#lobby signs Atlanta

[blackfiresigns]

Creates A Professional Office Signs For Your Business in Atlanta

Having the right signage has a significant effect on any business in Atlanta, GA. It is one of the most effective ways to communicate with your customers. It is necessary to choose sign solutions that help your business succeed.

Key signage every business should have is lobby signs.

Are Lobby Signs in Atlanta Important?

Your lobby is the first area visitors walk into when they enter your space. A great way to welcome guests to your facility is through outstanding reception and lobby signs.

The signs in your lobby can set the tone of the customer’s experience with your business. A well-placed office lobby sign can create a positive impression that can help your business.

Establish Your Business Presence

One of the best ways custom lobby signs can help your business is to establish your presence. This is especially helpful when you are located in a multi-tenant building.

Distinct signage the moment visitors walk it lets them know they reached the right place. They instantly know that you are an office different from the rest of the other tenants because of your unique sign.

Build Brand Awareness

Presenting your customers with a custom office lobby sign is a helpful way to build awareness for your brand. Seeing the key elements of your brand’s theme and logo shows who and what your business is all about right off the bat.

This makes it important for your sign to be positioned right at the focal point of your lobby area. You want to make sure your reception and lobby sign is in clear view of each person walking in.

Creates a Professional and Confident Business Image

Did you know that 60% of customers avoid entering a business that does not have any visible signage? The absence of signs can make you look like a sketchy company that cannot be trusted.

Visible office lobby signs help build your credibility. It shows customers that you are a legitimate business that is accountable for anything that happens within the company. A professionally-made sign shows customers they can trust your business.

Encourage Customer Loyalty and Referrals

As previously mentioned, lobby signs can set the tone of your customer’s experience. A customer who is happy and satisfied from the moment they walk in can potentially become a loyal customer.

Custom lobby signs are also the best way to introduce your customers to your business. This is why a lot of businesses display their company history and accolades as part of the signs in their lobby.

The more customers know about your business, the better engaged they are. This can potentially translate to referrals from your loyal customers.

Lobby Signs Atlanta Can Be Proud Of

A well-placed office lobby sign is crucial for any business. It is important to choose the right sign partner that can deliver your needs. In Atlanta, GA, business owners choose BlackFire Signs for high-quality sign solutions that last.

We are a full-service sign company that can help design, produce, and install custom lobby signs that best reflect your brand. Contact us today with your lobby sign needs, and our team will be happy to give you a FREE quote!

Source: https://www.blackfiresigns.com/your-secret-weapon-well-placed-custom-office-lobby-signs/

[ladylooch]

Surprises in Seattle - [Liv X Luca]

A/N: The way this took me forever to come up with an idea for... and then I wrote it in an hour and it was suddenly over 2k words... Writing is wild man. WILD! Thank you 🇧🇷 anon for the request. Sorry for how long this took.......... yikes!

Original Request: I would love for a small thing of Liv and Father in law Kev interacting, I think there's has to be funny moments between those two that will leave him laughing wildly and she getting soooo embarrassed!!!! 😂😂😂 - 🇧🇷

Word Count: 2.2k

Have fun tonight, baby. I’m so proud of you 😘

Liv reads off the text quickly while she finishes out the last curl of her hair. Once it’s set, she rips the plug out of the wall and hastily rushes out of the bathroom to grab her purse and jacket.

I wish you were here, babe. Good luck tonight! And be safe

Liv responds as she walks out of her hotel room. She double checks she has what she needs- key, purse, jacket, phone- then let’s the door close softly behind her. 

Tonight is a long anticipated night for Liv. It’s the first day of her second book tour. She’s doing a book signing at the cute, local bookshop across the street. This book tour is so much more chaotic for her because she self-published her second book. After all the issues she had with her previous team not seeing the same vision for the book, Liv quietly walked away from them. Truthfully, they let her go easily, not seeing much of a reason to fight her wishes. Fine with her. She knows what she is capable of. Never again is a board room full of people going to tell her what to do with her art.

She has Ryder to thank for that. Without his fierce belief in her years ago, she wouldn’t be where she is now. She’s thankful now that the past is in the past and they’ve all been able to move forward, especially with Ryder’s recent trade to the Kings. 

Liv’s black heels clack against the tile of the hotel lobby. She makes her way out the door, then falters slightly when she sees the line outside the bookstore. She bites her lip then quickly takes a picture to send to her fiancé. 

Baby, you’re so popular 😏,  he immediately texts back

You better not be texting and driving.

Oops. Love you! 

Liv rolls her eyes at her man’s worst habit. Then with confidence in her step, she crosses the street to the bookstore hosting her event. The crowd sees her step onto the sidewalk and they begin to clap for her. Liv gives them a huge smile, dimples out and proud, along with an enthusiastic wave.

“Thank you all for coming! I can’t wait to meet you!” She calls back to them, then slides into the bookstore. The owner, Lillianne, ushers her to a makeshift curtain room where she can sit in privacy until the event begins.

“Are you still okay with doing the Q&A before the signing?”

“Of course!” Liv confirms. She hopes there aren’t any awkward silences with fans not having anything to ask her. Otherwise, this long anticipated night is going to end quickly.

In another few minutes, the crowd is allowed into the store, bring noise into the normally quiet space. Liv does a few breathing exercises to settle the nervous butterflies fluttering in her stomach. As a writer, she knows this is part of the job, but she still worried that her fans won’t like her. She would never want someone to come away from an interaction with her and be disappointed. 

From behind the curtain, Liv watches as people being to filter into the seating area. She wishes she had someone in the crowd for her today, but this is the only stop on her tour where she won’t be able to meet someone after. She has five more stops after this. Savannah is meeting her in Atlanta, her parents in NYC, Luca in L.A., Mack in Chicago, and Luca’s little sister, Lena, in Phoenix.

But tonight in Seattle, it’s only supposed to be her. 

Yet, when she steps onto the stage, the first person her eyes land on is Kevin Fiala in the front row. Her steps almost falter, but then she waves and continues forward. He cheers excitedly for her appearance and Liv can’t help but grin wider. 

Kevin’s presence helps ground her in confidence as she beings the Q&A. The thoughtfulness of their questions has Liv buzzing with excitement. They wonder about the main characters, her writing style, how this process was different from her first book. There are also questions about what it is like to date a professional athlete, how her and Luca have found a balance with their successful careers and of course, what is in the future.

“I think our biggest focus right now is this book tour for me. Then it’s back to hockeyland before we get married this coming summer.”

“Will you change your name!?” Someone shouts out without the microphone.

“Yeah, I think Livia Fiala has a great ring to it.” She grins. “But I’m not sure if I will change my pen name yet. It’s an ongoing discussion.” 

With that, the Q&A is finished and Liv begins to head off to the signing table, but not before a quick, rushed hug to Kevin.

