#operation amarillo

[wenmistry]

End Of The Line.

[justinspoliticalcorner]

Steven Monacelli and Tristan Lee at Texas Observer:

Under owner Elon Musk, the social media site X, formerly known as Twitter, has become a hotbed of white supremacist and neo-Nazi content. A recent headline in the Atlantic doesn’t mince words: “X is a white supremacist site.” Musk has allowed formerly banned far-right and neo-Nazi accounts back on the platform, and, in some instances, he’s directly responded to accounts that traffic in white supremacist and neo-Nazi rhetoric. Meanwhile, anonymous accounts that regularly promote racial hate on the platform have seen their follower counts grow substantially as Musk has taken a more hands-off approach to moderation compared to the social media network’s prior owners.  Anonymity has long been a tactic used by extremists to spread their ideology while avoiding consequences, from Klansmen hoods to online pseudonyms. With such ideas spreading rapidly on X, the Texas Observer has identified the operators of four anonymous accounts that regularly share racist, antisemitic, and neo-Nazi content on the platform. Three of the operators appear to live or have claimed to own property in Texas, where X moderation operations are based and Musk resides.

Through reviewing posts on X, web archives, leak databases, and other social media profiles, the Observer identified the following individuals as the anonymous operators of neo-Nazi X accounts, which had a collective 500,000 followers at their peak: Cyan Cruz, a 40-year-old marketing professional who appears to have lived in Austin and Amarillo and operates the X account TheOfficial1984; Michael Gramer, a 42-year-old retired mechanical engineer who has lived in New Hampshire, operates the X account 9mm_SMG, and has claimed to have a house in Galveston and to be spending time in Dallas; Robert “Bobby” Thorne, a 35-year-old vice president at JP Morgan Chase in Plano, who operates the account Noble1945 and previously operated the account Noble_x_x_; and John Anthony Provenzano, a 30-year-old who appears to live in Virginia, operates the account utism_ (formerly known as JohnnyBullzeye), and, according to a tip and a records request response from the U.S. Navy, works at the Naval Surface Warfare Center in Indian Head, Maryland—where the Navy manufactures explosive ordnance.

These individuals are part of a broader ecosystem of far-right accounts that have rapidly expanded their reach in recent months. They are among the most popular white nationalist and neo-Nazi accounts on X whose operators have not yet been publicly identified. (While this article was in production, the Anti-Defamation League also identified Cruz as the operator of TheOfficial1984.) Their rise to prominence tracks with a dramatic decrease in moderation of hateful content on the platform, which dropped from 1 million moderated accounts in 2021 to only 2,361 accounts in the most recent 2024 X transparency report. Posts from these individuals have received tens of millions of views over the last year and a half. The accounts have also attracted the attention of major public figures. Two of the accounts have received replies from the X account of Elon Musk, who has said he writes all of his own X posts and who, as reported by Mother Jones, has amplified users who promote pseudoscientific arguments that those of European descent are biologically superior. Three of the accounts are followed by a sitting congressman, and many other right-wing media figures and outlets follow at least one of the four accounts.

All four accounts follow the other three, and all four have interacted with at least two of the other three in posts, replies, and spaces on X. The host of a June 2024 X space, an online voice chat room on the X platform, focused on “JQ 101”—“JQ” being an abbreviation used by anti-semitic extremists for the “Jewish Question”—tagged all four of the accounts in a post promoting the gathering, in which three of the four accounts participated. Nearly 17,000 listeners tuned into the conversation. On July 9, Musk posted two replies to Cruz’s account TheOfficial1984, which Cruz has used to post pro-Hitler,��Holocaust denial, and other antisemitic content. Musk’s posts were in response to TheOfficial1984’s call to reinstate a prominent neo-Nazi account, Lucas Gage, who had been banned for six months. In the replies, Musk explained that Gage had been temporarily banned for “repeated and clear calls for violence” and identified one of Gage’s many antisemitic posts as the specific reason. While Gage cannot currently post, his virulently antisemitic posts from prior to the ban remain visible on X, with many having hundreds of thousands of views. On July 23, Musk replied to Gramer’s account 9mm_smg, which Gramer has used to make posts referring to neo-Nazi tropes such as the “14 Words” and “blood and soil” and identifying himself as a white nationalist. Musk’s reply was a laughing emoji in response to a post about a community note—a feature that allows users to add context under a post if enough users vote on it—that described Vice President Kamala Harris as former TV host Montel Williams’ “main hoe,” which 9mm_smg described as “the greatest community note of all time.”  Musk’s engagement with these accounts may fit a pattern of the mogul amplifying far-right views on X, including promoting Tucker Carlson’s interview with a Nazi apologist, in a since-deleted post, and explicitly agreeing with an antisemitic conspiracy theory, for which he later apologized. 

Texas Observer doing the Lord’s work in exposing the people behind the four Neo-Nazi accounts that have major followings on X.

[kedreeva]

If you fish, raise fish, or know of someone that fishes near Amarillo, TX, this rehab - Wild West Wildlife Rehabilitation Center - is looking for fresh caught donations of fish to feed a new rescue (I'm posting 7/14/24). Contact info below cut and on their website! Help them help a bird!

Ph. (806) 680-2483 e-mail: wildwestwrc@yahoo.com

Operating hours: Monday-Friday 9a-8p Saturday/Sunday 10a-6p

[semperamans]

western nights

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

hello all! this is my first time posting something i've written to tumblr in well over ten years. for context, i was a 1D writer back in the golden days. i don't quite know how to do anything on here now, so please offer me grace! i posted this story to ao3 (semperamans) a while ago and wanted to bring it here, too!

bones and all has become my new obsession, so, i hope you enjoy!

blood and gore implied, but it's not graphic! pining for one another but make it as obvious as possible. lee is a soft boy in this one. oc doesn't have a name, so could be read as self-insert but there are a few descriptors. didn't proofread, so be gentle with me.

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

The summer sunlight, despite her weakening, danced upon the blacktop as the beat-up Chevy rambled eastbound. A sentimental sadness filled the cabin as a sweet-scented breeze carried the whisper of night across Lee’s cheeks. With the sky as his canvas, God himself must’ve hand-picked the clouds that raced over head. They were perfect. Toy Story clouds, Lee had called them. Who knew when he’d see them again?

Electric green numbers flickering on the dash declared that it was 8:15 in the diminutive town of Paxton, Nebraska, meaning that most everyone was tucked away in their single-story homes. The road, including the visible miles that stretched beyond, was nearly barren. There wasn’t much to look at in this part of the country, but the sun had a magical way of casting everything in gold. Every blade of grass shimmered. Every bird flapped auriferous wings. Every run-down John Deere seemed to emit a copper radiance. Lee was entranced. With his head hanging out of the open window, he watched as the sparse scenery barreled into view, then quickly disappeared. Tree bled into tree as the wind tangled his curls into tornado-like spirals. The ripping zephyr blasted against his eardrums, and he allowed himself to relish in the moments in between. He was with and without. He was in the truck’s cabin and soaring miles above with the whooping cranes. He was experiencing this moment in isolation, yet the girl sat inches away on the bench seat. This was Lee’s purgatory, served with the scent of wheat. After a while, the novelty began to wane. He pulled his head from the window.           

                    “Perfect timing,” the girl said. Lee only looked at her. Bathed in twilight’s orange and periwinkle luminosity, she was ethereal. Strands of her thin brown hair had fallen from the knot atop her head. The wispy strands cupped her cheeks in a way he wished he could. She peered over at him with a grin. “Listen.” Her long fingers splayed outward. The truck’s radio had two knobs, one for volume and the other for tuning. She fiddled with both of them momentarily, and then he heard it.

                  “Amarillo by morning,” George Strait crooned through the static. The girl furrowed her brows and shifted the dial to the right the slightest bit. The next line was clearer. “Up from San Antone.” She appeared pleased as she glanced at her passenger. Lee gave her a smile and began to sing along.

                  “Everything that I’ve got is just what I’ve got on.” Like all good Kentucky boys, the lilting wail of forlorn cowboys had been the soundtrack to Lee’s childhood. He had mentioned it to her once as they curled for warmth in the truck bed, their chattering teeth harmonizing with serenading cicadas and crickets. The girl’s battery-operated radio had lain between them, emitting staticky white noise for upwards of twenty minutes, when an unexpected voice came through. George Strait. Lee chuckled. His breath made a Toy Story cloud. He explained to the girl how this had been the song he had his first real slow dance to. Even with half her face tucked behind a blanket, Lee registered her disbelief. He smirked at her, eager to show his prowess, and up he jumped. The girl giggled, Lee turned the volume higher, and in the dim glow of the Chevy’s headlights, he demonstrated the way he had twirled and dipped and romanced his childhood flame.

