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bemusedlybespectacled · 10 months

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Hi! I'm in law school rn and having a lot feelings and thoughts about it. Would ou share some thoughts and positivity? Am I in the right path? Cries and panics in finals are coming and I don't know if this is for me

IMO there are two potential reasons for these kinds of feelings:

You don't feel like this is the right path for you because you feel incapable/incompetent and lawyers are supposed to be Very Very Smart And Capable And Good At Shit All The Time.

You don't feel this is the right path for you because you just genuinely don't like law: you don't like compiling big piles of data into neat bins that match the elements of a particular statute or a specific holding or a coherent argument.

(The third potential reason is for later in your career, in which case it might be that you don't like certain elements of the practice of law: dealing with needy clients, meeting a billable hours requirement, working long hours, etc. In that case, you can always try changing the type of law you're doing - like, if you hate litigating in courtrooms, you might prefer going in-house, or becoming a law librarian, or being a clerk.)

If it's that you don't like law, you do not have to keep doing it. You are allowed to find something else that you like better. A couple of people in my law school class dropped out to be teachers; my clinic partner has a law degree and a PhD and has only ever taught as a professor; you do not have to throw good money after bad on a career that you don't like.

If it's that you feel incompetent and stupid and not like A Lawyer™ because lawyers are geniuses: first of all, I bet you are perfectly fine and can totally do this, because you got all the way here and that's pretty fucking hard already. But let's pretend that fear is actually true and you really are that bad (I doubt it): I promise you, I promise you that there are people practicing law right now who have no idea what the fuck they are doing. Not even in a cutesy "we all get imposter syndrome sometimes" way, I mean "holy fuck how are you still practicing" way.

The CPS attorney I worked across from in my old job did not know any of the rules of evidence, had no legal writing skills whatsoever, and couldn't handle making or defending objections to save her fucking life. She was the attorney for the entire fucking county.

I once got a response to a multi-page motion (like four pages of argument and another 25 or so of exhibits) that was two pages with enormous fucking margins and paragraph spacing, spelling errors, and no actual argument from a guy who had been practicing longer than I've been alive. I actually saved his reply (and the judgement with the footnote that says "as Attorney Bespectacled correctly notes in her brief") as a pick-me-up for when I'm feeling like a fucking idiot.

There are lawyers with a shitload of experience, who make millions of dollars taking on high profile cases, who fucking suck at it. Seriously, watch either of the Sandy Hook trials on the Law and Crime Youtube channel (or listen to any of the depositions that get covered on the Knowledge Fight podcast - they're all titled "Formulaic Objections") if you want to see just how bad a person has to be at being a lawyer in order to get sanctioned.

At one point when I was studying for the bar exam and panicking over it, my partner said, "Michael Cohen passed the bar exam, and I know you're smarter than him, so if he can pass it, so can you." I'm certain you're both smarter and a better person than, like, any of Trump's lawyers, or even a good chunk of my law school classmates (like the entirety of FedSoc cough cough).

But even if you're not, remember: there's only ever one CALI winner per class, so most people aren't going to ever get one. Most people who graduate law school and pass the bar and practice law are just incredibly fucking average. Like, that's just math. You're not a failure if you aren't the best, because most people aren't the best. You can still do very well in life as a lawyer even if you're just Some Person, because that's what most lawyers are.

(Also, sidenote: law school and actual law are very different environments. How you do in one has very little bearing on how you do in the other.)

tl;dr: You're going to be fine no matter what you end up deciding.

#eloonie #lawblr #real lawblr #law school #askbox #personal #bb is a lawyer

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xtruss · 6 months

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The New Tipping Etiquette: How Much to Tip in Every Situation, from Salons to Restaurants to Drivers and Delivery

— Charlotte Hilton Andersen | March 15, 2024

Anon Krudsumlit/Getty Images

The pandemic changed tipping etiquette. Here's what you need to know about when, what, and how to tip now.

For Americans, knowing how much to tip has always been stressful—there are no set rules, so you’re left guessing how to convert service quality into cash and avoid making any tipping mistake—but all the contactless delivery options and other new protocols that popped up after the pandemic have only increased the confusion. Many workers who often make less than minimum wage, normally survive on tips, like waitstaff at sit-down restaurants, hotel clerks, and bartenders, lost this large part of their income when they no longer served customers in person, says Toni Dupree, a professional etiquette coach and author of a book and magazine column on etiquette rules and tipping culture.

But while tipping for in-person services stopped during the height of the pandemic, other types of services exploded. Suddenly things like food and package delivery and grocery pickup were considered safety essentials. Places that had never asked for a gratuity before, like fast-food restaurants and coffee shops, were now asking for tips. Digital tipping systems that have increased throughout the pandemic have led to a phenomenon of tipflation, putting stress on everyone’s personal finances. And newer service jobs became popular, like concierge health care, where doctors and nurses come to your home to do exams.

Did all these new services require a tip? Should the tip be bigger since these “essential workers” were working during a pandemic? Should tips depend on how risky the job is? And let’s not forget about the hit to most of our wallets. Money has been getting tighter for many people, particularly those who lost their jobs. Should folks on a reduced income still be expected to tip everyone in the service industry regardless of the quality of service?

Then there’s the age-old question of how much to tip hairdressers versus how much to tip hotel housekeeping versus how much to tip movers versus—well, you get the idea. It got really confusing, really fast. “It began to feel like there was no rhyme or reason at all to tipping,” says Dupree. “We were just tipping based on emotion, and that may or may not have had anything to do with the actual service.”

We’re here to answer all those questions and more so you know just how much to give in thanks for services rendered well. When you’re done with this article, test your smarts with our quiz: Do you know how much to tip?

Old Etiquette Rules No Longer Apply

The rules about whom, how, when, and how much you should tip have changed, says Lisa Grotts, a certified etiquette professional, author of several books on etiquette, and the former director of protocol for the city and county of San Francisco—a job where she oversaw national and diplomatic etiquette protocols, including tipping.

Here’s What Has Changed:

Whom you should tip. There are more types of service workers that should be tipped.

Amount of the tip. Many people are giving far more generous tips.

The type of tip given. In addition to cash, more people are “tipping” with gift baskets, prepackaged foods, thank-you notes, and gift cards.

The situations in which we tip. Food-service tips moved beyond gratuities for waitstaff and now include tips on pickup and virtual orders or tips for the restaurant owner. New tipping situations have become common.

The tipping method. Many service people now prefer virtual tipping through Venmo, PayPal, Square, and other electronic apps that allow you to transfer money to someone personally and immediately.

What businesses do with the tips. More businesses are asking for tips, and it has become more common for tips to be divided between all the workers at an establishment, including those not directly interacting with customers.

Tipping Guide: How Much To Tip In 2024

We’ve compiled the best tips on tipping in the United States from our experienced etiquette experts. Here’s the lowdown on whom, when, and how much you ought to tip.

RD.Com

Restaurant Takeout: When the pandemic hit, a lot of in-person restaurants sold takeout only, prompting people to wonder: Do you tip for takeout? The answer is yes. You should tip restaurant workers for all orders, including takeout and delivery. Tip in high-end as well as casual restaurants.

Tip: 10 to 15 percent of the total check

In-Person Restaurant: Tip your waiter or waitress if you dine in but also tip anyone who assists you in getting your food, as waitstaff often do many jobs now. That’s just good dining etiquette.

Tip: 15 to 20 percent of the total check

Food Delivery: Tipping is now expected for all types of food deliveries, including DoorDash and UberEats. Most delivery drivers prefer to be tipped through the app, and this is often done when the order is placed, before the delivery happens. So, how much should you tip for pizza delivery next time you get a craving for a warm, cheesy pie? It depends on your bill’s total, but the below advice is a good rule to follow.

Tip: 10 to 15 percent or $2 to $5, but consider increasing the amount if the weather is bad, if you live far away, or if your order is large.

Personal Grocery Shoppers: The pandemic popularized services like Instacart, where you place an order online or through an app and then someone else does the shopping for you. Tip your shopper, even if you go to the store and pick up the delivery yourself. Tips in the app are preferred, but cash is acceptable.

Tip: 10 to 15 percent of the bill or, if tip is already included, a few dollars extra

Bartenders: Consider tipping generously, as it is more common now for bartenders to have to split their tips with everyone working that shift.

Tip: $2 per drink or 10 to 15 percent of the bill

Baristas: Your spare change dropped in a jar on the counter used to be enough, but now tipping is expected.

Tip: $1 per drink or more if your order is complicated

Hospitality

Hotel Housekeeping: Tip daily, leaving cash in an envelope marked for the housekeeper or with “hotel housekeeping” written on the front.

Tip: $1 to $3 per night, plus $5 for any extra services, like an emergency razor

Valets: Tip cash when you hand over the keys. How much to tip a valet depends on whether you have special requests; if you do, tip more.

Tip: $5 to $10

Doormen: Doormen do a lot more than simply hailing cabs these days, so take into account how much work they do for you. Also take the weather into consideration.

Tip: $5 to $20

Bellhop: Tip per bag and a little extra if they take your luggage all the way to your room.

Tip: $2 to $3 per bag, and $5 for room delivery

Home Deliveries

Amazon Delivery Drivers: Amazon drivers are allowed to accept tips, but it isn’t expected. Consider a tip if you have things delivered more than twice a week. Bottled water or juice and prepackaged snacks left on your porch is a nice gesture too.

Tip: $5 to $20 in cash in an envelope if the delivery is extra large

USPS Drivers and Mail Carriers: The United States Postal Service has updated its rules about what employees can and cannot accept—gifts need to be under $50 per year. Here’s what you’re legally allowed to gift your mail carrier. There’s no limit on thank-you notes though!

Tip: No tip on individual deliveries but a small gift or cash at the holidays is always appreciated.

Furniture and Appliance Delivery People: The amount of the tip depends on the size of the package and what kind of work was done. For instance, tip more if they installed an appliance, put together furniture, or removed old items for you.

Tip: $20 or 15 percent of the price

Special Delivery People: Workers who deliver special-occasion items, like flower bouquets and gift baskets, are generally tipped by the person who ordered the gift, but it’s kind to consider offering them a tip as well.

Tip: $5 to $10 cash

Movers: Even if your company is paying for your move to a new house, you should tip movers. It’s also nice to provide cold drinks and food for movers.

Tip: $20 per person per day and $50 for a supervisor

Salon and Spa Services

Hairstylists and Barbers: Tip your stylist, barber, and their assistants. One of the biggest salon etiquette mistakes you can make is walking out after a haircut without handing your stylist and the assistant who washed your hair some money in thanks.

Tip: 15 to 20 percent, plus $5 to $10 for the assistant

Nail Technicians: Tip for all services, including manicures, pedicures, foot massages, and polish changes. How much to tip for a pedicure, manicure, and the like depends on how much work is done.

Tip: 10 to 20 percent, but skew higher if you have special nail art done

Massage Therapists: How much to tip a massage therapist will depend on the overall cost of your massage. But keep in mind that extra cleaning protocols have added more work to a typical massage and consider tipping a little more generously.

Tip: 15 percent of the cost or $20

Personal Services

House Cleaners: You should certainly tip house cleaners during the holidays or for extra work, but many people are now adding a small tip for each cleaning done well.

Tip: 15 to 20 percent of the bill

Business Managers or Owners: Some people have recommended tipping the salon owner in addition to the stylist or manicurist. But it’s more common now for small business owners to require any tips earned by individual employees to be shared with the rest of the staff, so tipping the boss separately is unnecessary.

Tip: No tip is required, but if service is spectacular, consider writing the owner a thank-you note and leaving a five-star online review.

Lyft, Uber, and Other Rideshare Drivers: Do you tip Uber drivers and other rideshare service drivers? You betcha. You can still tip cash to the driver at the end of the ride or tip electronically through the app (it often will suggest an amount). Tips are generally more generous now than they were previously.

