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luninosity · 4 years ago

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Time for the second-to-last @whumptober2020 fic!

This one’s for theme 27 - OK, WHO HAD NATURAL DISASTERS ON THEIR 2020 BINGO CARD? for the prompt Power Outage. It’s also a present for a friend, who asked if I could write Leverage OT3 fic for her birthday-present - I’ve never written Leverage fic before, but I do love some good Eliot/Parker/Hardison, so I’ve tried!

They’re in the middle of watching Ratatouille, because Parker’s never seen it and Hardison likes Pixar and Eliot can quietly critique animated knife skills in his head but say nothing, when the power goes out. There’s a crash and a boom of thunder and a whip of wind, rain hammering down, and just like that, snap, it’s all dark.

“Oh man,” Hardison says, “oh, come on, no,” and he’s sitting up and reading for a laptop or two as if that’ll do anything, dislodging their comfortable pile of lounging bodies and blankets and a popcorn bowl flawlessly balanced on Parker’s knee.

Or he would be disrupting it all, if Eliot hadn’t expected the motion, hadn’t moved in turn, catching the bowl, shifting to redistribute weight and free a blanket. He sets the bowl down as his eyes adjust to the dark; he’s always been good at seeing in it, though of course they’re all three not bad at that. Good at improvising, adapting, new environments.

Parker, distressed, is on her feet. Even in the dark she’s quick and feline, poised to move. “Who could—”

“—find us here?” Hardison checks the battery on a phone, sets it down, gets up as well: catching her hands as they move, offering reassurance and being reassured in turn. “Nobody. I swear. This’s our place. I’ve got that taken care of.”

Their place. Their home: the three of them, when they’d become a them at last. Eliot can shut his eyes and recall with perfect clarity the way Parker and Hardison had shown him around, so excited; the way he’d smiled and tried so hard to be excited for them, for their life together, the happiness they deserved, while he’d known he’d be the one leaving and walking away into the cold, leaving his heart with both of them, knowing they’d never know, and that’d be fine, he could live with that as long as they were happy, he could take anything if—

He can recall the way they’d each taken one of his hands, and the way they’d leaned in to kiss him, easy as breathing, easy as if it could all be simple, easy if he could believe they had room to spare for him.

This is your home too, Parker had said, eyes wide, surprised that Eliot hadn’t understood this: we found it for us. And Hardison had reached out and drawn him close, and Eliot had gone willingly, because they wanted him, because he didn’t believe it, because they wanted this here and now and he’ll always say yes even if they’ll look at him in the morning and say that was enough, curiosity satisfied, time to go. He’ll say yes to them even if it kills him.

He’s somehow still here, three months after that.

He gets up as well, now, in the dark. Parker’s pacing and irritated; none of her best acrobatic skills are of use here, nothing to steal or dare or leap from. Hardison’s annoyed at the power outage but coping by talking to her and checking all his backups and complaining about the timing and the lack of ability to see.

That, at least, Eliot can do something about.

He leaves them to find balance in each other; he has a number of various types of emergency stashes hidden in multiple places around the house, most of which Parker and Hardison know about, some they don’t. He never wants to be unprepared; he never wants to be unable to defend them. He finds candles, real and LED; he finds flashlights, and battery packs, and, after a moment’s thought, some chocolate.

He catches them both looking at him, and then at each other, when he comes back into the living room; he says nothing—no need; he doesn’t need comfort, he’s just fine if they’re also fine—and only starts setting out candles, lighting them, turning them on if they’re artificial.

Light blooms through the darkness. From tabletops, shelves, the fireplace, kitchen counters. In white and gold, honey and amber, warm and soft and clear and bright: shades of illumination sweep out and curve into quiet safe globes and spheres. They push back the dark, befriend it, share the night: layers of luminosity, brighter and dimmer, overlapping.

He sets out a few battery packs in case Hardison needs them. He crosses over to them, or a few steps away, and offers the box. “Here.”

Parker takes it. Opens it. “Magic chocolate! You found it in the dark!” The small shiny truffles beam up, bathed in candlelight.

“When’d you buy chocolate?” Hardison takes one. His eyebrows go up. “You got the good kind, too.”

“Made,” Eliot says, not offended but with an odd little feeling in his chest, a pang that’s not really hurt. “A while ago. Just practicing. There’s some with orange zest, some with pink pepper, some with walnut cream.”

Hardison looks at him for a minute. Light caresses his cheekbone, the side of his face, the tilt of his head; Eliot wants to touch him. That’s just a want, though, no practical reason; no invitation, anyway.

In defiance of the want, he says, “I can make a fire, too. If it’s gonna get cold. No telling how long it’ll be out.”

Parker licks chocolate from a fingertip and looks up. “He didn’t mean he thought you didn’t know how to make chocolate. He meant these are really good.”

“I know,” Eliot says.

“Eliot,” Hardison says.

“I can get more blankets,” Eliot says, “too.”

“Come here,” Hardison says, and that’s somewhere between an order and a joke, the kind of flippant banter they toss back and forth without thinking; but it’s also the tone that means this is important, you need to listen, something might blow up if you don’t, so Eliot finds himself taking a step that way without thinking, because he trusts Hardison and Parker without hesitation, no matter what might explode.

Rain drums across the world, over rooftops and streets and balconies. Eliot’s never liked fighting in rain. Too slippery. Unpredictable.

It’s not bad, sometimes, for concealment. The noisy sheets of water can hide sound and motion, and that can be an advantage. Of course, it’s an advantage for the other side, too.

Hardison puts an arm around him, folds him in close. The gesture’s fluid, natural, no hesitation about affection. Eliot leans into it because he can’t not, just for a second.

He’s allowed that much. They’re all comfortable with each other; they have to be, in the field, and they relax that way as well.

On the couch. In the bed. Because he’s somehow been invited in, touched and kissed and made to feel pleasure, because they asked.

Someday they’ll stop asking, stop wanting. He gets that. He understands. He won’t ask for anything more than they give.

But here and now the world’s full of mingled light and dark, and Hardison’s body’s solid and strong and firm, and so Eliot does let himself lean in, a moment like the balance of candlegleam and shadow, suspended between realities. He’s cared for them, the people he loves. He’s found them light and warmth and sugar. That’s all he needs, really. He’s good, knowing that.

“Eliot,” Hardison says again, and sighs. He’s tipped his head to rest against Eliot’s; his breath brushes Eliot’s hair. “I can hear you thinking about what else you can do.”

“Someone’s gotta be the competent one,” Eliot mutters. The joke’s half-hearted, and they all let it go.

Parker slips up on his other side and puts an arm around his waist and one around Hardison’s, which means they’re all now randomly standing in the living room holding each other. Eliot should move, should go check a circuit breaker or make that fire or keep a guard on a window in case this wasn’t a random outage. He doesn’t need comforting.

He doesn’t move.

The rain pounds harder over glass windowpanes and roof-tiles and the wood of the balcony railing.

“We know you love us,” Parker says, eyes all earnest, face all honest. She doesn’t hide from saying it, blunt as ever. “Why don’t you know it? About us?”

“Because it’s tough.” It’s Hardison who answers, hand touching Eliot’s face, cupping Eliot’s cheek; and Eliot should run, should back away, should take himself out of this circle of affection before he breaks it with clumsy strength and fists and brute force…

He still doesn’t move.

“We love you.” Hardison uses the hand to tip Eliot’s face up, and kisses him: a kiss like security, like certainty, like commitment to a plan. The kiss tastes like chocolate and oranges, and Hardison’s mouth’s warm and commanding, not aggressive but confident in the claiming. Eliot does not tremble, because he doesn’t, but it’s so close to everything he wants, too close to fracture-points and breaking joints—

Hardison draws back. Searches his face. “Eliot, we love you because you’re you. Because you’re the one who always has our backs—”

“Or our fronts!” Parker adds brightly. “Or our sides, or—”

“—and you jump in and fight for us, you take hits for us, over and over. And then you come home when we ask, and you find candles when we’re both busy complaining.” Hardison touches Eliot’s mouth, this time. “You know you don’t have to earn it, right?”

“I’m just here,” Eliot says. “I’m just trying to make everything, y’know, good. What I do. Hit things, fix things, cook things.” Hardison’s fingertip’s distracting. It taps him on the nose, almost a scolding, then brushes his cheekbone, the spot where his eyelashes land when he blinks, the corner of his eye. He absolutely does not want to cry, to beg for more touches, to ask for more words that hold promises.

“Sometimes, yeah. You do all those things. You do them all for us.” Hardison glances over. “Parker, help me out here.”

She bounces up to kiss him, swift as a sparrow. Then says, “Tripods are more stable.”

Eliot blinks. Considers this.

“Wouldn’t work as well without you,” Hardison contributes. “All three legs. Holding us up. It’s not the two of us plus you, it’s all three of us. Otherwise we’d tip over.”

Parker makes a gesture that Eliot guesses is meant to illustrate a loss of balance, and agrees, “Boom.”

“So you get it,” Hardison finishes. “We love you. And you love us. Here, have one of your awesome chocolate things.”

Eliot starts to protest. Finds himself being hand-fed a truffle, because Hardison’s still holding the box.

It’s pretty good, he has to admit.

“Okay,” Hardison says, “come on,” and walks them all back to the couch, and gets them arranged: Eliot squarely in the middle, lying down, being cuddled by them both. He could fight, could resist, could use physical hard-won training to remove himself from the spot.

They drape arms and legs and body weight over and around him. It’s nice. Grounding. Tangible. His heartbeat steadies. His toes feel warm.

He dares to wrap an arm around Parker, to hold Hardison a little closer, in turn.

“Yeah.” Hardison sounds pleased. “Like that. We got you, okay? You don’t have to do anything. You let us do this, right now.”

“You’re our Eliot,” Parker says, and feeds him another chocolate. This one’s got a hint of pepper, smoky and sweet, and it leaves heat and sugar in his mouth. In his gut. In his chest. A pooling glow.

The couch is large and sturdy and doesn’t mind holding all three of them as they tangle themselves together. The rain purrs and leaps, cleansing the night. The power might be out for a while, but they’ve got candles, and back-up generators, and batteries, and blankets, and each other.

They do have each other. Eliot has them, and Parker and Hardison have him too, and so maybe, maybe—

This can work.

Tripods are stable, after all.

He has to clear his throat. “Wouldn’t, um. Wouldn’t want you to tip over. Without me.”

Parker’s hand strokes his hair. “You won’t let us.”

“I won’t,” Eliot tells her, tells them. “Never. I’d catch you.”

“Yep.” Hardison slides a hand under Eliot’s shirt, resting over his stomach, skin to skin. It’s not sexual, not now, at least. Only intimate. Purely present. Feels good there. “We know you would. So let us catch you, too, all right?”

It’s hard but it’s also simple, effortless, a choice that’s not one. This is right; this feels right. Eliot knows about instincts. And he believes—beyond any doubt—that these two, his partners, will catch him.

So that’s the answer. It’s the only possible answer. It’s a loosening, an acceptance, sweet as adrenaline and relief. He starts to say, “Yeah,” and barely gets the first sound out before Parker kisses him, and then Hardison kisses him, and together they taste like chocolate and warmth and balance, held secure between the couch and their bodies and golden light and falling rain.

#whumptober2020 #no.27 #power outage #leverage #fic #eliot/parker/hardison #my fic #softness

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purplepints · 4 years ago

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Red Cross & Donations during Emergencies

You’re probably going to see a surge in posts about why you should not support Agencies like the American Red Cross because “they refused our donations” or "they steal donations" etc. so please read this first before posting anti-ARC/Non-Profit/etc groups mostly run by volunteers.

PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE REBLOGGING NEGATIVE STUFF ABOUT THOSE GROUPS!!

Okay, let's talk about this. Food stuff first, then clothes, then a list of Things You Can Do.

Pay attention, people, because while our actions during events like Hurricanes or other events can save lives, our half-cocked reblogging of emotional anecdotes can make lives that much harder. I am not going to claim that the Red Cross (or any other similar Organization) are perfect or unproblematic, but I will say that it is better to light a candle than to refuse to provide batteries for a flashlight. Provide the names of groups you are donating to and the PayPal or site where those groups are accepting monetary donations, don't just fill timelines with anti-Whomever stuff without providing alternatives. Moving on to the Big Questions.....

WHY DO THEY REFUSE FOOD?

— Food can be dangerous.

Think about it. Kids have nut allergies, people are lactose intolerant, the dish could have been sitting somewhere for hours growing bacteria....

— Food can be divisive.

Think about it. Who gets the fantastic homemade lasagna and who has to be content with a bag lunch? Who makes that decision? What about areas populated by people with religious dietary restrictions? Are the items kosher or halal or vegetarian? Worse yet, could someone donate items to locations having high numbers of immigrants, people of color, Muslims, Jews, Sikhs, LGBTQ, etc. that were made with the intent to harm groups of people?

Do you see how all of this could be a problem?

It is simply too much of a risk to trust that every person who cooks something followed all safety guidelines regarding ingredients, can provide accurate lists of ALL the ingredients (and no, not just "1/2 cup vegetable oil", because there could be differences between brands, someone may use olive oil or canola oil exclusively, or simply not think to mention that while they made the dish with ABC Brand 100% Canola, they sprayed the casserole pan with Pam or greased it with XYZ Brand Margarine) AND would leave their name & contact info in case people get ill from eating their food.

Businesses like restaurants have to follow certain guidelines and accept the risks, but private individuals? Not so much. Too many shelters/distribution locations simply don't have the fridges/freezers needed to store perishable foods for the number of people they are trying to help and are using what space they do have to store things like breast milk, formula, insulin, etc. Some shelters/locations are in places that face loss of electricity, disruption of utilities, you name it. They may or may not have generators. They may or may not have the resources to plate & provide utensils to every person. They may or may not have dishwashers or just several large sinks to clean dishes, and they can't just shove dirty dishes into a corner for people to come retrieve. Even if they do have sinks, they probably don't have the manpower to assign toward labeling dishes, storing them, reheating them, serving them and cleaning dishes/kitchen/etc to avoid contaminating other food.

Hate to bring this up, but it should be mentioned that many of those places also lack the bathroom facilities to handle the influx of victims, so a few dozen people coming down with salmonella (which, fun fact, can be spread by touching items which were touched by an infected person who wasn't as diligent as they could have been while washing their hands) or other common ailments caused by eating undercooked, poorly preserved or cross-contaminated items, especially in situations where clean water could be in short supply ...well. I think you can imagine how that would be an issue.

WHY DO THEY REFUSE CLOTHING?

— Clothing uses a lot of resources.

Think about it and you'll see similar problems to the ones regarding food. Some people are allergic to certain detergents, break into rashes when encountering pet dander or have other sensitivities.

— Like food, safety is a concern.

A lot of the clothing donated to shelters/organizations is nowhere close to new or in the ballpark of used: it skips directly to awful and most of it isn't laundered. Claims that all the items have been laundered doesn't change the fact that it has to be laundered again before it can be given to anyone due to the aforementioned issues. If possible, donate new, packaged unisex things like t-shirts. Leave the fancy stuff, out-of-season stuff and dress clothing at home unless you're told they are looking to collect heels, thick sweaters, ties, etc.

Laundering aside, the condition of items can be unbelievable. Pants with broken zippers or large holes in the crotch/butt, single socks, old promotional shirts covered in stains and holes, tops & bottoms stretched out or with blown seams. Soiled clothing (every kind of thing you can imagine), scuffed up individual high heels, bras with wires poking through other items, old prom dresses spilling sequins everywhere and all of this is shoved in garbage bags or boxes willy-nilly along with other random items....it is astounding what people will drop off with an attitude of "it's better than nothing" while failing to realize that all of those bags and boxes have to be sorted, laundered, grouped (child/adult, then sizes), then distributed. This is all worse than nothing and only eats up resources better spent on getting people help they actually need.

Again, many shelters/locations have a limited amount of resources and storage space. They may or may not have access to laundry machines. They may or may not have rooms to set up for sorting, nor space to keep the items for any amount of time. The volunteer hours spent digging through clothing hardly good enough for a rag bag would be much better spent on other tasks that can improve the lives of people impacted by these disasters.

WHAT YOU CAN DO:

If you want to provide food or clothing for people but don't want to donate money to the Red Cross/Other Large Organizations, here are some suggestions :

*** First, ALWAYS make sure to contact locations/groups and LISTEN when they tell you what they need! ***

FOOD:

* See if any restaurants are looking for volunteers to help prepare or deliver meals.

* Ask groups you're already involved with to host a shop-along to supply people returning to their homes with staple groceries. [Even if homes were not flooded or damaged, power outages could cause a total loss of all products in refrigerators and the majority of people who rent apartments do not have any type of insurance policy that pays to replace food.]

* Ask if specific items like bottles, sippy cups or reusable water bottles are needed, or if the location could use a reliable fridge/mini-fridge for storing insulin or breast milk, or offer up a hot plates or electric kettle that can be used to to boil water or prepare small amounts of food for ppl with special diets.

* Get with schools that have teaching kitchens (think Home Ec) and offer to help cook or buy supplies for use: this could provide parents who need a bit of time to check their property or fill out paperwork with that time while providing their child with an activity that results in cookies. Offer to do the same thing with entire families through the schools in the evenings, because a few hours away from a shelter, a hot meal and a bit of privacy can mean so much in times like these.

