#telephone equipment

[goshyesvintageads]

Western Electric Co, 1949

[dbpequipment]

Avaya IP phones are devices that are designed to provide businesses with a secure, reliable, and efficient means of communication. These phones are an excellent choice for businesses that need to keep in touch with customers and colleagues without the need for a separate telephone system.

[diamondblade1]

Captain Kirk couldn't put this package in his pocket.

[tobbesdiscordkitten]

Guns N’ Roses Fic: Sugar Daddy

Summary: Axl takes his precious sugar baby on a cruise only to discover that her pompous attitude is ruining the trip. He takes matters into his own hands and punishes her, hoping it’ll demolish the self-entitlement within her.

Characters: Axl Rose and (female) reader.

Pairing(s): Axl Rose/female reader, Axl Rose/reader.

Rating: Explicit, 21+

Word Count: 3,000

Warnings: age gap, smut, (p in v) penetration, excessive use of pet names, clit stimulation, physical altercation: whipping, and cat and mouse game.

A/N: requested by anon. I hope you enjoy the little twist I added into the story! ^.^

The 40 year age gap between you and Axl didn’t define your relationship. Instead, it was the way he pampered you with his wealth by taking you out to extravagant restaurants, and allowing you to spend an enormous amount of money on clothes, jewelry, beauty products, etc. You were his sugar baby and he was your sugar daddy.

If people batted an eye or called it strange, Axl would defend it and say they were just jealous. You were grateful not to be living an ordinary life like an average middle class citizen who worked a 9 to 5 job with a minimal base salary each week. Yet, somehow, that feeling began to dwindle as your daily consumerism increased…

Axl noticed the change in your behavior for a while. He used to see you as the girl who always said “thank you” after gifting you with presents, or honoring your tastebuds with the finest cuisine that melted in your mouth.

Now he viewed you as a spoiled little girl, taking everything he gave you for granted. It disappointed him. But he hoped it was just another hormone imbalance. The old version of you would return someday, at least he anticipated. Younger folks could be quite complicated.

One day Axl surprised you by showing you a booked getaway on a cruise. The two of you would spend a week on the ocean in the best quarters, having unlimited alcoholic beverages, and having 24/7 access to the pool, gym, casino, theatre and other leisures. He thought this would be the perfect opportunity to win back the appreciative spark within you.

Both you and Axl packed your suitcases before heading to the docking site. You’ve never been on a cruise ship before and were amazed at how big they were. It was like looking at a major city except…it was on a ship!

Once inside Axl hauled the luggage to the reserved suite you’d be sleeping in. The space was fairly decent for two people. One King-sized bed occupied the hardwood floor in one room while a kitchen occupied the marbled flooring in another room. You had access to a telephone in case you needed room service, house cleaning, or other emergencies. The room also had a vast walk-in bathroom equipped with two toilets, two sinks, a shower (with a detachable showerhead), and a tub with jacuzzi pumps and neon lights. The room was flawless, according to your standards.

You and Axl spent the first day touring the ship and doing some sightseeing. Then, towards the evening, you watched a live musical performance together at the theatre, ate dinner, and socialized at a bar, drinking one too many piña colada’s. Axl had to carry your drunken body to the room, pepper you with goodnight kisses, and went to bed himself.

The next day was gonna be a similar experience to last night. The only difference was Axl wanted to attend a party on the upper deck.

Reviewing yourself in the mirror, you held up two dresses to hide your naked form, trying to decide which dress you should wear - the silky white one or the velvet black one.

Axl came up behind you, wrapping his arms around your waist while whispering in your ear, “The white dress will look great on you. Wear that one for daddy tonight, yeah?”

“What if I don’t want to?” You teased harshly.

His grip tightened around your waist, causing you to be pressed closer against his chest like a puzzle piece. “Obedience, baby. You’ve been lacking it all week. Don’t make me correct your behavior,” he warned.

You sighed and nodded. The last thing you needed on this trip was Axl losing his temper and breaking the fine China.

Releasing you from his hold, Axl whistled at you, a technique he used to catch your attention. He opened a navy blue jewelry box in front of you, taking out a diamond necklace as it glimmered between his fingers underneath the fluorescent lighting. “Wear this with your outfit.” He encouraged, placing the silver gemstones around your neck. It made your skin sparkle with confidence. “Beautiful.”

You walked past him, looking in the mirror again. “I love it,” you stated.

“Do I get a thank you?” He asked playfully, although a part of him was serious and wanted to hear those exact words leave your lips.

You shrugged off his request and grabbed your purse. “Come on, we’re gonna be late.”

Axl huffed. He was gonna let that one slide…for now. If she did it again, there’d be consequences.

On the upper deck, the party was bustling with excitement. People gathered from different countries to clink glasses and dance all night.

Once you and Axl arrived, you walked over to the bar and ordered a margarita. Next, you stood by the balcony, admiring the view of the dark ocean and life below the deck. The passengers down below reclined on their lawn chairs while others engaged in various pool activities by swimming or going down slides.

You sipped on your beverage and exhaled with satisfaction. This cruise was all about you, just like how everyday was, and you were gonna make the most of it.

Axl watched your aloofness, observing how your body gently swayed from side to side to the beat of the music. He could walk up behind you, like he always did, and ask you to join him on the dance floor. However, considering how spoiled you became, he decided to take a different route and leave you inside your own little bubble.

“Hey, ladies!” Axl hollered. “Lookin’ good tonight.”

Whipping your head around, you saw Axl approaching two Brazilian chicks. Oh, hell no! He wasn’t allowed to flirt with other women, only you! He was the one who was supposed to give you all the attention and all the prizes!

Clenching your jaw, you stomped over to where he was, wrapping your arm around his torso and cuddling up to him. “Daddy, where’d you go?”

The two women chuckled, finding your neediness to be amusing and pathetic. Axl didn’t budge. He purposely ignored you and continued making remarks to the other girls. This pissed you off even further.

“Daddy, we’re supposed to dance,” you whined. “Dance with me, please? Spin me around like your favorite record player.”