Tip: A minimum of 15 to 20 percent of the bill

Home Service Providers: Plumbers, painters, HVAC specialists, carpet cleaners, appliance repair people, handymen, and other people who do odd jobs in your home generally include everything in the final price, but you can tip if you feel like the service was extraordinary.

Tip: A small gift, a thank-you card, or $10 to $20 in cash

Pet Care Providers: How much to tip a dog groomer, dog walker, or pet sitter depends on the cost of the service, but etiquette rules dictate you tip something. It isn’t necessary to tip veterinarians or vet techs, however.

Tip: 10 to 15 percent of the bill

Personal Trainers and Fitness Instructors: No tips are necessary for a regular training session or class, but consider tipping at the end of a package of sessions, like eight weeks. Group fitness instructors do not expect tips, but the occasional gift is always appreciated.

Tip: $10 to $20

Gift Cards: When you purchase a gift card in the amount of the service—say, when buying a massage or restaurant dinner for a friend—be sure to add the tip amount onto the gift card. This makes it easy for the person using the gift card to pay for the service and the tip. Without gratuity included, many people forget to tip on gifts.

Tip: 10 to 20 percent of the service charge

When in Doubt, Tip

There are many other situations in which tipping may be appropriate, and if you’re in doubt, offer a tip, says Dupree. “One of my favorite quotes, by George Eliot, says, ‘What do we live for if not to make the world less difficult for each other?’ Tipping well is one way to make things a little easier for someone else.”

When To Skip The Tip

While service workers appreciate—and often rely on—tips, not everyone should get a monetary bonus. In addition to USPS drivers, many government workers aren’t able to accept tips. You don’t need to tip teachers, health care providers, or professionals like lawyers and accountants.

Other Tips on Tipping:

Before you tip, check if gratuity has already been added to your bill.

Calculate how much to tip based on original prices, even if it’s happy hour or your order has a discount.

If you want to become the beloved regular at your bar, tip bartenders generously (50 percent). For the same title at a coffee joint, put $5 straight into the tip jar. Being friendly and starting conversations will also get you remembered, and getting on the employees’ good side could get you a free drink in the future.

Don’t leave your tip out in the open. Give it to the server directly, put it in the holder the check came in, or use a credit card.

Don’t be shy about tipping more if you receive excellent service.

If people can’t or won’t accept tips, still give them a handshake and a sincere “Thank you.”

If you’re traveling overseas, read up on tipping guidelines. Tipping etiquette around the world differs from etiquette in the United States

— Charlotte Hilton Andersen is an award-winning journalist who covers etiquette, relationships, psychology, health and lifestyle. She has written more than 50 etiquette stories for Reader’s Digest, spearheading the site’s popular Polite Habits and Best Messages series. With a knack for capturing the essence of an interview subject, she also specializes in human-interest and “as told to” stories. In addition to Reader’s Digest and The Healthy, her work has been published in Shape, Cosmopolitan, Women's Health, O Magazine, Fitness, Redbook, Seventeen, What to Expect When You're Expecting and more.

#RD.Com #Knowledge #Etiquette #Tipping Etiquette

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deckbuildersoverlandpark · 3 years

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What If My HOA Doesn’t Approve My Project?

When you live in a neighborhood governed by a Homeowners Association, you’re quite familiar with how rigid their rules can be. It’s especially frustrating when you have your heart set on how you want your dream deck to look, yet you must work within the parameters set forth by the Powers That Be.

HOAs have “architectural control” over your house and property.

HOAs exist for the express purpose of protecting the value of the homes in the neighborhood. Their rules and regulations are put in place to prevent homeowners from altering aspects of their property that may be an eyesore to those around them. After all, no home seller deserves to have potential buyers walk away or offer a lower price because the neighbor’s monstrous deck diminishes the expectation of privacy they should have in their own backyard.

When your HOA rejects your dream deck specs, you have two choices.

Modify your original deck design- Doing this can be heartbreaking, so try to stay focused by imagining the immense enjoyment the deck will bring you even though it might lack some of the sparkles you originally intended.

Appeal the decision- If you believe the HOA is out of line and needs to be challenged, you’ll have to gather evidence demonstrating that you are in the right.

Visit the county clerk’s office to verify that the HOA’s rules about deck construction have been properly recorded. If this is not the case, the regulations are unenforceable.

Talk to others in the neighborhood to find out if any of them have a similar deck design that was approved.

Find out how old the HOA covenants are because if they haven’t been updated since the 1970s, you may be able to get them amended. If you go this route, be sure to rally the support of your neighbors.

As you can see, dealing with the aftermath of the HOA’s denial can be a massive headache.

Save time and energy by avoiding the HOA’s Stamp of Denial!

The last thing you need is your new deck becoming a reminder of the time you went into battle against your HOA. To avoid turning your dreams of an outdoor retreat into a nightmare, there are a few things you can do.

Before you draw up your ideal deck design, follow these steps:

Research the building permits from the county’s website- This is a good way to discover what the county will and won’t allow when it comes to decks. Plus, proving to the HOA that you’re aware of all the permits that must be pulled following their approval is a smart move. For example, if your design requires electrical work, it’s reassuring to them that you’re prepared to satisfy the county’s requirements by obtaining an electrical permit in addition to the building permit.

Research the HOA’s regulations regarding backyard decks- Knowing what is and is not allowed will help you design a deck that will receive the HOA’s Stamp of Approval.

Now that you know what is allowed per the HOA and the county, it’s time to move forward by creating a blueprint for an outdoor retreat that will give you years of pleasure and lasting memories.

Download and complete the HOA’s application- Carefully fill out all pages and be sure not to leave any blank responses. If you don’t understand something, get in touch with an HOA board member and have them explain it to you. It can take the HOA up to 60 days to return their decision, so avoid doing anything that will cause a delay in their response. They may even deny the application if it’s incomplete or filled out incorrectly.

Gain your neighbors’ approval- Have your next-door neighbors check out your deck design and, if they have no objections, have them sign a Statement of Approval that you can draw up yourself. Demonstrating to the HOA that your neighbors don’t have a problem with your proposed deck will help sway the board members.

Submit detailed specs- Your HOA will want to know everything about the deck you intend to build, so be sure to include all the specifics such as height, width, building materials, and where it will be located on the property.

Once the HOA gives your deck design a thumbs up, make sure you get their determination in writing. Should any problems arise, you’ll have proof that the original specs were indeed approved by the board. There have been instances where an HOA has requested a deck be dismantled due to violations, so it’s best to save everything in a file in case your deck’s design is put to the test, which could happen many years after its construction.

Relax! Leave it to the Experts of Kansas City Deck Projects.

Considering the strict protocols involved, it can be challenging to deal with the HOA’s Architectural Review Board. All you want to do is enjoy a gorgeous deck, so why not take the pressure off by hiring a decking contractor who can deliver exactly what the HOA is demanding to see?

We at All Weather Decks will swiftly accomplish this and so much more! Not only will we get your deck design approved during its first submittal, but we’ll happily pull the necessary permits as soon as we secure your HOA’s written endorsement. On the topic of pulling permits, we don’t recommend that homeowners handle this task and encourage readers to check out this article to understand why. By hiring us to handle all the red tape, you can be enjoying your dream deck while summer is still here!

Reference Link: https://www.allweatherdecks.net/press-releases/home-owner-association-project-approval/

#kansas City decks

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stone-man-warrior · 5 years

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January 2, 2020: 6:28 pm:

For what it’s worth, I am optimistic that there are some people in USA that are still able to enjoy having a Happy New Year, and the beginning of a new decade. Unfortunately, the “Terrible Two’s” seems to be at hand for the next ten years.

I cannot say that a happy new year is in the future anywhere in Oregon for anyone who is American, or is not a Christian member of the Crusades of Death. The Christian Crusade terror soldiers continue to have a fantastic time raping, pillaging, murdering Americans and non-Christians by the thousands daily, and they are enjoying free housing, and new vehicles supplied by the terror leadership.

I just returned from another Socio-Terrific shopping experience in Dystopia, Grants Pass Oregon, where all of the citizens that once lived here, were all brutally murdered and replaced with impostor citizens from Canada, who assumed the identification of the many hundreds of thousands, and in fact many millions of citizens that were so brutally slaughtered.

The killing continues unchecked.

I noticed some different things about the terror conditions while out shopping today.

I visited 6th Street Market.

Fred Meyer Gas Station.

Walmart.

In general, the entire shopping experience included very little outwardly offensive conditions. Many of the usual offensive Nitrous Oxide/Versed airborne gas “Foggers” were either not present, or were not following me around so offensively as they usually do.

As I left my home, a there was a notable reduction of offensive terror scouts whp are usually in great number along Three Pines Road. I saw a small group of them standing in the yard at the residence of “Mike’s Plumbing” at the corner of Three Pines and Russell, and only three Scout cars were on Three Pines, as opposed to the usual ten to fifteen scouts along the short length of Three Pines Road that I take to get to the Freeway.

I did not encounter anyone on “MyStreet” or Russell Road, and the “Bad Guy Automotive” terror cell that is a Google sponsored terror cell was void of visible terror scouts, all of which is very unusual to see as I leave my home no matter what time of day I go somewhere.

I overheard that there were “Elv’s” in town today, with names like Flurry NoggenBeard, Thumbs Tinkerschidt, and Fruitacake SprinklePants. At Walmart, there were actually fake customers pointing at people in the store, and making bets as to which of the other shoppers in the store were “Elv’s”, and they were betting what the names of the Elv’s were, I heard “Crafty UnderBench”, “Polly IceSyckle”, and “Philly McToyStore” were among the most popular wagers for those who were pointed out by the Walmart terror soldiers, as they hunted for outsiders to mark for the kill. “Red Elf Lob’s” were among the subject matter I overheard as popular at the Walmart and the 6th Street Market. I assume that is a term used to describe tossing the outsiders into the giant blender they use at the Walmart, and elsewhere, to grind the victims into “V-8″ liquefied human beings that are used as “Erosion Abatement” on the roadsides by the terror army subcontractors who do contract work for US Department of Transportation, and are paid by the Federal Government to dispose of the citizen victims that way.

One notable thing on the Freeway happened at the on-ramp at “Exit 61″ on I-5, when a Impostor Sheriff, in a real Sheriff SUV, entered the Freeway directly in front of me. At the time I noticed the Sheriff vehicle as it was on the on-ramp, my car began to run erratically and lost power as the Sheriff car was still on the on-ramp. This happens whenever I encounter a Sheriff car in traffic or parked on the roadside, and also when I encounter a State Police vehicle. My car begins to lose power, and feels as if it is about to stall. That same thing happens at the intersection of Beacon Street, and Grants Pass Parkway between the “Sleep Train” mattress shop, and the place that used to be the Blockbuster Video Rental and the old US Cellular Phone store. Another place that the car loses power is on 6th Street, as I pass the place that once was the Josephine County Department of Health Services and Josephine County Department of Human Services, which have been undergoing a remodel, reconstruction at the building on 6th Street for more than two years, and is not complete yet.

So, the thing I think is happening with the loss of power of my car at only specific areas and in proximity to Sheriff and State Police vehicles, is, that they seem to have a transmitter that is able to interfere with electronic ignition systems of at least some vehicles, mine being among those.

Victims may pull over to the side of the road at those areas, where terror soldiers are ready to attack when the hood is opened up, and the victims are concerned about their cars, and want to see what is going on with the loss of power.

I did not see anyone die today while shopping in Dystopia Grants Pass! That is also unusual.