“You’re here?!” She greets him.

“Wouldn’t miss it.” He smiles. Liv gives him a grateful smile, then heads back behind the table. The next interaction she has with him is cheeky and adorable.

He proudly displays her cover to her in both hands, then taps her name at the bottom.

“Fiala will look much better than this.”

“I’ll be sure to tell my fiancé that. He will appreciate the support.” She chuckles. Kevin slides the book across the table to her. Liv blushes at how sweet it is of him to be here to support her AND buy a book he could easily get for free. “Should I make this out to anyone?”

“Yes, my son, Luca. L-U-C-A.” He jokingly spells out as Liv chomps down on her bottom lip to stop from laughing. She concentrates on the letters of her fiancé’s name. “He’s a huge fan of your work.” Liv’s mind immediately goes to how appreciative of her work Luca was before he took her to the airport this morning. Her giggle escapes and she looks back at Kevin brightly.

“Anything in particular you want me to say to him?”

“Please write: Your dad was my favorite Swiss hockey player growing up.”

“No.” Liv laughs immediately. “My dad would be crushed! And probably my uncle too…”

“Okay, okay.” Kevin concedes. “Hm, what would you want it to say?” He asks, quieter, more reflective. Liv contemplates then tilts down to write: 

I can’t wait to get home to you. I love you! XOXO Livy.

Liv finishes off with a heart after her name, then gently closes the book. She hands it to Kevin.

“He will love that.” He murmurs. “

“I think so.”

“Can I take you to dinner to celebrate?”

“I would really love that. Thank you.” Liv smiles at her future father-in-law. “I think your son would probably love a picture.”

“He would. Otherwise he is gonna think his mom signed this for him.” Liv belly laughs. She stands up next to Kevin, pointing and looking surprised for their selfie as Kevin grins next to her.

“Nice to meet you Ms. Fiala- Uh Meier.” He stutters. “Sorry, Fiala just sounds so natural for you.” Then he saunters away, leaving Liv giggling in his wake. 

Liv continues signing and engaging with fans. From the corner of her eye, she can see people divert to Kevin for a picture or autograph. He tentatively comes over to interrupt and asks if it is okay with her before he signs anything.

“Yes! Go for it!” She assures, but is truly touched that he wants to be sure the attention stays on her. 

Although he engages in some hockey talk, Liv can hear Kevin bring the conversation away from him and back to her work time and time again. He enthusiastically talks about her new book and characters, even speaking about his favorite scene towards the end. Liv is touched that he read it, and also a little embarrassed considering there is a smutty hot tub scene in the middle chapters. Her neck flushes as she thinks about the real life scenario with his son that inspired that. 

It is after 8pm by the time all the fans have been greeted and books signed. Liv reunites with Kevin for dinner. She requests they go to a bar to find the Kings game, knowing it’s a nationally televised game. 

“Luca scored the first goal.” Kevin fills in for her as she squints at the score. The Kings are up on the Flyers 2-1.

“Nice!” Liv murmurs, then drops her eyes to the menu. They both order and watch the game in relative silence, outside a comment or so about the game. It’s comfortable and appreciated after Liv just did so much conversing. Her energy is zapped.

“Did Luca put you up to this?” Liv finally asks after they have finished dinner. 

“No. He doesn’t know I’m here.” Kevin tells her. “But we were talking to him earlier this week and he did mention you were nervous about being here alone.” He takes a sip of water. “Your our daughter, Livy. If any of our kids were worried about something like this, Sam and I would be there to support them. So here I am. If Sam wasn’t sick, she would be here too.” Liv knows that. She bites her lip for a moment, feeling overcome with the emotions of the whole day. 

“Thank you. I’m really lucky.” She murmurs. 

“You also look very tired.”

“Yeah.” She starts to laugh.

Kevin grabs the bill from the waiter and pays it before Liv can get her hands on it.

“No kid of mine pays for dinner either.” He insists when she balks. 

“A lot of rules to being your kid. Somehow more than Timo Meier…” Liv teases. Kevin laughs. 

“You are lucky Emma is your mom. The Hischier in her balances everything out.” Liv nods. This is true.

“Are you leaving early tomorrow?” Liv asks as they step back out onto the street.

“I am here until noon.” 

“Great, then I’ll take you to breakfast before the airport.”

“Sure, but you’re not paying.” Kevin points a scolding finger at her, lowering his eyebrows.

“Wouldn’t dream of it.” Liv affirms. 

As she snuggles into her hotel bed for the night, she sends a text to Luca seeing if he is home yet. His response is a FaceTime call.

“Hellooooo!” Luca cheers. “Oh! She’s in bed!” He grins. “Is this a sexy FaceTime?”

“No.” She says through a yawn. “I just called to say goodnight. I’m dead. And I have to meet your dad for breakfast tomorrow.”

“My dad?” He questions.

“Yeah, he showed up tonight. Bought a book and everything. Let me send you the picture.” She hears the ding and adores the instant smile when he looks it over on his screen.

“Wow, he’s so cool. I wanna be like him when I grow up.” Luca laughs as he takes something out of the microwave. “Pasta.” He shows her the bowl, then spoons a huge, steaming forkful into his mouth. “Hawt.” He huffs out. Liv can only shake her head. “That’s awesome that he came tho. I didn’t expect that. Was mom with him?”

“No, she is sick.” 

“Oh, damn. I bet that killed her not being able to come. Still cool that dad came alone though.” 

“Your dad called me his kid like all night. This one sweet older man came up to him and complimented him on raising me.” 

“I hope he corrected that.” Luca gives her a knowing look.

“He made sure to tell the man that he was the dad I always deserved but didn’t have growing up.” Luca barks out a laugh.

“You know he is going to text your dad that later.”

“Oh I’m sure he already has.” Liv chuckles. “But yeah, it was really nice. The night.. hearing that… having him show up for me. I feel really lucky to share your family with you.”

“My family loves you, baby. But nowhere near as much as I do.” He says softly. “I’m glad you had a good night. You deserve this success.” Liv lets his words soak into her skin. Before, she would have blushed and brushed that off, but Luca is right. She does deserve this. She’s worked and fought her ass off to get here. 

“Thank you. I miss you though. I wish there weren’t so many days before we see each other again.” She huffs. While Liv is going back to L.A. for the weekend, Luca will be heading out of town on a road trip. 

“I know, baby. I miss you too.” He murmurs, pushing his empty bowl across the counter. They stare at each other and as he always does, Luca knows her thoughts before she can fully think them. “We are okay.” He fills the silent worry she has that distance will stretch them too far again. “Two weeks is nothing for us.” He reminds her. She nods in assurance. 

He is right. Liv bites her bottom lip, then looks up at him with dewy eyes. Luca perks up from his slouch.

“This is a sexy FaceTime!!!!” He yells as he runs out of the kitchen, heading towards their bedroom. 

