit to the creators and directors of the series though.

—————

{ love is a world of it’s own, that lives in the heart not in the head. -Diana & Spencer Reid from Criminal Minds }

————

I love you

I love you.

————

The next morning, had me smiling. It was the longest sleep i’ve gotten in awhile and one that doesn’t have nightmares, all because he’s here. Spencer’s here, i shuddered as i felt his arms tightened around my waist and his legs tangled with mine. It felt so good just to know that we’re both safe and sound inside each other’s embrace, even if it’s temporary.

I listened to his breathing for awhile, he sounded so calm, there’s nothing i wouldn’t do to ease all of his worries and soothe the very thing that had him overthinking everything. His mind is a complicated place, he said so to me one time that “You never know what its like to be the prisoner of your own mind.” he didn’t know then that i’m still trying to get out of mine.

I bit my lip hard, as the memories from last night flooded back, i used to promised myself to not say any of my past to anyone, but now Spencer knows and i’m terrified that something will happen to him. Bad things tend to occur when they know the real me, and i won’t let anything happen to Spencer.

I shake away my bad thoughts and move on to the more exciting time of the night, god— i could still feel the way he touched me, the way he whispered so cruelly yet so lovingly. It was different from the first time we had sex, he was gentle whereas that time he was rough, dominant. I love both Reid’s, and yet i just can’t seem to get the thought out of my head, “How did he know that much about Dominance and Submissive play?” It’s not just common knowledge on how to perfectly bound someone or edge someone right? according to your experience, His techniques were as sophisticated as someone who had years of BDSM training.

“I could’ve sworn that dream was real.” Spencer’s morning voice pulled me out of my thoughts, i turned my head to see him before flashing him a smile and giggled. “Penny for your dreams then?”I muttered jokingly which he told me that it involved me and him, i stifled my laugh as i hid my face on his neck, immediately feeling the immense calmness radiated from his scent alone.

“Remember that one time, on the picasso signature case?” He mumbled sleepily against my hair, “how could i not remember? that case is the one that changes everything.” I looked up to him then, ran my fingers through his hair.

“I remembered just how flushed you are, i always liked you since the beginning, i just.. i just don’t know how your reaction would be so i kept it a secret.” He paused to look down at me, tucking my hair behind my ear, then continue,

“But then i started noticing little.. changes in your behavior, so i observed you for weeks which i know is creepy but hey.. i was practically in love with you at that point, you got anxious a lot around me which you hid it really well but then that one time during a case you just completely went flushed and your pupils were dilated, your breathing labored— which convinced my theory.” He explained, with eyebrows raised and a smirk itching to appear on his godforsaken lustful lips.

“Mmm, which is what Dr.Reid?” I batted my eyelash up at him, not knowing where my sudden burst of confidence appeared from but not caring either. “That you feel the same way about me, if not romantically, then at least sexually.” There it is, his lips curved up at one side— i was about to answer but beat me to it- leaned against my ear and whispered, “Stop with the act or i’ll spank your ass purple.”

“Oh Spencer, you’re saying it like it’s something i wouldn’t love.” I scoffed as i sit up on the bed, then straddled his hips. My respond lit up something inside him, something primal that i can see it in his eyes, his demeanor changed 180 which sent thrill to my skin.

“You’re enjoying this aren’t you?”

“I think i am, and so are you.”

“Oh i am pet, It’s fascinating how much you think you have control when it’s been showed clearly on who’s in charge, by the marks on your skin, and the burning sensation between your legs.” It felt like he poured all the molten lava on top of me to leave me burning, the way he said all of that turned me on beyond belief.

“You forget that i’m in control of you, and by so i can take away the things you ���love’, when we talk about our relationship later, i’ll make sure spanking won’t be in the list of punishments— since you’re such a needy masochist.” I can’t help but to whine at his words, only to confirm all he said is true, true to every damn detail.

“S-Sorry sir and yes we need to talk about it..” I was so flustered i couldn’t think of anything else but that, i knew if i asked for him to touch me now he would just laughed, so maybe i can try to get back in his good mercy.

“There you go, you have manners after all. We’ll talk about it over breakfast, go and shower, i’ll make french toast.” He make sure to kiss my lips before patting my bum as a signal that I need to get up, which i happily did so. “Oh and sweetheart?”

“Yes, sir?”

“If i find you touching whats mine, Expect to be denied with ruined orgasms for a week.”

—————

The smell of french toast cooking hit my nose on the perfect Sunday morning as i stepped out of the bathroom, quickly drying myself off then went to my closet to pick out an outfit that was both comfy but also would make Spencer goes crazy. I smiled as i saw a vintage dress i’ve owned since college, it was a Sabrina type dress that stopped right above my cleavage, showing plenty of skin from there up to my neck.

I put on the dress quickly, decided not to apply any make up, and comb my hair to let it fall freely. I stand in front of the mirror to see how i looked, the sight made me shiver, the marks he had given me last night littered all over the exposed skin of my neck down to my collarbones, I bit my lips at the thought of bearing more of his mark as a way to show everyone that he owns me. Body and soul.

After a good 5 minutes, i snapped out of my thoughts and head downstairs right to where Spence is plating the french toast. “Go sit on the table. I’m almost done” He ordered, so i sit down, waiting for him to finally see me, my knees bounced against the table as i waited in anticipation.

“Y/N stop being anxious, your knees keeps—“ He demanded, only to be cut off when he saw me. He stopped dead at his track, holding both plates in each hand, his eyes widened a little as his breathing got labored at the sight of me, Spencer bit his lip hard taking a deep breath, before placing your plates in front of me, and his plate opposite of mine.

As you thought he was about to sit, he strolled to my side, hands immediately gripped my jaw and pulled me out of my seat— his hand are so tight around my jaw, i’m sure it’ll bruise, good. I took in the state of him, like i could see the red in his eyes as his were burning holes through my skull.

Then his grip moved lower to my neck, grasped it softly, not enough for it to bruise but enough to give me a warning. “You have no idea how much i want to put a nice collar on your neck, and bend you over this desk right now.” He whispered roughly, his other fingers trailed against my lips side to side.

I opened my mouth so he can pushed them in, letting me suckle on them as he chuckled “We’ll talk first, we have a lot to talk about. But since you’re pretty adamant on teasing my like this, if you agree to be mine later after we establish how this is going to work— best believe i’m going to ruin you.” My knees buckled at his proposition, Doesn’t he realized that i’m already his? He owns me the moment i let him open me up inside out.

“Bribing me already Dr.Reid?”

“Oh baby, i’ll make sure you’ll earn your lesson.”

—————

You moaned the second you tasted that sinful french toast, god isn’t Spencer supposed to be terrible at cooking? then how come this tastes like literal heaven? the perfectness oozes out of this fine looking toast dripping with hon—

“You’re really testing me now, Y/N.” He intertwined his fingers around each other before putting them in front of him, the manner suggest proper intimidation, clearly it worked for you. You replied with a whisper “Sorry sir, it’s really good.”

“Before we start to discuss our relationship, i’ll allow you to ask me questions about anything and everything that’s been going on. You gave me closure yesterday, and i shall give you closure too.” You kept eye contact as you wonder what to ask, which one of the thousands of questions in-your head that you were going to ask.

“Y/N?”

“How um how’d you find out about me? my past?” You nervously asked, this is something important to you, if Spencer truly found out then sooner or later you’ll have to face the consequences of everyone finding out too, probably even deeper than what’s Spencer been digging.

“I had my suspicions for awhile, when you first joined, you looked way too trained to be 25. No one is that trained unless they have basic skillset, everyone were suspicious too but decided to not question anything. But like i said,” His eyes were sharp, and you can feel the goosebumps rises at the sound of his tone. God he always managed to make you nervous.

“You intrigued me. So i did some digging of my own, asked Garcia to hand me your file, to my surprise before the age of 14 Y/N Bones never existed, Your surrogate father is smart, but he still leaves crumb Y/N. I’m just surprised the bureau didn’t question it when you joined,” He paused as he clench and unclench his jaw, the sight alone made me squirm in my seat, i’m not sure if i’m even listening at this point.

“So i searched deeper, even asked one of my friends Elle to do a deep background search about you so that it’s not someone on the team, and we both found out that you.. breezed your way through the psych eval that you have an astounding result. Your records are squeaky clean yet, there are pictures of you when you were 17 so we generate how you might’ve looked like when you were 10 to 15 years old and then we found...”

“The missing kid from a mob murder house in Italy, last seen by the chauffeur that was killed moments after he talked to the police, the poor guy was new— he never been briefed on what happened when something like that occurred.” You finished his statement as you looked down, your eyes closed momentarily as you tried to process that this man knows everything about you and now your secrets will be revealed to the world.

“Y/N, listen to me,” You’re that good at controlling your face whenever someone confronted you, thats why you’re able to breezed through your basic psych eval like a magnet. “Let me see you, not the walls you’ve put up.” Then when he said that, you felt like you never really knew yourself, all these years, you’ve put up a persona that was strong enough to handle everything even if you chipped away apart of your psyche every time something traumatic happened.

“This is me, Spence.. It’s who i want to be..”

“No, it’s killing you. All your life you’ve been directed, told what to do, controlled. But then you gained some sort of control when you finally was able to get free from your surrogate father, yet you don’t like it right out of the start so you keep up because that’s what kept you survive, get you inside the bureau so you won’t legally be touched once your father died, am i correct?”

“Yes.”

“That’s why you tried everything to give up control again, you joined the club right?” That made you red in an instant, How the hell did he managed to know so much about you? you’ve tried your damn hardest to be discreet about it, event as far as going to the club thats far from where you lived.

“I-I, Spencer this is too much information..” You trailed as you bit your lips at the thought of him knowing the inside and out of you like you’re one of his book, part of you were glad that you don’t have to keep everything to yourself anymore, that you don’t have to worry about control— you want to relinquish control, and he’s the only one that has made you feel comfortable when you give him all of you, and you don’t want it to stop. But you two are coworkers, FBI agents in the same field nonetheless there’s no way Hotch would agree to anything you propose.

“I know it is, Y/N. But you don’t have to go through it all alone now okay? i’m here, i know and thats good.”

“What do i have to do? Tell Hotch the truth about my past?” You chewed your lower lips as you think about all the possibilities that could happen, one being the most obvious which includes you being investigated and then fired. Or there’s one where the FBI would uncover Mr.Bones’s ties to Italian mob, which means you put all of them in danger. Then there’s one—

“Stop it, stop thinking for a second, and stop biting your goddamn lips, i swear.” He took you by surprise as he went over to your side and place you on top of the table in front of him before sitting down on your seat himself. “I-I’m sorry, i just.. don’t know what to do.. i don’t want to resign or get fired, i love this job, you’re all my family.”

He took my hand in his, and hold it tight before pressing a kiss on each fingertips, “You’re way too valuable of an agent to get fired and Hotch knows that, love. The worst thing that can happen is they’ll investigate and you’ll be forced to tell them what happened and how it went from there. Y/N you have no absolute ties with them, you were a victim.”

“You don’t know how powerful they are, the reason why i wanted to be apart of this job is to go after them Spence, and i’m getting nowhere close to even find any trace of them.”

“As much of a genius as you are, combining 8 heads instead of one will have a different outcome.” He joked, which makes you chuckled as you sighed and nods “Can i think about it first?”

“Of course, but do know that they’ll find out whether you tell them or not. And it’s better if it’s coming from you, not genius detective work of Garcia.” He sternly remind you, as you nod, and smile at him, muttering a small “okay..”

“Now, do you have any other question?” He pulled you closer, his hand practically grasping your bum cheeks, making you blush. “I-um..” you stopped as the words you were about to let out got stuck on your throat.

“Y/N, when you’re being asked, speak up clearly.” He scolds, which made your heart twisting in an uncomfortable way, showing how much you hate it when he gets disappointed at you. “I’m sorry, it’s just.. um— how did you know so much aboutsubmissionanddominance?” You rushed the last bit as you close your eyes in embarrassment, He made you feel so timid.

“What was that, baby? Didn’t quite hear the last bit?” He muses with a wonderful smirk formed on his ridiculously handsome face which makes you want to roll your eyes but decided otherwise since you don’t wanna get punishment this early.

“Submission and Dominance, Sir.” He play his game, and so you will play yours, only fair right? oh he thought so, his lips quirked in amusement before chuckling,

“How do you think i found out about that club you joined hm?” Your brows furrowed in confusion as you try to click things inside your head before you came to a realization...

“Spencer... are you— are you?”

He’s a goddamn member isn’t he?

“3 years, Princess.”

You’re fucked, Once again.

————//————

TBC! i know it’s short, like i said it’s only a filler chapter, since i have plenty of blurbs req, i’ll prioritize them first. So if you sent your reqs already, please be patient, they’re all coming soon!

tell me what you think on comment or send me a message, Tag list is open just let me know if you want in! thank you!