At 6th Street Market, I noticed a familiar group of terror Scouts who work together, a woman with very short dark hair in a white late model crew cab pick-up truck parked in front of 6th Street Market holds a large wrist watch in her hand up high so that others can see it. She does that while looking intently at a smart phone, and checking to see if people such as myself, who park at the store there, have the correct Blu-Tooth settings in their phone. I don’t have a smart phone, nor do I know what settings are ones that will pass the Blu-Tooth terror Scouts. When that woman with the watch is there, and I come in to the parking lot without Blu-Tooth indicating that I am a terror soldier, then, she summons another woman, who has a teenage boy with her. The teenahe boy has a sword, and they go into the store before I do. I have to avoid the boy with the sword while making my purchase selections at 6th Street Market. There is also another man associated with that group who pretends to be separate from the boy and the woman. He goes into the store, and flirts with the clerk, while the marked customer is there, waiting to pay for the purchase selections. I may have been shot at while that was happening, by the woman with the young boy who had the sword, I heard a “SnaP! sound while at the counter, but did not feel anything hit me. Those .25 caliber guns don’t penetrate my leather coat.

At Fred Meyer Gas Station, I observed the same cars that are always there. The cars at Fred Meyer Gas Station work in groups, and in shifts. I saw the the group that works the Mid Afternoon. The fake customers and the terror gas station attendants work as a team to take victims. Today, the gas station attendant that served my car, was in communication with others, and he was telling someone else that my car is a Chevrolet, then he corrected himself by saying my car was a GMC. My car is neither a Chevrolet or GMC. So, he was working with the fake police, who are leading the federal agents astray.

I think I encountered at least three federal agents today while out shopping. If so, and there are more in town, they are in great danger, and could have possibly been killed and replaced with look-a-likes by now, who will take an attack team aremed with Nitrous gas back to the HQ of the federal agents, and kill the entire investigative group. When that happens, the leadership in Washington DC will cover it, and it will be as if no agents were killed.

And that about concludes the explanation of a very non offensive shopping experience compared to what has become routine, which is that I almost always see one or more terror soldiers and/or American victims killed during such a shopping trip for food and gasoline in Grants Pass Oregon.

End writing session: 7:46 pm.

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grandthorkiday · 5 years

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Mob AU “Playthings” Part 21

[Link to mob!au anon’s “Playthings" fic tag]

[Start at Part 1]*

(*Note: Link is editable for other parts, just change the number. For mobile users, tag is “playthings part1”)

“I still don’t understand,” Tony says through a bite of salad. They finally decided to bring food to these meetings. “I don’t get why Gast has six different…,” he snaps his fingers searching for an appropriate word choice.

“Department heads,” Val suggests over her cheeseburger.

Thor made an excited noise, unable to speak through his own food. When he finally swallowed, shaking his head, he said, “Think of them as levels.” He scrambled to his backpack and pulled out a large pad of paper and a pen. He flipped through the pages and found a blank one and began to make a large pyramid with six layers. “Think of it like a feudal society. You got your serfs and basic townsfolk,” he used the pen to point to the bottom two levels. “They have a representative but Gast never knows their day to day. He knows how much money he made and spent on them. Your next two are your knights and vessal lords. Minor players but now he knows more. They get privileges may know actually see the Grandmaster from time to time. But they still have their reps. Top two are basically your nobility and they represent themselves. There’s really Game of Thrones style of backstabbing going on, but Gast loves it. He sometimes incites disagreements just to start a feud.”

“That sounds chaotic and dangerous.”

“That’s why he has the penthouse crews. Peacekeepers and enforcers.”

“Crews? There’s more than one?” Bruce asked.

“He’s got more than one penthouse. But they all answer to Mario.” He wiped his chin. “Technically speaking, I’m part of one of the penthouse crews.”

They all stared at him, unsure how to proceed with the next question. Questions about his brother since the incident with Odin were usually met aggressive if evasive responses or the interview being shut down completely. Finally, Natasha asked, “Is Loki as well?”

Thor didn’t blink at the question, thankfully. “Yes and no. Loki’s really good at gathering intel and he can act if pressed, so Grandmaster likes to use him more for political purposes. You gotta be strong to be part of a crew, though.”

“Were you forced?”

“It’s not like I could really say no.” Thor laughed as though it was obvious.

“Thor,” Val nervously looked around at the others at the table, “you do know that when uhm Loki spoke to us, he told us you killed someone. A cop.”

Again the blonde didn’t seem surprised. “Okay.”

“You can be charged.”

“Are you going to charge me?”

Tony blew out a sigh. “Not up to me.”

[read more cut]

“Is that the only person you’ve…dealt with for Gast?” Natasha tried to be delicate with the question.

Thor said nothing, looking away from all of them. “What happens if you charge me?”

“Well, you’d be arrested for one. We could leverage a deal with you to testify against Gast-”

He shook his head. “Not gonna happen.”

“You’re going this far! Why not go all the way?!”

Thor again shook his head. “I can’t do that to Loki.”

“I know he’s your younger brother, and we want to protect him too, but you can’t do that if you-”

“He’s more than my younger brother now,” Thor gave their general direction a cocky if apologetic smile.

“Thor,” Val reached out to his hand. She was pleased when it was yanked away. “What that bastard forces you guys to do, that can-”

“He only forced us one time. All the other times, without him present, have been us consenting to one another.”

The ADAs and detectives stared at him in confusion and unease. “We know about Loki’s support groups, from when he was younger. We know he had a uhm crush on you.” Bruce explained.

“He wasn’t the only one. But mine was more a lust. When Grandmaster forced us that first time, he showed Loki my internet history too. I tried to tell you, that one time you brought my Dad. I had all these porn sites, fuck it was disgusting. About brothers. And I would follow any person who looked just a bit like Loki. I’d had that crush since I was sixteen. Once I turned eighteen, I tried desperately to get rid of it, grow out of it. Loki was younger than me and he was actually doing a better job in that department! Those support groups…if I had known….well, Grandmaster would have just found those too.”

Val didn’t retract her hand nor did she recoil at his words, though she could see Natasha doing that in the seat across from her. Tony seemed nonplussed, though he had a look of sympathy. Bruce seemed about ready to punch something, but she knew it wasn’t directed at Thor. Most likely it was directed at Gast or even Odin.

“Y'know, when I imagined sleeping with Loki for the first time, I thought it something special. I thought it would be while we’re on vacation or when the apartment we rented was empty of roommates. I didn’t imagine….I couldn’t relax enough to do it. And Gast kept saying these awful things. Loki pleaded for something to help me. I think he hoped for weed or something. But we got that. Loki had done it before, I hadn’t. Fuck, it was so fucking weird…”

“You said Loki was blue,” Tony said, almost to himself.

“He looked like a fae creature when I was high. Blue skin, red eyes. I thought he was so beautiful. But I was so fucking high I didn’t prepare him completely….he bled. Just a little but still. Gast loved it. Loki kept saying he was fine but I never wanted to hurt him again. I never touched the stuff after that. But after the first time, we were free to do whatever we wanted with one another. We both knew now. And it’s nice, to be touched by someone who….actually loves you.”

“I can understand that,” she said, hoping she could convey how much she felt for him. “But you have to realize, this relationship you two have, it isn’t healthy.”

Thor stared at her hand and didn’t reply.

“You guys have been abused for ten years, I can understand wanting to feel loved. To be with someone who understands what you have been through, completely. And I’m sure you two love one another, but you both deserve to have a normal healthy relationship.”

“I love him so much.” Thor said quietly. “He’s my everything. I call him my moonlight y'know, because even when I don’t see him shine, I know’s he’s there. And he calls me his sun…”

“That’s very sweet. But after this…all this…don’t you want him to move on? And you too? Imagine it, three years from now, Gast is rotting in a cell and you two with partners who can help you heal from this.”

Thor’s eyes were watering as he smiled. “We’ll still be together. We promised. We promised one another. Until death do us part and even after that.”

“Come one, kid,” Tony said. “It isn’t like you married him!”

Thor laughed, tears rolling down his face.

~2013~

“Same last name! That makes things easy! Very unusual with a name like that,” the county clerk giggled conversationally as she typed on in their information.

“It’s very common from where are families are originally from,” Loki explained, leaning his lead on Thor’s shoulder. He was smiling broadly, the first time in a long time. A genuine smile that made him look so beautiful. But then again, to Thor he was always beautiful.

“How long is this going to take?” He asked, trying not to sound too much like they were in a hurry. When the clerk stared at him in confusion he replied, “We already booked our honeymoon.”

“Oh!” She winked. “I’m almost done. Where are you going to go?”

“Paris!” It wasn’t a lie. Gast had business in Paris in two weeks and they were going to go with him.

“Smart thing you guys are saving a fortune by doing everything here and not having a huge to do! Some couples blew their entire savings once the law passed.”

Thor didn’t respond. He nervously fidgeted, hoping that their ‘babysitters’ were still circling the block wondering which building they had gone into. He wasn’t sure how Gast would react to what they were doing, but he wouldn’t put it past him to be angry. Or punish them. But he didn’t care.

“Alright, now you sign here and you sign here,” the clerk announced passing them a pen. “And just like that, it is my honor to pronounce you two married! You may now kiss the groom!”

Loki had barely finished signing before Thor gathered him and kissed him deeply. The county clerk’s office clapped and cheered! There was one old man who booed, but he was shushed.

“Have fun in Paris!” the woman called as they left. He thanked her, but his eyes were only for his husband.

“Oh my god!” The brunette said as they walked outside. “Is this a dream? Am I dreaming this?”

“No. We’re…married.” He felt so happy and yet so terrified. “Do you want to wear your ring?”

“Yes! Can I wear it on my left hand?” He had given Loki his ring nine months ago, but had only let him wear it on occasionally or in the evenings alone in their room and only ever on his right hand. The Grandmaster got jealous and any time the ring was worn two or three days consecutively, he began to ask questions, making wild accusations about anyone and everyone in the penthouse crew. While the older brother was more than happy to watch the mobster decimate his entire crew over petty percieved ‘rivals’, he was didn’t want Loki endangered in the process.

He took out a small tin container that once contained mints from his pocket. It now carried about forty dollars and two small gold and silver bands he had stolen from one of Gast’s hotel jewelry stores. He placed the smallest and most intricate on Loki’s finger and kissed his new husband’s forehead. “You hungry, babe?”

Loki wiped his eye as he placed the other ring on Thor’s finger. “Yeah, please honey.”

There was a small cafe a few blocks away. They were out of New York City and in a small rural county of the state. They had pleaded, begged, and bartered for this time away from the city. Gast, a devoted urbanite, had agreed on the condition they bring several 'escorts’ and return within the week. Thor was already ready to agree to go back after they had accomplished what they came to do, but he didn’t want to tell that to Loki just yet. He didn’t want to dampen the mood.

Once in the small restaurant, Thor ordered them both a glass of wine, as well as a sandwich and a piece of cake to share. He only had the forty left after all, discounting the credit card he had taken from one of the thugs when they weren’t looking. He had used it a few times for small things like more pencils and movies, but he knew it was going to be shut off soon. He didn’t want it to be now. Loki didn’t seem to care. He looked like the sandwich was the best thing he had eaten in his whole life. And when the cake came, he playfully made a comment about 'their wedding cake’. Thor beamed ear to ear.

It was round the time they were asking for a round of waters before they left that Mario and his crew found them.

“You two have a lot of fucking nerve losing us like that!” He growled as he leaned over their table. “What you two do with the two hours? You fucking squeal, you brats?!”

“We went looking at shops,” Thor said simply, sipping his drink safe in the knowledge that they were in public and the older man couldn’t do anything to them in public.

“You went looking at shops?” Mario looked at him skeptically.

“Our Mom used to go to small niche towns like this and spend hours going through shops.” Loki explained, looking very authoritative in that moment. “We missed that. And we didn’t want you breaking something or causing a scene, like you are now.”

The thug glanced over his shoulder at the patrons staring at him. Unlike New York and the establishments Mario usually frequented, these people would not look away or hesitate to call the police. He turned back and glared at them, but said nothing.

“If you feel uncomfortable with what happened,” Thor couldn’t help but enjoy sounding like he had more power in this situation, “Loki and I will agree to leave this evening back to New York.”