                  “Amarillo by morning. Amarillo, I’ll be there.” He sang, reaching over to push the girl’s hair behind her ear.

Lee liked singing to her. Lee liked touching her. Lee liked her even though he knew he shouldn’t. Their kind didn’t make friends often. They couldn’t. Lee figured this out the hard way when he was venturing out on his own. He tried to ward her off. He met her friendly advances with cold shoulders and clipped responses, but it was no use. On their first night together, Lee fished pieces of Barry Cook from between his teeth, and he watched her every action. She was lithe and intentional. Lee caught himself grinning as she plucked records from Barry’s stand, belittling his choices and then begrudgingly admitting he had taste. Her eyebrows rose as she peered at Lee from over her shoulder. 

                  “Well, I wouldn’t know. But surely you can attest to that, yes?”

She was witty. By the end of the night, Lee had bitten the inside of his cheeks raw to keep from smiling.

                  “You can sleep with me in the bedroom.” She told him that night after ensuring that while she did bite, she wouldn’t take more than a nibble out of him. Lee didn’t respond. She blinked absently at him. “The couch is covered in jizz, and the recliner has springs that will go up your ass. So, it’s either the floor, or,” She took a running start, then flung herself onto the bed. It wobbled beneath her. Her smile stretched from ear to ear. “The waterbed.”

Lee couldn’t help himself. He propelled himself forward, bellyflopping onto the polyvinyl with a thwack. The girl laughed, then rolled onto her side to look at him. She didn’t say anything, not at first anyway. It wasn’t awkward. Not for Lee. He realized in that moment that he liked looking at her. She had freckles, quite a few of which concentrated primarily over the bridge of her nose. Her eyes reminded him of the lake back home—a shimmering blue green with a depth that made him nearly uncomfortable. Her hair, clean of grime and blood, hung in loose, wet spirals. Runny droplets raced down her arm. Lee dampened his lips.                

                  “You’re staring.” Her voice was melted chocolate. Lee wanted to drink it.

                  “So are you.”

Silence. Then,

                  “Can I draw you?”

Before Lee could answer, the girl had nearly toppled off the bed to grab her bag. She rummaged through it, making a pleased sound when she pulled a moleskin from the deep recesses. Lee still hadn’t given permission, and so she waited, blinking up at him expectantly.

                  “You can draw?”

                  “Sort of.”

Lee gave a curt nod, then watched as she etched his face onto a yellowed page. She was sort of a liar. She could do more than draw. She could create works of art. Watching her sketch quickly became his favorite past time. On long stretches of highway, he would gaze over frequently. She never failed to amaze him, often capturing the smallest of details that he had long forgotten, like the mole on the waitress's cheek or the glint in a toddler’s eye. Somewhere in Missouri, they stumbled upon a mom-and-pop art supply store. Lee, who was usually so good with their money, placed a box of colored pencils on the counter after the girl had vacated the aisles. Six dollars. They’d have to ration their meals, but the smile on her face was worth it.

He was falling in love with her.

He was lying to himself.

He was already in love with her.      

                  “Are you feeling okay?”

Lee could no longer hear George Strait’s voice. The song on the significantly quieter radio was a Patsy Cline classic. He’d gone quiet some time ago. The girl appeared concerned. With an easy grip on the large steering wheel, her eyes continuously darted from the road to his face.

                  “I’m fine.” Lee said. He ran a hand through his hair. “Tired.”

                  “There’s a state park entrance somewhere up the road. Weather is nice. You okay with sleeping in the truck bed?”

Night had fallen quickly. Gone was the golden brilliance of the day. Deep blues and blacks coated the void in isolation.

                  “Sounds good to me.”

Silence. The girl pulled into the left turn lane.

The meandering path, lit only by the Chevy’s headlights, felt as though it had been plucked from a horror story. It was impossible to see more than a few feet ahead, but the girl expertly guided the truck onward. They both knew that they were likely the scariest things in this part of the woods. As they ventured forward, Lee watched the lightning bugs littering the vast expanse of darkness overhead. They were mesmerizing, their somber glow churning the darkness. Lee couldn’t wait to settle in and watch them with the girl pressed against his side.

The gears whined as she put the truck in park. They had stumbled upon a meadow that Snow White herself would have felt right at home in. Flowering bushes bordered the expanse of mashed grass. Hordes of hooting owls and night birds nested in nearby trees, keeping them company as they prepared to bed down for the night.

As Lee fluffed their blankets and lined the truck bed, he watched the girl collect purple columbines. She had an affinity for flowers. There were quite a few detained in the pages of her journal, and even more hung on a strand of jute across the back window. There was something so whimsical about her, despite the griminess that came from life on the road. Lee found himself wondering how she had been as a child.

                  “Oh, I don’t really remember.” It was only after she spoke that he realized he had asked the question aloud. “Most of my childhood is a blur.” The pair had known each other for a week, and suddenly Lee realized they didn’t know each other much at all.

                  “Mine too.” He said, tossing their makeshift pillows atop the blankets. “I remember when my mom brought Kayla home, though. Best day of my life.”

The girl smiled. Like the flowers, she had planted herself on the moon-soaked ground. Her fingers were weaving the columbines together. Lee went on.

                  “She’s five years younger than me, but you wouldn’t be able to tell. The girl grows like a goddamn weed.” He let out a contented huff. “She was a tiny little thing back then, though. My mom said she was born too early.”

                  “Really?”

                  “Yeah.” Lee, who was leaning pieces of firewood together, nodded. “Mom thought I’d be upset because she wasn’t a boy, but I didn’t care. I was so fuckin’ excited.” He canted back on the vamps of his worn sneakers, evaluating his work. “I loved her so much. Right from the start.” He fished for the fire started lodged deep within his pockets. “My mom was in a car accident so the doctor prescribed her a bunch of pills. She slept a lot, so I took care of Kayla. She felt like she was mine from the very beginning.”

The girl didn’t speak. She couldn’t tell if the warmth she felt came from the fire now blazing before her or the power of Lee’s love for his baby sister. Regardless, it felt good. She had never been in the presence of such devotion.

                  “Kayla never cried, which was a blessing because our dad was a real piece of shit. He beat my ass more times than I could count for crying.” Lee’s blue eyes were awash in flame. “Kayla rarely did.” He pulled at a few strands of grass. “Girl is a fuckin’ mystery.”

                  “You made her feel safe.” The girl’s hushed voice was near silent beneath the popping wood. Lee turned to see that she had drawn her knees to her chest. The crown of columbines sat abandoned near her boot. Their eyes met. “She had no reason to cry. She had you.”

There was something buried in her sentence. It was a whisper wedged too far beneath the ground for Lee to grasp. The girl gave him a sad smile, propping her chin atop a kneecap.

                  “It was just me and my grandma growing up,” she said, picking her dirty fingernails. “We moved around a lot, because, you know.”

Lee could imagine, but he didn’t know, and he told her that. She was amazed. Had he not felt it since birth? Had he not had to battle the burn? The urge?

No. Lee told her that up until puberty, he was what anyone would have described as a clean-cut country boy, but at 16, he became the devil. The first was a girl from his neighborhood—a blonde who picked at Kayla until she bled. It happened suddenly. Lee had gone over to set things right. To ask her, as he had before, to leave his sister alone. Lee knew something bad was going to happen from the moment she opened the screen door. The breeze wafted her scent over him: perfume and lemon pledge. He wanted to get closer, and closer he came until suddenly he was bathed in crimson. Despite her deplorable actions, the blonde’s blood was sweeter than honeysuckle. Lee’s veins positively thrummed in delight as he took the life that had not belonged to him. The sin was second nature. The next kill was easier. Cleaner. More efficient. Unlike reaching second base or driving, Lee did not need a manual to learn this debaucherously sickening feat. It came naturally.

A flash of ire lit the girl’s electric blue eyes. How did he get away with it? Lee shrugged. It was too easy, really. In their neck of Kentucky, people disappeared often. Age-old adages of fathers leaving to get milk and never returning were true. The impoverished area was stricken with depression and drug addiction; no one cared, and no one accused Lee of any wrongdoing until...

The words became thick in his throat. Too dry. Too real. He was too close to the truth, which he simply could not face.

                  “I was seven.” The girl said. She must have sensed his trepidation but mentioned nothing of it. Lee had skidded to a stop, but the girl was slowly beginning. In a near-embarrassed murmur, she recounted her descent into what she called madness. It was a boy who lived next door. Her eyes fluttered shut. Lee knew she was drawing him. Reanimating his dead limbs. Filling his cavernous chest with stolen breaths. His hair was the color of the sand on a New York beach. His eyes were driftwood. He had been kind to her; he was the only one in class who didn’t stare with wide, judgmental eyes. “He cried.” She said it with open eyes. Nothing more came from her, and Lee knew she would not speak more of it, and he didn’t blame her.