( @blancastans @spencerwaltergubler @slutforthegubes @n1ghtsh4d3-67 @babybloomer @liaabsurd @midnightsubmissives @addie5264 @maybankslut @secretpickleprofessordean )

[krakenbait]

kraken bait 3: the moment of truth

the moment is finally upon us! no, not the actual expansion draft, that’s in 10 days. i mean my last (but best) installment of the kraken bait expansion draft theories! 

this has been a long, long work in progress, basically since i posted the last one. i’ve asked nearly every hockey fan i know, as well as randomly messaging several friends and cool people on hockeyblr, for their ideas and opinions on their favorite team’s expansion draft situation. and as with my previous lists, i had my friend and capfriendly consultant corwin (@chaos-hockey) collaborating with me to make this semi-reasonable (largely against their wishes). i’ll be including commentary from myself and my variety of sources with each pick. 

for reference, this is a somewhat plausible look at who seattle might take in the expansion draft. it’s not a prediction, because even i don’t honestly think the kraken will take some of these players, but it’s a fun simulation. it does follow expansion draft rules, and even comes under the cap (which took some last-minute finagling by me and corwin).

without further ado, let’s get into it! this list got long, so it’s all under the cut.

Anaheim Ducks: Haydn Fleury

this one comes straight from resident danton heinen fan, ergo ducks fan @dantonheinens, so thanks for your help casey! they sent me a very detailed explanation of anaheim’s expansion draft situation basically explaining that there’s a whole lot of “ands, ifs, or buts” with the ducks, but if fleury is exposed, he’s a slam dunk (slam duck? i’m sorry)

Arizona Coyotes: Christian Fischer

the one thing i know about this dude is he got wrecked in a fight with nathan mackinnon in the 2020 playoffs. this is the first of several picks on this list i borrowed from The Athletic’s mock expansion drafts, which happens if i don’t know the team and i don’t know anyone else who does. corwin and i also considered taking adin hill from the yotes, but we decided on some other goalies instead (stay tuned).

Boston Bruins: Jeremy Lauzon

i have a lot of friends who are bruins fans, so credits are owed to: corwin, casey again, alex (@patron-saint-of-boston-hockey) & luna (@kureally) & any other bruins fans in the nwhl discord, and my irl bruins friends. i got a lot of opinions on the bruins pick, including jake debrusk, jakub zboril, connor clifton, and trent frederic. but the one name almost everyone could agree on was lauzon. therefore, i’ve decided he’s headed to seattle. 

(it feels worth it to mention that at the prospect of having to take someone from the bruins, corwin said “curses be upon your name!” in an aggressively thick boston accent)

Buffalo Sabres: Rasmus Asplund

i could not tell you who this is, other than the fact that he’s one of buffalo’s three rasmuses (rasmi?). corwin and i had also talked about maybe putting anders bjork here, like i did in the last go-around, but i defaulted to The Athletic this time, and they thought asplund was a good pick, so here we are.

Calgary Flames: Mark Giordano

another pick borrowed from The Athletic, but i’ve seen predictions of giordano to the kraken a fair amount. it just seems right (and a whole lot better than corwin’s proposition of matthew tkachuk from last round).

Carolina Hurricanes: Brady Skjei

this one comes from the lovely @summerteukka, so thank you kinga! she gave me a very good rundown on the canes and the expansion draft, with the conclusion being the canes have so much defensive depth that it’s definitely going to be a defenseman, and especially if they resign dougie hamilton, skjei seems to be a likely choice. i’m all for it- we’ll have “an S and a K and a J all next to each other” on a kraken jersey.

Chicago: Adam Gaudette

similarly to the arizona pick, corwin and i considered a goalie here- in this case, it would have been malcolm subban. but he is not one of the goalies we ended up going for. instead, we opted on bringing micaela gaudette and her husband back to the pacific northwest. 

Colorado Avalanche: Ryan Graves

this is really a no-brainer. gravy is a good defenseman, but the avs have such a strong defense between cale makar, devon toews, and sam girard (and you could add erik johnson when he’s healthy), plus up-and-comers like bo byram. gravy will almost definitely be exposed, and i think he’s a great pick for seattle. plus it’s relatively painless for avs fans who also will like seattle (like yours truly).

(corwin also wanted me to mention that they want gravy traded to the bruins so he can play with curtis hall, who is basically “color-swapped ryan graves”)

Columbus Blue Jackets: Dean Kukan

another pick taken right from The Athletic. i do not know who this is, but he’s a defenseman and the writers liked this pick so i went with it. for the record, corwin really wanted this pick to be boone jenner because he has a funky name, but i wanted another defenseman, so the fun name was sacrificed for function.

Dallas Stars: Jason Dickinson

i don’t really have an explanation for this one. corwin and i were talking about the stars options and picking dickinson just felt right.

Detroit Red Wings: Vladislav Namestnikov

thanks are owed here to joce (@doubleminor) for her red wings expertise! she gave me a few players who were likely kraken bait and i picked from there. it came down to evgeny svechnikov and vladislav namestnikov, but i went with namestnikov in the end. he was with the avs for a brief period and i liked him then, plus the vibes just seem right, so here we are.

Edmonton Oilers: Tyson Barrie

really, tyson barrie was the player who started the whole kraken bait thing. corwin made the drawing, i made the first list, and the rest is history. do i actually think tyson will be going to the kraken in a week? not really. do i still really like the idea of it? 100%. therefore, i will continue to engage in my “tyson barrie to seattle” nonsense.

Florida Panthers: Chris Driedger

oh look, our first goalie! florida had some interesting skater options, but when it came down to it, corwin and i thought the cats were a good place to take a goalie from. driedger did pretty well this season, plus the panthers’ goalie situation is locked up between $10 million man bobrovsky and future star spencer knight.

Los Angeles Kings: Viktor Arvidsson

corwin was feeling pretty strong about this one, so i’m trusting their judgement. according to them, seattle expressed interest in arvidsson, so nashville traded him to the kings instead of giving him up for nothing. now the kings get to give him up for nothing, which works out pretty well, considering i had absolutely no clue who to pick from the kings. 

Minnesota Wild: Matt Dumba

like some other picks, this just seems right. i like matt dumba a lot. he seems like a fun and wholesome guy, and his activism, both on his own and with the hockey diversity alliance, is admirable. i hope he gets to display his personality and keep working to better the sport of hockey with the kraken.

Montreal Canadiens: Jake Allen

goalie number two! picking a player from the habs was weird because i got attached to them during the playoffs, but i really don’t know many of their players? so corwin and i deliberated on this a little, and after looking at our goalie situation, decided that allen was the right pick from montreal. 

Nashville Predators: Calle Jarnkrok

after doing art for and getting a featured article from the preds, corwin thinks they’re some kind of nashville expert. i originally had matt duchene here, but corwin said not him. their logic? they did art of duchene for their preds project, so they probably want to keep him around. fair point. so we went with calle jarnkrok. the logic behind that choice was simple: “calle jarn-kraken”

New Jersey Devils: Andreas Johnsson

i wish i kept a counter of how many times corwin told me “ron francis doesn’t care about your feelings!” when we were discussing the devils pick. they kept advocating for either nate bastian or mikey mcleod, but i would not stand for the superbuddies being separated. this is my kraken bait list, so my decisions. i asked a few of my devils friends for their input (props to sabs @jakejuentzel and h @bigmouthnatebastian), and in between the mild panic, andreas johnsson got tossed out. therefore, it’s mango getting shipped to seattle. does it further lower the average age of the devils? yeah, but it’ll be fine! the nhl could use some youthful chaos.

New York Islanders: Jordan Eberle

all of my kraken bait ideas for the isles came from the bardown breakdown podcast (a great listen if you like hockey and pop-punk/punk music!), since both hosts are isles fans. they had a few names tossed out, including josh bailey and casey cizikas, but corwin and i decided on eberle. like with a lot of these, right vibes.

New York Rangers: Kevin Rooney

i’ve seen two names pretty consistently for rangers kraken bait: colin blackwell and kevin rooney. is blackwell is better and therefore the more likely pick? yes. but kevin rooney is a former devil and also mocked tom wilson, so i voted he gets to go seattle.

Ottawa Senators: Chris Tierney

i don’t think i could name more than three, maybe four players on the sens, so i defaulted to The Athletic on this one. i have no idea who chris tierney is, but it works, so there we go.

Philadelphia Flyers: James Van Riemsdyk

@phillyjoel left some fantastic notes on the flyers kraken bait in the tags of my last list, giving me good evidence to tell corwin that for the last time, nolan patrick is not kraken bait. the argument i saw was that the flyers are probably going to trade patrick instead of giving him up for nothing and make cap space by giving away van riemsdyk or voracek. The Athletic liked the van riemsdyk pick, and corwin could live with it, so that’s where we settled.

Pittsburgh Penguins: Zach Aston-Reese

i honestly don’t have a whole lot of explanation for this one. another pick borrowed from The Athletic, corwin and i liked it, there we go. we considered going with kris letang, but the vibes weren’t right.

San Jose Sharks: Ryan Donato

shoutout to my sharks friend and amazing artist K (@18minutemajor) for their help! i originally had brent burns in this slot, on K’s suggestion (we had a fantastic exchange about brent burns befriending bigfoot). however, i ran into last-minute cap trouble and had to switch the pick. ryan donato came from The Athletic, but i think it’s kind of a fun pick. he’s been passed between a few teams recently, but most of what i know of ryan donato comes from the 2018 olympics (aka the first time i really watched hockey!), when he was apparently doing pretty well for team usa. 

St. Louis Blues: Vince Dunn

thank you @powerblais (and the blues fans group chat) for your input on this one! vince dunn was one of the names on the list erin sent me, and The Athletic also had him listed, so we went with it. 

Tampa Bay Lightning: Blake Coleman

thanks @heddy for responding to my out-of-the-blue message with some good input on the bolts! ana gave me some good suggestions like tyler johnson plus something else so they take on the contract, alex killorn, and ondrej palat. in the end, this devils fan defaulted to pickles. this pick is in the same category as tyson barrie- do i actually think coleman is going to the kraken? not really. do i still like the idea? absolutely.

Toronto Maple Leafs: Travis Dermott

borrowed from The Athletic and some other kraken bait predictions, because everyone has something to say about the leafs. corwin and i waffled between dermott and alexander kerfoot for this pick, but we eventually settled on dermott to seattle.

Vancouver Canucks: Madison Bowey

this pick changed so much in just one day. we originally had braden holtby here because original kraken bait, but then i ran into cap trouble. so i switched it to zack macewen, following a pick by The Athletic. but then i wanted one or two more defensemen, so i switched to madison bowey, who was the other pick from The Athletic. after all that, it seems like the right pick.

Washington Capitals: Vitek Vanecek

our third and final goalie! corwin and i had our eyes on vanecek as kraken bait for a while- a young goalie with promise and room to improve seemed like the right pick for seattle. we briefly considered tj oshie--he’s from washington state, and corwin wanted to upset caps fans (we were talking during the first round of the playoffs)--but ended up back with vanecek as our pick.

Winnipeg Jets: Mason Appleton

last pick of the list! not much to say here, though. it’s a pick borrowed from The Athletic, but we went with him over the other option from the jets because he has a fun name. to quote corwin, mason appleton sounds like “an apple pie in a mason jar on skates.”

and there you have it folks, the final kraken bait list! if you want to know the specifics, we’ve got 3 goalies, 16 forwards, and 11 defensemen, and the total cap hit is 76.4M. i’m pretty doubtful that this will be the actual expansion draft lineup, but we’ll have to see how many, if any, picks corwin and i got right. 

thanks again to everyone who helped me out, and i hope you enjoyed the chaos and commentary of the kraken bait lists!

[randomnumbers751650]

Long, unedited text in which I rant about comparative mythology, Joseph Campbell and his monomyth,

Back in 2012 I wanted to improve my fiction writing (and writing in general, because in spite of nuances, themes and audience, writing a fiction and a nonfiction piece shouldn’t be that different) and thus I picked a few writing manuals. Many of them cited the Hero’s Journey, and how important it became for writers – after all Star Wars used and it worked. I believe most of the people reading this like Star Wars, or at least has neutral feelings about it, but one thing that cannot be denied is that became a juggernaut of popular culture.

So I bought a copy of the Portuguese translation of The Hero of a Thousand Faces and I fell in love with the style. Campbell had a great way with words and the translation was top notch. For those unaware, The Hero of a Thousand Faces proposes that there is a universal pattern in humanity’s mythologies that involves a person (usually a man) that went out into a journey far away from his home, faced many obstacles, both external and internal, and returned triumphant with a prize, the Grail or the Elixir of Life, back to his home. Campbell’s strength is that he managed to systematize so many different sources into a single cohesive narrative.

At the time I was impressed and decided to study more and write in an interdisciplinary research with economics – by writing an article on how the entrepreneur replaces the mythical hero in today’s capitalism. I had to stop the project in order to focus on more urgent matters (my thesis), but now that I finished I can finally return to this pet project of mine.

If you might have seen previous posts, I ended up having a dismal view of economics. It’s a morally and spiritually failed “science” (I have in my drafts a post on arts and I’m going to rant another day about it). Reading all these books on comparative mythology is so fun because it allows me for a moment to forget I have a degree in economics.

Until I started to realize there was something wrong.

My research had indicated that Campbell and others (such as Mircea Eliade and Carl Gust Jung, who had been on of Campbell’s main influences) weren’t very well respected in academia. At first I thought “fine”, because I’m used to interact with economists who can be considered “heterodox” and I have academic literature that I could use to make my point, besides the fact my colleagues were interested in what I was doing.

The problem is that this massive narrative of the Hero’s Journey/monomyth is an attempt to generalize pretty wide categories, like mythology, into one single model of explanation, it worked because it became a prescription, giving the writer a tool to create a story in a factory-like pace. It has checkboxes that can be filled, professional writers have made it widely available.

