#investing in stocks like gambling

[monicascot]

Sensible Investing vs Gambling

In this video, we're going to discuss the difference between sensible investing and gambling. We'll explore the pros and cons of each, and explain why investing is a better option than gambling. If you're looking for information about financial freedom or investing, then this is the video for you! We'll discuss the different types of investing and compare them to gambling. We'll also talk about how to make the most of your money and protect it in the stock market.

[madwomansapologist]

exactly exactly i was nodding through every tag of yours

we've seen in both his death scenes (the one yuji intervened and the one he was too late) that nanami couldn’t quite put why he came back to work as a sorcerer even tho it's pretty damn clear he wants to change things. both jobs suck because capitalism only works by ensuring the poor will turn poorest, but one of them doesn’t make him ashamed of himself. in only one of those two awful jobs he would be missed if he was gone. and he was gone, and he was missed. nanami couldn’t intervene against deadly threats like kenjaku and sukuna, but it was fine. it was yuji's turn after all.

there is a certain insanity that makes people decide to become sorcerers. having an innate technique isn't enough, they have to want to work in such a cruel field and more than that they need to not have anyone willing to do anything to stop them from doing so.

miwa and nobara are, from the younger cast, the only ones with mundane reasons. one wants to help her family, the other would rather die than staying on the same fucked up town. it's clear miwa has a great relationship with her family, and clear nobara hasn't.

which makes me think of nanami, the most normal sorcerer from the older cast. the only sorcerer of his family, putting his life and innocence in danger when he was still a student. if you have a family that will have your back (like nobara hasn't) you don't do that. if you have a good socioeconomical situation (like miwa hasn't) you don't do that. for me, it's clear nanami lacks both of them.

not only i think he used to live dangerously closer to the line of poverty during his youth, i also think someone with at least a bit of care or love for their own family would judge suguru for killing his parents. but nanami couldn't care.

[parkerslatte]

One Year

Thanos/Choi Su-bong x Fem!Reader

Word Count: 3.7k

Warnings: usual squid game stuff. blood and gore. injury. mentions of suicide. mentions of addiction. drugs. soft thanos. slight canon divergence.

Summary: After an argument about money and debts, Y/N left Thanos. A year later she meets him again in the games yet he does his best to ignore her. During the game of Mingle, Y/N gets thrown out of her room and Thanos comes to her rescue.

Squid Game Masterlist

“Are you being serious?” Y/N asked, sitting down on the chair in disbelief. 

Su-bong paced in front of her exasperated. “It was meant to make us more money! You can’t blame me for trying.”

Y/N rolled her eyes. “I told you when you first told me about it that it was a stupid idea. Not only did you ignore me, but you invested more than you said you were going to. And not just your own money, you took some of mine too!”

Su-bong rolled his eyes and Y/N chuckled. How he could be annoyed with her was beyond her. “I can’t believe this. I really can’t.”

“I can do something,” Su-bong said, a hint of desperation in his tone that he was clearly trying to hide. “I can start writing songs again. I can–”

“Don’t lie to me or yourself,” Y/N snapped. “You have been saying that for the past year.”

Su-bong scoffed. “You try to do something like that again when you are turned into a laughing stock!”

“And who’s fault was that?” Y/N said. “I was the one who advised you to not take those pills before the performance and you did it anyway. You have no one to blame but yourself.”

“Aren’t you meant to be my girlfriend? Isn’t it your job to support me?” Su-bong questioned. 

“I do support you, but I know when to draw the line,” Y/N replied. “I don’t support you basically gambling your entire life savings and mine all on what was clearly a scam from the start. I don’t support you going out every night getting high using pills you bought with my money. And as far as I know, you are supposed to support me too.”

“I do support you,” Su-bong defended, clearly offended. 

“Give me one example where you supported me over the past year,” Y/N said. Su-bong remained silent, giving Y/N the answer she needed. “The fact that you can’t even name one explains it all,” Y/N said. “You weren’t there for me when I was fired from my job. When my father was sick. When I broke my leg and could barely get around.”

“I can support you,” Su-bong said, grasping Y/N’s hands. “I can get us money. I can get it back–”

“No,” Y/N said and pulled her hands from his. Despite how she felt in the situation, she couldn’t help but miss the warmth of them. But she knew that what she was about to do was the right decision for her. “I can’t do this anymore. Not only did you continuously lie to me, but you stole money from me dragging me down with you.”

“Y/N, please,” Su-bong begged. “Don’t do this.”

Y/N pressed her lips into a thin line. There was a time when they had had this conversation before. Then she had stayed and Y/N was coming to realise that it was a stupid decision. Despite it all, she did still love him. But she couldn’t forgive him–not this time. “Are you begging me only because you have nowhere else to go or because you still love me?”

There was a brief moment of hesitation. It was at most a few seconds but those few seconds were arguably the most important. “Of course I love you!”

Slowly, Y/N nodded. “I see.”

“Y/N, please,” Su-bong begged. “I’ll get a job. Fuck, I’ll get two jobs. I can fix this.”

“You are over one billion won in debt!” Y/N exclaimed. “Do you really think a few shitty jobs are going to fix that anytime soon? At least my job pays a decent wage but it is still nowhere near to pay off my own debts which you forced me into. No, I’m done this time,” Y/N said, keeping a steady tone despite the way she wanted to cry out and forgive him instantly. “Please leave. I’ll have your things sent to you.”

“You can’t kick me out!” Su-bong exclaimed. 

“You don’t rent this apartment, I do,” Y/N said, avoiding his gaze. “Please leave Su-bong. You’re making this harder than it needs to be.”

He scoffed. “I can’t believe I ever loved you.”

Y/N’s gaze remained fixated on the table before her until his footsteps grew distant and the front door was opened and slammed shut, plummeting the apartment into silence. The moment she knew she was actually alone, Y/N allowed the tears to flow. She knew that this decision was for the best, after all their relationship over the past year had been far from a whirlwind romance. Y/N couldn’t remember the last time they had even slept in the same bed. 

But somehow she already had the urge to run out and tell him to come back and that they could work everything out together. Y/N’s hands gripped the arms of the chair, grounding herself. She couldn’t do that. Leaving him was for the best– even if she didn’t believe it just yet. 

***

The platform began to move, the number of players in the room was considerably less compared to the first round. She was standing on her own as she looked at the puddles of blood on the floor. There had yet to be someone Y/N had become allies with, the group she was with for the pentathlon were already a small alliance of four and she only joined them because they needed a fifth person. Everyone else already seemed to have their own group apart from her. 

It wasn’t that Y/N hadn’t tried. The moment she had seen her ex-boyfriend run up to that voting button and confidently chose to continue the game, she had tried her best to speak with him. Despite the fact that she was the one who broke up with him, it was nice and comforting to see a familiar face, even if that familiar face was high out of his mind every single time she tried to speak with him. 

Four different times Y/N had tried to speak to Su-bong and each time he wouldn’t give her the time of day. It irritated her more than she cared to admit though deep down she couldn’t blame him. After all she was the one who had kicked him out. 

She glanced at him from across the platform and noticed him already staring at her. Upon noticing this, he quickly looked away from her. If she made it through this round, she would make him speak to her whether he wanted to or not. 

“Two players,” the voice called out. 

There was no hesitation as Y/N grabbed the person closest to her and began to drag them to the yellow room right before her eyes. The round was carnage as people pushed and shoved and fought each other to get to a room in time. There were 126 players left, only 100 would be able to make it through the round. 

Just as the person she dragged opened the door, Y/N spared a glace in the direction Su-bong ran and found him and Player 124 dragging people out of the way of the door before running into it themselves. Y/N turned back to her room and slammed the door behind her just as Su-bong looked in her direction before he slammed his door closed. 

Once the door was closed, Y/N allowed herself to breathe and finally relax for a moment. She looked at the person she had dragged. “Are you okay? I didn’t hurt you when I dragged you, did I?”

Before the woman could even muster a response, the door was forcibly pushed open and a firm grip squeezed Y/N’s arm, pulling her out of the room as an older man forced his way inside. 

“What the fuck are you doing?” Y/N yelled, kicking and hitting the man as he tried to push her out of the room. 

“I’m not dying today!” the man hissed. 

Y/N pulled her arm from the man’s grasp and before he knew it, a fist was flying at her face, her vision blurring immediately. A force pushed Y/N outside of the room and she fell to the floor. 

“Fuck you!” Y/N yelled at the man inside. 

Y/N glanced around at the clock and panic instantly rose within her. There were ten seconds left on the countdown and all hope left her body. There was no possible way she was going to find a partner and a room in time. Y/N slowly stood to her feet, already accepting her fate.

There were a few people still on the platform either hurt from someone or accepting their fate. Others were still trying to force their way inside rooms and fight for them. Slowly, Y/N closed her eyes. At least in her final moments she wouldn’t have to see the carnage surrounding her. 

Before Y/N knew it, she was quite literally swept off her feet. Her eyes opened and immediately recognised the mop of purple hair and she let out a small noise of surprise. Without a moment of hesitation, Su-bong ran into a blue room and slammed the door behind him just as the door locked, breathing heavily. 

As the gunshots sounded out, his grip tightened on her as he slumped down to the floor, Y/N still in his arms. 

“Su-bong?” Y/N muttered, still in disbelief that he had saved her. She stood from his hold and shakily got to her feet. 

“Why were you just standing there?” Su-bong asked, raising his voice. “Do you want to die?”

“I was thrown out of the room,” Y/N said. “There wasn’t enough time to find someone else and find a room.”

Su-bong stood to his feet, his eyes wide. “Why wouldn’t you at least try?”

“Why would you care?” Y/N said. “Evidently from the way you have refused to even speak to me here, you wouldn’t care whether I lived or died.”

“Of course I care!” he exclaimed.