                  “Come ‘ere.” He patted the cool metal of the tailgate, his rings clattering against the ridges. There was a moment of nothingness. Nothing appeared to move. Nothing stirred within her eyes. “S’okay.” His voice was even. Delicate. She turned her chin, contemplating him for a moment before ambling onto fawn-like legs. The crown of columbines dangled from her index finger as she neared.

As she came to a stop before him, he studied her face. Dusky plum circles ringed the delicate skin beneath her eyes. He wanted to run his thumbs over them. He wanted to brush the exhaustion from her features. Instead, he reached for her hand. It was a first. It was tip-toeing to the end of the diving board, and, blessedly, the girl chose to jump. Her hands were smoother and softer than Lee could have imagined. There was no biting this smile away. There was no tamping this feeling down.

                  “Let’s go to California.”

The girl’s eyebrows furrowed. Lee had been headed for Wyoming when they met. He wanted isolation and solitude; he had told her that. What had changed? Lee was honest.

                  “You.”

Lee wanted everything with her, but he wouldn’t say that yet. Maybe one day. In the meantime, he squeezed her hand. She was grinning at him in a way that made monarchs flutter within his gut.

                  “What do I have to do with California?” The girl placed the crown atop Lee’s greasy curls.

                  “You said you’ve never seen the West Coast. I think you’d like it.” It was the golden state, and she was a golden girl. He knew they’d make a lovely couple. The girl dropped her eyes, then pulled her hand away. With the fire’s warmth wrapping around her ankles, she moved closer to the flames. Lee traced her silhouette. He would never be an artist. Where she was creativity and beauty, he was destruction and brimstone. He would never be an artist, so he would brand this image into his mind. She smiled from over her shoulder.

                  “Can we be people in California?”

                  “People?”

                  "Mm," the girl said, turning to face him. “Get a place. Get jobs. We could just-” She hesitated, her eyes bouncing back and forth between his. “Be people.”

                  “Yeah.” Lee nodded. His smile was wide. “Let’s be people.”

[deadmotelsusa]

Dead Route 66 Motels 

The Zia Motor Lodge opened in 1938 and closed in 2002. It was demolished in 2005 after being damaged by fire. Its massive sign still stands and was featured in Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, both set in Albuquerque, New Mexico. 

The English Motel of Amarillo, Texas was likely built in the 1950s and remained in business until the 1990s. Although it's been closed for decades, a caretaker lives on the property and recently repainted some of the cabins. 

Opened as the Circle ‘S’ Motel, closed as the Relax Inn. This motel looks like it may have been operating when Google Street View first drove by in 2008 but by 2016, it was overgrown and abandoned. Located in Tucumcari, New Mexico.

Another Tucumcari motel - the long abandoned Paradise Motel (pictured in the 1950s and 2022) closed in the 1990s. In 2018, after suffering two fires in a span of a few months, the neon sign was removed from the property.

Villa Ridge, Missouri's Gardenway Motel closed abruptly in 2014. In 2019, its neon sign was purchase and removed by advertising collector Nathan Lippe. 

[mewling-central]

Introduction to Collective Seraphic

Now that Seraphic's at a stable place, I think I'm gonna take some time to delve into the basics of how it operates. For this post I'll only be going into the language itself and not the writing system, as that's going to need a post of its own to elaborate on. I'll try to keep this as concise as possible, but I may make separate posts expanding on topics discussed in this one. So, without further ado, onto the infodump!

Background

Collective Seraphic (which I'll be referring to as "Seraphic") is an artlang that I've created for a comic that as of this post I have not began yet, but am still developing. The majority of the comic will take place on the Seraph Homeworld, an alien planet some 3,000 lightyears from Earth populated by the seraph species (pictured below):

Within the story, Seraphic acts as the lingua franca of the Seraph Homeworld and the many colonized planets under Seraph control. It's used in the government, and among speakers of differing languages. As such, this language was the first one that I knew I would need to make as it will play a vital role in both the storytelling and narrative structure.

Syntax

Seraphic is largely a fusional language, employing affixes to modify the semantic role and meaning of morphemes. Seraphic does not, in the traditional sense, have verbs, so the sentence structure is strictly subject-object (will expand upon later). Nouns decline for number and tense, and are grouped into seven noun classes. Adjectives agree with nouns in number, except if derived from nouns themselves, in which case they'll also agree in class. Seraphic is very head-initial; with demonstratives, numerals, possesives, adjectives, genitives, and relative clauses following the noun the modify; and prepositions preceeding the nouns they modify. Auxiliaries preceed procedurals (again, will expand upon later).

Phonology

Here is the phonological chart for Seraphic:

It has a syllable structure of (CC)V(CC). Plosives cannot exist word finally, clusters of consonants of the same manner are illegal, and vowel clusters are also not permitted. Syllabic consonants are grouped with vowels and behave much like them, carrying tone and stress, so they together are grouped and referred to as vocalics. Seraphic is a tonal language, employing the use of four tones: rising (á), falling (à), high (ā), and low (a). Low tones remained unmarked in both the Seraphic script and in romanization. Stress is syllable-independant. It will take either the ultimate, penultimate, or rarely the antepenultimate. Stress always falls on the syllable with a voiceless initial obstruent nearest to the end of the word. If none are available, it will fall on the syllable with an initial sonorant within the same parameters. Stress will never fall on a voiced obstruent. For clarity, I'll provide a key describing the pronunciation of the romanization.

Sounds that are similarly pronounced as they're read in American English:

m, n, p, b, t, d, k, g, f, v, s, z, y, w, l

Sounds that have special pronunciations:

ŋ, like the ng in English "sing"

p', like the ጴ in Amharic "ጴጥሮስ"

t', like the t' in Navajo "yá'át'ééh"

k', like the კ in Georgian "კაბა"

', like the the space within English "uh-oh"

c, like the sh in English "sharp"

j, like the s in English "measure"

x, like the gh in English "ugh"

ğ, like the γ in Greek "γάλα"

pf, like the pf in German "Pfirsiche"

ts, like the z in Italian "grazia"

tc, like the ch in English "chain"

kx, like the kh in Lakota "lakhóta"

r, like the rr in Spanish "perro", although occasionally like the r in Spanish "amarillo"

i, like the ee in English "meet"

į, like the ы in Russian "ты"

u, like the oo in English "boot"

e, like the é in French "beauté"

œ, like the a in English "Tina"

o, like the o in Classical Latin "sol"

a, like the a in English "bra" although this can change to be more forward or more backward.

Another letter that might trip people up is ł, which is meant to represent the high tone syllabic 'l'. Otherwise, syllabics are written the same as their pulmonic counterparts, with tone markers written when applicable.

Nouns

Nouns make up the bulk of the Seraphic lexicon. Every noun is grouped into one of seven classes:

Solar class: nouns related to seraphim or seraph-like beings, and seraph body parts. Prefix appears as zā-, zō-, zē-, s-, or ts-.

sēr = "person"

Astral class: nouns related to non-seraph animate lifeforms (their equivalent to "animals"). Prefix appears as ğr-, x, or kx-.

xuc = "cherub"

Vital class: nouns related to inanimate lifeforms (their equivalent to "plants"). Prefix appears as wā-, wō, w-, ū-, wē-, or wī-.

wējlux = "tree"

Terranean class: nouns related to landscapes, locations, and natural phenomena. Prefix appears as va-, vo-, vu-, f-, and pf-.

voxāl = "sun"

Metallic class: nouns related to inanimate objects, both natural and artificial. Prefix appears as ja-, jo-, c-, or tc-.

jağrú = "rock"

Lunar class: nouns related to abstract concepts, and terms related to time. Prefix appears as la-, lo-, le-, li-, y-, or l/ł-.

levren = "job"

Oceanic class: nouns related to general words, tangible concepts, numbers, all adjectives, and non-incorporated loanwords. Prefix appears as a/ā-, o/ō-, or aw-.

awuf = "group"

Adjectives do not agree in class, due to the fact that nouns originally are derived from adjectives, and noun classes acted as a way to differentiate between nouns and adjectives.

fa = "warm, hot"

jafa = "fire" (lit. "a hot thing")

When adjectives are used as predicatives, they decline into the oceanic class in order to take the procedurals (once more, will expand upon later).

Nouns also decline for four numbers: singular (one thing, usually unmarked), dual (two things, both things; suffixes as -ac, -oc, -œc, or -c), plural (things, many thing; suffixes as -n, -an, or -in), and collective (every thing, all things; suffixes as -āf/ōf, -áf/-óf, or -'ōf).