But I started to realize his entire understanding of mythology is problematic. First the basics: Campbell ignores when myths don’t fit his scheme. This is fruit of his Jungian influences, who claim that humanity has a collective unconsciousness, that manifest through masks and archetypes. This is the essence of the Persona games (and to a smaller extent of the Fate games) – “I am the Shadow the true self”. So any deviation from the monomyth can be justified by being a faulty translation of the collective unconsciousness.

This is the kind of thing that Karl Popper warned about, when he proposed the “falseability” hypothesis, to demarcate scientific knowledge. The collective unconsciousness isn’t a scientific proposition because it can be falsified. It cannot be observed and it cannot be refuted, because someone who subscribe to this doctrine will always have an explanation to explain why it wasn’t observed. In spite of falseability isn’t favored by philosophers of science anymore, it remains an important piece of the history of philosophy and he aimed his attack on psychoanalysis of Freud and Jung – and, while they helped psychology in the beginning, they’re like what Pythagoras is to math. They were both surpassed by modern science and they are studied more as pieces of history than serious theorists.

But this isn’t the worst. All the three main authors on myths were quite conservatives in the sense of almost being fascists – sometimes dropping the ‘almost’. Some members of the alt-right even look up to them as some sort of “academic’ justification. Not to mention anti-Semitic. Jung had disagreement with Freud and Freud noticed his anti-Semitism. Eliade was a proud supporter of the Iron Guard, a Romanian fascist organization that organized pogroms and wanted to topple the Romanian government. Later Eliade became an ambassador at Salazar’s Fascist Portugal, writing it was a government guided by the love of God. Campbell, with his hero worship, was dangerously close to the ur-fascism described by Umberto Eco (please read here, you won’t regret https://www.pegc.us/archive/Articles/eco_ur-fascism.pdf).

“If you browse in the shelves that, in American bookstores, are labeled as New Age, you can find there even Saint Augustine who, as far as I know, was not a fascist. But combining Saint Augustine and Stonehenge – that is a symptom of Ur-Fascism.”

Campbell did that a lot. He considered the Bible gospels and Gnostic gospels to be on the same level. Any serious student, that is not operating under New Age beliefs and other frivolous theories like the one that says Jesus went to India, will know there’s a difference between them (even Eliade was sure to stress the difference).

But Campbell cared nothing for it. He disliked the “semitic” religions for corrupting the mythic imagination (which is the source of his anti-Semitism), especially Judaism. When I showed him describing the Japanese tea ceremony to a friend who’s minoring in Japanese studies, she wrote “I’m impressed, he’s somehow managed to out-purple prose the original Japanese”. So, it’s also full of orientalism, treating the East as the mystical Other, something for “daring” Westerners to discover and distillate.

What disturbed…no, “disturbed” isn’t the word that I need in the moment, but what made me feel uncomfortable is that, in spite of all his talk of spirituality, the impression I had of Power of Myth is that I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone more materialist than him. Not even Karl Marx, founder of the Historical Materialism, was as materialist as Campbell.

At one point in the book, he was asked if he believed in anything and he gave a dismissive reply and said “I want to get experiences.” A man who studied all the myths of the world available, apparently didn’t believe in anything. Is that what spiritual maturity is? A continuous flux of experiences? Being taken by some sort of shamanistic wind like a floating plastic bag?

In nowhere in the interview he talked about virtues. In rebellion with his Catholic childhood, he said that we should go to the confessionary and say “God, I’ve been such a good boy”. Any cursory reading of the Gospel would say otherwise. Wasn’t this exactly Pharisee’s prayer in Luke 18:9-14? While the wasn’t the publican, who went with humility and asked for forgiveness, the one who walked out with an experience? And not only in Christianity, since in Tibetan Buddhism, a tulpa is something you have to kill, not foster like an imaginary friend like in some internet circles, contamined with this obsession with experiences.

The way I came to see Joseph Campbell as a man who was so stuck in his own world that nothing could move him out of it. All he wanted to do was this big experience, but in the end it’s as wide as the ocean, but shallow as a puddle. Even when Campbell speaks about having a “cosmic consciousness”, all that New Age jargon, claiming it’s about people discovering they’re not the center of the universe, it’s still so…self-servicing. It addresses a crowd so obsessed with experiences, but wants nothing to do with anything that requires compromise. He quotes the Hindu concept of maya, that life is an illusion, but I wonder how right he is about it.

I want to share this critique, by a researcher in comic studies: “We do not remember The Night Gwen Stacy Died because Gwen’s death reminds us of our own mortality, ‘the destiny of Everyman’, but because the story exposes the fragility of Spider-Man reader’s fantasies. Even icons can die.”

The exposition of the fragility of myths, especially the Hero’s Journey, never happens in Campbell’s work. It never talks about the potential of myths hindering entire societies, causing strife and causing people who can’t fit to become outcasts. Not even the cruel ones, like the Aztec death cult is treated as sublime, ignoring the fact that the Aztec neighbors helped to Spanish because they had enough of the Aztec myth.

I have changed my article. While I will still write on the hero entrepreneur, I’ll take a more critical view. The focus of the entrepreneur as an individual has many issues, because it ignores the role of public investment (necessary for high risk enterprises, like going to the moon or creating touch screens) and it treats with contempt the worked wage. Cambpell also treated with contempt the “masses”, who cannot be “heroes”. The theory on the entrepreneur is the same, treating the entrepreneur as a hero and the waged workers as lowlifes who have nothing to do, but to work, obey and be paid – to the point it feels like some economists treat strikes as crimes worse than murder. Not only that, but they can exploit the worker (see a book named “Do what you love and other lies about success and happiness”, it could be replaced with “Follow your bliss…”).

Campbell wrote in a time that there was no Wikipedia. So his book was the introduction of myths to a lot of people. It helped it was well-written. He considering his approach apolitical, but it’s clear that’s it’s not exactly like that (though this is a reason why Jordan Peterson failed to become the next Campbell, since he’s also a Jungian scholar, but he tried to become a conservative guru and this was his downfall). And, nowadays, Campbell is still inevitable in the circles that his themes matter, unlike Freud and Jung. Read it, but be aware of its problems, because it has already influenced what you consume.

[three-houses-text-files]

byleth/hanneman

c-s support + paired endings

c

Hanneman: Ah, Professor! Always a pleasure to see you. I wonder, might you have a moment to chat?

>Why?

>What do you want?

H: Come now. You have no need to be on guard. H: I'd never cause you harm. You're far too valuable a specim— Well, that is to say, too valuable a member of the academy staff. H: Indeed, the further my Crest research progresses, the closer you come to learning the truth of your heritage. Is it not so? H: When I learned you bore the lost Crest—the very Crest of Flames itself!—I set about learning everything I could about your past. H: What was the origin of your bloodline? How have the events of your life been shaped by your lineage? H: I became somewhat obsessed, I must admit.

>You investigated me?

H: Nothing so crass as an investigation, no. I researched. I spoke to mercenaries whom you've worked with in the past to learn about your life before the academy.

>My past is my business.

H: I promised you no harm, remember? I merely reached out to mercenaries whom you've worked with to understand your life before the academy.

H: Of course, I also contacted Jeralt and his mercenary friends. Your father does keep rather interesting company. (pre-death) H: Of course, I also contacted your father's old mercenary crew. Quite an interesting lot they are. H: It was difficult work, since I could not speak with Jeralt himself. I am quite sorry for your loss. By all accounts, your father was a good man. (post-death) H: I'm excited to share with you what I learned, but I do ask that you correct me if I am mistaken on any account. H: The story begins with Jeralt serving as captain of the Knights of Seiros... H: There was a woman at the monastery with whom Jeralt was quite close. H: At first, it seemed obvious this mystery woman was your mother. Alas, that cannot be the case. The timing is all wrong. H: As it was told to me, the woman in question passed away shortly before Jeralt left the monastery... H: Yet your birth occurred sometime later, while Jeralt taking work as a mercenary. H: This, of course, presumes your age is accurately reported. If you were born sooner, well, the story would be quite different, would it not?

>I don't know.

H: It is intriguing though, yes? Why is your age so difficult to pin down?

>My father was always one for secrets.

H: Oh, I am aware. You two were certainly enigmatic as far as mercenaries go.

H: For example, Jeralt never once spoke of his time serving as captain of the knights. That's quite a secret to keep for all those years. (pre-death) H: In the end, your old acquaintances had little definitive to say about either of you. H: However, they all agreed on one thing—your father, and yourself, were a strong pair. Warriors to be respected and feared. H: You, in particular. In fact, many came to know you as the Ashen Demon. H: They say you would destroy your enemies without a hint of emotion on your face. The mercenaries I spoke to revered you as a living legend of sorts.

>...

H: So, that is what I learned. And, I admit, it is barely more than I knew before. H: The next step in my research is to ask your blood for answers, and hope that it is more forthcoming than your past acquaintances.

——————————————————————————————

b

H: How are you doing, Professor? Would you care to join me for a cup of tea?

>OK.

>Sure.

H: It occurs to me that, whenever we chat, I have a tendency to pester you with my questions and theories about your history... H: It seems only fair to speak on the topic of myself for once. H: And perhaps you might feel more positively inclined toward my research, if I shared my own story.

>So, you just want me to help with your research.

H: Not at all. I am quite honest in my motivations.

>You have my attention.

H: I am quite pleased to hear you're interested. Yes, quite pleased.

H: Well... I suppose I should begin at the beginning, eh? H: I was born into a noble house of the Empire. Not a large house, mind you. But noble all the same. H: Our land holdings were small, but our bloodline was quite strong. H: So, as you can imagine, there were many of us in the family who carried the power of Crests. I, myself, bear a minor Crest. H: Our family's abundance of Crests may be part of the reason I've been interested in the topic since I was just a boy. H: I dedicated myself to my studies, and after years of effort, I became lead Crest scholar at the Empire's largest research institution.

>Why come to Garreg Mach?

>You gave that up? To come here?

H: I had only Imperial blood, and thus Imperial Crests, at my disposal in the Empire. H: My research is more important than social standing in the Empire. There I had only Imperial blood, and thus Imperial Crests, at hand. H: So I came to Garreg Mach and devoted myself to my research during my time as a professor. H: My progress is slow, but with each revelation, I move ever closer to the answers I have sought for decades. H: Your cooperation as the bearer of the Crest of Flames ensures my research will continue to advance. H: In fact, it may bring me ever closer to the goal of uncovering everything there is to know about Crests. H: I do hope you shall continue helping me advance in this field of study.

>OK.

>If you insist...

H: Together, we will solve the mystery of your Crest of Flames, and our world will be the better for it. H: Shall we proceed? My lab instruments are fully prepared. H: I have a great number of tests I am excited to carry out... No, no, don't worry. They won't hurt one bit.

——————————————————————————————

a

H: Which means that there are some elements of your power that cannot be explained by current theory. H: Although this may lead to a discovery that alters the very fabric of Crest research... H: Oh, pardon me, Professor. I became lost in thought, and I do tend to ramble. H: I suggest we call it a day. Do you concur?

>I'm fine to keep talking.

H: No, no, you mustn't push yourself too hard. When you are not in battle, you are so often here with me.

H: I get so energized speaking with you, well, I must remember to pull my head out of the clouds...

>I'm getting tired.

H: It seems that I have gotten carried away again. My apologies. I know you are quite busy.

H: I become so energized around you. When we get deep into the research, why, I feel 20 years younger!

H: That said, perhaps we should discuss things unrelated to Crests from time to time. H: Some sort of silly, light-hearted topic might be nice, eh?

>Do you have one in mind?

H: I'm not especially skilled at small talk, alas. Let me see... Perhaps we should discuss... Hmmm... H: I know! Food. Not my strong suit, the culinary arts, but I do enjoy a good meal! H: Which kind of food do you prefer, Professor? Sweet or spicy?

>Sweet.

H: Same as myself! Yes, indeed... Oh, now my stomach is growling.

>Spicy.

H: Spicy? Quite the opposite of me.

H: Yet you're an exception in lots of ways, so it's not altogether surprising... H: An old colleague of mine theorized that those who bear Crests favor sweet flavors over spicy. H: She suggested that the Crest exerts some manner of influence over... H: Oh, there I go again. How embarrassing. We were supposed to be avoiding talk of Crests, weren't we? H: Terrible habit of mine, finding a way to turn any conversation towards Crests. H: I really should find a way to stop that...

>It's OK.

>We can talk more about Crests.

H: That is kind of you, Professor, but it's all right. H: If you were to lose your patience with me, it could have an incalculable impact on my research. H: That sort of thing has happened in the past, you know. Back when I was still in the Empire... H: At first, any lady I was spending time with would titter and say she didn't mind if I talked about Crests. H: But at some point, she would always become fed up and stop listening to what I had to say. H: In the end—invariably while I was particularly focused on my research—she would write to say we were done. H: I will do everything I can to keep that from happening this time. (f!byleth) H: You may be a man, but I still don't wish for you to grow tired of my company. (m!byleth)

——————————————————————————————

s

H: So falls the curtain on our time of war. Though I suppose one can never say all is over and done... H: You have much still to do, and I have miles to go before I achieve my own dreams. H: We both have many hardships in store for us, don't you think?

>Yes.

H: Indeed. Well, that talk aside, I have a bit of a proposition for you.

>Maybe not that many.

H: Do you think? Well, I have a proposition for you, if you'll indulge me.

