#independent claims adjuster

[brownohaveroklahoma]

In the wake of a fire, the devastation is not confined to the charred remnants of buildings but extends to the emotional and financial realms. While insurance claims serve as a crucial lifeline for recovery, the complexities of the process can be overwhelming. This is where the expertise of public adjusters becomes invaluable, guiding individuals and businesses through the intricate journey of assessing and maximizing their insurance claims.

[lemonlover1110]

𝐉𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐲

Toji Fushiguro

Summary: Megumi is insanely jealous of the new addition to the household.

Warnings: Fluff, Jealous!Megumi

*Didn't have anything bigger for Toji for father's day but I had to celebrate it one way or another sfjosjf. Enjoy my lovelies!

Discord +18 - Twitter - Ko-Fi

“Papa, up!” Megumi yells, hoping to get his father’s attention when he sees Toji holding the new addition to the family. Megumi has reached the age where he claims to be independent, after all, four is such a big age. He’d cry if you or Toji held him, but he’s changed his mind.

“Your baby sister is crying, give me a minute.” Toji sounds annoyed, knowing that Megumi does it out of jealousy. Jealous of a baby that can’t even hold her own head, kids are so dumb. Megumi lets out a cry before yelling again,

“Papa, up!” He wants attention now. He doesn’t want to wait until Toji is done with some stinky baby. Toji lets out an exasperated sigh as tears begin to stream down Megumi’s face– Crocodile tears, but tears nonetheless. He extends his arms and opens and closes his tiny fists repeatedly, yelling, “Up!”

“Megumi, you don’t want to wake up mommy, do you?” Toji asks, trying his best to calm down the crying baby in his arms while also handling Megumi. Toji goes unheard as Megumi begins to cry his little heart out. 

Toji takes a deep breath, trying to remain collected in this situation. Megumi is only four and getting adjusted to the presence of his little sister. Toji decides that it’s best to walk away, going to the kitchen to get the baby’s bottle and deal with her first since Megumi’s issue isn’t easily resolved. 

“Papa!” Megumi yells, following around Toji as he gets a bottle in the baby’s mouth. 

“Megumi, wait for me in the living room.” Toji says, but Megumi isn’t listening. Daddy isn’t like mommy, whatever mommy says goes but when Toji speaks he goes ignored; Toji’s is far scarier and intimidating than you are, he doesn’t understand why Megumi doesn’t take him seriously. “Megumi, go away!”

“I’m running away!” Megumi stomps his little feet before finally leaving Toji to deal with the baby. Toji breathes in relief, his pesky little bug finally giving him a moment alone. He’s able to go to the living room and sit down comfortably as he finishes feeding his daughter. 

“He’ll come around, princess. He hasn’t witnessed just how cute you are.” Toji coos, as if the baby can understand or care. She finishes her bottle, and Toji burps her before setting her down in her crib. He usually chooses to hold her whenever he can, but right now he has bigger fish to fry.

Toji walks into Megumi’s room, watching how his son tries to fit his most valuable toys into a backpack. Toji is trying his best to not chuckle, knowing that Megumi is deeply hurt. Toji takes a seat on Megumi’s tiny bed, clearing his throat before asking, “Need help packing?”

“You hate me!” Megumi cries, and Toji rolls his eyes. Was he that dramatic when he was Megumi’s age? “Mommy and you don’t love me anymore.”

“Oh c’mon, why do you say that, urchin?” Toji tries to see the little guy’s point of view before attempting to comfort him. The last thing Toji needs is attempting to explain to you why Megumi is packing up all his toys– You leave him alone with the kids for a two hour nap and Megumi’s already moving out. 

“You only care for the new baby.” Megumi angrily muffles, and Toji could’ve guessed as much. 

“C’mere, baby. Let me carry you now.” Toji opens his arms for Megumi, and Megumi glares at his father. He wipes away his tears before deciding that he does want to be carried by his father, after all, the tantrum is simply because of this. Toji picks him up, setting him down on his lap before kissing his forehead. “Is this why you’ve been so sensitive? Because of the new baby?”

“Yeah…” Megumi pouts, and it takes everything in Toji to not laugh.

“I will tell you something but don’t tell mommy, okay?” Toji begins, almost whispering to Megumi. Megumi’s eyes perk up, and Toji is fighting back a smirk. “We… Don’t like the new baby that much. I mean, we just met her. But you, urchin? You’re our favorite.”

“Really?” Megumi’s voice is full of hope, and Toji prays that this means Megumi will stop being so jealous about his baby sister. Toji doesn’t hesitate before nodding. It reminds Megumi that he doesn’t like being held anymore, which makes him get off Toji’s lap.

“Will you behave around her, now?” Toji asks, and Megumi takes a moment to think about it.

“Can we sell her?” Megumi responds, which makes Toji’s jaw drop. Did his cute little urchin seriously just say that?

“Okay, new rule: you’re not allowed near her room.” Toji stands up from the tiny bed, his knees cracking. He leans down and kisses the top of Megumi’s head, “Now unpack all of your toys before mommy wakes up.”

[fatuismooches]

What are the Harbingers like when they’re jealous?

if i can't have you baby, no one else in this world can.

Imagine the Harbingers when they're jealous.

Pierro is at the age where it’s simply too late to get immaturely jealous. He values independence and won’t meddle too much in your affairs. Of course, he’ll be there if anything serious or dangerous happens, but with his position, you’ll need to adjust to being apart for various lengths of time. Therefore, Pierro won’t be mad when you talk to others. In fact, he’ll encourage it considering how he doesn’t want you to feel too lonely. Though, he’ll advise you to stay away from certain Harbingers… Anyway, Pierro doesn’t exactly get jealous, but rather, sad. He’s happy to see you all lively and joyful with others, someone as bright and pure as you deserve it. After all, a sinner like him has no right to dictate who you should interact with or how you should feel. At the same time, Pierro can’t help but feel a twinge of sorrowfulness. Perhaps you would be more happy without him. Unintentionally becomes more distant from you and won’t say anything until you notice first. Please sit him down and explain to him how much you love and him you’ll never leave him for anyone. He’ll appreciate that a lot.

Dottore considers himself to be smart enough now not to fall for the jealousy trap. He’s lived for hundreds of years, obtained unspeakable and great knowledge, and is able to bring even Gods to his feet. There is no reason for him ever to feel a frivolous emotion such as jealousy. He’s confident in himself, and he’s confident in you. There is no one he’s been with longer than you, and he trusts you, to continue to be a constant in his life. Even if he does get jealous, it’ll probably be by his clones hogging you and even then he could send them off with a snap of his fingers. And well, I doubt anyone else would come up to you when there’s always a version of Dottore near you. Though, there are some clones from his younger years that you can easily tell when they’re jealous. It’s honestly a bit funny but nostalgic to see how different he is. You remember when he’d get all silent whenever you had to leave your shared dorm room in the Akademiya. (He didn’t want you mingling with those incompetent scholars because he feared for your intelligence, he claimed. You knew he was just jealous and lonely.)

Columbina is a bit surprised at her jealousy. She likes to take things easy and not too seriously, so the feeling of a stab of envy is new to her, but she welcomes it. Columbina believes that this is all part of the joy of relationships, discovering new emotions and things about each other, so she won’t take it too seriously. She’ll actually be happy that she feels for you so much, that she’s able to get jealous. It’s quite an accomplishment and milestone! Though if the person ever makes you uncomfortable, they’re next on her hit list. Columbina tends not to understand the concept of personal space sometimes, so she’ll just stroll up to you and hug you from behind, or rest her head on your shoulders, whatever she’s in the mood for, and just… smile. This usually is enough for the other person to back off and leave you alone. If you ask Columbina about her jealousy, she won’t hide or deny it, and instead hum and weave a pleasing string of words about how only a fool wouldn’t be possessive of you. Perhaps she’s more devilish than we give her credit for?

Capitano is the confused one. The feeling has been following him around all day, and he can’t seem to pinpoint where or when it started. You’re going to have to notice something is a bit off with your lover because he most likely won’t go to you first. Capitano has a bit of a problem with showing vulnerability. He’s expected to be the unmoving, sturdy, and dependable Captain at all times, so having to put his walls down can be quite hard sometimes. (Even while cuddling he can be really stiff which you have to keep telling him to relax.) Though after a bit of your usual pestering and refusing to let go of him, he relents. You’ve always been persistent in helping him show emotions despite kind of failing, so what would it hurt to tell you? You always seem to know things that he doesn’t. Though he finds himself a bit abashed after the realization hits you and you struggle to tell him through laughter that he’s simply jealous. Afterward, he finds it a bit embarrassing - a high-ranking Harbinger such as him being inflicted with something like that. But Capitano is still rather grateful for you teaching him more about this emotion and how to control it. Reassures you that it won’t happen again but it wasn’t like you were complaining, you teased. He prefers if you didn’t bring this up again because he doesn’t like thinking about his moments of weakness.

Scaramouche is pissed. Furious at some person for speaking to you like that, furious at you for making him feel this way, but most importantly furious at himself for succumbing to such a stupid and exhausting human emotion. His line of thought is something like this: How dare they try to act all buddy-buddy with you? And how dare you give them that sweet smile and laugh of yours, when that’s reserved for him only? The second someone looks at you the wrong way has him completely zoned in and aware of their actions, in case they try to pull something. In moments he’ll have them shivering and running away in tears, maybe a broken bone too if he’s especially pissed. Depending on his mood and how well you comfort him, they may live to see another day. If you call him out on his jealousy, he’ll just shake his head and deflect the accusations, calling you an idiot instead (affectionately.) Will be closer and more touchy with you for the rest of the day.