“Then why haven’t you spoken to me since we’ve been here?” Y/N questioned. “I have tried so many times to speak with you, thankful to see a familiar face, and you have shut me down every single time! Is it about the drugs you’ve been taking? I know that I don’t like it when you take them but honestly right now I don’t care. All I have wanted to do is speak with you.”

Su-bong scoffed. “Now you want to speak to me? What about the past year? You never wanted to speak to me when I reached out.”

“The circumstances were different and you know it,” Y/N snapped. 

“How?” He asked. “I’m just doing exactly what you’ve been doing to me.”

Y/N sighed, forcing herself not to roll her eyes. “For once, imagine being in my place. Imagine supporting your partner for a year after their career took a plummet, you start paying for everything. Food, clothes, sometimes even their drugs when they begged you.”

At that statement, Su-bong glanced down at the necklace hanging from his neck. 

“Then you find out that they had an amazing idea to invest in crypto that turned out to be a scam,” Y/N continued. “Not only did they stupidly invest their entire life savings, but then you find out that they have been taking small amounts of money from your account too. Now leaving themselves in debt as well as you. In between all of this, imagine them going out early in the morning and either returning high out of their mind where you need to stay up and take care of them all night or they don’t return at all and you spend the whole night worried about where they are and if they are even alive.”

Y/N took a step closer to Su-bong. “Imagine if our positions were switched. You wouldn’t want to speak to me again either. But you have no idea how hard it was for me, because despite it all– somehow I still loved you. You fucked me over and I still loved you.” A shaky breath left Y/N. “So, I’m sorry if I didn’t want to talk to you. I’m sorry if I ignored you for a year. I’m sorry I couldn’t do more to help you, but I needed to put myself first for once.”

The silence in the room was deafening. The gunshots had ceased and the guards were clearing up the bodies. The numbers who hadn’t made it sounded through the speaker but Y/N didn’t listen as she only stared at Su-bong who hadn’t met her eyes the whole time she spoke. 

Slowly she took another step towards him and brought her hand up and placed it under his chin and forced him to meet her eyes. “You always did have trouble making eye contact when we were having a serious conversation.” His pupils were blown wide from the pill Y/N had watched him take before the game. “Why did you save me?”

Su-bond blinked once, then twice as if he was confused by the question. “What?”

“I watched you run into a room with your friend, pulling people out of the way for it. You were safe. Why did you risk your life to save me?” Y/N asked. 

“You were watching me? Señorita, I’m touched,” Su-bong said, his tone flirtatious. Y/N knew this behaviour all too well, sometimes she used to fall for it. 

Y/N frowned. “Be serious for a minute. I don’t want you to be ‘Thanos’. I want you to be Su-bong. My Su-bong.”

Surprise seemed to fill his eyes and he seemed to unconsciously lean into her touch as his eyes flicked to the side. “I watched you run into a room, I thought you were safe so I entered a room. When I looked out and saw you were standing outside, I ran out without thinking.”

“Did you know that there was a room available?” Y/N questioned. 

If possible, the room became quieter. “Why did you do it?”

“I couldn’t leave you out there,” he admitted. “I couldn’t leave you to die.”

“But you could have died in the process?” Y/N questioned. “How stupid could you be?”

Su-bong’s eyes met Y/N’s once more. His pupils were still dilated but Y/N could see his true emotions shining through clear as day. Vulnerability. 

“Do you know where I was when that man in a suit offered me that card?” Su-bong said, his voice strangely quiet. “I was on a bridge ready to jump and take my life. So I don’t care if I die in these games. But if you died, I couldn’t handle that. When I ran out, I thought that we would either both live or we would both die.”

Su-bong’s hands slowly moved until they held onto Y/N’s waist. The feeling of it so familiar but so foreign. “I tried to convince myself that I didn’t care about you, that if you died, I wouldn’t feel anything. I tried to convince myself that I was angry at you for turning your back on me. But when I saw you standing outside that room prepared to die, I realised that none of that was true. I still love you, baby. Even though I’m pissed that you joined these games.”

“It’s not like I had any choice,” Y/N shrugged as she cupped his face gently, her eyes stinging. 

Su-bong glanced down guiltily. “I’m sorry.”

“I know,” Y/N said, her thumb brushing along his cheekbone. “Someone who wasn’t sorry wouldn’t risk their life to save their ex-girlfriend who kicked them out with nowhere to go”

A huff of a laugh left Su-bong as he dipped his head down resting his forehead against Y/N’s. “Looking back, I can’t blame you.”

Y/N’s eyes closed as she savoured the feeling of his closeness. If she imagined hard enough, she could pretend that they weren’t trapped in a series of deathly games. They would be in her apartment, her doing her own work while Su-bong worked on a new song, happily sitting side by side. Just how it was for four years before his career blew up and things spiralled from there. 

“Vote to leave,” Y/N whispered. “We can get out of here and we can work things out. I know that you said that you…don’t care if you die in these games, but I don’t want to watch that. If we vote to leave, we can pay off our debts together and work things out between us– properly this time.”

Suddenly a warm pressure captured Y/N’s lips. The feeling was one she had missed. Her body fell into his as she wrapped her arms around Su-bong’s neck as she deepened the kiss. His arms wrapped around her waist before he turned their bodies until her back was pressed against the wall. 

Y/N pulled away and allowed herself to look into Su-bong’s eyes for a brief moment before she leaned in once more. The kiss held a hint of desperation behind it, as if one of the guards would enter the room and gun them down that very second. Su-bong’s hands slid from her waist to her hips, giving them an experimental squeeze. 

A content sigh left Y/N as she threaded her fingers in his hair and Su-bong smiled into the kiss. He pulled away, breath mixing with hers. “Jump, señorita,” he muttered.

“I always hated you calling me that,” Y/N mumbled against his lips.

“You loved it,” Su-bong replied as he picked her up and her legs immediately wrapped around him as he deepened the kiss. 

It wasn’t until now when Y/N realised how much she had missed him and how perfectly they fit together. It had been a year since he had last touched her this way and it was as if no time had passed. 

“I missed this,” he muttered, lips attaching to her jaw before peppering soft kisses down the side of her neck. 

“Me too,” Y/N sighed, tilting her head back as she savoured the feeling of his lips on her skin. She could only wish that they were in her apartment, gradually making their way towards the bed. 

Instead Y/N was brought back to her harsh reality. 

“Attention players, the game is now over.”

The door clicked and unlocked and Su-bong reluctantly detached his lips from Y/N’s neck.  They stared at one another breathlessly. Y/N’s legs were still wrapped around his hips and her fingers were tangled in his hair– only messing the strands up even more. 

Slowly, Su-bong set her back on her feet, hands slipping up her body to her waist. The footsteps of the other players broke the two from the daze they were in as Su-bong slowly stepped back, allowing Y/N space to step away from the wall. 

“We can get out of here together,” Y/N whispered as she slipped her hand in Su-bong’s. “Please vote to leave.”

The door was opened and a guard stood in the threshold, gun clutched in their hands unafraid to use it. Y/N and Su-bong slowly stepped out of the room and joined all of the other players as they exited the game. Neither of them spoke though their hands remained clutching one another tightly. 

“Thanos!” Player 124 said as he nudged Su-bong’s shoulder. “What was that for? If it weren’t for those pricks outside the room, I’d be dead.”

“You’re alive aren’t you?” Su-bong said the tone of his voice shifting to something more distant. A tone he never spoke to Y/N in. A tone that she knew was purely for other people.

Player 124 glanced at Y/N and his eyes trailed down to where her hand was linked with Su-bong’s before his eyes fixated on the red patch stuck to her jacket. A quiet huff of acknowledgement slipped past his lips. “I hope this bitch won’t make you change your mind about playing one more game.”

Su-bong’s head whipped around fast to face Player 124. “Don’t fucking call her that, man.”

Player 124 laughed. “Whatever you say. But remember. One more game.” He slipped back into the crowd of people– significantly smaller than when they had first entered. 

“You need to make better friends,” Y/N commented watching Player 124 leave with distaste. 

“And you need to make friends,” Su-bong defended as he pulled Y/N along with the rest of the crowd. “I’ve seen you sadly standing around on your own since we’ve been here.”

“Sorry for not wanting to get attached to anyone in a place where I could die,” Y/N replied. 

Su-bong huffed a laugh and squeezed her hand. “You have me now.”

“Only until the vote?” Y/N asked, her heart dropping slightly.

There was a brief moment of hesitation as he glanced down at the blue patch on his jacket. After a while he slowly nodded and Y/N let out a soft sigh of relief. 

“Only if you promise to not kick me out again,” Su-bong muttered as he threw his arm around Y/N’s shoulders, keeping her pressed to his side. 

“I promise,” Y/N replied as he pressed a kiss against the top of her head. “Only if you promise to work things out between us.” Y/N glanced at his necklace. “That includes your addiction. I know it will be hard, but I will be with you every step of the way.”

Su-bong looked at the cross necklace hanging from his neck and let out a long sigh. “Okay, señorita. You have a deal.”

“I told you not to call me that,” Y/N muttered.

“I know that you love it,” Su-bong said. “You always did. Especially when I–”

“Let’s leave that talk for when we are out of this hellhole,” Y/N said, lightly shoving him away from her. 

A quiet laugh left Su-bong as Y/N looked up at him, a small spark in his eye shone brightly. It was the first time she had seen it in years. Y/N’s lips twitched up as she savoured his touch, hope filling her heart for the first time she had woken up in this god-forsaken place. Y/N linked their fingers together once more as they walked through the colourful staircase for what would hopefully be the final time. 