Liv smirks. 

He’s been so good to her, supportive and unwavering, he deserves a little bedtime show.

[orange-foxes]

Social Media

📱 The Truth Behind It by wematch (3k)

Neil finally makes a Twitter account the year after he leaves the Foxes. His PR has been nagging him about making a social media account since he joined the team but ultimately he uses it to annoy Andrew. Of course things escalate and the rumours of a rivalry between the two form, that is until Neil clarifies everything.

📱 Catfish by likearecord (22k)

There’s very little Andrew likes less than being tricked, but not knowing things does make the cut. He stands, throws his messenger bag over his shoulder, grabs his coffee, and stomps over to slide into the chair across from the guy. He looks up at Andrew with a flash of calculated flight or fight in his eyes, but he quickly smooths this over and affixes a look of polite interest on his face. “Can I help you?” “Are you on Grindr?” Andrew asks. Bluntly.  “Uh,” the guy says, looking more confused. “I don’t know. What is it?”  “It’s a hookup app gay men use.”  “Oh,” he says, frowning. “No, I’m definitely not on that.”  “Because you don’t do gay men?”  The guy shrugs. “Because I don’t do hookups.”

📱 Funky Happenings with the Fox Family by dobbypussypopper (29k)

naughtygayweedcrime: did I rlly just see neil say woke naughtygayweedcrime: what a surreal timeline we live in dumbfool: allison is trying to teach me how to meme so I can get hip naughtygayweedcrime: bless your poor soul davidwymack: sometimes I regret living davidwymack has muted exyllent, damnwilds, + 7 others for 30 minutes

📱 The societies we despise by This_Witch_Writes (5k)

Technically it all started because of two cats. Andrew’s phone number had been leaked and he was waiting on a new sim card. So when Neil saw the cats, one black and one ginger, play fighting beside the Chicago Bean, he had tweeted the picture to him instead of texting it. An innocent enough tweet on the surface, tagging Andrew and adding the caption “us”. To Neil, Andrew and their family, an obvious and even uncharacteristically sappy statement of long-held affection. To exy fans on the internet, a declaration of war.

📱 Reputation by lemonicee (8k)

The rise and fall of the Minyard-Josten Rivalry. Usually when Neil starts shit in a post-game press interview, he does it on purpose. This time, he really just meant for it to be a joke. “How do you feel about the possibility of ending up on a team with a former Fox teammate?” is the next question. “Great,” Neil answers, sincere. “I would love to play with Matt or Kevin again.” “What about Minyard? Would you sign with Atlanta?” Neil says, “Andrew? He’s a nightmare.” He knows it’s a joke. His team knows it’s a joke. Andrew will know it’s a joke. The press does not seem to know that it’s a joke.

📱 likes: exy by djhedy (32k)

Allison: ok look I have an idea Neil: oh no Allison: you’re not going to love it Neil: I already said oh no Allison: we should sign you up to tinder! Neil: …how do you leave whatsapp

📱 all that i’ve been dreaming of by bazookajo94 (5k)

Exy fanboy Neil Josten stumbles across roleplaying Twitter accounts. Lonely and curious, he requests one for literally any of the players from the professional exy team Palmetto State Foxes. Someone calling themselves rp_aaaaaminyard03 responds. Andrew Minyard, bored with life, the universe, and everything, makes a fake roleplay account on Twitter. He is roleplaying himself. He is rp_aaaaaminyard03.

📱 In Which Neil Josten is a PR Nightmare by CoverYourEyes (14k wip)

Eve was not the best person in the world. Sometimes she didn’t hold the elevator open when she saw people rushing to catch it from the other side of the lobby. Cutting the line at Starbucks was a semi-regular action. But Eve did not deserve to be Neil fucking Josten's publicist. ********** Or, the one where Neil does what he wants, picks fights with reporters, discovers Twitter, breaks the internet, and really shouldn't be allowed out of his house. Andrew does nothing to discourage him.

📱please tell me it's just the fandom freaking out by OneSweetMelody

Neil Josten @neiljos10 Sadly @ajminyard isn’t too excited about that face off Neil Josten @neiljos10 Maybe @ajminyard will learn how to block an offside bouncer before then. Or any shot.

📱 Talk All Night for Nothing by ipromisetostaywild (20k)

Andrew Minyard is a vlogger on YouTube, doing quite well for himself despite the fact that he never shows his face to the camera. He may just change his no-face policy, however, after meeting a certain vlogger who wants to do a collaboration. OR Andrew edits other people’s videos, makes his own, & becomes totally smitten with a blue-eyed boy.

📱 We Never Go Out Of Style by dancingongasoline (28k)

“Allison is pretty famous around the younger celebs,” Renee said when she saw Andrew’s eyes linger on the mass of people slowly filtering into the room. “There’s a lot of people here; didn’t think it was this anticipated.” Andrew murmured, leaning closer into Renee’s side. The woman hummed, her eyes straying from row to row. “It’s probably because Neil is gonna walk.” Andrew had heard that name before. Neil Josten. Or Neil is a supermodel at the height of his career, and Andrew is a famous actor from the Marvel franchise.

📱 We'll Make It Happen by honorarystar (2k)

“Why would I want to share pictures of my personal life with strangers though?” Neil slumped down in his seat on the lounge couch. He wished that he had waited for Andrew instead of getting to practice early. This could have been avoided. “It’s Instagram. Who cares?” Allison was looking at Neil like he was the insane one for not grasping this concept.

📱 POV: Your best friend is Neil Josten by NeilsStrawberries (3k)

Allison Reynolds is not only a talented Exy player and renowned fashion designer, but also an extremely famous blogger. A little while ago, she started a new trend: POV: Your best friend is Neil Josten. * Or, a sequence of videos recorded by Alliso

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Eric Hananoki at MMFA:

Kandiss Taylor hosts a program on the network led by “best friend” Stew Peters, a Holocaust denier who has attempted to portray Adolf Hitler as a “hero.” She has also promoted antisemitism, complaining that Jewish people are “controlling everything” and alleging that “we have some Marxist trash using our R who pander to the Jews.”  Taylor isn’t just a random commentator: She’s the District 1 chairwoman for the Georgia Republican Party. Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporter Greg Bluestein last year described Taylor’s elected position as a “key” post, noting that the state party “plays a role in mobilizing voters, marshaling activists and, most significantly, determining delegates for the presidential nomination.” 

In recent months, Taylor has been helping Republican-allied efforts to win Georgia for Trump.  She recently posted a video about door knocking in which she encouraged her followers to sign up for pro-Trump campaigning. In June, Taylor helped open a Trump campaign office in the state alongside Rep. Buddy Carter (R-GA), among others.   Additionally, she recently attended the Republican National Convention in Wisconsin as an alternate delegate. She has been emceeing events for the Leadership Institute, a right-wing nonprofit. And she has promoted a picture of herself with Trump.  In addition to her activities on behalf of the Republican Party, Taylor is the host of the show Jesus. Guns. And Babies. on the Stew Peters Network. Taylor has called Peters her “best friend” and a “truth teller.” 