The Wanderer, on the other hand, has grown to be more mature and less confrontational about it. He’s calmed down a bit from his Fatui years and admits that his way of dealing with things wasn’t the most optimal, and is doing his best to be a better lover for you. He now trusts you enough to be able to deal with things by yourself. Though, don’t think that he won’t spring into action. He’ll still stand close by, arms crossed and hat covering his expression, listening in. The moment the person says something a little too inappropriate or you start looking uncomfortable, he’s standing in front of you in a flash, glaring at the person. If they don’t get the hint, they’ll receive a personal berating from him. Teasing him for being jealous will result in him scoffing and walking away rather quickly, leaving you to run after him. 

Innocent Kabukimono doesn’t understand why he’s feeling this way! You’re just talking to a villager, someone he knows, and yet his chest is twisting and turning all painfully as he watches! A part of him just wants to go up to you and pull you away, but that wasn’t what good humans did, was it? So he just sulks and sulks with pouty cheeks, to the point Niwa is concerned for him. When Kabukimono explains what he’s feeling, he just laughs and pats him on the back, explaining the concept of jealousy, and advises the puppet to simply communicate with you about it. When Kabukimono does speak to you about it, fiddling with his veil and clothes shyly, you can’t help but coo at how cute he was being, and assure him that he’ll always be number one in your heart. When he asks for a few kisses for reassurance, you can’t help but agree.

Sandrone does not know what to do or make with this feeling. She is aware of what it is, but like, how should she go about dealing with it? She could just go up to you and drag you away, it would be quite easy for her to do that with the Automaton behind her and all. Or she could just let you be. You are quite different from her after all. You enjoy talking to other people and interacting with them, while she could care less. So Sandrone simply retreats to her little safe haven, her lab chock-fulled with her inventions and machines and then a specific section she made for little creations dedicated for you. And she works and works, well, more like tries to work but her head is steaming from how some random person can hog your attention like that. And she can no longer tolerate that. Eventually, if you don’t come back to her quick enough, she’s going to find you herself and take matters into her own hands, regardless of whatever conversation you’re having. Teasing her about it may result in one of her machines picking you up and dangling you above the floor. But she’s really just happy you’d choose her over anyone.

La Signora is another one who's quite confident in your relationship. I mean, she’s gorgeous, you’re gorgeous, you two were practically made for each other. So, whenever people talk to you, she can’t help but understand since you’re so alluring. But her favorite part is showing off to everyone that hah, too bad, you’re already taken by her. As if anyone else could ever be worthy of you, she thinks, pitying those poor fools who think they ever had a chance with you. And she will make this ideology absolutely clear to anyone and everyone. She’s so tall, she probably towers over the other person and gives them a look that definitely makes them feel like a pest. She has one hand tracing over your collarbones and the other stroking your hair while she looks at the other person dead in the eye as if daring them to say something. Of course, they don’t. Signora finds the whole ordeal more amusing than anything and will laugh with you if you bring it up. Oh darling, she tells you, it’ll take a lot more than that to truly upset her. However, although she enjoys watching the hope fall out of other people’s eyes, it does get tiring sometimes. Maybe you need more matching accessories? Would a hickey do?

Pantalone is well acquainted with the feeling of jealousy. He’s felt it since he was a child, envying others for what he could not have. And now he’s climbed up and up the ladder, to the point where everyone is jealous of him instead, not the other way around. He’d never have to feel that feeling again, as he had anything a man could ever dream of. Except… he’s jealous yet again. Not over material possessions or wealth, but you. But Pantalone hides his jealousy quite well, just like he does with his other emotions, under that smile of his. Other people won’t notice but… if you look closely you may see his smile is a bit strained. Pantalome keeps up the polite persona but may throw in a few snide comments. He keeps a firm arm around your waist and ushers you out of there rather quickly. You probably shouldn’t bring it up later. Pantalone sometimes fears he will be that same boy stuck in poverty and left with nothing again, although he never expresses it. He sometimes fears he will lose you too. Don’t say anything. Simply come up from behind and hug him. Pull off that huge jacket of his. Give him lots of kisses and finally one on the lips, telling him he never needs to worry about being separated from you.

Arlecchino looks emotionless as ever but the jealousy eats her up inside. It leaves a taste in her mouth that’s more bitter than her coffee. She’s the kind of person to do something about it as soon as she feels the feeling creeping up. Does not tolerate anything from anyone (besides you) so you can be sure that she’s going to put a stop to it right away. The thing about Arlecchino is that she doesn’t even need to say anything to scare the person off. Her aura can be so icy and intimidating, downright terrifying sometimes if she felt like it. Not to mention the contempt laced in her eyes could probably kill a man. So when Arlecchino gets jealous, she doesn’t remain like that for long because the problem is solved rather quickly. Plus, she doesn’t really see anything wrong with it. She just sees it as her protecting you from creeps. So if you tease her about it she won’t really be affected by that either. Arlecchino simply kisses you on the forehead and tells you to come to play with the children instead. (Though if you tell her you enjoyed seeing her jealous, she’ll get a teeny bit surprised. She didn’t think you actually liked seeing her like that because many view her as terrifying. You still think she’s so damn hot. And cute when she suddenly can’t make eye contact with you for a few seconds.)

Childe is quite confident and secure in his relationship with you. He cherishes you deeply, and his family loves you as well. You two may not have the most time together, but when you are, you spend it to the fullest. So when he feels the nag of jealousy rising, he’s a bit surprised but plays it off as nothing. It’s just that being away from you for so long has him a bit needy. Though, a teeny tiny part of him wonders if someone else would be better for you, someone that can offer you stability, that won’t leave you waiting for months to return. He would respect your decision… but he quickly ceases that line of thinking. He knows you love him, and he loves you even more, so there was no reason to be worried. Though he might get a bit competitive with the other person, trying to show off a little. And if the person’s making you uncomfortable… well, his passive aggressiveness and less-than-friendly smile are making an appearance. Also, you’ll probably notice he’s more insistent on treating you right. Always being a gentleman and not letting you lift a finger, showering you with all the love he can muster. Childe is always ready to do everything in his power to keep the title of best boyfriend for you. Please watch him cook and clean the dishes! Look, he’s drawing a bubble bath for you right now!

[angelstate]

DadBestFriend!Konig x Young!Reader.

DadBestFriend!Konig who always goes to your dad’s house when he isn't deployed, visits your family more than any of his actual family members because to him, having served in the military by your father’s side meant more than going to Austria and seeing his entitled sister and narcissistic mother, his dad long dead to even remember much of how he was like. 

DadBestFriend!Konig who although would never admit it out loud to anyone, does not only visit your house to see your father but also young little you, who he only got to meet when you moved in with your dad three years ago at age 18 to go to the university of your choice and study fashion design.

DadBestFriend!Konig who immediately caught a liking of your sweet and docile nature, appearing with gifts for you at your house door when he knows he isn’t home, and at first isn’t because of any malicious intention, at least not consciously. he just wants to gift you things he knows you like to show you that despite being in his 40s he is just the right fit to be your lover. 

DadBestFriend!Konig who pushes the narrative of “age is just a number” into your pretty little head, giving fucked up examples of relationships he knows his colleagues have where the age gap hadn’t been an inconvenience at all. Telling you that if it was so immoral as society make it out to be then a lot of people would be in jail. including your father because he and your mom had a 13 age gap when they got married. (disgusting bastard he is by making an example out of your parents)

DadBestFriend!Konig who visits so often your dad “convinced” him (Konig was the one of the idea) that he should move into the house instead of paying the rent of an apartment he barely used either way. claiming the house had a lot of empty space for him to occupy as he wished. 

DadBestFriend!Konig who shortly after moving in, takes 4 weeks of paid leave, saying that he only did it to get used to the house and grow comfortable to living with more people, even though he had stayed so many times over the last 10 years it was difficult to believe he needed time adjusting to anything. The only new addition your dad has had in the last three years was your presence in the house, which seemed to be a blessing more than anything else.

DadBestFriend!Konig who views you as the perfect little housewife, always doing something around the house, cooking dinner and lunch, cleaning and decorating every section of the house that is empty or lacks color. watering the plants every morning as you walked around, pajamas still on, under eye patches, and a face mask on your face. 

DadBestFriend!Konig who grows close to you quickly, not that you have anything in common, but he listens to you talk about the stupid little things young people like you are into, He often times swore he wasn’t old school, that he was a progressive man despite his age, but in reality, he wished nothing more to shut you up when you talked about wanting to work and build your career when you finished university instead of marrying someone and being a stay at home wife.

DadBestFriend!Konig who agrees with you that women shouldn’t get pregnant in their 20s. He is progressive in that at least, he knows and has seen how women resent having children so young and don’t get to experience drinking or going out. His mother was one of those women, she resented him for having him when she was 19 years old, (even though any time she brought it up he would tell her she should’ve kept her legs closed) and even more so when his dad abandoned her not even three months after he was born.

DadBestFriend!Konig who pretends to change his mind about certain topics of women being independent, playing the long game of slowly making you change your mind and have a more conservative look about certain things, the ones he knows that he needs you to have in order to make the perfect little housewife out of you.