[astrogre]

Money In The Houses 💴

To be precise each house can show you something about money, for an example your 6H can show daily services you subscribe pay for like Netflix or HBO. but there are 4 primary houses that specifically focus on and show us about money these are: The 2nd house, 5th house, 8th house and 11th house. They all show resource accumulation in different ways. 2nd house and 8th house are the main houses to focus on for money astrology, secondary would be 11H and 5H then all the other houses have their own subtler money relevancy.

2nd house, The house of Values and Possessions, it shows:

stored wealth like income, earning potential, salary, savings, assets, possessions (like jewels, cars)

- how you spend

- how you earn

- the kind of assets and possessions that you own

- what you spend on

- how you perceive the value of money

- how you save

- The skills and talents you use to make money for yourself

- the state of your financial stability

- Your attitudes on saving

2nd house is money earned through your own personal efforts, the skills that you have, your blood sweat and tears. Money here is made through you and your efforts alone. It is long lasting assets and the kind that are considered when calculating your net worth.

Look at sign ruling this house and the planet. Do they work well together or contradict each other? E.g a Virgo ruled second house with Uranus inside has two energies that contradict one another, Virgo needing to be picky on purchases VS Uranus being impulsive and purchasing what it wants so when these two energies work in the same building you may even feel bad for purchasing things before doing research on it and get disappointed with your purchase because you just went for it in the moment

Finding where the 2nd house ruler planet is in the chart shows the best topics, best places , best way you can earn money that’s beneficial to you.

Eg. If your 2H was in Virgo, look at 6th house what’s inside of it? And where mercury is in your chart. Mercury (ruled by Virgo) in this case shows you how you can can excel in an industry under the topic of the house it’s in. Whereas the 6th house and The planets that would fall into the 6th house, would indicate industries you’d do well in that are a combination of the planets in there and what kind of work you could do/what planet energies you can emphasise to gain more money on your career based on the 2nd house.

5th house, the house of Gambling and risky investments, it shows:

investments in startup companies ,gambling, investing in penny stocks

- how much you may make from investing, gambling and creative endeavours

- Money made from personal hobbies, creative talents and projects

- how lucky you are at earning money from risky investments

- Your approach to gambling

- How you spend resources on leisure activities and entertainment

- Attitudes on risky spending/gambling

- The outcome of your gambling and risky investments

This would be your trading 212 and creative artist placement. I can imagine people that invested in crypto currency back in 2008 and people that purchased nfts having this house active. 5H placements can make you lucky in the industry you are in, it can give you that boost in industries that require you to need to have luck or attention to make it. This can be entertainment stars, the lottery, entrepreneurship or just being really blessed with income from taking risks for fun. I’ve noticed natives with this house active tend to be successful businesses investors, gamblers, fashion designers, actors and artists, because these industries also require a bit of luck to make it, that’s why it’s also known as thie “star” house for celebrities. If planets here are beneficial native just happens to have the right things happen for them at the right time.

Key figures with 5th house active/stellium: Timothee chalamet, will smith, Vivienne Westwood, Alexander McQueen, Calvin Harris, Mozart, Elon Musk

11th house, the house of tangible material gains:

ready to be spent wealth like, liquid cash, profit, products (clothing, food), promotion from work

- money made from your public image and things your known for (fame)

- Your financial status and social standing

- How you can gain profit and wealth online

- Money made from your ideas, goals and inventions

- How money comes easiest to you

- The type of resources acquired from

- What part of our lives we may live in luxury or can afford to spend more on (E.g 11H sag being luxury travel)

11H is on hand liquid cash, things like stocks , disposable income, the tangible stuff that you can actively spend, it’s pretty unexpected too like 8th house except 8th house income comes from places you didn’t know about but 11H gains come from sources you always knew about but are just suddenly now benefiting you out of nowhere. You know how some people can be famous and still be broke, with a prominent or beneficial 11 house, you automatically get money along with the attention from their public image. This is because 11H is naturally the representative of social connections, networking and communities but also because of derivative astrology

The 10th house represents your career, public image and the 2nd house represents money/finances so you count 2 houses starting from 10 using Derivative Astrology (10 => 11) meaning the 11th house represents money made from our career and public image. This is why this is known as the influencer house.

People tend to use their fame and wealth from this house to start businesses. This house works really well with 8H because it kind of forces other people to acknowledge you. It’s a little different from the 5th house in terms of getting money from your inventions -In the sense that the very concept behind your creations bring you material gain whereas 5th house are blessed for expressing themselves and in risky situations (not strictly exclusive to creative arts, but the art industry is naturally a hit or miss industry). This house is very similar to 2nd house however I’d say 2nd house is more long term but 11H is quick and easy, makes you appear wealthy like rappers and celebrities living a lavish lifestyle but don’t have something to fall on if it runs out. 2nd house is longevity and allows a native to live off their assets if necessary.

8th house, The house of inheritance, joint resources and investments, it shows:

inheritance, debt, taxes,investors, gifts, joint resources,insurance, the money people owe you

- how much resources you receive from other people

- How much assets, money and resources you may share with others and inherit

- The individuals you may inherit from,have joint bank accounts, shared resources with that financially bless you

- where your resources from other people come from

- the kind of people and industries that may invest/donate/give to you

- How you handle and manage your debt and loans

- your ability to adapt to financial challenges and a complete change of class or income, essentially how you handle financial transformations

- How much you may leave for others when you pass away

- Your ability to repay financial obligations like debt and taxes

- The financial downfalls or sudden financial gains that come from unexpected sources or a source you didn’t know about (8th house is a house of secrets and in the dark so you don’t really see it coming)

- Attitudes towards other peoples resources and the concept of debt/loans

- What kind of resources, assets and things you may receive from other people

Honestly 8th house covers a lot in finances, it’s the kind of money you get for literally no reason, like you can just be sitting there and money falls on to your lap, it can be known as the nepotism house, resources gained not as a result of your day to day efforts (unless making aspects to 6H/Saturn), but a thing you get all at once as a “here you go, well done!”. You really don’t see it coming either, having a blessed 8H is good but you also need to maintain your inheritance otherwise you can end up losing it all that’s why it’s important to have a grounded 2nd house. The kind of people that tend to have this house active and beneficial would be people that are blessed with money in their darkest of times, natives put in the will of their family, people that marry into wealth, being involved with financial contracts that benefit the native more than the other.

E.g Uranus here would want it’s independence, Pluto would feel entitled to others finances and therefore native would excel in taking money from others, Jupiter is lucky here so you would just be blessed with inheritances and financial gains from others even though you didn’t plan for it.

Also look at the ruling planets of this house, say if you had an Aries 8th house, locating which house Mars is in your chart can show you which kind of places you can be given money from most, E.g your Aries is in 11th house and your Mars is in 3rd House you would make great financial gains on the topic/themes of networking, social media E.g. online companies giving you their products in hope of you trying them, being recommended for bonus or accolades because someone you vaguely know mentioned you to their boss, whereas Mars (Aries planetary ruler in 3H) could also indicate who you get your money from like siblings, people you share your ideas with etc.

[webslinger-holland]

Just A Bartender | Kaz Brekker

Summary: There was nothing special about the head bartender at the Crow Club. For Kaz Brekker, he could list off thirty people who were more valuable assets or investments to him. But there is something about the bartender that ignites a desire to protect her at all costs.

Warning: alcoholic beverages, mentions of gambling, slightly demeaning behavior

Pairing: Kaz Brekker x Fem!Reader

Type: Oneshot

Word Count: 4k

The Crow Club had such an enticing ambience filled to the brim with thoughtless pigeons. The Ketterdam tourists didn’t know any better than to visit one of the most well-known clubs in the Barrel. A place where they could put down a couple wages, drink until their hearts content, and get tricked into spending more money than they realize.

It was the perfect trap set by Kaz Brekker himself. The tables and dealers weren’t rigged, but a gambling hall is still a gambling hall. People lose their money at the tables and invest in a couple drinks. Before they know it, all their money is gone and it has all goes right into his pocket.

The Crow Club was never not busy, besides when it was closed in the early hours of the morning. It was Friday, which only meant that it was going to be a busy night and the start of the weekend. The tables were filled with some bystanders even standing on the sidelines awaiting their turn. 

The bouncers guarded the door to monitor the people coming in and out of the club. The waitresses whisked around tables, carrying tray after tray of various alcoholic drinks. All of which were provided and stocked by the head bartender. 

Near the back of the club, Y/N was standing behind the bar counter. She had a pint in her hands and was filling the pint to the brim with rich golden beer. She placed the pint onto a tray that was almost full of other drinks. She quickly pushed the tray into the hands of a waitress, sending the orders out. 

On busy nights like these, Y/N barely had a moment to think to herself. Instead, she opted to bury herself in the work in front of her because she knew how well it paid. She wiped her hands clear of beer on the apron tied around her waist before grabbing a nearby rag to clean the countertop. 

In that given moment, Wylan had returned to the bar with an empty tray in his hands. He slipped behind the bar and began helping by drying some cups with a rag himself. 

Over the past couple weeks, Y/N had been training Wylan in the art of bartending. She had seen firsthand how well he performed when mixing different chemicals to create his signature bombs. She wondered if he would take an interest in bartending since it was somewhat similar. And he most certainly did.

Wylan was a quick learner. Despite still not knowing how to read, Wylan was able to memorize which bottles of alcohol where which by the shape, size, color, and even smell. He always measured out the correct amount for each drink, since precision was insanely important when it comes to pyrotechnics. In no time, Wylan had become well knowledge in how to make certain drinks.

To have a second bartender was very helpful, especially on busy nights like these ones. For the past week, Wylan also doubled as another waiter since one of the girls had called out sick on short notice. He would take orders, return to the bar, create them himself, and then deliver them to the pigeons. 

With Wylan often at the bar, this meant that Jesper spent even less time at the tables. For the majority of the night, Jesper would find himself perched on one of the barstools at the bar; his head perched in the palm of his hand as he stared longingly at the young bartender. This distraction was one that Wylan, Y/N, and Kaz were most thankful for as they knew how bad his gambling problem really was.