“How ‘bout tomorrow night?” He suggested coldly. “When you’re not being greedy?”

His accusation took you aback. “Greedy? I’m not acting greedy. You’re the one who’s acting selfish!”

He turned to glare at you. “Watch your mouth, star shine. I won’t hesitate to shut it up with duct tape.”

“Fuck you, prick!” In the heat of an instant, you splashed your drink in his face, causing the two Brazilian chicks to gasp in shock as his suit was soured with the stench of booze.

Axl took a moment to keep his temper in check and not lash out on the spot. He took out a handkerchief and wiped his face, turning his attention to the Brazilian women. “Ladies, if you’ll excuse us, I gotta teach my girl a lesson.” Grabbing you by the arm, he yanked you out of the area. “I can’t believe you fucking did that!” He roared, his voice booming across the hallway. “I take you on one cruise and this is how I’m thanked?!”

“You were ignoring me!” You shot back.

“Bullshit!” He countered. “All you do is take everything without an ounce of gratitude. I ain’t having it!” He opened the door to the suite and pushed you inside, locking the door.

“Daddy…” you whimpered, fully realizing how awful you’ve been treating him lately. “I-I didn’t mean to-“

“Sit down.” He interrupted, motioning to the bed. You sat down next to him and he clasped your hands in his. “Listen to me very carefully…”

“But-“

“Shh!” His eyes pierced into yours, making you shiver with bewilderment. “You wanna have a nice time on this trip?”

“…Yeah.”

“Then behave yourself. No more acting out and no more taking things, the things I pay for, with my own money,” he stressed, “for granted.” He paused for a few beats, allowing his words to sink in. “Understand?”

You tried to clarify. “I don’t take-“

He released a frustrated sigh through his lips. “If you’re not gonna listen then you’ll be staying in here for the rest of the week.” Standing up from the bed, Axl began walking to the doorway.

“No, daddy!” You squealed, diving onto the floor to grab his ankles, stopping him in his tracks.

“Let go of me,” he demanded.

“No, please! I’ll be a good girl!” You begged as hot tears steamed down your cheeks.

You were acting childish, especially when things didn’t go your way, and he knew it. “Too late. We’ll try again on another cruise.” His patience was wearing thin. He almost regretted taking you on this little getaway in the first place.

You wailed into the floorboards while clutching onto his ankles. “No! No! No!”

Axl wasn’t gonna put up with this any longer. He attempted to move, dragging you along with him across the floor as your wailing grew louder.

After your high pitched screams punctured his ear drums, he swooped you off the floor, and tossed you on the bed. He held your wrists in one hand, while using the other to grab a nearby ribbon lace on the nightstand, and tied your hands together. Axl gripped your diamond necklace, pulling it off your neck. “You’ve been a bad girl.” Lifting up your dress, he smoothed the palm of his hand over one of your asscheeks, creating friction to prepare the tender skin for an intense blow.

“Daddy, don’t…” You sobbed into the pillowcase.

“I wish there were different ways for this stuff, babygirl.” Axl soothed. He’d be lying if he said the punishments didn’t affect him like it did you. In truth, it tore him apart. But a reminder needed to be in order.

Axl raised your necklace and lashed it down onto your bare ass as the diamonds cut into your skin. You screamed into the pillow at the impact. Axl raised your necklace again, whipping your other asscheek. He did the same thing with your hamstrings and decided to repeat the process for good measure.

He straddled your legs to avoid making you kick him and spanked you with the diamonds. Upon striking your hamstring again, the jewels cut deeper into your flesh, causing blood to run down your skin. Axl put the jewelry on the nightstand and quickly got up to retrieve cotton balls and alcohol. He didn’t mean to hit you so hard, he felt guilty.

You laid there, heaving into the pillow as your hamstrings and ass burned.

Axl came back into the room and applied alcohol on a cotton ball, gently pressing it to your skin where a cut was branded onto your skin. “I didn’t mean to take it that far, baby…I hope you learned your lesson and understood why I won’t tolerate such entitlement.” Axl continued to rub the cotton ball over your marks until your skin was cleared of blood. He then untied your hands from the lace.

Unexpectedly, you leaped off the bed, ran to the door, unlocked it and sprinted down the hallway, far away from Axl. He cursed to himself and ran after you just a few meters behind. “Baby, stop! Come back!”

You refused and kept running, going down multiple flights of stairs until you were in the lobby area. Strangers eyed you weirdly as you tried catching your breath while looking around to see where you could hide. The bathrooms? Underneath the front desk? You heard Axl’s voice from above, taking you out of your hiding trance. “Sweetie!”

Turning to the right, you saw a sign on a door that read, Private Love Shack Area. You ran to it and closed yourself in the room. You panted until your heart rate somewhat returned to normal and you felt the tingling of pain on your flesh again.

Glancing around the room, you were shocked to find out it was a miniature sex dungeon filled with numerous sex toys, a love couch, BDSM devices such as floggers, whips, chains, and glass dildos. You never expected the Love Shack Area to look like this. Your brain thought it would resemble a romantic, softcore design. Instead, the room you occupied was obscene and hardcore, perhaps a little too much for your tastes right now.

Before you could think of your next exit plan, Axl came into the room, closing the door shut behind him. You gasped and turned around, backing up until the wall behind you pressed into your back. Words couldn’t escape your lips but your facial features trembled with fear.

Axl sensed this and slowly made his way towards you, his footsteps deliberate and methodical. “Baby,” he cooed. “Come back with me into the room. I’m sorry for making you bleed. That wasn’t my intention,” he tried to explain.

All you could do was whimper and shake your head. You were on the brink of losing your trust in him - the man who cared for you since day one, the man who spoiled you rotten, and coddled you because he cared and loved you so much. Now here you two were trapped under this predicament.

“I’m not mad.”

“You’re crazy…” You whispered, not believing his words.

He chuckled. “Babygirl, you drive me crazy.” Axl stood in front of you, pinching your chin softly so you could look up at him. In his eyes, you didn’t see anger or the rage he had earlier. His eyes were filled with…guilt? And compassion. “But it’s worth it every time.”