DadBestFriend!Konig who can’t help but smile when you ask him to go shopping with you, saying that he always seems to find the most modest clothing items that had started to grow into you after Konig spent the last 2 weeks showing you and discussing how it looked well kept and professional, not outright calling it modest as to not trigger your brain into thinking he was trying to suppress your more revealing clothing style (he was though, he was really trying to suppress your “slutty” way of dressing)

DadBestFriend!Konig who doesn’t give a fuck about changing your mind about sexual modesty in the slightest, because he knows that you were too focused on your studies to sleep around, he knows you don’t like one-night stands and that guys your age don’t know how to treat women right. He feels no need to put effort into keeping you away from sexual interactions because you seem to be pretty opposed to them all by yourself.

DadBestFriend!Konig who only realizes that it also means you are pretty opposed to sleeping with him after you tell him that you aren’t looking for a partner at all and you rather just focus on yourself and your goals, that maybe after you finish your career you would consider looking for someone.

DadBestFriend!Konig who decides to double down his efforts and starts to be more pushy, leaning into you when you are cooking something, asking about the dish you're making as he cages you in between the countertop and him, pressing his chest against your back, his breath brushing against your neck, making you shiver, a small twitch of your shoulder that you don’t notice but he does, making a mental note your neck is sensitive.

DadBestFriend!Konig who is aware that sharing his most intimate problem with you isn’t appropriate but doesn’t give two fucks, telling you that is been so long since he slept with someone, that being a Colonel has left so little time available for him to meet women, that he is nothing short of pent up but doesn’t want to sleep with a woman he has never met before, needing a sort of connection before having sex.

DadBestFriend!Konig who knows he is not only being pushy but also borderline manipulative and can’t bring himself to care no matter how much the guilt eats him alive, and at times he wishes he had met you later in life so it wouldn’t be immoral of him to go after you, but God, aren’t you the perfect woman for him despite your young age and lack of experience in every aspect of life.

DadBestFriend!Konig who has an extremely big amount of self-control, having played a year-long game of playing with your mind, making you more and more open about the fact that older men treat women better, know more, and can protect you like no boy your age could ever do, giving you a more traditional look at life. He doesn’t give a fuck about having kids though, that’s why he never tried to change your mindset about being child-free, God knows he would kill himself if he ever had a kid to take care of. 

DadBestFriend!Konig who pretends to act surprised when you confess your love to him, saying his words back to him about age being just a number and if people don’t like it then they should look away. 

DadBestFriend!Konig who pretends to think about saying yes to you, pretending he cares about your youth and your ability to live it if you were with him, not because he actually cares in the slightest how it affects you, he just wants to hear your argument about it being alright, hearing his manipulative words that he fed you for a year finally coming from your mouth. 

DadBestFriend!Konig who immediately jumps at the opportunity to claim his “boyfriend privileges” the moment you say yes to being his lover. more or less dragging you to your room and throwing you on the bed, claiming on top of you till his thigh is between your legs, pressing against your covered cunt, feeling you throb at the small contact, unaware of the long night ahead of you. (Thank God your father had been deployed 4 days before, leaving the house alone with no risk of you being heard by him if you moaned too loudly.)

[jacquesthepigeon]

Watching a video talking about the portrayal (or lack of) of economic class in Emily in Paris and she makes a good point about escapism and why it’s understandable for the creators to gloss over certain aspects of parisian life in order to achieve this, much like how Bridgerton took a colorblind approach, and since I’m in a posting mood I’m going to make it about ML again

Looking at a series from the context of what it’s trying to provide for the audience is important and, while it should always be open to criticism, I do think we should adjust our standards accordingly when critiquing

However, in ML’s case, you can’t really make the argument that the series is meant to be unserious mindless entertainment with no interest in making any political statements or including serious messages

To begin with, the entire concept of the show revolves around mental health and how difficult situations can sometimes turn you into something you’re not, with some of the promotional interviews explicitly stating their intent to help kids cope

Okay the “mindless fun” defense failed before it even got to the door

From the very first season, class, race, political corruption, and abuse of power is used to push the plot of the day forward

At the same time, the creator of the series is showing off his whole bare ass on the internet (figuratively, not literally) patting himself on the back for being such a great ally to every minority group under the sun for making such a diverse cast of characters

S1 ends and the company decides to ride the hype train by promising greater stakes and social commentary

The crew’s blatant sexism and refusal to acknowledge abuse becomes undeniable, racist stereotypes galore, blind weapon master trope with weird vibes bc lbr at this point most of what they’re doing is starting to feel off, etc etc

By this point that guy is all in on the “most groundbreaking piece of media in decades” claims and responding to any critiques from the demographics he claims to be lifting up in the absolute worst way possible, obviously prioritizing his own ego over any goodwill he had towards these groups

Over time, every already existing problematic aspect is turned up to 100, now POC are responsible for the police brutality they face, dark skinned characters are getting white washed as soon as they become superheroes, n*z* imagery is presented as neutral and defended, almost every single “message” the show is sending feels very strongly based on spite rather than good intentions so on and so forth

The crew and marketing continues pushing this narrative that the series is so diverse and inclusive and #girlpower

Then S5 comes out and is almost entirely composed of a crappy white man’s wet dream of absolution from responsibility and accountability and finally getting all the praise and recognition they “deserve” bc nothing is ever their fault and every horror they commit is actually a service to humanity

So yeah. You could argue that the crew has no obligation to promote certain kinds of messages or to go out of their way to make a meaningful impact on young children’s lives bc it’s just a dumb kid’s show, but when so much of both the official marketing and the crew’s independent promotion on social media relies heavily on supporting progressive political and social goals, it’s completely normal to expect them to keep their word.

[sysmedsaresexist]

News Flash ⚡️

Formation and Functions of Alter Personalities in Dissociative Identity Disorder: A Theoretical and Clinical Elaboration

Ozturk, Sar 2016

This is a super interesting article, especially this part about manifestation of symptoms.

Sar and Ozturk propose that the clinical syndrome of dissociative disorder becomes manifest after the “traumatic turning point” which does not need to be the worst traumatic experience in the life of the subject. The postponed process may take start in any age; usually becoming clinically manifest in early twenties of age.

The article is from 2016, and I've talked extensively about discovery around early twenties. I very much expect to see this age slowly become younger and younger as internet-savvy systems enter the clinical population. The internet made it so much easier to see the symptoms in yourself, so people are recognizing the signs at a younger age.

More interesting tidbits:

Each alter personality has independent and different judgements about these internal and external processes because an alter personality is associated with a particular group of perceptions of the individual about oneself that was experienced in the context of a limited aspect of reality. Each alter personality recognizes its own existence and the traumatic experiences in a “single-minded way” rather than utilizing self-reflection.

#mood 😞

I don't fully agree with everything in the article. There's a lot of hard wording about how alters must work that don't feel like they fully apply to us, but maybe it did when we were younger, or maybe, as above, I suck at self reflection. It doesn't explicitly state so, but this article appears to be about those with heavy and severe amnesia, in the very early stages of discovery and treatment.

I do like the way they suggest categorizing alters.

Several authors have described alter personality types: Child, persecutor, helper, opposite gender, memory trace, and suicidal alter personalities are among them. In our view, a classification of alter personality types should take into account their functions rather than its mere appearance. One classification may be based on their relationship with narratives: Normalizing, exaggerating, sociological, memory type, confabulating, etc. A second way of classification takes into account the relationship between alter personalityand the“sociological self” which is defined as the aspect of the individual devoted to adjustment to the social environment and to protecting one’s psychological self (i.e. one’s unique aspects): Claiming, polarizing, competing, abusing, distorting, cruel etc.

[argyrocratie]

"When I first went to Jamaica in 2012 as a graduate student studying the environmental politics of the Maroons, an Afro-Indigenous community who freed themselves from enslavement in the 18th century and established an autonomous society in the mountainous interior of the island, Chinese overseas development policy seemed irrelevant to my work. Yet as my field research progressed over the following eight years, first as a doctoral student in African diaspora studies and then as a post-doctoral researcher, the impact of Chinese infrastructural development and extractive industry on the Jamaican people and environment became increasingly apparent.

The timing of my field work overlapped with an unprecedented surge in Chinese economic and diplomatic engagement with Jamaica and the Caribbean as a whole.

(...)

It is beyond the scope of this article to detail the political economic dynamics and immense social impact of debt in Jamaica over the last 40 years.4 Suffice it to say that the island became a byword for structural adjustment during this period, with every new loan from the World Bank, or default on payments thereof, coming with International Monetary Fund-mandated austerity.

Health and education were notable casualties of this socio-economic assault. By the start of my field research, Jamaican child mortality had almost doubled over the span of a single decade while completion of primary school dropped from 97% to 73% in the same period. This despite the fact that Jamaica had already repaid more money than it had been lent, with continuing debt servicing accounting for a 106% debt-to-GDP ratio according to the latest World Bank figures.

All this is only a small snapshot of the catastrophic outcomes of debt wielded as a tool of neocolonialism.

With the island’s status as one of the most indebted countries on the planet, Chinese infrastructural development was received with fanfare from Jamaican elites, a possible economic lifeline out of the debt trap.

(...)

Jamaican elites may appreciate that they can pay back debts with land, and that China does not directly require broad policy changes like the structural adjustment conditions of IMF and World Bank loans.

However, even with the above and the fact that the Jamaican debt to China is small compared to that claimed by Western IFIs and private firms, Jamaican politicians are growing increasingly wary of the costs of doing business with China. In November 2019, Prime Minister Andrew Holness announced that Jamaica would no longer borrow from China, a scant seven months after formally joining the BRI.