Mario looked shocked at that. “You…. you serious?”

“And we won’t even mention you lost us,” Loki smiled mischievously at him.

He could tell the thug was having a hard time believing it. “Give me your cell.”

“What?”

“Give me your cell. You won’t believe us unless I do this.”

Nervously, the older man fished his cell from his pocket and passed it Thor. The waitress skirted by him and dropped off the two younger men’s waters before retreating, staring all the while as she did.

Thor thumbed through the contacts of the cell phone, making a passing comment about using more security on the device. He reached out to Loki’s hand, who gently squeezed his showing his support and understanding. He found the number and clicked 'call’.

There was a out three long rings, Thor smiling like an idiot all the while. Finally, on the fourth one, the familiar voice answered, “Yes?”

“Hi Daddy,” he said brightly and sweetly into the phone. Loki looked ready to burst out into laughter or tears of satisfaction and Mario looked just dumbfounded and rooted in place.

Gast’s voice immediately switched from business to his playful purr, “Hey Sparkles! What are you doing calling me, I thought you wanted a vacation?”

“I’m bored,” he whined, dramatically pouting for effect. The brunette mimicked him as he nodded to other man. “And so is Loki.”

“Thought you wanted to go to enjoy some peace and quiet?”

“We did. Now we’re bored. Is it okay if we come home tonight?”

“Of course, sweetheart! Of course! You come home tonight and we’ll go to a nice late dinner, have a few drinks, and then I’m going to have you two on your backs and begging for my cock. How does that sound?”

“Wonderful, Daddy!”

“Pass me to Mario please.”

Thor did just that grinning ear to ear after that. While Mario nervously prepared their journey home, recounting their time in the small town sans the two hours they had gone missing, the couple ordered another piece of cake and glass of wine. Today, they had beaten the odds and survived.

#thorki #frostmaster #thundermaster #GrandthorkiB #playthings #submission #sfw #fic #cw dubcon #cw noncon implied #cw drugs #cw rl drugs #playthings part21

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spnreactionblogging · 4 years

Text

UNITY

SPOILERS BELOW - backdated from 10/30/2020

oh boy just the synopsis is making me scream. I'm convinced Cas is gonna die in this episode :(

"After a difference of opinion leaves Sam and Castiel behind, Dean hits the road with Jack to complete a final ritual in the quest to beat Chuck."

a difference of opinion huh???? "should Jack kill himself y/n" "let's just agree to disagree" hmmmmm fuck that

Sam won a lot of points with me for confronting Dean's bullshit in the last episode so I've got the Sam and Cas Q-pals plush toys out here to keep me company, along with some Angel's Envy which has been fairly necessary the whole way. trying to watch this one before the GISH hunt goes live so nobody in fucking YouTube comments spoils me

amara is reading murakami's norwegian wood. this bird has flown, huh

this is beautiful and it was probably filmed in like, someone's hotel in vancouver but

I like her swimsuit

the aurora borealis? at this time of year? in this part of the county? localized entirely within your hot springs?

castiel was in mexico?

thank god for sam and cas working together and "wel'l find a way. just get home." thank god for sam not speaking to dean.

"that's the only way" fuck you dean

I love rob benedict and I'm sad that chuck's shitty now

oh rachel miner is in this one

amara & jack is making me very sad, they were both locked up

I like the sound when amara disappears

oh thank god meredith glynn wrote this one

sam is trying to be kind

we've got two references to "blindly following orders" in last episode and this

thank fucking god for sam.

"jack's not family" OOF. OOF!!!!!!! tell us how you really feel, dean. we been knew, as they say

jack gets to ride shotgun but at what cost. what a miserable roadtrip

thank god for the academics.

this clearing/scene reminds me of the man who would be king, quite a bit

I love rob and I'm happy to see him even with the circumstances

oh chuck's editing the title cards huh. like it's clerks.

google lens tells me that amara has a "boat orchid"

ferns and fractals are pretty cool. ferns are very old too

silicon-based life is pretty cool too

I do understand chuck wanting a clean slate

when a bell rings an angel gets their wings, right

where are the heaven scenes filmed

chuck's gotten real bitter. chuck and dean have more in common now than dean and amara.

villains do indeed get all the best lines

IS it a trap? so it's not the bunker itself, it's amara's power?

god, poor jack.

so these are adam and eve, huh, or lilith? oh serafina.

"his aura, it's like skittles"

300,000 years huh. that's a long evolution of an idea.

the "which one did god touch" test is like what they did with Aang to pick the toys he wanted that the previous Avatars had had

well done "all of the above" jack

ah, a rib.

"You'll collapse into a living black hole for divine energy. One nothing can escape -- not the darkness, not God himself." how very homestuck of you, jack

I liked those actors a lot

you gonna apologize, dean? ever? no.

you gonna say that you never lived at all, for real? seriously, dean? none of this has mattered? that jack should die so you can do what you want. you'll say thank you, but not apologize. still no apology for locking him up. just more manipulation. I hate this.

fuck you dean.

ew god is he gonna eat that

don't do it, jack

so his grace and soul are two parts of a whole, huh. like chuck and amara.

:( aw cas picking the book up for sam is such a good moment

yes god i want sam to be able to go into that library

"a treatise on the realms of death" love it

I love the cas & sam intense research extravaganza. that's it, that's the ship. good teamwork

if rachel miner is in this then the empty is in this

there's a lot of shit in the bunker

oh cas found it

not gonna translate for us, huh

"Sam, for what it's worth I don't think you're crazy. I think your internal compass is functioning perfectly."

I love them :(

who's the dead guy in the W section huh

oh a lotta dead guys, did chuck kill these angels actually "they're just away"

oh is that the empty then having a good time with the angels

yeah there they are

I love rachel miner, I love that misha set the standard for how the empty acts and then everyone else is matching his mannerisms

god, sam is smart. he's a good liar when he needs to be.

"God's so protective of his little sandcastles" is a great line.

I LOVE YOU SAM

sam! is smart!!!

rob is so good at being cruel that it is upsetting to watch

sam, always gotta know everything, can't leave well enough alone. that is a big mood.

"I'm trying to get you to listen" indeed, it never fucking works

wow, jesus. pulled a fucking gun on sam.

"what part of 'omniscient' don't you people understand" indeed

"[Dean] could send you into the meat grinder with a wink and a smile." that is what he always does

amara should've talked to sam instead of dean, dean doesn't care about people

chuck can also send people into the meat grinder with a wink and a smile. who wrote dean? :')

"I'd trade 'em all for Chuck, in a heartbeat"

"What about me? Would you trade me?" and dean doesn't answer right away, huh. sam's supposed to be dead many times over, according to the empty

so chuck now houses angelic grace and demonic... uh, darkness?

"You consumed your sister?" also very homestuck of you, alt!Calliope-Chuck

sounds like a lighter not quite sparking

do your toys spark joy, chuck

oof.

that was A Lot

I expected Cas to die but we got Jack getting all fucked up instead, we got the sad ending credits music

#s15e17

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womenofcolor15 · 4 years

Text

YBF POLITICS: Don’t Save Them, They Don’t Want To Be Saved

Listen. We’re one sleep away from the election deadline across the country. If that fact alone doesn’t have your anxiety working overtime, then you’re the real MVP. For the rest of us, it’s the crunch time we’ve been waiting for.

We've got some final thoughts. And they don't involve saving folks from themselves (looking at you, Lil Wayne and followers). Leave the people who still believe "protest nonvoters" and the "all the candidates are the same" people where they're at. You and your mental health will thank us later.

There's still many of you voting absentee up until tomorrow and in person tomorrow.

View this post on Instagram

@JoeBiden knows that the key to a strong economy isn’t cutting taxes for billionaires; it’s by lifting the prospects of working Americans. He’s got a plan to create ten million good clean energy jobs, fight climate change, and secure environmental justice. Let’s elect a leader who sees this moment not as a chance to get back to where we were, but to finally make long-overdue changes so that our economy actually makes life a little easier for everybody.

A post shared by Barack Obama (@barackobama) on Nov 1, 2020 at 1:16pm PST

In case you still haven't read it, the Biden Harris ticket has a plan that addresses damn near all of your concerns, if you give it a fair shot. For instance, tired of racist bankers and SBA loan officers having so much power in who they lend money to? This longstanding issue is only being addressed by the Biden Harris ticket.

Despite the tax receipts we didn’t need that prove the current leader of the free world is a whole con-man, there are still people doing Olympic style hurdles to say the Biden/Harris ticket is “no different” than a Trump administration. Let them. They will likely never be swayed to vote for what’s in their own best interest. They’re simply making excuses to allow for another Trump term - whether it’s sexism, being too woke for their own good, secretly being happy about the way they’re benefitting from a Trump presidency, or whatever other reason they could possibly have. There’s no reasoning with or swaying those people, so don’t.

In the words of the rap poet Pastor Troy, “Don't save 'em. They don’t wanna be saved.” It’s time to leave those folks right where they’re at so we can focus on continuing to sway “undecided voters” or those who haven’t typically voted. All 100M+ of them.

View this post on Instagram

We can't let history repeat itself. Don't wake up on November 4th wishing you had done more.

A post shared by Joe Biden (@joebiden) on Nov 2, 2020 at 2:00am PST

At this point, if the Biden Build Back Better Plan is, to you, “what and what” with Trump’s “Platinum Plan” when it comes to their stances on helping Black America, you simply want to believe that, despite the facts proving otherwise. The root of the problem is finally being addressed with the Build Back Better plan, and it’s the getting rid of the racist lending practices for us. All while generating NEW money to pump into black businesses and communities.

Here’s the gist of what you need to know about how Build Back Better ACTUALLY affects our lives. No more of this “but his plan doesn’t explain anything.” That’s B.S. If you actually want to know instead of automatically believing and repeating what others say, here’s what you should know:

To address the racial wealth gap, the opportunity gap, and the jobs gap for Black and Brown people, Biden will launch a historic effort to empower small business creation and expansion in economically disadvantaged areas — and particularly for Black-, Latino-, AAPI-, and Native American-owned businesses. In addition to providing small businesses with an ambitious “restart package” to survive the current crisis and come out the other side strong, he is launching a special, ongoing initiative to empower these entrepreneurs to succeed and grow with a three-prong Small Business Opportunity Plan. His plan is consistent with key elements in the Jobs and Neighborhood Investment Act recently proposed by Democratic Senators Chuck Schumer, Mark Warner, Cory Booker, and Kamala Harris. Biden will:

· Spur more than $50 billion in additional public-private venture capital to Black and Brown entrepreneurs by funding successful state and local investment initiatives and making permanent the highly effective New Markets Tax Credit.

· Expand access to $100 billion in low-interest business loans by funding state, local, tribal and non-profit lending programs in Black and Brown communities and strengthening Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), Minority Depository Institutions (MDIs), and the Community Reinvestment Act.

· Eliminate barriers to technical assistance and advisory services by investing in a national network of cost-free business incubators and innovation hubs and intensive business seminars.

And how much money will be in play for this? $150B of NEW capital for small businesses that have been structurally excluded for generations. This is not existing money supposedly being sent our way.

If folks have an issue with this amount of money going to small and black owned businesses, let them. Most people are silent about tax dollars going to things that don’t help our community in any way. So if some tax dollars go to helping black and brown business owners, so be it.

Re-allocating additional current funds isn’t off the table either, though. Biden is also set to Leverage $100 Billion in Additional Financing for Small Businesses. Why? In 2019, only 10% of funding from the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) major lending programs went to Black, Latino, and Native American entrepreneurs. We haven’t heard anyone else talk about how they plan to address that. (see point #2 above).

Trump’s Platinum plan promising $500B to black people is empty foolywang material. He can't do it anyway. Congress must appropriate the money. Unlike in Biden’s plan, Trump hasn’t named a single member of Congress whose bill he will be promoting.