[...]

She is a repeat guest on The Stew Peters Show. During a February 14 appearance on the show, they discussed someone being charged for allegedly vandalizing a pro-LGBTQ mural. (Peters is virulently anti-LGBTQ.) While discussing pro-LGBTQ efforts, Peters asked Taylor: “No more funding our own demise — bioweapons and forever wars from the Jewish lobby that basically runs our entire government. And they run this as well, don't they?” She replied: “Yeah they run this. 100%. They're controlling everything.” 

Kandiss Taylor, a Georgia GOP chairwoman representing District 1 and a host on The Stew Peters Network, pushed antisemitic tropes complaining that the Jews “control everything.”

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 5.11

330 – Constantine the Great dedicates the much-expanded and rebuilt city of Byzantium, changing its name to New Rome and declaring it the new capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. 868 – A copy of the Diamond Sūtra is published, making it the earliest dated and printed book known. 973 – In the first coronation ceremony ever held for an English monarch, Edgar the Peaceful is crowned King of England, having ruled since 959 AD. His wife, Ælfthryth, is crowned queen, the first recorded coronation for a Queen of England. 1068 – Matilda of Flanders, wife of William the Conqueror, is crowned Queen of England. 1258 – Louis IX of France and James I of Aragon sign the Treaty of Corbeil, renouncing claims of feudal overlordship in one another's territories and separating the House of Barcelona from the politics of France. 1713 – Great Northern War: After losing the Battle of Helsinki to the Russians, the Swedish and Finnish troops burn the entire city, so that it would not remain intact in the hands of the Russians. 1812 – Prime Minister Spencer Perceval is assassinated by John Bellingham in the lobby of the British House of Commons. 1813 – William Lawson, Gregory Blaxland and William Wentworth discover a route across the Blue Mountains, opening up inland Australia to settlement. 1857 – Indian Rebellion of 1857: Indian rebels seize Delhi from the British. 1880 – Seven people are killed in the Mussel Slough Tragedy, a gun battle in California. 1889 – An attack upon a U.S. Army paymaster and escort results in the theft of over $28,000 and the award of two Medals of Honor. 1894 – Four thousand Pullman Palace Car Company workers go on a wildcat strike. 1919 – Uruguay becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright treaty. 1970 – The 1970 Lubbock tornado kills 26 and causes $250 million in damage. 1985 – Fifty-six spectators die and more than 200 are injured in the Bradford City stadium fire. 1996 – After the aircraft's departure from Miami, a fire started by improperly handled chemical oxygen generators in the cargo hold of Atlanta-bound ValuJet Airlines Flight 592 causes the Douglas DC-9 to crash in the Florida Everglades, killing all 110 on board. 1997 – Deep Blue, a chess-playing supercomputer, defeats Garry Kasparov in the last game of the rematch, becoming the first computer to beat a world-champion chess player in a classic match format. 1998 – India conducts three underground atomic tests in Pokhran. 2011 – An earthquake of magnitude 5.1 hits Lorca, Spain. 2013 – Fifty-two people are killed in a bombing in Reyhanlı, Turkey. 2014 – Fifteen people are killed and 46 injured in Kinshasa, DRC, in a stampede caused by tear gas being thrown into soccer stands by police officers. 2016 – One hundred and ten people are killed in an ISIL bombing in Baghdad. 2022 – The Burmese military executes at least 37 villagers during the Mon Taing Pin massacre in Sagaing, Myanmar. 2024 - Minnesota officially updates its flag.

[mistons]

Miami Beach

Snowden Estate, 1923, looking north from 44th St & Collins Ave. Harvey S. Firestone's Harbel Villa Estate, 1930s. Fontainebleau Hotel construction, 1954. Firestone estate was used as a construction office.  

Miami History / SMU Libraries / Miami Archives / Gottscho-Schleisner collection, LOC

Fontainebleau architect Morris Lapidus: In his day, critics reviled the excesses of Lapidus’ designs, calling his architecture “the nation’s grossest national product,” “pornography of architecture,” and “boarding house baroque” ... There was a “Staircase to Nowhere” so women dressed in couture and jewels could take an elevator to the top to deposit their coats and glamorously descend the stairs to the lobby. - Fontainebleau Hotel, A Colorful History

Steve Wynn:

In 1954 a guy named Ben Novack and his brother Joe Novack, who had  experience in the Catskills at a hotel called Laurel, and in Miami Beach at the Sans Souci Hotel - sort of like Las Vegas with bunch of hotels lined up one next to the other on Collins Avenue - got an option on the Firestone estate at 41st St. on Collins Ave., a big 15-acre oceanfront piece that was owned by the famous family that made tires.

Ben Novack and Joe Novack conceived with an architect named Morris Lapidus of a hotel called Fontainebleau. This place was going to be a new idea. The hotel itself was going to be a series of experiential moments that included formal French gardens, sort of a Jewish version of Versailles; a gorgeous, soaring, high ceiling lobby; a lot of curvilinear spaces and curved stairways; murals on the wall of 18th century France; a fabulous showroom; a shopping arcade below; beyond the garden an expansive Cabana and pool club; a beautiful spa; and a curved building with blue glass. The Fontainebleau was going to set a new standard of destination resorts on planet Earth. It was so breakaway, so profoundly new it didn't even add a name on it. No sign, just the building.

It opened in 1954 and it changed everything people came from France, Italy, Germany, Mexico, Venezuela, Argentina, and Brazil. Between Christmas and Easter you had to know somebody to get a room. Everybody from Frank Sinatra and Johnny Mathis worked there. It was the coolest place to be in America during high season. The Fontainebleau dwarfed in scale and imagination anything that had ever been done anywhere in Europe or America, and it was received that way.  

Jay Sarno was a character from Atlanta. He saw the Fontainebleau. He saw that this place was in the literary sense romantic, better than the outside world. It was a universe utopia within itself. Sarno never got over it

I was going to school at the University of Pennsylvania. My folks had Cabana 364 on an annual basis. I’d come there at Christmastime, and I never got over it. To me it seemed like the greatest thing in the world is to create a place that would transport people that way.

[anotherwvba]

An Origin Story pt. 5

Gabby Jay was a respected man in the halls of the WVBA. At 67 years of age, he was retired from the ring. Despite his journeyman record, every fighter in the league respected his toughness and his wisdom. Just because his sole victory was literally one-in-a-hundred, didn’t mean he didn’t have the ring IQ of a world champion.