As usual, most Jamaicans are not privy to the inter-governmental discussions and deals driving these decisions, but their government’s newfound reticence in engaging with China reflects deeper concerns among BRI partners that the initiative is a debt trap.

(...)

Almost two decades of Chinese loans and infrastructure-led development have left Jamaican workers and farmers as precarious and dispossessed as ever. The hard-fought and generational struggle for Jamaican workers’ power (trade unions were instrumental to Jamaica’s independence struggle) has been curtailed and rolled back by China’s transposed sovereignty.

Furthermore, Chinese mining interests appear poised to pick up where their Western counterparts left off in terms of irreversible ecological destruction and threats to indigenous survival. Certainly, Jamaica cannot bear another 50 years of capitalist exploitation and extractive industry.

If there is any hope in turning this dire situation into revolutionary momentum, it will be in Jamaicans making common cause with the Chinese laborers imported to the country. According to China Labor Watch, Chinese workers on overseas BRI projects are often subject to “deceptive job ads, passport retention, wage withholding, physical violence and lack of contracts” to the extent of constituting forced labor and human trafficking.

In fact, at least one Chinese worker in Jamaica has already blown the whistle on such conditions. Unfortunately, as of the time of writing this article, there appears to be no organized effort to make solidaristic alliances among Jamaican workers, Chinese workers, and Maroons. The Maroons are organized as an indigenous community seeking land and sovereign rights, rather than workers seeking class emancipation, and remain locked in a fractious political battle with the Jamaican state toward those ends.

Furthermore, the cultural and language barriers between Jamaicans and imported Chinese workers are significant. Yet both countries have rich revolutionary traditions. If Jamaican labor militancy and Maroon struggle were able to reconcile and align their interests, while cultivating strategic allies among the heavily exploited Chinese workers, a powerful relationship of international solidarity from below could be forged."

...

[marichive]

𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐍𝐄𝐇𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐓 : 𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝐓𝐖𝐎

Writing / roleplay prompts collected from the POV chapters of Catelyn Tully / Stark in A Clash of Kings , the second book of the ASOIAF saga. Feel free to adjust pronouns / etc. as needed.

tw: dark & mature themes, death, violence, suggestive / sexual content

❝ The ancient crown of the Kings of Winter had been lost three centuries ago. ❞

❝ It is no easy thing to wear a crown. ❞

❝ Kneel before the king. ❞

❝ He is not a bold man, this one. ❞

❝ I brought you from our cell to carry my message to your cousin. ❞

❝ I should be most glad to bring your message to the queen. ❞

❝ Understand, I am not giving you your freedom. ❞

❝ You chose to fight beneath a foe’s banner. ❞

❝ I want your pledge, on your honor as a knight. ❞

❝ I do so vow. ❞

❝ Every man in this hall has heard you. ❞

❝ I will do as I pledged. ❞

❝ What is this message? ❞

❝ An offer of peace. Meet my terms, and I will sheath this sword, and make an end to the war between us. ❞

❝ Living men had gone south, and cold bones would return. ❞

❝ He had the truth of it. ❞

❝ He will remain my hostage for his father’s good behavior. ❞

❝ Henceforth, we are no part of their realm, but a free and independent kingdom, as of old. ❞

❝ These are the terms. If she meets them, I’ll give her peace. ❞

❝ Did you see the look on his face? ❞

❝ Take this back to my bedchamber. ❞

❝ I wager there were others who felt the same. ❞

❝ How can we talk of peace while they spread like pestilence over my father’s domains, stealing his crops and slaughtering his people? ❞

❝ We lack the strength. ❞

❝ Do we grow stronger sitting here? ❞

❝ You cannot ask them to remain idle while their fields are being pillaged and their people put to the sword. ❞

❝ It would be an ill thing if he were to leave us. ❞

❝ He lost sons. Who can blame him if he does not want to make peace with their killers? ❞

❝ More bloodshed will not bring your father back to us. ❞

❝ An offer had to be made. ❞

❝ I can’t release him, not even if I wanted to. My lords would never abide it. ❞

❝ Your lords made your their king. ❞

❝ If your crown is the price we must pay to have them returned safe, we should pay it willingly. ❞

❝ Was it war that made you grow so fast, or the crown they put on your head? ❞

❝ The boy has the right of this. ❞

❝ Don’t call me ‘the boy’. I am a man grown, and your king. ❞

❝ That was unworthy of me. ❞

❝ Gods be good, what has become of me? ❞

❝ He is doing his best, trying so hard, I know it, I see it, and yet . . . ❞

❝ I have lost him, the rock my life was built on. ❞

❝ I could not bear to lose them as well. ❞

❝ I’ll do all that I can for them. ❞

❝ If she has any sense, she’ll accept my terms. ❞

❝ I’ll make her rue the day she refused me. ❞

❝ Kings are not supposed to have mothers, it would seem. ❞

❝ I could command you to go. As king. I could. ❞

❝ He’s been a hostage half his life. ❞

❝ He is not a man to be trusted. ❞

❝ Does he know you have returned? ❞

❝ You will want to hear my tidings in private first. ❞

❝ You have her face. I can see it in your cheekbones, and your jaw. ❞

❝ You remember more of her than I do. ❞

❝ I wish I had their faith. ❞

❝ That’s blood up there, smeared across the sky. ❞

❝ Was there ever a war where only one side bled? ❞

❝ When he hears this, he will rage. ❞

❝ Even terror has its purpose. ❞

❝ He would like to fight on a field of his own choosing. ❞

❝ He’ll want something. ❞

❝ I want to weep. I want to be comforted. I am so tired of being strong. ❞

❝ I want to be foolish and frightened for once. Just for a small while. ❞

❝ No one has ever died of restlessness, but rashness is another matter. ❞

❝ You are all your lord father claimed you were. ❞

❝ As champion, you may ask of me any boon that you desire. ❞

❝ If it lies in my power, it is yours. ❞

❝ My life for yours, Your Grace. From this day on, I am your shield, I swear it by the old gods and the new. ❞

❝ If you wish, we may stand here in the mud and debate what honors and titles are rightly due to each, but it strikes me that we have more pressing matters to consider. ❞

❝ My lady, when you are rested, I would be honored if you would share our meat and mead at the feast tonight. ❞

❝ What is mine is yours. ❞

❝ My sweet queen is all the woman I desire. ❞

❝ Can you drown in grief? ❞

❝ They are boys drunk on song and story, and like all boys, they think themselves immortal. ❞

❝ They’re young and strong, full of life and laughter. ❞

❝ And lust, aye, more lust than they know what to do with. There will be many a bastard bred this night, I promise you. ❞

❝ They are the knights of summer, and winter is coming. ❞

❝ In the songs all knights are gallant, all maids are beautiful, and the sun is always shining. ❞

❝ I feel the need of some air. Will you walk with me? ❞

❝ He would make an appalling king. Nor is he like to become one. ❞

❝ Men respect him, even fear him, but precious few have ever loved him. ❞

❝ I mean to be king, my lady, and not of a broken kingdom. ❞

❝ We are the first. ❞

❝ Gods grant that I shall do the same. ❞

❝ This is no fight of ours. ❞

❝ I know the king would not wish his mother to put herself at risk. ❞

❝ We are all at risk. ❞

❝ Do you think I wish to be here? ❞

❝ He sent me to speak for him, and speak for him I shall. ❞

❝ It is a sort of game kings play. ❞

❝ I had not thought to find you here. ❞

❝ I am sorry for your lord’s death, though he was no friend to me. ❞

❝ He was never your enemy. ❞

❝ He did his duty, I will not deny it. Did I ever do less? ❞

❝ Yet he took it. That which should have been mine. ❞

❝ How they love to promise heads, these men who would be king. ❞

❝ Men give their allegiance where they will. ❞

❝ I only want what is mine by rights. ❞

❝ We share a common foe who would destroy us all. ❞

❝ The whole of the realm denies it. Old men deny it with their death rattle, and unborn children deny it in their mothers’ wombs. They deny it in Dorne and they deny it on the Wall. No one wants you for their king. ❞

❝ I swore I would never treat with you while you wore your traitor’s crown. ❞

❝ Younger, bolder, and far more comely. ❞

❝ We are all traitors, however good our reasons. ❞

❝ I fear she never saw your little letter. ❞

❝ They are bastards. ❞

❝ Isn’t that a sweet story, my lady? ❞

❝ I must say, it took my breath away. ❞

❝ Do you name me a liar? ❞

❝ If you step in a nest of snakes, does it matter which one bites you first? ❞

❝ You’ve never tasted anything so sweet, I promise you. ❞

❝ I did not come here to eat fruit. ❞

❝ A man should never refuse to taste a peach. ❞

❝ I did not come here to be threatened, either. ❞

❝ When I make threats, you’ll know it. ❞

❝ You’ll be pleased to know she came to me a maid. ❞

❝ Oh, I expect I’ll get a son on her within the year. ❞

❝ How many sons do you have? Oh, yes – none. ❞

❝ If my wife looked like yours, I’d send my fool to service her as well. ❞

❝ Enough! I will not be mocked to my face, do you hear me? I will not! ❞

❝ I hope your new god’s a merciful one. ❞

❝ It grieves me that it must come to this. ❞

❝ You have a cheerful way of grieving. ❞

❝ You must allow a king some flaws, my lady. ❞

❝ I had hoped to help you make peace. I will not help you make war. ❞

❝ She loves him, poor thing. ❞

❝ She’d play his squire just to touch him, and never care how great a fool they think her. ❞