“Might I have another refill?” Jesper wondered as he lowered his now empty glass onto the bar counter. He winced at the burning in the back of his throat.

“I think you’ve had enough tonight,” Y/N said warringly as she took his glass away. “Don't want to develop a drinking problem on top of a gambling problem.”

Jesper snorted in response, but nodded his head in agreement. She sent him a warm smile and cheeky wink. He went to push the barstool back, standing to his feet. He stretched his arms over his head.

“Well, then I might head to the tables.” Jesper began. She went to protest, but Wylan beat her to it.

“We’ve talked about this,” Wylan quickly came to stand beside him and took his arm as if to stop him.

“Don’t worry about me. I won’t spend more than an hour at the table,” Jesper claimed. He leaned forward to press a soft kiss to his forehead, burying his nose in the ruff of hair. He quickly pulled away and slipped into the crowd to find an empty table.

Left at the bar, Wylan slumped down in the empty barstool left by Jesper. He breathed a long sigh of defeat. His gaze drifted down to the wet rag in his hands, finding a loose string and pulling on it without thought.

“I’ll send Inej to make sure he leaves the tables after an hour,” Y/N tried to cheer him up. He looked over his shoulder to send her a weak smile, mentally appreciating the effort. He redirected his line of attention to the crowd, spotting his lover situated at one of the tables. 

From across the room, Y/N’s eyes had landed on the dark and looming figure of her boss walking the floor. He was currently being trailed by one of his informants; a pesky man who honestly didn’t know when to stop talking. 

The bartender just knew by the look in his eyes that his patience was already warring thin. His jaw was locked in place and his pace quickened despite the use of his cane. He also had that clear look of annoyance in his eyes. 

In that moment, Y/N began to prepare his usual order, which was a glass of the finest whiskey in Ketterdam. She knew he was gonna need it after that conversation. Sure enough, Kaz spun around on the heels of his feet and said one thing to his informant. Without another word, the short and stout man scurried past him to leave the club. 

Now, Kaz headed straight to the far side of the bar. He stood with his eyes facing the shelf full of the alcoholic beverages. The head bartender placed his usual on the countertop before sending it sliding down the long length of the counter. Without looking, Kaz caught the small glass of whiskey with his leather black glove. He raised the glass to his lips, taking a long sip of the rich liquid and relishing in the burning sensation felt near the back of his throat.

When Y/N turned her head away, Kaz shifted his gaze to stare at her discreetly unbeknownst to her. He remembered the day he hired her, which was only a few days before the club opened. He hired her for one reason and one reason only: if she agreed to not to ask any questions. And she had kept her end of the bargain ever since.

He knew this would be a difficult task for anyone. There was always the mystery behind the black leather gloves he wore and the limp accompanied by the crow cane. The origins of where Kaz Brekker came from. Why he was so ruthless and heartless even as a twenty year old now. But she wasn’t allowed to ask questions.

When Kaz would come back to the Slat bloodied and bruised because he had gotten into a fistfight with a local gang, Y/N couldn’t even ask what happened or who did that to him. She simply sit silently while tending to his cuts with a damp rag.  She never pestered and she never pried.

She wasn’t anything special herself. She wasn’t part of the Six Crows. She didn’t participate in the heist. She didn’t wield any foreign knives, have the heartrending ability, or have a sharpshooter’s eye. She was just simply the bartender. 

She wasn’t part of the fight. She didn’t attend meetings. She brought very little to the table, besides the occasional alcoholic drinks as per requested. 

She played no role. She had no importance. She didn’t have a name for herself. She most certainly was expendable. If she disappeared, nobody would know her or even remember her. Her job could easily be filled by the next person who walked into the room or even Wylan if that was an option. 

She had little value and she knew this.

“Hey lady,” Y/N was pulled from her thoughts by a customer sitting at a table nearby. He raised his empty glass. “Be a sweetheart and get me a refill,” the man grinned wickedly.

Now Kaz’s gaze shifted from the customer to the bartender. He watched carefully. She grabbed a clean empty glass, choosing to fill up the pint without saying anything. She went to hand the glass to Wylan, but the customer stopped her by calling out again.

“Bring it to me yourself, lady.” He almost groaned. He sent a cheeky wink to the other men around the table. They chuckled deeply to themselves. 

With some hesitation, Y/N made her way around the side of the counter with the pint of beer in her hands. She went to approach the table, carefully placing the glass down for the customer. She began taking a single step back, but was stopped when the man gripped her wrist.

Out of instinct, Y/N let out a small gasp of surprise. She clenched her fist tightly and attempted to pull herself out of his tight grasp. She tried to contain herself, in attempts of hiding the clear fear and discomfort she felt. Because she knew that if she showed even an ounce of fear, that they will feed off of that and tear her to pieces. She held her ground.

“Kindly let go,” Y/N demanded firmly but quietly.

“What you gonna do about it, pretty girl?” The man said with a deep chuckle. The beer drenched his long orange beer, dripping onto his fine waistcoat. His breath stank of alcohol and tobacco.

All of the sudden, a loud click of a cane came in contact with the wooden floorboards. The table went silent. Everyone’s heads turned to the source of the sound; their gazes falling on the one who ran the club. 

In all his glory, Kaz Brekker stood facing the table of pigeons. His two gloved hands rested on top of the crow head cane. He said nothing to them, simply staring them down with a hard look in his eyes. 

A little click of a gun caused the men at the table to turn their heads once again. On the other side of the room, Jesper stood with one of his precious pearly guns in his hand. It was already cocked and ready for a fight. He narrowed his eyes at them as if challenging them. Wylan shallowed heavily in fear of the worst happening.

The sound of a knife being pulled out of its sheath could be heard much to everyone’s surprise. They turned their heads one final time to see a dark cloaked figure standing on the other side of the room. She drawn knives glistened in a yellow light of the club. Her face covered by a thin blue cloth. It was the Wraith.

“I’d chose your next step very carefully if I were you,” Kaz threatened darkly.

With little hesitation, the man released his tight grip on the bartender’s wrist. She took a couple steps back in retreat. She pulled her wrist to her chest, rubbing the tingling pain away with her other hand. She wondered if it would bruise tomorrow.

Kaz didn’t say anything. He tipped his head to Jesper as if to say ‘escort this man and his pals out of the place.’ He nodded knowingly before calling over the bouncers. They acted quickly by escorting the whole table out of the club despite their protests that their money was good and they didn’t do anything wrong. 

The owner of the club went to stand in front of his bartender. He kept his eyes on the door of the club as the men were forcefully pushed out of the club. She looked at him expectedly. She half expected him to ask if she was alright, but she should have known better because all he said was:

“My office after work.”

Her shoulders slouched at her sides in defeat. She stared at him with a hint of sadness in her eyes. The pain in her wrist was starting to become more prominent with each passing second. It was bound to bruise at this point. 

“Yes boss,” Y/N accepted. 

With her head hung low, Y/N returned to her rightful place behind the bar to finish out the rest of her shift. She dreaded the conversation that she was expected to have at the end of the night, left expectant in the dark about what their topic would pertain to.

Many hours later, the Crow Club was finally closed. The tables had been cleared. The dealers and bouncers had all gone back to their quarters at the Slat. Even Jesper, Wylan, and Inej had made their way back to the place they called home. All that was left was the bartender.

For starters, Y/N had to walk around the club in order to collect all of the glasses and pints. Many of them were left empty, but some of them still had liquid leftover. She returned to the bar to wash the dishes and dry them with her spare rag. She placed the rest of them upside down on the counter to dry overnight.

Next, Y/N made her way to each table to clean the table tops. She then proceeded to stack the chairs on top of table. This took quite some time as they were a lot of tables in the club. But once the tables and chairs were taken care of, Y/N was able to get out a broom and dustpan.

The pigeons often brought in heaps of dust and dirt from the road, which made the naturally brown floorboards this disgusting black color. It took close to an hour of sweeping the place before she was able to move onto the mopping portion of her tasks. 

By this point, it was close to the early hours of the morning. While the sun wasn’t peeking over the horizon, it was bound to in an hours time. Rather sluggishly, Y/N returned to her place behind the bar. She opened a hidden cupboard to retrieve a single pristine teacup. She filled the teacup with a rich black coffee before placing the cup on a silver tray.

Carefully, so not to spill the cup of coffee, Y/N made her way upstairs to the upper level of the club. She cautiously went to approach the door to her boss’s office. She raised her hand to knock twice.

Even though she heard nothing in response, Y/N was able to open the door and make her way inside. She saw her boss sitting behind his desk, working through some of the books. She strode over to his desk to lower the silver tray on top of it. 

As per request, Kaz liked to have a cup of coffee while working on the books every night before leaving the club. He never took any creamer or sugar with his coffee, opting to drink it straight black. Almost fitting to his persona.

Black gloves. Black coffee. Black soul.

Without taking his eyes away from his work, Kaz’s devilishly long fingers curled round the handle of the teacup. He brought the cup to the seam of his lips, tipping the cup slightly upwards to get a taste of its bitter and strong flavor. 

In the three years of working for Kaz Brekker, Y/N always brought him a cup of coffee at the end of the night. She’d watch him drink his coffee, waiting for her next orders. Sometimes Kaz would ask her to restock the new shipment of vodka that had come in from the harbor. Other times, Kaz would ask her to look over the books for him to make sure he didn’t miss anything.

The longest wait had been over an hour long of her just standing in front of his desk, waiting for a verbal dismissal from him. It was always how she ended her night at the club. Sometimes her dismissal came in the form of a short nod. On rare occasions, Kaz would say something like ‘you may go.’ 