CLOTHING:

* If a group says they are accepting clothing, please only donate items without damage, without stains and make sure to ask if the location needs clothes hangers, special kind of detergents, mesh laundry bags for distribution, etc. If you have large-load capacity machines, offer use of them if you're close to the shelter or can lend them for a brief time.

* Most groups will ask you to only donate underwear and socks that are new and still in their packaging. Most groups don't receive new underwear and socks in packaging and I don't know of any group that will distribute used underwear or socks, so please think about providing child & adult sizes of those items.

* Consider a group effort to help specific groups of people: gather up gently used business/business casual attire for young adults seeking new jobs or returning to work; maternity clothing for all stages of pregnancy; or look into providing steel-toe boots, work gloves, jackets and safety vests for people involved in cleanup efforts.

* Look into sponsoring a future family event that was delayed by the emergency. Provide a dress and suits for a wedding, pairs of cleats for a soccer team, changes of school uniforms or go the services route by offering your own skills as a photographer, hairdresser, tailor, whatever, for free (or form a group that can provide several interconnected skills to work together over, say, 6 months-1 year post event for free or discounted for X amount of events) or at cost/discount.

* Ask groups if they need fabric or findings for arts & crafts and offer to bring items ready to go: bags of buttons, t-shirts cut into yarn, denim or other fabrics cut into sizes requested, etc. You'll be able to thin out your closet and provide a useful thing that can be used to craft a handy item or teach a new skill. This also applies to other art supplies & school supplies, as children in shelters aren't attending school and/or need an outlet for their feelings.

MISC:

** Masks, shower curtains, hygiene prpdicts: having mass shelter happening during this covid-19 breakout is a triple nightmare, so if you sew masks or have extra masks in any size offer them to the mass shelters.

* Different groups of people have different needs. Groups having more children may need more baby wipes or diapers ; groups having more seniors may need mobility aids ; groups having people with natural hair may need different shampoo ; groups having more autistic or special needs may need sense-friendly items, and so on. Help is “one size fits most” deal in many areas of care (like shelter, food) but there are many individuals who need something specific. Ask, listen, provide.

* Groups are almost always in need of translators, not just for adults & help with paperwork or other concerns, but to watch, entertain or otherwise provide assistance for children. If you are fluent in another language (or have books/movies in different languages) contact agencies and let them know.

* We rely on cellphones & electronic devices for much of our communication, so chargers, charger cords, battery banks, working phones and even laptops could help people find their families. Mobile wi-fi and pre-paid phone cards are things to consider, too. Battery or plug-in speakers with Bluetooth could be used for storytime or dance activities with children or audio books for adults, basically any extra electronics you have that are

fairly modern and can play video/audio would be a godsend. Older phones that have been factory reset while still able to work on modern system could help greatly, so call/check with providers and see if any older models you have will still connect & if they are doing anything with the phones themselves re: redistribution.

* Totes, backpacks, duffels and other reusable, durable bags can come in handy. Ziplocs too, to keep items dry. Often people only stay at a shelter for a few days while they're working on other arrangements so it's nice to have everything packed and secure as well as offer a bit of pride and normality rather than making everyone use hefty bags to carry their stuff.

* If you are a notary public or someone with special knowledge pertaining to documents, mortgages, bank accounts, medical POA, etc call and see if your services could be handy for people. A lot of victims lose their birth certificates and other important documents and will need help reestablishing their identity and proofs of ownership.

Most importantly, please make sure people you know understand that there are ways for everyone to help! There are reasons why certain things are not accepted, and it is frustrating, but keep in mind there are other ways to give. Right now, focus on ways you can help and encourage people you know to join your efforts. Please focus on what we can do to help!!

#hurricane laura #Hurricanes #Emergencies #Ways to help #Red Cross #Donations #Helping

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daretosnoop · 5 years ago

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Legend of the Crystal Skull Review:

SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!!!

Atmosphere/Layout:

I loved this game so much! The Nancy Drew games are always stellar at placing you in the world of the game. I have yet to play a series that really roots you in its atmosphere. CRY delivered that at another level. I’ve been to New Orleans, and this game took me back to that trip. I loved how everything in the house was slightly crooked to reflect the kookiness of Bruno Bolet, as well as make things more eerie. I remember how the intro to the game scared me as a kid, yes, I got scared of the Skeleton man as a kid. Imagine freaking out to the skeleton man attack and then cutting to Renee’s creepy eyes as a kid! Even as an adult, Renee’s eyes creep me out, and no way was I ever going to drink that concoction! This game has a lot of odd things that you can eat: mysterious beverage that may or may not kill you, chocolate that definitely will, and expired bubble gum that surprisingly does not kill you. Okay, back to atmosphere. The ambience of the game was consistent, even when you played Bess’s portions which was supposed to take you away from the eeriness of the Bolet house for a bit. The rain effect and the semi-dark state of the house because of the electricity outage definitely amped up the fear and creepiness. You definitely took cautious steps in and out of the house. The graveyard. THE GRAVEYARD. THE GRAVEYARD. I think the exploration of the graveyard might be my favourite exploration spots of all the games. I love how you can see Nancy’s silhouette and hear her shoes as she traversed the grave. It was big enough to pique curiosity, but not so big that you would get lost. I also appreciated how every grave section had its own design as it made things more memorable. I know some people didn’t like the graveyard scavenger hunt, but I relished it! The earlier games (1-5) had this slight ruthlessness to the game play. There was a slight edge that kept the reader hooked and just a touch fearful, and this game maintained that edge. I really appreciated that, especially since it would pater out a bit in later games.

Music:

This game has one of the best tracks: “Legend”. That alone should put it as a game with an amazing music score, but no, they had to add other titles like “Chatter” and “Bruno”. As someone who loves Jazz, I digged this score. So often I would stop and just listen to the music, and could feel myself get pumped whenever “Legend” would play. Honestly, why hasn’t someone created a Nancy Drew Ambience record yet? The jazz music was a nice contrast to the shadowy layout which added to the “everything is slightly unhinged” element of the game. But man, when the danger music would play, I would get chills. Especially when you’re in Renee’s room or in Bruno’s secret room. Surprisingly those two rooms creeped me more then the graveyard!

I also loved the little noises like the sound of rain, or the way the rain hit the windows. Nancy’s heels as she walked through the graves. The skeletal hand for Charlie’s puzzle. The sound Henry’s chair makes when he moves. Etc. etc.

Characters:

Nancy was amazing as usual. It surprises me how she remains unfazed by everything, but I love that side of her. Bess felt a bit out of character with her resistance to participating in snooping. Usually she’s dying to know what’s up, or help Nancy out, but she wasn’t this time. Still, got to had it too her. Not many friends would sneak into a private meeting and demand her rights despite being surrounded by creepy skeletal men. Some of you might scoff, but y’all would be crapping your pants if you were in the same situation.

So since you technically didn’t know there would be a mystery, it made sense that there were only 3 suspects. I like how Nancy doesn’t start out with an investigation. She mostly wants to figure out who the skeletal man was and why he attacked her, and how that simple curiosity leads her to the crystal skull. It’s a nice progression of plot.

Henry: Henry Bolet is handsome. I know some people might not like the arm sleeve thing or painted nails, but it’s 2020, it’s called aesthetic! Her Interactive over here creating male characters who want to paint their nails way before popular culture accepted it/picked up on it. Haters be jealous. I’m kidding. But still, I loved how much depth they put into this character. How with so little, you understood his character. When he complains about how Bruno sent him away as a child, it revealed that Henry is someone who really needs family. He’s aware his emotional needs are higher than the average person, not because he lost his parents, but just who he is by nature. It also makes his attachment to Summer make more sense. We can easily surmise that Summer was probably the first person to give Henry the emotional security he needed, but that it was clearly done for her own selfish desires. Henry’s inability/or refusal to see it also makes more sense. That being said, the moment we learn about Summer, it takes Henry off the suspect list. Up till then, the game does a good job at making him seem suspicious do to his dealings with Lamont. It’s not a bad thing, but since we only have 3 suspects, his removal immediately makes the culprit an easy 50-50 guess. Not to mention the fact that after blackmailing him (which was kind of mean of Nancy to do to someone who is already being emotionally abused by his girlfriend) he gets sidelined for the rest of the game despite there being a good chunk left to play.

Renee: Classic sweet but deadly suspect. Love how the game kept her super suspicious from the way she acted to the way she would emphasize things. For example, I found it so odd that she remembered the exact percentage of who would receive what in the will, like she had been mulling over that. And the way she ends with mentioning that she was to receive 10% compared to the others getting 30%, so subtle a remark yet it catches the ear of any good detective. And of course, the room and her interest in the occult made the suspicion grow. Unfortunately, I found the whole part about authenticating the skull a bit lackluster and kind of gives the culprit away. I mean Renee said “I wanted to find the skull” when Nancy confronts her about hiding information. After such a confession, wouldn’t the obvious follow up question be “why?”. I can only guess they included this to hype up the “chase” for the skull since we know the Dr. Buford is also looking for it, but the game didn’t really deliver on the urgency so this felt like a lackluster confession. It also came close to the end of the game, so when Renee appeared at the end it wasn’t surprising. Nancy’s faith in Renee was odd, and the fact that she just tossed up the skull—face slap! Nancy, she literally confessed 10 min ago, did you forget!? The ending was nice. I liked how she “forgot” to tell Nancy about Bernie (so malicious!), but then actually forgot that Bernie was in the water.

Dr. Buford: He was interesting. Seems nice and charming, but the more we learn about Bruno’s death, the suspicious he becomes. Love how Bess worries about Buford coming back to take the skull. I still don’t understand what exactly the skeletal society does, other then being pirate fans, but I liked the costumes.

Puzzles:

I love a healthy balance between puzzles and dialogue and this game delivered on that. The dialogue was nicely spaced out throughout the game and added to the characters. Each character had their own way of talking and phrases that stayed true to their character. The one exception is Henry’s “I’ve been naughty but I’ll be nice now” line which threw me off so hard. HELLO?? WHY IS NO ONE TALKING ABOUT THIS! It’s so random for a college/uni person to say this. Actually, who says this?? I’ll be honest, my mind went a bit dark and wondered just how bad was Summer abusing him for such a dialogue to come out of him……. poor Henry.

But back to the puzzles. I honestly loved most of the puzzles. I know the bowling ball machine (the one where you have to roll all eyes) annoys people, but I enjoyed it. I also know the graveyard scavenger hunt bored people, but I love puns, and l loved the layout of the house and graveyard so much that running back and forth was so much fun. Solving the clock puzzle and teeth puzzle was also fun, and they made me feel like a genius. The first part of the buzzard puzzle wasn’t bad, it was just annoying to have to turn back and see what affect each gargoyle bird did. The book mentioned that the sounds the gargoyle’s made was important, but I didn’t catch anything. I also liked how the final puzzle was a puzzle that built throughout the game. You didn’t know the eye puzzle would be the final big puzzle, but every little puzzle played a role in being a part of the final puzzle. I just thought that was cool, I like interconnected stuff.

There were three puzzles I did not like. The first was with Bess and the box she had to open. The clue was Hamlet and some numbers. I thought that you had to call Nancy and have her check the library for Hamlet and look up those reference numbers. What was the point of writing Hamlet? Nowhere in the letter did it mention that you have to associate the letter to the number and type out what it spells. Also, it did not mention that you had to restart the counting every time! I had to go online for help with this puzzle. The second puzzle was the second part of the buzzard puzzle. After getting the key, which you don’t get a good look at, you’re supposed to use them on the gargoyles. But I didn’t get that, plus the emblem on each gargoyle was just a feather with notches, so how do you know that the key goes there??? Finally, I hated the wasp puzzle. It was annoying and I don’t know why Nancy didn’t take a handful of loquats at once!

Graphics:

They really hold up despite being 13 years old. Sure, it’s a bit weird around the eyes and mouth, but the rest is stellar. Also, I love how they added in certain quirks that matched each character’s personality. Like Henry kicking his legs up to show he’s someone who doesn’t care about bending the rules, little rebellious. But then the fact that he sits proper when talking shows that he’s not so rebellious and is actually trying to be professional. Also shows the contesting sides of his emotional needs and the military training he would have received. Renee’s position over her pots show that she’s someone tricks you into thinking that she loves to work with her hands (lol, end game “this girl just handed me the skull”. I told you I love puns). It also shows that she prioritizes the small things, and the fact that she’s potting despite being recently laid off (she’s the only character still working despite Bruno’s death) makes her a bit unnerving. Dr. Buford at the French quarters show that he’s someone of charm. Etc. etc.

Plot:

Like I said, loved the slow buildup of plot—how one thing led to another. Don’t know why Ned sent Nancy to do his work, but okay…

The Summer plotline felt like it got accidentally dropped. Like the writers forgot to finish it. Even if it’s just Nancy telling Henry that what he has isn’t healthy/good, or something in the end credits where he finally broke up with her. For all we know, they could still be together.

The introduction of the magical qualities of the skull and Bruno’s death was weird. I like how Bruno’s death became questioned, but while his desire for the skull kind of made sense, it didn’t make sense why Buford or Renee wanted it. It still wasn’t clear at the endgame either. I guess there’s the financial prospect, but that subplot kind of pattered out in favour for the magical plot. It also didn’t make sense that Bruno wanted it for Henry, because let’s be real, he wasn’t a good guardian. It really did seem like Bruno didn’t care for Henry. I mean, why give your nephew a skull instead of what he really wanted/needed, a friend. You can take this a bit darker when you realize that Bruno was giving Henry monetary comfort over emotional comfort and that Henry by end game has come to associate monetary gift to be equivalent to emotional gifts, which just makes his relationship with Summer get even darker.

Overall, this was a great game. 10/10. One of my favourites and would play again and again. That’s why I bought it, lol!

~Dare to Snoop

#Nancy Drew #Legend of the Crystal Skull #CRY #Her Interactive #game review #long post

33 notes · View notes

tealin · 5 years ago

Text

Induction McMurdo

Here's the thing about arriving at McMurdo: It's kind of like diving into your first week at college. You have a series of orientation sessions, a bunch of classes in different buildings with random numbers, and you meet a lot of new people with names and roles that are hard to keep straight, while also being offered a wide range of interesting extracurricular activities and trying to navigate the intranet to find the information you need or missed along the way. On top of this, you have to learn the strict and unusual rules around getting your food and sorting your garbage, and adapt to the unwritten conventions and jargon of the society.

A starter: 155 – The big blue building which contains the Galley as well as a number of useful offices like Lodging, Gear Issue, and Recreation. Noticeboards and the Lost and Found are here too. Essentially the hub of the station. Galley – the cafeteria. To prevent spreading germs, one must always do time at the handwash station before entering the Galley, even if one has just been to the bathroom and thoroughly washed one's hands there. The handwash station is a regular rendezvous point. Crary – the building where most of the scientists have labs and/or offices. It has three sections, or 'phases,' connected by a downward sloping 'spine.' Phase 1, at the top of the slope and nearest 155, has an upper floor with a conference room-cum-library. My desk is in a dark little room just off the library, which has been set up with cubicles. The best views in McMurdo are from the library windows. MacOps – the communications hub, which handles radio traffic amongst other things. When you leave the station you have to check out with MacOps. The SSC – stands for Science Support Center. Lots of classes in the classroom here. Otherwise it's a staging area for science teams heading out into the field. The BFC – stands for Berg Field Center. The warehouse of supplies (tents, sledges, stoves, pee bottles, etc) and where things go to get repaired. Denizens of the BFC are a tribe unto themselves and they have a most atmospheric lair on the upper floor. Helo – pronounced hee-low: a helicopter Snow machine – a snowmobile The 203s – three interconnected dormitories, numbered 203a, 203b, and 203c. I am in 203c. They are two storeys; off a long corridor are about twenty double-occupancy rooms, with a bathroom for men and for women on each floor, and a common area on the ground floor. They are being torn down and replaced in March, so it is a bit surreal to be living there.

Here is what my first three days looked like:

Wednesday 13 November 16.30 – Arrive. Orientation video. Receive dorm assignment and keys.

17.15 – Get onboarded with IT, set up network login and WiFi access

17.30 – Walk up to the transport building to receive luggage and haul it (with vehicle and coordinator assistance) to dorm. Gratefully change out of bunny boots into regular boots and feel 20lbs lighter, possibly literally.

18.30 – Dinner with coordinator. Introductions to many new and exciting people.

19.30 – Science lecture in Crary; tonight's is about the ongoing study of Weddell seal pups and at which stage in development they acquire the skill of hyperoxygenating their tissues for long deep dives. A bespoke seal-sized metabolic chamber has been built for this purpose. The pups in the study are named after favourite candies.

21.00 – Stagger into bed

Thursday 14 November 06.45 – Meet coordinator for breakfast

07.30 – Inbrief at the Chalet (administrative hub) where department leaders and new arrivals introduce themselves and explain what they do.

09.00 – Harassment Awareness training. We had to do anti-harassment training every year at Disney and this 45-minute class was way better – insightful, pragmatic, realistic – than anything we did there. Well done, USAP.