“It is…?” You questioned.

“Yes, because we open ourselves up to each other in ways we wouldn’t thought possible.” He brushed a strand of hair behind your ear while running his fingers over your delicate face. You were his little porcelain China doll.

“I’m so sorry…” you apologized. “For everything.”

Axl pressed his index finger to your lips. “Shh. It’s okay. I knew my babygirl would come around sooner for later.” Lifting you up, Axl wrapped your legs around his waist, rubbing circles over your thighs, and caressing the welts he inflicted on your ass. “Still sore, baby?” He asked.

It hurt when he stroked the marks, but at the same time, it felt comforting. “Yeah…”

Cupping your butt with the palms of his hands, he captured your mouth in a heated, passionate kiss, savoring the way you two smacked each other’s lips. “I’m gonna make it up to you.” Unzipping his pants, he freed his pulsing cock and positioned it near the folds of your pussy. Axl loved how you never donned any underwear whenever you wore dresses. He knew how much you loved getting quick, easy access for unexpected moments like these. Just in case.

Slipping inside of you, you gasped at his length stretching you deliciously. “That’s it,” he praised. Securing your legs around his lower back, Axl began thrusting in and out of you, still keeping his hands on your ass so your welted flesh wouldn’t hit or rub against the wall.

You kissed him again and followed his movements with your own hips. “Fuck…”

Axl increased the pace, pistoling his hips into your cunt as you ricocheted off his body, bouncing up and down against the wall. Wet, sloshing noises filled the room. Axl felt how your cunt squeezed around him, soaking his dick which only turned him on even more.

Clinging to him like a devoted pest, you made out with him, pushing your tongue into his mouth as it tangled with his, tasting him while breathing in his smokey cologne.

Axl increased his pace once again and stepped away from the wall, holding you in his arms. You continued to frantically bounce up and down on his shaft until you felt the band in your core snap, causing your orgasm to erupt out of your crotch.

Axl felt the hot flow of your juices drench his dick as your walls clenched around him. He groaned and shot his semen inside of you, hitting the pleasure spot that drove you insane.

“Augh! Fuck! Sh-shit…”

“You okay, honey?” Axl managed to say in between grunts of pleasure.

“Yeah. Yeah. I’m okay.” You tilted your head back, recovering from the high. “It felt amazing. You felt amazing.”

Axl smiled with appreciation. “Good, good.” He carefully laid you down on the couch, thinking of how it might be more comfortable than the wall, and slipped out of you, making you whine at the loss of contact.

You grabbed his hand and tried to pull him closer. “I need you…”

“I know you do, baby. Daddy’s not going anywhere.” A delighted smirk played across his features once Axl realized the sort of room you two occupied. “Perfect hiding spot,” he mused while picking up a few toys to bring to the couch and use on you. “My baby always knows what location to be in.”

You blushed. “Stawwp. I was expecting something else,” you clarified.

“Something else.” Axl hummed, tapping the glass dildo. “Not this?”

You rolled your eyes. “You know what I mean. I didn’t think a cruise ship would have special places like this.”

“Not all of ‘em do. This cruise was just a one in a million chance.”

“You scored your luck with me, huh?” You hinted, excitedly biting your lower lip.

“When don’t I?” He pushed the glass dildo inside your cunt, filling you up once more. Then he reached over and turned on a small vibration stick and pressed it against your clit.

“Fuck, yesss.”

Axl kept the mini vibrator on your clit, rubbing circles over your nub, while using his other hand to pump the glass dildo in and out of you. This went on until you felt another orgasm crash over you, similar to how waves from the ocean crashed against the side of the ship.

He removed the dildo from your cunt and cherished the slick that stained the glass.

You and Axl remained in the room, trying out most of the sex toys all night long. This was, by far, the best cruise ship he ever took you on.

Axl saved your appreciative spark that night. You never acted like an entitled brat around him ever again, only in dreams!

Taglist: @hollywoodroses and @axlsyndrome

Side-note: if anybody wants to be added on my taglist for certain eras/characters, let me know!

[cid5]

United States Army Signal Corps using captured German telephone equipment, World War I.

[pejite]

1810s english countryside farmhouse - historically accurate

Still building historic homes! This time it’s an early 1910s English farmhouse.

It belongs to a well-off farming family who own a considerable amount of land. Though the house is old, they've kept it updated with renovations over the years. It has electricity, and they recently installed a telephone.

The house features four bedrooms: a master, a double for guests, one for children, and a nursery. There's a well-equipped kitchen, a spacious bathroom, a large family room with a dining area, and a small parlour for entertaining guests or enjoying afternoon tea.

Lot details

50x40

§207,733

CC included in the download folder.

the interior:

floorplans;

download (FREE on Google Drive)

[carsthatnevermadeitetc]

Renault Modus Concept, 1994. A prototype multi-function modular commercial vehicle that had a base cab/chassis and a series of pods that could be fitted to suit multiple services. Presented at the Paris Motor Show, it could be transitioned from a pick-up, to a van, a refrigerated van or a 6 passenger taxi. The fully glazed cabin was equipped with an early satellite navigation system, telephone and fax machine.

[collapsedsquid]

At first, the F.B.I. and other investigators believed that China’s hackers used stolen passwords to focus mostly on the system that taps telephone conversations and texts under court orders. It is administered by a number of the nation’s telecommunications firms, including the three largest — Verizon, AT&T and T-Mobile. But in recent days, investigators have discovered how deeply China’s hackers had moved throughout the country by exploiting aging equipment and seams in the networks connecting disparate systems. [...] But the Chinese activity in the past year has taken these intrusions to a new level, Mr. Warner said on Thursday. “This is far and away the most serious telecom hack in our history,” he said. “This makes Colonial Pipeline and SolarWinds look like small potatoes.” He said that only in the past week had it become clear that “every major provider has been broken into.” The hackers were not able to listen to conversations on encrypted applications, like those carried over WhatsApp or Signal. Nor could they read encrypted messages, such as those sent from one iPhone to another over Apple’s iMessage system. But they could read regular text messages between an iPhone and an Android phone, for example, or listen to phone calls over the ordinary telephone networks, much as the government can if it has a legal order. The Chinese went after the conversations of national security officials, politicians and some of their staff, investigators have concluded. There may have been several Chinese groups at work, said a senior official involved in the investigation, who noted that one of them might have focused on Mr. Trump and Mr. Vance.

