Rooms for rent bakersfield ca

My parents get to go to dinner but i because I didn’t do everyone else’s dinner. My 20/21yr old brother doesnt clean his room, leaves his clothes in the bathroom, leaves food, dishes, etc all over the house. The only time, ONLY times he has EVER cleaned the house is if everyone is also doing it and he has no choice. He never does what he is told, he does not help around the house. Now I dont care what he does. It’s the fact that every time he doesn’t do it, I do. Every time my parents don’t or can’t, I do. I don’t mind doing it but there has to be a point where i respect myself enough to say no when it’s just bullsht. They have 3 kids, im the only girl and the only one still in high school. Both families come from where the women did all the cleaning. I am not doing their sht for them when i know dmn well my very capable brother just left clothes in the bathroom, his clothes in the laundry room, food and dishes on the table. I am not doing it when I came up and let them come up with different ways to get everyone to do things and they refused to do it. I didn’t know that the dishes were clean. I had left dishes in the sink that were mine and they wanted me to put them up, so I did… They got upset obviously. I told them i will not put up the clean dishes (once i knew they were clean) but i will do my dishes. Because i didn’t they said I can stay in my room because I didn’t do as I was told. Every damn day he leaves his shit everywhere. Every single time he is told to do something and he never does, and no one says shit about it! He gets grounded he can still have his phone, bring friends over, play video games. They think I’m jealous or fixating on it, I’m not this just affects me more then they care to admit. I can put my cloths anywhere while taking a shower because of him, i never know that if i lay my toothbrush his underwear was there for day, or his socks, or his hat with dandruff and sweat. When he doesn’t do what he is told and has his friends anyway I have to do it because I wont be allowed the same thing, or I get in trouble. I can’t eat at the table because he left his food there, or it was left there too long and now there are ants. Or sit at the couch because he has glasses, food, and other sht. I can’t use the counter because he leaves his dishes there too, or he put them there when he is told to clean up. I say no one damn time, and rightfully so as he had dishes on the table next to us. Its not even about not being able to go out, I can cook myself. Its the fact that I’m being punished for something that isnt wrong. That we all know damn well they wouldn’t punish him for the same thing because he has done this and he wasn’t. It’s fucking sexist and im tired of this. I didn’t want to be here, I didn’t ask for this. You didn’t have to have kids if you didn’t want to have connections with them. You could’ve spited your dad some other way.

I (M25) am almost 6 months together with my girlfriend (F24), and here is what I am trying to understand:
She shows some signs of narcissism. For instance, today I was telling her about her doing a dissertation project incorrectly, and after she realised she’s wrong, she message supervisor that she did the “wrong” thing and even apologised, whereas with me, she just asked in a sarcastic way if she should just stay silent in the future if she has “her way” and I have “my way”. She also is applying for a PhD on the other end of the world (in Sydney, whereas we’re in the UK), and whenever I told her that I would prefer her to stay closer but support her with any opportunities, she gets angry at me for repeating myself. I do repeat myself, as never have I heard from her an “I understand that the distance won’t be easy for you”, without prompting her to empathise with me.
She also gets angry at me whenever I am in a bad mood, because she “cannot be around people when the vibes are low”. I feel I have the right to my own emotions, and she has no right to criticise when I am “grumpy” or even assume that I am. Today yet again, she assumed that I was grumpy after she told me about a meeting she will have with the professor from Australia – which is at 6 am. I was kinda stunned that he organised the meeting so early, and also was surprised by the time difference. She misinterpreted this grumpiness as me not wanting her to go to Australia, and then when I asked her not to assume, she said she couldn’t understand why she needs to ask me why I am in a bad mood each time. When I asked her why she made that comment about “not being able around grumpy people due to low vibes”, she immediately retorted that she “didn’t mean me”. Who else could she mean then? 😂 When I called her out on assuming my feelings, she entered a petulant state and started crying and saying that she feels “uncomfortable” in the relationship, saying we should break up and that she cannot stand me, and that even her parents “wouldn’t dare to treat her like this”.
Last but not least, yesterday I asked in a more gentle way about the long-distance relationship that could possible ensure when she moves to Sydney. Her response was that her precondition to making an LDR work would be to love me, and that as long as we are good, she will stay serious and committed in the relationship. This response seems very much focused on her feelings, and lacks any empathy whatsoever.
She also accuses me of being an over-thinker, while all along worrying about small things such as my camera on the PC screen which I need to take down after every meeting, me talking to loudly and telling me to be more quiet, and me repeating myself, which she says is because I am overthinking (whereas I feel this is because I am trying to get somewhere to make her see/understand me/be more empathetic).
In a nutshell, earlier today, we went to a café and we had a good time, and then both came home. I got surprised by the call being so early, and she assumes it’s because I am controlling her, and enters an irritated state, even eventually getting to a point where she opened up a website to find a room to move out. After the argument settled, she said everything was good, but then still continued browsing the website. When I told her that this is not necessary, she said that she wanted to “prepare in advance” (I assume for breaking up). How can you say “all good” then?
Basically, am I dealing with narcissistic abuse here?