10.00-12.00 – Me time. I think I tried to write up my journal.

12.00 – lunch with coordinator, meeting more new people

13.00-14.00 – more me time. I think I tried to answer some emails. It can take about five minutes to send and receive an email in HTML Gmail, on daytime McMurdo bandwidth, so it takes a while.

14.00 – picked up my communications radio, got briefed on how to operate it and the communications protocols. The comms team have a stuffed husky mascot named Apsley.

15.00 – Visited the Discovery Hut

16.00 – walked uphill against the wind back from Discovery Hut

17.30 – dinner, meet the other Artists & Writers under my coordinator's wing. They have just come back from the Dry Valleys. Ian Van Coller is a photographer; Todd Anderson is a photographer and printmaker. Together they are documenting the disappearing glaciers of the world. See The Last Glacier.

18.00 – History Club

21.00 – Collapse into bed Friday 15 November 06.45 – Breakfast

08.00 – I was supposed to take Core Training – the introductory briefing on ways and means of McMurdo (trash sorting, the water system, the taxi/shuttle system, medical centre, etc) but in light of the parlous state of the sea ice this year, my coordinator wanted to get me on a snowmobile ASAP so I was ushered instead into

09.00 – Snowmobile Theory, i.e. how to start it, how to drive it, how not to tip over going around corners. This was entirely indoors with a specimen snowmobile. The Snowmobile Practical would be a few days later but I had to have theory first, and there was an opening here.

12.00 – rendezvous with coordinator at my desk, then lunch

13.00-16.30 – Antarctic Field Training. This consisted of a series of lectures and videos interspersed with practical demonstrations, designed to familiarise oneself with the contents of one's survival bag, which is taken with you every time you leave base, in case you're waylaid by a blizzard. We learned how to set up and run the Whisperlight stove (similar in theory to a Primus but with the burner and fuel tank as separate entities) and set up the standard issue tent. I learned the extremely clever Trucker's Hitch knot and forgot it about half an hour after class ended. In fact it went much longer than the allotted time because the power kept going out whenever we tried to watch one of the several requisite videos, so eventually Helicopter Training was postponed to 7.30 the following morning.

18.00 – Dinner. Met the new arrivals from today's C-17, a film crew making an episode of the NatGeo-Netflix-Disney series One Strange Rock.* Despite the American commission, they are in fact British, and one of them was cameraman on the show about the restoration of the Cape Evans hut, which has hitherto been my best point of reference for that interior space. Instant friends. Power outages continued. Went to bed during one particularly long one.

Saturdays are work days here, so the schedule didn't let up then. The standard work day is 7.30 - 17.30, a ten-hour day which significantly favours morning people, of whose tribe I am not. One would think that, in 24-hour daylight, circadian rhythms would be more or less malleable, but I never succeeded in going to sleep before 10 or finding it easy to wake up before 7. People complain of a certain befuddlement in Antarctica – constantly losing things, inability to concentrate, loss of vocabulary – and they call it McMurdo Brain, but my experience of working 60-hour weeks at Disney makes me think it’s probably chronic low-grade exhaustion. When I stole time for a nap or was allowed to sleep in, I felt noticeably sharper.

This particular Saturday, after the makeup Helicopter class, was entirely given over to Sea Ice Training. That was such a full and interesting day that I will give it a post all of its own next week.

#mcmurdo #mcmurdo station #united states antarctic program #usap

49 notes · View notes

ktfromjerseyblog · 4 years ago

Text

Massive List of Mod Updates for Eco-Lifestyle Game Patch

NO LONGER UPDATING THIS POST. SWITCHED TO A NEW ONE. LINK HERE

Broken Mods (currently, as of 05Jun 930PM PST):

SRSLYSIMS:

-Complete Cooking Overhaul (SCCO)

-World Rename Tool

SCUMBUMBO:

-Scumbumbo's Working Alarm Clocks

BIENCHEN: -Invite to Fix

PHAERIIA:

-No Free Child Toys (Phaeriia)

SIMREALIST: SNB Bills is BROKEN

Organic Mod BROKEN

Private Practice (main mod not broken at all BUT play without the Careers mod package.)

MSQSIMS:

-Bikes for Children

-Realistic Trees No Fade Mod

SHENANIGANS: -Karaoke Night

KINGZACE:

-warns simmers to play with caution with their Harvestable and/or Distillery Mod

Mods Marked Safe by Creators

SCUMBUMBO:

-Tuning Error Notifier

-Sims Log Enabler

-Don't Wash your hands Where You Angry Poop

-Don’t Prep your food where you angry poop

GETTPS:

-No Robot Upgrade Parts on Chemistry Lab

-Acting Career Gig Booster

SIMMYTIME:

-No/Less City Living/Island Living NPC names

-No bubble blower or talking toilet reactions

-Rainproof Electronics & Servos

-Surprise Holidays Be Gone

-More Roommates & Roommate Behavior Tweaks

-Tiny Homes - Changed Tile Limits

ROBURKY:

-“Meaningful Stories and Fitness Controls are mostly unaffected by the patch's changes, and can continue to be used.”

SCARLETT:

-Aging Fix

-Always Buy Unlock

-Ask to Move In Requirements

-Bad Grades are OK

-Employees Stay 24 Hours

-Faster Brewing

-Faster Retail Actions

-Homework Tweaks

-Kiss Neck for Adults

-No bad microwave buffs

-no bike helmets

-no blur in distance

-no cold clothing inside

-no meal spawning roommates

-overload death disabled

-subject homework

-vet podium notifications

-walk normal

-waterproof servos

-wear more costumes

AHINAHA:

-Custom Color Loading Screen

COWPLANTSCAKE:

-New Townie and Random Names

LOTHARIHOE:

-Less/No Blizzard Slipping

-Magic Sage Attractors

-Into The Light

-Cubemap Remover

-loading screens

MIZOREYUKII:

-No Fade On Everything

-No Fade On Sims & Objects

-No Autonomous View Aquarium

-No Social Motive Decay

-Removed Occult Plumbob Ring

-Ghosts Stay White

-Unlimited Donations

NIES:

-"Throw Up" For Everysim

-Low Fun Is Boring

REYN:

-Experimental Recipes on Normal Stove

-Cupcake Machine to Oven Mod

RADIOPHOBE:

-Zodiac traits

SACRIFICIAL:

-“Zombie Apocalypse does overall work, except for the custom sounds. Everything aside from the Nemesis battle music is silent, if this bothers you, then please remove the mod until a fix is implemented. Additional Creator Note: “use at your own risk”

KAWAII STACIE:

Reported working by the testers now but please keep an eye on her socials or server for official announcements.

-SOL

-Life Decider

-The Explore Mod

-Animal Crossing Aspiration

-Education Bundle

TWISTED MEXI: -T.O.O.L. (reported working fine)

-Better Exceptions (reported working fine by creator, however testers are having problems getting in-game alerts)

-Clean UI (reported working but needs to be updated by creator for new icon)

SIMREALIST:

-SNBank (not to be confused with SNBills)

SHENANIGANS:

-Dog Show Event

-Have First Dance at Wedding

-Funeral

-Baby Shower

-Bachelor(ette) Party

-Graduation

-Slumber Party

Mods Updates

DEADERPOOL: -MCCC v7.2.2

https://deaderpool-mccc.com/#/releases

BASEMENTAL:

-Basemental Drugs and Gangs for Public and Patreons

https://www.patreon.com/basemental/

https://basementalcc.com

WEERBESU:

-UI Cheats v1.17.0 updated!

https://www.patreon.com/posts/ui-cheats-v1-17-26240068

More Columns in CAS v1.11 has been updated.

https://www.patreon.com/posts/more-columns-in-27751117

TURBODRIVER:

-Wicked Whims v155h

https://wickedwhimsmod.com/help#/download/

NISA K:

-Wicked Perversions LL.2.6b

SACRIFICIAL:

-Zombie Apocalypse (V2.0 Patreons only currently)

https://www.patreon.com/posts/37895775

-Life Tragedies

-Life Manager

-Life's Drama

https://sacrificialmods.com/downloads.html

NATETHEL0SER:

-Child Stars mod updated for 1.63!

https://www.patreon.com/posts/32004495

-Stacking symptoms is now updated for 1.63 http://modthesims.info/download.php?t=627125&cb=1591203948

-Uni Activities

https://www.patreon.com/posts/34970128

-Part time film job

https://www.patreon.com/posts/34499104

OMEGAVERSE:

-Jamjars got updated!

https://jamcreates.tumblr.com/post/619925324432556032/omegaverse-v150-mating-with-the-pre-release

SCUMBUMBO:

-Packing Crates by Scumbumbo & updated by BaseMental

https://scumbumbomods.com/#/packing-crates/

-Evolve All Plants by Scumbumbo Updated by Basemental

https://scumbumbomods.com/#/evolve-all-plants/

-Faster Gardening Mod by Scumbumbo & updated by LittleMsSam

https://scumbumbomods.com/#/faster-gardening-mod/

MAXISMATCHWORLD:

-No CC Wrench in CAS is updated!

https://maxismatchccworld.tumblr.com/post/619932762675331072/no-cc-wrench-in-cas

SCARLET:

-all year plants

-children/toddlers can die of anything

-free hire npc -buy magic items from computer

-faster homework (uni edition)

-island event notifications enabled

-less patchy time

-no auto channel change

-no weather outfits required

-plain tea

-publish books on computer

-servo tweaks

-shower woohoo tweaks

-simcity loans

-socially anxious trait

-no/all required recipe ingredients

https://scarletsmods.com/mods/

https://scarletsmods.com/mod-status/#traits

REVYREI:

-DJ Booth Plays Custom Music

-Hire More DJs & Bartenders

-Mute the DJ Booth

-No Pets at the Club

-Vampire Reflection Enabled

https://modthesims.info/m/9993106

LOTHARIHOE:

-Intense Fires (lotharihoe)

https://lotharihoe.tumblr.com/post/188609858673/intense-fires-mod-download-sfsgoogle

-Out of The Dark (lotharihoe)

https://lotharihoe.tumblr.com/post/173488596178/out-of-the-dark-download-sfs-google-drive

MIKYA:

-QuickVids

- Write Songs and Books Faster – QuickWrite

https://modthesims.info/d/641416/write-songs-and-books-faster-quickwrite-by-mikya.html

https://modthesims.info/d/642554/quickvids-by-mikya-record-and-edit-videos-faster.html

GETTP:

-Scientist Career - Graveyard Shift and Gardening Fix

-Transform some Grass Daily Task

https://modthesims.info/m/10076521

TEKNIKAH:

-Water Bucket Sprinkler System

-Water Pump Sprinkler System

-Well Sprinkler System

https://modthesims.info/m/10159592

NIES:

-Throw Up For Everysim

-Fun Is Boring

https://modthesims.info/d/614403/quot-throw-up-quot-for-everysim-v-1-2-4.html

https://modthesims.info/d/610872/low-fun-is-boring-v-1-1.html

-Cooler Sicknesses

https://modthesims.info/d/605259/cooler-sicknesses-mod-v-2-2-2.html

ZERBU:

-Venue Changes

https://zerbu.tumblr.com/post/160347810775/the-sims-4-mod-venue-changes

-Go to School

https://zerbu.tumblr.com/post/160319209200/the-sims-4-go-to-school-mod-pack-v4

-Turbo Careers

https://zerbu.tumblr.com/post/160454960980/the-sims-4-turbo-careers-mod-pack

SRSLYSIMS:

-Simulation Lag Fix

https://www.srslysims.net/2019/05/simulation-lag-fix.html

-Choosy Choices Vending Machine

https://www.srslysims.net/2019/12/choosy-choices-vending-machine.html

-Purchase Antidote All Computers

https://www.srslysims.net/2018/08/purchase-antidote-all-computers.html

-Purchase Custom Seeds

https://www.srslysims.net/2018/08/purchase-antidote-all-computers.html

- Buy Pet Items Anywhere (SrslySims)

https://www.srslysims.net/2019/09/purchase-pet-items-anywhere.html

- Srsly's Minor Alchemy Overhaul

https://www.srslysims.net/2019/09/minor-alchemy-overhaul.html

FLERB: -Automatic Beards

https://modthesims.info/d/631100/automatic-beards-v4-1.html

-Automatic Sunburns

-Power Outages

http://modthesims.info/m/9963874

DRANIMANIAC: -Unlimited Jobs

http://modthesims.info/d/629554/unlimited-jobs-mod.html

MAGNETIC SOUTH:

-Faster Hygiene

-RealisticUniFees

-RealisticUniScholarship

-Quick Write Excuse Note

https://www.patreon.com/magneticsouth

TRIPLIS:

-Sorcerer

-HABIT

-Child Traits

-Thinking Skill

-Child and Teen can Quit or Rejoin School

https://www.patreon.com/posts/37872267

LITTLE MS SAM:

30 Minutes Power Workout & 30 Minutes Swimming

Anti Heat Pill (Pets)

Ask to Cook/Bake/Grill/Mix Drink! (including Cupcakes and Experimental Food)

ATM Cards and now with real Credit Function! (Update of Zooroo’s Mod)

Automatic Thermostat (Seasons)

Autonomous Gardening

Autonomous Pay Bills at Computers

Better Nanny (Second Nanny & more)

Carryable Performance Stage plus Sing Songs!

Collectibles (Rock Digging) Rework (Slower/Harder)

Cooler are cooling

Eco Dishwasher

Experimental Food Servings

Flea Market appears every Sunday

Food Delivery Service

Forbidden Fruit fills Hunger & Water Motive of PlantSims

Free Staff and no phone call animation for marketstalls, chef, barista & bartender

Go for a walk with more Pets (Rabbitholes)

Healthy Drinks

Herbalism | New Potions

Hire certain Sims (incl. Family Members) at Restaurants

Holiday Home Standalone Version

Housewarming Party (instead of Welcome Wagon)

Improved Kids Night Light

Live in Business

Marketstalls | Toddler can Order & More Food Options

Miscarriage Chance & Abortion

More Best Friends

More Buyable Venues and new Venue Types

More Servings Options & Better MealTime Menus

More Woodworks

New Vampire Powers | “Be able to eat Human Food”, “Enable own Mirror Reflection”, “Stop Hissing” and more

Objects don’t share Inventory

Offer Appeareance Styling & earn Money

Online Learning System

Personal Objects (Computer, Tablets & more)

Play your own Tracks as a DJ

Power Napping on Sofas

Pregnancy Overhaul

Quick Shower & Quick Bath

Random Bug Fixes

Random Small Mods

Retail Overhaul (Hire certain Employees/Better Shopping as a Customer & more)

Roommates

Seafood Servings

Sell more self made Woodwork at the Flea Market

Sell via Simbay

SimDa Dating App

Sleep All Night

Sleep In

Slower Writing

Small Archaeology Overhaul

Small Award Overhaul (Get Famous)

Small Invite to Hang Out Overhaul

Small Laundry Overhaul

Social Activities (Visit Friends, Family and more)

Stereos | Retro Station enabled

Teach me the Rumbasim

Transfer Inventory

Vampire Invasions on Community Lots Fix (kind of)

Watch Movie and Be Quiet please

Woodworking Table Rework + No Autonomous

https://littlemssam.tumblr.com/post/619986818912436224/patch-163133-updates

-Miscarriage chance and Abortion

https://littlemssam.tumblr.com/post/620004338071371776/hot-fix

-WEE Working Elevators Everywhere

https://littlemssam.tumblr.com/post/620078311351140352/hot-fix

MENACEMAN44:

-Auto Shorter Teens

https://modthesims.info/d/642260/auto-shorter-teens.html

BRAZENLOTUS:

-Inventory Not Shared

https://brazenlotus.com/inventory-not-shared/

-Bookshelf Edits Mod

https://brazenlotus.com/bookshelf-edits-mod/

-Book Fixes, Edits, and Add-ons

https://brazenlotus.com/ea-book-fixes-edits/

-Foraging Mod

https://brazenlotus.com/foraging-mod/

-Woodworking Uses Wood Mod

https://brazenlotus.com/woodworking-recipes-uses-wood/

-Popcorn Recipes with Ingredients

https://brazenlotus.com/popcorn-recipe-with-ingredients/

- Pumpkin Carving Menu Mod

https://brazenlotus.com/pumpkin-carving-menu-mod/

- Crafting Menus List No Pie

https://brazenlotus.com/crafting-menus-list-no-pie/

BIENCHEN:

Healthyhighchair NEW

Offermakeoverforeveryone NEW

Upgradebeds NEW

lesssickness – An die Arbeit | Get to Work

curesickness – Elternfreuden | Parenthood

pimplesmod – Elternfreuden | Parenthood

buypettreat – Hunde & Katzen | Cats & Dogs

scoldpetsfix – Hunde & Katzen | Cats & Dogs

buymore_phone – Jahreszeiten | Seasons

lottraitsunnyaspecttweak – Jahreszeiten | Seasons

plantsgodormantinwinteronly – Jahreszeiten | Seasons

townieoverhaul_lessfame – Werde berühmt | Get Famous

morecauldronmeals – Reich der Magie | Realm of Magic

betterbread – Rund um Mahlzeiten | Food Related

pboxupdated_usemoreingredients – Rund um Mahlzeiten | Food Related

pboxupdated_usemoreingredients_version2 – Rund um Mahlzeiten | Food Related

restaurantbakefix – Rund um Mahlzeiten | Food Related

restaurantguestoverhaul – Rund um Mahlzeiten | Food Related

restauranticefix – Rund um Mahlzeiten | Food Related

eldertweak – Autonomie-Mods | Autonomy Mods

highchairtweak – Autonomie-Mods | Autonomy Mods

noautonomouswashdishaftereating – Autonomie-Mods | Autonomy Mods

bearphasetweak – Outfit-Mods | Outfit Mods

bearphasetweak_version2 – Outfit-Mods | Outfit Mods

funeral – Outfit-Mods | Outfit Mods

lessrandomhatsandaccessories – Outfit-Mods | Outfit Mods

apologyfix – Sonstige Mods | Misc Mods

asktoleaveoverhaul_v3 – Sonstige Mods | Misc Mods

bookcaseandstoragechestdontshareinventory – Sonstige Mods | Misc Mods

clubdancertweak – Sonstige Mods | Misc Mods

conversationtweak – Sonstige Mods | Misc Mods

extendedinvitationsoverhaul – Sonstige Mods | Misc Mods

lessjealous – Sonstige Mods | Misc Mods

moreaskwhathappened – Sonstige Mods | Misc Mods

normalhugisnocrassact – Sonstige Mods | Misc Mods

siblingcaretweaks – Sonstige Mods | Misc Mods

switchtozoneandbringheretweak – Sonstige Mods | Misc Mods

whimoverhaul – Sonstige Mods | Misc Mods

wrinklesforadults – Sonstige Mods | Misc Mods

https://deichschafblog.de/bienchen/update-4-juni-2020/

KIARAASIMS4MODS:

-Architecture career

-Dancer career

-Hacker career

-Journalism career

https://kiarasimsfourmods.home.blog/careers/sims-2-remakes/

-Film career

-Firefighter career

-Photographer career

-Science career

-singer career

-spa career

-stylist career

-video game developer career

https://kiarasimsfourmods.home.blog/careers/sims-3-remakes/

-Holiday Traditions

https://kiarasimsfourmods.home.blog/traditions/

-Social Interactions

https://kiarasimsfourmods.home.blog/social/

-Odd Jobs

https://kiarasimsfourmods.home.blog/careers/odd-jobs/

-School Activities

https://kiarasimsfourmods.home.blog/school-activities/

ZULFFERDIANA:

-Talented Kids Mod

https://modthesims.info/download.php?t=635907&cb=1591268538

SIMSQUEST:

-14 aspiration mods updated

https://ilkavelle.wixsite.com/simsquest/blog/categories/aspirations

ESCAPINGPOTPLANT:

-(not an update, but HIGHLY recommended to download. Corrects skintone discrepancy)

https://escapingpotplant.tumblr.com/post/170723544550/override-dark-skintones-this-file-will-override

KUTTOE:

-New Emotional Traits

-New Hobby Traits

-New Spa Day Traits

-Enlist in War

https://kuttoe.itch.io/

THE FRESH SIMS:

-No Family Member Restaurant Date Invites

-Get Famous Blind Date

-Less Bloodthirsty Murphy Beds

-Mediators Don’t Troll Forums

-No Auto Shower In the Rain on Community Lots

-Overheating Resurrection Fix

-Fix for Harvestables Spilling out off Toddlers

https://thefreshsims.tumblr.com/post/620030412425658368/june-3rd-2020-mod-updates

REX:

Cross-Dressing Trait

Karaoke Night Event

GTW Active Career Aspirations

Custom Food Project–Base Interaction

Love Tester

Teen Criminal Career

Calendar Event Add On : Plan Your Date

Calendar Event Add On : Dine Out

Basketball Mod Project

https://konansock.tumblr.com/post/620003656032452608/mod-update

BPS (BRITTPINKIESIMS):

Prom Mod

Baby Shower

Slumber Party

Graduation Party

Bachelor(ette) Party

Funeral

Fashion Career

https://591760675.wixsite.com/rexsimscorner/post/2019/04/17/brittpinkiesims-mods-reviving

CLAUDIASHARON:

-No more CC Wrench Mod

https://modthesims.info/d/632709/no-more-cc-wrench-mod.html

-Meet Sims Faster and Gain Work or School Performance

https://modthesims.info/d/631208/meet-sims-faster-and-gain-work-or-school-performance.html

-Faster/Slower/No Fame Decay

https://modthesims.info/d/620504/faster-slower-no-fame-decay.html

-Fame Perks for free

https://modthesims.info/d/620441/fame-perks-for-free.html

-Try for Baby in Larger Households

https://modthesims.info/d/537466/try-for-baby-in-larger-households.html

REVYREI:

-No DJ or Bartender Uniforms

https://modthesims.info/d/604537/no-dj-or-bartender-uniforms.html

-Vamp Spar Gains Conflict Resolution

https://modthesims.info/d/599639/vamp-spar-gains-conflict-resolution.html

-No Pets at the Club

https://modthesims.info/d/604539/no-pets-at-the-club.html

-Vampire Reflection Enabled

https://modthesims.info/d/605472/vampire-reflection-enabled.html

-Mute the DJ Booth

https://modthesims.info/d/605527/mute-the-dj-booth.html

-Hired DJs & Bartenders Stay Longer

https://modthesims.info/d/607737/hired-djs-amp-bartenders-stay-longer.html

-Hire More DJs & Bartenders

https://modthesims.info/d/607911/hire-more-djs-amp-bartenders.html

-DJ Booth Plays Custom Music

https://modthesims.info/d/608018/dj-booth-plays-custom-music.html

-Vampire Sun Immunity

https://modthesims.info/d/614064/vampire-sun-immunity.html

-No Rain Outfits

https://modthesims.info/d/614555/no-rain-outfits.html

-No Temperature Deaths

https://modthesims.info/d/614115/no-temperature-deaths.html

-Vamp Spar Teen-Adult

https://modthesims.info/d/617678/vamp-spar-teen-adult.html

ZERO MODS:

All zipped (https://www.patreon.com/posts/updates-post-03-37866151)

-University Costs More

https://www.patreon.com/posts/31623191

-University - The Sheldon L Cooper Program

https://www.patreon.com/posts/31743270

-University - Longer Terms

https://www.patreon.com/posts/32015622

-University - No Ghost Walkby

https://www.patreon.com/posts/31732558

-Vampire Magic

https://www.patreon.com/posts/35019137

-Less Mages required in the Magic HQ

https://www.patreon.com/posts/29989720

-Glimmerbrook Only Residents

https://www.patreon.com/posts/34025725

-No NPCs in and out of portal

https://www.patreon.com/posts/29870970

- Ages Behaviour Tweaks

https://www.patreon.com/posts/30540353

- City Living - Less Annoying Neighbors

https://www.patreon.com/posts/30350229

- GF - Celebrities Quarantined In Del Sol Valley

https://www.patreon.com/posts/30592478

SCHRAM92:

-CC Wrench Override

https://schram92.tumblr.com/post/620093407980879872/cc-wrench-override-updated-the-mod-is-now

MSQSIMS:

-Weather Forecast Cheat Menu

-Visit Grandma/Grandpa Daycare Override

https://msq-sims.blogspot.com/p/all-mods.html

BRANDIMARIE93:

- The Divine Drink (Better Tasting Plasma)

http://modthesims.info/d/630698/the-divine-drink-better-tasting-plasma.html

- More Autonomous Social Interactions For Toddlers

http://modthesims.info/d/626989/more-autonomous-social-interactions-for-toddlers.html

BRAINBLASTED:

-Toddlers Spawn at Parks

https://thefreshsims.tumblr.com/post/620128514223587329/toddlers-spawn-at-parks-with-parents

MIZOREYUUKI:

-Stand Still in CAS

-Everyone Can Suntan

-Bloody Vampire Bites and Wounds

-Xhallie Custom Wrench Icon Update

https://mizoreyukii.tumblr.com/post/620125299584155648/mod-status-june-3rd-2020-patch-1631331020

SIMREALIST:

-Mortem

https://simrealist.itch.io/mortem

Broken CC so far:

default eye replacements including (confirmed) Free Jellyfish's Whisper default replacement eyes, Under Your Spell (Pyxis). This may actually be all face-based default replacements (but not for pets). Note that this does not include accessory-coded changes.

dream-girl 3d lashes

Kijiko Default Replacement Eye colors

Kijiko Replacement Eyebrows

vibrantpixel's Dimples Slider

Mods No Longer Needed

CC conversions of Maxis candles that make them work Off-the-Grid

CC conversions of Maxis tubs to allow Toddler and dog bathing Off-the-Grid

any mod that stops Vampires from entering your home (there is a new door option)

mods for removing telling visitors to go home (there is a new interaction)

mods making bicycle helmets available for anyone in CAS

mods fixing lost Presentation Boards in DU

mods for showing the homework timer in DU

Acting Career Gig Fix (Chris/BrainBlasted)

Sketchpad in Inventory (Nies)

Nouninvitedneighbourhangout (Bienchen)

Offthegridtweak (Bienchen)

Acting Career Gig Fix (thefreshsims)

Group Stereo LE Workaround (thefreshsims)

University – Holidays Fix (zero)

Fire Dept Mod (shenanigans)

New recommended CC and mods IRT Current Events/NewPatch

-The new Eco Lifestyle hair, but WITHOUT the feathers!

https://aharris00britney.tumblr.com/post/620052423672725504/eco-lifestyle-replacement

-3D lashes that should be working with the new patch. List by Katverse

https://katverse.com/2020/01/17/must-have-3d-eyelashes-for-your-sims-4-game/

-mod to replace protestors shirts with a simlish version to support BLM

https://raindropsoncowplants.tumblr.com/post/620038281779871744/the-police-brutality-happening-in-the-land-i-was

-mod: quicker fire dept response (zero) https://www.patreon.com/posts/quicker-fire-37889339

-new mod that nukes the changes EA made to environment buffs and idles.

https://www.patreon.com/posts/37937608

THE SIMS 4 ECO LIFESTYLE CHEATS LIST

https://sims-online.com/sims-4-eco-lifestyle-cheats-influence-points-footprint/

#thesims4 #the sims 4 eco lifestyle #the sims cc

10 notes · View notes

melaninja-mo · 6 years ago

Text

Us (movie) Analysis/Theory pt 1 :

MEGA SPOILER ALERT!

Holy mackerel. I watched the movie Us finally, with a notebook and index cards to analyze everything I saw. Below I have amalgamated that information & I hope it satisfies you.

🎞 We all perceive the film differently, so this is my personal perception + analyses of symbolism. All themes play into the movie universe. At the end I will try and communicate what Jordan Peele may be trying to say externally for my “conspiracy” (truth) theorist.

🚨 Under constant edit.

✂️✂️✂️✂️✂️✂️✂️✂️✂️✂️✂️✂️✂️✂️✂️

DUALITY is basically THE theme of the movie. Everything has a double meaning & can be tied to something else. Even the dialogue features mention of double and triple. I’m going to name the ones with 3 as well.

•Above world & the underground - 2 worlds

•Humans & their Clones - Double People

• 11:11 - Double 1’s & palindromic ** (I’m going to do a whole section on 11)

•I got 5 on it - Means going half for some dank.

•Black flag shirt in 1986 & On twin in present day

•Hands across America happened during the Gemini season. The zodiac representing twins.

•Mirrors & reflections everywhere

•2 large ambulances with the number 2 on them - One carrying life / The other carrying death

*3rd ambulance was between two those worlds.

•Lots of Black & white color placement

*Red is a third color seen a lot

•Generator & Back up generator - Power

•Jason wearing a Mask

•Big spider & Little spider on coffee table

•The white girl twins

*They say the same things all the way to triple jinx

•The story of the princess and her shadow

• Night & Day / Sun & Storm

•Jason & Pluto’s hand gestures are opposite of each other as they are walking backwards.

•The painting on the wall has a little girl inside of a deranged looking older woman

*Theres also a painting with 3 people in it

•Jason’s drawing is an over the shoulder drawing, which means 2 people in the picture

•The shadows on the beach create the illusion of a shadow family.

•The little girls hairballs are different colors in the therapy office

•The meaning of Hands Across America changes

•• One I thought of: Lighthouses are suppose to guide you to safety, but it did the opposite for young Adelaide.

Plot necessary Easter Eggs & Prop placement

•A shirt can be seen with “Fragile” on it

Nods to the underground

•A fact at the beginning of the movie brings up the underground and abandoned mine shafts.

•The game of Whack-A-Mole at the carnival - The game of keeping things underground.

•When they first arrive to the summer home, Adelaide is laying down on the couch. We see a spider on the coffee table with a little spider coming from under it.

•Jason digging tunnels at the beach

Classic movies & games

The movies are seen in the beginning next to the old style TV.

•C.H.U.D - An old movie, the title means “Cannibal human underground dwellers” I believe. Speaks for itself.

•The Man With Two Brains - Movie about a man who has a connection with a brain in a jar (Lol that is very vague, pls just search it.)

•The Goonies - Movie about kids going underground

•The Lost Boys is being filmed at the carnival during 1986. The title speaks for itself.

•Guess Who, Magic, and Candyland can be seen in the closet with Jason & Pluto

•Rock, paper, scissors is seen being played multiple times. Scissors is an obvious reference to the scissors, but I haven’t deciphered the others.

•Jason is wearing a Jaws shirt, a movie about a creature coming from below aaaaalso at a beach.

•Jason’s name is like Jason Voorheis who also wears a mask.

•The name of the House of mirrors goes from “Shaman’s quest” to “Merlin’s forest”

Elements

I’m glad I’ve seen other people notice this, but the elements, as there are 4 primary ones, are depicted within the 4 characters. I always look for this in movies with 4 main people.

Adelaide is Earth - Earth represents foundation. She was taken from her home & put in a completely opposite one. She has seen above & below ground. Values her family.

Gabe is Water - Loves his boat, wants to go to beach, kills his quarry on the pier.

Jason is Fire - Loves the magic trick, was in a fire previously. His double is a pyromaniac. The double also sits directly in front of the fire.

Zora is Wind - Is a runner & quick thinker. Her double is extremely fast.

Patterns & Colors

White - Adelaide is wearing white for most of the movie until it is stained red

Black - Used in the stairs to the underground, the power outages, the Thriller shirt,

Black & White - Jason’s bow tie shirt

Red - Name of Adelaide’s double, color of blood, color of pending danger. It’s also the color of the lamp over Jason’s bed & the color of the flare gun. Represents the color of the Tethered.

Checkboard - A Masonic print used in places for rituals

Stripes - I noticed them but haven’t figured it out! I shall though!

The Rabbit

•Seen in the underground

•Zora’s shirts - One is green with a rabbit on it, the other says “Thó” which is Vietnamese for rabbit.

•Adelaide is playing with a rabbit in the sandbox at the therapy office

•Adelaide has a toy rabbit in a box at the summer home

•Jason has a toy rabbit

*He keeps a rabbit at the end

THE NUMBER 11

In numerology, double numbers possess good meaning and usually mean change, transformation, growth, etc.

Here’s all the times I saw it.

•Jeremiah 11:11

•Channel 11 @ 11

• “I want number 11” Addy says at the carnival

• 11:11 on Jason’s clock

•Sports team score is 11/11 - Channel 11

•Black Flag T-shirt - 4 straight lines could be 1111

Random Key Things I Noticed

•If Red is the real Adelaide, and Adelaide is the clone; that means the clone gave birth to the children. Making the children half-tethered.

•Adelaide & Jason snap off beat, but Zora and dad sing on beat.

•Jason & Pluto have a very strong connection, because they are half-tethered. The twins even call Jason weird on the beach.

Which he is, because he’s digging tunnels. He’s also obsessed with masks, communicates strangely, and chooses the weirdest times to display emotion. Which could probably be a result of being half-tethered.

•The Thriller shirt. Not only do the lyrics go with what’s happening metaphorically, but Michael Jackson happens to go crazy with the duality in Thriller. He’s half man-half werewolf & also half alive-half dead. This plays directly into the movies theme.

•In the Bible verse mentioned, if you continue reading, it makes mention of Baal. How God knew the people were burning incense to Baal. Baal is baphomet, The goat demon. A principle associated with him is the “As above, so below”.

*There is a pentagram on the frisbee thrown at the beach.

*When Red holds the scissors towards the end of the movie, it is in the pose of Baphomet.

Class system?

•The people above ground have access to much more than those below. Like the class system seen in America.

•The white family friends had a backup generator, representing the amount of “Power” they had.

•Gabe asks “What are you?” not “Who are you?” Showing that he viewed the tethered as inhuman.

•The tethered do not speak, just like the lower classes have no social economic voice.