H: I believe it is better to travel the path through life with someone else, rather than go forward alone. H: And you are indispensable to my research... H: No, that's not the full truth. H: Yes, you are indispensable to my research, but also to my life. Altogether, I mean. H: I haven't any idea how to treat a woman properly. And so, I've long thought I would spend my life alone. H: But then, well...I met you. And I want to share everything with you. H: If you happen to feel the same way, er, well, that is to say... Would you accept this ring?

>I've been waiting for this.

H: Did I make you wait? Now, there is an unexpected development! My goodness. H: Well, since the feelings are mutual...I suppose there's no need to hold ourselves back any longer. H: Don't you agree? H: If so, I say we begin the next phase of our research. I wish to learn everything about you.

>Actually… (black eagles route)

H: You say you've lost the power of your Crest? And...what of it?

H: I want you for who you are. Learning about the power of your Crest was just a small part of that.

H: Besides, even without the Crest, I daresay you will still prove a fascinating research subject.

>I'm ready. (other)

H: Ready? No, no. There's no need to be ready. I'm not planning any tests.

H: I don't want the power of your Crest—I want you.

H: First things first, I'd like to do a thorough study. H: And in return...perhaps you would care to learn all there is to know about me. H: I've never been the subject of someone else's research before, but I am open to the prospect. H: I can think of no one more suitable for the task... than the woman I love. H: The future... Ah, I mean our future. It offers quite a lot to look forward to. I can't wait to see the results of this new undertaking.

——————————————————————————————

paired endings

Byleth announced her marriage to Hanneman shortly after becoming leader of the United Kingdom of Fódlan. Hanneman provided counsel to the queen as she worked to restore Fódlan, but his goal remained to determine the workings of the Crests and to do away with the inequality caused by them. To that end, his research resulted in magical tools which could be used even without the aid of Crests. The queen made good use of these tools, and they soon became a cornerstone for continued progress. (golden deer + church route)

Byleth announced her marriage to Hanneman shortly after being named archbishop of the Church of Seiros. Hanneman provided counsel to the archbishop as she worked to restore the church, but his goal remained to determine the workings of the Crests, and to do away with the inequality caused by them. To that end, his research resulted in magical tools which could be used even without the aid of Crests. The archbishop made good use of these tools, and they soon became a cornerstone for continued progress. (blue lions route)

Very soon after Byleth and Hanneman had finished their quiet wedding ceremony, the struggle against those who slither in the dark began in earnest. The pair fought in many battles, eventually bringing true peace to Fódlan. Afterwards, they worked together to pursue Hanneman's goal to determine the workings of the Crests and to do away with the inequality caused by them. Their research resulted in magical tools which could be used even without the aid of Crests. The Father of Crestology and his spouse earned worldwide renown for devising tools that became a cornerstone of progress. (black eagles route)

[schwiftit-blog]

Can I get a Rick/reader where the reader is a young scientist that stumbles into something Rick had also been working on and they meet because of it? More on the platonic side of possible? Sorry if this is confusing. Love your writing btw!

(Thank you!! Uh, so, I really got carried away with this and its so long lol. Like, 2000 words long. Hope this is what you were looking for though! It got a little fluffy at the end, but still stayed in the sphere of platonic interactions soooo)

The threat of Time Prison as an indefinite sentence scared you half to death. It was rare you ventured out into the galaxies for materials, much preferring to see what you could do with what earth had to offer first. The anxiety of your upcoming mission was a thick sludge restricting your wind pipe, making breathing hard and your hands sweaty. You were shaking as you dressed in a simple set of black gear with two guns at your sides, a backpack slung over your shoulders, and your teleporter in hand. 

You press the launch button and feel yourself disintegrate into thin air, only to be reassembled somewhere else. The sensation was similar to a limb falling asleep and you hated the buzzing that always seemed to linger an hour after teleporting. However, what you were sought after was more than worth it––For you, this would be the breakthrough of the century.

You find yourself in the center of a high ceiling building, alien technology lining the walls. Thick circuits and wires wound and braided were intermingling into a colorful waterfall of loose cables everywhere you looked. There was a deep blue tint to the metal walls, a flashing red light whirred through the spacious room, and you could smell the heavy intoxication of alien and human anti septic. 

You swallowed audibly and rubbed your hands together in an effort to steel yourself. You were here for a reason, you had a purpose, a mission to complete and your fear was not an option. 

You set off quietly into the thresholds of the room, unsure exactly of what sort of intergalactic, high security building you were in. You had found the coordinates with fine calculations, rechecking them several times before setting out on this adventure. The time and location was right, you just needed to find it.

You kept your breath hushed and your actions nimble, scouring the room for what you knew was here: A crystallized athenite otherwise known as  a time crystal. The situation was dire and you were near positive this would crack the code to, well, time travel itself. That was still a working theory of yours, but if the athenite was being this heavily guarded, it would prove useful no matter what.

You find the crystal in a suspended glass case an hour later. It took many hallways and turns, the stealing of a gromflamite guard’s keycard to access several different rooms, but you had finally found it. Your hands were clammy again beneath your gloves as you carefully stalked forward. 

At this point, you were fairly sure you were in the clear. Your heartbeat quickened and anxiety flushed through you like a cold sweat. You were just so close.

After matching your stolen ID to the case, the glass slid away to reveal the crystallized athenite in all its looming glory. It shone like a beacon, the pink light bouncing off the walls and you couldn’t hold back the small sigh of relief as you held it in your––

“S-Shit! Shit! Get the––Get the fuck out of the way! M-Morty! Over there, over there, fuck!” 

You can hear the screaming from down the hall and panic grips your heart. The alarms blare throughout the building not even seconds later and suddenly the place is on lockdown. Its chilling, the facility going dark and illuminated suddenly by only red alarms. You can hear an army’s worth of feet rushing towards you and you whip out your teleporter as soon as you see blue hair round the corner.

You hear the guards shouting a name, Rick Sanchez, over and over.

“W-Who the fu-fuck are you?” The man shouts, anger and frustration and annoyance mingling on his face to produce the world’s angriest grimace. 

There’s shouting and then you blip out of existence, crystallized athenite in hand and the man’s blue eyes boring into your core. When you reappear in the center of your messy apartment, the pulsating crystal in hand, you slump to the floor and almost laugh hysterically at the fact that you managed to pull this off. 

You knew the man from the gomflamite security building was going to pursue you. When you’d caught a glimpse of aged skin and blue hair, you knew the man was from earth and was definitely also in pursuit of your time crystal. It was only a matter of time before the man found you and tried to steal it away. So, you set to working on your new and improved portal gun with a fervor you hadn’t manifested since last year’s college finals.

Within a week you had found several uses for the crystal: Freezing time, hooking it up to your cable box for unlimited channels, and utilizing it on your laptop to find intergalactic sites. However, you couldn’t seem to make it do much more than that in terms of actual time travel.

Two weeks later you were entirely too frustrated. A month later and you were near calling it quits. In a rush of true frustration at the three month mark you set off to finding the coordinates of the blue haired man, hoping maybe by presenting the athenite crystal for him, he’d be willing to teach you what he intended to fucking do with it.

You manifest within the threshold of some small garage. There are gadgets on every wall, lining the shelves and the workbench. Some of the alien technology you recognize, most of it you do not. After all, you were young and had had little exposure with aliens seeing as you were still nervous about traveling between the galaxies. 

You swallow, realizing how horribly this plan could go. Not wanting to intrude on the person’s home much further, you decide to wait it out in the garage until––

Who you believe must be the Rick Sanchez from the facility and a redheaded girl walk into the garage chatting. Rick notices you first, the girl second, both looking equally shocked at your unexpected arrival.

“Woah th-there, who the fuck…” Recognition flits over the older man’s face. 

You pull out the crystal before he can say anymore, effectively silencing him for mere moments.

“My name is ___,” You begin, “And…Well, I’m here with a proposition. Of sorts.”

Rick rolls his eyes much to your disbelief, “Not interested.” He says before you can continue, his tone sharp.

“B-But you haven’t even heard what I––”

“Don’t care. R-Rick Sanchez doesn’t––I don’t do collabs.” He scoffs, brushing you off as if what you’re offering is some crude science fair project.

For a moment you are at a loss for words when the redhead speaks up on your behalf, “Grandpa Rick, you’re being so rude right now. I’m sorry he’s being rude, he’s been day drinking. Look,” She turns her attention to you, “What are you offering? He’s been whining about that crystal for the last month. So, I know he wants it.”

“S-Summer––” Rick shouts, exasperation thick in his voice.

“I’m offering the time crystal in exchange…Like, interning with it. I wanted…What I needed to do with it isn’t working. I realize I need help with it. I’m willing to offer you whatever other useful things my own lab may have to help.”

After that fateful day, you felt you were practically indebted to Summer Smith for life. The discussion had quickly turned into a fierce argument about the likelihood of time travel after Rick asked you to explain what you wanted to do with the crystal. But, eventually, Rick was able to prove that it was, indeed, an impossible feat. Once that was squared away, you two had immediately gotten to work figuring out what information either had in an effort to put your individual talents to good work.

The next step was Rick going through your lab, gathering some of the materials you had. You knew he was taking more than he actually needed, but you recognized his genius as priceless and were willing to part with much of your items in exchange for vast knowledge.

“W-Wait, you’re telling me it took you a week to make that toaster?” Rick asked as he held the kitchen appliance in hand.

You crossed your arms over your chest, “Yeah, what of it? It makes perfectly toasted toast. That takes time and patience to perfect. Its an exact science.”

“Toast isn’t a…It isn’t a fucking science.” He grabbed it anyways and you cocked a brow, “Toast is stupid. Its just…Just recooked bread.”

“If its so stupid, then what are we going to use it for?”

Rick shrugged, “Morty’ll get a––Get a kick out of it once I recalibrate it to make h-his idea of perfect toast.”

Its late on a school night several weeks later when you and Rick decide to call your nightly tinkering quits. The project was coming along nicely, but it was nowhere near completion even with both of your geniuses at hand. 

At some point Rick had convinced you to run to the store for more beer, and by the time the two of you had cracked open the third pack, you had a severe case of the giggles. Rick himself seemed to be in a lighter mood as well and he’d pushed away from the bench and guided you to the living room. 

After a long pull from his flask and hooking up the crystallized athenite to the cable box, Rick had put on Ball Fondlers in an attempt to relax. You sat on the couch, long legs taking up the majority of the couch as you laid your head on the armrest. You were drunk, completely and utterly, and you realized it had been a long time since you’d just kicked back with someone.

Even if that someone ended up being a seventy year old man.

“You know? I did this too. I think this might be the best use for this stupid fucking crystal.”

Rick nodded, passing his flask over to you. You take a small sip and pass it back, lazy smiles on both of your faces.

“Y-Yeah, that means something coming from the girl wh-who thought time travel was possible.” Rick teased, turning up the volume some.

You snatch the last beer and stick your tongue out at him, the fuzzy glow of the tv softening both of your features.

You don’t remember falling asleep on the Smith’s couch, but you do remember a bit of beer being spilled on your face, followed by a string of curse words and a blanket being thrown over your body. 

[pamphletstoinspire]

Fundamental Theorem of Calculus, from Math 121 Clark Univ.

[Feynman] "Do you know calculus?"

[Wouk] "I admitted that I didn't"

[Feynman] "You had better learn it...It's the language God talks."

Herman Wouk, converstion with Richard Feynman in The Language God Talks, p.5

"What is your number?" My grandson, Gabriel (age 2), on meeting someone.

"If you ask how such things can occur, seek the answer in God’s grace, not in doctrine; in the longing of the will, not in the understanding; in the sighs of prayer, not in research; seek the bridegroom not the teacher; God and not man " St. Bonaventure, The Journey of the Mind to God.

IS REALITY ALTOGETHER MATHEMATICAL?

In his very fine book, Is God a Mathematician?, Mario Livio gives a good history of mathematics and its foundational applications to science.  He also discusses whether mathematics is a Platonic ideal or is a construction of the human mind -- i.e. is mathematics "discovered" or "invented"? But he does not address the question posed in his title, which I propose to do in this post.  I'll also discuss some related arguments by physicists and philosophers that reality is mathematics (see references).

Now it goes without saying (although I will say it), that if God is omniscient, he knows everything and therefore, perforce, must know all mathematics. These propositions do not, however, require that reality is altogether mathematical, as suggested by Max Tegmark in his book, Our Mathematical Universe.  If reality is altogether mathematical, then everything can be quantified, represented by numbers or properties that can put into correspondence with numbers.  Is this so?

I invite the reader to suggest things that cannot be quantified by numbers.  Here's my list of a few such:

self-awareness, consciousness ("Cogito, ergo sum")

moments of communion with God, The Holy Spirit, Jesus

love of another

shame

anger

pain

happiness

joy

feelings aroused by nature

feelings aroused by music

feelings aroused by intellectual discovery

the literary excellence of a poem, a short story, a novel

boredom on reading blog posts dealing with the reality of mathematics

etc...

Now psychologists might say that most, if not all of the above can be quantified: just use the simple 1-5 scale as, in satisfaction response surveys. I claim that, unlike measuring the mass of a steel ball or its radius, such a procedure would not yield a universal measurement -- one person's "2" might well be another person's "4".  The qualia referred to in the above items are non-quantifiable, in the sense that a universally applicable measurement cannot be applied.

Let's explore just one of the above in more detail--feelings aroused by music.  In another post, God's Gift to Man -- the Transforming Power of Music, I've discussed the emotional and spiritual impact music has had on me, an effect which cannot be explained by mathematical relationships. The Pythagorean harmonies have no place in the dissonances of Bartok, Berlioz or even Mozart (Symphony #40, the Great G - Minor.