Coming face to face with people in suits always makes me hyper-aware of how badly I dress. Since I knew I was going to meet up with Mary Markov today, I intentionally put some more effort into my appearance. I picked out a pressed shirt to wear over my leggings. Since it was far too big for me, I threw my wide yellow belt into the mix. Thus satisfied, I called up Elijah Carter and asked whether he wanted to come along. He agreed readily enough so I had him pick me up and drive us over to Mary's office. It was nowhere near the hospital and not in the vicinity of her news channel headquarters either. It was located in a slate gray concrete building that was quite confusing to look at.
No outside observer could have mistaken it for a residential house, for there was hardly a less homely or comfortable place imaginable. It was utterly repellent in its rough, dreary nature. It couldn't have belonged to some kind of business either, though. There were no marked parking spaces for employees, no signs or advertisements. Altogether, it reminded me of something out of a cheap or unfinished video game.
"Sketchy," Eli remarked, eyeing the slab of concrete with a similar lack of enthusiasm. "Looks almost abandoned. How weirdly fitting for a semi-secret government operation."
I nodded. The warm air had taken me by surprise and I found the weight of my jacket suffocating, so I took it off to leave in the car. "What is it?" I asked, noticing the way Elijah squinted at my outfit.
"What are you wearing?"
"Clothes."
"You don't say." He snorted. "Looking kinda funny there, Shirley."
"I look professional," I corrected him.
"I suppose." He grinned to himself. "Depends on the profession, though."
We rang the bell and a highly official-looking security guard let us in through the heavy double doors after confirming that Mary Markov was expecting us. He gave the necessary directions, sending us down several flights of stairs. The better part of the building was in fact underground, like with an iceberg. Eli made a remark about how it'd be safer if outsiders weren’t allowed to roam the place by themselves. It seems to be a habit of his to vaguely analyze and point out flaws in the structures of government institutions. Then again, maybe it's just flaws in general he's fascinated with.
Upon arriving outside Mary's office, we were called inside to find her sitting behind her desk. She lifted her head, giving us a polite, if cold, smile. "Good morning. You're on time. Wonderful."
"Would you please give me an honest appraisal of my outfit?" I asked.
The newsreader frowned in confusion, her eyes briefly roaming my form. "You put effort into your appearance today," she concluded. "It's appreciated."
"Wait, what do you mean today?" I inquired.
"Note also how she did not actually answer your question," Elijah added.
I huffed, flinging myself into one of the chairs in front of Mary's desk. Eli sat down beside me, folding his hands in his lap and leaning back. "Thanks for letting me come with Shirley," he told her.
"Naturally. I assume you're her emotional support human." Mary Markov's lips curled slightly. "At any rate, you had contact with the Collective yourself, so this does concern you. As far as I'm concerned, it can't hurt having an ex-cop in the mix, anyways. Despite the regrettable reasons you had for leaving the force."
Elijah's brows lowered, the muscle in his pronounced jaw twitching. "How do you know about that?"
Mary looked innocent. "It's very important that I'm fully informed, of course. Don't worry. We don't need to go into it, and I don't judge you, either. The effect the incident at that highschool had on you is completely understandable."
"I didn't ask for your assessment." My friend's voice had sharpened. "Can we move on from this?"
"Of course." If the sudden shift in tone had rattled the agent, she wasn't letting it on. Sifting through the neat stack of papers on her desk, she pulled out a thin brown file which she slid over to me. "Miss Shirley, you remember the female member of the Collective we took into custody? She has already been questioned by the local police. Unfortunately, I don't have the authority to lead such an interrogation, but I was present for it and I want you to have this transcript."
I perked up and began leafing through the folder.
"You may take that with you to read in peace," Mary told me. "But don't expect too much, lest you'll be sorely disappointed. The girl hardly said anything at all. The most helpful information she gave us was a name she kept referencing. Jewel. At first, we thought it was a sort of code word, but it seems to be what the other person she was with calls themself."
“Jewel,” I echoed.
“Sadly enough, that’s all we have. We’ve never provided our services to anyone of their physical description. There are a couple clues, but they don’t amount to anything helpful. There’s the fact that you met them at a convenience store with relatively high prices. Maybe I’m just grasping at straws, but that could indicate a cushy financial situation. On top of that, the store is rather far away from here, so they might be an out-of-towner. They also might be able to influence the way others perceive them, considering the way they seemed to hypnotize you in the woods merely by holding eye contact.”
“How come they couldn’t do anything to Frank Preston?”
Mary Markov twinkled at me. “They couldn’t? Huh. That rather intrigues the philosopher in me. Jewel works through eye contact and it is said that the eyes are the window to the soul.” She cocked her head at me.
“Are you saying Blondie doesn’t have a soul?” Eli asked, raising a skeptical brow. “Is this one of those Plato-Schopenhauer-whatevers?”
The newsreader shrugged artfully, watching my reaction. “We could discuss this for hours on end. I only meant to draw attention to the implied distinction between an organically born entity and a being who was originally an inanimate object.”
“I beg your pardon?” I said slowly.
“Oh, nevermind; that’s neither here nor there.” Her tone told me that she did, in fact, consider it to be both here and there. Not wanting to go further into this with her, I made a mental note to ask Frankie later.
“There’s more,” I added, trying to gently prepare her for what I was about to say. “I want to get Kit Sutton back.”
Mary’s lips thinned. “Excuse me?”