#Us movie #Us the movie #Jordan peele #lupita nyong'o #Horror #black art #Movies #cinema #theories #spoilers

133 notes · View notes

got7thotsss · 6 years ago

Text

Chocolate and Caramel Barista! Jinyoung

Inspiration: Some writing prompt website. Warnings: Mild language. Summary: A snow storm causes a power outage which leads to you being stuck in a café with a cute barista. Pairing: Jinyoung x Reader Word Count: 1.8k A/N: Just a cheeky bit of fluff to kick start this account :)))

"Evening, what can I get you on this, erm, lovely winter night?" The barista asks you, looking past your head and out of the window, where snow is falling at a very fast pace. "Can I get a large caramel hot chocolate, please." You ask, smiling sweetly at the cute barista. He nods his head, his black bangs falling over his eyes. He presses the screen in front of him a couple times, before reading out the total. You hand over the correct amount, then wait patiently by the counter as he begins making the drink. After a few minutes, you hear him curse under his breath, then the radio playing music in the background cuts off. "Oh lord, that's not good." The barista states, looking at the radio, then at you. Just as your eyes meet, the lights cut out, "Are you okay? I think we're having a power cut, because of the storm. Damn, I can't remember the entire procedure, but we won't be able to get out the door until my boss comes and unlocks it with a key." "I'm fine, how long do you think your boss is going to be? Because, it's going to get very cold, very fast." You say, waiting for your eyes to adjust to the darkness. After a few blinks, you are able to distinguish the barista's figure. "I'm going to ring him now, but he always refuses to answer his phone unless it's between 9 and 10 or 2 and 3." He responds, turning his phone on and illuminating the air around him. The light emphasises his facial features, especially his strong jawline. He presses the screen a couple times, before moving the phone to his ear. You pull your phone out, only to realise that it is completely dead. He pulls the phone away from his ear and sighs, shaking his head. "Do you think I could borrow your phone to call my mum? Mine's gone flat." You ask, awkwardly scratching the back of your neck. "Yeah of course." He says, walking over to where you are, he trips on a couple of chairs on the way, but hands you the phone, there's a tint in his cheeks, but you aren't sure if it's because of the phone illuminating his face or not. You give your mum a quick call to tell her where you are and that your phone ran out of battery. After the phone call, the barista tells you that his boss's phone has been turned off, so you both have to sit and wait for someone to come and get the both of you. "I'm Y/n, by the way." You say, after you both sit on the floor, leaning against the counter. "Jinyoung, nice to meet you." He replies, you shoot a small smile over to him, even though you're not sure if he can actually see you. You both sit in awkward silence for what feels like forever. You contemplate starting a conversation, but decide against it, not wanting to annoy Jinyoung. “Erm, we have loads of food and plenty of cold drinks if you want any of them.” Jinyoung states, breaking the silence. “I’m fine for now, thank you.” You reply, shooting him a grateful smile. You feel Jinyoung start shivering next to you, then you realise how cold it has actually got, “You should probably go put some more layers on, it’s getting really cold.” You add. “Erm, do you want to come with me?” He asks, you are taken aback by his question, why would he want you to join him? Maybe you should go with him, you’ve got to stick together or else he might get hurt in the dark. After pondering for about thirty seconds, you accept and join him in standing up. You both walk into the back, Jinyoung taking the lead, because he knows where he’s supposed to be going. He reaches to grab your hand, to guide you more easily, you allow you fingers to wrap around his own, afraid of being alone in this unfamiliar place. You realise as you walk through the kitchen that Jinyoung’s hand feels warm in your own cold one, maybe he’s a little less cold than me, you think. You reach another door, where Jinyoung reaches up with the hand that isn’t attached to your own to grab a key laying on the top of the door frame. He unlocks the door and grabs something at the side of the door. “Shit. I forgot to tell y/f/n, she’s probably gonna kill me.” You say, face palming, as Jinyoung presses a button which causes light to flood throughout the room. “You can borrow my phone again if you want.” He says, quietly, looking around the room before lunging forward and grabbing a coat. “No, it’s okay, I don’t know her number anyway. Thanks for offering though.” You respond, as he pulls the thick jacket around his body. He then grabs a couple blankets, before turning towards you. You give him a puzzled look, “Why do you have blankets here?” “They’re in case there’s any customers wearing shorts or skirts, that are cold. I don’t understand it either, but I’m fairly grateful for them now.” He explains, making you laugh. He then leads you back out of the room, quickly flashing the light over the kitchen before gasping and mumbling to himself, “Of course, how could I be so thoughtless?” “Am I missing something?” You quietly ask, as confused as ever. “What? Oh, erm, I just realised that there’s a gas hob. So, I could boil some water and make us some hot drinks.” He states, your mouth makes an ‘O’ in realisation, “Tea, coffee, hot chocolate… What would you like?” “I’ll have whatever you’re having.” You answer, watching as he potters around the kitchen making the drinks. In the low light, you can see how hard he is concentrating hard on making the drinks perfect, maybe he really likes making coffee for random strangers. “I made coffee, but based on the fact that you asked for a caramel hot chocolate earlier, I assumed you liked you drinks sweet, so I put plenty of sugar in. I was a bit weary of the milk though as the power cut took out the fridge, so there isn’t any milk in it. I hope that’s okay.” He explains, biting his lip, as he passes a hot mug over. “That’s fine, I like it with or without milk, so I don’t mind.” You respond, smiling at him, a look of relief flashes over his face, before it’s gone. He grabs his own mug and the torch, before looking at the blankets then down at his hands, “I’ll grab them.” You state, grabbing the blankets of the counter, where he had placed them. He flashes you a smile, then leads the way back through to the main café room. You both sit down in your previous spots, then manoeuvre the blankets over both of your legs. You sit close to each other, in an attempt to share body heat. Your hands wrap around the mug of coffee Jinyoung made for you, taking occasional sips of the bittersweet beverage. Jinyoung then pulls his phone out and dials someone’s number, he holds his breath as the person answers. You hear a load of muffled shouts and know it can’t be too good. “I’m sorry for ringing you during your free time, but I’m locked in the café with a customer, there’s no power here so it’s very cold. You said if this were to ever happen to ring you because you have the key.” You bite your lip to brace yourself for another round of muffled screams but are surprised to hear a calm feminine voice come through the phone now. “I’m sorry for calling your husband at this late hour, but it is protocol to call him during this kind of emergency.” You start to zone out of the conversation going on next to you, feeling a wave of tiredness hit you like a truck. You sip more of the caffeinated beverage, hoping it will keep you awake, but there is no hope. “My boss’s wife said that there’s nothing they can do until the power comes back on, because it’s too dangerous for anyone to drive during this storm. We’re going to be stuck here until at least the morning.” Jinyoung explains, making your eyes shoot open. “Oh okay, we should be fine, right?” You respond, unconsciously leaning your head on his shoulder. You feel him chuckle, his whole body shaking. “Yeah, if you’re tired, go to sleep. It’ll make the time go faster.” He whispers, taking the half-full mug from your hand and placing it next to him. You hum in compliance, before feeling your eyelids droop heavily, as you slip into slumber. -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*- You blink your eyes rapidly as soon as you wake up, the unfamiliar sight around you confusing you, before you remember the storm last night and look around once again. Something woke you up, but you don’t know what. You notice Jinyoung asleep next to you, then you hear it. Bang. Bang. Your eyes shoot to the door, where you see a short bald man, banging on the door. You place your hand tentatively on Jinyoung’s shoulder, before shaking him slightly, making him stir in his sleep. Bang. Bang. Jinyoung’s eyes shoot open and he looks towards the door immediately. He quickly gets up on his feet and walks hastily towards the door. The man shouts something through the door, you can’t understand his gibberish, but Jinyoung seems to get what he means. “The key was with us the whole time.” Jinyoung says, his voice husky and full of sleep. You notice how attractive he looks in natural light (which for the record is 10 times more attractive than he looked in artificial light and he looked extremely attractive last night) He rushes over to the cash register and presses a button. You hear the tray pop out and all of the coins in it jingle as they crash together. Jinyoung runs back to the door with a small silver key in his hand, he puts the key in the lock and turns it. You both hear the satisfying sound of the lock clicking open, then the door opens. “I told you last night that you had the key.” The man yells, as he walks in. “No, you didn’t. You yelled at me for calling so late, then your wife apologised and explained that no one could do anything.” You awkwardly stand up, unnoticed by the two men. You write a note out to Jinyoung, thanking him for being kind last night and write your phone number on the note. You then grab your bag and slip out of the door, without either of the men realising.

126 notes · View notes

lorewytch · 5 years ago

Text

Last Villain Bio

At last the final one is here! Finally, I have the bio for the worst of the worst! Everyone here is the bio Noir. Warning: Severe traumatic experiences, deaths and pure insanity lay within this post.

“Maybe one day...you’ll find humanity...”

Name: Lunnoir (Noir) Clypse

Age: 16

Hair: Long and frizzy, unkempt. Black sparkling with stars. Almost the color of the cosmos itself.

Eyes: Piercing neon green

Birthday: May 1

Sexuality: Straight

Favorite Activities: Singing, acting, collecting rocks and naming them, a rock band from her home world, sleeping, stargazing, jewelry making.

Favorite Dessert: Dark chocolate

Favorite Color: Green and black Personality: When Lore first met Noir, she was bright like her own star. She was passionate, wild, free loving and dedicated to helping her world in every way she could. She loved her family and friends dearly and even started to form a crush on a neighborhood boy. She and Lore became fast friends, her smile seemed endless and she became loyal and reliable. She looked up to Lore immensely. But after a terrible series of events and Lore was nowhere in sight, Noir felt her entire world crumble around her as she watched her friends and family senselessly murdered before her eyes. The world around her burned and through ultimate despair she ran to the only place she could. She willingly gave up what was left of her soul to possess the goddess’ powers and transformed into the Noir known today. This Noir is so drastically different. The dark goddess latched onto her soul, corrupting it beyond recognition. Filled with hatred and on the constant brink of insanity, Noir is a mix of paranoid, quick tempered, emotionless and almost maniac at times. She is vindictive and not much of her original personality remains. On rare occasions she would be seen staring at the stars and being reminded of her family nearly causes her to break down in sobs. But her ruthless pursuit of Lore is never ending and she won’t care what she destroys in her wake. She will destroy the person who was once her friend.

Strengths: Gifted power of the stars by a dark goddess that ruled over her world, has a scepter that holds a lot of the magic. Most of her spells are cosmic based. She can bend matter to her will and literally form fire from nothing. Most magic is attack based and not much defense. Almost unlimited supply of magic. The scepter she holds can do massive damage to worlds. It can tear apart the earth around them, activate volcanoes and cause destructive fires.

Weaknesses: Weak defense, has limitations to her human body so most big spells take a lot out of her, isn’t as good at hand to hand combat, weak to traps and is gullible. You can basically use the “HEY A OBVIOUS DISTRACTION!” and she will look every single time.

History: Noir was a normal girl, her world while in the midst of war lived in a peaceful part of the world. She felt happy and loved her life there. She hoped to become a singer when she became a adult and loved looking at the stars most nights. She noticed some strange things happening around her neighborhood though one night. She caught a strange creature that she believed was a deformed mouse. But the fact it was made entirely with water quickly dismissed that theory. The little beast tried to escape and the chase was on.

Two hours and one exhausted teen later she nearly caught the beast when a portal opened and a girl literally fell on top of her.

And then the water mouse vanished before their eyes.

Talk about awkward.

Lore and Noir began to chat and learning more about each other, Lore explained a bit about what she did. Amazed at her magic and basically everything about her, Noir began to ask a million questions and really wanted to travel with her more than anything. Lore was hesitant at first. No one had ever asked to travel with her and this made her wonder if that was even possible. It’s true she was lonely most of the time. But with her limited knowledge of how the dimensional witch thing worked.. basically learning as she traveled, she wasn’t sure if she could. Still, she didn’t want to hurt her feelings and said she would take her if she really wanted it.

But the only condition would be that she would need to leave her world for quite a while until they could come back.

Noir was torn and needed time to think about this. It was a adventure that only happened once in a lifetime, viewing other worlds. But knowing she would have to be away from home so long was hard to swallow.

She ended up talking to her caring parents about and they said whatever she wished would be fine with them. They wanted her to be happy more than anything and whatever dream she had…no matter how far away she was, she could always come home. That gave her with so much hope and light. It was amazing to see. Lore felt a pang…wishing she could have a family like that. But realizing that could never happen.

One night, Lore was showing off this scepter she found from another world. It was powerful and dangerous but she wanted to show and tell the story of how she stopped this enemy. Noir loved it and asked if she could borrow it. Lore was hesitant at first but let the girl borrow it. She showed it to her family and the boy she liked, not realizing his brother was nearby listening. His brother was a bit of a rebel, hated the world in general and didn’t like anybody.

While Noir was talking with his brother, he stole the scepter and quickly was taken over by the darkness that possessed it.

No one realized what was happening until it was too late.

Right as Lore caught the water mouse thing, the world erupted around her in flames. There was screaming everywhere and the earth itself was cracking beneath their feet. Alarmed, and worried about Noir, Lore ran around trying to find any sign of her friend.

Panic was high as the devastation lay around her. She tried to help as many as she could. But…it was far too late. Nothing could stop the raging inferno around them and a portal opened just as Lore lost her footing on what was once solid ground. Now it was literally crumbling into dust.

It was months before she could make it back to what was once that world.

Now…it was a dead world, nothing remained but a singed landscape, the world itself half the size it used to be because of so many volcanic blasts that it tore itself apart. The only survivor she found was Noir. But she was very different. As she approached, at first Noir seemed normal.

But then Lore saw the very same scepter in her hands.

She knew something was very wrong.

Noir explained what had happened when Lore left. She watched as her parents and friends burned alive, how she barely escaped death herself several times as she stumbled into a nearby cave where the shrine of the Dark Goddess of their world dwelled. Her name was Eclipse.. the shadow of all the stars. She begged the goddess to give her the power to stop this monster.

Her wish was granted at the cost of her soul, Noir didn’t care…she had nothing left but rage and sorrow. As she felt the dark goddess take hold of her, she remembered her promise with Lore and hesitated for just a moment…until the dark goddess rage consumed her and any feelings she had towards Lore morphed into a intense hatred and loathing that would not be sated until her death.

With that, Noir took on the boy who was once her friend and destroyed him, gaining the power of the scepter as well as the powers over the stars.

Realizing the danger Noir possessed, Lore tried to get the scepter away from her friend and tried to reason with her. But nothing worked. Noir attacked her relentlessly, severely wounding Lore in the process in the stomach. At the point of near death, Clix saved Lore and forcibly transported her to a random world which nearly threw the entire balance out of whack for a few minutes. Clix’s world experienced a power outage for a week because of that stunt. She didn’t want to know what happened to other worlds because of her recklessness to save her friend.

Noir started to chase Lore into different worlds…appearing and nearly tearing them apart to get to her. Lore tried multiple times to get Noir to stop. But it seemed like nothing was reaching her. Noir blamed Lore for her planet’s destruction. If Lore never had come…they would have been fine. It was that scepter that destroyed her world, Lore did nothing to stop it from happening. Noir’s twisted logic became so unbalanced, Noir herself was slowly losing herself to insanity. She would have conversations with beings that weren’t there. Certain things would set her off to where she would destroy things for someone mentioning “pie”.

On one of the final meetings with Noir.. she killed someone right in front of her friend…stating that she would destroy everything and everyone to get to her. Lore realized at that moment, that her friend.. the girl she knew was gone forever. In that horrible moment, Lore realized she needed to stop Noir with everything she had. She stopped Noir and sent her spiraling into another dimension. She couldn’t destroy her once friend. Even now she isn’t sure if she can really destroy Noir…even though she has to. If she doesn’t…more worlds and people will die. But can she really do that?!

#Ducktales #OC #Villain #Noir #Enemy 1 #Character Bio #heartbreaking story #very dangerous #friend forever lost...

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alpxcamin · 6 years ago

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1K Prompt List

Once again, thank you guys so much for 1k followers! We both love you guys so much and thank you for supporting us despite our messy posting schedule and random hiatuses. Here’s the prompt list and feel free to create your own prompt. However, please don’t pick over 2 since both of us are quite busy. I linked the original post where I got the prompts from on #1 and #66.

Please only choose 2 and send it in with any member you would like and we’ll write a drabble for you. If you have any other questions, please do send them in and we’ll do our best to clarify!

"You're really soft."

"You smell nice."

"I'm here for my daily fix of hugs and kisses."

"Is it possible to love too much?"

"I don't wanna get up-- you're comfy."

"I will always be there protect you."

"I'm cold. Come closer."

"I love you a lot, but please stop trying to cook me dinner, you suck.”

"The stars look especially lovely tonight."

"I've never seen such gorgeous eyes before."

"May I have this dance?"

"I can't stop thinking about you."

"You'll never feel alone with me by your side."

"Let's get to know each other over dinner.

"All I want is you."

"I could never leave you, I love you too much!"

"A fairytale with a happy ending always brings a smile to my face."

"I want to hear you sing."

"I don't think anyone could ever be as lovely as you."

"You look incredible in that."

"He/She's quite stunning, isn't he/she?"

"Sometimes I just can't control myself when around you."

"Do you believe in love at first sight?"

"I think I'm in love."

"I’d like it if you stayed.”

"People are jerks, but not you."

"I'll share the blankets with you."

"I have never felt this way about anyone."

"Can I kiss you?"

"I waxed the floors, grab your fluffy socks."

"Who changed the thermostat settings? I’m freezing to death."

"Can we just watch a movie and fall asleep on the couch?"