Seraphic doesn't use pronouns. Everything and everyone is referred to by name, including yourself. From our perspective, the Seraphic language constantly speaks in the third person. However, it can be repetitive to use the same name over and over again in a sentence, and sometimes you don't know the name of things, so they'll apply what I've called pro-forms. They consist of the demonstrative adjectives fl "this", sl "that", and xl "yon" declined into the Solar class and taking the place of the first, second, and third person respectively. For ease of reference, I'll provide the forms and their declensions below.

zāfl (I/me), zāflc (both of us), zāvlin (we/us), zāfláf (all of us)

zāsl (you), zāslc (both of you), zāzlin (you guys), zāsláf (all of you)

zōxl (they), zōxlc (both of them), zōğlin (many of them), zōxláf (all of them)

Seraphic makes no distinction in the gender of the speaker, in this regard. Although these resemble pronouns, they're not meant to be used as often as regular pronouns, and whenever possible it's much preferred that you refer to someone or something by name.

Adjectives and Prepositions

Adjectives are fairly straightforward. Adjectives follow the noun they modify (e.g. sēr tan "big person"), and agree with them in number (e.g. sēr tan "big person" vs sērn t'aŋon "big people"). Adjectives agree in the singular form with singular and collective nouns, and they agree in the plural form with dual and plural nouns.

There are three main types of adjectives: native adjectives (e.g. cna "good"), borrowed adjectives (e.g. anzn "nice"), and noun-derived adjectives (e.g. arfi/ofi "new"). Native and borrowed adjectives don't agree with noun classes, but noun-derived adjectives do. It originated from the animacy-based adjective agreement system in Proto-Seraphic, which has been lost in all other adjective instances. When you want to make a noun into an adjective you'll affix one of two prefixes to it: ar- (if agreeing with Solar, Astral, and Vital nouns) and o- (if agreeing with Terranean, Metallic, Lunar, and Oceanic nouns). There are specific rules on the forms each prefix takes based on the noun they're attached to:

"ār-" when preceeding high or falling vocalic syllables (e.g. sēr ārzājna "popular person")

"ar-" when preceeding low or rising vocalic syllables (e.g. wēn arfe "local fruit")

"ó-" when preceeding high or falling vocalic syllables (e.g. lalel ówē "grassy flavor")

"o-" when preceeding low or falling vocalic syllables (e.g. lesar olvulvren "economic problem")

"ōw-" when preceeding words that start with a vocalic (e.g. lnin ōwāsāvbas "momentary event")

Prepositions occur before the nouns they modify, and don't change form in any circumstance. There are currently 19 prepositions in the modern language, and they are usually connected to nouns via a hyphen (e.g. e-fe "at (the) place"):

cu = of; indicates possession

pr̄ = indicates the indirect object, equivalent to "to" in the phrase "The man sends the letter to me."

in/īn = as or like; indicates similarity or resemblance. Will either be low or high tone depending on the tone of the following syllable.

e/ē = at or on; indicates location.

tsa = near or for; indicates relative distance from a location or an action performed for the sake of the referent.

cni = without; indicates a lack of possession or company.

wa = in or inside of; indicates interior position.

tn = on top of, above, or before; indicates superior position or a prior instance in time.

pux = under, beneath, or after; indicates inferior position or a following instance in time.

pi = with, together with; indicates being in company of or making use of the referent.

fān = from or away from; indicates the motion of leaving the referent.

ku = out of; indicates motion from within the referent towards the exterior.

tun = into or through; indicates motion from outside the referent towards the interior.

xel = to or towards; indicates the motion of approaching the referent.

kxun = across; indicates motion from one location to another

pn̄ = around; indicates location surrounding the referrent.

cāza = between; indicates location in the middle of the referrent.

tē = after, behind; indicates posterior position.

fr = during; indicates a moment in time

Prepositions aren't combined in Collective Seraphic, but may be in certain instances in colloquial speech.

Procedurals

Okay, this is probably the most complicated part of Seraphic, so I'm going to need to get into things individually. First, I'll start with defining a procedural itself. Procedurals are the term I use for the prefixes used to describe the relationship or process of and between the agent noun and the patient noun. These are what act as the equivalent to "verbs" in earth languages. There are three in use:

Existential: used to denote a state of being or equivalence between agent and patient, or to the patient and itself. Equivalent to English "to be" (e.g. A is B, there is B). Usually prefixes as some variant of n-, m-, or ŋ-.

Actional: used to denote an action or process between the agent and patient, or with the patient and itself. Equivalent to English "to do" or "to act upon" (e.g. A acts upon B). Carries a connotation of agency and intent. Usually prefixes as some variant of re-, ra-, or r-.

Resultative: used to denote an occurence or change in state between agent and patient, or patient and itself. Equivalent to English "to become", "to happen", or "to change into" (e.g. A becomes B, B happens to A). Carries a connotation of passiveness or motion. Usually prefixes as some varient of ed- or ez-.

The procedural will change its form slightly depending on the class and declension pattern of the noun it modifies. It always affixes to the patient noun, demonstrating a relationship of an action and what is being acted upon. In this way, the patient can be clearly identified. In transitive or causative clauses, the word order is always S(P)O, with the agent acting as the subject and the patient as the object. In intransitive and passive clauses, the word order is always (P)S, with the patient acting as the subject and the agent demoted to the indirect object or omitted entirely.

Although seemingly limiting, using these three procedural, as well as prepositions, nouns, and adjectives, altogether can be used to make all sorts of verb equivalents that are called "procedural phrases". I'll demonstrate how to build a sentence now. First thing we need to know is the subject and object:

Sāx ... jafa (The child ... the fire)

Next, I'll add the actional procedural in the present tense to this.

Sāx rejafa (The child acts upon the fire)

By itself this is technically grammatically correct, but it doesn't really mean anything. It's too broad. So we add a prepositional phrase to specify exactly what action the child is taking towards the fire.

Sāx pi-sīman rejafa (The childs acts upon the fire with (their) eyes)

Now we know that the child is performing an action involving the use of their eyes. Now of course this could mean many different things in English, but in Seraphic the first thing that comes to mind would be fairly obvious: to see! Thus, "Sāx pi-sīman rejafa" would be the same as saying "The child sees the fire" in English! There are a lot of set phrases that equate to verbs, and remain consistent in their arrangement. Often differing phrases are a useful way to ascertain where someone is from or what their first language is.

Tense and Aspect

Seraphic has six main tenses: two pasts, two presents, and two futures. The two pasts consist of the recent past (happening recently) and the remote past (happening a long time ago), and they prefix and/or combine with the procedural.

Sāx pi-sīman ğrejafa (The child just saw the fire)

Sāx pi-sīman eğrejafa (The child saw the fire a while ago)

Similarly, the future tenses consist of the near future (will happen soon) and the distant future (will happen eventually).

Sāx pi-sīman drejafa (The child will soon see the fire)

Sāx pi-sīman izrejafa (The child will eventually see the fire)

The present tenses consist of a general present tense (happens) and the infinitive (to happen) which is used with auxiliaries and copulae and carries no presence in time.

Sāx pi-sīman rejafa (The child sees the fire)

Pi-sīman ezrejafa (To see a fire)

Whether someone considers an event to be nearer or farther in time from them is completely up to their discretion. There's no set timeframe for when to use the recent vs. remote past, it's all fairly subjective. However, whether you decide to use the recent or remote can really indicate whether you believe something to be in the distant past or future, or just a few moments ago or soon.

Seraphic also makes use of two copulae, the perfective -r and the imperfective -l, helping clitics that expand on the aspect of the procedural, i.e. how the procedural happens over time instead of when in time. The copulae are separate from the procedural, being placed directly before it and conjugating on their own similarly to the lexical procedural. When the copulae are in use, they are conjugated instead of the lexical procedural, while the lexical will be put into the infinitive. The exception to this is if the point in time is considered necessary to be stated for the sake of clarity or emphasis, in which case the lexical verb will also conjugate (though this isn't considered to be the default). The two copulae each conjugate to six tenses, and give 12 individual aspects in total. They are as follows, starting with the perfective:

āgxōnr - Pluperfect: indicates that the action happened at a point before some time in the past either specified or implied (e.g. āgxōnr nidsl "that has happened")

xōnr - Preterite: indicates that the action happened in the past with no reference to if it was completed recently or remotely. A general past (e.g. xōnr nidsl "that happened")

nar - Relative: indicates relative clauses, i.e. clauses that act to modify a noun similarly to an adjective. Equivalent to "that", "who", or "which" (e.g. lsl nar nidsl "the thing that happens")

ednr - Gnomic: indicates general truths, common knowledge, and aphorisms (e.g. ednr nezłsl "things happen")

t'enr - Future Simple: indicates the action will happen in the future with no regard to how near or far it is from the present (e.g. t'enr nidsl "that will happen")

āt'ēnr - Future Perfect: indicates that the action will happen before a time or event in the future (e.g. āt'ēnr nidsl "that will have happened")

And the imperfective:

ŋ̄xōzl - Discontinuous: indicates that an action was happening in the past, but is no longer happening in the present (e.g. ŋ̄xōzl nidsl "that used to happen")

xōzl - Habitual: indicates that an action is done often or out of habit (e.g. xōzl nidsl "that always happens")

īzl - Progressive: indicates that an action is happening at the very moment of conversation (e.g. īzl nidsl "that is happening")

nizl - Prospective: indicates that an action will be starting to, or is in the process of happening (e.g. nizl nidsl "that is about to happen")

t'ezl - Iterative: indicates that an action happens again, repeatedly, or more than one time based on context (e.g. t'ezl nidsl "that happens again" or "that happens again and again")

nt'ezl - Continuative: indicates that an action happens continuously and without end (e.g. nt'ezl nidsl "that still happens")

With both tense and aspects, this largely expands the capability of Seraphic in referring to time.