As the elder statesman and nowadays WVBA Official made his way to the front lobby, his eyes twinkled with the same excitement as when he was about to step into the ring. The next generation was waiting and this was his favorite part of the job.

"Ah, Nicole, it's good to see you," he greeted as he approached the receptionist’s desk, his thick French accent filling the air.

"Hi Gabby, always a pleasure," Nicole replied, smiling warmly.

“Is a shame about your loss Saturday, non?” Gabby offered, “But it was quite the scrap. You afforded yourself well. I know the German must be proud.”

“Thanks, Gabby,” Nicole blushed at the compliment, “He is.”

"Is this our new batch of hopefuls?" Gabby Jay gestured toward the group of would-be boxers gathered in the lobby.

"Yep, they're all yours," Nicole confirmed.

Mika took her place among the group, deliberately positioning herself near Reina, who seemed engrossed in sizing up Gabby Jay and paid no attention to anyone else.

"Mesdames et Messieurs," Gabby Jay began, capturing everyone's attention. "Welcome to the WVBA Atlanta Campus. I am Gabby Jay. As a WVBA official, I'll be leading your orientation today."

Mika continued to observe Reina, who carried herself with a casual disdain for everyone around her. It was as if she considered herself above the very air they all breathed.

"We'll start with a visit to the infirmary for full physicals," Gabby Jay continued. "Then, I'll give you a tour of our state-of-the-art campus, we'll head to your accommodations in the Campus Lodge, and we’ll end in the gym, surely the highlight of the tour."

One of Reina's entourage interrupted, "Excuse me, Mr. Jay, but my client will be departing immediately after the physical."

Gabby Jay raised an eyebrow. "It's customary for all new fighters to complete the tour and stay on campus the first night."

Before the man could respond, Reina interjected, "I am not subject to 'customary' anything. I am already under contract and have no desire to mingle with a bunch of would-be fighters who are unfit to lace my botas."

Mika stepped up to Reina, her eyes meeting the luchadora's masked gaze. "Hey! I'm signed, too. And I'm proud to share this room with these fighters, working hard and chasing their dreams, just like me. That make me unfit to lace your bota, babae?"

Reina looked at Mika and smiled, a menacing curl on her lips. "Ah, una estrella en ascenso. How cute."

Before the tension could escalate further, Gabby Jay reasserted control. "Alright, let's keep things professional. We have a schedule to stick to. Follow me to the medical facilities."

As the group began to move, Reina deliberately stepped in front of Mika, blocking her path. 

"Do you know who I am?" she asked, her voice dripping with both curiosity and condescension.

"I've been told a little," Mika responded cautiously.

"Scared, chica?" Reina pressed, her eyes narrowing.

"Takes more than you to scare a Filipina or a Bronxite, and I’m both," Mika shot back, her ire rising.

"So little respect," Reina continued, her tone probing.

"Respect is earned, not given," Mika replied, meeting Reina's intense gaze.

Reina's smile returned, more menacing than before, as she leaned toward Mika, their noses nearly touching. "I look forward to 'earning' your respect, estrellita."

For a tense moment, the air between them was electric, a silent promise of battles yet to come.

"Mesdames! Veuillez nous rejoindre!" Gabby Jay called, breaking the momentary standoff.

Both women turned to join the group, but as they did, their eyes met one last time—a mutual acknowledgment that their paths would cross again, and when they did, sparks would fly.

[boricuacherry-blog]

Having followed her mother from jazz cafés to photo shoots, Blu headed to New York at 16 to seek her fortune. A chance meeting with a record executive in the lobby of an Atlanta hotel saw Blu signed to Arista Records and the 2001 release of her debut album So Blu went platinum and this year's Bittersweet has so far spawned a No 1 single.

[bedlamsbard]

⭐ for the fanfic director's cut -- author's choice!

Let's talk about seven months post-Snap Grand Central Terminal + Stark Tower/MetLife Building! Seen in Horizon 14.

Natasha had been in the main concourse of Grand Central Terminal before. Even at three in the morning it had never been as empty as it was now, completely deserted except for a couple of stray pigeons that stared fearlessly at the Avengers as they passed by. Bars of thin winter sunlight slanted in through the sixty-foot arched windows on the east wall, illuminating the marble floor and striking sparks from the four-sided clock on top of the empty information booth. The departure boards above the closed-up ticket counters along the south side of the concourse were still illuminated, reading CANCELLED – CANCELLED – CANCELLED on every line. None of the station’s usual Christmas decorations had gone up even though Thanksgiving had been two days earlier; the station had already been closed then, with no civilians allowed in. Police tape blocked off the stairs to the north entrance. Somewhere far in the distance she thought she heard the rumble of the trains traveling through the empty station without stopping, but it could have been her imagination.

She had seen pictures of the concourse in the immediate aftermath of the Snap, not to mention the famous TIME magazine cover that had come out a week later: a little girl knee-deep in drifts of black ash, holding a doll and staring in incomprehension, the American flag huge behind her. From the pictures Natasha had seen the concourse floor had been blanketed in ash; the Snap had struck at rush hour, and the station had been full of people. It had become one of the most iconic images of the Snap in the United States.

The eerie emptiness of the place made the back of her neck prickle. The steps of the Avengers seemed to echo overly loudly as they crossed to the escalators on the north wall, standing still and silent and blocked off with more police tape. The engraved marble arch above them read STARK TOWER 45TH STREET.

I really wanted to dig into the visuals of post-Snap America, partially because, well -- I think in a very real way Horizon was my way of coping with the 2020-2021 hellscape. For this, I went and looked up the vast array of spring and summer 2020 photographs of New York City, specifically for Grand Central and the MetLife Building. (There's a neat post here with a slider that has pictures/video of pre/post covid New York.)

For some reason I didn't make the connection that the interior of Grand Central got smashed up in The Avengers (you see the four-sided clock bouncing as a leviathan crashes into it), so there's actually no acknowledgment of that in this scene, but we are talking about Marvel so it would probably get rebuilt exactly like the previous version.

The police taped-off stairs are another covid detail, though I've also put the police tape across the escalators leading to Stark Tower (source -- this one also has an "a day in Grand Central Terminal" video.)

Canonically, Stark Tower is the MetLife Building with the top whacked off and the Tower built on top of it, so the sign that IRL says "MetLife Building" says "Stark Tower"

I've gone off the assumption that the building's official name is Stark Tower, not Avengers Tower; the latter is a nickname, but not its actual name. That's why they're used near interchangeably throughout Horizon.