❝ Stay and help me pray. It’s been so long I’ve quite forgotten how. ❞

❝ Did your old gods ever answer you? When you knelt before your heart tree, did you hear them? ❞

❝ When they took his head off, they killed me too. ❞

❝ Death came in that door and blew the life out of him as swift as the wind snuffed out his candles. ❞

❝ Are you blind? The girl loved him. ❞

❝ Some say that after the battle, the king cut out Stafford Lannister’s heart and fed it to the wolf. ❞

❝ I would not believe such tales. He is no savage. ❞

❝ That is no common wolf, that one. ❞

❝ The gods don’t care about men, no more than kings care about peasants. ❞

❝ A good king does care. ❞

❝ Only a mother would keep her children safe, however she could. ❞

❝ I am not made to be a mother. I need to fight. ❞

❝ I could serve you. If you would have me. ❞

❝ You could have let them kill me. I was nothing to you. ❞

❝ When the time comes, I will not hold you back. ❞

❝ I am yours, my lady. Your liege man, or … whatever you would have me be. I will shield your back and keep your counsel and give my life for yours, if need be. I swear it by the old gods and the new. ❞

❝ I vow that you shall always have a place by my hearth and meat and mead at my table, and pledge to ask no service of you that might bring you into dishonor. I swear it by the old gods and the new. ❞

❝ He asked for you. I did not know what to tell him. ❞

❝ He risks all for a baseborn boy whose blood is not even his own. ❞

❝ He has made common cause with a power greater and darker. ❞

❝ Have you forgiven me? ❞

❝ You’ve done nothing that needs forgiveness. ❞

❝ He loves you fiercely. Believe that. ❞

❝ I gave him my favor to wear. ❞

❝ I gave my maidenhood to this solemn stranger and sent him off to his war and his king and the woman who bore him his bastard, because I always did my duty. ❞

❝ Why do boys so love to play at war? ❞

❝ Knights die in battle, as ladies die in childbed. No one sings songs about them. ❞

❝ Children are a battle of a different sort. A battle without banners or warhorns, but no less fierce. ❞

❝ At times I feel as though I am being torn apart. ❞

❝ And who will keep you safe, my lady? ❞

❝ Someday you must sing for me. ❞

❝ If we are winning, why am I so afraid? ❞

❝ I am a creature of grief and dust and bitter longings. There is an empty place within me where my heart was once. ❞

❝ I only thought you might enjoy happier company than mine. ❞

❝ Will holding it secret in your heart make it any less true? ❞

❝ What god would let this happen? He was only a baby! How could he deserve such a death? ❞

❝ Ice can kill as dead as fire. ❞

❝ The Starks do not use headsmen. They always said that the man who passes the sentence should swing the blade. ❞

❝ I will not sleep away my grief. ❞

❝ I fear I am in no condition to receive you. ❞

❝ Look at me, ser. ❞

❝ I see you had no taste for the wine I sent you. ❞

❝ I can have your head off anytime I want. Why would I need to poison you? ❞

❝ We granted you the comfort of a tower cell befitting your birth and station. You repaid us by trying to escape. ❞

❝ A cell is a cell. ❞

❝ No? Then surely it was to have your pleasure of me. It’s said that widows grow weary of their empty beds. ❞

❝ I suppose I could still service you if that’s what you need. Pour us some of that wine and slip out of that gown and we’ll see if I’m up to it. ❞

❝ Was there ever a man as beautiful or as vile as this one? ❞

❝ If you said that in my son’s hearing, he would kill you for it. ❞

❝ Why should I tell you anything. ❞

❝ You think I fear death? ❞

❝ Your crimes will have earned you a place of torment in the deepest of the seven hells, if the gods are just. ❞

❝ If there are gods, why is the world so full of pain and injustice? ❞

❝ There are no men like me. There’s only me. ❞

❝ There is nothing here but arrogance and pride, and the empty courage of a madman. ❞

❝ If there was ever a spark of honor in him, it is long dead. ❞

❝ Stay, and you shall have your answers . . . for a price. ❞

❝ Answer my questions and I’ll answer yours. ❞

❝ People often claim to hunger for truth, but seldom like the taste when it’s served up. ❞

❝ I am strong enough to hear anything you care to say. ❞

❝ You would never ask that unless you knew the answer. ❞

❝ I want it from your own lips. ❞

❝ He is mine. ❞

❝ You admit to being her lover? ❞

❝ Do all my kin still live? ❞

❝ You were a knight, sworn to defend the weak and innocent. ❞

❝ He was spying on us. ❞

❝ You meant for him to die. ❞

❝ I seldom fling children from towers to improve their health. Yes, I meant for him to die. ❞

❝ You swear you had no part in sending him? ❞

❝ I may indeed have shit for honor, I won’t deny it, but I have never yet hired anyone to do my killing. ❞

❝ Are you trying to deceive me? ❞

❝ Believe what you will, I’m past caring what people say of me. ❞

❝ Your boy must be feeling lonely. ❞

❝ How can you still count yourself a knight, when you have forsaken every vow you ever swore? ❞

❝ So many vows … they make you swear and swear. It’s too much. No matter what you do, you’re forsaking one vow or the other. ❞

❝ Only a man like you would be proud of such an act. ❞

❝ We made a bargain, I can deny you nothing. ❞

❝ I do not want to know this. ❞

❝ I think it passing odd that I am loved by one for a kindness I never did, and reviled by so many for my finest act. ❞

❝ Come, don’t you find this all terribly amusing? ❞

❝ That name again. I don’t think I’ll fuck you after all, he had you first, didn’t he? I never eat off another man’s trencher. ❞

❝ Give me your sword. ❞

[darkmaga-retard]

An alarming new study has revealed that deaths from all causes are soaring dramatically among those who have received Covid mRNA shots compared to the unvaccinated.

The discovery was revealed in a study by an Italian team of researchers led by Professor Marco Alessandria of the University of Turin and Dr. Alberto Donzelli, M.D. of Italy’s Independent Medical-Scientific Commission.

The researchers analyzed data from a previously published study from Rosso et al. involving data from the population of the mostly rural Italian province of Pescara.

However, the researchers became concerned with the issue of immortal time bias (ITB) impacting previous studies on Covid vaccines.

They explain that the common issue of ITB can give misleading results to studies and they believe this has been the case with most studies that claim Covid “vaccines” are safe.

They note that a typical study would only record deaths related to a vaccine if the participants died within the period the study was conducted.

For example, if a six-month study into the safety of Covid shots found that nobody died during the period of analysis, the researchers would conclude that the injections were “safe.”

However, if 90 percent of the participants died after one year, they would not be recorded in the study, and therefore, the obvious risk would not be highlighted.

With this in mind, the researchers conducted a new study that revises the data from Rosso et al. with adjustments made to counter ITB.

[mendesblurb]

Our Souls Underwater

Shawn Mendes x female reader

Warning ⚠️: Mostly fluff, one or two mentions of smut, maybe grammar error and maybe some punctuation errors.

Word count:~2.4k

A/N: The following fic is a “friends with hidden romantic feelings” situation and it is the result of the author spending countless amount of late night hours with this one guy, where they were just two people keeping each other company while completing their own assignments and exchanging stories about life before romantic feelings emerged along the way. Oops that was kinda TMI (my bad lol), anyway do let me know your thoughts and opinions, so sorry for this story being random 🙈

//

Coming back from any long hours of interview sessions or live performances always felt strange for Shawn Peter Raul Mendes. It was an exhilarating and exhausting experience that made transitioning from a stadium full of people, sleeping in hotel rooms or tour buses and performing for millions of fans to feeling the peace and quiet of his own home always take some time for him to adjust.

His therapist had suggested that he should find something to make him unwind after long hours spent existing under a microscope and flashes of cameras capturing each and every move he makes like a hawk watching its prey.

Everyone but him has formed some routine to unwind. For example, Connor would always want to eat pizza and binge-watch some new Netflix releases, Brian and Meghan were always quick to turn themselves into a pair of bunnies by doing something frisky under the sheets, and you on the other hand, would much rather be soaking long hours under a bathtub full of warm temperature water.

“Think of it as another form of self-care or relaxation technique.”

“You have to say that you’ve done it at least once or twice. Nothing to be ashamed about if you admit that you don’t hate it that much, Mendes,” Connor added.

“Guys, please, I simply don't like the idea of feeling like a boiling asparagus stick.”

“You will not feel like a boiling vegetable.”

“You know, Mrs. I cannot function without baths. I really can't picture myself in a bathtub full of warm water, especially regarding relaxation purposes.”

“Aww, look, someone is turning into Mr. Grumpy,” You said, a sly smile creeping onto your lips, “You know what can help you feel better?”

“Y/n,” he warned, “Don’t you dare finish that sentence by implying that the only thing that can cure me is a bath, I swear to G—.”

“Oh, enough with the weird bullshit reasons, Mendes!” Connor interrupted from the living room, “I’d bet you don’t want to admit to us that you feel scared with the idea of soaking long hours in the warm water, huh?”

You and Connor found yourselves letting out a huge laugh at the thought of him avoiding these baths because he feels scared of the water like a kitten, “I am not a baby,” Was the only thing Shawn said, accompanied by an annoyed eye roll.

“Hear that? Yeah, that’s the voice of somebody who needs nothing more than a relaxing bath to unwind his entire day,” you said in a baby voice, mocking the singer.

“Okay, perhaps I’ll make an exception. If ever I am in a bathtub, it will only be because my girl will be joining me,” He said with a charming smile, secretly loving how the way your face would immediately react to his statements or flirtatious remarks with a fluster written and visible all across your face.