The inability of computation -- mathematics -- to emulate musical creativity is illustrated in a science-fiction story by James Blish, "A Work of Art".  In this tale "mind sculptors" of the future install a recreation of Richard Strauss in a non-musical volunteer.   The volunteer thinks of himself as a resurrected Strauss, composes an opera, and then realizes it uses old musical devices and is not creative.  At the concert in which the work is premiered, the volunteer knows that the resounding applause is for the mind sculptors, not for his musical work.

I AM NOT A NUMBER!" (Number 6, in "The Prisoner")

Let's turn to consciousness/self-awareness as an attribute of mathematical reality. Is the brain a "meat computer"-- can consciousness/self-awareness be programmed? In other words, does the self-aware brain operate by algorithms?  

The eminent mathematical physicist, Roger Penrose, has said no to this proposition in three books: "The Emperor's New Mind", "Shadows of the Mind", and "The Large, the Small, and Human Consciousness".  Penrose demonstrates, using Godel's Incompleteness Theorem and Turing's Halting Theorem, that the human can know the truth of a mathematical theorem even when a computer can not.

In "Shadows of the Mind" he gives four types of belief or non-belief in the possibility of Artificial Intelligence (AI), that self-aware intelligence can be programmed by some set of algorithms:

Consciousness is reducible to computation (the view of strong - AI proponents);

Consciousness can be simulated by a computer, but the simulation couldn't produce "real understanding" (John Searle's view);

Consciousness can't even be simulated by computer, but nevertheless has a scientific explanation (Penrose's own view)

Consciousness doesn't have a scientific explanation at all (the view of Thomas Nagel --see Mind and Cosmos)

Penrose is looking to a theory of quantum gravity to explain consciousness, The philosopher John Searle posits, as does Penrose, that consciousness has a scientific explanation , but that it will be an explanation in which consciousness is an "emergent" property of the brain's biochemistry and biophysics, much as wetness can be explained by theories of surface tension for water.  I have discussed Nagel's views (with links to other discussions) in the post which is linked to above.

A quantum computer (i.e. a scientist engaged in quantum computation), Scott Aaronson, has given an amusing and almost-convincing critique of Penrose's thesis in one of his Physics Lectures.  Some of his criticisms can be answered, particularly the one dealing with the Libet experiment, but I don't propose to engage that discussion here.  The critique relies primarily on two features: the activities of the mind are finite, not infinite; a computer which would be allowed to make mistakes would not be bound by Goedel's Theorem.

Finally, note that Max Tegmark does not show in "Our Mathematical Universe" how consciousness can be explained as a mathematical phenomenon.  He claims that this will be done in the future, but that seems to me very much like a scientism of the gaps.

IS MATHEMATICS QUASI-EMPIRICAL?

If mathematics (maybe I should upper-case that?) is to be the end - all and be - all of what is, then it seems reasonable to suppose that mathematics is complete in itself --there are no loose ends.  A primitive view of Goedel's and Turing's theorems suggest that this is not so.  The computer philosopher Gregory Chaitin reinforces this opinion in his books "The Limits of Mathematics" and "The Unknowable":

"What I think it all means is that mathematic is different from physics, but it's not that different. I think that math is quasi-empirical.  It's different from physics, but it's more a matter of degree than an all or nothing difference. I don't think mathematicians have a direct pipeline to God's thoughts, to absolute truth, while physics must always remain tentative and subject to revision [emphasis added]. Yes math is less tentative than physics, but they're both in the same boat, because they're both human activities, and to err is human." Gregory Chaitin, The Unknowable, pp 26-27

MY TAKE

I view mathematics, logic, reason as the foundations and the framework of the building in which we live.  There are essential additions--faith, religion, beauty, love, ... -- which are non-mathematical and above the bounds of logic.  As Pope St. John Paul II, said.  

"Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth; and God has placed in the human heart a desire to know the truth — in a word, to know himself — so that, by knowing and loving God, men and women may also come to the fullness of truth about themselves" Pope St. John Paul II, Fides et Ratio.

So my answer to the question in the title is, God is much more than a mathematician.

*I've gone back to my Jewish roots, inverted the title of a very good book, "Is God a Mathematician?" by Mario Livio, to make it a declarative sentence in form, but still a question (imagine a rising inflection at the end, as with a Yiddish or Pennsylvania Dutch accent); I've put one of the few Yiddish phrases I remember at the end.  If you don't know what "oy vey" means, I'll have to ask "what planet are you from?"

REFERENCES

Mario Livio, Is God a Mathematician?

Roger Penrose, The Large, the Small and Human Consciousness

John Searle, Minds, Brains and Programs.

Max Tegmark, Our Mathematical Universe.

Herman Wouk, The Language God Talks.

From a series of articles written by: Bob Kurland - a Catholic Scientist

[oops-my-fingers-slipped]

Finish the Story (Part 1)

Author: Admin Lex Characters: BTS + you Pairing: Namjoon X Reader X Taehyung Genres: Fantasy, Angst, Fluff, Romance POV: First Person + Taehyung POV Description:
You offered to help Namjoon refurbish his old bookshop and in the process you find a peculiar book. Unknowingly, you end up diving head-first into a world of ink and parchment unlike your own. There, you meet a boy trapped in the bindings of literature and your life changes forever. I was followed into the bookshop by quarrels of Autumn’s leaves and the North Wind’s children dancing away with ribbons of my hair. The shop’s wooden door swung closed, shutting out the world outside but kept hundreds preserved in the room before me. Though tall oak bookshelves lined every wall of the store, thousands of books piled up in precarious stacks rising almost to the ceiling. Blinding rays of sun from the sky-light windows struck the mountains of literature and illuminated the specks of dust orbiting the air. In the back left corner sprouted an Acacia tree, coiling itself around a wooden beam, spiraling upwards towards the roof windows. It’s sunset-colored leaves joyfully basked in the sun amitting from the glass. However stunning the tree appeared, dead leaves from previous seasons decorated the floor and crunched beneath my leather boots as I approached the front desk.
Noticing no one behind the counter, I began to call, “Nam-” before a heavy thud sounded from under the polished wood followed by a muttered curse. Surely enough, Namjoon emerged from under the desk, scratching his head of lilac-purple hair with a pained look on his face. I failed to restrain a loud chuckle that bubbled up from my diaphragm. Namjoon rolled his eyes and deadpanned, “Ha ha, very funny.” He eyed the four books enveloped in my arms and continued, “I wasn’t expecting you until tomorrow. Don’t tell me you finished them already.”
I smirked and replied, “I hate to break it to you but I’m only 3 more books away from beating your record of 16 in a month! You better step up your game. You’re getting your ass kicked by a sophomore.” I plopped the small stack of books down onto the counter and Namjoon slid the nearest one on its side, scanning the bar code suck to its spine. A curt “beep” was heard as each novel touched the device. “Well excuse me for having an entire bookstore to manage while you have all the free time to read in the world. Unlike you, I have responsibilities to handle and customers to deal with.” 
I looked around the shop, noticing how devoid of business it was.
“What customers?”
“You.”
The comment was meant to be sarcastic but a little pit of pity bloomed in my heart, knowing that I, in fact, was one of his only customers. I decided right then and there that I would no longer be the only one who’s footsteps echoed through this building every day, but rather the silence to be filled by constant turning of pages and friendly chatter about new releases. He needed customers and that’s exactly what he would get. “That’s exactly my point! I am your only regular client but”, I lowered my voice for emphasis, “that is about to change.”
Namjoon lifted his head, temporarily distracted from his task. “You’re so dramatic. Besides, I’m managing this place just fine without your help.”
I sighed and tried a different approach. “Uh-huh, if ‘managing a bookstore’ includes not picking up after your tree -heaven knows why you even have a tree in a bookstore-, not organizing your shelves, and there are so many dust clouds in here I can barely see three feet in front of me.”
I may have exaggerated a tad but I wasn’t necessarily wrong either. And he knew it. The roots of the tree had started to lift some of the floorboards and weave itself through the infrastructure. Eventually, the more damage the Acacia caused, the more it would cost to repair it and with no steady income, where would Namjoon find the funds to pay the fees? His predicament was challenging, to say the least.
I already made my point loud and clear so my voice softened a bit when I proposed, “Ya’ know I could help out around here if you’d like? For free, at least until you gain enough business.”
He scoffed at my offer, seeming unfazed by my my bluntness and challenged, “Do you honestly think you could handle this monstrosity?” Namjoon drummed his fingers against the table-top, obviously amused at my proposition.
Did he know something I didn’t? Probably.
Ignoring the thought, I lifted my chin high and said, “Challenge accepted. When do I start?” “Now.”
•~• It’s been three days and we’ve hardly made a dent in transporting every book to the back storage. Namjoon’s plan was to clear the shop of the literature temporarily until the interior was complete and restock the shelves later. So we began with the cities of stacked books towering over ten feet….
It was a start.
A very slow, gradual start. And the finish line seemed light years away.
The “free time” Namjoon claimed I had was nonexistent, now occupied by long hours of organizing and sorting through endless amounts of novels. The more days that flew by, the more our hard work progressed and the prouder we became. The time after school to long after dark were spent in the soon-to-be-bookstore with only each other as company.
I’ve always thought of Namjoon as ‘the purple-haired dude who runs my favorite bookstore’, that is, until he quickly became the person I spent the most time socializing with. The long nickname shortened when I began to refer to him as a newfound friend. It was almost impossible not to grow this fond of him when we worked together striving toward the same goal, not to mention the shared tastes in books and writing. His company kept the boredom at bay when working and though I wouldn’t dare admit it, I started to look forward to our extended conversations, unpopular theories, or book recommendations. To put it simply, maybe fixing up this old outdated bookstore would blossom both the business of the company and our overall relationship.
Due to Namjoon’s undeniable whit, we eventually developed shifts where every few hours we would switch off between finishing up schoolwork and progressing the bookshop. The system deemed itself very effective, as we both managed to maintain our spotless GPAs.
This particular night, I sorted books sat on the newly-swept hardwood floor, the moon’s silver shadow casted down from the skylight windows cloaking my hands as I worked. Tonight seemed like a regular evening until I reached for another novel, expecting a smooth book jacket to meet my fingertips but, instead, felt the velvet fabric of a book unlike any other. My eyes landed upon a hard-cover book wrapped delicately in crimson-red velvet. The title glistened a radiant gold and read: Finish the Story. I explored its exterior, searching for an author’s name but none was found. I also noticed how the spine didn’t posses a bar code stuck to its back.
Hmm, that’s odd. Maybe this is one from Nam’s personal collection…
The spine cracked as I opened the cover to reveal the title page, which was decorated in florals of bright scarlet roses sprouting thorns of gold. The blooms of flowers dripped black ink from their buds. The artwork was absolutely, positively marvelous and don’t get me wrong, I’m not an artist but the time and effort to paint this must have taken decades. I admired it a few more seconds before forcing myself to flip to the first chapter.
Compared to the art coating the title page, the chapter page seemed mundane. Regular script ran from one side to the next just any other book. Still a bit skeptical about the art, I turned a single page and sure enough, I gaped in awe at the scene that beheld me.
Another picture enraptured my attention. A glowing castle made entirely out of bronze nails and plates loomed over rolling hills of ruby red poppies, making it appear aflame. The sky was painted with varieties of violets, dark blues, and indigos. The two color schemes clashed with one another so perfectly, I almost didn’t notice the lone fox that parted the poppy fields curving in the direction of the palace. The animal’s head turned towards the corner of the page, almost looking…. angry? I followed its eyes over to the bottom left corner where a man sat back looking up at the sky, his neck craning so eager to touch the indigo painted stars. He looked so carelessly free while the fox’s eyebrows furrowed in irritation.
I let a little giggle escape at the bit of absurdity.
What a peculiar sight!
Suddenly, my eyes darted back to the man sitting at the corner of the page, catching a glimpse of movement. To my surprise, he no longer looked up at the sky but instead stared right at me, one ebony eye charmingly winked.
Huh?!?
I wasted no time slamming the book shut.
Ok, it’s official. I’m going completely insane. Maybe these long work hours are getting to me. Yeah, that’s probably it. Right?
However I may try to convince myself that I hallucinated what I saw… I couldn’t help but wish that it hadn’t been my imagination and that something incredible was about to happen. But that’s ridiculous.
Even so, I still found myself placing the book in my bag, swinging it over my shoulder, and briskly began walking down the street to my apartment. •~•
“Ouch! Hey!”
Taehyung flew backwards from the impact of his book rudely being slammed shut. His face was now thinly coated in yellow pollen from the poppy field. It tickled his nose, forcing a sneeze to rip out from his nostrils. “Aachoo!”
The fox bounded over the sea of red and gold to stand before Taehyung, a disapproving growl hummed from his throat.
“You didn’t get to your position on time! And to make matters worse you moved, you moved. This was our first reader in ages and you had to go ahead and blow it!”
Taehyung ran his nimble fingers through his hair, ready to sit through another lecture about how to always stand statue-still when a new reader opens their story. “Ah, I’m sorry Jin. We just haven’t had a reader in forever and I thought it might be entertaining to mess with them a bit.”
He stood up as a small smile carved itself across his features.
Jin flicked his tail, not taking this for a valid excuse. “As funny as that was, next time please do your job as I’m sure Yoongi and the others are doing just fine. Try learning a thing or two from their excellent example.”
Taehyung raised his eyebrows slightly and giggled at the memory of his companions, “Last time I saw them, Kookie and Jimin were playing frisbee with the moon on page 84 and got it stuck in a palm tree. Your right, they are great exam-”
The fox bolted to the end of the page and glanced back at the man, warning him about his job as a book character one last time before he leapt through the pages, stopping on page 84, solving yet another problem.
Sighing, Taehyung plopped back down into the poppy pillows growing around him and peered up at where the reader’s face would usually gaze from. He wondered if the new visitor would open the book again. She was quite interesting, after all. Then again, all the readers were. Each one completely different from the last. Each one more exiting, new, and exotic. Each one, you know not trapped in a book like him and the other characters were. Each one free.
Taehyung knew that it was dangerous to be hopeful, to wish that the girl opened the book again. Because, well, after the little stunt he pulled today she will most likely not. But the little tug on his heart told him that maybe, just maybe she would investigate his book again. The way her eyes glittered and flew from one page to the next gave him the impression that she was a bit too curious for her own good. But, no these thoughts had no place consuming his head. He shut them out and instead focused on the stars above, daring to pretend they were her eyes.