“I don’t mean for the town to get flooded in the process. I think we can find a solution to help her, if we work together. I’m convinced we can figure something out, but I don’t believe in abandoning her anymore. Which is essentially what we’re doing if we leave her to her fate.”
“You do realize what you’re asking of me? Your former roommate isn’t some kind of minor water spirit. Her father appears to hold tremendous power over the seas, or at the very least our part of it. He has countless similarly dangerous individuals at his service so he might be considered a ruler of sorts, if not a deity.”
“So Kit’s the little mermaid, basically?” Elijah asked, equal parts joking and genuinely intrigued.
Mary grinned an actual, amused grin. “I must ask you to take this seriously, Mr Carter.”
“I am!” he chuckled, raising his hands. “I swear.”
“Anyways, Miss Shirley, the point you make is an individualistic one, but I see why you’re invested in the girl’s fate. I want to help, I do… But we need to proceed with caution. If you can suggest to me some kind of sensible approach, then I’ll do what I can. That’s all the promises I can make at the moment.”
I thanked her and got up, Eli following me as I headed for the door. “Miss Shirley,” Mary called out and I stopped, turning back around to face her. “If you like my style, we could perhaps meet up to go shopping sometime? I could show you some quality stores. It wouldn’t be anytime soon since I’m currently swamped, but I figure—well, just in case you might like to.”
I nodded. “That sounds pleasant enough.”
She smiled brightly and waved us out the door. “Excellent. I’ll be in touch.”
Back inside the car, I tossed the file onto the backseat to read later. “Would you like to go to the beach?” I suggested.
“Why not. Wait, is this for a stroll and ice cream or do you want to kickstart the mermaid-rescue-operation?”
“I can’t see why it shouldn’t be both,” I replied comfortably. “We’ll need to take your flashlight, though.”
"You know I don't like getting myself into trouble unless it's paid."
"Yes, but you also find me endearing and want to protect me from danger, which you can only do by accompanying me."
"You're a terrifying tentacle beast from another dimension. I don't know that I'm all that scared for your safety," he grunted.
I gave him an affronted look. "You have now hurt my feelings."
"Have I?"
"Plenty, but I'll forgive you if you come with me."
Elijah Carter sighed deeply but started driving anyway. I let my arm dangle out of the open window, allowing the warming spring air to wash over my skin. The closer we got to the shore, the stronger the scent of salt mixed into the breeze. The cries of seagulls became audible over the sounds of the road and the streaming wind and was finally joined by the crashing of waves when we pulled into a parking spot and got out of the car. Taking along the heavy duty flashlight he always kept in the passenger seat footwell, I led Eli to the mouth of the cave, explaining what Nettie and I had seen along the way. He looked commendably calm, simply turning on the torch and entering alongside me.
The tunnels were just as damp, dim and quiet as the last time. Before long, we had reached the spacious canyon room with the lake at the bottom. "I want to go across and see if there's anything important in the rest of the grotto back there," I reminded him. "Please hold on to your bearings."
"I'm not repeating your mistakes," he replied gamely. "What do you think? This oughta be connected to the ocean somehow." He let the beam of the torch roam the mirror-like surface of the lake. It seemed almost deceptively quiet. My eyes followed the lengthy stone ledge. Eli stepped close, and after receiving a nod of approval, he grabbed me around the waist and hoisted me onto the rocky protrusion. I straightened up, instantly pressing my back against the wall. A wave of nausea hit me as I glanced at the water below. "Chill," Elijah muttered, climbing after me with ease. "Nothing will happen. You're not gonna fall."
I merely shook my head. "You didn't see what's down there."
"And I won't, because we'll be careful," he answered steadfastly.
I started walking, the warm light of the torch upon my back, illuminating the path ahead. The shelf narrowed as we reached the end. I swiftly clambered down, relieved to place my feet on wider, solid ground once more. Now looking over the lake from the other side, it had an entirely different feel to it. It seemed darker somehow, but also less big—I attributed it to the change in perspective. We were standing in a cramped little nook with two passageways leading off into separate directions behind us. Elijah Carter eyed them pensively. “Which do you reckon?”
I pursed my lips. “The right one. Because it’s right.”
“Makes sense.”
We proceeded into the passage, the tight space pushing us closer together. He had to duck his head, uncomfortably hunching his shoulders, and for once, I was grateful for my own short stature. The corridor seemed to go on forever. The darkness and silence created a feel of unnatural solitude, and for more than once, I got the distinct impression that I must have jumped dimensions again. It was as though Elijah and I were enclosed in some kind of bubble, cut off from everything outside; a place where time was a foreign concept and the only sun was our flashlight. Needless to say, I was distinctly uneasy. I allowed myself to lean back, brushing against Eli’s chest whenever I could. Eventually, I cleared my throat.
“Could you touch me?”
“What?”
“Just so I still know you’re there.”
His palm came to rest on my shoulder, his thumb digging into one of the tense, painfully rigid muscles of my upper back, forcing it to soften. “Good?”
“Yes, thank you.”
He hummed. “You’re scared.”
“Yes.”
“Me, too.”
This caused my resolve to falter. “Maybe we should turn around after all,” I said quietly. “Who knows how much longer—”
“Look.”
I perked up. Before us, the tunnel grew wider, opening into a large, spacious room. We picked up our pace, tackling the remaining distance in a light jog, and finally found ourselves standing in another hall. The beam of light traveled the floor and high walls, revealing a sight that took our breath away. We were standing in front of another lake, only slightly smaller than the last. The water glittered in violet hues and strange, pale plants climbed up the walls, some of them looking rather like starfish. Multiple rocky protrusions formed an almost complete bridge across its middle. With a bit of light climbing, we'd undoubtedly be able to get to the other side. Wordlessly, Elijah Carter swung himself up onto the platform closest to the edge of the water, pulling me up after him. The flashlight switched hands a couple times as we maneuvered ourselves along.