Moods

Seraphic makes use of seven modal particles to denote seven moods. They are always placed at the beginning of clauses, and no two modal particles can exist in the same clause. They are grouped into four categories: the declaritive (indicative and negative), the inferential (evidential and interrogative), the deontic (volitive and imperative), and the epistemic (subjunctive and conditional). They add extra clarity in the speakers mood or opinion concerning the clause they modify, and are as follows:

Indicative: base form of a clause. Indicates that the speaker is stating a fact or what exists, and is unmarked (e.g. idsl "that happens")

tu - Negative: indicates that the speaker is stating a fact that is untrue or what doesn't exist. Usually only appears in formal, official texts, as the first syllable of the procedural will chage tone to contrast as well and leaves the particle unneccesary in colloquial speech (e.g. tu īdsl "that doesn't happen")

cuc - Evidential: indicates that the speaker is stating a fact that they believe or understand to be true, regardless of having experienced it or not. (e.g. cuc idsl "apparently that happens") Direct evidentiality is denoted using a different method.

an/ān - Interrogative: indicates that the speaker is confirming whether a statement is or isn't true. Forms questions (e.g. an idsl? "does that happen?")

tcān - Volitive: indicates that the speaker desires for the statement to be true (e.g. tcān idsl "that wants to happen" or "that needs to happen" or "that should happen")

má - Imperative: indicates that the speaker is giving a command or suggestion, to themselves and/or to other referents. Functions additionally as a cohortative and a jussive (e.g. má idsl! "let that happen!")

tir - Subjunctive: indicates that the speaker believes the statement to be possible or likely (e.g. tir idsl "that could/would/might happen")

nun - Conditional: indicates that speaker believes the statement to be possible under specific circumstances or conditions (nun idsl "if/when that happens..."

Miscellaneous

That's about the basics of the Seraphic language outline. I'd like to eventually get into things like comparison, evidentiality, declension forms and the like, but those are all topics that definitely need their own individual posts. Real quick, I want to provide one more additional fact about Seraphic.

Seraphic uses base-16, meaning it groups numbers in sets of 16 instead of sets of 10 like we do. 1-16 would be written 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, A, B, C, D, E, F, 10. 10 would be read as 16, and equally 20 would be 32. They're still counting the same amount of things, they're just dividing it up differently!

Anyways that's about it, I hope to share more about Seraphic soon, and when the comic gets released I hope you'll all be able to read it and pick out the many many lines of Seraphic I've poured into it!

ŋKowīci cu-stux 'ōf tsa-levp'ā cu-zāsláf pi-lizt'n ğōdjasa! (Thank you all so much for reading!)

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

Jack Ohman, Tribune Content Agency

* * * *

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

May 1, 2024

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

MAY 02, 2024

Today, Florida’s ban on abortions after six weeks—earlier than most women know they’re pregnant—went into effect. The Florida legislature passed the law and Florida governor Ron DeSantis signed it a little more than a year ago, on April 13, 2023, but the new law was on hold while the Florida Supreme Court reviewed it. On April 1 the court permitted the law to go into operation today. 

The new Florida law is possible because two years ago, on June 24, 2022, the Supreme Court  overturned the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that recognized the constitutional right to abortion. In Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the modern court decided that the right to determine abortion rights must be returned “to the people’s elected representatives” at the state level. 

Immediately, Republican-dominated states began to restrict abortion rights. Now, one out of three American women of childbearing age lives in one of the more than 20 states with abortion bans. This means, as Cecile Richards, former president of Planned Parenthood, put it in The Daily Beast today, “child rape victims forced to give birth, miscarrying patients turned away from emergency rooms and told to return when they’re in sepsis.” It means recognizing that the state has claimed the right to make a person’s most personal health decisions. 

Until today, Florida’s law was less stringent than that of other southern states, making it a destination for women of other states to obtain the abortions they could not get at home. In the Washington Post today, Caroline Kitchener noted that in the past, more than 80,000 women a year obtained abortions in Florida. Now, receiving that reproductive care will mean a trip to Virginia, Illinois, or North Carolina, where the procedure is still legal, putting it out of reach for many women. 

This November, voters in Florida will weigh in on a proposed amendment to the Florida constitution to establish the right to abortion. The proposed amendment reads: “No law shall prohibit, penalize, delay, or restrict abortion before viability or when necessary to protect the patient’s health, as determined by the patient’s healthcare provider.” Even if the amendment receives the 60% support it will need to be added to the constitution, it will come too late for tens of thousands of women.

It is not unrelated that this week Texas attorney general Ken Paxton, along with other Republican attorneys general, has twice sued the Biden administration, challenging its authority to impose policy on states. One lawsuit objects to the government’s civil rights protections for sexual orientation and gender identity. The other lawsuit seeks to stop a federal rule that closes a loophole that, according to Texas Tribune reporter Alejandro Serrano, lets people sell guns online or at gun shows without conducting background checks.  

In both cases, according to law professor and legal analyst Steve Vladeck, Paxton has filed the suit in the Amarillo Division of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, where it will be assigned to Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, the Trump appointee who suspended the use of mifepristone, an abortion-inducing drug, in order to stop abortions nationally. 

Last month the Judicial Conference, which oversees the federal judiciary, tried to end this practice of judge-shopping by calling for cases to be randomly assigned to any judge in a district; the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas says it will not comply. 

And so the cases go to Kacsmaryk, who will almost certainly agree with the Republican states’ position.

Republicans are engaged in the process of dismantling the federal government, working to get rid of its regulation of business, basic social welfare laws and the taxes needed to pay for such measures, the promotion of infrastructure, and the protection of civil rights. To do so, they have increasingly argued that the states, rather than the federal government, are the centerpiece of our democratic system. 

That democracy belonged to the states was the argument of the southern Democrats before the Civil War, who insisted that the federal government could not legitimately intervene in state affairs out of their concern that the overwhelming popular majority in the North would demand an end to human enslavement. Challenged to defend their enslavement of their neighbors in a country that boasted “all men are created equal,” southern enslavers argued that enslavement was secondary to the fact that voters had chosen to impose it.

At the same time, though, state lawmakers limited the vote in their state, so the popular vote did not reflect the will of the majority. It reflected the interests of those few who could vote. In 1857, enslaver George Fitzhugh of Virginia explained that there were 18,000 people in his county and only 1,200 could vote. “But we twelve hundred…never asked and never intend to ask the consent of the sixteen thousand eight hundred whom we govern.” State legislatures, dominated by such men, wrote laws reinforcing the power of a few wealthy, white men. 

Crucially, white southerners insisted that the federal government must use its power not to enforce the will of the majority, but rather to protect their state systems. In 1850, with the Fugitive Slave Act, they demanded that federal officials, including those in free states, return to the South anyone a white enslaver claimed was his property. Black Americans could not testify in their own defense, and anyone helping a “runaway” could be imprisoned for six months and fined $1,000, which was about three years’ income. A decade later, enslavers insisted that it was “the duty of the Federal Government, in all its departments, to protect…[slavery]…in the Territories, and wherever else its constitutional authority extends.”

After the Civil War, Republicans in charge of the federal government set out to end discriminatory state legislation by adding to the Constitution the Fourteenth Amendment, establishing that states could not deny to any person the equal protection of the laws and giving Congress the power to enforce that amendment. That, together with the Fifteenth Amendment providing that “[t]he right of citizens of the United States to vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or by any state on account of race, color, or previous condition of servitude,” Republicans thought, would stop state legislatures from passing discriminatory legislation.

But in 1875, just five years after Americans added the Fifteenth Amendment to the Constitution, the Supreme Court decided that states could keep certain people from voting so long as that discrimination wasn’t based on race. This barred women from the polls and flung the door open for voter suppression measures that would undermine minority voting for almost a century. Jim and Juan Crow laws, as well as abortion bans, went onto the books.