[zainapbaraketcaryl]

‘The Walking Dead’: Carol and Daryl, A Match Made in Hell?

02-21-2017

Carol and Daryl on ‘The Walking Dead’ are soulmates, but does that mean they’ll go canon?

The Walking Dead puts it’s characters and by extension the fandom through the ringer. Season seven started off on a particularly devastating note, and throughout the first eight episodes, things looked beyond bleak for our faves.

There’s certainly an argument for the gratuitousness of all the pain and suffering endured throughout just about any season. But the thing is, it’s all a bit more manageable when Team Family is all together. Since season four, the show has relied on separating our faves and taking them through emotional journeys that generally lead to major character development. In the season seven midseason finale, hope was restored to the group when they were reunited at Hilltop.

In fact, most of the undertaking of separating different characters from the larger group comes from how earned the reunions feel later. Who could forget the feelings of relief when Michonne (Danai Gurira) followed the tracks to the house where Rick (Andrew Lincoln) and Carl (Chandler Riggs) were recuperating or when Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and Glenn (Steven Yeun) found each other in season four?

The Walking Dead is at it’s best when it’s bringing characters together and there is almost nothing that compares to what we got with Carol (Melissa McBride) and Daryl’s (Norman Reedus) reunion in “New Best Friends” (S7Ee10).

Considering the deep bond Carol and Daryl share, the episode gave us a lot to discuss. With characters as popular as Daryl and Carol, it’s no surprise that not everyone interprets the Caryl bond in the same way. So I’ve brought my colleague Erin Qualey (go read her The Walking Dead recaps!) here to assist in another discussion!

What’s the possibility of seeing Caryl go canon like other romantic couples we’ve seen on the show?

Julie: So, for me “New Best Friends” is essentially my new favorite episode. It’s only rival at this point is “No Sanctuary” (S5E1). The obvious similarities are the Daryl and Carol reunions but I fell in love with that relationship in season two, when he brings her the Cherokee Rose. I can admit my bias but given everything we know about Daryl and Carol’s past, I think the show made a pretty airtight argument that Daryl and Carol love each other on a very deep, very emotional, very romantic level that goes beyond the physicality that might be necessary to consider a ship canon. I guess what I’m wondering, is what’s missing for you in that bond?

Julie: They’re definitely soulmates. And I like your transcendent interpretation. I’d even agree with it except for one thing. Daryl isn’t a touchy-feely kind of guy and he is almost always touching Carol and there is almost never anything entirely chaste or innocuous about those moments. Daryl might be an oblivious flirt but he gravitates toward her like no one else. I mean look how far we’ve come from season two after Daryl fails to save Sophia. He yells at Carol and tells her “Just go, I don’t want you here” and four seasons later he’s at her door and his voice breaks when he asks her, “Why’d you go?” (Ugh, it’ll be a long time before that line stops giving me chills and making me tear up. A+ acting on Norman’s part!) I just can’t imagine a scenario where Daryl is as comfortable with a woman as he is with Carol. It stands to reason that the emotional intimacy between them will eventually translate to physical intimacy.

Erin: But isn’t Daryl kind of in the friend zone at this point? It’s been awhile, and the two have had plenty of opportunity to make it official. Yes, Daryl gets kidnapped a lot, and Carol has been trying to run away for ages, but they’ve had opportunities along the way. Carol even propositioned Daryl back when they were settling into the prison, and he brushed her advance away like a joke. So I guess I’m just left wondering if Daryl is truly just that awkward or if he doesn’t actually want to be with Carol after all. And Carol hasn’t made a move since then either, so she seems just fine with the status quo. I guess to me, at this point, they seem like family members, and that makes the idea of adding sex into the mix somewhat off putting.

Ultimately, I think that both Daryl and Carol can find sexual release elsewhere while still maintaining their deep connection. It’s the apocalypse. They transcend traditional labels because they can.

Julie: The friend zone is a myth invented by “nice guys” who think they should be repaid in sexual favors every time they do something nice for a girl they find attractive. I don’t hug my friends or family the way Daryl and Carol hug each other. Daryl is the most eligible bachelor in the apocalypse, if he wasn’t that awkward why wouldn’t he be out and about screwing with the wrong people? And we’ve seen Carol try and use a relationship to hide her feelings. The whole point when Carol was with Tobin is that it felt completely disingenuous to the characters. It could never quite work because Carol is only truly herself with Daryl. It backfired spectacularly and precipitated her leaving her home (a noteworthy point that she still referred to Alexandria as home).

Erin: I think Carol and Daryl do transcend traditional labels as a romantic relationship. Okay, sure there are three men in Carol’s life. But two of which absolutely already fulfill the platonic male/female relationship. She’s clearly not interested. Carol told Morgan (Lennie James) to tell Rick and Co. that she was gone and she literally shut the door on Ezekiel only to open it a moment later to Daryl, whose presence completely took her breath away. What makes those options so much more compelling?

Erin: Hmm, I might disagree with you on your friend zone theory. I think that it’s natural for a pair of friends to pass a point where it would become difficult for them to become romantically involved. But even if we set the friend zone thing aside for a second, I still believe that Daryl isn’t necessarily the best person for Carol to end up with in a romantic sense.

Here’s where I open the floodgates and admit that I’m definitely an Ezecarol (Carekiel?) shipper. Yes, he won’t leave her alone, and that might be perceived as wrong, but he only continues to bug her because he’s honestly and truly concerned for her safety. If the Saviors found Carol, it’s very likely that she wouldn’t be able to protect herself, even with all of her battle prowess.

Ultimately, I think that Carol and Daryl are too alike for a relationship to succeed long term. Ezekiel pushes the boundaries with Carol because he knows she has walls up, and he actively wants to help her tear them down. Sure, that’s not his job, but he’s fully willing to challenge Carol in order to help her be her best self. Conversely, Daryl rarely, if ever, pushes Carol to deal with anything because he hasn’t even dealt with his own stuff. Since they’re both introverted survivors of trauma, their continued special relationship gives them implicit permission to keep everything bottled up instead of actively working through their issues. The Caryl friendship is a beautiful one but, if we look at it through a different lens, it’s actually an unhealthy co-dependent relationship that prevents either one of them from moving on from their respective traumatic pasts.

Julie: Ah ha! Now this is a quality discussion! Cherokee Roses will win over pomegranates in my book any day. But Ezekiel has a vested interest in keeping Carol safe because she knows his secret. If Carol wanted to, she could bring down the Kingdom. But when he let his act go, he tells her not to run away from whatever she’s running from: life, love. They barely know each other at that point, he’s not speaking about himself, yes he’s trying to get her to open up but it’s the same thing Morgan tells Daryl about finding something/someone to hold onto.

Erin: It’s interesting you would characterize Carol and Daryl as unhealthy (it’s probably a little co-dependent but like they established they literally can’t live in a world where the other doesn’t exist, is there a more romantic trope?) when it’s the healthiest, kindest relationship these two have ever known. And Carol didn’t look like she was bottling anything up when we finally caught up with her in front of the fire (but like seriously Gimple I need to know what happened in the hours between it went from afternoon to night in the house).

In fact, that whole moment when she talks about about fighting the Saviors if the family needed her was a callback to “Consumed.” Complete with fire imagery and the “burned away” line. With the biggest difference being that this time she was feeling it. She was crying. So much that to make it better Daryl makes her laugh and smile despite the tears. Daryl did that. And he’s the only one who ever has. When have we ever heard Daryl or Carol be humorous except with each other? Daryl even makes a joke about Ezekiel’s advances and Carol tells him to “shut up,” which is eerily similar to every other time she’s flirted with him. Can’t be too far from the romance novel Carol was reading right before her husband came back from war. Nevermind the undeniable body language in that second hug where he kisses her shoulder and she runs her fingers through his hair!

They’ve been trying to sort themselves out (i.e. Daryl taking the book on child abuse). Carol has isolated herself because she feels like she’s losing herself. In fact the brief but significant tearful conversation before their candlelight dinner is a blatant attempt to protect Carol from the devastating truth. If he wanted to push her, why wouldn’t he tell her? Daryl was also completely isolated from the group after the immediate aftermath of Negan’s (Jeffery Dean Morgan) line-up. Why wouldn’t he use the opportunity to sit and mourn with her? Except that it wasn’t about Negan or the Saviors of the loss of Abe and Glenn. It was about Daryl and Carol finally getting a respite from the constant assault that their lives have been. And the episode indicated that they’re finally ready to admit they’re what each other is holding onto, they’re what’s worth the fight to survive.

Erin: I can see what you’re saying, and I agree that perhaps “unhealthy” wasn’t the best choice of phrasing earlier. However, I maintain my argument that there’s not a ton of open discussion between Carol and Daryl about the traumas they’ve experienced in the past. They both have certainly made progress due to the support they feel from one another but, as regulated by them, the healing process is quite slow. Case in point, when Carol saw Daryl with the book on child abuse back in Atlanta, she didn’t say a word. She didn’t really support him or encourage him to talk about the issue, mostly because she didn’t want to talk about her own stuff. The mutual and unspoken understanding is there, but with that understanding, they lose the follow through necessary for true healing.

There’s no denying that Daryl and Carol’s relationship is one of the most genuine and unique relationships on TV. Like I mentioned before, I wouldn’t be upset if they ended up together, but I do think that they each may be better served by finding mates that aren’t concerned with protecting the secrets that haunt their lives. And even if their relationship never becomes sexual, they’ll still always have a place in my heart as two of the best soulmates on TV.

Julie: We know we’re not going to change the others mind. I would be disappointed not to see Caryl go canon. It just feels really earned at this point but I do appreciate the alternative perspective because like I mentioned, I know I’m beyond biased at this point. My final thought on the subject is that there’s this basic continuity editing rule. It’s often employed in film and operates on the idea that if it’s significant in scene five it should show up again in scene 15. It works in a more longer-form capacity for TV but we’ve had a lot of Daryl and Carol moments repeated back that always deepens their development. Except the one scene they have yet to recreate in a new way is the two sharing space on the bunk bed in “Consumed.” Don’t for one second think that isn’t deliberate.

http://hiddenremote.com/2017/02/21/walking-dead-carol-and-daryl-match-made-in-hell/

[weprajith]

Seven Questions That Every Business Owner Needs To Answer To Create A Truly Great Marketing Plan

Have you ever spent time and effort creating a Marketing Plan to then experience disappointment and frustration because it made zero difference in your business performance?

If so it's probably because you fell into one or more of the following traps:

1. You may have followed a template that's been designed for a large corporate entity instead of one that's proven effective for a smaller business

2. Possibly you bought a Marketing plan Training course from a charlatan who knew that the course they were selling was useless but who continued to sell it regardless

3. Or perhaps you followed the advice of a well-meaning business coach or consultant (who probably didn't actually own their own business) that relied on out-dated theories. And if that's the case then you probably noticed that after several months and many thousands of dollars later you had no new clients to show for your time, effort and money

4. Or possibly you fell into the very common trap of starting with tactics and not paying deep attention to strategy first

If any of the above describes you then you need to know that it's probably not your fault: there are simply too many confident-sounding, smooth-talking crooks and simpletons out there who are selling half-baked theories that don't actually work.

And on the subject of putting strategy before tactics, the latter are the important details of a Marketing Plan and include the creation of testimonials, guarantees, websites, advertisements, email or direct mail campaigns and so on but whilst that's all very important you'll soon see that it's a big mistake to start with tactics before you've got yourself an effective marketing strategy.

This article in an introduction to seven strategic questions you need to answer when putting together an effective Marketing Plan.

Strategic Question #1: What's your PEG? PEG stands for Personal End Game and while it's technically an objective and not a strategy as such, I include it here because it's critically important as a source of motivation for when you hit the inevitable obstacles along the road to growing your business: "reasons are the fuel in the furnace of motivation".

The PEG question is normally the easiest of the strategic questions to answer. All you need to do is identify two numbers and three things.

The two numbers are: how much income do you want each year and how many weeks off work do you want each year?

Then you add three things that you will use that money and time for - three burning motivators. These can include your family but don't keep it completely pure! If big sea side houses and fast cars really spin your "whizzer" then add them to your list.

Strategic Question #2: What is your Ideal Client Profile and what is their Specific Unmet Need? You need to develop a simple description of your Ideal Client and what they want. And ideally the "what they want" part is a need that they can't get met someplace else.