It was as if one, two, or three seconds snapped like the hand of Big Ben or the one at the Grand Central station clock that never comes late, as you always found yourself taking a few short moments to digest each and every word and sentence coming from him and try to reply to something, anything but only for it to come out as a stutter.

“Would you look at that? Ladies and gentlemen, we have a new fast-track record. Only one sentence and I have the girl lost for words. I wonder where Mrs. Independent, I need no man exterior you claim to have?” Shawn said, throwing you a wink, playfully swiping his thumb across your cheek, and closing the distance between, getting dangerously close to where you were standing.

“Oh, shut up, Mendes!” You composed yourself and moved his hand away, “You and I both know I would rather do a whole list of other things than get in that tub with you.”

You said your last sentence so sarcastically, casually as such of every other interaction you exchanged together before grabbing your favourite ice cream out of the freezer and heading to your room.

The thing that some, if not most, people still cannot wrap their heads around is the fact that It’s been the definition of years, maybe even ever, since you both fully understood the true meaning of friendships that you and Shawn have been friends.

The best of friends that could go as far as the ability to exchange millions of sarcastic sentences, have never-ending conversations about nothing and everything that ranges from philosophical things to something as far as topics about the actual difference between sex for male compared to females for hours on end if time wasn’t a constraint, secretly craving the company from the other person whenever apart, exchange of daily text messages across multiple social media platforms, then having the once every blue moon bickering like an old married couple over the stupidest stuff according to your close group of friends, and all that with an undeniable sexual tension visible for anyone to question the true nature of your relationship and a huge dash of endless back-and-forth flirtatious acts or words exchanged.

It was apparent to perhaps even the whole world that for the two of you to had the very ability to share a friendship like that, and the miracle for two people to establish this type of bond was rather beautiful and bizarre yet strange at the same time. It came as no surprise that when confronted individually, none of you dared to make any vast gestures that make romantic feelings evoke even more than they already have, as both your heads are imprinted with the belief of the other not feeling the same way, or hate the idea of ruining this friendship over the possibility of one person wanting to confess their true feelings suppressed over the lifelong friendship and establishing something romantically together.

It was then a couple of weeks later when you all found yourselves in the same spot, just coming back from Shawn’s live perfomance over a few cities. But this time, it was all packed into a tight schedule that made the singer and the entire crew exhausted to the bone. It was difficult for Shawn, as it seemed like he was pulled into different directions simultaneously with no time to catch his breath. He hadn’t said a word to anyone since the last show wrapped up, and everyone gave him some much-needed personal space during the flight back. Exhaustion was clinging deep into his body and flooding his mind to the point where he just wanted to shut his brain off and forget about everything; so much that he found himself walking past everyone and heading straight to his room without thinking twice.

You knew how exhausted he must’ve felt, so before you reached his bedroom, you gently grabbed his arm, “I don’t want to talk to anyone right now, please,” He said.

“I just wanted to tell you that I am aware that the past couple of days were nothing but a hectic blur, so I just wanted you to know that I’m here for you if you want to talk about anything or just sit silently. I’m always here for you, no matter the time or moment you need me.”

Those were the last few words you said before letting his hand go, once again giving him the space he needed, and you knew that exhaustion had already taken over his body as soon as he lay on the bed and closed his eyes.

You didn’t know that even a few short hours later, he was still tossing and turning under the sheets, unable to shut his eyes or mind off and get some much-needed rest, although his mind and body felt exhausted.

His head turned around and looked at the clock, 23:01 it displayed. For a while, he sat on his bed, checking his phone for updates about anything before exiting the room to distract his mind. The corridor was dark, with only one light source coming from your bedroom door. The singer paced a couple of times outside your door, debating whether he should knock but thinking whether your nocturnal companion was still keeping you awake or had you already fallen asleep, exhaustion taking over before you could gain the energy to turn off the lights.

However, before thinking further, he found his hand knocking on the door. To his surprise, a light knock was enough to open the door, “Y/n? Are you awake?” His voice lowers into a whisper while peeking his head into your room, only for his gaze to fall into an empty bed. You were nowhere to be found until he heard the light sound of your Spotify playlist coming from the bathroom. You were there, and he knew that his next steps were risky or, more accurately, invading your personal space. But part of him didn’t care. Selfishly, he just desperately could really use your company.

And so he took a couple of steps until he was at the bathroom door, with each step he could hear his own heart beating faster and the sounds of the faucet as it hit the bathtub and your favourite singers on the speaker only made him even more nervous, second-guessing his decision.

“Shawn?” You say from behind the cracked door.

“Um, yeah, it’s me. How did you know?” He responded nervously, rubbing the back of his neck as his mind was still second-guessing and debating whether his decision was actually a good idea.

“Who else has a nocturnal side that they cannot kill?” You said, trying to hold back your laughter.

“You know me so well.”

“You can come in if you want, or it’s okay too if you feel more comfortable, we can just keep talking through the door.”

The singer finally decided to interact with you appropriately as he found himself opening the bathroom door and stepping inside. The sight of you greeted him in the tub. The room was illuminated with the soft glow of your favourite candles, the scent of essential oils that were for therapeutic purposes, white puffy bubbles all across the tub of water, and the sound of your favourite playlist.

Tonight was the first time he truly ever took the time to notice it.

“Sorry, I just- well, I know this is- I wanted to - I don’t know who else -” he was stumbling, couldn’t form the proper set of sentences at the mere sight of you. You looked beautiful yet angelic. It was apparent to him that you were the most beautiful girl he had ever laid eyes on, but right now, even as your hair wasn’t done, or any makeup didn’t cover your face, or you weren’t wearing any dresses that perfectly hugged around your body; that he found himself more mesmerised by how your existence was enough to make him feel all sorts of comfort that no therapy sessions, lavish parties or meditation could genuinely give him.

“It’s okay. You know we don’t have to talk,” You say, “Care to join me?”

It felt like gravity was pushing him to decide instead of his brain controlling his movements as he already found himself stripping out of his clothes. Meanwhile, you found yourself with your head facing the wall, feeling sudden shyness at the sight of your opposite-gender friend removing all his clothing from head to toe in front of you.

“You don’t have to look away, you know. I bet it’s not your first time encountering the male anatomy, and I am getting inside the water with you.”

“I know, but this- this isn’t like that,” You said, still choosing to look away, “We are not doing anything to satisfy a pang of hunger. This is something else. I don’t want to ruin this moment by looking into it as if it is something that-“

“Yeah, just something that should be fulfilled at a more appropriate time,” Was all your friend could reply before carefully stepping into the tub, trying to keep his balance. Once he settled up, he scooted closer to your side, not too close to minimise any possible distance, but enough for the two of you to be situated in front of each other.

As he sinks deeper into the lukewarm water, you are glad to see how a deep sigh of relief escapes his lips, with a tired gaze his eyes rolling from all the exhaustion, his body relaxing, shoulders casually leaning into the walls of the tub, and sight of feeling at ease, comfort, and gush of smile was written all across his face.

“Is it the bubbles that finally persuaded you?”

“Perhaps that or maybe the whole idea that I actually feel more relaxed in a way I never thought possible and not feel like an actual boiling vegetable stick is finally winning me over,” he said, and you both laughed at that.

Then, moments later, as the conversations drift to more illogical ones and the laughters died down, you again faced him, “I’m sorry, I can only offer my companion.”

“Are you kidding me?” He smiled, “This is the best thing that anyone has ever done for me all year long.”

More minutes passed by, as none of you seem to remember how long you two lay there. But, when the two of you started to yawn more and more, you decided to get out of the water, “Mendes, face the wall. I need some privacy while I get out of here.”

“You’re telling me you still need privacy? I thought we moved past that. Y/n, we have been naked in here the whole time!” He shook his head and laughed as he turned to the wall, ears perking up to the sounds of water gently splashing as you got out of the tub, and his eyes could not help shoot you a side-eye glance through the mirror.

“Prying eyes,” You said with a smile as your eyes locked through the mirror, wrapping the towel on your body, “You can look now.”

“Pass me one of the towels, too?” he said as he stood up from the tub. Your eyes were wide open at the sight of him standing tall in nothing but his birthday suit. You could hear your heartbeat increasing and butterflies fluttering across your stomach before your hands moved quickly to pass him the towel and turned to face the door, clearly feeling the sudden shyness again at the current situation you found yourself in, “Prying eyes,” Was all he said back, with a signature boyish grin and million dollar smile that you knew was already written all over his lips.

“This was actually fun, we should do it again,” He said, pressing his lips to your temple before hands gathering his clothes and walking out of the room.

What have both of you started?

//

———————————————————————————————

Thank you for reading guys... feel free to like, reblog, follow my account, leave a comment and my chat is always open for random chats or requests... appreciate every single one of you... ❤️

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Story Code: 160923107

[brownohaveroklahoma]

Oklahoma, like many other regions, is no stranger to insurance claims likes fires, tornados, and pipe bursts. In the aftermath of such disasters, the road to recovery can be daunting, both emotionally and financially. While insurance claims are designed to provide relief, the intricacies of the process can often be overwhelming. This is where Public Insurance Adjusters in Oklahoma step in, offering their expertise to ensure policyholders receive the full compensation they deserve.

[hetagrammy]

hi it’s me again, sorry, may I ask in the regency au how Arthur’s siblings reacted to the kids? Because 1-2 bastard children, understandable, things happen; at least he’s being responsible and taking care of them. But four?