Natasha's description of going from Grand Central to the MetLife Building (a.k.a. Stark Tower) is as accurate as I could make it, because you know what? apparently you can't videotape inside the MetLife Building so the walkthroughs I found all got cut off when a security guard intercepted the videographer. My big divergence from canon is that I used the MetLife Building's lobby, not the Stark Tower lobby that we see in Endgame, which was filmed in a completely different building in Atlanta. This was specifically because I wanted to use this:

The glass storefronts of the shopping concourse on the ground floor stared emptily at them, most with the signs removed – Rhodey had been right, very few tenants had remained by the time the tower had been sold. A few had still been open until the Snap, and printed or handwritten signs on the locked doors and windows read variations on TEMPORARILY CLOSED – CLOSED DUE TO STATE OF NEW YORK MANDATES – CLOSED 30 DAYS SEE YOU JUNE 1. Through a window Natasha could see a glass-fronted refrigerator in one café, the shelves fully stocked with food and beverages except where a soda can had exploded.

MORE SPRING/SUMMER 2020 DETAILS, FRIENDS! The description of the untouched refrigerator with the exploded soda can is a detail borrowed from a friend of mine who actually works in Midtown Manhattan; she got a LOT of questions from me and walked her phone around the exterior of the MetLife Building for me at one point. The "see you June 1" sign is a real sign that I can't find a picture of right now. (In the original covid version it was, I think, April 1 or May 1.)

I have never actually been to Grand Central or to the MetLife Building (the last time I was in New York was in, I think, 2003), so I tried really hard to make it accurate; I don't know if it actually is. But I was trying for a very specific vibe that I should, I think, be familiar to us. I looked at a lot of photographs, I read a lot of news articles, I wracked my own memory, I watched a lot of vlogs about New York from that year.

[spicita]

Impressions 2024 - Wishes

The highlight of my year was DJ's military retirement in October. It felt a bit like planning a wedding and I remain pleasantly surprised that every little detail came together without a hitch - including things beyond our control like the weather! Much like people can clean their home in record time the day before hosting a visitor, The Little Hangar project was completed just minutes before the event. The prior week, DJ and Rob (our handy & generous friend) worked from sunrise to sunset finishing critical items in our metal building such as the stubborn stair railing and so much more. As usual, our community of friends chipped in to create and capture memories that will last a lifetime. We are truly grateful for all gestures both grand (unexpected fireworks) and small (potpourri spray for the shared bathroom) plus everything in between. DJ went out of his way to avoid speeches and tears, but the love was palpable throughout the weekend with unlimited hands of support, laughter, and stories.

The Little Hangar project was our primary focus for the year and while our contractor Brice and his crew completed most of the work, DJ saved us over 25k by tackling the plumbing, staining, painting, and helping as much as he could. This includes repainting the upstairs bathroom three times before settling on the right shade of blue. I have no idea how DJ managed to work on projects after his daily 5k run, a full day at work, and 3 hours maneuvering through Atlanta road-rage. I feel lazy in comparison. I did manage to refinish the sauna with liquid wood (people are so darn clever) and ruined a pair of perfectly good gloves while staining tongue and groove planks in the cold. I also spent hours on my iPhone researching tile, vanities, and soft close hinges until it dropped out of my hand as I dozed. DJ maintains I designed the entire project, but his flair made it into the final product minus the iconic Kramer painting and a few other items I may have vetoed. One of my favorite contributions from DJ is the "Wash your hands you filthy animal" sign from Hobby Lobby. DJ and I beat ourselves up about all of the things we could have done differently but every time I sit down to relax in the loft, I think about how nice it is to be able to enjoy something we created together.

The cherry on top is that despite inflation we were able to pull off the build while remaining debt free. Of course, that wasn't without great sacrifice. DJ sold a few hoopties including the Duster he fixed up for his dad and kept tinkering with after Donnie passed. And yes - we still live in a camper. The Little Hangar is part shop, part entertainment venue, and part guest room. It was never intended to replace our home. Our original idea was to build a separate tiny home on the property but that doesn't seem very practical when we already have everything we need. The human in me envies the beautiful homes inundating our social media feeds and the new homes popping up around every corner. BTW, that's equivalent to every 5-mile marker in our small hometown, affectionately named the "Poos". This desire for more is an ongoing struggle for me and I must constantly remind myself not to give into what I want right now in favor of an earlier retirement.

Another memorable event was going to see Lake Street Dive at The Eastern near downtown Atlanta. The venue was intimate, the crowd mature, and the company priceless. Laura & Fred introduced us to the band years ago and we were finally able to enjoy them live together. Well, minus DJ. That is, until next time. A bonus was getting to hear music from a new favorite trio named Tiny Habits whose song Wishes I have listened to on repeat more times than iTunes can count. The American folk-pop group was formed by three music students from Boston and well, I am a sucker for harmonizing.

And I wish that I was smaller, or I wish I was Better at being kind to the one body that I've got After all, it keeps me breathin' til the day it just cannot

All three singers take turns vocalizing their wishes and come together for the chorus. The song ends with "I wish these wishes weren't all for nothing".

Except for our labor of love, The Little Hangar, I feel as though I spent the year wandering aimlessly. At the end of my prior impression, I committed to a 50 before 50 list which I never wrote… until now. I spent a lot of time feeling my age - less youthful and lethargic. At work, I spent a dreadful amount of time in the weeds of project planning and preparing status reports. Neither of which I find fulfilling. Not sure if this is true for everyone but the older I get the harder it seems to imagine wishes. I am fortunate to have travelled and experienced a wide variety of activities over the years. While I do still have a few bucket list items like watching The Kentucky Derby in person, my enthusiasm for checking things off a list has waned. Unfortunately, that shift comes with a hefty price - because living without intention leads to regret.

With a little bit of luck, irony and gumption - I finally got down to the business of writing my list. As luck would have it, DJ opted to work overtime this weekend giving me sufficient time to focus. The irony, or perhaps coincidence, is that there are exactly 50 days between the first of the year and my 50th birthday. Weird, right? So, instead of coming up with lofty wishes I decided to select specific tasks covering various aspects of my life. It wasn't easy coming up with 50 realistic items for the given timeframe, but I surprised myself with at least one unforeseen gem. Can you guess which?

Self-improvement gurus often talk about the importance of having a purpose. I always thought that the elusive purpose had to be a single thing or at least ONE big thing. But maybe it's about many little things… like recognizing a co-worker or going roller skating with friends. Although the thought of a list felt daunting and limiting, the exercise of coming up with categories, researching ideas, and authoring these tasks made me feel a little bit spicier. Antoine de Saint-Exupery, the author of The Little Prince wrote: "A goal without a plan is just a wish." But maybe plans can lead to wishes too… and not for nothing.