Soon, we reached the middle of the lake. I risked a glance at the water below. All was still and perfectly quiet. Eli was about to take on the next rock when suddenly, I felt something heavy and gooey drip onto my head from above. I flinched, then slowly pointed the torch up to the ceiling. My stomach dropped. My throat had turned paper-dry, and I frantically tugged on Eli’s arm. He tipped his head back, following my pointing finger. His eyes blew wide and his face fell.
There was a creature clinging to the high walls, its pale, enormous body describing a streamline curve as it pressed itself against the hollowed stone. The closest thing I can compare it to would be a sort of olm, except probably a hundred times larger. Its snout looked large enough to swallow either of us whole. It hung open, secreting a thick fluid that slowly dripped down to hit the rocks or create ripples upon the water. Its blind eyes seemed to be trained on us, and I could spot tiny, sharp teeth lining its maw. It wasn’t moving, not even an inch, but somehow, I knew it was aware of us.
I looked up at Elijah, the panic in his eyes mirroring mine. Both of us had freezed up mid-motion, not daring to take another step. My mind was running wild; I was thinking feverishly. We’d have to turn around for sure, but how? The olm was already highly alert, if we were to start scrambling back to solid ground, it would undoubtedly hear us straight away. Eli looked equal parts terrified and furious, and I could tell he was scolding himself for not thinking to check the entirety of the room before proceeding across the lake. I could understand the sentiment, we’d definitely made a grave mistake. I figured it had been the misleading beauty of the cave hall that had taken our edge off. Glancing over into the direction we’d come from, I found myself wishing to be back in the endless dark corridor. The entrance to the passage seemed miles away.
The olm lifted a three-toed foot, shifting its massive form to a lower spot on the wall. It was taking a tentative step towards us, extending its snout as its body bent into our direction. Elijah had grabbed onto my arm, his fingers clamping around it like a vice. He stayed silent and unmoving, but he held my gaze with clear, sharp eyes.
“Don’t move,” I mouthed, and he gave me a curt nod.
Slowly, I reached around to push my shirt out of the way of my unfurling tentacles. Elijah took a quiet step back to make room for my changing form, something of a resolute expression settling on his face. I opened my mouth, relieved when my teeth acted according to my will and elongated. I didn’t know to what extent I would be able to defend against this absolute giant of an amphibian, but at least it would give us a chance. I took a deep breath, trading glances with Eli once more before darting off to the side, bounding onto the platform next to our current one. Elijah followed suit, grabbing onto one of the limbs I extended to him for support. Despite the swiftness of our movements, we were anything but quiet, and the olm reacted in an instant. It slithered down from the wall, sinking into the lake below to make its way to the rocks we were standing on. As we headed for the next stone, it darted out of the water, splashing wildly as its snout breached the surface. Its jaws snapped at us, missing me by a mere foot as I jumped across the gap between the protrusions. Droplets flew as the creature dropped once more, but instead of retreating, it swam around the platform. Its massive, snake-like body was bobbing up and down as it circled us.
“Oh fuck,” Elijah breathed, his chest heaving. “Keep going! Move, move!”
I took a short running start, then flung myself onto the next rock, using my extra limbs to land safely. I then helped him cross again. The olm rose from the depths of the lake once again, and I lashed at it with one of my tentacles, hitting it on the snout and forcing it to dive underwater again. We kept working our way back towards the other side of the lake, slipping and sliding as we went. The water surrounding us seemed to hum with unrestrained energy, the white salamander’s tail whipping up waves and splashing around. We were finally getting close to solid ground again, or at least it looked like we were for a moment. That’s when the creature took a massive leap, draping itself over the final stepping stone, effectively blocking our path.
“Shit,” Eli hissed beside me as we came to a skittering halt.
I’d have to try and fight this thing. There was no way around it now. I clenched my sweat-laced palms into fist, trying to slow my rapid, shallow breaths. I can do this, I said to myself. All I’d have to do is send it back into the lake for long enough so we could run back into the tunnel. There was no way the olm would fit through the passage—once we were in there, we’d be relatively safe. I stared at the dripping, writhing animal; stared at its bared needle teeth, and the less hopeful, more realistic part of my brain told me that I would, indeed, probably not be able to do this. Just as I was contemplating the degree of our screwed-ness, an unseen someone called out from behind us. I didn’t understand a word they were saying, but I recognized the language, and more importantly, the voice.
It was bright as a bell, girlish but with a rough, warm edge. Even before I could turn to face her, I knew who it was.
The gigantic amphibian perked up at the sound, lowering its head and withdrawing into the murky depths with a splash. Elijah Carter let go of a long-held breath, dropping his shoulders before tensing up again, realization setting in. He shot me a look of utter disbelief.
“Wow,” the newcomer spoke up again, this time not in the tongue of the deep ones. “You two have to be actually crazy or something to show up here.”
X
1
2: deadbeat roommate
3: creepy crush
4: relocation
5: beach concert
6: First date
7: Temp work
8: roommate talk
9: a dismal worldview
10: warehouse
11: staircase
12: explanation
13: hurt
14: hospital
15: ocean
16: diner
17: government work
18: something in the caves
19: shopping cart