Tonight would be different. A fight had almost broke out in the club. A gun could have been fired by Jesper had his patience run out a minute earlier. Blood could have been shed over a mere bartender.

A few moments passed in utter silence. The only sound was coming from Kaz flipping through some papers and when he lowered his drink back down onto the silver tray.

“I’d like to apologize for tonight--,” Y/N began but was quickly interrupted.

“What for?” Kaz said without drawing his gaze away from his work. She paused for a moment.

“There was almost a fight,” Y/N replied blankly.

“Happens from time to time,” Kaz claimed. He wasn’t wrong. “I just prefer to keep my floors clean of blood.”

She knew this better than anyone. He’d always get so frustrated if someone shot a gun off in his club or if someone ended up dead on his floor. Unbeknownst to her, it was solely because she was the one who always had to clean up the mess. He hated seeing her on her hands and knees, scrubbing the blood out of the floorboards. 

He knew that she’d wake up the next day with sore knees and splinters in her hand. An ache in her back that wouldn’t go away for another week. Her hands stained pink from the blood she washed away with a scrubber and bucket. Her eyes tired from having to stay later.

Kaz Brekker knew well of pain. He was old buddies with him. The effects of firepox had caused an unbearable pain when he was much younger. However, the worst pain that Kaz ever endured was when he was fourteen years old. In which, he jumped off the roof of a bank and broke his right leg. That pain failed to leave his side and still resides with him to his day, hint the cane. 

Kaz Brekker knew well of the pain of others. Often times, Kaz found a somewhat sense of joy upon seeing the look of pain in others faces, particularly other members of rivalry gangs. To see a man writhing in pain due to being shot in the leg or being witness to a solid left hook to a jaw. It was often satisfying to say the least.

However, Kaz Brekker concealed behind all his hard armor, could not stand to see one particular person in pain. It shouldn’t have been an issue, but it had been for the past three years. His bartender of all people was the one person on his mind.

He always knew that he liked to take care of his investments, particularly his crows in which he had invested a lot of his money and time into. His bartender was not much of an investment. He had paid off Inej’s indenture years ago and she worked for him as a spy in disguise. He gave Jesper a line of credit in which he quickly became his right hand man. Even Wylan, whom Kaz had taken under his wing, was part of the crew and was a much more valuable asset than any bartender could be. After all, she was just a bartender.

She brought nothing to the table. No intel. No skill. No muscle. Just the ability to make one hell of a cocktail and the strong sense to not ask any questions.

The investment in her was not one for the books. It wasn’t one of the best choices he’d ever made. She made drinks and kept the place tidy. That was it. She was dispensable.

And yet, for some reason, Kaz protected her. He always protects his investments, but especially the ones he truly cares about. He protects his crows as they are the closest thing he has to a family now. He protects the other members of the Dregs as they are what holds his empire together. And he protects his bartender because...

Kaz lifted his head to finally meet her soft gaze. She offered him a small smile that went away as quickly as it appeared. He found himself standing to his feet with the help of his cane, shifting around the side of his desk. He stood in front of her.

He very slowly lowered himself to perch on the edge of his desk, studying her figure with a blank look on his face. She faltered under his strict gaze, dropped her line of sight to stare at the ground instead. She closed her eyes to calm herself.

Suddenly, Y/N felt the soft pads of two leather fingers touch the underside of her chin. Her head was lifted by those fingers until her gaze met those of her boss’s. She held her breathe as she stared directly into the eyes of the bastard of the barrel. 

He took the time to admire all of her features. Her skin was illuminated by the soft golden glow of the fireplace beside them. Her hair smelt of alcohol from the drinks she had been pouring all night. Her lips so perfect because they had never been tempted once to ask a single question.

“Your wrist...” Kaz said softly. 

His other hand made contact with the wrist that had been clutched tightly that night. He brought her hand up to view himself. He went to push away the sleeve of her blouse, settling his gaze on the small purple bruise that had begun to form around her wrist.

“It’ll heal,” Y/N claimed with a shrug of the shoulders. He cast a glance to her.

“They won’t come near you again. That I can promise,” Kaz gave a nod.

“B-But they bring in money. They meant no harm--,” Y/N tried to reason with him.

“They meant harm,” Kaz said curtly. He lifted his head to stare at her hard, unwavering in his opinion on the matter. He examined her wrist once more. “Those kind always do.”

“It’s only a bruise. Not a break or even a sprain,” Y/N replied. She tried to recapture his attention by lowering her head to insert herself into his line of vision. “I am fine. You don’t have to worry about me,” she claimed.

In that moment, Kaz Brekker could feel the walls around his mind and heart begin to fall away at her words. His mind wasn’t plagued with the fear that someone might overhear their conversation. He always believed attachment meant weakness, but just for a moment, he forgot all about his beliefs.

“I do worry,” Kaz said in a soft whisper. He stared into the depths of her eyes, now taking notice of their proximity to one another. That he was able to feel the soft fanning of her breath against his face. “All the time,” Kaz added.

“W-Why’s that?” Y/N replied, almost baffled by his answer.

“Because...” Kaz couldn’t find the words. He was reminded that if he spoke his mind or showed any sense of vulnerability, that he would be deemed weak in his own eyes. So he changed his answer. “You’re an investment. And I like to protect my investments,” Kaz lied under his tongue.

“I can take care of myself,” Y/N chuckled at his response. She wanted to take a step back and turn away from him entirely, but she was too drawn to him.

“The thing is...you don’t have to,” Kaz responded. He dropped his voice to a low whisper so that they couldn’t be heard by anyone other than themselves. His lips curved into a michevious grin. He was up to something. “I can take care of you for the rest of our lives.”

“How?” Y/N narrowed her eyes at him, knowing this was far beyond a (what she thought was) simple confessor of feelings.

“Found myself another job,” Kaz replied. He smirked at her wickedly. “One that will make us rich beyond our wildest dreams.”

Author’s Note:

IT’S BEEN A WHILE, HASN’T IT? I AM HAPPY TO ANNOUNCE MY RETURN.

[notahorseindisguise]

update i now have $253.50 dollars in cash (won a couple hundred on the pokies a couple nights ago, split it with everyone who was there, got a 25 dollar tip yesterday, split it with the coworker who helped me, gave a meth head 50 bucks yesterday, got a 50 dollar tip from a big table tonight) .

i have 150 dollars in cash in my wallet, i never spend cash cause it doesnt feel like real money and usually i only ever get cash from tips at work (which i rarely get because we dont rely on them to live) and usually because its only in like . 10s or 20s at a time ill put it straight into the pokies on a night out . cause thats a good way to spend like 10 minutes and either get like 40 bucks back or nil (for non australians the pokies are electric slot machines that are in basically every pub in australia because our country is built on the addictions of the working class, its honestly a little sickening) . anyway 150 feels like way too much to put in the pokies. so we've got a couple options now. i could buy myself a big treat with 150 cash. i could put that into my bank account (a hassle). or i could put a hundred and fifty dollars into the pokies, make like 1 dollar bets and hope i win big (not too unlikely at that amount of cash) . what do we think

[drdemonprince]

i am considering investing. i have $8k i can put in stocks/IRA, is now a good time to do that or is now bad bc of the risk of a stock market crash under trump

The rule with stock market investing is it's not about timing the market, it's about time IN the market.

Meaning, if you try to make money by buying when stocks are cheap and selling them when they are expensive, you are GAMBLING and you will LOSE.

However, the overall arc of time IN the stock market is steady and reliable: the stock market gains value every year by about 7% on average, and has since ever since its genesis, and likely will continue to (until such point that capitalism as a whole collapses, at which point you won't be worrying about money. your life will either be far better or you will have much larger problems).

So you actually do not worry about WHEN you invest, you simply invest AS SOON AS POSSIBLE and then hold onto that stock for many years, until such time that you need it.

You also don't try and pick winner and loser stocks -- that's gambling and statistically will fail -- you simply invest in the market as a whole (which is what an IRA, index fund, or 401k does) and ride the overall growth of the market. It is folly to try and predict the moment-by-moment shifts in the market, or to try and game them out -- you really just set it and forget it. You don't need to check your portfolio regularly, in fact doing so will just make you feel crazy. You can just trust that, over time, it will average upward.

You don't have to believe me on this. I recommend reading the basics on the Mr Money Mustache blog, or the book Boggleheads, or any of the Financial Independence/Retire Early subreddits.

[centrally-unplanned]

Stumbled on this 1992 interview with Michael Crichton about his 90's Japan Scare novel Rising Sun, which is very fun. For one, Crichton is a Perotist!

Question: “Rising Sun” makes a strong argument that Japanese business is unfairly aggressive and Americans are foolish to have tolerated this unfairness for so long. Is that a decent synopsis? Answer: Not exactly. Let me just restate it. In the immortal words of my hero, Ross Perot: “It’s not a two-way street. It never has been a two-way street. It’s not their fault.” It’s our fault.

His 90's "Declinist America Needs Protectionism" vibe really comes through in the whole interview, you forget these days due to Trump how much of a Type of Guy that was and how intellectual-coded it could be in that era of dominant "unreflective" neoliberalism.

Anyway, we certainly did talk about race in the 90's!

Q: Do you consider the Japanese racist? A: [...] We’re talking about a historically inward-looking nation, an island nation, largely monoracial. That’s a good structure in which to have the rise of feelings of superiority about your own people as opposed to other people in the world. Of course, these broad statements can’t be applied to the individual Japanese person. One of the things that Americans, as a multiracial society, feel is a tremendous sensitivity to racial comments of all kinds. In the book, one of the things I tried to say to Americans was: Hey, while you’re tiptoeing around the race issue, your competitors are a monoracial country, very much aligned, and tend to hold in common beliefs that would astound you.

Narrator: America did not, in fact, "tiptoe" around the race issue.