It’s also important to reiterate, the $500B is not new money. These are federal contracting dollars already available that he’s promising will be allocated. People would still need to go through banks and possibly the SBA – who often use racist lending practices to barely lend to black businesses at all – who face no repercussions if they don’t lend to black businesses and people and pocket the money given to them to reallocate. None of this is addressed by Trump. And seeing that he recently said systemic racism doesn’t exist, you can bet it won’t be addressed ever. This means hardly anyone but his white banker friends will see a dime of that money. So it’s toothless policy even if it was to come into fruition.

No plan will ever be perfect, but you didn’t need perfection from anyone else you are handing over the keys to in other parts of your life. And you have surely found ways to forgive the folks who affect your everyday life - cheating pastors who are leading whole congregations with your tithes you pay, husbands or wives who have made mistakes - whether they have proven they’ve corrected their previous questionable behavior or not. Biden’s and Harris’ records over these last several decades have proven they have evolved with the times and needs of our society. It’s one thing to hold someone accountable for a belief or action from 40 years ago. It’s another to ignore the endless actions they have done sense to course correct, especially when the incumbent hasn’t course corrected a day in his life.

View this post on Instagram

13 cities, 6 days, and a whole lot of people who can’t wait to vote early.

A post shared by Kamala Harris (@kamalaharris) on Oct 29, 2020 at 2:12pm PDT

It does not matter whether you like Biden-Harris or not. Even though we actually do. The important fact is that you do not waste your vote writing in another candidate and vote for the ticket that can oust Trump. This election is about getting him out, yes. But it’s also a referendum on what type of country we want America to be. Some may feel like America hasn’t been a democracy for a long time, but more of an oligarchy. That's fair. But when you have the opportunity to change it, do that. Vote for who has made it clear that making a more perfect democracy is their end all, be all goal. And only one ticket has said it is.

View this post on Instagram

These policies aren’t just the right thing to do — they’re also the smart thing to do for the future of our country. Click the link in my bio to learn more.

A post shared by Joe Biden (@joebiden) on Jul 27, 2020 at 2:24pm PDT

We can’t worry about those who are ignoring the dictatorship forming and acting right before our eyes, and that is being strengthened with a Supreme Court pick whose belief system is rooted in a “secret society” that spurned the idea for “The Handmaid’s Tale”. There’s no way anyone who truly is weighing both sides can come up with a final evaluation that both sides are the same. Those people want a Trump presidency, so let them want that. Far more do not. And it’s time we spend our efforts aligning with the non-voting progressive majority instead.

VOTE NOW. If you have not yet voted, turn your ballot in to a ballot box or your county clerk's office, or vote in person on November 3rd. Both options are now better than mail in voting due to timing.

View this post on Instagram

Make sure your voice is heard. Here are a few reminders to help you as you vote.

A post shared by Joe Biden (@joebiden) on Nov 2, 2020 at 3:00am PST

Protect your energy, and your vote!

[Read More ...] source http://theybf.com/2020/11/02/ybf-politics-don%E2%80%99t-save-them-they-don%E2%80%99t-want-to-be-saved

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travelingtheusa · 4 years

Text

INDIANA

14 Jun 2020 (Sun) – We had a new experience and taste treat today. The fairgrounds have been having a food fair drive-by this weekend. We drove through it. There were about 8 booths set up and people drove by, ordered what they wanted, paid with cash, and drove out. There was cotton candy, gyros, cheesesteaks, etc. One of the items to try was elephant ears. Turned out to be a large piece of fried dough sprinkled with sugar. There was also broasted potatoes. Tasted like boiled potatoes that were thrown under the broiler for a few minutes.

The driveway into the fairgrounds goes right by our row of trailers. The road is dirt and the cars throw up a lot of dust when they drive by. Paul stood next to the fence with the hose and sprayed water on the roadway in an attempt to keep the dust down.

13 Jun 2020 (Sat) – The drive-by fair continues today. Lots of cars have been driving in to the fairgrounds. It’s pretty amusing.

We went to Staples to get some stationary supplies. We are making up some business cards to hand out when we do our scouting trip to New York. Then we filled up the truck, getting ready for our move on Monday.

The days have been pleasant. It rained a little during the night but the days have been very nice. It’s a little on the cool side today but the sun was shining with puffs of clouds drifting across the sky.

12 Jun 2020 (Fri) – We went food shopping at WalMart this morning. Everyone was wearing masks. We also stopped at Menards (Paul’s new favorite store) to get some tape and paint. When the tech worked on our rig, they did welding on the rails. Unfortunately, some of those sparks landed on the underbelly and burned small holes. Paul worked today on taping the holes up; degreasing the rails, axles, and springs; and painting the rails.

I had a headache most of the day. I stopped taking the cancer medication for a few days. When I got up yesterday, I could barely stand on my right foot. The Achilles tendon was very taut and there was a lump in the back of the foot. I figured the medication had built up so I stopped it. The foot was sore today but I was able to walk on it. It’s beginning to look like I have to stop this stuff every month and half to two months. I don’t know what’s going on. Maybe things build up in my system. I’ll have to ask the doctor about it.

I called around to a couple of veterinarians to get the animals their rabies shots. They were all booked for at least a month. Nobody would fit us in. I hope we don’t get turned away from a campground because Bonnie and Sheba are not current on their vaccinations. That would be a mess.

The fairground is having a drive-by fair. There are about 12 vendors lined up along the roadway. People drive in, place their order while remaining in their car, pay cash, and drive away. The menu is posted online so you can choose what you want before you arrive. It is weird but there was a lot of traffic coming in today. The fair is going on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.

11 Jun 2020 (Thu) – We arrived in Goshen on Monday, June 8 and are staying at the Elkhart County Fairgrounds. There are a few RVs here and they are all spaced pretty far apart.

Well, we’ve had a few interesting days. On Tuesday, we dropped the RV off at Lippert to have work done on the chassis. If you have seen empty semitrailers, you might have noticed that the bed is arched. When a load is placed on the trailer bed, the arch flattens out. The arch helps to support the load. The same arch exists in an RV. When it is fully loaded, the arch flattens a little but is supposed to maintain its flex. In our case, the flex went flat. Lippert took everything off the bottom of the rig (axles, springs, etc.) and then welded a 2x2 inch rod on to the bottom of the I-beam of the chassis. They also reinforced the slide supports. They reattached everything and moved the springs 2” apart to allow for a little more give in the movement of the RV. It looks good. Hopefully, everything will work well now. We’ll see.

The work was supposed to take one day, maybe a day and a half. We drove around all day like gypsies because we had the animals with us in the truck. When we checked in with Lippert on Tuesday afternoon, the tech told us the rig was not done. So we went to the local motel to get a room only to be told they do not accept cats. Dogs are OK but cats can be destructive. They told us the only place around that accepts cats is Staybridge Suites in Elkhart, about 20 miles south of Goshen. We called and the agent told us he had one room with a King bed. We said that was fine. It turned out to be a mini suite with a small kitchen, a full size refrigerator, a microwave, a toaster, a coffee pot, and dishware. It was perfect. He gave us a $20 discount and did not charge us the usual fee for pets. And the animals behaved themselves. They also offered free breakfast.

The next day, we were planning to hang out in the room until check-out time at noon. At 10 a.m., the maid came by to clean the room. We told her we were going to leave at noon. She said OK and left. Fifteen minutes later, the desk called to ask if we were checking out. I confirmed that check-out time was noon and said we would leave then. Feeling a little pressured, we actually left at 11:15 a.m. While we were in the hotel, we laid out our itinerary for the next month then called and made reservations at all the campgrounds we will be staying at (11 of them). We have to lock in the New York Caravan budget. We are getting pressure from SMART HQ to get the caravan advertised.

Again, we spent the day driving aimlessly around like gypsies. We called Lippert at 4 p.m. only to find they still weren’t done with the RV. The tech said they would be done the next morning. They had a few more details to finish up. So I called Staybridge Suites again and got the same room.

When we got up today, we enjoyed the free breakfast then left at 9 a.m. We ran several errands. I called Vilano and found out where they order their wheels from. It turned out to be from Lionshead Tire and Wheel right here in Elkhart. In addition, the aluminum wheel has a lifetime warranty. It took several attempts to contact the warranty specialist but things finally worked out and we got a new wheel to replace the cracked one. We also drove to RV surplus stores looking for new lounge chairs but didn’t find anything.

Finally, we got the call at noon that the rig was ready. We drove over, inspected the work, hooked up the RV, and returned to the campground. Whew! Glad that’s all over.

7 Jun 2020 (Sat) - We left Fort Knox Camp Carlson at 9:20 a.m. It was a long drive – 4-1/2 hours. We had a little trouble with the GPS. We were 22 miles from the campground when the GPS said to turn off. But Paul no sooner did that then the GPS started telling us to get back on the road we had been on. We stopped in a Target parking lot to look over maps then got back on the road. We finally arrived at 1:30 p.m. at the White River Campground in Cicero. The clerk came running out in his mask, asked us what our site was (I had made reservations by phone), ran back inside, and came out with all the paperwork. We stood there in our masks waiting for him to come out.

Our campsite backs right up to the White River. People keep drifting by in canoes, kayaks, and tubes. It makes me want to get in the water. There is a trestle bridge that crosses the river and follows a hiking trail. We walked Bonnie along a small part of it.

The weld did not hold. The tire is still losing air. Paul took the wheel off and put on the spare tire. We’ll have to find a new tire.

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inadarkdarkroom · 7 years

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I Told You So

In the late ‘80’s I moved to a small town called Mercer Island just outside of Seattle to live with my aunt and her three daughters. I had just gotten out of one of those “troubled kids” institutions that I still blithely refer to as a reform school, and needed to enough credits to graduate.

I was totally cool with it. My aunt is a lovely woman and I did not want to go back to England where my dysfunctional immediate family lived. Fuck Margaret Thatcher, you feel me? I’d gotten used to living in the states after spending my entire life as an ex-pat.

When I first moved in with my aunt she’d been living in Winthrop, Washington, a small town in a county the size of Rhode Island but with only one stop light. But my aunt was getting her degree at the University of Washington, and Mercer Island has one of the best high schools in the state and she wanted to make sure her kids had a better chance of getting into the colleges of their choice, so we moved there soon after I moved in with her.

Mercer Island was, and is to this day, a very insular, wealthy, and tony community. And the people who lived there(not all of them, but most), were very pleased with themselves that they lived in a little John Hughes movie-type neighborhood. Which meant that there was fuck all for the local kids to do.

There had been bowling alleys and video arcades and an all-ages venue, but the parents had complained that these places were not in the Mercer Island spirit of making sure their kids were staying at home and hitting the books and making them proud. So pressure was placed, letters were written, complaints were filed, and one by one all these places went out of business. Then the parents would loudly bitch and moan and wonder why all their kids were dying in drunk driving accidents on the floating bridge coming back from keg parties held in Seattle eight miles away. It’s amazing how adults’ cogent thoughts and logic reasoning tend to disappear once they can afford a BMW...

What this meant was that there were two places for teenagers to congregate on Mercer Island. One was the parking lot at McDonalds, and the other was the local Denny’s. Years later, after I’d moved to Seattle, the local Parental Fun Police decided to take on this particular den of iniquity as well, with the end result that Mercer Island wound up as being one of only two places in the US where the Denny’s wasn’t open 24 hours, closing at 11 on weekdays and midnight on weekends.

So I’m now a senior at a real American high school after spending my entire life overseas. Sure, it’s in the middle of a overprivileged white ghetto, but the school is top notch and I’m making friends. And my friends and I would go and hang out at the local Denny’s, drink endless amounts of cheap coffee and smoke Camels and bullshit.

So one night my friends and I go down to Denny’s and I wind up meeting George Russell, who is hanging out there as well, and we sit at his table with him.