How nice of the US government to provide a convenient method for it to be spied on

[windvexer]

Spirit Vessel Theory & Practical DIY (Traditional Witchcraft Flavored)

(Written in response to an Anon whom I think is probably involved in spirit conjure community, which is where conjurers put spirits inside of a vessel for you and ship them to you. Anon requested to know tips on how to transfer a spirit to a new vessel)

✨big heckin UPG ALERT ahead for the ENTIRE POST✨

In this post, a spirit vessel is any object, including a container filled with objects, which serves as a spirit's physical foothold into our present reality.

Three Varieties of Spirit Vessels: Telephone, Body, House

Please note the particular absence of trap or prison: there is no need for any practitioner to trap or seal a spirit inside of a vessel. This is what we do to unwanted spirits to relocate them to a second location, and it's not how we treat our friends.

My categorization of spirit vessels relates to how the spirit is intended to engage with the vessel.

Telephone Vessel: This is the kind I've most commonly seen and heard of in the conjure community. The spirit lives/exists Elsewhere, but the practitioner has given them a link of communication to this physical object.

The practitioner then works over the object to "call" the spirit and ask it to arrive in their location, or visit it Elsewhere, or just talk while they are in separate locations.

In my opinion, the "telephone" vessel is the least impactful type for the purposes of allowing spirits into our lives, but it's great at what it does: serving as a telephone line. However, as I hope this post will go on to show, it's also the easiest to make because the vessel requires the least amount of preparation and care.

Body Vessel: This is when the spirit vessel is meant to be the body of the spirit as it dwells on Earth. When a vessel is consecrated and dedicated to a spirit, it's understood to be the spirit itself. The form that the vessel takes influences the spirit's ability to work in our reality.

Body vessels may end up looking like little figurine versions of the spirit in question, but they can also be containers specially prepared with decorations and objects heavily linked to the spirit's essence.

Direct examples in witchcraft and folk magic include house and kitchen dollies that are meant to help lighten the load of chores or stop food from burning. Such dolls may be equipped with little brooms, multiple hands, and so forth, to assist with chores.

Another example of a body vessel is the Decaying River God. To create this vessel, I made a deal with the river and then embodied a spirit into this intuitively crafted form. Now, that physical object has become the sacred body of a spirit.

Just as the kitchen doll may be given a broom to assist with sweeping, a spirit's body may be equipped with tools to grant them additional influence and abilities in our world. A related example in witchcraft is to put the feet of small, scurrying Earthen animals (such as a rat or mole) into charm bags, so that the spell can scamper to its destination.

Just because the spirit has a body vessel does not mean they are permanently bound inside of that vessel. Accidentally breaking or losing the vessel isn't like harming the spirit (although obviously it's to be avoided).

Spirits which were born Elsewhere are perhaps more likely to come and go from body vessels, but even beings born with the creation of their body may still leave that physical space and return to it as desired.

House Vessel: This is the same thing as a spirit house or shrine, just a step to the left. We might equip the body vessel with objects that grant the spirit additional powers and capabilities, but in the house vessel, I tend to organize things to be a pleasant and enjoyable respite for the spirit, almost like a custom bedroom.

There may be no object or representation that's intended to be the body of the spirit at all. Nonetheless, the space is still one where the spirit may be fully invited and present, and gives them a strong foothold in our world.

The only real difference I draw between a house vessel and a shrine or spirit house is the intent. A shrine may be to venerate, and a spirit house may be a kind act of providing shelter. But the house vessel's intent is to create a space that makes it easier for a spirit to fully Show Up to our present reality.

Which Variety is Best?

This depends on your needs. For the purposes of witchcraft, spirits are often best given bodies that reflect their nature and empower them to carry out your purpose. I also hold this to be true for spells and any other variety of guy.

Spirits whom we're getting to know, but aren't quite sure of yet, may be best limited to "telephone" status.

House vessels - I haven't got a lot to say, except bringing up the point of them.

You can have multiple telephone lines and house vessels, yet intuition advises that really only one Body should do for the average spirit.

Vessels Themselves Can Suck So It's Worthwhile to Put Some Thought Into It

I believe that the more a spirit vessel is the embodiment of the spirit themselves, the easier it is for the spirit to use that vessel to interact with us and our present reality.

An extreme example can help demonstrate this point.

Imagine you've gotten to know a water spirit. A mermaid, let's say, from an ocean world of pure, opalescent waters, where coral reefs are cities and pet jellyfish are decorated with pearls.

Imagine that the vessel for this mermaid is a jar painted red and decorated with symbols of fire, then further charged with fiery energy. Within the jar is rusty nails, polluted water from the side of the highway, and a heaping spoonful of chili flakes.

I would hazard a guess that you couldn't even agree to get that mermaid to use such a vessel as a telephone line, much less use it as their physical body.

It's not that the spirit is snooty - it's that you're asking him to come into contact with things that irritate and burn him. Not only would it require a huge amount of energy to overcome these differences, but the vessel would nonetheless cause him discomfort.

Intuition may even advise that a simple bowl of water would create a vastly improved "house" vessel for this spirit.

But if it's true that a vessel can be incompatible with a spirit, then it's reasonable to assume that a vessel can be made more and more compatible with a spirit, until it is highly compatible and therefore very easy for the spirit to link to it and use it.

To really improve our mermaid vessel, we might embroider the outside of a bag with a representation of a coral reef, place jellyfish charms and imitation pearls inside of it, and often soak the entire bag in cool, pure water.

This may be the perfect vessel for our mermaid, but totally unsuitable to the pollution monster, who wants to live inside of the rusty nails jar.