"You can put your cold feet on me."

"Your stray red item turned my whites pink."

"A thunderstorm is rolling through town and you’re scared of lightning/thunder so I’ll protect you."

"There was a power outage and now we have to have dinner by candlelight."

"Rock Paper Scissors to see who has to go talk to the neighbors upstairs for being too loud."

"I just came home to you crying while watching a movie, please tell me what’s going on."

"Our AC is out and it’s the middle of the summer."

"You found me crying on the kitchen floor in the middle of the night surrounded by a shattered jelly jar."

"My parents are coming over in 10 minutes so please put some clothes on"

"We’re repainting the apartment and going to the hardware store together to pick out color swatches."

"IF YOU USE UP ALL THE HOT WATER ONE MORE TIME IM GOING TO BAN YOU TO THE COUCH FOR A MONTH."

"I caught the bouquet"

"My ex just invited me to their wedding and I need you to be my date so it doesn’t look like I’ve spent the last few years failing to get over them."

"We accidentally got married in Vegas oops"

"I’m really drunk, please help me get safely out of the way so I don’t ruin our friend’s wedding."

"I planned out this super romantic proposal and you just ruined it by beating me to the whole proposing thing."

"I wasn’t planning on asking you, but it appeared to me that life is short. Will you marry me?”

"If you shove cake in my face this will be the worst wedding night of your life."

"You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I’m so happy I can finally call you my wife/husband."

"I jokingly told you that the only way I’d marry you was if you did this weird outlandish thing, and you actually did it, and I’m kind of charmed."

"This is probably a bad time, but marry me?"

"We’ve become the clingy newlyweds you always complained about. "

"Your ‘miracle hangover cure’ couldn’t possibly beat mine."

"I know you haven’t had the best experience with dogs in the past but look at its face please please can we keep it?"

"I wanted to surprise you for our anniversary, but everything that could go wrong did go wrong."

"I beat you at Mario Kart and now you're banishing me to the couch for the night?”

"I surprised you with tickets to see our favorite band… WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU SURPRISED ME WITH TICKETS TO SEE THEM TOO?"

"I know we had a big fight but we still need to decorate the house for the holidays."

"Oh! Hey! Could you come and taste this to see if it's okay?"

"We’re arguing over book versus movie."

"I came home to a Nerf gun on the front porch and a note that says ‘Here is your weapon. I have one too. Loser cooks dinner. Good luck. Xo’"

"We’ve been celebrating our wedding anniversary on a wrong day for the past nine years."

"You had a business trip and I missed you so much that I kind of tore up the house in your absence like a dog with separation anxiety… sorry?"

"We both have nowhere else to be so we get to spend our rare day off at home."

"Aren't you going to say something?"

"And I thought I loved you."

"And I thought you loved me."

"Angry. I'm...I'm angry."

"Aren't you even going to cry?"

"Are you going to cry?"

"Are you crying?"

"Are you okay?"

"Ask if I'm okay. Just ask."

"And this is why I don't want to stay anymore."

"Are you angry with me?"

"Are you afraid?"

"And now is the part where we say goodbye."

"And now you're going to leave me!"

"Are you just going to leave me?"

"Be friends with someone else."

"Boy/Girlfriend? Is that what you thought I meant?"

"Because you're such an ass and I- I just hate you!"

"But I've changed."

"But you've changed."

"Buy yourself something nice. Because I don't want this ring."

"But.. you're still alive?"

"Can't you just let me be happy for one?!"

"Can't you be happy for once?

"Can't you just be happy for me?"

"Come on, leave already!"

"Coward. That's all you are. A coward."

"Do you even know what you've done to me?"

"Do you have any remorse? "

"Don't you dare close your eyes on me!"

"Don't you dare die."

"Don't you care about me/her/him/them anymore?"

" Don't give me that look"

"Don't you want me to be happy?"

"Dammit! Everything was just starting to get better and then you do this!"

"Damn you."

"Don't lie to me."

"Dammit...Fuck! Fuck, fuck, fuck! You fucking ass!"

"Everything is fucked up now- everything is fucked because of you!"

"Everything's gone to hell."

"Everyone hates me."

"Everyone hates you."

"Everything hurts."

"Everything's going to be okay."

"Everyone loves you, not me."

"Everything is falling apart."

"Everything fell apart and I can't pick up the pieces anymore."

"For someone who's dying, you seem kind of happy."

"Friends forever, right? Isn't that what you said?"

"Find a new place to live."

"Find a new girlfriend/boyfriend."

"Find a new best friend."

"Fine. I'll leave."

"Forever and ever. That's how long I said I loved you. But you never said it back."

"Fucking hell, I hate you!"

"Get lost!"

"Get out of here!"

"Go. Just go."

"How are you still alive?"

"How long are you going to keep this up?"

"How long until you finally get lost?"

"How about I just leave."

"Hold up. You're breaking up with me?"

"Hell is the only place we're going to be going."

"How about you leave now?"

"Is this how you're going to treat me?"

"I can't believe you."

"I killed someone."

"I want to kill myself."

"I'm leaving you."

"I can't look at you right now."

"I hope you die!"

"I don't understand."

"I'm so angry/sad. But you don't care."

"I can't hear anything."

"I'm dying."

"I have cancer."

"I can't breathe."

"Just joking, I don't love you."

"Just leave me alone!"

"Just fuck off."

"Kindly get the hell away from me."

"Kind. That's the one thing you can never manage to be."

"Lie to me."

"Life is not worth living."

"Like I give a shit about you."

"Lies are all you're capable of."

"Lay down. It'll all be over soon."

"My heart is broken. "

"Everything hurts."

"My girlfriend/boyfriend left."

"My ____ is dead."

"Man, you're an asshole."

"My lies aren't working anymore."

"Never again."

"Never speak to me again."

"No. I won't do it."

"No, I don't like you like that."

"Now, now, is there really any reason to cry?"

"Now and again I really start to hate you."

"No. Stop crying, just stop it."

"Not how I wanted to spend my life."

"Never look at me again."

"People hate me/you.”

"Person? No, no. You're not a person. You're a robot."

"People like you sicken me."

"People like you deserve to die."

"Perhaps you should just leave, then."

"Piss off."

"Question: why are you still here?"

"Quiet. I'm getting sick of hearing your voice."

"Running away. That's what I'm doing."

"See? I hate you."

"See? You hate me."

"Sometimes I wonder why you stay with me."

"So...you hate me, then?"

"So this is how it ends."

"Shoot me."

"So why are you still here?"

"Took off with everything I had!"

"Time to go."

"This is the end. It's done."

"This is the end."

"This is why I hate you."

"Then why do you say you love me?!"

"Unlike you I have friends."

"Under the bed is where I have to hide from you."

"Utter it again and I swear I'll kill you!"

"Why can't you grow up?"

"Why can't you care about me?"

"Why do you hate me?"

"Why do I hate you?"

"What? You're dying?"

"Why can't you just be you."

"When am I supposed to get my time to be happy?'

"Well. This isn't how it was supposed to end between us."

"Whatever, you asshole."

"Whenever you decide you can stand to talk to me ago, please do."

"Well, I hate you now."

"Well, you hate me now."

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tenthousandflowers · 6 years ago

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bathing with friends...

When people think about the Peace Corps experience and make comments like “I could never do that” (which I’m sure they mean to sound like a compliment), they are thinking about the physical conditions of living in a relatively poorer, less-resourced place. To be honest, these physical concerns—the ever-enduring heat, random rashes and fungi, a lack of running water, power outages—are the least of volunteers’ concerns here. Primarily, we are concerned with teaching our students quality material, learning to work within a new educational culture, strengthening bonds with people we can barely understand, etc.

But, I’m going to return to the physical for a minute.

I’m a naturey person. I grew up on a dead-end road in the country, I’ve been hiking, camping, etc. my entire life. I was always the girl in my college apartments who carried spiders outside and grabbed toads out of the gutters. I lived in Maine where mosquitos and black flies abound (humble brag—I’ve been bit so many times that I do not react to mosquito bites). But I have never been so frustrated by “critters” as my first few months living in Indonesia.

I have three stories for you about these encounters with Indonesia’s smallest inhabitants.

When I first moved into my house here in West Timor, I realized I was not the only mammal living in my room. I frequently saw mice and they frequently left their droppings across my room. I was not very bothered by these guys until one night when I happened to wake up around 2 am. I was lying in bed listening to a mouse scurrying around my room, when suddenly the scurrying got significantly louder. I sat up, grabbed my phone and flipped on its flashlight to find myself making close eye contact with a mouse sitting on my pillow. This was too close for comfort. I later managed to trap the mice outside of my room and block all the entryways. Around the same time my family was having snake problems so they decided to get rid of the mice in the kitchen and in the span of one Sunday afternoon killed 27 mice. Poor little guys, but also wow that’s a lot of mice.

A month ago I was preparing to travel to Surabaya for a conference. As I was going to be gone one week, I was careful to clean my room and bathroom carefully. I also left just enough water in my tub to bathe with right before I left. The morning I was to leave for the airport I had 20 minutes to go and I bathed, just as I had planned, using all the remaining water. I grabbed my towel to dry off and looked down to discover I was COVERED in ants that had moved into my towel the night before. They were in my hair and between my legs, and yes they bite. My towel was covered, I had no water to wash them off, I was getting bit, and I was not happy about it. I threw on a nightgown and ran cursing, wet, and covered in ants, out of my room and to the back of the house where the switch for the water is. I ran back, passing a few confused siblings along the way, and threw my tub out of the way (throwing dirt and rocks all over my clean room). I flipped on the faucet and gritted my teeth as I tried to get all the ants off of me. In my frustration I embarrassingly kicked and slapped some things around my room, making what was once clean a total mess. Finally, I left my house for the airport, 20 minutes late and covered in ant bites. I’m still in a daily war with these ants.

My last incident involving small creatures happened just two weeks ago. Indonesia is a tropical place, as such, there are some gnarly mosquito-borne diseases flying around. I happened to get Dengue Fever, otherwise known as breakbone fever. For a week, I had high fever (so high I was hallucinating), did not eat, and had muscle and eye pain (hence, “breakbone”). I did not leave my room for five days. Quite a few volunteers have had dengue, even though I know plenty of Indonesians who have lived here their whole lives and never gotten it. All from one mosquito bite.

It’s hard to deal with these cringe-worthy experiences, though I’m sure there are plenty of Peace Corps volunteers who have worse stories of creature encounters. I have made peace with the fact that I will eat the ants that make their way into my food daily, I will bathe under the wide eyes of geckos, and I will be stung by small bees occasionally. But, if anyone has more ideas on how to get the ants out of my room, life would be a lot easier.

#peace corps #Peace Corps Indonesia #travel writing

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everbluem · 2 years ago

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TIFU by being a cliche helpless unhandy millennial when the sprinklers broke

To summarize: my sprinklers broke and I didn’t know what to fucking do. Took me an hour to locate and turn off the main water valve for now, but am thankful things weren’t worse.

Some background that added to why this felt so overwhelming: my parents have recently retired and plan to give the house we live in now to us (my 2 brothers and I). Parents have been in their home country for a few months and my oldest brother went to visit them last week. I try to help around the house and take over the stuff my parents used to do since I don’t have consistent work, but I admit, am not the best at housework yet and let things build up. Especially yardwork (which I never do, we grew up doing gender typical chores so figured my dad or brothers would get to it when they got back.) The previous owner of our house installed a lot of sprinklers for the plants (now neglected) he put in around our large frontyard and backyard.

My oldest brother comes home later today and I had woken up early to clean up the house before he came back. My second brother then starts to get ready for work and after he leaves, he texts me “you need to figure out how to fix the sprinklers, there’s a lot of water.”

Well, fuck.

So I investigate. I think both the front and back yard sprinklers turned on but I only saw the front ones, which had flooded the yard and had started to run off down onto the sidewalk (frontyard is elevated from the sidewalk, with leveled planters going down.) I spent a good 40 minutes trying to find the main water valve since I had no idea what was wrong with the control box and it seemed like it had already be on for awhile. I knew the valve was in my front yard so I’m awkwardly digging through dried up pine needles that had piled up (lessons: maintain your yard, know where your valve is), standing in a flooded planter and getting occasionally sprayed by sprinklers (had to change shirts so I wouldn’t be giving as much as a show, thankfully the one jogger who passed by seemed more intent on avoiding my flooded sidewalk to notice), with some occasional panicked googling/youtubing in between and attempts at calling my parents overseas (think they went to sleep). I’m considering my options but I’m reluctant because I don’t think I can pay for a repair guy and am overthinking the consequences of asking random neighbors (in person or on the Nextdoor app) for help (overthinking the embarrassment/burden + actual fear of revealing I’m home alone and vulnerable). During my pondering I somehow find the valve: it wasn’t in the planter I was searching through, it was right outside of the retaining wall, submerged by water that was running downhill.

The next 20 minutes were better but the water was still flowing. I’m embarrassed by how long it took me to just lift the cover and turn off the valve but I was hesitant because I didn’t know how to open it, didn’t know what the valve head itself looked like, couldn’t see through the dirty water, and was scared of things going wrong in general.

My sprinklers are now off but now I have no water access. I cleaned up some of the dried pine I had to dig through and put it in the green waste bin. I’m waiting for my oldest brother’s plane to land (he actually gave me his friend’s number as an emergency contact “in case something breaks, like the sprinklers” - thinking he could call the same friend when he gets here.) I’m also in California, where there’s a heat wave going on and I should have saved water because drought and electricity to prevent a power outage from over usage. Really hope the sprinklers/water isn’t too much of a convenience and we can have it on soon.

That was my biggest wake up call to be basically accept the responsibilities of a home owner even though I don’t live alone since I can’t always rely on my other family members, especially with yardwork. Mostly because of how it makes our place look, what happened today, and actual risks if I can’t see what’s underneath and it becomes a fire hazard.

(Side note: does the period go in or outside of the parenthesis with how I used them? and what about quotes if I’m mentioning something ironically, not actually referencing a quote?)

#storytime #thoughts

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ao3feed-larry · 3 years ago

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Elemental

by marawasherefirst

Life is going on like normal in London as it always does. But in Mrs. Loranes Home for Lost Boys and Girls normal is rare. She houses sepcial children from infants to age eighteen. Everyhting is going as it always does, a little, random city wide power outage here some werid wind storms there . A new boy shows up and seventeen year old human fireball, Louis may or may not develop a werid feeling for the boy. Dispite his life being odd and out of wack somtimes, everything finally seems perfect for Louis and his friends but all it takes is a mad-for-power scientific company to put everything and everyone on the line and on the run.

Words: 4546, Chapters: 2/?, Language: English

Fandoms: One Direction (Band)

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence

Categories: M/M

Characters: Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, Liam Payne, Niall Horan, Zayn Malik, Original Female Character(s), Original Female Character(s) of Color

Relationships: Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson, Zayn Malik/Liam Payne

Additional Tags: Orphans, Fire, Water, Earth, Electricity, London, New York City, Winter, Minor Character Death, Science Fiction, Alternate Universe, Laboratories, On the Run, Fluff, First Time, Recreational Drug Use, Rich Liam Payne, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, I'm Bad At Tagging, Coffee, I Will Go Down With This Ship, Larry Stylinson Is Real, I Tried, Everyone Is Gay, Lesbian Character of Color, Supernatural Elements, Elemental Magic, High School, Starbucks, Author Is Sleep Deprived, Please Don't Hate Me

via AO3 works tagged 'Harry Styles/Louis Tomlinson' https://ift.tt/Bexjcs0

#author #larry stylinson #larry fic #ao3 feed larry #Elemental #<p>by <a rel= href="/users/marawasheref

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keywestlou · 4 years ago

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A FATAL SHOOTING OF ANOTHER KIND

One police shooting after another. We forget the other kind. Ordinary people killing ordinary people. Lay persons shooting in schools and churches. Random street shootings.

This one is sick. Sick, sick. I don’t know how else to describe it.

The shooting death of an 11 month old baby girl Dior. Her shooting inexplicable.

Sunday night in Syracuse, New York. Three children in the back seat of a car. Eleven month old Dior and two other children 8 and 3 years old.

Dior’s mother Desiree. Not in the car. The car was being driven by her cousin Shakema.

Shakema reported a car pulled up along side her. The window on the the car’s passenger side rolled down. She could see a man look back into her car between the front and back seats.

The man suddenly began firing a gun into the back seat.

Eleven month old Dior was shot 3 times. She died. The other two children were also shot. They are expected t0 survive.

The car then drove away.

Dior’s mother Desiree is expecting May 11. She passed out three times upon being made aware of her baby daughter’s death. Desiree would have been one year old in 18 days.

A suspect has been arrested. A 23 year old man. No further details available at this time.

We are a sick society. Alleged good people like police officers shooting good non police citizens. Persons going on a rampage and shooting wildly inside schools and churches. Incomprehensible killings such as 11 month old Dior’s.

It’s only getting worse. Will it ever stop? Not soon, I fear. Perhaps, never.

A police officer not knowing the difference between a taser and a gun. How can it be? Not an infrequent occurrence as it turns out. News reports this morning indicate such.

The most recent such shooting occurred in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota. Ten miles from where the Chauvin police killing is being tried.