Read prior impressions…

Impressions 2023 - Sleepover

Impressions 2022 - Unfinished

Impressions 2021 - Domino

Impressions 2020 - Masked

Impressions 2019 - Grace

Impressions 2018 - Surrender

Impressions 2017 - Ordinary

Impressions 2016 - Kindness

Impressions 2015 - Blossom

Impressions 2014 - Independence

Impressions 2013 - Vow

Impressions 2012 - Faith

Impressions 2011 - Dream

Impressions 2010 - Penguin

Impressions 2009 - Smile

Impressions 2008 - Fun

Impressions 2007 - Inspiration

Impressions 2006 - Magic

Impressions 2005 - Love

Impressions 2004 - Influence

[actionyak]

-see this is hotel lobby

-google "Atlanta fried chicken sign"

-"Atlanta big chicken location"

-8 minutes away

-show dad map

-go past it on the way home

-I will get to visit the Atlanta Big Chicken

I have like three reaction images on my phone

[wordexpress]

Trump to surrender on August 24 over Georgia charges tied to efforts to overturn 2020 US election

It will be Trump's fourth arrest since April when he became the first former president in US history to face indictment.

Former President Donald Trump says he will surrender to authorities in Georgia on Thursday to face charges in the case accusing him of illegally scheming to overturn his 2020 election loss in the state.

“Can you believe it? I’ll be going to Atlanta, Georgia, on Thursday to be ARRESTED,” Trump wrote on his social media network Monday night, hours after his bond was set at $200,000.

It will be Trump’s fourth arrest since April when he became the first former president in US history to face indictment. Since then, Trump, who remains the leading candidate for the Republican presidential nomination, has had what has seemed like an endless procession of bookings and arraignments in jurisdictions across the country.

His appearances in New York, Florida and Washington, D.C., have drawn enormous media attention, with news helicopters tracking his every move.

Trump’s announcement came hours after his attorneys met with prosecutors in Atlanta to discuss the details of his release on bond. The former president is barred from intimidating co-defendants, witnesses or victims in the case — including on social media — according to the bond agreement signed by Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, Trump’s defence attorneys and the judge. It explicitly includes “posts on social media or reposts of posts” made by others.

Trump has repeatedly used social media to attack people involved in the criminal cases against him as he campaigns to reclaim the White House in 2024. He has been railing against Willis since before he was indicted and singled out Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp — a Republican who rebuffed his efforts to overturn the election — by name in a social media post on Monday.

The agreement also prohibits the former president from making any “direct or indirect threat of any nature” against witnesses or co-defendants, and from communicating in any way about the facts of the case with them, except through attorneys.

The order sets Trump’s bond for the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations — or RICO — charge at $80,000 and adds $10,000 for each of the 12 other counts he is facing. Bond is the amount defendants must pay as a form of collateral to ensure they show up for required court appearances.

Willis set a deadline of noon Friday for Trump and his 18 co-defendants to turn themselves in to be booked. The prosecutor has proposed that arraignments for the defendants follow during the week of Sept. 5. She has said she wants to try the defendants collectively and bring the case to trial in March of next year, which would put it in the heat of the presidential nominating season.

A Trump spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the filing. A phone message seeking comment was also left for an attorney for the former president. Trump’s appearance in Georgia will come a day after the first Republican primary debate, which he has decided to skip. He is expected to turn himself in at the Fulton County jail, which has long been plagued with problems.

The Department of Justice last month opened a civil rights investigation into conditions, citing filthy cells, violence and the death last year of a man whose body was found covered in insects in the main jail’s psychiatric wing. Three people have died in Fulton County custody in the past month.

The Fulton County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release Monday afternoon that when Trump surrenders there will be a “hard lockdown” of the area surrounding the jail. But Trump is not expected to spend much time there.

When defendants arrive at the building, they typically pass through a security checkpoint before checking in for formal booking in the lobby. During the booking process, defendants are typically photographed and fingerprinted and asked to provide certain personal information. Since Trump’s bond has already been set, he will be released from custody once the booking process is complete.

Unlike in other jurisdictions, in Fulton County, arraignments — where a defendant first appears in court — are generally set after a defendant completes the booking process and do not happen on the same day. Booking a former president, who still has 24-hour Secret Service protection, has created myriad security and logistical issues in other jurisdictions.

In his past appearances in a New York state court and federal courts in Miami and Washington, Trump was not handcuffed while in custody. He was also not required to pose for a mugshot, with officials instead using existing photographs of the former president.

Georgia officials have said Trump will be treated like others charged with crimes in their state. “Unless somebody tells me differently, we are following our normal practices, and so it doesn’t matter your status, we’ll have a mugshot ready for you,” Fulton County Sheriff Patrick Labat said at a news conference earlier this month.

Trump was charged last week in the case alongside a slew of allies, who prosecutors say conspired to subvert the will of voters in a desperate bid to keep the Republican in the White House after he lost to Democrat Joe Biden.

Trump has denied any wrongdoing, and he characterizes the case — and the three others he is facing — as efforts to hurt his 2024 presidential campaign. He has regularly used his Truth Social platform to single out prosecutors and others involved in his cases and to continue to spread falsehoods that the 2020 election was stolen from him.

In a post on Monday, Trump called the Fulton County district attorney ���crooked, incompetent, & highly partisan.” He also attacked Kemp, whom he has long targeted for the governor’s refusal to intervene after the 2020 election. Kemp has been outspoken in pushing back against Trump, writing on social media last week: “The 2020 election in Georgia was not stolen.”

Bond was also set Monday for three lawyers who were indicted along with Trump. For each of them, the bond for the RICO charge was set at $20,000, with varying amounts for the other charges they face. John Eastman and Kenneth Chesebro each had a bond set at $100,000, while Ray Smith’s bond is $50,000. Bail bondsman Scott Hall, who was accused of participating in a breach of election equipment in rural Coffee County, had his bond set at $10,000.

Other defendants include former White House chief of staff Mark Meadows; Trump attorney and former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, and a Trump administration Justice Department official, Jeffrey Clark, who aided the then-president’s efforts to undo his election loss in Georgia.

The Georgia indictment came just two weeks after the Justice Department special counsel charged Trump in a separate case in a vast conspiracy to overturn the election. Besides the two election-related cases, Trump faces a federal indictment accusing him of illegally hoarding classified documents as well as a New York state case charging him with falsifying business records.

[lgrem131]

August 7, 2023

Bill and Linda’s Excellent Anniversary Adventure

Our day started with a 2:45 alarm. Our driver, Al, was to pick us up and deliver us to the airport 1 1/2 hours before our 5:20 departure. We were ready and he was punctual. The airport was packed, but we made it quickly through TSA and checked on our gate only to see CANCELED a next to our Atlanta flight! We still went to our gate at the end of the concourse and after speaking with a Delta agent, headed back where we had started. Having checked in online yesterday, we neglected to even check before leaving the house. Actually we still would have needed to get to the airport at 0-dark30. At the Delta check-in desk, the agent found an American flight leaving at 6:10, flying to Charlotte, connecting there to get to Aruba about an hour later than our original arrival.