This is not rocket science so keep it simple!

Include any generally applicable characteristics such as gender, religion, location, age bracket, occupation, company size, income and also a little bit about their buying motivators. Anything that you think is relevant is fair game for your list.

For example here's my Ideal Client Profile: English speaking business owners who are comfortable with the internet and who want a marketing plan that is designed specifically for small business and that's actually proven effective to bring in new clients.

Another example from a client: Fast food restaurant owners in the Asia Pacific region who want to increase their sales and profits through smarter sales software analysis.

And another client: Mothers in Australia, New Zealand and North America who want delicious but healthy Greek style yoghurt for themselves and their families and are prepared to pay a slight premium for healthier and more nutritious food

Note: in the last example we've excluded women without children to feed and we've excluded men despite being fully aware that some of those two categories will buy the product. However we want to create a marketing message (see below) that reflects their Specific Unmet Need and we can't do that if we try to appeal to everyone. The message that's designed for everyone is a message the no one is interested in.

Have you noticed that I haven't asked you yet about your product/service yet? That's because your product/service features are irrelevant at this point.

It's not until you figure out what your market place wants that you are in a position to know if your product/service can be effectively marketed.

That may sound like bad news but it's probably not. There's a fair chance that your product/service, with a few tweaks, is fine. But you can't assume that. If your product/service features are not well matched to market place needs, then getting people to buy will be very hard work.

An effective Marketing Plan always, always, always answers questions regarding market place needs before addressing the issue of product.

Strategic Question #3: What's your Bold Promise? Another way of asking this question is "what does my Ideal Client have to hear in order for them to want to buy my product/service?"

There are a number of elements that combine to create successful marketing results but let me be explicitly clear: the two most critical factors are who you put your offer in front of (Ideal Client Profile) and what you actually offer; your "value proposition" as I call it.

The best offer in front of the wrong person is dead in the water. For example if you were a teetotaller and I offered you a great deal on a case of fine wine, even if I discounted it by 90%, would you buy? Probably not. That's a great offer in front of the wrong person.

So now let's assume that we've got the right audience let's look at some different ways of presenting the offer.

For example: as a business owner which of the follow value propositions would you find more motivating?

"We show you how to grow your business" Versus "Increase your sales and profits by 50% within six months - or you don't pay"

The second one is the hands down winner because it's a bold promise, it includes a specific numerical benefit and it adds a guarantee. That combination is one Kick-Butt formula so take note.

Here's another set of contrasting offers to further illustrate the point

"Your Building Consent Experts" Versus "Your Building Permit Approved In 14 Days Or Less - Guaranteed"

Do NOT skip this. I know your brain may hurt but this is critical. If you can come up with a bold promise like the ones above then you'll achieve better marketing results and you'll get those results faster and easier.

Your Ideal Client is bombarded with literally hundreds of marketing messages every day. You need to do something dramatic to make your message stand out.

Strategic Question #4: Where do my Ideal Clients hang out? So far you've figured out what motivates you, who is your Ideal Client, what their Specific Unmet Need is and what they need to hear in order to want to make an inquiry or to buy.

Now you need to figure out what they watch, who they listen to, what they read, which meetings they go to, which clubs or associations they are members of, which other businesses have them in their network, which websites they visit and what they search for on Google when they are looking for your type of products or services.

The reason is obvious: once you know where your Ideal Clients hang out then you can direct your bold promise to them with direct offer.

And you don't have to spend much money on this. I've built multi-million dollar businesses on what I call my "Godfather" offers (an offer that you can't refuse).

I identify the owner of a database that contains a lot of my Ideal Clients. I prepare a great offer for their network and then I offer the owner as much as 100% commission on the sales.

Why would I give away 100% of the sale? Simple: I want people in my database who are buyers, not tire-kickers. And the purpose of a sale is to get a client (most people think it's the other way around).

Once I have a client, I can then nurture the relationship until they are ready to buy again... and again... and again.

(Bear in mind that most of my product offers are in digital format so I can afford to give away a lot because value delivery costs are zero.)

Strategic Question #5: What's your Black Jellybean? If there is a jar of jellybeans at a counter I'll be the guy standing there picking out the black ones. There is no such thing as liking black jellybeans. You either love them or you hate them.

Similarly, you need to figure out that what you offer, your Ideal Client will love and create/adjust/refine a product/service accordingly. And in creating something that your Ideal Client will love, probably means that there's a whole bunch of people who hate it.

For example: in my business I work with clients almost exclusively on-line. My clients love the fact that they don't have to travel to meet with me, that they are one click away from being straight back to work and that they don't have to have me in their offices or factories.

Naturally, there are others who would work with me if only I would visit them face to face, three dimensionally.

And so my on-line strategy is a Black Jellybean, in that people either love it or hate it.

Another example: the Quick Beauty House offers 10 minute haircuts for $20... for women! For every 8 women who hate that idea there are 2 who love it. And in a city of fifteen million people that 2 out of 10 adds up to a whole lot of women!

Strategic Question #6: What will your Funnel look like? Imagine a Funnel, wide at the top and becoming narrower as is goes downward. A Funnel represents a series of product/service offerings that are free at the top and then increases in price as you descend down the Funnel and its design is a critical part of any effective Marketing Plan.

a Funnel starts at the top with free stuff and as people descend down the funnel there are less of them but they are spending more with you.

Let's assume that whatever "Core Offering Product" you currently have it good or even great.

All too often business owners are trying to sell that Core Offering Product without romancing, seducing and engaging prospects with great added value free stuff first.

I got married three years ago. The millisecond I first saw my wife I was in love. Gone, smitten, out for the count!

Imagine I simply walked up to her and invited her to marry me on the spot. Or worse still, how do you think it would have gone if I'd asked her to join me in bed? Of course that's a ridiculous idea but how often have you put your Core Offering Product in front of an Inquiring prospect and popped the question "So, you want to buy it or not?" (or words to that effect).

You need to ask yourself what you can offer for free, that if a person grabbed at it, they would be qualifying themselves as a likely client.

For example: I offer a free Marketing Plan training course Small business coach. It runs over 30 days and contains a complete step by step training system for putting together a truly effective Marketing Plan for a business owner.

I offer the Plumbing company marketing training course for free because the prospect can get great value from me without having to risk anything more than a few hours.

I know that most people who get my free course will never pay me even a cent, ever.

I also know that enough of the people who do that course will descend down to the next level of my Funnel and (wisely) accept my two month free trial offer for my Killer Marketing Club which is a great example of the "Easy Entry Level" product from the chart above.

And enough of the people who join the Killer Marketing Club will go on to invest in something else and so on.

And so the Funnel represents a game of patience and romance. It also says to a potential new client "you may have been burnt before so let me prove to you that I'm different and that I can add great value to you before you trust me with your money".

Other examples and ideas for Free Added Value option: free trial period, free sample, free demonstration, free class, free added-value newsletters or Ezines, free check-up, free in-store tasting.

Patience + Free = Millions

Never underestimate the power of free!

Strategic Question #7: Which Streams will you tap into? A Stream refers to a source of prospects. I've identified well over sixty different places that most businesses can get qualified leads from. These include the traditional sources such as media advertising (don't start here, you'll burn too much money!), referral systems, Search Engine Optimization, banner adverts, direct mail or email campaigns, Joint Ventures, Host Beneficiaries, Social Media Marketing, Adwords, events, word of mouth and many more.

Your Marketing Plan needs to start off by listing at least ten different lead generation sources that you will start work on initially.

You take the one place that you think it will be easiest, cheapest and fastest to get leads and you put a system in place for getting your message out to that place and you then measure the results and when necessary, you refine the offer until you have a proven marketing system that brings in a predictable stream of new clients.

And then you do the same for the next system and so on until you have layered ten proven marketing systems on top of each other.

At that point you'll have a flow of new leads and new clients.

Conclusion: Creating a truly effective Marketing Plan that gives you a flow of high quality new clients, predictably and systematically, is both critically important to the health of your business as well as pivotal to your success in life financially and personally.

[ibmextremeblue]

A Prescription for Success with Watson Health

At a month and a half in, things have definitely heated up in the Extreme Blue arena. After familiarizing ourselves with our teammates, company policies and standards of excellence, we have finally started coming into our own. Our business/technical mentors, managers, sponsors and program coordinators have been incredible guides along the way thus far and are an ever-flowing source of wisdom and experience at IBM.

Following a collective sigh of relief by all the EB teams after our first dragon’s den, our team ventured back to the drawing board to re-work, re-tool and re-imagine our proposition.

Presenting the Prescription Passport Team

Starting from the right, Adi is one of our two technical interns from University of Toronto, and is truly one of a kind. He studies Computer Engineering and has a strong business sense as well, having sold his first start-up at the age of 18. Adi dresses to impress wherever he is, wearing Hugo Boss shirts and dress pants on his first day glamping. He even wore a shower cap to the lake as to not mess his hair. An avid guitarist, Adi takes the music with him wherever he goes, always ready to jam. He has a knack for making people laugh and a head with gears constantly turning. His passions include Indian food, machine learning, entrepreneurship and artificial intelligence.

Alex is a Software Engineering student at McGill University who has previously interned at Nuance Communications. Exuberant and open by nature, he prides himself on teamwork and team chemistry, singing Despacito, by Justin Bieber, in front of his teammates to bring the team closer. As a member of McGill’s tennis team, Alex is a huge sports fan and is always looking for his next opponent. This summer he will be taking part in the esteemed ROGERS Cup this August.

Sami is our business intern. An MBA student at McGill University conducting a double concentration in Global Strategy and Data Analytics with varying experience in the IT solutions market for healthcare, Sami brings a unique approach and expertise to this role within the team. Years of experience negotiating with C-level executives and below have given Sami a thick skin and an extroverted edge. He enjoys debating ideas, current events, and business strategies. His goal in this internship is to follow a project through from the point of inception and siphon as much software knowledge as he can from the amazing people around him at IBM. Sami is also the team’s resident poutine enthusiast and would have it for every meal if it wasn’t for those pesky arteries!

Lastly, Akshay is a Computer Science major at the University of Toronto (which Adi loves bringing up time to time). He is infatuated with learning new things and applying his knowledge of theory in novel ways, whether it's teaching them to younger students, or using them to solve real world problems at work. After hours, he works out with the rest of the team and follows his carefully crafted work and diet schedules. While he's often the most behaved and quiet one of the group, his mannerisms and gestures are enough to make his entire team burst into laughter. Secretly on the inside, he's more adventurous and open to new experiences than he'd have you assume. His passions include current events, emerging green technology and artificial intelligence.

If there’s one thing to note about our team it’s that we are cordially competitive. We win together. This creates an incredibly vibrant environment where ideas are shared and debated. We will rip the meat off any idea to analyze its bare bones, providing an objective verdict on its utility. The energy of our team is electric.

Work-Play Balance

At it’s core, Extreme Blue is all about getting you out of your comfort zone. This applies to both the various deliverables of the internship as well as the dynamic among the entire Future Blue community. Our program directors have worked very hard to put together events such as Future Blue Day and Glamping with the goal of building a sense of comradery among members from different teams.

During Future Blue Day, we were assigned to random groups competing for prizes and bragging rights. The events ranged from competitive sports such as soccer and ultimate Frisbee to group activities such as charades and even a scavenger hunt. The weather was beautiful; the events were lots of fun and the interns were awesome. Towards the end of the day we were treated to an ice cream truck. It was the best way to cool down.

While Glamping, we had the opportunity to stay at Algonquin Park. Teams from Toronto and Ottawa gathered around fires, lakes and meals bonding outside the confines of technology. Our program director Jan Napeñas and other chaperones arranged various activities including team games, canoe trips and campfires. During our free time, we played music together (Wonderwall, by Oasis was a favorite), shared our projects, swam in the lake, gazed at the stars and defended ourselves from nature’s various critters.

After both events, we all walked away happy, full, exhausted and with enough friends to make FACEBOOK jealous.

Looking Ahead

After our first Dragon’s Den, Glamping and a presentation to our sponsors, we look ahead to our next checkpoint before the final presentation in Armonk, New York. Our team is constantly fine-tuning our project and corresponding presentation. We’re ready for whatever challenges approach us. Bring it on!

[sosaidakshita]

The Final Goodbye

Dear (It doesn’t matter)

Its been almost a week since we ‘broke up’.

This  is not a rant for me to vent out frustration or make you feel small.  Not very long ago, all I had to was pick up the phone and call you. It feels very strange talking to you like this.  You can totally ignore this if you want to. Maybe its the writer in me who just has to put down my thoughts. It’s not been the easiest thing to do, but I just had to.  Maybe this is my own way of saying everything I thought I couldn’t, and probably gaining some sense of closure.

Lets start with the good. When you walked into my life 5 months ago, I had no idea that this would be such a whirlwind journey. Or that you would impact my life in more ways that I could ever imagine. I knew you were different from the time I met you. Ambitious,passionate yet reserved and humble. However, I can say that the third time (when you came to dinner)I met you, I knew you had come into my life for a reason. And falling for someone is something I would have never done with someone else probably. And as cheesy as this may sound, I lovedloved you from the time we started dating. And As I got to know you, weekend after weekend after weekend, my conviction in our relationship only increased, and even a realistic, practical girl like me started believing in happily ever afters. I had always thought that I would end up with someone like me, but you made me start believing in opposites attracting.