Next month I will be moving from my current home where my cats have a safe enclosed area where they can run around and hunt bugs outside. My youngest especially lives for galloping around and hunting bugs. The place I am moving to for the next year will not have an area where they can be safe in their own designated area - it is on a lot of land so they will be safe from cars but not other wildlife. I was looking into some budget friendly outdoor enclosures on Amazon (for use with supervision of course), but most of the options I've found don't seem to allow for much room for exercise. Does anyone have any budget friendly ideas they would recommend? Thanks!!

If bigger room had as much total hp as honeycomb layout, it would even out and people wouldn't feel compelled to build like this and could build creative layout with nice hall and they wouldn't be punished for it. It could also be balanced to allow castle heart and shards to be placed on other floor.

TL;DR:
>!Unyielding builds provide too great a benefit relative to their full health counterparts. This build type is so popular that it is killing build diversity and homogenizing the gameplay experience.
Unyielding builds should not be nerfed, but other build types (full health) should be made more viable.
In order to do this, the benefits that a point into a S.P.E.C.I.A.L. stat provides should suffer from diminishing returns, so that the first 15 points into the attribute provide a far greater benefit than any other point after the 15 point threshold is hit.
My suggested values would be multiplying the benefit each point in a S.P.E.C.I.A.L. provides by a factor of 1.5x the current value for the first 15 points in that attribute, and a factor of 0.5x the current value for any additional points in that attribute beyond the 15 point threshold. This would result in sizeable buff to the benefits that the first 15 points in a S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attribute provides, no noticeable difference at a value of exactly 30 points into a S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attribute, and a slight nerf to the benefits provided by S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attributes at values of 31+. 30 points was used as a breakeven point, as that value stands as the "standard maximum" for a build taking advantage of maxing out a S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attribute (15) and also maxing out their unyielding armor (+3 S.P.E.C.I.A.L. x 5 = 15).
Example:
Currently, every point in LCK increases crit refill by 1.5%.

• At 15 LCK, crit refill = 27.5% (15x1.5% + 5% base)
• At 30 LCK, crit refill = 50% (30x1.5% + 5% base)
• At 40 LCK, crit refill = 65% (40x1.5% + 5% base)

Under this proposition, the first 15 points in LCK will increase crit refill by 2.25%, and every point in LCK after the 15 point threshold will only increase crit refill by .75%.

• At 15 LCK, crit refill = 38.75% (15x2.25% + 5% base) [Net change of +11.25%]
• At 30 LCK, crit refill = 50% (15x2.25% + 15x.75% + 5% base) [No change]
• At 40 LCK, crit refill = 57.5% (15x2.25% + 25x.75% + 5% base) [Net change of -7.5%]