Oh they were pissed when he came home with Ralph and Eleanor. Arthur left home either right before or shortly after Matthew had been sent to live with them. Unlike Alfred, who had been there since he was a baby, Matthew didn’t come to England until he was two and it was a BIG adjustment for him. This is a big reason why he’s slightly more attached to Alasdair as a father figure. So Arthur already has these two children at home, one of whom he really hasn’t met properly. And then he comes back with two more from halfway across the world.

Part of it is about the family’s reputation, because for someone who constantly claims to have the family in mind, Arthur isn’t giving them a good look. The only reason Arthur really does have a chance in society is because he has had such a good naval career and is admired for it. Typical Arthur hypocrisy, but he makes up for it and they can live with that.

The big part is that they could recognize Arthur was fucking up other people’s lives trying to outrun his own pain. Mothers of these children aside, their focus is on the kids themselves. Molly almost lost it on Arthur the first time one of his kids called her “mama,” because the circumstances of their births directly deprived them of that. Matthew’s whole situation is what pissed off Alasdair. Eleanor is the straw that breaks the camel’s back.

Boys are one thing. Bastard or not, they can learn a trade and become respectable in that sense. They can be independent. A girl does not have that luxury. Add on top of that Eleanor is not just a girl, but she’s also biracial. In having her, Arthur has damned her to a life with few prospects. Let’s not get it twisted, they love Eleanor to bits, but they are infuriated at Arthur for the lot he’s given her.

Arthur bringing them home culminated in a huge fight. We’re talking even Alwyn is visibly upset. By the point he got home he’d already started thinking about being a more present father, but they demanded it. Alwyn and Alasdair essentially sat him down and made him actually make plans for things like trusts for the boys and a dowry for Eleanor. Molly didn’t speak to him for a week. Seán kept finding excuses to get out of the house to be away from him.

However, the bright spot in all of this was that for the first time in a while, Arthur was actually home. And the only people excited for him to be there were his kids. Alfred adored Arthur already, and he was dragging a still cautious Matthew along with him. He’d already been at sea with the two younger children, and it was up to him to help Ralph adjust, because it wasn’t easy for him. He had the time to develop enough of a bond with his children that made him realize “Oh God, I actually have to be responsible.” As he realized this and started to take charge independently, things cooled down and a routine was settled into.

Now of course, within the next year he’s running off to fight in the Peninsular Wars. He doesn’t magically become a perfect father by any means. However, he agrees to stop taking such long tours at sea and sticks to European waters. He starts considering settling down, hence why he eventually gets engaged to Emma. He writes to his children more consistently when he is at sea and occasionally sends them things. He also starts whoring around less, and is more careful when he does. It just took him having a Come to Jesus moment with the rest of the family to actually get to that point. There’s still conflict there because he still does have these absences, but it hasn’t come to a head like it did when he first brought home Ralph and Eleanor.

[justforbooks]

Mike Lynch

British tech entrepreneur who sold his Autonomy software group to Hewlett-Packard and was later cleared after a long-running US fraud case

Mike Lynch, who has died aged 59 in the wreck of his yacht, was sometimes described as “Britain’s Bill Gates”. It was a huge exaggeration, but Lynch could claim two parallels with Gates: he developed world-leading technology (in his case in machine learning or AI) and, unlike so many UK scientists, he learned how to turn it into commercial success.

Such was this success that his company, Autonomy, was valued at $11bn when he sold it to Hewlett-Packard in 2011, but the fall-out from the sale would come to overshadow his technological achievements, and lead to a national debate about the circumstances in which UK citizens may be extradited to the US.

Lynch founded Autonomy with two partners in 1996. Its software enabled a computer to search huge quantities of diverse information, including phone calls, emails and videos, and recognise words. He told the Independent in 1999: “The way our technology works is to look at words and understand the relationships because it has seen a lot of content before. When it sees the word ‘star’ in the context of film, it knows it has nothing to do with the word moon. Because it works from text, it can deal with slang and with different languages.”

Autonomy became a leading company in Cambridge’s Silicon Fen cluster and established a base in San Francisco. “We knew we had to be successful in America. It was a question of ‘Go West young man, go to San Francisco and be ignored.’ They found it hard to believe that anyone from England could have anything powerful.” Lynch found what he called the “cold-hearted schmooze” to secure funding tough.

But Autonomy’s software, enabling computers to identify and match themes and ideas, and sort mammoth amounts of data, was licensed to more than 500 customers, including the US State Department and the BBC. It was listed on Nasdaq in 1998 and on the FTSE 100 in November 2000, although its value of £5.1bn would be halved within a few months in the collapse of the technology boom and accusations of over-promotion. In 2005 it bought a major US rival, Verity, for $500m.

Lynch’s profile rose with it. In 2006 he was appointed OBE for services to enterprise and the following year joined the board of the BBC. In 2011 he became a member of the government’s Council for Science and Technology, and was named the most influential person in UK IT by Computer Weekly. In 2014 he was elected a fellow of the Royal Society.

Though quietly spoken, he had a reputation for toughness, coloured by a liking for James Bond, which led to Autonomy conference rooms being named after Bond villains, and a tank of piranha fish in reception. (Lynch claimed it belonged to one of his business partners.) Challenged about a company culture where people were “a little fanatical”, he replied: “This is not the place for you if you want to work 9 to 5 and don’t love your work.”

Born in Ilford, east London, to Michael, a firefighter, and Dolores, a nurse, and brought up in Chelmsford, Lynch won a scholarship to the independent Bancroft’s school in Woodford Green, before taking a natural sciences degree at Cambridge, where his PhD in artificial neural networks, a form of machine learning, has been widely studied since.

A saxophone player and jazz lover, he set up his first business, Lynett Systems, while still a student, to produce electronic equipment for the music industry. Later he would attribute some loss of hearing to adjusting synthesisers for bands. He quoted his own experience to highlight the difficulties of finding funding for startup businesses in Britain. He finally negotiated a £2,000 loan from one of the managers of Genesis in a Soho bar.

Lynch’s next venture came out of his research. In 1991 he founded Cambridge Neurodynamics, specialising in computer-based fingerprint recognition. Then he established Autonomy.

The pinnacle of his success appeared to come in October 2011 when Autonomy was purchased by Hewlett-Packard for $11bn and Lynch made an estimated $800m. Shortly afterwards he established a new company, Invoke Capital, for investment in tech companies, and he and his wife, Angela Bacares, whom he had married in 2001, invested about £200m in Darktrace, a cybersecurity company.

But just 13 months after the Autonomy sale, HP announced an $8.8bn writedown of the assets “due to serious accounting improprieties, disclosure failures and outright misrepresentations” which it claimed had artificially inflated the company’s value. The authorities investigated, and while the UK Serious Fraud Office found insufficient evidence, in 2018 the US authorities indicted Lynch for fraud. Soon after, Autonomy’s chief financial officer, Sushovan Hussain, was found guilty of fraud and sentenced to five years in prison.

In March 2019 HP followed up with a civil action for fraud in London. Lynch spent days in the witness box as the civil action stretched over nine months. It ended in January 2022 with the judge ruling that HP had substantially succeeded, but that damages would be much less than the $5bn they had claimed.

Meanwhile the US authorities sought Lynch’s extradition on criminal charges of conspiracy and fraud. In spite of representations by senior politicians and accusations that the US authorities were attempting to exercise “extraterritorial jurisdiction”, a district judge ruled in favour of extradition.

An application for judicial review and a further appeal failed, and in May 2023 Lynch was flown to the US to be held under house arrest in San Francisco, with the prospect of a 25-year sentence.

Charged with wire fraud, securities fraud and conspiracy, on 18 March this year Lynch pleaded not guilty, alongside his former vice-president of finance, Stephen Chamberlain. On 6 June, they were found not guilty of all charges. Chamberlain died after being hit by a car on 17 August.

Lynch declared that he wanted to get back to what he loved doing – innovating. But he had little opportunity to do so. He soon embarked on a voyage to celebrate his acquittal, with family, colleagues and business associates. It ended with the sinking of his yacht, Bayesian – named after the 18th-century mathematician, Thomas Bayes, whose work on probability had informed much of his thinking – in a violent storm off the coast of Sicily.

Lynch is survived by his wife and elder daughter, Esme. Their other daughter, Hannah, was also on board the Bayesian.

🔔 Michael Richard Lynch, technology entrepreneur, born 16 June 1965; died 19 August 2024

Daily inspiration. Discover more photos at Just for Books…?

[sensualnoiree]

astro notes: daily transits 9/19

Thursday, September 19, 2024, ushers in a fresh wave of energy as the Virgo Sun forms a liberating trine with Uranus in Taurus, encouraging practical changes that lead to greater freedom. The Aries Moon amplifies this drive toward innovation and risk-taking, fostering an atmosphere ripe for entrepreneurship and bold moves. Throughout the day, key lunar aspects—sextiling Jupiter, conjuncting Chiron and Eris, and opposing Venus—shape our emotional experience, creating a complex interplay between self-determination, collaboration, and personal growth. This is a day where we’re invited to embrace change, take risks, and balance our need for independence with the necessity of working with others.