This is the primary reason why I find simple unmodified single-object vessels to be not that great. (Examples of this would be, a crystal ring or antique object purchased and used without modifying it to the tastes of the spirit)

While a spirit may select such an object from a lineup and request it's use as a vessel, that doesn't mean that it's going to be an effective vessel.

Especially combined with beliefs in witchcraft about the magical impact of modifying vessels to encapsulate the power of a spell or spirit,

I believe that an unmodified object for use as a spirit vessel is like casting a candle spell with a plain candle to which no herbs or energies are added, and all you do is imprint your raw intent and light the candle.

It'll maybe work, but not nearly as well as it could.

Therefore I believe the form of the vessel matters beyond whether or not the spirit personally likes it, and extends into the realm of sorcerous technique - spirit manifestation is affected depending on if the spirit vessel is made well or made poorly, and especially how much it is physically personalized to the spirit.

Creation of a Useful Vessel

In all cases: Modify the object(s) of the vessel as much as possible to reflect the nature and known qualities of the spirit. As much as possible, work with the spirit to choose modifications, or, work with known lore or with the assistance of spirit workers or diviners.

In the case where a single object (such as a stone) must be used:

Tie the object up in a net where each knot represents a foothold for the spirit to cling on to, or, where each knot ties up a bundle of energy of the sort of thing the spirit likes. (Can be then worn as necklace)

Paint or carve the object, even in a hidden area.

Add additional decorations and embellishments to reflect either the nature of the spirit, or to represent useful tools that the spirit can use to access the object.

Carve out the middle and add bits of paper (with name and permissions written on), and stuff with relevant herbs.

Sight-unseen, I wouldn't recommend single object vessels if you can't heavily/permanently modify them.

In the case where a container vessel (such as a bag, box, or bottle) may be used:

Decorate the exterior, and if space permits the interior, of the container to best reflect an environment enjoyable to the spirit. Consider various techniques: painting, embroidery, carving, burning, and so forth.

Selectively include objects which reflect the spirit's nature, including dried plants, stones, feathers, seeds, bones, and various objects from nature; also charms, trinkets, and tokens (factory-made is fine); also prayers or poems, or drawings or artwork, all of these things symbolic of the spirit and attempting to demonstrate its nature and totality

Include a written sigil or signature of the spirit, and it's name or known names, and epithets. Often best done in fancy magical ink if any is on hand. (I use Sharpies; no need to over-think it)

Charms, amulets, plants, prepared powders or oils, or otherwise, for the purpose of facilitating spirit manifestation and ease of travel between worlds; examples may include specially prepared threads to symbolize links and roads, special spirit-calling powder, magnets to "draw towards," symbols of the Crossroads or of safe and easy travel, and so forth.

In the case where the spirit is likened to an earthly animal, bones or preserved body parts are a very good addition.

In the case where the vessel is itself in the form of a body, such as a figurine or doll:

Hand-craft or heavily modify the creation to represent the vibes as much as possible

Dress, accessorize, ornament, and decorate the figure to represent the spirit or it's known attributes and purposes.

As handicrafters known more about their trade than I do, I don't want to over-comment. Make them a little body. Yes.

Inviting the Spirit to Utilize the Vessel

Unfortunately I will decline to try and provide a specific step-by-step ritual, mostly because I work more intuitively and don't actually have one written up.

But I'll do my best to explain how you can go about it, and some things to consider.

Basically, you'll want to conceptualize four steps:

Final magical preparations

Consecration

Dedication

Invitation

I'll try to explain the reasoning behind including these things, and of course, you'll want to modify or change all of them according to your preferences and needs.

In all cases: Use your magic to make the vessel lovely and filled with spiritual virtues that resonate deeply with the nature of the spirit. This is necessarily vague; a troubleshooting primer for energy work is beyond the scope of this post.

The timing of this work is very well done on special days where the spirit-roads are open, on full moons, or on Mondays.

In cases where the spirit already has a vessel and you want to give them a new one, there is no difference in operation. Make profane and reclaim the old vessel afterwords according to your desires.

Fill the vessel with two types of energy: The first being dense caloric energies from foods, especially oil, nuts, seeds, eggs, and fatty meat. This can be done by placing a food offering next to the vessel and dedicating the food to the spirit.

The second being ethereal and subtle energies, such as produced from blessed incense or energy work. This can be done by blessing and offering incense as you normally do, or channeling your personal energy into the vessel.

Consecrate the vessel: Perform any charm or ritual in your practice which delineates an object as being sacred and separate from the everyday, and turns the object into a Spirit Vessel. (Add'l details below)

Dedicate the vessel: Perform any charm or ritual in your practice which functions to formally gift-give an object to a god or a spirit.

Sometimes, a consecration and a dedication are done in the same ritual, especially when a god is concerned. E.g., "Witchfather, by your name this wand is made holy (consecration). I give this wand to you; it is yours, and when I use it, your hand guides it (dedication)."

The most simplest format of this is something like, "by [the powers I believe allow me to make thing sacred], I make this object sacred [and perhaps I sprinkle some saltwater or whatever formula I believe is necessary to help me make things sacred]. This object is now the vessel for a spirit. Now, it is a Spirit Vessel."

The above being the idea of a consecration; the dedication then being something like,

"[Spirit Name], I invite you into my world and my life. I give you Permission to dwell in this Spirit Vessel and make it your body and your home. I give you Permission to walk in this world through the conduit of this Spirit Vessel. It belongs to you, it is you."

(The above dedication perhaps also revealing something about why "telephone lines" may be a safer bet, the dedication for those being something like, "[Spirit Name], I invite you to observe this vessel and place your fingerprint upon it, so that when I work over it I call out to you, and you can hear me easily no matter how far apart we are.")

Anyway, put some real thought into exactly how much you want this spirit to manifest in your life, because spirit experiences - even when desired and invited - can be very intense and scary, especially if up to that point your experiences with spirits has been limited.

Invite the spirit into the vessel: If not included in your dedication, also formally invite the spirit.