In the 3 months we spent together, I saw so many different facets of you. Your workaholic side. Your affectionate, caring side. The adventurous soul behind the otherwise reserved personality. Your happiness at finding good dessert. Your excitement when you’re wearing new socks. Your emotional side when you talk about your family.  And while I did get also get a sense of your weaknesses, and also understand that you were so different from me, I did start feeling that we could be together.

I had never ever thought things between us would go downhill like this, very ironically not because of any lapse on our part, but external circumstances. And that we will fall apart like this. I started feeling things being amiss ever since you landed in Calcutta. When on my birthday night you told me that i was overreacting and that you were still not sure about how you felt about us, you might as well have slapped me, because up until then I was under the impression that you wanted me to meet your family and were very serious about this.  When I walked into Vermilion that day, I had planned to talk about to you about how crucial the next 3-4 months were going to be for our relationship, and how I wanted to be strong for you particularly because of your brothers situation, and how I felt that we needed to stick by each other in these tough times. Little did I anticipate that you had actually planned something so different. While I could sense that there was tension in our relationship, I was very saddened by how you had just decided that this was practically the end, and just left me to face your decision, without even asking me how I felt about all of this. Right now, I still don’t know what the main issue is, whether you don’t think that fighting your family for me is worth it, or you believe in the astrology stuff, or whether you’re genuinely second thoughts about us.

If the astrology stuff is the issue, I'd have been willing to take on the stars and moons and planets, not out of some anger, but because I firmly believed that this is not fair. When two people want to be with each other, it's their mental and emotional compatibility that should matter primarily. You determine your future by actions of your present, not events of your past. There could have been a situation where there would have been people pointing fingers at us, telling us that they told us so. But there is equally a chance that we would've been fine, in which case we would probably have been an example for many people who let their future be decided by their past, rather than their own conviction in themselves. Maybe our story could have inspired people that tradition should be something that provides solid ground for you to fly, not a crutch to hold you down. And I was willing to take that chance. You weren’t . And thats fine. While we have a common connection, I think what caused this is the fact that we both come from different backgrounds and value systems. You, from one where there is respect for tradition, and family relationships. Mine, where there is freedom of thought and expression. And there’s no rule that we must share the same beliefs and outlooks.

Trust me I really, really wanted it to work. Even if it meant doubting my own instinct and trusting yours. Or not telling Rahul, which really made me feel bad. Or even considering the idea of adapting to a life, family and culture that was so different from mine. Somehow, because having you in the end, seemed all worth it. And because all of this was my decision, I don’t expect you to give me any explanation or justification.

Yes, some part of me feels very hurt, let down and sad. Angry at you for having believed and bought the proposition that my existence would be harmful for your well-being. Upset at having just taken the decision that we must separate, without even having discussed this with me once. i always thought of us a team, who would stand up for and by each other. For assuring me that I was overreacting about the horoscope issue, that it wouldn’t be such an important issue, and yet coming and telling me that only days later that it was. For being a Kellogg educated MBA, 21st century consultant and yet having believed some age-old theory, without having had faith in me or our relationship that we would make this work. I thought you were a fighter, yet giving up on me so easily. However, the other part of me can never forget all the happiness you brought to my life, which I didn’t originally ask for, for which I will forever be grateful and indebted to you. For every single happy memory of times spent with you. And having said that, I understand your situation. And your family’s position. And your responsibility. And for my own peace of mind, I’d like to believe that you tried everything to make this work. And maybe it isn’t you, it’s me. Maybe its the result of some bad karma on my side. Or that maybe my love wasn’t strong enough to make you stay against all odds. Or maybe your family didn’t like me as much as I had thought they did. I just wish things had been different.

It wasn’t easy for me to walk away from you. But I had to, more for the sake of my sanity. Also because I felt that it was better for you to not see me and have to justify what you did, because hurting you would give me no satisfaction, rather make me feel even worse. And I cannot say I don’t think of you at all. I think about more than I should be. I worry about how things are your end, particularly with your career and family pressure. I miss you and I cannot lie. And  I will continue to miss you. I know that for as long as I live, I will never be able to think of Chicago without thinking of you. I will miss Facetiming with you almost every single day, talking to you about how the day was. I will miss going to Eataly with you. I will miss hanging out at your apartment, in your room with the gorgeous view, talking about the randomest off stuff, one of which ironically, was discussing a future together. I will miss giving you all my silly suggestions, and texting you each time I stress about something and need someone to calm me down. But above all, I will miss the feeling I got each time I met you, almost as if I had come home, one of safety and security. I will miss the friend, critic, guide, companion and well-wisher I had found in you. Somebody so different from me, yet feeling so perfect when we’re together. And I will feel sad. But I know that I eventually will heal and move on, for I am my papa’s daughter, and if there is one thing Ive learned from him, it is to face every situation with dignity, respect and grace, even when you’re breaking inside, to treat every person with nothing but the highest level of respect, and be always grateful for even the smallest of things.

For my happiness, and peace of mind, I have to stop holding on to you. And let you go if you want to. Whatever be the reason, the crux of the situation remains that I can never stop you if you don’t want to stay. At this juncture, I really wish nothing but the best for you. I know you will work hard and fulfill every single dream. And I wish you get everything your heart has ever desired. I hope you do very well professionally. I wish you become Junior Partner. I wish you travel to all the places you wanted to (and have a gelato for me in Italy, and a drink for me in Corsica!). I wish you live your entrepreneurial dream. I wish you become a politician and give NaMo a run for his money. I wish you rub shoulders with Sachin someday. And above all, I hope you find someone who enhances, builds and brings you happiness in ways I never did. (I hope she makes better sushi than me and keeps your room neater than I did!) And maybe, just to give myself the satisfaction that this did happen for a reason. may her stars and planets always continue to act in your favor, rather than conflict, as mine were predicted to.

I don’t know what the story looks like from here. Maybe life will bring us back again, or that we will each go our separate paths. Somehow, you seemed a lot more prepared to move on, than I did, which in all honesty did unnerve me, since I hadn’t even considered this option. Maybe you won’t even remember me few years henceforth. Maybe you’ll live a life way better than the one you envisioned with me. And I sincerely hope you do. The one thing I however can guarantee is that at least in this lifetime, you’ll never find another Akshita. Not saying this in anger, but in cool confidence. For me this experience has been a great teacher, and I will always cherish the memories good and learnings from the bad. This might just be the last time I open my heart out to you like this. (Who knows, you’re probably on the verge of getting engaged as you read this). While I can’t guarantee that I can be friends with you, I will always respect you, and wish nothing but the best. Once again. thank you for everything.

Best wishes and good luck with everything,

Akshita

[stoweboyd]

2017-02-22 - Digest

[I was experimenting with forms leading to what is now the Work Futures Weekly, I guess.]

ON THE FUTURE OF WORK

Paul Mason, Automation may mean a post-work society but we shouldn’t be afraid

A low-work society is only a dystopia if the social system is geared to distributing rewards via work.

I am sympathetic to Mason’s perspectives, but not convinced that our conventional economy can be coaxed into a soft landing.

The Heroic Future by Alex Steffen

Alex Steffen is raising funds for The Heroic Future on Kickstarter! A live documentary series about reimagining the world of tomorrow, in order to rebuild the world today.

ON ADVERTISING

Ben Thompson, The Reality of Missing Out

Digital advertising is becoming a rather simple proposition: Facebook, Google, or don’t bother.

[…]

I have been arguing for a while that in the aggregate the tech sector is fine, and the state of advertising-based services is a perfect example of what I mean: taken as a basket the six companies in this article (Google, Facebook, Yahoo, Twitter, LinkedIn, and Yelp) are up 19% over the last year, even though the latter four companies are down a collective 53%; the fact that Google and Facebook are up a combined 31% more than makes up for it.

This makes sense: while advertising as a whole is a zero-sum game, there is a secular shift from not just print but also radio and TV to digital, which is why this basket of digital advertising companies is up. Digital, though, is subject to the effects of Aggregation Theory, a key component of which is winner-take-all dynamics, and Facebook and Google are indeed taking it all.

We are seeing winner-takes-all in a number of other sectors: it’s a central outcome of a platform economy.

On Time

Adam Taylor, The radical plan to destroy time zones

Are time zones inherently flawed? That’s what Steve Hanke and Dick Henry think.

A few years back Hanke, a prominent economist with Johns Hopkins University and a senior fellow with the CATO Institute think tank, and Henry, a professor of physics and astronomy at Johns Hopkins, teamed up to propose a new calendar designed to fix the inefficiencies of the current one. The plan was dubbed the “Hanke-Henry Permanent Calendar.” Last month, after reading a WorldViews story about Pyongyang time, Hanke reached out to us to detail another idea that he and Henry had devised to fix the chaos caused by time zones.

The plan was strikingly simple. Rather than try to regulate a variety of time zones all around the world, we should instead opt for something far easier: Let’s destroy all these time zones and instead stick with one big “Universal Time.”

This is something like Swatch’s ‘Beat Time’ which was a universal single time zone based on 1000 ‘beats’ per day. The Hanke-Henry Permanent Calendar doensn’t through the second, minute, and hour out the window, though. Just time zones.I think my proposal — Boydian Time — is way better. 13 months of 28 days each, with special days — not in any week or month — for New Years and Leap Day. PS — And no time zones.

ON THE POSTNORMAL

Ricardo de Queral, Zygmunt Bauman: “Social media are a trap”

An inspiration for Spain’s May 15 movement, the sociologist is skeptical about chances for change:

Zygmunt Bauman: We could describe what is going on at the moment as a crisis of democracy, the collapse of trust: the belief that our leaders are not just corrupt or stupid, but inept. Action requires power, to be able to do things, and we need politics, which is the ability to decide what needs to be done. But that marriage between power and politics in the hands of the nation state has ended. Power has been globalized, but politics is as local as before. Politics has had its hands cut off. People no longer believe in the democratic system because it doesn’t keep its promises. We see this, for example, with the migration crisis: it’s a global phenomenon, but we still act parochially. Our democratic institutions were not designed for dealing with situations of interdependence. The current crisis of democracy is a crisis of democratic institutions.

[…]

Today, every society is just a collection of diasporas.

Bauman continues to astonish.

ON ANTHROPOLOGY

MIchael Gazzaniga, On the Road to Humankind With Leon Festinger

It is the more primitive inventiveness of humans — technology and its role as the engine that powered humankind to dazzling heights of accomplishment — that pushed the slow grind of advancement into the fast lane of evolution. And Leon [Festinger, of the ‘cognitive dissonance’ fame], being a social psychologist at his core, began to see how technology could be used to control human life. Technologies are not only physical things. They can be social forces as well, like philosophical or religious beliefs.

[…]

Yet when Yuval Harari is talking about gaining control of people by the use of fictions, he is talking about the kinds of abstractions and ideas everybody can understand — money, religion, politics and preferences, the kinds of things an interpreter is at work on all day long. As the novelist captures the personal, the historian captures the social story within which most of us are embedded and uniquely thrive. It is the inventive interpretive mind first applying itself to our personal life and then to our social existence that is our core skill. Once humankind realized it possessed this technology, we seized on it to thrive in and control our niche on earth.

The most potent read of the week, partially because Festinger sounds like such a character, but mostly because of its reference to Yuval Harari’s work, from which I found this [emphasis mine]:

We control the world basically because we are the only animals that can cooperate flexibly in very large numbers. And if you examine any large-scale human cooperation, you will always find that it is based on some fiction like the nation, like money, like human rights. These are all things that do not exist objectively, but they exist only in the stories that we tell and that we spread around. This is something very unique to us, perhaps the most unique feature of our species. — Yuval Harari, Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

ON POLITICS

Jill Filipovic, Why Sexism at the Office Makes Women Love Hillary Clinton

As a young lawyer, one of the first things I noticed about department meetings at my law firm was not just the dearth of female partners, but that one of the few female partners always seemed to be in charge of ordering lunch. I listened as some of my male colleagues opined on the need to marry a woman who would stay home with the children — that wasn’t sexist, they insisted, because it wasn’t that they thought only women should stay home; it was just that somebody had to, and the years in which they planned on having children would be crucial ones for their own careers.

I saw that the older white, male partners who mentored the younger white, male associates were able to work long days and excel professionally precisely because their stay-at-home wives took care of everything else; I saw that virtually none of the female partners had a similar setup.

In jobs that followed, managers would remark that they wanted “more women” and proceed to reject qualified candidates. (Similar dynamics took place with minority candidates.) There were always reasons — not the right cultural fit, not the right experience, a phenomenon of unintentional sexism now well documented in controlled studies. I watched as men with little or irrelevant experience were hired and promoted, because they had such great ideas, or they fit in better. “We want a woman,” the conclusion seemed to be, “just not this woman.”

Watching a primary election in which an eminently qualified woman long assumed to be a shoo-in for the Democratic nomination faces a serious challenge from an older white guy with exciting ideas, many women my age and older hear something familiar, and personal, in the now-common refrain about Hillary Clinton: “I want a woman president, just not this woman president.”

Any candidate would be smart to call up Filipovic and have a long talk.

THIS WEEK’S POETRY

A new addition to the digest.

Leslie B. Neustadt, How To Plunge Into The Abyss The darkness is hard to explore. Await calm seas to shed light on the hidden world of strange life forms. Dress warmly and communicate with your mother ship. Take a shape that resists the crushing pressure. Slip between the waves in a vertical torpedo. Don’t stir up so much ooze you can’t see. Kiss the bottom and rise quickly.