In the 1950s the Supreme Court began to use the Fourteenth Amendment to end those discriminatory state laws—in 1954 with the Brown v. Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas, decision that prohibited racial segregation in public schools, for example, and in 1973 with Roe v. Wade. Opponents complained bitterly about what they called “judicial activism,” insisting that unelected judges were undermining the will of the voters in the states. 

Beginning in the 1980s, as Republicans packed the courts with so-called originalists who weakened federal power in favor of state power, Republican-dominated state governments carefully chose their voters and then imposed their own values on everyone. 

Just a decade ago, reproductive rights scholar Elizabeth Dias told Jess Bidgood of the New York Times, a six-week abortion ban was seen even by many antiabortion activists as too radical, but after Trump appointed first Neil Gorsuch and then Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, the balance of power shifted enough to make such a ban obtainable. Power over abortion rights went back to the states, where Republicans could restrict them.

Trump has said he would leave the issue of abortion to the states, even if states begin to monitor women’s pregnancies to keep them from obtaining abortions or to prosecute them if they have one. 

Vice President Kamala Harris was in Jacksonville, Florida, today to talk about reproductive rights. She put the fight over abortion in the larger context of the discriminatory state laws that have, historically, constructed a world in which some people have more rights than others. “This is a fight for freedom,” she said, “the fundamental freedom to make decisions about one’s own body and not have their government tell them what they’re supposed to do.” 

LETTERS FROM AN AMERICAN

HEATHER COX RICHARDSON

[thethistlegirlwrites]

Name: Sierra Aguirre (legally changed her name to Aguirre-Stoker when she found out who her birth father was) Species: Human Age: 24 Powers: None, but she's agile and good with a variety of weapons, as well as being a highly skilled pursuit driver. Physical description: She's 5'7, petite but not fragile. She's got dark brown hair, usually braided or pulled back in a bun, and at the time of the story has one side shaved and growing back from where she had to have stitches put in after a fight with a vampire. She has dark brown eyes and tawny skin, and a thick rippled scar on the outside of one forearm where she burned it on an engine block working on a car. Her nails are always cut short and her fingers have permanently ground in grease and oil. Personality: Snarky, aggressive, and driven. She's got a chip on her shoulder and a family name to live up to. Background: Sierra grew up in Amarillo, Texas with a single mom who was an underground street racer in her spare time, and has been working on cars since she was old enough to hold a wrench, and driving them since she could reach the pedals. She was going to her local community college to become a mechanic when she found some of her father's journals, and learned that he wasn't killed in a car accident like her mother always told her, but had been part of a vampire hunter agency and was killed on an operation. After learning the truth about her father, Sierra started researching the secret underworld of vampires and hunters and eventually joined a rogue vigilante hunter group, looking to rid the world of what she felt were the monsters that took her father from her. After she was captured by the members of a real, legal hunter agency, Sierra was offered a choice, help them bring down the vigilantes and get a second chance, and an offer to join the agency and do things the right way, or get sent to an off the books prison. She chose to help, and joined her father's old agency in the aftermath, although after initial training she transferred to the Los Angeles "Chimera" agency, where her uncle John Stoker was working with a team. After her training probationary period, she was partnered with Pete Jemison, a forensic accountant, and they work together taking down a variety of vampire-related illegal businesses. Other: She has a 1967 Chevy Camaro retrofitted as a hunter patrol car. It's got a holding compartment in the back seats to transport a vampire prisoner (which isn't a great fit for Shane but he's going to have to deal) and it's painted silver with dark blue pinstripe details that make the front look like a stylized wolf's head. She's nicknamed it 'Lobo'.

Taglist:

@nade2308 @catwingsathena @the-one-and-only-valkyrie @telltaleclerk @floh673

[nickgerlich]

Missing The Target

Sometimes it is stylish to arrive late at a party, because since pretty much everyone else is there, all eyes will turn when you make your grand entrance. You have entered the room.

But this is often not the case in business, when it is not so much your presence that is noticed, as it is your absence. And when you do finally get there, people are left wondering why you waited so long.

Kind of like with Target, who is now finally considering a membership club. Nothing like spotting your competitors a huge lead, and then trying to stage a comeback, if at all.

To be fair, retail membership clubs have been around a long time, like Costco (1983), Sam’s Club (1983), BJ’s (1984), and others. It was not until 2005 that Amazon Prime launched, and completely in the digital realm. Fifteen years later, Walmart+ set sail, combining brick and mortar with digital.

Which leaves Target so late there might not be any party treats to consume. The booze bottles are nearly empty, the trays of food picked over. It’s not like Target got stuck in traffic; they merely forgot to come at all.

While the early membership clubs are not an immediate threat to Target, Amazon and Walmart are. Prime costs $139 a year, while Walmart+ clocks in at $98. Both include free shipping components, as well as video. Prime Video is provided in Amazon’s bundle, while Walmart has partnered with Paramount+ to offer the streaming service free of charge. Walmart, though, also offers free delivery from its BAM stores, not just online orders, as well as a 10-cent discount on gas.

So what in the world could Target possibly offer that might compete? Target’s grocery operations pale in comparison to Walmart; full-service groceries are only available in Super Target locations, while smaller stores, like the one in Amarillo, offer only a limited selection, the kind that makes even a Trader Joe’s or Aldi look like a world bazaar.

Target would have to find a streaming partner as well to offer a viable option to customers. Oh, and never mind that gas discounts are out of the question, because they never got into that line of business.

All of this then raises the question of how many store memberships a household needs. I have Sam’s, Amazon, and Walmart. I don’t need another. They have a way of locking in customer loyalty, but you are paying for the privilege. I am not that loyal to Target, if only because it is 18 miles away, but more importantly because they don’t offer what the Canyon Walmart has.

We should also note that Target has been busy offering its Target Circle rewards program, which allows shoppers to score discounts and coupons. But the proof is in the pudding. Target’s revenues were in a rather steep decline last year. Perhaps some of this is fall-out from their Pride month merchandise and displays. Timing is everything, and since this happened only a month after the Bud Light fiasco, they wound up in the crosshairs of public scrutiny. Then they blinked and acquiesced, moving the displays farther back into the store.

There are a lot of things I like about Target, though. Hey, Walmart never had folks clamoring to make a faux French word like Target—I mean Tar-zhay—customers did. It’s a higher class of junk, as I joke.

It’s just that they missed the boat on membership clubs. They are a revenue stream, and they provide stickiness. I sense this party is starting to wind down. The fun has about all been had, and we’re looking at a retailer that has missed its own target.

Dr “Improve Your Aim” Gerlich

Audio Blog

[nwbeerguide]

Stone Brewing Company adds Stone Delicious Hazy IPA to their already popular lineup.

Press Release

ESCONDIDO, CA (January 31, 2024) – Stone Brewing, among the world’s most renowned IPA breweries, introduces a new addition to its popular lineup of Delicious IPAs. Stone Delicious Hazy IPA is now available on draft and in cans year-round and nationwide. Thanks to this fourth Stone Delicious variation, the brewery also announces the anticipated release of a Stone Delicious IPA Variety 12-Pack in addition to its innovative variety six-pack. 

The newly expanded Stone Delicious lineup includes: 

Stone Delicious Hazy IPA (7.2% ABV) Brewed with Sabro, El Dorado and Azacca hops, giving the beer intense creamsicle, peach and pineapple flavors with a beautiful slightly opaque appearance.

Stone Delicious IPA (7.7% ABV) The original Stone Delicious IPA packs a refreshing and hoppy lemon candy flavor making it especially complementary to an array of foods and a superior standalone IPA. 

Stone Delicious Double IPA (9.4% ABV!) A beer that stands out with a serious depth of flavor and explosive aroma of lemon and tropical fruit from Centennial and Amarillo hops. With less bitterness than a typical double IPA, this one is extra fruity, extra gratifying and extra Delicious. 

Stone Delicious Citrus IPA (7.7% ABV) Brewed with Talus hops that impart vibrant citrus notes complemented by the addition of sweet orange peel. The result is especially bright and satisfyingly juicy.   

Stone Delicious Hazy IPA – like all the beers in the Delicious series – also happens to be gluten reduced. In fact, each beer clocks in below the FDA requirement for “gluten free” labeling (less than 20 parts per million). A gluten-reduced Hazy IPA is hard to come by. Not only does this one exist, but it also packs an unparalleled flavor rendering that gluten conversation nearly irrelevant. The beer is juicy, creamy and full-bodied with notes of peach candy, orange, vanilla and sweet pineapple.