"[Spirit Name], I've prepared this special Vessel for you, and given it to you. I have prepared the way with earthly and aethereal energies, so you may be well-fed and have the power to move within our world. [That's the offering bit innit]. Come now at this time and here in this place, and claim this Vessel as your own."

Etc., something like that.

At this time, the ritual is over with and you can commune with the spirit as desired or close the ritual down in your normal techniques.

Again, if there is an additional/old spirit vessel you no longer want to use, try talking with the spirit about what to do with it; but you can just let it "run dry" and then carefully undo the magic on it. After that, do with it as you please.

[therealslimshakespeare]

i hope u know u have destroyed me w ur description of major cleven back there and i expect every detail of major egan’s as well now

P.S CLEVEN SO IS A SPLUTTER

Long love our gushing little eager sprinkler Cleven!

Now, on to Major John Egan who will definitely blush up to his ears regarding what I shall relay over the covers of this our sleepover, but who will nonetheless be tuned in with unabashed curiosity to hear what we make of him and to catch -he dearly hopes- some word of admiration and applause for his pleasing proportions…

Cock-versations: John “Bucky” Egan edition

nsfw (AF!) under the cut:

So we’ve talked about Gale Cleven and his ken doll perfect silicon-esque, beauty pageant pretty cock, how it’s shaped and sized as if to be a dildo, as immaculate as that face he possesses, feels a little otherworldly to be even dealing with it kinda cock.

But Bucky? Oh that’s no cherub for you, that’s a salt of the earth man.

Where Gale Cleven’s appendage could get passed up in a line up of fakes as another perfect fake, there’s something to be said about a cock so singular, rugged and wonderfully human there’s no doubting it’s a genuine -if utterly shocking- article.

If Gale Cleven is a renaissance pillar, John Egan is a gnarled oak tree.

Hear me out:

For one: The sheer size. Tree-worthy, a mighty oak, a stalwart redwood, a hardened maple. But also, a tad bent, and curving up, partly because all that length must go somewhere. And oh -trust me, there’s length. But there’s also girth. But here’s what’s funny, my sweets, length and girth as we have said but were you to lay this cock next to say, bratwurst or the average petite pubic bone, you might be a little shocked by just how large it is. Because when seen in the wild, seen at liberty, attached to the man himself, it appears deceivingly moderate.

It’s the opposite of Cleven’s slim hips and jutting pillar illusion. Instead, with Bucky you’ve got mighty thighs and a huge torso and broad shoulders that could carry the globe. You would be forgiven for thinking he’s nicely equipped while not rightfully proportioning it to you, to the rest of us mortals.

Taken alone or…into oneself, you suddenly realize you’re riding a telephone pole and…now we are back to the tree imagery again. Huge, bent a bit, a tendency to grow and throb the harder he gets, but most of all -we all know and love that very special vein running along the underside of a dick. But for Egan? That whole vein is an extra ridge, like a three leaf clover cock sorta thing: if you’ve seen one you never forget it, and when I tell you it rubs your stretched little rim to madness with it’s extra ridge, I’m not using hyperbole.

Closing thoughts: less of a bright Barbie pink tip like Cleven’s and more of a constant pretty multi shade of purples, all along, sack and all. shockingly huge balls to go with it, even deeper plummy shade for these. perhaps the hottest and warmest cum blast you’ve ever felt, those swimmers have been sheltered and simmered in between those thighs waiting just for you, after all.

[flippinpancakes64]

Hello, I just want to know if I can request the Cullens to have an S/o that is in a band like sick puppies or skillet, please, and thank you

Also, I love your work

The Cullens with a reader who's in a Rock Band

Hello! Thank you for requesting!

I am someone who's into alternative music but I've never heard of these two bands. So I did my best to listen to some of their songs to get a feel for what kind of band you were talking about. They both reminded me a lot of Three Days Grace, Seether, Godsmack, and other bands like that so I based it off of that too.

In short, I basically went the route of a 90s-00s rock band

I hope you enjoy!

Edward:

He's not the biggest fan

Not of you being in the band, but of the music

He's not really into all the screaming

Even though it's not all screaming lol

He is pretty old fashioned

But overall he'd be an enjoyer

He would be at all of your concerts watching from the front row

He will proudly tell anyone that asks that he is your boyfriend and that you two are very much in love

And if you guys ever wanted to write a slower, ballad-type piece he is so down to compose and play the piano part for it

Also you guys don't need to worry about money

If one of your guitar strings breaks he's sending you 1,000 dollars and telling you to keep the change

He's also a good personal bodyguard

No need to worry about rowdy fans when he's there

He supports all of your dreams

He just doesn't listen to the music in his free time

Sorry

Alice:

She is SO into it

I feel like she doesn't care about genres or anything like that

If she likes a song she likes it

And when you tell her about your band and show her one of your songs, she is in love

You don't need to hire a merch designer or a hair/makeup artist ever

She's on it

She loves helping you choose an outfit and doing your hair and makeup before you go on stage

And it does stroke her ego just a little bit when people post on Twitter about your outfits :)

She's also definitely the type to print out like a hundred posters and staple them to all of the telephone poles in like the whole state

Also always at every concert

Except she's backstage

She prefers to be close

Stands to the side the whole time holding a bottle of water for you whenever you need it

She definitely has a shirt with your face on it that says #1 fan

She doesn't wear it but she does have it

Jasper:

He's also a little confused by the music

I don't know why but I literally cannot imagine this man listening to music ever

So he doesn't really have a favorite type

But he loves your voice so obviously he loves your music

He doesn't trust himself to be in the crowd at your concerts

So he's always backstage too

Even though it's loud, if you even whisper under your breath that you're thirsty he is there with a bottle of water

For some reason I get the feeling he would be good at audio design tho

This guy can make fire edits to a song

Your bandmates love him tho because he moves all of the heavy equipment

He likes to be in the studio when you're recording

Quality time

And he can be perfectly silent so he never interferes with the sound equipment

Rosalie:

I feel like she'd shock you with the fact that she LOVES alt music

She's so angsty

It perfectly displays her emotions

The screaming is cathartic to her

So when she hears that you're in a band and you make the exact type of music that she loves, she is so excited

She wants to be involved in everything

She would love designing your outfits

And I feel like she would be a good songwriter

She is in the crowd every time

Directly in the center

Directly in the front

One time, when one of your concerts was coming up, she printed out hundreds of flyers and went around the school telling people to show up

Not asking

Telling

The show was packed

Emmett:

I think he would love it purely for aesthetic reasons

Not to say that he doesn't like that you're happy and doing what you love

But I think he would feel so cool with a badass rockstar S/O

Like when he looks up at you on stage he just gets so much pride

Like hell yeah everybody came here to see MY S/O

Also he is your personal bodyguard

He would have so much fun kicking people out of shows

He puts on the sunglasses, the high vis vest, everything

Obviously he is in the crowd every time

But that's because he's the guard

He would proudly wear a shirt with your face on it btw

And no he won't get rid of it

No matter how many times you ask

Esme:

She's another one who's not really into the music part

I get the feeling she would like jazz/classical music more

She just gives me calm energy

So she wouldn't really like your music sorry

But that doesn't mean she won't support you

She is at every concert

Backstage

And she helps you with anything else you may need

She is shockingly good at filming music videos

She also likes to take action shots while you're performing

And then she makes a scrapbook out of it <3

Carlisle:

This man is older than electricity

He's watched the evolution of all music genres

And he is familiar with all of them

He's sort of like Alice in that he likes songs from all genres

He is completely supportive, though

Gives you all the money you could ask for

And then some

He talks about you to his patients all of the time

"Oh you broke your arm at a music festival? My S/O is in a band, you should check them out sometime."

The nurses get a bit annoyed

The only downside is that, because he works so much at the clinic, he can't help that much

He does his best to be at every one of your concerts

But he can't make all of them

When he does show up though he is front and center

Vampire! Bella:

Stephenie Meyer confirmed that Bella listens to Linkin Park

So yes she totally loves your band

I can imagine her in the mosh pit

She'd love it

She would stay far away from the stage though

Like she does not want to be perceived by the public

She helps doing other stuff though

I feel like Edward probably taught her how to play guitar at some point

So if you're ever stumped on a riff or something she jumps in to help

Obvs she's at every concert too

[misteria247]

1981, Fateful Encounter:

"You sure you'll be okay on your own, Fidds? I can stay behind-"

Stanley had begun to say only for Fiddleford to stop him in his tracks.

"Oh no, none of that now. I'm perfectly able to stay behind at the shack myself. Besides I don't think it's wise to leave Stanferd alone."

The inventor said his voice going quiet towards the end as he shot a look towards said man. Stanley flinched a bit, his own gaze settling onto his twin. Ford looked exhausted, with bags under his eyes and a far away look in them. His entire frame seemed to be taunt, like an arrow waiting to be released at even the slightest hint of a threat. Ever since that damn phone call, Ford hadn't been himself. And it scared the other two men, who couldn't figure out a way to help him. It was one of the reasons why at this moment the twins were going to go out and do an information collection for the broadcast. An attempt to distract Ford from whatever was plaguing him. Noticing the torn look Fidds grabbed Stanley's hand. Holding it gently in his own to try and comfort him. Enjoying the feeling of the warmth and callouses that covered them.

"I really will be fine Stanley. Honest. Now, go on and get you and your brother some fresh air. I'll get this place straightened up."

Fiddleford said his voice soft. Stanley's brown eyes softened, meeting greenish hazel and he gave a small smile.

"Alright Fiddlenerd. I trust ya. Just be careful okay?"

The larger man said, gaze searching. Fidds felt his chest get tight, face and heart warm with a feeling he couldn't put a name too. Before nodding in reassurance. With the promise to stay safe, Stanley finally let go of Fidds hands and made his way to Ford and the two set off out into the Gravity Falls forest. Fiddleford watched them go, already feeling a bit colder since Stan had let go of his hands. Once they were out of sight, the hillbilly genius got to work, restocking things and sorting papers. Checking equipment and fixing what was broken. He did this for a while, humming a small tune beneath his breath as he did so. Trying not to think about his friend's deteriorating state of mind. It was as he was putting the finishing touches on one of his projects that he had heard it.

The landline going off.

The sound of its shrill ringing broke the comfortable silence. Immediately making the man cautious. With a brief moment of hesitation, Fidds made his way over to the telephone and picked it up.

"Hello? This is the Mystery Podcast Trio station, how can I help you?"

Fiddleford asked, polite and business like with a bit of southern twang. Silence answered him, the brief sounds of static coming in and out.

"Hello? Is anyone there?"

The inventor tried again, a growing sense of unease settling over him. He was about ready to hang up the phone when he heard it. Staticy muttering, too fast for him to make out but it made his skin crawl. After what felt like an eternity of it he finally heard a voice. A voice that made his stomach drop.

"Specs, wasn't expecting you! But I guess that makes this whole thing easier! Tell me......do you believe what your eyes show you?"

The voice, static and cheerful said. The Mystery Caller waited for a response while Fiddleford tried not to swallow his tongue in fear. The staticy white noise drilled its way into his eardrums and recalling what had happened to Stanford he tore the phone away from his ear. Only to his horror come to find that he could still hear the voice, loud and clear in his ears.

"Cuz I think you should. After all, the eyes never lie......"

The Mystery Caller said, his voice dripping with fake cheer. Fidds could barely concentrate, it was just so loud in the cabin all of a sudden. And it was then, he heard it through the static and ringing.

The sound of one of the bathroom doors opening.

Fiddleford froze, his heart pounding in time with the static. Turning slowly towards the direction of the bathroom, the genius barely kept back the scream of terror as he came to face.....