Our two flights went smoothly, with Bill texting our pick-up driver about the change. After clearing Customs, we left the passenger area to see Sherman holding his Welcome William Gremillion sign. He took our two bags and cheerfully lead us to his new Honda Crossover. After giving us to ice cold bottles of water, he preceded to give us a brief tour on the way to the Embassy Suites Resort.

As soon as Sherman parked and started taking our bags in, a hotel employee took them and we said goodbye to our Aruba welcoming party. The hotel is very new and very impressive. We were given a room on the 7th floor with an ocean view. But before we had even completed the check-in process, Melissa, the lead on the production team, greeted us. She and the other 3 members were sitting together in the lobby and asked us to stop by before going up to our room. They simply wanted to shake hands and discuss meeting times tomorrow.

Bill and I spent a few minutes in our room, 716, enjoying the plate of fresh fruit left as part of a welcoming gift. Next we headed back down for the Managers Reception, a hotel Happy Hour with a couple of free drinks and several large platters of various munchies. We discussed dinner and decided to just stay at the hotel, not push it. We’ll have all week to get to the beach.

One final surprise the occurred. We had talked our food out to the terrace for sundown. A young man approached and politely asked if we’d like a bottle of champagne. It seems that Josh, his wife, Millie, and two little girls were ending their Aruba vacation. They were here celebrating his 40th birthday, and his mother had sent him a bottle of Moët. Josh and Millie had not had an opportunity to enjoy it, being so busy with little ones and he was wanting to give it away. He had picke us, not realizing that we were celebrating our anniversary!

What an adventurous day this has been. Tomorrow should be even more so.

[thetoxicgamer]

Clowns, ‘s**t stains,’ teammates: Atlanta FaZe’s biggest rival joins CDL powerhouse

The Atlanta FaZe revealed today via ZooMaa's Twitch feed that Drazah, the team's fiercest adversary, has been signed to take SlasheR's place on its Call of Duty League (CDL) squad for 2024. For the better part of two CDL seasons, FaZe and Drazah have been at odds with one another. But with Drazah's Los Angeles Thieves' poor first-round ouster and Atlanta's third-place showing at the 2023 CDL Championship, it appears that the parties have patched up their differences and teamed up. https://twitter.com/ATLFaZe/status/1682133841140654082 https://twitter.com/ATLFaZe/status/1682133841140654082 While heavily rumored for the past few weeks, Drazah’s choice to sign with FaZe has been a consistent topic of conversation among CoD fans. While some are merely focused on how Drazah will fit in with the team in the lobby, most of the discussion has centered on the compatibility of the four players and whether the FaZe trio of Simp, aBeZy, and Cellium can get along with their new teammate. During the 2022 and 2023 seasons, FaZe ran into Drazah and LAT several times, and many of those matchups led to some fiery and quite personal trash talk. Moments after the Thieves defeated FaZe in the grand finals of the 2022 CDL Championship, denying them back-to-back rings, Drazah threw both middle fingers into the air and directed them to FaZe’s side of the stage. While there was no in-person confrontation, Drazah and Simp traded words on Twitter, with the former CDL MVP calling Drazah a “clown” for taunting FaZe on social media. After another LAT victory over FaZe at Major Four in April this year, Drazah celebrated on Twitter: “GGs Faze won 3-1. FUCKING SHIT STAINS, GET THE FUCK OFF ME.” https://twitter.com/Drazah/status/1649862902566866944 While many fans are bewildered that the rivals could patch things up and become teammates, it appears the foursome is ready to do just that in an effort to win another ring, which would give Cellium and Drazah their second and Simp and aBeZy their record-tying third. And while the team will surely be one of the most talented in the CDL, they will certainly have some stiff competition around the league. In addition to the reigning world champion New York Subliners, former FaZe players SlasheR and Priestahh officially joined the Boston Breach yesterday, while Envoy, Drazah’s LAT teammate of the last two seasons, is now part of a star-studded Toronto Ultra roster. And then there is OpTic Texas, which is rumored to be signing Seattle Surge standout Pred as well as ex-LAT player and 2022 CDL Champs MVP Kenny after the team reportedly failed to acquire Drazah. Read the full article

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 5.11

330 – Constantine the Great dedicates the much-expanded and rebuilt city of Byzantium, changing its name to New Rome and declaring it the new capital of the Eastern Roman Empire. 973 – In the first coronation ceremony ever held for an English monarch, Edgar the Peaceful is crowned King of England, having ruled since 959 AD. His wife, Ælfthryth, is crowned queen, the first recorded coronation for a Queen of England. 1068 – Matilda of Flanders, wife of William the Conqueror, is crowned Queen of England. 1258 – Louis IX of France and James I of Aragon sign the Treaty of Corbeil, renouncing claims of feudal overlordship in one another's territories and separating the House of Barcelona from the politics of France. 1713 – Great Northern War: After losing the Battle of Helsinki to the Russians, the Swedish and Finnish troops burn the entire city, so that it would not remain intact in the hands of the Russians. 1812 – Prime Minister Spencer Perceval is assassinated by John Bellingham in the lobby of the British House of Commons. 1813 – William Lawson, Gregory Blaxland and William Wentworth discover a route across the Blue Mountains, opening up inland Australia to settlement. 1857 – Indian Rebellion of 1857: Indian rebels seize Delhi from the British. 1858 – The Minnesota Territory gains enough population to enter as the 32nd state of the United States of America; the date is annually celebrated in the state as "Statehood Day". 1880 – Seven people are killed in the Mussel Slough Tragedy, a gun battle in California. 1889 – An attack upon a U.S. Army paymaster and escort results in the theft of over $28,000 and the award of two Medals of Honor. 1894 – Four thousand Pullman Palace Car Company workers go on a wildcat strike. 1919 – Uruguay becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright treaty. 1970 – The 1970 Lubbock tornado kills 26 and causes $250 million in damage. 1985 – Fifty-six spectators die and more than 200 are injured in the Bradford City stadium fire. 1996 – After the aircraft's departure from Miami, a fire started by improperly handled chemical oxygen generators in the cargo hold of Atlanta-bound ValuJet Airlines Flight 592 causes the Douglas DC-9 to crash in the Florida Everglades, killing all 110 on board. 1997 – Deep Blue, a chess-playing supercomputer, defeats Garry Kasparov in the last game of the rematch, becoming the first computer to beat a world-champion chess player in a classic match format. 1998 – India conducts three underground atomic tests in Pokhran. 2011 – An earthquake of magnitude 5.1 hits Lorca, Spain. 2013 – Fifty-two people are killed in a bombing in Reyhanlı, Turkey. 2014 – Fifteen people are killed and 46 injured in Kinshasa, DRC, in a stampede caused by tear gas being thrown into soccer stands by police officers. 2016 – One hundred and ten people are killed in an ISIL bombing in Baghdad. 2022 – The Burmese military executes at least 37 villagers during the Mon Taing Pin massacre in Sagaing, Myanmar.