But to be clear it isn't like this is super wrong or anything - 90's Japan absolutely was a "racist country" if such a thing is possible, most countries are, and its geographic isolation and relative lack of modern immigrants at that time certainly did contribute to that. What I instead find amusing is the idea that this is a threat to the US; the implication is that, because Japan is a racist country, when they rule the world economically they will in some way impose that racist worldview upon us. Which, I don't really think that is how free trade works? Might have watched too much Gunbuster on this one buddy.

We of course have the classics of Japan Scare:

Q: Has the continued decline in the Japanese stock market, their falling real-estate value and shrinking foreign investment caused you to rethink your views of Japanese-American business dealings? A: No, not at all. I’ve not seen figures on what the growth of the Japanese GNP will be this year. You hear stories about economic distress in Japan, but you see that the growth rate is going down to 4% from 5%. If this country had a 4% growth rate, we’d all feel like we were pumped full of testosterone.

-😬😬😬-

Narrator: it did not stop going down at 4%.

What i love most is how you see the same exact arguments about American "economic weakness" you see today, but with the dates/countries swapped around:

Q: What allowed us to contribute so willingly to our own weakening? Greed? Altruism? Shortsightedness? Arrogance? A: (following a large sigh) You have to look back at broad time periods. It’s possible now to argue that Americans have had no increase in real earnings power since 1962. Some economists would dispute that, and set the date at 1973. Either way, the country is in a steady, consistent and ongoing decline. Why? That’s an extended conversation. 

Obviously since then US living standards have gone up quite a lot! You definitely *cannot* argue that they did not go up since 1962, that is in fact an insane claim. You can't argue they haven't gone up since the 90's either. Even in Japan they have, they definitely have in Europe, economies grow in general. And of course the classic "American companies are all gambling now":

No one invests in a company anymore, in the way it was done in the ‘50s, say, because they believe the company is good. They buy because they think the price of the stock will rise or fall. What this means is that American managers are obliged to manage in the short term. There’s no incentive for an investor to hang on with a company for the long term. In Japan, savings--up to a certain point--are tax free. Why is that not also true in America? You want savings? Then don’t tax it as ordinary income.

I will leave posting a list of the most high-value companies over the past 30 years as an exercise for the reader; you don't need it, you already know them. But I certainly see versions of this dancing around today, and you definitely saw it in 2008 all over the place.

No real skin off Crichton's back, to be clear - prediction is hard, he isn't an economist, most will be wrong. Just funny how the ideological churn keeps spinning.

[genericpuff]

So Webtoons is getting sued by a bunch of law firms in class action lawsuit. Saw it on reddit. Apparently they lied to shareholders about revenue which is like one of the worst things I could imagine doing to your shareholders. Then their stock dropped again. Wow....wonder how this is gonna effect readers going forward or how they're gonna be more exploitative in the future. Not saying the down of Webtoons has begun but I wonder if it's gonna be the start of it.

Yep, I've been following this since the initial investigations began.

All that said, we likely won't see anything of this for a while, if anything even comes of it. The reality is that Webtoons... really didn't actually lie about being bad at making money. It's literally outlined in their IPO documentation:

So these lawsuits, at least in my opinion (*I AM NOT A LAWYER NOR AM I ANYONE WHO HAS ANY EXPERIENCE PLACING WALL STREET BETS, TAKE WHAT I HAVE TO SAY WITH MOUNTAINS OF SALT) is less about Webtoons 'lying' to shareholders and more so about them kicking the debt down the road which these lawyers want to try and hold them accountable for. It's not uncommon for startups to seek out private and/or public funding to help them stay out of bankruptcy, but such practice is incredibly shitty because if a company was already near the point of bankruptcy to begin with, what exactly is going to change to ensure that they actually make that money back with an additional net gain for those investors?

So in that sense, either something will come of this, or it won't, nothing's really a guarantee as of now. It's just as common for startups seeking public investments to get sued within their first 1-2 years because a company not returning on their initial investments within 3-6 months is a prime cut for lawyers to drool over. Despite their attempts to be honest about their earnings, the vast majority of Wall Street investors are paranoid little fuckers who invest in whatever's new and exciting with the hopes that it'll turn them a profit quickly and without headache. Unfortunately, Webtoons isn't a company that's known for having huge profit margins, which these investors would have realized if they knew anything about this industry or at the very least, bothered to read the fine print that Webtoons was obligated to lay out for them in their documentation. At best the majority of them saw Webtoons' offering that covered buzzwords like "content generation" and "AI" and went "yes please, I love money!" without realizing that webtoons, as a medium, have some of the highest production expenses to lowest-paying demographics out there and therefore companies like Webtoons aren't going to be a short-term gratification. It's more like waiting it out for the "next big thing" that will make that stock valuable again, a massive gamble that isn't guaranteed to payoff. And that's just the game of Wall Street in general.

That said, it's because of how difficult it is to directly monetize digital comics that Webtoons often has to rely on selling merchandise and IP rights in the hopes they'll land a whale - but even their pre-existing whales like Lore Olympus and Let's Play have either nothing to show for themselves, or have left the platform entirely. Of course, they'll vaguely claim that two of Netflix's highest-performing projects came from their platform, but any peek at an aggregated Top 10 list will prove that that is simply not true, and at best, they're referring to True Beauty's live action adaption, which is simply not even close to breaching that list of all-time top-performers (except probably in Korea but this is Goldman Sachs and their American investors they're trying to convince), All of Us are Dead (see above, same situation as True Beauty), and Heartstopper which is... not even an Originals series. Of course, that didn't stop Webtoons and Tapas from boasting about Heartstopper's Netflix adaption and its success on the platform, but literally none of its success is exclusively owed to either of those platforms, Alice Oseman flies solo and if anything, Heartstopper never would have gotten to the point it's at if it were tied down to a Webtoon Originals contract.

So in a sense, until anything comes of these lawsuits, they're more so just lawyers jumping on their own investment opportunity - the opportunity to get settlements from Webtoons for both their clients and themselves by extension. At best what they feasibly have against Webtoons is the company getting way too high on their own supply without anything to feasibly show in terms of profit for their IP's. Considering how many IP's they sold to television and film production studios back in 2019-2022 when they were at their peak over the lockdowns - a peak that is long in the rearview mirror - they are incredibly behind in actually paying off those promises. Even in a recent meeting they held just the other day with Goldman Sachs, they're quoted as saying: "When Rachel Smythe was a graphic designer in New Zealand, 4 or 5 years ago, and she had a story to tell, we enabled her to not just tell it in one part of the world, but globally. She became a NYT Bestselling author, she is rumored to be releasing soon as a major animated release."

When even the company that hosts Lore Olympus as its prize pig can only say that its long-anticipated TV production that both Rachel and Webtoons have been assuring people on repeat that the show is "still happening" and that what they've seen so far "looks amazing" is simply 'rumored to be releasing soon'... I don't even have the words to describe how embarrassing that is for them. Never mind the fact that Lore Olympus has been over for months and both it and its creator, Rachel, have been falling into the pits of irrelevancy. They don't have any other home-runners to bet on, they're just continuing to bank on Rachel as their own example of someone who "got big" even though it was years ago and that fame is now shrinking with the passage of time, you can even see the performance of the series dipping in its own front-end metrics over time. They are trying so hard to convince people that they're worth investing in when the one thing that actually DID have that kind of allure has now come and gone.

Never mind the fact that again, most Wall Street investors probably don't even participate in webtoon culture so the name "Rachel Smythe" isn't some golden ticket to fortune. Lore Olympus might get a bit more of a reaction, but it's going to be a lot more mixed due to how divisive the series became in the end, and general audiences who are new to Webtoons as a public company (and the medium as a whole) are still not so likely to know what the fuck that means or why it's significant. The best time to pull the "we have Rachel Smythe!" card in the public investing pool was, like many other things Webtoons has fallen behind in, years ago. Now it's clear Webtoons thinks that Rachel is their own personal J.K. Rowling, but they forgot the part where Rachel is creating for an incredibly niche and historically unprofitable medium that is nowhere near as big as what Harry Potter was back in its prime, and - personally speaking - that Rowling and Rachel are both, well... terrible at what they do.

Webtoons also has the added burden of not being a startup company. They're not some grassroots Silicon Valley tech startup run by a bunch of friends "with a dream", they're an extension of an industry that thrives overseas but barely has any infrastructure to support it here. They've been bankrolled for years by an overseeing tech company - Naver - but have consistently failed to get out of the red and so of course, now they're turning to public investments to help them out and subsequently, are passing that debt off to the next highest bidder, which is Wall Street. They had nearly a decade to figure their shit out here in the West and while they had their opportunities to thrive, those opportunities have come and gone, a lot of doors have closed and now this all feels like their own attempts to rip those doors back open again.

There is a LOT to insinuate already that Webtoons - a Korean-hosted platform - wasn't ready to enter the Western market and this fumbling of their public stock image is yet another great example of that. Even outside of Webtoons, other Korean-run platforms like Tapas have relied on private investments to keep them afloat (and still do, Tapas is still operating privately) and have routinely struggled to get a real foothold in the greater Western industry despite how much they hyped themselves up as the "next big thing". They're all playing the same game over and over again expecting better scores even though the playing fields are entirely different than what they've come to expect in Korea, where much of the entertainment industry is built around webtoons, much like how our entertainment industry in the West is built around comic giants like Marvel and DC (and even those giants are faltering as we've been seeing over the past several years).