George Russell is charming. George Russell is loquacious. George Russell is well read. George Russell makes eye contact when talking to you, his handshake is firm. George Russell is also one of the very few black people who live on the Island, and all my friends who are quite sheltered are glad to have their One Black Friend to prove they aren’t that quite sheltered.

I could care less about his ethnicity or my friends’ attempts to gain street cred. I’d just spent eighteen months in a reform school after being kicked out of a British military academy I hadn’t wanted to go to in the first place, I have nothing to prove.

And like I said, George Russell is quite a fellow. That night we talk about comic books, and the publishing houses of Dark Horse and Fantagraphics, literature, movies, politics, foreign policy. George Russell’s a smart chap, and quietly self-effacing. Purposefully harmless.

But George Russell is also in his thirties, and while I understand the allure of associating with an older individual, especially if that older individual can buy your underage ass beer, that older individual is still hanging out with your underage ass.

And George Russell also has a police scanner on the table in front of him. Every now and then he would cock his head to the side to hear what was coming over the airwaves, pausing the conversation to hit the squelch button and fine-tune the frequency. Later that night, two cops wandered into the joint for some comped coffee and they give George Russell The Nod. George Russell gives The Nod right back. I ask him about it. Quite pleased with himself, he informs me that he does “some side work” for the local PD. My friends assure me that George Russell is cool. Don’t worry, he’s not a narc. He just helps them around the office. Also, he gets all the chicks. George Russell is the man.

But this sets my spidey sense tingling. I’m only eighteen, but I’ve already been around the block a few times in quite a few different neighborhoods in several different countries. And I’ve just gotten out of a reform institution. I can judge body language and vocal inflection and eye movement, and there’s something about George Russell that doesn’t add up. Maybe it’s the fact that he’s so self-effacing and purposefully harmless. Maybe it’s the fact that he screams Cop Groupie. And trust me, people who are Cop Groupies should set your antenna twitching. But no matter. As a minor acquaintance, he’s a good conversationalist.

So George Russell would buy my friends beer, hook them up with whatever shitty brick weed they were desperate enough to smoke, sometimes hang out with us at parties. We would chat a little bit, the two of us. But in the back of my mind I thought him an unctuous creep with a bad case of the smarm so we didn’t associate.

After I graduated I would still spend time on the Island, and I would run into George Russell here and there. By this point I was using my Swiss passport as a “fake ID” and my gift of the gab to get it past the liquor store clerks’ limited understanding of French and German so George knew he couldn’t sidle up to me and be all like “Hey bro, you need a half rack of Rainier? I can totally get it for you.” So we’d just give each other The Nod, and that was it.

One night I was hanging out at the Bellevue bus station waiting for the #220 to arrive. I looked over to the side and saw this girl nearby. Poor thing. She was probably barely seventeen and covered in makeup and her slumped posture and guarded body language just screamed “Get me out of here. Please. Take me away from this godforsaken dump and knock me up with two brats to beat in the double-wide while you’re working triple shifts at the brewery to pay off your Camaro lease, I don’t care. Just get me out of here.” My heart went out to the poor girl. Even though I was barely out of my teens myself I remembered how awful they could be.

Just then a voice said “Hey Dude. What’s up?”

I look over and there’s George, all smiling and harmless. He bums a smoke from me and we take in the night. He notices my pitying look at the sad case off to the side and apropos of nothing busts out with “Yeah, I noticed her too. Wanted to go over and say something and cheer her up, you know? But you know how it is. A black man in a town like this talking to a white girl? I’ve got to watch myself..”

The bus arrives. We stub out our Camels and get on board, he in the front with a magazine, me in the back with my Walkman and my thoughts. And my thoughts were this: What the fuck?

First of all, while Bellevue was another well-to-do white neighborhood on the East side, it sure as shit wasn’t Alabama. And yes, by this point I’d been living in the States for a few years and had realized that outside some cities it was kind of a racist shithole populated with really spiteful ignorant cunts who didn’t know jack and hated anyone that did. But it didn’t mean that if you needed to pull that Ralph Ellison Invisible Man shit, that Bellevue was the place to do it.

Second, every single other brother I knew would not for a moment have said something like that, much less to a white boy like me. Public Enemy was king, Malcolm X was years away from hitting the movie theaters but Africa medallions were omnipresent, NWA was pissing off both the cops and Tipper Gore in equal measure, no way somebody with any kind of self respect would up and announce that statement. Unless it was something they thought it was what you wanted to hear.

I remember looking at George Russell in the front of the bus and thinking to myself that yes, he was an unctuous creep with a bad case of the smarm. But there was something else. Something I didn’t like. I scanned my thoughts for racist overtones, but honestly could not find any.

Look, I understand if you’re a diplomat or a spook(Note to readers: Spook as in the pejorative of a member of the Clandestine Services, not that other pejorative. Please take a short fall off your high horse) or a diplomat who’s a spook or you’re an undercover cop and you want to blend into the background and not attract attention. I get it. But if you’re a normal citizen, a citizen, and you’re going out of your way to be unseen? There’s something going on.

And there was something going on with George Russell. And it made me suspicious that he told me what he thought I wanted to hear. Moral of the story here, if you’ve got spidey sense, listen to it when it tingles. It’s there for a reason.

A few months later one of my friends had a party at his apartment. He was one of the few of us who had one and because it was on the quiet white East side instead of Heavily Armed Hobo Junkie Alley where my warehouse was in Pioneer Square, all my friends would go there instead.

George Russell was there, doing hot knife hits off the stove and flashing that famous smile of his. Making small talk and minor physical contact, little pats on the back or touching your forearm when talking to you, like a waiter angling for a bigger tip or Bill Clinton hitting you up for a campaign contribution.

I remembered that night at the bus station and kept my distance. Just gave him The Nod, got it back in return. So far, so good.

George Russell soon left to go on a date, leaving behind the better part of a case of Henry Weinhardt’s for my friends to toast his early absence with. That was the last time I ever saw him. I don’t think I even touched a drop of his beer bribe, I just concentrated on the Afghani Blonde I had smuggled back from overseas the year before, so cut with henna it was like smoking designer shampoo.

Once again I voiced my personal opinion of his character to my friends, but they were white kids barely out of high school and so stoked to have a homeboy to high-five with, that they assured me I was just paranoid and definitely not as def and down with it as they were. My manners dictate that I don’t mention that they live in a fucking Disneyfied suburb where the most dangerous thing they have to deal with is drunken frat boys at TGIFriday’s.

The next morning a man walking his dog spotted what looked like a body by a dumpster near a nightclub noted for it’s blond and brainless clientele. The local homicide arrive in their unmarkeds and discover a twenty three year old female vic, naked and strangled and raped and most unsettling of all, posed. Laid out on the sidewalk like Jeebus on the cross, legs folded over each other, arms akimbo and outstretched with a pine cone carefully placed in each open palm. She’d been kicked so hard her liver had split open against her spinal column.

This is one was not a crime of passion. This one had had time spent on her. This one had been used like an object to send a message. This is not good.

Even though it’s a singular instance in a small town with a small police force, to give them credit they wise up quick. They swallow their pride and send an assistance request to Behavioral Science at Quantico.

But the Feds have a backlog a mile long and two miles wide. Everyone knows Washington State has the highest number of serial murderers in the nation, but the hard-ons in wingtips have been burned before out here. They’re still smarting from the fact that the Green River Killer has evaded capture for decades, burned up countless man-hours with nothing to show but the occasional awkward press conference. We’ll look into it. We promise.

About a month later a man broke into a woman’s apartment that she shared with her two young children. He raped and beat and strangled her to death, then placed her corpse on the bed posed so that when her kids came into the room the next morning to find out why she hadn’t made them breakfast before taking them to kindergarten, that the first thing they saw was the shotgun he’d inserted into her vagina and left there.

The suspect was a secretor, and the semen samples matched those of the woman found in the parking lot the month previously. The press dubbed him The East side Killer, and noted the two victims were habitues of local nightclubs where popped-collared douche bags flashed cell phones the size of bricks to impress the type of women easily impressed by a fucking cell phone.

Less than two weeks later, The East side Killer struck again. This one also was caught napping. Beaten with a baseball bat so badly her brains splattered all over the bedstead, he had then taken a knife and stabbed her almost three hundred times from her head to the soles of her feet, left her corpse with a dildo in the mouth and a copy of The Joy Of Sex tucked under what was left of her right arm.

By this point the Boys From Virginia With No Sense Of Humor had come on the case post haste. They sent out John Douglas, whose character Scott Glenn in The Silence Of The Lambs was based on. Overworked and seriously underpaid, he wound up with brain fever caused by exhaustion and almost died in a cheap hotel room in Seattle. But he recovered and continued to work the case. Posited that all three murders were the work of one man. Definitely a Cop Groupie. Maybe an African American, skilled at blending in white society, maybe brought up in white society.

This was big news. Serial killers go on the hunt inside their own ethnic backgrounds, at least, that was the given up until this happened. Douglas discussed how white American mono-culture had become so entrenched in media that it had become easy to imitate for outsiders. He was proven right when forensics found the pubic hairs found on all three vics were African American.

Meanwhile, good old George Russell was still being good old George Russell. Cheerful and good-natured and pleasant. But chinks were appearing in the armor. Ex-girlfriends now found him hostile towards them, whereas before he had always been Mr. Smooth. Whereas before he had always been modest, now he was cocky and arrogant.

One of the reasons George Russell had been doing “some side work” for the PD on Mercer Island was because he had been arrested a lot as a kid for petty crimes, and the local police had taken him under their wing to try and straighten him out, give him errands to run and a vision of a possible future that didn’t involve a vision from behind bars.

But it hadn’t taken hold, and they knew it. When the word was being spread around cop shops from Bothell to Bellingham that the suspect was an African American perhaps brought up in white society, they just knew. After all, Mercer Island was pretty much white society.

When they arrested him they found personal belongings of all three victims on his person. And although DNA testing was still considered science fiction, and expensive science fiction at that, they put up the scratch to have it done and it came back positive. He smiled and joked with them as they put on the cuffs. This is all a big misunderstanding fellas. Don’t worry, we’ll all have a good laugh about this later at Denny’s. Ha ha, you guys....

Good old spidey sense. It saved me from being subpoenaed. Because we didn’t associate I never had to stand up on the witness stand and point him out to twelve tried and true. A neighbor of mine with whom he’d had a relationship later told me he once confided to her that I scared the shit out of him. He was probably lying. If he wasn’t then it was probably one of the nicest things anyone has ever said about me. Friends, acquaintances, they weren’t so lucky. Summons servers slapped paper on them and they had to go to King County courthouse and see the glossy technicolor close-ups placed on an easel for evidence, Kodachrome enlargements showing battered bags of meat that had once been mothers and daughters. Human beings turned into bloody mush out of rage and anger and hatred hidden behind a smile they’d all fallen for.

And there, in front of them in a snazzy sport coat and tie, seated grinning by his grimly aware public defender, was George Russell. Giving them little waves of encouragement. Hey fellas. Sheesh, can you believe this? What a world, eh?

In Washington State they still hang you, you can decide between the noose or the needle if you get the death penalty. Fucking barbaric either way, I suppose. George lucked out with three consecutive life sentences. No possibility of parole.

Walla Walla isn’t the worst place to do time, but prison is prison and inside your word is bond. Some chancer who fancies himself a smooth mover with a fancy line of patter isn’t going to get much credibility no matter how brutal the crime. Last I heard he’d been attacked while in the yard, had his throat sliced ear to ear with a piece of broken light bulb. Whatever genius for a day trying to make his rep wound up missing both carotids, so George survived. Probably still trying to weasel his way into the upper incareration echelon. Hey Dude, remember when you tried to kill me? Ha ha, good times, Bro. Good times..