Key Influences

Sun Trine Uranus: Practical Innovation and Liberation: The Virgo Sun forms a harmonious trine with Uranus at 27°07' Virgo–Taurus, sparking a desire for change that’s both practical and freeing. This aspect blends Virgo’s methodical, detail-oriented energy with Uranus’s innovative, rebellious streak. The result is an opportunity to make adjustments in our routines, habits, or approach to life that lead to greater autonomy. This is a great time to experiment with new methods or technology that can simplify tasks, improve efficiency, or open new doors. There’s a sense of excitement in the air as we’re encouraged to think outside the box and make bold moves toward personal liberation, especially in areas related to work, health, or daily responsibilities.

Aries Moon Sextile Jupiter: Confidence and Optimism: At 11:10 a.m., the entrepreneurial Aries Moon forms a supportive sextile to expansive Jupiter, boosting confidence and inspiring us to take new risks. This aspect brings a wave of optimism, making us feel capable of tackling challenges and seizing opportunities. It encourages boldness, especially in matters where we seek growth, whether personal, professional, or financial. There’s a “go big or go home” attitude in the air, as Jupiter amplifies the Aries Moon’s adventurous spirit. This is a great time for pursuing new ventures or expanding existing ones, as the universe seems to be offering a green light for progress.

Aries Moon Conjunct Chiron and Eris: Healing Through Boldness and Confrontation: In the afternoon, the Aries Moon conjuncts Chiron at 1:43 p.m. and Eris at 6:20 p.m., bringing themes of healing and self-assertion into focus. The Moon’s conjunction with Chiron highlights the importance of healing wounds related to confidence and independence. It encourages us to step into our personal power and face any insecurities that may be holding us back. Meanwhile, the Moon’s alignment with Eris adds an edge of confrontation, prompting us to stand up for ourselves, even if it means challenging the status quo. These aspects help us build stronger self-confidence and assertiveness, making it easier to take risks and claim our place in the world.

Moon Opposite Venus: Balancing Independence and Collaboration: The evening brings a tension between self-determination and collaboration as the Aries Moon opposes Venus in Libra at 8:13 p.m. This aspect creates a push-pull dynamic between the desire to pursue personal goals (Aries Moon) and the need for harmony and partnership (Venus in Libra). It challenges us to find a balance between asserting our own needs and working cooperatively with others. Relationship tensions may arise, particularly if there’s a feeling that one’s independence is being compromised or that a partner is not being supportive enough. This aspect calls for compromise, encouraging us to honor both our individual desires and the importance of maintaining harmonious connections with others.

Integrating the Influences

Embrace Change and Innovation: Sun Trine Uranus: The Sun–Uranus trine offers a chance to make practical, yet liberating changes in your life. Embrace opportunities to innovate and streamline your routines, whether through technology, new methods, or fresh perspectives. This is a great time to break free from old habits that no longer serve you, especially in areas related to work, health, or daily responsibilities. Take bold steps toward personal autonomy, knowing that the changes you make now will ultimately lead to greater freedom and efficiency in the long run.

Take Calculated Risks: Aries Moon Sextile Jupiter: The Aries Moon’s sextile to Jupiter encourages you to take risks and pursue new opportunities with confidence. Whether it’s launching a new project, expanding an existing venture, or stepping into a leadership role, this aspect gives you the optimism and courage to go for it. Just be mindful of overextending yourself; while the energy is expansive, it’s still important to approach opportunities with a sense of realism. Trust in your abilities, but also make sure you have a solid plan in place.

Heal and Assert Your Independence: Moon Conjunct Chiron and Eris: The Moon’s conjunctions with Chiron and Eris invite you to heal old wounds related to confidence and self-worth. This is a powerful time to confront any insecurities or fears that have been holding you back from fully embracing your independence. Don’t shy away from difficult conversations or situations where you need to assert yourself. These aspects support you in standing up for your needs and boundaries, even if it means challenging the expectations of others. Through this process, you’ll emerge with a stronger sense of self and a deeper understanding of your own worth.

Balance Independence with Collaboration: Moon Opposite Venus: The evening’s Moon–Venus opposition asks you to find a balance between your personal ambitions and your relationships. While it’s important to pursue your own goals, this aspect reminds you not to lose sight of the value of collaboration and partnership. If tensions arise in relationships, take a step back and consider how you can honor both your need for independence and your partner’s needs. Compromise may be necessary, but it doesn’t mean sacrificing your individuality. Instead, find ways to work together that allow both parties to thrive.

follow for more astro insights like this and head on over to @quenysefields or my etsy --> sensualnoiree to grab my new astrology guidebook on reading your own natal chart :)

[geekmystic]

"Adam? What are these?" Barbara pointed at two slips of card stock leaning up against the model of their home.

Adam turned and followed the direction of Barbara's finger. He adjusted his glasses as he stepped over to the model. Picking up one of the slips, he read out loud.

Adam Maitland

The Netherworld Express Cordially Invites You Aboard The Soul Train.

Please present this voucher at the will-call office at any time of your choosing.

The second slip had Barbara's name on it with the same message.

"The Soul Train? What is that? Do you remember reading about it in the handbook?" Adam asked.

"No. Do you think it's a trick? Maybe that Beetleman is trying to trick us? He can't be happy after what we did to him."

"Should we try to get ahold of Juno?"

"No need." A raspy voice startled the couple from behind them. The smell of cigarette smoke tickled their phantom noses.

Barbara turned around and exclaimed "Juno!"

"The vouchers are legitimate. You've been invited to The Great Beyond."

Barbara crinkled her nose in thought. "The Great Beyond? I thought this was the afterlife. You said we were stuck here for 125 years."

"Well, yes, typically, your spirit would be tied to the property for 125 years. However, you two lovebirds found a loophole."

Juno looked the couple up and down, disapproving of their naivete. With a sigh, she continued. "Both the living and the dead have a terrible time letting things go. Most people, upon learning they're dead, cling to the last bit of their mortal life. It could be a house, an heirloom, or a living person or animal. We can't break the bond until either property or living organism is destroyed or after 125 years has passed."

"But the house isn't destroyed," Adam quickly replied. "Though I question some of the choices in decor." Adam gestured downward to indicate everything below their feet.

Taking another drag of her cigarette, Juno clarified her earlier statement. "That's the loophole. You gave the house to the Deetzes. Your spirits have let go of your claim on the property. You're free to move beyond this mortal realm, past the nether realms, to the Great Beyond."

"Oh Adam. I don't know. Lydia would be heartbroken."

With her cigarette pointed at Barbara, Juno interjected again. "I know you love that kid. But my suggestion is that you leave sooner, rather than later. Otherwise, you'll be tied to her. She's still growing up. But she'll want her independence some day. And she'll resent you for not being able to move on. Leave now, while she has good memories of you."

Barbara felt tears prick the corners of her eyes. Juno made a great point. They couldn't be tied to Lydia forever. They also couldn't stay with the property. It was time to move along.

Barbara watched Adam straighten his back, his face growing serious but his eyes remained soft. "We'll wait till summer. When Lydia goes off to college, starting her adult life. That's when we'll take the train."

Barbara nodded in agreement. It would be difficult leaving Lydia but there was a brand new adventure ahead. She hadn't realized how stagnant life felt until this moment. Helping Lydia and the Deetzes was great but the thought of possibly seeing her grandparents again thrilled her. Adam would get to see his father again. "Okay. Yes. End of summer."

Juno clapped her hands together. "Sounds like we have a plan. When you're ready, hold the voucher in your hand while drawing the door. The will-call office will be straight ahead."

***

The end of summer arrived swiftly. A week before Lydia was to move into her apartment, Adam and Barbara sat down with her to explain that they wouldn't be here when she visited at Thanksgiving. Lydia cried herself to sleep that night while Barbara watched over her.

Stroking her hair, Barbara whispered, "You have everything you need, Lydia. You're the strongest and smartest woman I know. Your parents love you and support you, even if they struggle to communicate it well. I know that you'll never be alone. I feel it down in the very bottom of my soul that you'll never be alone. And we will never forget you. When you're old and gray, you come find us then. And not a moment sooner. Okay?"

Lydia whimpered in her sleep but managed to nod in agreement.

***

The night before Lydia was to move out, they had one last dance party. Even Charles and Delia danced with them. Adam and Barbara pulled out all the tricks they had learned over the last couple of years to make it a night to remember. Everyone went to bed laughing.

The next morning, Adam and Barbara watched the car pull away from the house, taking Lydia to her new life. They toured the house one last time, sharing different memories (and dreams) they had of the home. Eventually, they found themselves in the attic. Adam brushed some dust off the model, righted a tree, placed a miniature car just so.

Satisfied with his work, Adam grabbed the vouchers and handed one to Barbara. Lastly, he grabbed the chalk and drew a door...

[neitherabaron]

Speaking of Bandcamp, tomorrow is Bandcamp Friday!

If you don’t know, that’s a day Bandcamp hold every once in a while where they waive their 15% fee. Full disclosure, that’s not a consumer discount but what’s great about it is that it allows you to support your favourite artists at no extra cost, as that 15% Bandcamp would normally claim is passed direct to the artist instead!

Favourable revenue splits are increasingly uncommon in today’s music ecosystem and you’d be surprised how hard it is for independent musicians at any level to stay afloat. So if you can afford it, I’d encourage you to have a look at your favourite bands’ stores tomorrow and see what they have on offer!

On a personal level, I’ve become long term ill and my day job recently chose to fire me rather than make reasonable adjustments to my role. Right now my only income is from music (and to a much lesser extent Twitch) and I sure would appreciate it if anyone could take a look at my Bandcamp store if they’re checking out the site tomorrow!

Rat-tailed Rover is still fresh off the block and is currently only available on Bandcamp, plus my full discography’s available at 20% off!