Though LCK is used as an example here, the same practice would be applied to all S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attributes with similar results.
As you can see from the example above, this proposed change will do wonders in bridging the gap between the viability of full health builds and their unyielding counterparts, without severely punishing the unyielding playstyle.!<
Observation:
Almost every end-game level player runs an unyielding build with 80% of their health bar being taken up by radiation.
Why is this happening?
Under the current S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attribute calculations, the unyielding armor effect provides far too great a QoL bonus to pass up. For those that do not know, someone wearing 5 pieces of unyielding armor at <20% health will receive a bonus of +15 points into every S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attribute except for endurance, effectively granting them the equivalent bonus granted by maxing out every single one of their S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attributes, that also stacks on top of their currently selected S.P.E.C.I.A.L. distribution.
Why is this problematic?
The bonuses these unyielding builds provide are problematic because they are nearly too great to pass up. This is evidenced by their extreme and over-popularity. When one particular build type takes over the "META", it is a surefire indicator that a rebalance is needed. Furthermore, when such a large population of the player base is running a single build type, it decreases build diversity and homogenizes gameplay, resulting in economical imbalance and, truth be told, a less interesting gameplay experience overall.
Are unyielding builds themselves the problem?
In the objective sense, no. These unyielding builds are not "breaking the game" by any means. No part of them feel like they are allotted too much of a power budget. While they do perform better in combat situations and pull higher damage numbers than their full health counterparts, this is offset by the risk of death inherent in being limited to <20% of their health bar. Additionally, these types of builds are not pulling damage numbers so great that they are allowing players to skip or break any of the game's mechanics in their entirety. The idea of "high risk, high reward" has always been intriguing, and the benefits provided are balanced out by the increase in risk.
If unyielding builds themselves are not overperforming, then what is the problem?
The problem lies within the inadequacy of every other build type available. The opportunity cost of running any build that is not unyielding, and thus not taking advantage of the effectively doubled max S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attributes is too great to consider running a non-unyielding build.
So what can be done?
The perfect solution would be to leave the unyielding power budget relatively unchanged, while at he same time increasing the power budget of their non-unyielding counterparts. This can easily be accomplished by introducing the concept of diminishing returns to S.P.E.C.I.A.L attributes.
What is the concept of diminishing returns?
Diminishing returns is the idea that the more you invest into something, you will receive less benefit from each additional increment of investment. This concept is widely used in video games to prevent imbalances in gameplay. Incorporating this idea into Fallout 76 and S.P.E.C.I.A.L attributes would be relatively simple, and can easily be demonstrated by example.
Lets take LCK and its affected stat, critical refill, as an example. The way the current system works is that 1 point spent in LCK increases critical refill by 1.5%. It does not matter how many points you have already invested in LCK, the benefit that one additional point in LCK provides will always be 1.5% critical refill.
Under the concept of diminishing returns, the first 10 points in LCK could increase critical refill by 1.5% per point. From 11 LCK onward, the benefit that each additional point in LCK provides could decrease to an improvement of only 1% critical refill. It could continue this way up until 20 LCK, and then from 21 LCK onward the benefit that each point in LCK provides could decrease to 0.5% crit refill, and so on.
This is a very simple example, but the concept is sound. Allowing earlier investments to be more impactful on gameplay than later investments bridges the gap between certain bulids by front-loading the power budget of an attribute, yet still promotes additional investment in that attribute to accumulate greater amounts of statistical power.
How do we balance this?
Because there is nothing inherently wrong with the unyielding build and it is not objectively overpowered, I believe this can serve as a good starting point for balance. Because full unyielding provides +15 S.P.E.C.I.A.L, and this can be stacked on top of the base max of 15 S.P.E.C.I.A.L, a total of 30 points into a S.P.E.C.I.A.L attribute should be targeted as balanced, with lesser amounts of S.P.E.C.I.A.L investment requiring a sizeable buff and greater amounts of S.P.E.C.I.A.L investment requiring a slight nerf. The absolute simplest way of doing this would be by simply taking half of the benefit provided by points 16-30 into a S.P.E.C.I.A.L attribute and incorporating it into the benefit provided by the first 15 points into a S.P.E.C.I.A.L attribute. In mathematical terms, it would mean multiplying the current benefit provided by the first 15 points in a S.P.E.C.I.A.L attribute by 1.5x, and multiplying the current benefit provided by any additional point after 15 in a S.P.E.C.I.A.L attribute by 0.5x.
Lets use the example of LCK and critical refill again.
Under the current system, every point in LCK increases critical refill by a static 1.5%, with 5% base at 0 LCK. Under this system, the following are certain LCK value thresholds and their corresponding critical refill value:

• At 15 LCK, crit refill = 27.5% (15x1.5% + 5% base)
• At 30 LCK, crit refill = 50% (30x1.5% + 5% base)
• At 40 LCK, crit refill = 65% (40x1.5% + 5% base)

Under the proposed system of diminishing returns, each of the first 15 points in LCK would increase critical refill by 2.25% (1.5x1.5%), and each additional point in LCK after the first 15 would increase critical refill by 0.75% (0.5x1.5%). The same base of 5% critical refill at 0 LCK exists. Under this system, the same LCK value thresholds and their corresponding critical refill values will be as follows:

• At 15 LCK, crit refill = 38.75% (15x2.25% + 5% base) [Net change of +11.25%]
• At 30 LCK, crit refill = 50% (15x2.25% + 15x.75% + 5% base) [No change]
• At 40 LCK, crit refill = 57.5% (15x2.25% + 25x.75% + 5% base) [Net change of -7.5%]