“The Brewing Team takes the challenge of calling a beer ‘Delicious,’ very seriously and all four of the beers need to live up to that name,” explained Jeremy Moynier, Senior Manager of Brewing & Innovation. “Stone Delicious Hazy IPA definitely lives up to the Delicious standard and is a great addition to the Delicious family of beers.”

Fans of Delicious things can find Stone Delicious Hazy IPA nationwide in stand-alone six-pack as well as in Stone Delicious Variety Six-Packs and Stone Delicious Variety 12-Packs. Find them nearby at Find.StoneBrewing.com or order online in select states at Shop.StoneBrewing.com. 

...

ABOUT STONE BREWING

Founded in 1996, Stone pioneered the West Coast Style IPA, helping to fuel the modern craft beer revolution and inspire generations of hop fanatics. Today Stone operates breweries in Escondido, CA and Richmond, VA plus seven tap room and bistro locations. Stone offers a wide range of craft beers including its most popular Stone IPA, Stone Delicious IPA and Stone Buenaveza Salt & Lime Lager. The company’s long list of environmental efforts includes a LEED Silver Certification, world-class water reclamation and creative uses of spent grain. Stone has been called the “All-time Top Brewery on Planet Earth” by BeerAdvocate magazine twice. To find Stone beers, visit find.stonebrewing.com. For more information on Stone Brewing visit stonebrewing.com, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter. 

[usafphantom2]

Poland will receive 8 Apache helicopters from U.S. stock before a contract for 96 helicopters

Fernando Valduga By Fernando Valduga 05/10/23 - 14:00 in Helicopters

The Polish military will soon begin training on how to operate the AH-64 Apache helicopters, before the delivery of eight aircraft from the U.S. surplus stock.

“The U.S. army will provide Poland with Apache helicopters from its own resources, even before signing the contract for the purchase of 96 helicopters,” said Deputy Prime Minister Mariusz Blaszczak after the meeting with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin, on May 5.

The topics of discussion also included Polish-American military cooperation, the security situation on the eastern flank of NATO and in Europe, the deepening of military interoperability and the US military presence in Poland.

Gathered in Washington, Polish Defense Minister Mariusz Blaszczak and U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin, signed the Reciprocal Defense Acquisition Agreement, and the U.S. agreed to provide an initial batch of 8 used Apache attack helicopters, while Poland awaits the new Apaches it intends to order. (Photo: U.S. Department of Defense)

Speaking of strengthening the Polish Armed Forces, building interoperability and acquiring Boeing Apache helicopters, the head of the Ministry of Defense emphasized that these are among the best machines in its category.

“Since the founding of our republic, Americans and Poles have fought side by side,” Austin said. "And the bond between our two countries continues to strengthen to this day. In fact, without the tremendous contributions of Poland, we would never have been able to do so much for Ukraine after the indefensible invasion of Russia,” Austin said.

U.S. ground forces will provide Poland with eight helicopters, and the training of Polish pilots should begin in a few weeks. The helicopters will go to eastern Poland next year, Blaszczak said.

He added that the helicopters will go to the eastern flank of NATO, to the 18ª Mechanized Division.

Last year, Poland expressed its desire to buy 96 Apache helicopters, although it is not clear when deliveries will take place.

Tags: AH-64 ApacheMilitary AviationHelicoptersPAF - Polish Air Force / Polish Air Force

Fernando Valduga

Fernando Valduga

Aviation photographer and pilot since 1992, has participated in several events and air operations, such as Cruzex, AirVenture, Daytona Airshow and FIDAE. He has works published in specialized aviation magazines in Brazil and abroad. Uses Canon equipment during his photographic work around the world of aviation.

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[wenmistry]

babygirl's bad day

[dakota-76]

Chief Baishan, circa 1846

Baishan, son of the famed Chief Fuerte, also known as Soldato Fiero, was a most respected war leader among the Tchihende bands along almost three decades from the beginning of 1830s, and the principal chief the Warm Springs local group of the Tchihende (Mimbreño) Apaches after Fuerte's death in 1837 near Janos; he was also the second principal chief of the whole Tchihende Apaches after his long-time companion (and possibly brother-in-law) Mangas Coloradas, chief of the Coppermine local group of the same Tchihende Apaches. His name was translated by the Mexicans as Cuchillo or Cuchillo Negro, because of the Apache practice of blackening their weapons to make them less conspicuous. About 1835, Fuerte, chief of the Warmspring Mimbreño Apache, was killed near Santa Rita del Cobre by Mexican troops belonging to the garrison of Janos, but Juan José Compa, the old leader of the Coppermine Mimbreño Apaches who was friendly to the Mexicans, rejected Baishan's request of help to assault and destroy Santa Rita; Baishan led a bloody raid to Sonora. After Juan José Compa too was killed for bounty money in 1837 in the massacre at Santa Rita del Cobre, Baishan joined Mangas Coloradas in his revenge, the two chiefs operating a series of retaliatory raids against the Mexicans, killing and destroying all around the mining town and placing Santa Rita under siege, finally attacking the column of fleeing Mexicans and slaughtering a large number. In he was falsely claimed to have been killed by Mexican troops in the Oputo Mountains. In 1847, to revenge the Galeana massacre, Baishan called a council with the Tchihende (Mimbreño), Tsokanende (Chiricahua) and Ndendahe (Mogollon) chiefs. Late in that autumn he, Mangas Coloradas, and, probably, the Tsokanende leaders Miguel Narbona, Tapilà and Yrigollen went to raid Chihuahua with 200 warriors, occupying Ramos, near Janos, and killing most of the inhabitants. In 1848 Mangas Coloradas and Baishan with their Mimbreños, and Miguel Narbona and Yrigollen with their Chiricahuas, attacked Sonora, and on February 18 they burned Chinapa, killing or capturing many Mexicans. Baishan's name is mentioned in military and civilian records of treaties and other dealings with Apaches during the early years of U.S. jurisdiction over the New Mexico Territory. In 1851 the settlement at Santa Rita del Cobre of the U.S. delegation (with General J.R. Bartlett) in the Mexican-American Border Commission and the reopening of the Santa Rita del Cobre copper mines effected a meeting with the Anglo-American newcomers; and Baishan, just as Mangas Coloradas, Delgadito, Ponce, Coleto Amarillo and all the most important Tchihende and Ndendahe chiefs, had to face new problems. In June 1851 Mangas Coloradas, with Delgadito, Ponce and Coleto Amarillo, went to Santa Rita del Cobre to meet General Bartlett. The discussions went on until the Apaches no longer felt themselves disappointed and betrayed by the newcomers. Baishan, too, had to face some problems in connection with some young Mexican boys who had been adopted into his band. In 1853, along with Ponce, Delgadito and Victorio, he signed a treaty in Fort Webster with Indian agent Edward H. Wingfield, who had been sent by the governor of the New Mexico Territory, William Carr Lane.

[brooklynislandgirl]

From my beloved @mouthoftheocean Optional tag: Music-fiends, you know who you are. 1.   a song you can listen to on repeat Red Right Hand || Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds Whatever It Takes || Imagine Dragons 2.   a song from one of your favorite albums Alive || Pearl Jam - 10 Levon || Elton John - Madman Across the Water 3.   a song you loved when you were a teenager or kid Mr Brownstone || Guns N Roses Me and Bobby McGee || Janis Joplin The End || The Doors 4.   a song that makes you feel strong The Warrior Song - Leviathan || Sean Householder Wolf Totem || The Hu 5.   a song that makes you sad Indian Sunset || Elton John The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald || Gordon Lightfoot Pirate’s Plea || The Musical Blades 6.   a song that cheers you up Can’t Stop || Red Hot Chili Peppers Mwahahahah || Ookla the Mok Survivor Evolved || Neebs Gaming ft. JT Music {{RIP Thick44}} 7.   a song that reminds you of your friend(s) Lux Aeterna || Clint Mansell Throw Your Arms Around Me || Hunters and Collectors Sugar in the Hold || The Jolly Rogers Friends in Low Places || Garth Brooks 9.   a song that reminds you of yourself Texas Longhorn || Django Walker Closer to the Heart || Rush A Pirate Looks At Forty || Jimmy Buffet 10.  a song that brings back good memories Get the Funk Out || Extreme Amarillo By Morning || George Strait Sex Type Thing || Stone Temple Pilots {feel free to ask why} 11.  a song that grew on you Smooth Criminal || Alien Ant Farm {cover} On a Boat || The Lonely Island 12.  a song from a musical Music of the Night || Michael Crawford - Phantom of the Opera Right Hand Man || Jonathan Young and Caleb Hyles - Hamilton You’ll Be Back || Jonathan Young - Hamilton Falcon in the Dive || Terry Mann - The Scarlet Pimpernel Into the Fire || Douglas Sills and Original Broadway Cast - The Scarlet Pimpernel Madame Guillotine || Original Broadway Cast - The Scarlet Pimpernel Stars || Phillip Quast as Javert - Les Miserables 13.  a song with a great music video Sweep the Leg || No More Kings Jack Sparrow || The Lonely Island 14.  a song that’s better as a cover Temple of Love || Johnny Hollow The Plagues || Jonathan Young and Caleb Hyles -Prince of Egypt Old Town Road || Richaad EB and Jonathan Young 15.  a song that’s better acoustic Down in a Hole || Alice in Chains Radioactive || Daughtry {cover} 16.  a song with great lyrics Anybody Listening? || Queensryche Comfortably Numb || Pink Floyd 17.  a song for summer Santeria || Sublime When the Sun Goes Down || Kenny Chesney Toes || Zac Brown Band 18.  a song for heartache Snuff || Corey Taylor {Slipknot} Fuck You || Cee Lo Green and Daryl Hall