My friends were astounded and creeped beyond belief. None of them had known any of the victims, but George Russell had been their buddy, man, their bro, and their bro had turned out to be a fucking great white shark in their very small pond. They were lucky they were minnows, they just didn’t realize it. I’m not a cynic, I’m a realist. Very few cynics get to say I told you so as often as I do, but in this case I kept my mouth shut and didn’t remind them of the times I had warned them about him.

At this point I’m working two jobs while taking night courses at the UW in filmmaking. Evenings I’m bouncing at the Moore Theater to feed my concert habit, but by day I’m back at Mercer Island working at a video store, pretty much getting paid to get a filmmaking education of another sort. And the housewives would come in and chatter about the local boy turned serial killer, getting a slight frisson as they discussed the case over little cups of overpriced frozen yogurt.

I’ll never forget a comment made by one of these people that sort of made me see it from George Russell’s perspective, which was really creepy in and of itself. These two women were talking, and one of them said: “Well, you know he was never reallyfrom Mercer Island. He just moved here as a child.”

I almost wanted to scream at them what fucking idiots they were. They were so soft and suburbanized and stuck up that one of their own had started hunting them for sport and taking their lives as trophies but hey, at least he wasn’t really from the neighborhood. Their property values weren’t compromised. Hooray for them.

If you don’t believe me google George Waterfield Russell(Because remember all serial killers have three names, natch), but be prepared to see blurry cop polaroids of a dead and naked woman with a shotgun inside her.

But the point of this story is, is that Bundy was arrested in Florida, Bianchi was tried in California, at the time this all went down Green River was still considered a bad place to turn tricks, this means that I used to hang out and get high with the first convicted serial killer in Washington State.

And he was a total creep.

#serial killer #serial killers #George Russell #George Waterfield Russell #scary story #scary stories #true stories #true scary stories #serial killer story #true serial killer story #i told you so #washington #green river killer #ted bundy #mercer island

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glassceilingbreakers · 8 years

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Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto: It Was Time to Be My Own Boss

Catherine Cortez Masto was elected to the Senate in 2016, making her the first woman to represent Nevada and the first Latina ever elected to the chamber. A former attorney general, she has championed the rights of the vulnerable, including victims of sex-trafficking crimes, and fought for comprehensive foreclosure reform.

I graduated from college with a finance degree. I was good with math and numbers; it made sense. I went to San Francisco after I graduated from [the University of Nevada, Reno] to get into the market there. But unfortunately, the only job I could get was as a receptionist for one of the financial companies. I decided I had to go back to school to really compete. It came down to business or law school. I chose law school because I felt it would open more doors. I fell in love with the law and never looked back. I never considered working on Wall Street ever again.

I remembered I'd asked my father for advice. He very smart and politically savvy, but also street smart and book smart. He joined the military, went into the army, was sent over to Korea, came home, and married my mother. He started having kids and tried to put himself through college and graduate, but he had family to care for. He couldn't finish. He went on to become county commissioner for 16 years in Southern Nevada and then the president of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority. Our door was always open. We had our home phone number in the telephone book, and anybody that needed help would call. They would call in the middle of the night with a concern. He was always available.

It turned out law school wasn't easy. They tell you, "Look to your left. Look to your right. Somebody's not going to be sitting next to you at the end of the year." But it was a whole new world for me. I loved thinking about how the law could be used to help others, how to interpret it that way. I think that probably comes from growing up in a family where my parents were actively involved in the community.

After law school, I went to clerk for one of our state court judges. He had been on the bench 20 years, and I was his last law clerk. He was a brilliant man and is still a mentor to me. His legal secretary, a Hispanic woman, had grown up in Las Vegas. She used to joke about how you could always see my father, pedaling all over the community on his bike. He wanted to engage and talk to people and fight for them. That's the point of getting elected.

After clerking, I went into private practice and worked for a small law firm of four or five men—all partners. I was the only associate and the only female attorney. I did one pro bono case for this couple who were trying to save their property. We won the case, and we parted at the courthouse and then probably about two or three weeks later, the woman comes to thank me in my office. She gave me a small box of chocolate-covered cherries. I've never forgotten it. It just made such an impression on me. I realized that was what I was missing—fighting for vulnerable people who were looking for somebody to stand up for them.

That's when I started looking around for other opportunities and went to work for one of our governors, Gov. [Bob] Miller. Eventually, I ended up making the decision to run for attorney general. I thought, "Okay, I've done all this stuff behind the scenes, but now it's time to stand up and fight for the issues I care about." I won in 2007.

I've come to realize that basically all my bosses and supervisors throughout my career have been male. And I've had great experiences, but it's made me appreciate the importance of diversity and inclusion. When I decided to run for Senate, I knew that, if elected, I'd be the first female Senator from Nevada. But I didn't realize that I'd be the first Latina in the Senate until someone mentioned it to me during the race. Obviously, that's not the reason I ran; I was running for issues we need to deal with that I could fight for here in my state.

When I sit down with women and men, too, one thing that I tell them is, "Nobody can tell you what it's like to run for office. You just have to learn when you step into those shoes and run." But I do tell them that running for office means you must do complete analysis of who you are and why you're running. People will ask you, and you need to be able to explain to them why you're doing it. It's not easy. You need to do a lot of introspection and be honest with yourself. Voters will know whether you've done that work, whether you're sincere or not. And they're trusting you with their most intimate stories, so you better be prepared.

On Election Day, I won and Donald Trump won. I was walking through the hotel where we held our party, and these young Hispanic men and women were coming up to me and crying. They were concerned about their future, their parents, concerned that families would be torn apart. Even to this day, I will be in a convenience store or out in Southern Nevada or in Reno, and people will come up to me and cry. It reminds me that I am here to represent them, their stories, their struggles, their fight. I know that when my grandfather crossed the Rio Grande, somebody was there to support him and to fight for him. I know when my dad was discriminated against because he was a Hispanic, somebody opened doors for him, and that's why he opened doors for others. That's what we do as Americans. If we've succeeded then we help others who are still struggling.

Right now, there are 21 female senators in the Senate, and that is more than we have ever had at any one point. It's not enough. We have different perspectives that we bring to the conversation, different issues that we push forward. But we're still fighting for equal pay for equal work. We're still fighting for our right to decide what happens to our bodies. We are hearing from members in Congress who still don't understand what Planned Parenthood does for members of our communities. Women need more seats at the table. Period.

When women apply for a job, we ask ourselves, "Am I qualified? Do I have the experience? Do I have the education? Do I have the abilities?" When a man looks at that job, he thinks, "How much does it pay?" We need to stop second-guessing our abilities. We need to stand up and make ourselves heard.

#catherine cortez masto #politics

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bellabooks · 8 years

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Why I Heart Mysteries Now More than Ever

I’m a junkie for competence porn. I used to think my fetish started with the creation of MacGyver, whose name is now synonymous with the genre. But it goes back much earlier than that. Columbo, with his bumbling shtick that covers up a steel-trap truth processor. Sherlock Holmes, the ultimate know-it-all. CSI began as science-is-everything competence porn. If the premise of any story is that the detectives and investigators are smart, inventive and know what they’re doing, I’m there. Now more than ever, with facts of science under siege, and ignorance coupled with brute strength held up as virtue, I find myself turning to mysteries, again and again, for stories of competence. Facts. Deduction based on evidence. Even better, competence that leads to justice. Mysteries are where evil is punished, and smart, not always rich or beautiful, people rule. The LGBTQ community lives again in a world under siege, where county clerks and bakers can deliver deaths of a thousand paper cuts to our rights. Our entire community has a profound craving for answers in the unsolved disappearances and murders of gay, bi and transgender people. We yearn for justice, in the here and now. Any good mystery novel brings answers to hard questions, and usually at the hands of a competent investigator. Our story heroes may be broken and themselves a quagmire of conflicts. But their goal is securing truth and justice usually on behalf of another. It’s Karma in action, between the covers of a book. And when that competent investigator draws on facts as well as insight into human nature, it’s a winner for me. Give me stories from Jean Redmann, Erica Abbott, Ellen Hart, Sarah Drehera! My To Be Read stack includes so many more. Take your pick because the range and selection is fabulous these days. Perhaps its sacrilegious coming from me, but a love story inside a mystery is totally optional. I don’t have to fall in love with my justice heroes, and they can be antisocial loners. Doesn’t matter. It’s the mystery storyline that promises me I will get angry and sad, my heart will pound and there will be justice in the world by the end. Relax, The Women are in Charge In decades past, mysteries tended to be very male, and a lot of them were really awful to their women characters. Many female characters ended up dead or helpless fodder to prove the hero’s bravery. Then they were bedded and discarded by the next book. Spy novels a la James Bond, are a kind of competence porn, after all. A notable exception to the use of women as dead-body wallpaper are the horse-world based mysteries of the late Dick Francis. The novels abound with respectfully treated love interests who often bring the missing deductive puzzle piece to the party and rarely need to be rescued. With the rise of women in print, lady sleuths emerged, bringing with them stories of justice for women and victimized communities. Finally, mysteries that passed the Bechdel Test! Many of my favorite series have accompanied me on long drives as audio books, making me loathe to ever turn off the car, like The No. 1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith, The Bernadette Manuelito (Leaphorn and Chee) Series by Anne Hillerman, and The Mary Russell Series by Laurie R. King. Bad people get caught. Justice, not always jail time, is dispensed. The Truth is Everything Inside a great mystery story is world where unearthing the truth is everything. This was true in one of the first lesbian mysteries I ever read, Murder at the Nightwood Bar by Katherine V. Forrest. It’s the power of Kate Delafield’s reasoning, her careful attention to detail, and ability to see people through the lens of facts that leads her to a surprising conclusion. What Kate knows is truth and the justice she serves sustains her, and us, after confronting the inhumanity of hatred and abuse. Ultimately, stories like these give me comfort because I know when writers create characters they are drawing on models in real life. Our real world is filled with every day competent people. Our news of late is filled with unlikely first responders: data geeks and lawyers with laptops using their competence and commitment to serve the cause of justice. I read mysteries because I believe the words I repeated in school in my youth: And justice for all. Karin Kallmaker has been exclusively devoted to lesbian fiction since the publication of her first novel by Naiad Press in 1989. In addition to multiple Lambda Literary Awards, she has won the Ann Bannon Popular Choice, multiple Goldies and has been selected as a Trailblazer by the Golden Crown Literary Society. Her latest novel is Captain of Industry from Bella Books. The California native is the mother of two and blogs at Romance and Chocolate. Search on social media for “Kallmaker” – there’s only one. Everything you wanted to know about any of her stories is right here: https://kallmaker.com/allabout/ http://dlvr.it/NNkLBt

#Books #Karin Kallmaker #MYSTERY

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the-vcr-of-dr-caligari-blog · 8 years

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Cabin Fever (2002) Review: Directed by Eli Roth and featuring Rider Strong and Jordan Ladd, yes the picture I’ve chosen to represent this review is a joke, this movie is an offensive dumpster fire. Offensive because it is 93 minutes too long. I have to make this short and sour because usually a good portion of my reviews is made up of praise and mentions of redeeming and unique qualities. Fine, damn it, here’s a positive sentence: For once in Horror history when the characters become infected they don’t get up and eat each other. I find that to be a unique writing choice. Also what I found interesting is how hateable the characters are in this film. Yes, that’s not new for a multiple-teen-death-count film, but this time it was different. It’s not that they were all tired stereotypes and unintelligent and obnoxious narcissists, two of these characters were just immoral and irredeemable to the core. Those characters being Bert (Played by James DeBello) and Jeff (Played by Joey Kern). You come to hate them for just being horrible human beings. Yes, you probably rooted for Jeff for being smart enough to escape, but his tact was just piss disgusting. As for the other three, they didn’t receive enough character development for you to care if they lived or not, as much as they tried to be decent human beings.