Anyways. I don't know if this lawsuit is gonna go anywhere, there's a lot to the legal process that could lead to a variety of different outcomes, but at the very least, their plummeting stock value and the lawyers circling them from above is yet another notch on their belt of fuck-ups over the past few years. I know it's easy to say this in hindsight and I'm not the kind of guy to say "I told you so", but considering I've been following along with the bullshit of these major platforms for years and knew as soon as Webtoons was rumored to be going forward with an IPO that it would lead to disaster, I'm pretty confident in saying, "No really, I told you so." And I don't entirely blame the investors for that (except for the ones that clearly didn't read the fine print) - I also blame Webtoons for that, because they are a chronically unprofitable company run by a bunch of clowns who manufactured their own demise by getting in WAY over their heads and clearly don't even have a concept of a plan let alone an actionable one.

And that sucks, because the people who stand to get hurt the most are the ones who were made those empty promises years ago, long before the platform entered Wall Street - and that's the creators who were promised that their livelihoods would be secured and their work would be protected.

I will forever bully and make fun of Webtoons for everything they've done in and to this industry. I hope at the very least those investors learned an expensive lesson, and that the damage these lawsuits have already caused to Webtoons' public image - regardless of whether or not these lawsuits win - empowers others who have been screwed over by them to speak up and make their moves. They are not a monolith. They are a brittle business operating from the trunk of a clown car on their way to becoming a penny-stocks sham.

Fuck Webtoons <3

[theambitiouswoman]

would you be interested in doing a post on crypto? Such as your experience with it and how it works. And why it is important ? it still confusing for me to fully grasp. Thank you :)

Crypto is digital money that exists only electronically. It’s not controlled by central banks or governments. It uses blockchain technology—a ledger enforced by a network of computers.

You store your crypto in digital wallets and can use it for purchases and investments. Just like stock market you can convert to real dollars and withdrawal.

For the last couple of years, large financial companies have been testing a quantum financial system (ISO 20022) which would be an international standard for exchanging electronic messages in the financial industry. This is estimated to be rolled out on a large scale in about a decade.

XRP for example is a digital currency created by Ripple to enable quick money transfers. Some believe it could play a key role in a future global financial system, often referred to as the Quantum Financial System (QFS), by acting as a bridge currency that facilitates value exchange between different currencies and networks.

In plain words, cryptocurrency is a new form of currency and we are still in the beginning stages of it all. Which means the ability to make a ton of money easier than ever before :) Bitcoin is a perfect example, was at 40k I believe beginning of the year and now 100k, this means that if you invested $5,000 USD in January, you would now have made 13,000 USD letting it just sit there. If you are actively trading in crypto and meme coins you have the ability to 100x your returns. For example when people buy in to a coin that’s trending/ new/ getting hype, like XRP recently, there is a significant surge.

To trade crypto you can use centralized exchanges like Binance, Fidelity Investments, Robinhood Crypto, OANDA etc. These platforms allow you to buy, sell and trade various cryptos. This is basically what the general population does. There are other ways like using bots, staking, futures and options, margins and leverage etc.

With meme coins, as they trend you have the ability to make a lot of money overnight. This ofcourse depends on your ability to study the trends and the communities built around those coins. It is always a risk!!!!

Here’s an example for meme coins:

$330k to $34M (100x) in less than 2h for a meme coin created for Luigi Mangione last week. So if you had put in $3,000 in the coin when it was at 330k, in 2 hours you would have made $300,000.

I can’t say enough that this involves you being on top of trends and markets.

THIS IS NOT FINANCIAL ADVICE!!! The market is very volatile and you are basically gambling your money! Staying informed is crucial!!!! :)

[democratthatlovesguns]

The Markets ARE SOARING

This must mean there's a lot of confidence in the upcoming Trump administration, right?

NO! YOU FUCKING IDIOTS!

YES, I MADE A LOT OF MONEY FROM MY "REINVESTMENT" IN BITCOIN AND YES I MADE A LOT MORE MONEY FROM SWITCHING TO A MORE TRUMP-FAVORED INDEX.

THAT IS ALL THAT HAPPENED.

REMEMBER HOW BITCOIN GIANTS AND PEOPLE LIKE WARREN BUFFET WERE SELLING LARGE PORTIONS OF THEIR STOCK, BEFORE THE ELECTION? IT WAS NOT BECAUSE THEY FEARED THE MARKETS UNDER HARRIS; IT WAS BECAUSE THAT IS A TRIED AND TRUE INVESTMENT STRATEGY - OLDER THAN THE FUCKING ROMANS!

YOU THINK IT WAS A COINCIDENCE, OR THAT ELON WAS SO MOVED BY THE ATTEMPT ON TRUMP'S LIFE, THAT ELON WAITED TO ENDORSE TRUMP UNTIL AFTER HE WAS SHOT? HOW FUCKING STUPID CAN YOU BE? REMEMBER THAT $120 MILLION ELON USED TO BUY THE PRESIDENCY FOR TRUMP? IT'S NOT POSSIBLE FOR YOU TO FORGET, BECAUSE IT JUST HAPPENED A MOMENT AGO - YOU CAN'T ALL BE DORI! YES, IT WAS THE EASIEST GAMBLE ELON HAS EVER MADE - HE TRIED TO MAKE IT SEEM HARD, BUT IT WAS NOT. HE MADE 250 TIMES THOSE $120 MILLION, ON THE FIRST DAY.

HE'S NOT SMART AND DEFINITELY NOT SMARTER THAN ANYONE ELSE, HE IS A SIMPLY A CALLOUS OPPORTUNIST - JUST LIKE JEFF BEZOS AND KEVIN O'LEARY - AT THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME (SEE: MALCOLM GLADWELL).

THINK ABOUT IT?

IF YOU WERE ABOUT TO BET A DOLLAR FROM A COIN TOSS AND YOU KNEW THAT THE COIN HAD 90% CHANCE OF LANDING ON YOUR CHOICE, WOULD YOU PUT A DOLLAR IN THE POT TO MAKE $250? NO SHIT! YOU'D BE THE DUMBEST SHIT AROUND IF YOU DIDN'T!

AND NO, FROM THOSE $30 BILLION ELON MADE, NOT A SINGLE DIME WILL EVER TRICKLE DOWN TO YOU DUMB FUCKS HE BOUGHT, TO VOTE FOR DONALD TRUMP. YOU HAVE ONLY YOURSELVES TO BLAME; WE WARNED YOU ELON WAS FINGERING YOUR ASSHOLES AS HE SMILED AND SHOOK YOUR HANDS!

BUT "NO" WE'RE SOCIALIST CUNTS, FUCK US, RIGHT?

WE WANTED YOU TO KEEP SOCIAL SECURITY, WE WANTED YOU TO HAVE JOBS THAT PAY YOU A LIVING FUCKING WAGE WITHOUT WORKING YOU 100 HOURS EVERY WEEK, WE WANTED YOU TO GET THE MEDICAL CARE YOU NEED REGARDLESS OF HOW MUCH PERSONAL WEALTH YOU HAVE ACCUMULATED. TAYLOR SWIFT, BEYONCE, ET AL BEGGED YOU TO TAX THEM SO WE COULD AFFORD THIS FOR EVERYONE. BUT FUCK US, RIGHT? WE'RE SUCH HORRIBLE SOCIALIST CUNTS.

I GUESS WHAT I AM TRYING TO SAY IS THANK YOU ... I MADE ENOUGH FOR A NICE, LONG VACATION.

I THINK I'LL WAIT TO LEAVE UNTIL YOU DUMBASSES START COMPLAINING THAT COMMODITY PRICES ARE RISING INSTEAD OF DROPPING FROM TRUMP'S TARIFFS, JUST SO I CAN SAVOR MY VACATION A LITTLE MORE.

[what-even-is-thiss]

I just saw your reblog on addictions (which I think was very well said) and noticed that you mentioned investing in the stock market. If you don’t mind me asking, is that very lucrative? I've been considering getting into the stock market to make some extra money on the side

To be safe I’d treat it as more of a long term thing instead of side income and invest in safe companies. Day trading is more like gambling and is very dangerous. Most people don’t do well with day trading. The safest thing to do is to put a small amount of money in a variety of companies every month or so and leave it there until you either need the money or are ready to retire.

If you buy stocks that give you dividends you can invest those back in to different companies. They’re not much. They’re an incredibly small percentage of profits. If you wanted to live off of stock dividends you’d already need hundreds of thousands of dollars available to invest.

For a regular person investing in the stock market it’s a relatively safe way to let some money gain some value and hopefully grow with inflation over the course of several years.

[queengiuliettafirstlady]

trick or treat!

Hello and thank you for knocking at my blog's door. 🤗

Here it take a treat or a trick if you dare. 😏

Random Modern AU headcanons

-Elbert would be the biggest menace alone with internet like can you imagine his endless scrolling through pages looking for beautiful things ? I can totally can picture Alfons getting white hair when the delivery man bring them a whole wagon full of items.

-Talking about Alfons he would be a celebrity on Onlyfans in no time, I assure you but I kinda see even Illusionists trying to hire him at any cost he would become filthy rich if he accepts to be a single night guest of theirs, not mentioning his popularity if he ever decide to take a shot at being a stripper for one night.

-I don't know why but I see Jude becoming like a boss of a big company, like he is in game, so rich to seem shady, without mentioning how much money he actually invest in Stock Exchange managing to always be right on the money about where to invest.

-Ellis dear boy I see him way too much becoming an idol or something, even better if he actually went and became a waiter in a neko cafe can you imagine how popular that bar would become ?

Like one day they hire him and the next week they have all days booked so much girls, but even boys, are open to do pretty much anything to reserve a place for them even if only for a fast break.

-Roger I see him becoming a professional boxer, but even a trainer would sound good as a job for him, or even a coack for boxing, and occasionally teaching self defense, even asian ones in the mix becasue why not. A ton of girls would sign up only to see him shirtless but then actually stayed for how good of a techer he is.

-Liam sweet boy he would be a stand up comedian part time, entertaining people everywhere with his comedic sketch, aside his job as actor of course, I think he would love cinema and would totally be so overly excite to work on it , though not so excited to see a film of his if not accompanied and supported by his best friends.