As you can see, there is no change whatsoever between the current system and the proposed system of diminishing S.P.E.C.I.A.L. returns at the exact LCK value of 30. This is the standard maximum S.P.E.C.I.A.L. value of an unyielding build that we determined earlier. For LCK values of less than 30, there would be a sizeable buff to critical refill, and conversely, for LCK values greater than 30, there is a slight nerf to critical refill.
What would the impact on gameplay be?
On paper, this change seems to do a good job at bringing non-unyielding builds a bit more up to speed with their unyielding counterparts. The power gap between the two standard maximums (15 for non-unyielding, and 30 for unyielding) has dropped considerably, from a difference of 22.5% critical refill to a difference of only 11.25% critical refill. This accomplishes exactly what we intended. But how does this change actually affect in-game mechanics?
On a META build running critical savvy, a threshold of 27.5% critical refill is required to crit once every 3 shots, and a threshold of 55% critical refill is required to crit once every other shot.
Under the current system, 15 LCK is required to crit once every 3 shots, while under the new system only 10 LCK is required to meet this threshold. This helps out non-unyielding builds a lot.
Similarly, under the current system, 34 LCK is required to crit once every other shot, or 24 LCK with a 15 crit refill legendary weapon equipped. Under the proposed system, 37 LCK is required to crit once every other shot, or only 17 LCK with a 15 crit refill legendary weapon equipped. At this threshold, again full health builds are buffed (requiring only 17 LCK + crit refill legendary vs 24 LCK + crit refill legendary) with unyielding builds receiving only a slight nerf (requiring 37 LCK vs 34 LCK).
This is a lot more balanced, and goes far to close the gap between unyielding and non-unyielding builds. Although the example used was examining the LCK S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attribute, the same would be applied to all S.P.E.C.I.A.L. attributes with similar results.
Conclusion:
Adopting this system of diminishing S.P.E.C.I.A.L. returned, or a system like it, would go leaps and bounds toward closing the gap between unyielding builds and their non-unyielding counterparts, without severely nerfing the unyielding playstyle. If this change is implemented, build types of all varieties would receive an increase in viability, which would promote build diversity and strengthen the game. Additionally, this change will still leave room for unyielding builds as a niche build for min-maxers who want to maximize their stats to their fullest potential. The results of the change would surely be a decrease, but not complete elimination, of the unyielding player base and an increase in full health builds. I believe this to be a very easy and practical solution to one of the games biggest points of imbalance, but I am eager to hear from others what they think as well.
​
Feel free to comment, criticize, critique, or troll as you see fit.

Hi!
So here's the situation: two water lines came out of the shower wall and connected to a shower column. I removed it and got a standard shower valve and trim installed instead. Then I removed the tile that had the hole for the water lines, removed the drywall behind it, added a new piece of (mold and moisture resistant) drywall, taped the joint (but maybe that was my mistake here: I used spackling), sanded, then installed liquid membrane. However once it was dry, it peeled right off. I first asked on homeimprovement and got a great lead on what happened, apparently this kind of membrane won't bond with spackling. I would like to know where to go from there.
First, here are a couple of pics.
On the first pic, it shows that when I removed my waterproofing membrane, which didn't bond with the spackling, I also damaged the drywall paper.
On the second pic, the spackling and liquid membrane that I used.
What would you recommend, please?

1. No big deal, tile over that it'll be fine.
2. Use some acrylic primer first! (by the way, when I hear "priming the wall" before tiling, is it the same primer as paint primer? Would this one do?)
3. That spackling wasn't made to be used here, so sand down the spackling, remove the piece of drywall, and start over with a joint compound.

Had my landlord provide me with an N12 late last year after I rejected an above allowed rental increase, citing they needed it for personal purposes. I knew it was in bad faith and that they would likely re-rent it out at a later date, but decided to not fight and opted instead to just watch & see. Sure enough, the place was listed for rent a few weeks ago.
Looking for any recommendations from this sub for any paralegals operating out of Toronto that can assist me with filing for a Bad Faith N12.
In addition, can anyone advise on what I can expect in terms of compensation? I’ve seen 12 months’ prior rent / 12 months’ current rent difference / moving expenses all thrown around, up to a maximum of $35K? Is that accurate?
Thanks in advance!

I need help. I don’t have the words to describe it. I’m so paranoid, I’m so crazy, I’m so angry, I’m so hostile. I just want to be happy and feel normal again. I know I’m not alone in feeling these things, and I know that a lot of my feelings are irrational and I should just let them roll off my back, but I just can’t. I hold grudges and get so angry. There are times I turn into a completely different person. All of my rage and violence is directed to myself. Something just comes over me and I need to hurt myself. I was so completely terrified today. I was lucky my dad was in the room with me. I don’t know what I was thinking, but I wanted to plunge a knife into my throat and I lunged for the knife block and everything. I’m still so shaken and mortified, embarrassed, etc. Moments before this incident, I was already beating on myself, on my head and my legs, biting my arm. I’m so bruised up. I hate looking at myself. I’m so embarrassing.
I can’t control these feelings anymore. I can’t be this burden to my family anymore. They do everything to take care of me, I’m such a stressor and cause of strife. I know they love me and I just don’t deserve the care they provide me. I want to be able to return it. I’m so embarrassed and mortified when people see me in these states of anger, and see me hurt myself. I even feel the need to find release like this when I’m act my place of work. And when I finally calm down and gain my composure, I feel so stupid and embarrassed and full of shame. I need help. I tried a councilor, but she wasn’t a MD or medical licensed person. All she said she could do for me is listen. I need so much more than that. I finally have an appointment with my family doctor this upcoming Friday, to see if I can get things rolling on being prescribed mood stabilizers or something. But I’ve started there before so many times and I just can’t seem to get the help I need or even get diagnosed. Everything is hard. I don’t want to lose my job. I want to work and save money. I’m so sad.
I just want to be a better person. I want to be better. I want help. I’m so embarrassing. I want to love myself again.

Anyone doing it? Figure at the end of 3 years I’d have a paid off RV vs renting.
Income for only RV+site monthly is 3500$
There’s some 28 or 30FT loaded for 60K 2022 models.
That’s about 1800ish/Mo payment for 36 months.