Now let’s talk about the scare factor: Was there a scare factor? There was a gore factor, and we all know that’s all that Eli Roth is really good for, right? We saw The Green Inferno (2013) and we know what the MO is. I’m going to be honest, for the first time in a long time I was actually kind of disgusted by the visuals in a movie. The shaving scene especially, that was a bit of a sensory overload. My favorite part of this movie was actually the fact that canines were attracted to the rotting flesh that the disease brought upon you. Not only are you decaying and too sick to function, but every day dogs are trying to eat you now. That is pretty scary in my opinion. You could also consider rednecks chasing you down while you are half dead to be scary, but that’s nothing unique or interesting.

My problems with this film are as such: Why everything? Why anything? We start off our adventure with a mentally disabled child biting our Bert character, and this is relevant why? Because Dennis the Dope contracts the disease from him later? But nothing comes of Dennis contracting it that way because everyone actually gets infected by the contaminated river lemonade. Speaking of that, why are those kids making lemonade out of river water? Yes, these are country folk but they are not prehistoric tribesmen, they have tap water. That’s clearly a segue to getting all of the county folk infected but that is utterly ridiculous. Why would you use the river water? Why can’t you see a dead body in the water 20 feet ahead? The only conclusion was that these bastard children did it on purpose! They work for the dogs! They must create diseased meat for these demon dogs to obtain their rightful place in a dog dominated world as upper class slaves who helped forge the canine empire! But, no it’s just poor writing. Also, the hamfisted romance between Paul and Karen. Stop doing this, horror directors. You’re not going to build a meaningful relationship that makes us care AND kill everyone off ceremoniously in your hour and a half movie. Now let’s not forget about the best scene in modern cinema: Dennis’s sick karate moves! I can’t actually bash this because it is so relevant to the film and it makes so much sense, so much sense that it makes too much sense and it would be insulting for me to even question it. And lastly, we have the racism comedy between the store clerk and the african american group at the end. Why? Just fucking why? What kind of movie are you trying to make? You put in so much crap, Eli Roth, that just makes no sense. It’s not a comedy and you just brought the whole movie to a dead stop by including an unfunny “racism misunderstanding” joke in your film about rotting sick people. Also don’t think I didn’t see that hospital rabbit man was credited in the credits as “We’ll never tell”. Good, I don’t care. Honestly if you told me, I would die inside for knowing that you thought I’d care. There are many other things wrong with this film but they’re just not worth ranting over.

I’m gonna have to flush this turd at a 2/10 on the spooker scale. Thank you everyone, and remember not to drink any of the shit sold by little kids, they’ll poison you on purpose.

#horror movies #horror #horror movie #horrors #scary movies #movies #movie #film #films #film review #film reviews #movie review #movie reviews

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stone-man-warrior · 5 years

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October 8, 2018: 12:21 pm:

October 8, 2018: 11:57 am:<br><br>Pacific Power Corporation Special assassin ... StoneMan .Warrior - 2018-10-08T15:21:09-0400 - Updated: 2018-10-08T15:21:09-0400

October 8, 2018: 11:57 am: Pacific Power Corporation Special assassin terrorist squad is expected to be here at my home in about an hour. A 1:00 appointment was mandated by the Pacific Power Corporation terrorists earlier this week. They are forcing the installation of "Smart Meters" at my home as a disguised means to enter my property and kill me. Nine of their Pacific Power Corporation soldiers were killed in my driveway last month when I defended myself from an ambush attack. Nine dead terrorists were in my driveway, then carted away by other terrorists that day. No one has asked me anything about the incident in an official capacity, or an un-official capacity. Chances are high that they are already in the neighborhood, staging their attack. The representatives of the power company who actually come here today will have a number of other soldiers that they will be in contact with via personal communication devices. I have three digital meters already, I am told these new ones have two-way, wireless communication built into them. Two-way communication to and from the meter ensures that the power will be shutoff remotely at some point in the future. Two-way communication to and from an electric usage meter has only one use for incoming communications, that is to turn off the meter, which turns off the power to the US American Citizen customers of Pacific Power. When the digital meters were installed many years ago, the three meters at my property were installed one at a time, and no one contacted me before the arrival of the Pacific Power linemen arrived. Those installations were also done in an ambush style of arrival. No warning, just people showed up and removed and replaced electric usage meters. One of the occasions came complete with a fake Sheriff deputy escort for the Pacific Power Corporation linemen. The Sheriff car was real, the badge was real, the uniform was real, and the gun and tazer was real, the person wearing the Sheriff uniform that day was not a real Sheriff, nor Deputy. For twenty-two years I have paid my electric bill on time and never missed a payment. Pacific Power Corporation assassins are on the way, they may already be staged nearby. If they are staged nearby, there will be terrorist soldiers who appear not to be affiliated with the Power company, they will be wearing regular clothing and not have Pacific Power Uniforms on. The ones that come to my home will most likely have Pacific Power embroidery on their clothing for identification as Pacific Power employees. I am not going to open my gate, they can walk in, it's safer for me that way. So, this visit is from Pacific Power Corporation in retaliation for the nine terrorist Pacific Power soldiers who died in my driveway last month.

Shared with: Public

StoneMan .Warrior - 2018-10-08T15:57:33-0400

October 8. 2018: 12:56 pm:

StoneMan .Warrior - 2018-10-08T15:58:16-0400

StoneMan .Warrior - 2018-10-08T15:59:13-0400

These are the three meters that are going to be removed in a few minutes.

StoneMan .Warrior - 2018-10-08T16:46:57-0400 - Updated: 2018-10-08T17:26:26-0400

October 8, 2018: 1:34 pm: "Rob" & "Brent" installing Smart Meters. The man closest to the house says his name is either Rob or Brent, I forgot which one is which. He also uses the name "Gleason", and also id known to dress in a black law enforcement officer uniform. He has been to my home in the past both as a representative of Pacific Power Corporation, and also while wearing a real law enforcement officers uniform. When Gleason is wearing the law enforcement uniform, he also bring with him a Thompson Sub Machine Gun. The machine has been used to intimidate me in the past, and the Thompson he uses has been modified. The modification is the addition of a small black pouch on the machine gun that collects the spent shells from the gun as it is being fired. With the pouch on the gun, there is no need to worry about picking up 0.45 ACP shells that happen at 850, to 1150 rounds per minute. The Thompson sub machine gun that Gleason uses when wearing the police uniform also has another modification in addition to the cloth bag attachment that catches the spent shells. The gun is attached to a automobile anti-theft device. The anti-theft device is commonly known as "The Club", but may also have other names. The device is the kind of thing that is used by placing it on the steering wheel of a car such that the steering wheel cannot be turned. It locks into place. Gleason uses the device to conceal the Thompson sub machine gun. He attaches the device to the gun such that it looks like... I don't know what it looks like. It looks like a Thompson sub machine gun with an automotive anti-theft device attached to it... that is what it looks like. The devise is red and yellow in color, and has a distinguishable hook on it. The gun with the Club attached does not look like a machine, and that is why he uses it. The black cloth bag also provides camouflage for the machine gun. I did not see a gun today. I did see one of the assassins launch away resultant of the assassins Nitrous Oxide/Versed airborne gas mixture being ignited. Fight terrorism with a Bic Lighter! I don't know who it was that launched away. There was a colorful hat being worn by that terrorist assassin. The assassin launched away from the fence line between my yard and the Monroe's yard at 434. Upon arrival today. as these two Pacific Power Corporation Special assassins were walking towards me, Gleason asked the question "What did you do with (insert my name here)? I ignored his question and directed him to the meters.

StoneMan .Warrior - 2018-10-08T16:48:51-0400

October 8, 2018: 1:47 pm:

StoneMan .Warrior - 2018-10-08T16:49:22-0400

StoneMan .Warrior - 2018-10-08T16:54:21-0400

And these are the three "Smart Meters" that were installed as a part of an ambush attack in retaliation for the nine Pacific Power Corporation assassin terrorist soldiers who were killed last month when I defended myself from them. That attack was an ambush. I fought all nine of them in hand to hand self defense. They all died,, or were severely injured. I say they died because the injuries were from the swords they brought with them.

StoneMan .Warrior - 2018-10-08T16:56:02-0400

Incoming phone call just now from terrorist operatives who do follow-up work by calling the victims telephone. (541)-659-5710

StoneMan .Warrior - 2018-10-08T22:50:05-0400 - Updated: 2018-10-09T11:08:05-0400

October 8, 2018: 7:29 pm: Earlier today when the Pacific Power assassins were here, there was a child under my truck, I had forgotten about the child. I just returned from trying to go grocery shopping is socio-terrific Dystopian Josephine county, but only made it to the AM'PM. I bought some tobacco and a lighter and a peach juice drink. I buy the peach so I won't forget to do what needs doing to get Donald Trump impeached... he won't stop the terrorism because he is teh leader of the terrorists I write about here. Anyways, when the terrorist AM/PM clerk rang up the items I wanted, he said "That will be $18:18, you are going to need a jump". I got into my vehicle and it would not start. So I opened the hood, while thinking about the clerk telling me that I need a jump. Just as the hood of the truck opened up, a man in the white van pictured below pulled into the parking space next to the one I was parked in. His vehicle has the words "Smart Start" on the side. The man that pulled right in there after I was told I need a jump and before I knew the truck would not start. He said he would help me to start my vehicle. The man with the Smart Start had cables and was like johnny on the spot; literally, he was right there as if I had called ahead of time. and the clerk also knew my vehicle would not start. After a half hour of jumping the vehicle, there was smoke, so I called a tow truck. $118.00. I did not have a chance to get groceries. Someone had been under my truck when Pacific Power assassins were here had sabotaged the starter somehow. The AM/PM clerk and the Smart Start guy were there to follow-up on the assassination attempt today. Smart Start is part of the Smart Meter attack. This is how special assassin teams are arranged, with a specific set of activities that when performed by the sub-cell, will render the US American Citizens dead. If they are unable to kill the American, they have these kinds of persecution oriented pressure that they do to completely ruin someone's life. I need too be somewhere tomorrow, and now I cannot go. And, so far, $118.00 it cost and I haven's began to fix the sabotaged starter.

====================================================

My other car has the same problem, and someone had been under the car at some point last month or so making noise. Now I know why. Since I mentioned that the contacts in a cell phone are important to the terrorists, they are literally taking the words I use to report the terrorism and then turning them around to hurt me. There are contacts in an automotive starter motor, the contacts can be ruined with a screwdriver. And that is why there were people under my cars. No one will help. The same thing is happening with the firewood that I need to stay warm with. Since I exposed the use of Nitrous Oxide as a means of killing the American Citizens, and then suggest to Fight Terrorism with a Bic Lighter, the terrorists in my neighborhood are making it impossible for me to split some firewood. If i go outside, there is a terrorist cell nearby all of the time. Because I exposed the use of partners by the terrorists, they ruined my brakes on my truck by emptying the fluid in the master cylinder. In terrorism, the partners, pet people that have been kidnapped and are being held in captivity, must serve the needs of their master, so the terrorists turned the idea around and punished me with an empty master cylinder on my vehicle.StoneMan .Warrior - 2018-10-08T22:54:31-0400October 8, 2018: 7:53 pm: Smart Start at the AM/PM, part of the Pacific Power special assassin squad.

StoneMan .Warrior - 2018-10-08T22:56:04-0400

October 8, 2018: 7:58 pm: Smart Start pacific Power Special Assassin squad terrorist vehicle.

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lilianding3910-blog · 6 years

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Co-Parenting Can Give A New Lifestyle To The Divorced Partners

nI Know It's Tough To Just take Your Target Off His Submitting For Divorce, But Occasionally This Is The Very best Phone: I know that you likely come to feel that you are managing out of time. It's usual to stress that the divorce papers will be final before long so that you genuinely only have so a lot time to make any true progress prior to you'll be divorced. But, at the very least in my viewpoint, there can be a true threat in putting your target only on this.

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