When Stanley and Ford returned to their home, they were greeted by a horrifying scene. The cabin was a wreck. Papers and books tossed and thrown around the room. Furniture overturned as if there had been a struggle. And in the middle of the carnage was Fiddleford. Staring wide eyed at the ceiling, his eyes bleeding and unseeing despite being still in tact. Stanley rushed forward, a cry of horror escaping him. Ford just stood there, dread and terror settling deep into his bones. Stanley grabbed Fidds shoulders, gently shaking him to try and snap him out of it. It was a moment before the country man did. And when he did he completely freaked out. Like a terrified animal he scrambled backwards, clutching his hair and yanking it as he went into hysterics.

"THE BEAST-! BEWARE OF THE BEAST WITH ONE EYE-!"

Fiddleford screeched, eyes scanning the room in terror as he trembled violently. Stanley froze, unknowing on how to help him other than to try and calm him down so he could get medical help for his eyes. Stanford however went rigid.

'Beware the beast. The beast with one eye.'

'I'll make you regret it IQ....'

[herprivateswe]

Image: IWM (Q 5971) Battle of the Menin Road Ridge. A signals section of the 13th Battalion, Durham Light Infantry, equipped with telescopes, field telephone and signalling lamps, watch the battalion's advance on Veldhoek on 20 September 1917.

[dreaminginthedeepsouth]

A declassified World War II-era government guide to “simple sabotage” is currently one of the most popular open source books on the internet. The book, called “Simple Sabotage Field Manual,” was declassified in 2008 by the CIA and “describes ways to train normal people to be purposefully annoying telephone operators, dysfunctional train conductors, befuddling middle managers, blundering factory workers, unruly movie theater patrons, and so on. In other words, teaching people to do their jobs badly.” 

Over the last week, the guide has surged to become the 5th-most-accessed book on Project Gutenberg, an open source repository of free and public domain ebooks. It is also the fifth most popular ebook on the site over the last 30 days, having been accessed nearly 60,000 times over the last month (just behind Romeo and Juliet). 

“Sabotage varies from highly technical coup de main acts that require detailed planning and the use of specially-trained operatives, to innumerable simple acts which the ordinary individual citizen-saboteur can perform,” the guide begins. “Simple sabotage does not require specially prepared tools or equipment; it is executed by an ordinary citizen who may or may not act individually and without the necessity for active connection with an organized group; and it is carried out in such a way as to involve a minimum danger of injury, detection, and reprisal.”

Do you work for the federal government? I would love to hear from you. Using a non-work device, you can message me securely on Signal at +1 202 505 1702. Otherwise, send me an email at jason@404media.co.

The guide’s intro was written by William “Wild Bill” Donovan, who was the head of the Office of Strategic Services during World War II, which later inspired the creation of the CIA. The motivating factor for writing the guide, according to a passage within it, is that citizen saboteurs were highly effective at resisting the Nazis during World War II, and the Office of Strategic Services wanted to detail other ways sabotage could be done: “Acts of simple sabotage are occurring throughout Europe. An effort should be made to add to their efficiency, lessen their detectability, and increase their number,” the guide states. “Widespread practice of simple sabotage will harass and demoralize enemy administrators and police,” the guide states, adding that citizens often undertake acts of sabotage not for their own immediate personal gain, but to resist “particularly obnoxious decrees.”

Because it was written during active wartime, the book includes various suggestions for causing physical violence and destruction, such as starting fires, flooding warehouses, breaking tools, etc. But it also includes many suggestions for how to just generally be annoying within a bureaucracy or office setting. Simple sabotage ideas include:

“Insist on doing everything through ‘channels.’ Never permit short-cuts to be taken in order to expedite decisions.”

“Make ‘speeches.’ Talk as frequently as possible and at great length. Illustrate your ‘points’ by long anecdotes and accounts of personal experiences. Never hesitate to make a few appropriate ‘patriotic’ comments.”

“Bring up irrelevant issues as frequently as possible.”

“Haggle over precise wordings of communications, minutes, resolutions.”

“‘Misunderstand’ orders. Ask endless questions or engage in long correspondence about such orders. Quibble over them when you can.”

“In making work assignments, always sign out the unimportant jobs first. See that the important jobs are assigned to inefficient workers of poor machines.”

“To lower morale and with it, production, be pleasant to inefficient workers; give them undeserved promotions. Discriminate against efficient workers; complain unjustly about their work.”

“Hold conferences when there is more critical work to be done.”

“Multiply paperwork in plausible ways.” 

“Make mistakes in quantities of material when you are copying orders. Confuse similar names. Use wrong addresses.”

“Work slowly. Think out ways to increase the number of movements necessary on your job”

“Pretend that instructions are hard to understand, and ask to have them repeated more than once. Or pretend that you are particularly anxious to do your work, and pester the foreman with unnecessary questions.”

“Snarl up administration in every possible way. Fill out forms illegibly so that they will have to be done over; make mistakes or omit requested information in forms.”

The guide also suggests “general devices for lowering morale and creating confusion,” which include “Report imaginary spies or danger to the Gestapo or police,” “act stupid,” “Be as irritable and quarrelsome as possible without getting yourself into trouble,” “Stop all conversation when axis nationals or quislings enter a cafe,” “Cry and sob hysterically at every occasion, especially when confronted by government clerks.”

It is impossible to say why this book is currently going viral at this moment in time and why it may feel particularly relevant to a workforce of millions of people who have suddenly been asked to agree to be “loyal” and work under the quasi leadership of the world’s richest man, have been asked to take a buyout that may or may not exist, have had their jobs repeatedly denigrated and threatened, have suddenly been required to return to office, have been prevented from spending money, have had to turn off critical functions that help people, and have been asked to destroy years worth of work and to rid their workplaces of DEI programs. Maybe it's worth wondering why the most popular post in a subreddit for federal workers is titled “To my fellow Feds, especially veterans: we’re at war.” 

404 Media is an independent website whose work is written, reported, and owned by human journalists and whose intended audience is real people, not AI scrapers, bots, or a search algorithm.

[captain-price-unofficially]

A signals section of the 13th Battalion, Durham Light Infantry, equipped with telescopes, field telephone and signalling lamps, await news of the progress of the unit's attack towards Veldhoek during the Battle of Menin Road. September 1917.