-On the other hands I bet Harrison would become a writer himself and why not even hold a blog with the reviews of the book he read and where he publish both his new ones and the ones of the writer he follow as an editor, because I am extra sure publishers would gamble to have such a skilled men in their group.

-William He would be such a fashion icon, a sponsor of body positivity everywhere supporting charitable institutions, all the while spreading his ideology of freedom and equal rights, even for animals.

Tag list

@kissmetwicekissmedeadly 

@aquagirl1978 @william-rex 

@writingwhimsey @fang-and-feather

@moonstruckmelancholic @wistfulwanderingone @rjthirsty

@ike-garden2024 @lichtluv

@jollibeeshappiness @starzyquee              

@maeko-kun @rkmaru

[cinnamonnangel]

ASTRO 101 - THE HOUSES (PART I)

FIRST HOUSE - I AM

(The First House is ruled by Aries and Mars.)

The first moment you open your eyes to the world, first breath, first sight, first intention and first experience

General appearance, form and shape, physical body, general health, vitality and energy, action

Character, identity, self image, personality, mask, self interest, how others perceive you, self expression, independence, behavior, name, attitude, fame

How you see the world, how the world sees you

Spirit, life, ego, soul body

First impressions, beginnings

Head, face, eyes, blood, brain, muscular system

The moment of birth and people around you, place of birth and atmosphere, birth experiences, mother’s health and experiences during childbirth

SECOND HOUSE - I HAVE

(The Second House is ruled by Taurus and Venus.)

Material and non-material resources, attitude toward possessions,

How you make money or meet obligations, self worth

Personal finances, money matters, sense of value, stocks and share, trade, jewelry, documents, cash money, valuables, wealth, possessions, trade, material possessions, luxuries, banking activities, loans, economic situation, wares, rank, guarantee, financial security, artworks

Talents, comfort zone, security, self esteem, valuables, sense of values, resourcefulness, nutrition

Face, neck, throat, vocal cords, thyroid, metabolic system, voice and vocal talents

Economy, sovereign debt, colonies, fees, trade, banks, internal debts, artistic approaches of a country

THIRD HOUSE - I THINK

(The Third House is ruled by Gemini and Mercury.)

Conscious mind, memory, mental confusion, communication, intellect, mentation, thinking

Skillfulness, study, ability, writing, speaking, researching, learning, reading, perceiving, adaptability, ability to learn foreign languages

Depthless thoughts and informations, smattering

Elementary and primary education, puberty

Siblings, brothers, sisters, cousins, close relatives and neighbors

Short trips, tour, daily travel, neighborhood, public transports, vehicles, motorbike, cars, train, bus, boats, urban roads

TV, radio, telephone, computer, mails, messages, text, communication network and channels, short correspondence on social media, weather forecast

Shoulders, collar bone, arms, hands, fingers, lungs, nerves, the nervous system

Bookstore, library, school, post office, educational institution, streets, telephone kiosk

FOURTH HOUSE - I FEEL

(The Fourth House is ruled by Cancer and Moon.)

The place where we live with the family, home atmosphere, home life, house, mother, family, lineage, family matters, ancestry, custom, femininity

Subconscious, things we hide about ourselves, emotional problems, early childhood, depression, personal commitment, the deepest and the darkest point of the chart

Old age, the end of the life, diseases, grave

Land, realty, genetic heritage, underground sources

Chest, breaths, stomach, uterus, diaphragm, upper alimentary system

Agricultural enterprise, historical values, mining site, real estate, refuge facilities, farmers, cemeteries

FIFTH HOUSE - I WILL

(The Fifth House is ruled by Leo and Sun.)

Actions and activities we do for ourselves, things we like to do, hobbies, how do we spend our free time, creativity, activities we enjoy, pleasure, self expression, risk taking, leisure time, artistic talents,

Love, romance, dating, courtship, love affairs, the way we flirt

Children, birthing and creation, the character of our children

Acting, drama, dance, music, sports, artists, celebrities, stage

Games, cards, puzzles, fun, amusement, games of chance, gambling, speculative investment

Chest, upper back, heart, spine, cardiac system

Hotels, entertainment centers, casino, beauty shops, coiffeur, resort, amusement park, cinema, theatre, sports center, park, art exhibition

SIXTH HOUSE - I ANALYZE

(The Sixth House is ruled by Virgo and Mercury.)

What we do to survive, daily work, everyday routine, details, skills

Work routines, where we specialize our skills, workers, competition, employment, workmates

House of sickness, exhaustion, disease, allergies, health, physical body, physical condition

Issues that tire us and weaken us, drugs and addictions

Pets and animals

Abdomen, intestines, lower liver, alimentary canal, spleen, digestive nerves

Hospitals, health care providers, employees, service sector, trade unions, state employees, restaurants, food and beverage services, enemies, soldiers, police, military, army, security guard, navy, animal clinic

[hypodermicfroggy]

Hello again Tumblr Limbus community, I am here to bring you: more horrors. By which I mean memes.

An explanation of these assignments below the cut:

Faust has both invested and not invested in crypto in the many alternate realities, and so she's just smack dab in the middle.

Heathcliff: Does not understand crypto and does not want to. Fuck off with that nerd scam shit.

Gregor: Probably can't wrap his head around the concept but also doesn't really put stock in a currency you can't physically interact with. Follows the logic of "if this is something I couldn't trade for cigs in a POW camp, then I probably shouldn't be interested in it."

Ryoshu: May or may not actually understand crypto, but follows the logic of "just rob people the old-fashioned way like a normal fucking person."

Sinclair: Would probably not understand or want to invest in crypto, but would also probably get peer pressured into investing in some of it anyway, most likely by Rodya.

Yi Sang: Knows how crypto works, in fact understands all the intricacies of it and the volatility of it and will state as such. Which is precisely why he doesn't invest.

Ishmael: It's a wildly impractical and made up currency for scamming foolish people, of course she's not interested in it.

Vergil: Has lived in the City and dealt with enough of its criminal/Syndicate elements to know enough about crypto and as such knows it's just another scam. And is going to throttle Dante and Don both for falling for it when they get back to the bus.

Don Quixote: Absolutely has no idea how it works but she thinks it's neat. This girl would buy a custom NFT of Roccinante and be convinced it is not just a jpeg with pretension. I love her, but she would, you know she would.

Dante: Is probably initially wary but between their amnesia and spinelessness, they would probably fall for the first persuasive conman peddling the shit to them.

Outis: Would normally follow the same thought processes as Gregor for avoiding crypto, but as soon as she sees Dante has fallen for the trap, she of course jumps right on board with it to support them, because the taste of manager boot far outweighs any other logic she seems to have.

Hong Lu: May or may not actually understand how crypto works, based on some of the investment...activities his family has probably engaged in. However, he definitely doesn't grasp the actual value of the damn things and would also get caught up in NFT schemes. This boy would look at a jpeg of a banana and go "well how much could it possibly cost, Dante, 1000 Ahn?"

Meursault: Understands crypto's mechanics well enough and has weighed the risks to decide it's similar to a stock market, and thinks he can work with the numbers because the stock market is relatively stable and predictable. He cannot, but he is convinced that he can.

Rodya: Definitely knows crypto is a scam, but can't resist the gamble even though she knows better. Everytime, she thinks maybe this time this currency will be the one to go to the moon. She also may or may not definitely also be the one selling crypto to the Sinners.

Also one I forgot originally on the chart at the time but which came to me as I was formatting this:

Charon: Does not understand crypto and does not invest, and is in fact probably just a little too young to invest, BUT, she does figure out how to buy a custom NFT. It's something with red eyes, as a gift for Vergie. :) The emotional grief this causes Vergil makes him postpone beating Don and Dante's asses until the next foolishness they get themselves into.

[qwainte]

Headcanons/speculation about how the preps acquired their wealth and current source if income:

The Harringtons: "Harrington Oil" can be seen advertized on the go-cart racetrack so we can assume they are oil tycoons. Derby is featured in Aquaberry advertisements so perhaps his family are shareholders and invest in other luxury clothing brands as well.

The Gauthiers: It's hard to say. Chad mentions Pinky's father bought her an entire ice cream factory so maybe he owns a major food manufacturing company a la Nestle. I also guess her parents are philanthropists considering that she has no qualms about donating to charity

The Taylors: Bif mentions his dad possibly bulldozing some low-income housing so I'm going to say land development and real estate. If he gets hit by a car Bif will mention his father being an attorney. I'm also going to consider Derby's little jab about him being a Democrat and say his dad is a political attorney.

The Spencers: "Spencer Shipping", a shipping manufacturing company; Tad says his father is a self-made man but perhaps his mother is old-money, hence the inbreeding. She may have came from an old British aristocrat family, and Tad does his best to replicate her accent.

The Vanderveldes: Sounds like "Vanderbilt" so imma say railroads

The Vendomes: Gord's dad is an attorney and owns a law firm that specializes in criminal cases. He also owns several hotels so he's in the hospitality business

The Montroses: Bryce's dad has gambled away most of their money and whatever source of wealth they have isn't enough to get their family out of debt. The best guess I can give is that his father is an investor and is currently seeing little to no returns on his investments (after more digging I found a quote were Bryce states his father told him he "lost a bundle in the stock market").

The Ogilvies: Literally no dialogue hints at his family's business so let's say his father owns a large vehicle manufacturing company and his mother is a professional conductor.

The Morrises: Chad mentions his father a lot like he's a really important person so perhaps he's in politics or works on the board of education. He mentions not receiving his usual care package from his mother, meaning that she may not live nearby in the Vale. She may have a profession that requires her to travel a lot. Judging by Chad's quotes about the environment I'd say she's an environmentalist.