In another stupid traffic stop involving excessive police force, Daunte Wright was killed. The police officer saying she thought she was tasering him.

I am coming to the conclusion that a bad cop is being equated to the saying there is always a bad apple in every basket. My thought process is there may be only one good cop in the basket.

The police traffic stop in Windsor,Virginia late December. Recently came to light because the Army Lieutenant involved has brought a federal case against the police officers involved.

Carson Nazario is a Second Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He was driving a new SUV. Cardboard plates on the vehicle. The rear one taped to the back window.The Lieutenant was waiting for the metal ones to arrive.

He was in uniform.

Two police officers spotted him. They claim they went after him because of “no tags.” Erroneous based on the facts.

The Lieutenant I suspect was “Black smart.” It was dark where the police were trying to get him to stop. He put on his emergency lights and drove 1 1/2 miles till he came to a brightly lit gasoline station.

While there, he was pepper sprayed and held at gun point. Cops screaming at him. Later the police officers said they considered the situation a “high risk traffic stop.” Covering their asses.

The facts suggest it was 2 white police officers chasing a vehicle which had a black person operating it. When finally stopped, the police treated the Second Lieutenant in uniform as they did other black drivers.

No ticket given nor an arrest made. The police advised the Lieutenant not to make any trouble, etc. or they would charge him with something and ruin his military record in the process.

Police excessive force a story which has become part of the American landscape in the last 20 years.

The island of St. Vincent has experienced several volcanic eruptions this past week. People have been told to evacuate. Cruise ships are arriving to take them off the island.

The Prime Minister advised that those who have not received the coronavirus vaccine will not be evacuated. Some were those who did not consider the vaccine safe or for some other odd ball reason refused to be vaccinated.

Which means those not vaccinated will be left to fend for themselves. Not a welcoming thought when poisonous smoke, hot ash and even hotter lava is feared will cover the island

Nora O’Donnell on CBS Evening News reported: “We went from vaccine passports being a conspiracy theory to ‘fuck you die’ so fast.”

A message to those in the U.S. who refuse to be vaccinated. If an emergency situation as has arisen on St. Vincent occurs here, you will be left on the ocean in a row boat without a paddle.

On this day in 1992, The Bridges of Madison County was published. A modern day Romeo and Juliet with its lovers older people. A big seller!

A movie followed. Starring Clint Eastwood and Meryl Streep.

A massive power outage yesterday. 3.5 hours in late morning into early afternoon. Another one around dinner time for 1.5 hours.

I had nothing. I hate it when that happens. Especially when the computer is down. I am one of those who is constantly on the internet.

A friend cell phoned me from New York. Hey, understand you have a big power failure. Thirty thousand affected. Covers the lower half of the Keys.

He was not aware as to the cause. It had not been reported.

I told him the problem arose because of one of two reasons. Either a car or truck on U.S. 1 had driven into some power facility. Or, a boat got screwed up in the power wires under or near the Seven Mile Bridge. Both happen frequently.

Turned out a sail boat got caught up in the power wires at the Seven Mile Bridge. Live in the Keys long enough and you know about such things. Their frequency makes you aware.

It was reported the winds and waters were a bit rough and the sailboat could not be removed yesterday. Winds 40 mph. Whipped up the ocean a bit.

Being out sunday must have been too much for me. Never got out yesterday.

My game plan was to go out at 5. A few stops downtown. Drinks and dinner. Meet interesting people to chat with.

What happened is I laid down at 3 for a nap. Never woke till 7. Still had to shave, etc. and drive to Duval. I would not be there till 8:30.

I am early to bed and early to rise. Would not have worked for me.

Today is tuesday. My blog talk radio show tonight. I will be working on it from about 2 this afternoon till 8 in the evening. I never go out on a tuesday.

Join me for the show. Tuesday Talk with Key West Lou. www.blogtalkradio.com/key-west-lou. Love doing the show which I am proud to say has an excellent following.

Enjoy your day!

A FATAL SHOOTING OF ANOTHER KIND was originally published on Key West Lou

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agilenano · 5 years ago

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Agilenano - News: In this episode…