19.  a song for car rides Life is a High Way || Rascal Flatts Free Fallin’ || Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers Calypso || John Denver 20.  a song for the rain Featherstone || Paper Kites What Kind of Love || Childish Gambino Nocturne #20 in C Sharp Minor || Chopin 21.  a song for dancing Can’t Dance || Cooper Allen Rodeo || Garth Brooks What I Love About Sundays || Craig Morgan 22.  a song for making out Hole-Hearted || Extreme More than Whiskey in Mind || Christian Kane Bad Romance || Lady Gaga 23.  a song for a lover Hallelujah || Jeff Buckley A Thousand Years || Christina Perri I’ll Be || Edwin McCain 24.  a song from before you were born White Rabbit || Jefferson Airplane Killer Queen || Queen 25.  a song from a band that’s no longer together Blow Up The Outside World || Soundgarden Big Empty || Stone Temple Pilots 26.  a song you’ve seen live Operation LIVEcrime || Queensryche {{yes the whole album/show}} 27.  a song you want to see live Hollywood Pirate || The Musical Blades House Rules || Christian Kane 28.  a song by a band you don’t usually like   Bang Bang || Jessie J, Ariana Grande, Nicki Minaj 29.  a song you recommend Montero || Lil Nas X

[wyliegoodnight]

G o o d n i g h t  F a m i l y  p .  I

Isaac Goodnight;; Rancher & conservationist. He & his younger brother Wyatt manage the JA Ranch & run a purebred Hereford cow-calf herd, Angus-sired cows & a stocker operation. He is married with & has two children & a degree in environmental sciences from Rice University. - Wylie gets along well with his older brother but generally feels like a third wheel between Isaac & Wyatt since he left the ranch at eighteen & only came home for short stints between deployments.

Wyatt Goodnight;; Manages the JA alongside his older brother. He is divorced & has one son. He’s lived on the ranch his entire life minus his four years at the University of Texas. - He’d never admit it but, Wylie thinks about how far he & Wyatt have drifted since boyhood. The two are still as thick as thieves but Wylie also can’t look at the pity in his brother’s eyes. Wyatt hides it well, but Wylie knows he has misplaced guilt for having a healthy ex & child.

Bethany Goodnight;; Originally from Michigan, Bethany & her younger sister were Army brats. She followed in her father’s footsteps & after graduating from Texas A&M, enlisted in the US Army where she met her future husband. She & Wylie were eventually married in Palo Duro Canyon in the spring. She spent a fair amount of time at the JA Ranch with Wylie & his family while the pair was on leave & once they found out she was pregnant, it was decided that the couple would move into the old Goodnight house to start their family. She was killed in a drunk driving accident two years ago while Wylie was overseas. - Before Bethany, Wylie lacked true purpose in this world. Everything in his life led him to Bethany & they were supposed to spend their lives together growing old on the porch & raising up a strong girl. Since she passed, Wylie hasn’t been the same. He came home completely disillusioned & heavy with grief & self-loathing for not being present in the country when tragedy struck. He can’t blame himself or lest he spiral into real despair, but seeing the good in anything now is the hardest thing to do.

Harper Goodnight;; The only child of Bethany & Wylie, Harper was born in Amarillo & spent her four years on the JA Ranch. She was killed in a drunk driving accident two years ago. - Harper was destined to do great things in this world. She was absolutely Wylie’s world. He can’t look at anything related to his daughter, the only thing besides photographs that endures at the ranch is the horse he couldn’t help but buy her in the hopes that one day she’d be roping & racing around barrels in just a few short years. He’d asked Isaac to get rid of the filly but Isaac knew Wylie’d come to regret that decision & Wylie’s forever grateful he still has the damn horse.

[treeremovalamarillotx]

The Significance of Expert Tree Removal Services in Your Area

Trees are valuable assets in our environment; they provide shade, a source of beauty and indeed, a home to many animals. But there are cases where trees turn out to be sources of problems rather than benefits. There are situations when trees are dangerous to property and people, that is why dead, diseased, or positioned inappropriately trees should be removed. This is where tree removal near me tree care services come into play. To the residents of Amarillo, Amarillo Tree Removal is the ideal company for all your tree care services.

Why Consider Tree Removal?

There are a number of problems which trees might encounter at some point. Here are a few reasons why professional tree removal services are necessary:

Safety Concerns

This is so because dead or decaying trees are a major source of danger. They may fail during storms leading to destruction of property or causation of injuries. This is important since hiring a professional in tree removal will guarantee that all these dangers are averted in the right manner.

Preventing Property Damage

Roots that grow out of control can cause a lot of problems such as; blocking driveways, sidewalks and even foundations. Also, branches can cause harm to roofs, windows and power lines during a storm. This can cause some damages that require expensive repairs to be done if they are not removed on time.

Enhancing Aesthetic Appeal

Having a well maintained landscape on your property is a plus in the market. Removing trees that spoil the beauty of a yard or those grown in wrong positions can be brought down to enhance the looks of the yard.

Improving Tree Health

There are times when tree removal becomes important for the wellbeing of other trees also around it. Trees with diseases or are infested by pests may infect other vegetation if not controlled.

Why Choose Professional Tree Removal Services?

Tree removal is not a DIY project. Here are reasons to rely on professionals like Amarillo Tree Removal:

Expertise and Equipment

Tree-removal is a technical activity that involves use of special skills and equipment. Experts evaluate the tree and determine how to approach the removal and then they utilize tools that help them remove the tree in the best way possible.

Safety First

Tree removal is a dangerous task as it can include falling branches, insecure trees and their proximity to sources of energy such as power lines. The experts have the training to deal with these issues and this reduces the risks.

Time and Cost Efficiency

It is cheaper to hire professionals because this way eliminates instances of accidents which may lead to loss of property or even having people getting injured all in effort in trying to do what the professionals were hired to do.

Clean-Up Services

Once the professionals are done with the removal process, site is cleared and the debris is taken away which leaves your property clean and prepared for other operations.

Amarillo Tree Removal: Your Local Experts

At Amarillo Tree Removal, we pride ourselves on delivering top-notch tree care services. Here’s what sets us apart:

Comprehensive Services

Beyond tree removal, we offer stump grinding, pruning, and emergency tree services to meet all your needs.

Experienced Team

Our arborists are experienced and capable of working on any tree regardless of the size and or the health status. We come with years of experience to each and every project.

Commitment to Safety

Safety is our priority. We have set standard procedures and employ the best equipment to make the process safe.

Customer Satisfaction

It is our goal to give you more than what you expect. Packed with professional consultations to the final cleaning, we ensure that our work is of high quality.

The Process of Tree Removal

Here’s what you can expect when you hire a professional tree removal service:

Assessment

A certified arborist assesses the health and location of the tree and possible dangers in order to advise how the tree should be removed.

Preparation

The team includes the site where needed clearing any obstacle that may hinder their work as well as putting in place necessary safety precautions.

Tree Cutting

This depends on the size and positioning of the tree and can only be pruned systematically or brought down at once.

Debris Removal

All the trees’ branches and logs are removed from the site once the tree is cut down completely.

Stump Grinding

For further work, the stump grinding services can be provided to eliminate the stump and give a clean up look.

Frequently Asked Questions

1. When should I consider tree removal? You should consider removal if the tree is dead, diseased, leaning dangerously or if it is causing damage to property in your compound.

2. Can I keep the wood from the removed tree? Yes it is possible to talk to the service provider about this. Some companies will saw the tree into logs for firewood whenever a customer wishes to make the purchase.

3. How much does tree removal cost? Prices depend on the size and position of the tree, as well as its state. To get a free quote, please call Amarillo Tree Removal.

Contact Us Today

If you’re searching for reliable tree removalin Amarillo, TX, look no further. Amarillo Tree Removal is here to help you maintain a safe and beautiful property. Call us today at (806) 542-2320 or visit our website to schedule your consultation.