If there’s one room you’d like to be bright and cheery, it’s the kitchen! We’ll have tips on lighting to keep that space looking bright – even when it’s dark outside. Plus… If winter storms and the power outages, they bring have you considering a generator, we’ve got tips to help you pick the best type of generator for your home. Ready to take on some home improvement projects, but don’t feel you have the time? Not possible! We’ll highlight several projects you can get done in 30 minutes or less! Did you know that some storm doors can make your exterior door so hot that the molding will melt and the door handle could even burn you? Plus, answers to your home improvement questions about fixing an in-floor heating system, best way to discharge a sump pump, ways to lower energy costs, best lighting for a garage door, safest way to install a wood burning stove and more. Do you have a home improvement or decor question? Call the show 24/7 at 888-MONEY-PIT (888-666-3974) or post your question here. !doctype> Read Transcript TOM: Coast to coast and floorboards to shingles, this is The Money Pit Home Improvement Show. I’m Tom Kraeutler. LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete. TOM: And we are here to help you take on your home improvement and décor projects. Whatever is on your to-do list, you can slide it on over to ours by reaching out to us, which you can do by calling us at 1-888-MONEY-PIT, 888-666-3974 or posting your questions on MoneyPit.com. Coming up on today’s program, if there’s one room you’d like to be bright and cheery, it’s the kitchen, which is why we’re going to have some tips on lighting to keep that space looking very bright even when it’s dark outside. LESLIE: And also ahead, if winter storms and the power outages that they bring have you considering a generator, we’ve got some tips to help you pick the best type for your home. TOM: And look, guys, are you ready to take on some home improvement projects but you always feel that you don’t have enough time? Well, we’ve got news for you: not possible. We put together a list of a whole bunch of projects that you can get done in 30 minutes or less. Then we’re going to jump into that. LESLIE: But first, we want to hear what you are working on this winter season. What project is on your to-do list? Maybe you started something and you need a hand getting it finished or perhaps you’re looking for some inspiration. Whatever it is, give us a call at 888-MONEY-PIT for the answer to your question, plus a chance at winning an amazing product. We’ve got, up for grabs, a Greenworks 60-Volt Cordless Mower. Now, you’re not going to use it right now in most parts of the country but you will be dreaming about those beautiful, green lawns come springtime. And this is a prize that can totally help. It’s battery-operated and it’s got a backup battery, as well. So once one runs out, the other one will kick on. TOM: You can check out Greenworks products and tips on your favorite social site, @GreenworksTools. That mower is worth 400 bucks. It’s going out to one listener drawn at random. Now, you can call us at 888-MONEY-PIT. You can also post your question on MoneyPit.com. And if we are not in the studio when you call, we will take your name and number and call you back the next time we are and throw your name in the hard hat for that week’s prize. So what are you waiting for? Give us a call, right now, at 1-888-MONEY-PIT. Let’s get to it. Leslie, who’s first? LESLIE: Katie in Minnesota is on the line with a question about a door. What is going on? KATIE: I’m having some issues with the front door. My husband bought a storm door. And it’s a self – or it’s energy-efficient. TOM: OK. KATIE: And we have a door behind there: our front door. And there’s getting to be so much heat between the two doors that it’s melting the trim that’s on the other door. TOM: Yeah. Yep. Mm-hmm. Yep. Very common. So, here’s the thing. You don’t really need a storm door anymore with today’s modern doors. Or usually, if they’re installed properly and they have the right kind of weather-stripping and the sills are adjusted so that they seal well, you generally don’t need a storm door. Now, of course, all of us enjoy screen doors so that we can leave our interior door open in the warmer weather. But when you put a storm door on top of a door like that, you do get sort of a greenhouse effect, where the light comes through that storm door and the heat just builds up between that metal door and the glass. And it will melt, as you saw, the plastic trim around the window pane. So that is very, very common, Katie. You are in good company with that. KATIE: OK. TOM: So, I would tell you that in the summer, you don’t want to have that storm panel on there. You’ve got to get that storm panel off and just put the screen panel in. Otherwise, this will continue to happen. KATIE: Yeah, that’s what we do in the summer. But during the winter – so then I had called the company and they had said that there’s a plate on the bottom where you can raise it. So we raised it but then it’s – the whole door is – has frost. Really thick frost. Is that bad for the door? TOM: Well, it shouldn’t be happening in the wintertime. It’s only – it really is a summertime condition, because it doesn’t get hot enough in the cold months to cause that melting. KATIE: Oh, we have it now and it’s winter. TOM: It’s not possible. I think it’s probably melted in the summer, because it doesn’t get hot enough now, not with this kind of temperature, to melt that trim. The trim melts in the warmer weather. KATIE: Right. Well, the thing is is we cut the tree down. The door’s black. And so we just put it in maybe two, three months ago. TOM: OK. Yeah. Yeah, that’s not helping you either. That’s not helping you either, yeah. Is it a steel door? KATIE: Yes. TOM: Yeah. Yeah, you might want to rethink that door color. But I’m just telling you that you don’t need to have that storm door on it whenever it starts to get warm. KATIE: So, I know. TOM: And if you decide – if you are going to have it, you’re going to get this problem. KATIE: Right. My husband said maybe we should just paint it white and see what it does, if it still … TOM: Well, it will be better but I’m just telling you, this is really common and it happens consistently in warmer weather. And it will just only get worse. KATIE: Mm-hmm. Great. OK. TOM: Alright. Well, listen, at least you know that you’re not alone. KATIE: Right. TOM: And it’s – when people see this, they think, “Oh, my gosh. This has never happened before.” No, it happens all the time, believe me. Alright. Good luck with that project. Thanks for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT. If you’ve got a home improvement question, now is a great time to pick up the phone and call us at 1-888-MONEY-PIT, because you’ll get the answer to that question. Plus, this hour, we’re giving away a fantastic prize. Our friends at Greenworks have given us a mower – a Greenworks 60-Volt Mower – to give away. Now, I love this product. It’s got a push-button start so there’s no cords to pull. No gas, no oil to mess with. It’s got a very powerful, brushless motor that’s going to cut through the toughest grass. And because this is a cordless mower, a battery-powered mower, think about it: you can store it vertically and that really makes a big difference in your garage or your shed. If you did that with a gas-powered machine, the oil and gas and everything would be leaking all over the place. LESLIE: You wouldn’t do it. TOM: Nah, you wouldn’t. It would just be a heck of a mess. LESLIE: You couldn’t. It’d be a mess. TOM: And then it wouldn’t start. So, this is kind of cool. It’s part of a full suite of Greenworks Pro 60-Volt Lithium-Powered Outdoor Equipment. They’ve also got a string trimmer, a hedge trimmer, a chainsaw, a handheld leaf blower and more. All the tools include a battery and charger and they’re available exclusively at Lowe’s and Lowes.com. LESLIE: And you know what? You can also get great tips, ideas and solutions for your lawn-and-garden projects when you follow @GreenworksTools on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube. TOM: That great prize is going out to one caller drawn at random. Give us a call, right now, with your home improvement question at 1-888-MONEY-PIT, 888-666-3974. LESLIE: Alright. Now we’ve got Clyde in Illinois on the line who’s dealing with a chilly floor. I bet your feet are freezing. What is going on? CLYDE: About a year ago, we bought a house. And I went to a one-level slab home. And OK, as you’re coming in, you buy a house and it’s all pretty and everything and then you find out problems. Well, the house originally had water pipes in the concrete. Somebody was – graded the house and they walked off in the middle of winter and the pipes busted. So, when they, say, flipped the house, they didn’t put the concrete or the water-heat system or any kind of tape or anything else in the concrete. TOM: Right. CLYDE: They just covered it up with a vinyl flooring. TOM: OK. CLYDE: So, the house is brick veneer with a block inside. And it’s structurally as sound as a fortress but it’s like a freezer or refrigerator in here. TOM: Right. CLYDE: And so I did … TOM: So, do you think you have active leaks right now in that slab? CLYDE: No. The heating system is no longer. TOM: OK. CLYDE: They went to a forced-air gas and then a heat pump on – down one end and out the other. TOM: Right. Mm-hmm. OK. CLYDE: So, there’s no water. There’s no issues there. TOM: OK. CLYDE: It’s gone. TOM: Right. CLYDE: It’s just the cold, uninsulated slab that just conveys the heat – or the cold, rather. TOM: Right. All the time, yeah. CLYDE: Yeah. TOM: Yeah, that’s unfortunate. CLYDE: I thought about this film – or not film but foil. I’ve used it in a roofing situation and it really worked very well in stopping the heat and cold movement. But I didn’t know how it would be under carpet or under a vinyl flooring. TOM: Yeah, I don’t – you’re talking about radiant barrier. That’s not designed to be under a floor. I don’t think it’ll make any difference, frankly. So, let’s just talk about the problem in general. So, I’ve seen this before. You basically had a home that was once heated by a sub-slab hydronic system, meaning that the water pipes were basically cast into the floor. And the idea was that a hot-water system would warm up that water, run it through the floor and the floor would get nice and warm. And those systems are fantastic until they break. And they’re impossible to fix. And back then, you know, they used copper plumbing pipe for that. Now, today it’s done with a material called PEX, which is pretty much indestructible. So the good news is if you did it again, you wouldn’t basically do – you could have that sub-slab system and it wouldn’t be nearly as prone to breakage as what you have now. But now, once that happens, then people scramble to find some other system that will work. And generally, I’ve seen them take the air-conditioning ducts and try and turn it into a heating system and like you say, run forced air through that. Usually, that’s pretty darn inefficient because a lot of times, that heat’s coming out at the ceiling and certainly not where it should be coming out. So the heat never quite gets down to floor level. So, as you can tell from my description, I’ve seen it before many times. Now, for your house, with the cement slab I think what I would be doing is I would be putting an insulation under anything that I put down. So, for example, if I was going to carpet something, I would probably put 1-inch – even though you have to raise the floor a bit. It becomes challenging around doors and that sort of thing. I’d probably put a 1-inch foam insulation piece under that. But then you have to put a plywood subfloor over it, because you can’t just carpet on top of the foam, obviously. But I think in the rooms where it’s possible, you’re going to have to put some sort of insulation sheet underneath that floor, in order to get past this frigid feeling that you’re getting every time you get up in the winter and walk across it. CLYDE: Right. Exactly. Yeah. Oh, I was afraid – and the house has got – luckily, the vinyl – it’s got vinyl flooring and snap-in. It wasn’t glued down. So that’s a positive. And there’s only three rooms that – three smaller bedrooms that have carpet in them. So, that in itself is just peel it back, take the molding off around the outside and your kickboard or floor molding and then just – and do like you were saying. I never thought about actual foam or that kind of insulation board. TOM: Yeah, I would those furring strips in. And you can secure those down with Tapcon screws, which will drill right into the concrete. And then you can attach the subfloor to that furring strip. You can make the furring strips the same exact thickness as the foam. So if you use the 1-inch foam, you just cut yourself 1-inch furring strips. CLYDE: Alright. Would that then – would the furring strip help eliminate any condensation or – that happens when you have a temperature inversion from one surface to another. That concrete, you think about sweating. TOM: Yeah. What I would do is I’d put plastic down on the slab first and then I’d put the furring strips on top of that. And then you would insert the foam in between that. CLYDE: On the – oh, yes, yes. Understood. Alright. TOM: I think it’s going to make a huge difference for you. CLYDE: Oh, it – yeah, would be greatly. Alright. Well, I do appreciate your callback. This is awesome. I listen to your show and – quite a bit. There’s some of the things that doesn’t apply down south or some other area but I really appreciate your service. TOM: Yeah, we try to mix it up, you know? We’re talking to the entire nation. So, we’re going – when we say – we mean it when we say coast to coast and floorboards to shingles. Because, really, there are folks that are listening in every climate out there. And if you’ve got a question, no matter where you live, we’re going to try to answer it for you. CLYDE: Awesome. Thank you. You have enlightened me in several different areas I hadn’t thought about. So, thank you very much. TOM: Alright. You’re welcome, sir. LESLIE: There’s really a lot there that’s difficult to work with. TOM: Yeah. In the years I spent as a home inspector, I saw that all the time. And it was just such a ridiculous fix to see builders and contractors sell these folks systems where they’re delivering heat at the ceiling level. I mean who in their right mind ever thought that was going to make that house comfortable? Usually, if they get enough heat, they’re paying 50 percent more than they should, because they have to keep pumping it into the house just to feel that comfort. But once that slab starts to leak and those pipes fail, there’s nothing you can do about that. You could put an electric grid down but then you’re paying electricity costs. And that is very expensive, as well. So, well, I think we got him straightened out there and Clyde is on his way to a warmer floor, which is important when you live in Illinois. LESLIE: Well, if your kitchen feels dark and dreary, it might be that you don’t have the right kind or perhaps the right type of lighting. Now, for kitchens, you need three types of lighting: you’ve got to have ambient, task and accent lighting. Now, ambient lighting is the overall light you have in the room. And that’s generally provided by the larger fixtures and natural light from the windows. TOM: Now, task lighting is more focused. It’s calibrated to specific work areas, like counters. And accent lighting does just that. It accents and highlights the architectural details or the objects within that redesigned space, like kitchen lighting that points up from the top of your cabinets or rope lighting underneath the cabinets which, incidentally, is a very easy do-it-yourself project. LESLIE: Yeah. And you know what? There’s no shortage of fixture styles and sizes out there to choose from for all of these lighting types. And it’s definitely OK to mix and match fixture styles. You can put a chandelier over the dining area and install interesting pendants for task lighting. Think about looking at things in the same finish or the same type of design style or period style to sort of blend those pieces together. But go for it. Mix and match. TOM: And speaking of lighting styles, I just today, Leslie, did some work on our task lighting. We had some track lighting that was above some areas of our kitchen, where it was a bit dark. And I took it all apart, put it all back together. Cleaned it up because it was picking up some dirt and grease from the cooking and stuff. Cleaned it all up, put it back together. So, now, not only is the light brighter but the fixtures are brighter, as well. LESLIE: Oh, that’s fantastic. TOM: So, lots of things that you can do in the kitchen to really add some more light there. And it does make a big difference. We love, for example, those little halogen puck lights. Those go under the cabinet so easy. Again, very do-it-yourself. Whether you want to take on a bigger project that requires, perhaps, using an electrician to wire some of the lighting or just doing a DIY project like rope lighting or puck lighting, you can’t go wrong by adding more light to that space. LESLIE: Good point. Alright. Now we’ve got Derwin in Texas who’s dealing with a fascia-board situation. Tell us what’s going on. DERWIN: I have a fascia board that is rotten. The way it’s put on there is I have a 1×4 fascia board that’s nailed up on there and then a 1×2 is nailed on the top portion of the fascia board. TOM: Yep. DERWIN: Which kind of – and the gutter is nailed to the 1×2, so I guess the 1×2 keeps the gutter from resting up against the fascia board, to keep it from rotting. TOM: Got it. Mm-hmm. DERWIN: But the drip edge – there’s a drip edge that’s nailed to the top, so like a 2×2 drip edge. And the top part of the drip edge is nailed to the roof deck and then it lays – the other half is – lays into the gutter. TOM: So what you want to know is how can you get the rotted fascia board out without taking apart your gutter and your drip edge and your spacer and all that stuff, right? DERWIN: Right. TOM: There’s no way to surgically remove the fascia; it’s like one part of the assembly. DERWIN: Right. TOM: So you’d have to take the whole thing apart. Now, it’s not a – it sounds like a lot of work. It’s not a tremendous project to get a gutter off. It’s not something you can do yourself because you don’t want to bend it, so you have to do it with some help to take the gutter off in one piece. But there is an opportunity here and that is that when you replace the fascia, I would not put wood fascia back. What I would do is I would use a product called AZEK – A-Z-E-K. This looks like wood, so it could look like that old 1×4 that you had, except it’s made of cellular PVC. So, it cuts like wood and it looks like wood but it never rots. So I would definitely suggest that this is an opportunity to improve the material that you’re using there. DERWIN: OK. TOM: Now, whether or not you put back the spacer and the gutter the way it was before is up to you. You really don’t need to have a spacer. You could put the gutter right up against the AZEK and then have the roof just lay into the top of the gutter. That would be the most normal assembly for that kind of thing. But if you want the spacer and it just works out better because that’s the way it was before, then what you could do is buy 1×6 AZEK, cut a 1½-inch strip off of it, use that as a spacer and use the rest as – you’ll have a 1×4 left and you use that for the fascia and you’ll have the strip just in one piece. DERWIN: So it cuts just like wood. TOM: Looks like wood, cuts like wood, doesn’t rot like wood. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT. LESLIE: Louis, you’ve got The Money Pit. How can we help you today? LOUIS: I have a question regarding a sump pump – drainage water. The previous owner has it routed to the sewer line going to the bathroom in the basement. That’s where the sump pump is, also. And I was wondering, should I reroute that to the outside of the house or should it – is it OK where it is? TOM: Well, you’re technically not supposed to connect a sump pump to a sewer line. You’re correct in that it’s supposed to go outside the house. Part of the issue is that if you don’t have a check valve, for sure, if you have any backup in the sewer, it can come right straight back up into the sump pump and that’s not going to be a pleasant situation. So, it would be preferable that it drain outside and at least 4 to 6 feet away from your foundation of your home so it doesn’t drop water back against the foundation wall. LOUIS: OK, then. Well, I did put a check valve in the – I put a heavy-duty sump pump in it and it requires you to put a check valve in it, which I did. But they put a flex hose from there to the sewer line into the wall and I’m not comfortable with that. And I didn’t think it should go there but thanks for that. I’ll take care of that. TOM: Yeah. And you are correct. So make sure you repair the sewer line when you pull that hose out, OK? LOUIS: I will do that. Thank you very much. TOM: Good luck with that project. Thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT. LESLIE: Well, with an aging electrical grid and severe weather seemingly more prevalent than ever, getting caught without power is becoming a lot more common. Now, generators are an option but the type all depends on your budget and your needs. So, there are two basic types. We’re talking about portable and whole-house. And each serves a very specific purpose. TOM: That’s right. So let’s start first by talking about portable generators. They really have come a long way. They are usually gasoline-powered but they can also be propane-powered. There’s a range of power that they provide. The small units can power just a couple of essential items, like perhaps a refrigerator and lights. They can also be taken sort of to-go: places like campsites and tailgates, so you can get a little more use out of them. The pro side is that they’re very affordable. They’re small. You can take it with you. But on the downside, you need fuel to operate them safely. And if you have a power outage in your community, chances are you may not be able to buy fuel at the local gas station, which will also have a power outage and not be able to pump it. So, it’s something to keep in mind, because you can’t store fuel for a very long time. You could also opt for a portable transfer switch to plug them into, which means you could have a couple of circuits permanently wired to that generator. It makes it a little bit easier just to run those circuits. For example, the circuit for your heating system might be one that you would want to wire with it. But again, it’s a lot more hassle than you think, because you’ve got to have that fuel to run it. LESLIE: Alright. Now, there’s also a whole-house option. Now, a whole-house generator, these guys are installed directly into your home’s electrical system. And they can run on natural gas or propane. And they’re tied directly into your home’s fuel source. And they can power the entire house in seconds when the power goes out. Now, these guys use an automatic transfer switch, which monitors your utility power. And when it goes out, that automatic transfer switch turns on the generator automatically, whether you are home or not. And then it will automatically turn off the generator when the power is restored. I mean the other day – actually, a few weeks ago when we had, really, the first snowstorm on the East Coast for us, I’m telling you hours before the snowstorm was even coming my power went off and on, off and on, off and on probably four times that morning. And I’m like, “It’s not even snowing yet.” But we never missed a beat and that’s the benefit of having the whole-house generator. You don’t need to think about it. It’s safer. You’re not storing any fuel. You don’t have to run extension cords. And it’s good for outages even when you’re not home and you’re not able to hook up a portable unit. Now, the downsides with the whole-home generators are they can be expensive. You might not be able to recoup your investment if you sell your home. Although, personally, I think it’s an excellent selling feature. TOM: Oh, absolutely. I definitely think it is. We’re seeing more and more homes that have them. And it’s interesting. You know, when you go to, say, sport games – like when my kids were playing high-school sports and all the parents that were hanging out watching the games, watching practice – the conversations that people have right after a storm, I cannot tell you how many times – and I wasn’t bringing this up but I’m just listening how many people were talking about buying a whole-house generator. It’s like they didn’t think about it until they were out of power for a few days. Then all of a sudden, it becomes a priority. So, don’t let that happen to you. It’s a really good investment. The prices have come down and it’s just a smart thing to do. LESLIE: We’ve got Cindy in Michigan on the line who wants to talk about reducing energy costs. How can we help you? CINDY: Is there a way to lower your electric bills by generating your own electricity? I’ve heard of solar panels and windmills and seems like they cost a lot of money to get them going. And I’m wondering, is it actually feasible, financially, to do something like that? TOM: Yeah. Well, first of all, the most effective way to cut those energy costs – and especially if we’re talking about heating and cooling energy – is to improve the energy efficiency of your home. And the single most important way or easiest way to do that is by improving insulation. It’s amazing how many people simply don’t have enough insulation. And in a state like Michigan, you’re certainly going to want to have 15 to 20 inches of insulation in your attic. Now, as to your question about generating your own power, there are some programs that are run by state governments and by utility suppliers that include different sorts of rebates and different sorts of purchase – I don’t want to say schemes but sort of plans for getting that equipment to your house. So, for example, in my part of the country, they have offers where you don’t actually pay for the initial installation there. You partner with an energy company that does the installation of solar panels. And then, as it generates energy, you get to keep some of that and some of that goes back to the utility company and eventually, it pays off the cost of that installation. So I would investigate solar programs in your area and rebates that might be available. Start with the utility companies and go from there. Because if there’s a favorable program, that’s the only way it makes them cost-effective. You are correct in that a lot of these things are very expensive and don’t make a lot of economic sense. But if there’s rebate money available – either locally, at the state level or federally – it does make sense. CINDY: OK. So you would just call your energy company then? TOM: I would start there, with your utility company, or simply do some research online for rebates that are available in your area. OK, Cindy? CINDY: Alright. Thank you. TOM: You’re very welcome. Good luck with that project. If you’re thinking about taking on a home improvement or a décor project or maybe you need some remodeling advice, whether it’s a project you’re doing now or you’re thinking about for the warmer months ahead, now would be an excellent time to reach out to us with that question at 1-888-MONEY-PIT. Because we are also giving away, to one listener drawn at random, a great product this hour. It’s the Greenworks 60-Volt Cordless Mower. No gas, no oil required. Push-button start. No cords to pull. It’s got a brushless motor that’s really powerful and it will cut through the toughest grass. You’ll get about 60 minutes of run time on the battery. And what’s cool about the battery, the technology includes a battery that will automatically change over to a second battery when the power is getting low. That is an industry first. There is no other mower on the market that does that. But Greenworks, they figured out how to make it happen. So, great time to pick up the phone and call us at 1-888-MONEY-PIT. LESLIE: Yeah. And you can also get great tips, ideas and solutions to your lawn-and-garden projects when you follow @GreenworksTools on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest and YouTube. TOM: That mower is worth 400 bucks. Going out to one caller drawn at random. Make that you. The number, again: 888-666-3974. LESLIE: Alright. We’ve got Alex from Illinois on the line with a plumbing question. What can we do for you? ALEX: I’ve got a septic issue. From the house to the tank, I think the line may be cracked in the middle of it. But the problem is my house is on a slab. And as far as I know, the pipes are in the slab. TOM: What I would do is two things. First of all, you need to have a drain-camera inspection done to confirm what you’re dealing with. So, there is a drain camera that looks kind of like a snake. And it can go 50, 100, 200 feet in the line and can actually give you a pretty decent picture of what’s going on there. And so, let’s assume that you confirm that somewhere under that slab, there’s a crack in the pipe. There’s a way to insert a liner into that pipe. It’s kind of like a fiberglass sock, if that makes sense, that gets inserted into the pipe and then filled up with water to kind of press it against the side and the water is released. And it basically kind of creates a pipe inside of a pipe and uses the old pipe as sort of the structure. But it will stop things from kind of permanently getting in there. Sometimes when you have a crack in a pipe, you get roots that form in there that will clog things up and that kind of stuff. Or you get a rough edge where waste gets trapped. So with this sort of fiberglass sock in there, that solves that. So that’s the way you repair a pipe that goes under something critical, like your house or your driveway or around your pool or something of that nature. But those are the two things you need. Now you’re going to have to do some work here to figure out where – what the company is best to work with on that. But I know that some of the big plumbing companies that do drain-cleaning will have this technology. But the first thing is figure out what you’re dealing with, determine if you’ve got a crack or not or maybe it’s something simpler to fix, OK? ALEX: I appreciate it very much. LESLIE: Well, if you keep telling your spouse or your significant other that you don’t have time to do anything around the house, we are calling your bluff. If you’ve got 30 minutes or sometimes even less, there are lots of improvements that you can make to your home. TOM: That’s right. For example, if you’ve got a window that hasn’t opened since maybe Seinfeld was on primetime, it’s probably because it’s painted shut. So here’s how you free it up. You grab a putty knife and you break the paint seal. Now, if it still won’t budge, I’m going to give you a little trick of the trade. You can take a block of wood on top of the lower window sash. That’s at the corner of the sash, where it’s right over the vertical piece. And then tap that wood with a hammer. You’re actually going to be sort of shutting the window. And the force is going to be pushing that window down. But that little bit of action, that rap with the hammer – one on one side of the sash and one on the other – actually breaks the paint free. And then the window will operate once again. LESLIE: Now, here’s another one: exercise. You know it’s good for you but it turns out exercise is also good for your circuit breakers. About every six months, you want to turn each breaker off and then turn them back on. Then, every month you want to push the test button on the GFCI to make sure that it stays flexible and strong, just like you after a good workout. TOM: You can also check for water leaks in less than 30. Here’s what you need to know. You turn off all running water and then check your water meter. If it’s moving, you’ve got a leak somewhere. You can also check your fixtures and your faucets for leaks. In fact, if you want to check to see if you have a leak in your toilet, just put some food coloring in the toilet tank. If the bowl turns the same color as the food coloring, then you’ve got a leak in the flush valve. And that’s something you want to fix quickly, because it can actually run up quite a water bill over the course of a year. So, you see, look, it doesn’t take a long time to do these little home improvement projects or maintenance tasks. You’ve just got to be motivated to get it done. LESLIE: Alright. And remember, always post your questions at MoneyPit.com or on The Money Pit’s Facebook page. Post your questions. We’ll jump into some of those now. And I’ve got one from Terry who writes: “Our bedroom carpet has had some cat accidents. I’m about to replace the carpeting but is there a stain or odor sealant that I can put over the underfloor to eliminate many old odors? Or do I have to replace that complete underflooring?” I guess she’s talking about the subfloor here. TOM: Yeah, I think so. And Terry, you do not have to remove that flooring, fortunately. What I would do is get rid of the carpet and the padding, of course, and then I would vacuum that subfloor. And make sure you get into the seams of the plywood subfloor, because you get a little dust and dirt that gets down there and that can hold some of the odor, as well. Now, once you’ve got it really clean and dry, what I would do is I would use a primer. Let’s think. Zinsser makes one that actually is an odor-killing primer, specifically made for situations like this. And if you paint that subfloor a couple of coats with this odor-killing primer, you will seal in any stains that have gotten into that floor and you will deal – you will kill those odors. And you’ll be able to carpet right back over that without having to do any further work on that floor. So just look for the Zinsser Odor-Killing Primer. LESLIE: Alright. Next, we’ve got a question here from Blake in Colorado. Now, Blake writes: “I found a nest of baby squirrels living just inside my attic. I hear them when I’m inside the house. Do you have any advice on getting rid of them? I don’t want to hurt them.” TOM: They’re so cute when they’re babies. LESLIE: They are so cute. TOM: But when they grow up, they can do plenty of damage to your home. LESLIE: And they’re not so friendly. TOM: And they’re not so friendly. LESLIE: No. TOM: So you do want to remove those unwanted squirrels. And of course, we do want to do so as humane as possible. So what I would do is I would use a live trap, like a Havahart trap. That’s a cage with a trap door and they go in. Usually, you bait it with some food, then the trap door shuts. And then, of course, you need to pick up that whole trap and you need to take it out to the wilderness somewhere and let that squirrel go free out there. You will find that when you are moving that trap, the squirrels do get pretty freaked out. So I would cover it with a blanket so it’s nice and dark. Keep them calm until you let them go. And when you open that trap, they will just bolt away as quickly as possible. They have no interest in doing a U-turn and hassling you. The key, though, is to make sure that you bait it properly. You need to be careful about the bait because, otherwise, they can – they won’t get far enough to actually trip the pedal that actually closes the door. So, what you want to do is maybe cover that bait area with some peanut butter so they really have to go back in there to get to it. Or you know what else works good is peanuts, in the shell. That works well, too. But again, you have to put them in something where they have to basically get into the back of the cage – the far corner of the cage – so that we’re sure that they trap – that they hit that pedal and actually force that door to close. But that’s a great way to do it. I think Havahart traps are fantastic. I’ve used them for many, many years. LESLIE: Yeah, good point. And this way, you know, you get them, you bring them to another location. You hope they don’t remember that you have really awesome things in your attic and want to come back and hang out with you again. But you’re on the right track to getting those little guys out. TOM: You are listening to The Money Pit Home Improvement Show on air and online at MoneyPit.com. Thank you so much for spending this part of your day with us. Remember, you can grab The Money Pit podcast on all the major podcast platforms, as well as listen on radio. And if you have questions, we’d love to get back to you with an answer. So call us, 24/7, at 1-888-MONEY-PIT or post your questions to MoneyPit.com. I’m Tom Kraeutler. LESLIE: And I’m Leslie Segrete. TOM: Remember, you can do it yourself … LESLIE: But you don’t have to do it alone. (Copyright 2020 Squeaky Door Productions, Inc. No portion of this transcript or audio file may be reproduced in any format without the express written permission of Squeaky Door Productions, Inc.) The post Episode #1970: Kitchen Lighting Tips | Best Generators | 30 Minute Home Improvements appeared first on The Money Pit. #HomePage

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