I couldn't find the tag for "Theory Merch" or something so I'm putting it under memes. So I have the four channel cup coasters and I wanted to wanted to take a picture of it but sadly I couldn't.
Anyway, I always have a cold cup of water in my room bc I love water. And I had this cup in the film coaster for a while and I stuck. Thought it was funny and wanted to share it with you guys. :)

One rainy evening Leon was sitting in his living room watching T.V. and finished eating dinner when all of a sudden three light taps can be heard from the front door surprisingly enough was loud to be heard over the show he was watching. Leon went to check the door and answered,
"Hello? Anyone one there?"
seeing no one was there Leon suspected that it the wind from the rain blew something against his door. Leon was about to close the door but a soft voice could be heard and caught his attention, Leon looks down on his porch and there was a female fluffy.
"P...pwease..nice cough mistuh.."
then the mare lost consciousness and collapsed where she stood, Leon looked down at the light brown fluffy mare pegasus with a dark brown mane and tail with green eyes. This fluffy mare look battered and broken with a blackened eye, bloody nose, few missing teeth noticably in the top front, half of it's left ear was torn off, almost skin and bones as if it hasn't eaten in days with a light stench of feces.
Leon look upon the beaten up mare as he noticed a tiny purple fluffy foal asleep on the mare's back, Leon was surprised how everything this mare has been through the foal was still asleep. Leon thought about what he should do because he didn't care much for Fluffies in general but he did grow to like them at least a little bit anyway, as Leon thought it over he decided to let the mare and her foal stay overnight out the rain until morning once then he can give them to a shelter at least there the fluffies can have a place to call home.
Leon knelt down over the mare and foal to gently pick them up until a chubby green fur unicorn stallion fluffy with a red mane and tail appeared out of the dark. As the stallion approached them he spoke,
"Dummeh Hooman go 'way, nu sab dummeh poopie mawe! Dat dummeh poopie onwy nee foweba sweepies."
Leon has now turned his attention to the stallion which most likely is a smarty given how arrogant it is and called everyone a dummy. Looking at the smarty and noticed a bit of blood and bits of brown fur most likely matching the beaten mare between them. Standing up Leon stepped forward and has put himself between the smarty and the mare.
"I suppose it was you who did this to her?"
Leon said as he stood towering over the smarty with his fist clinched. The smarty who is now trying to put up a brave facade by standing his ground, sticking out his chest and puffing up his cheeks but truly scared by the giant before him.
"Hmph, s..smawty nu cawe, dummeh poopie mawe bewong in smawty hewd an' aww da dummeh poopie fwuffy in smawty's hewd onwy num poopies an' gib wickie cweanies to poopie pwace fo' da oda pretty fwuffies in hewd bu',"
The smarty raises his hoof and points it at the mare behind Leon.
"Dis dummeh hab babbehs an poopie fwuffy nu nee babbeh."
Leon took a deep breath in and slowly exhale to calm himself then he asked.
"Well if she isn't suppose to have babies then why not kick her out the herd instead of beating her to death and pursuing her to finish the job?"
The smarty was quiet for a few seconds as if he was thinking of an answer.
"Fine, smawty teww da truth. Ou' see smawty hab speciaw fwed back wif hewd name Pwum an' Pwum awweady hab tummeh babbeh by smawty bu' smawty wan' enfie so smawty gib enfie an' hab good feews wif poopie mawe bu' Pwum nu can find out."
Leon then realizes what this is all about then slightly chuckles at the fact that a male fluffy don't want to be caught cheating with another female especially a brown one. The smarty spoke as if he was irritated.
"Nu waff, wet smawty gib poopie mawe foweba sweepies NAO!"
Leon took a step forward with a firm stomp toward the smarty and the smarty tumbling backwards onto it's side.
"You do NOT raise your voice at me, who do you think you are? In fact get off of my porch, get out of my yard and get out of my sight!"
The smarty picked himself up and snorted as he lowered his head.
"Dats it, smawty nao gib ou' worstest huwties wif bestest hown an' den gib ou' foweba sweepies!"
The smarty charged toward the human only to ram his horn into Leon's left shin which barely broke skin followed by repeated strikes with his front hooves and after 10 to 15 hits the fat smarty seems to be out of breath then the smarty looks up at Leon with a smug look on his face and with a smirk for a smile but that expression on the smarty's face quickly changed to disappointed confusion as he realizes that the human isn't phased at all, not even a little bit.
"Ha! Tickles and now I'm gonna take this left foot here and break your face with it"
Leon said with a devilish smile then he pats his left thigh twice indicating he was about to kick the smarty. With a quick jump to the right the smarty out of the way before Leon could make a move.
"Dummeh hooman is dummeh f...SCREEEEEEEE"
the smarty felt a heavy force under of his chin and was sent flying nearly half way across the yard with a trail of shit following after. Leon placing his right leg down started to walk over to the smarty and surprisingly the smarty picked himself up after a kick like that but then again Leon was holding back..way back.
"Huhuhu..Ou' saf ou' kif fwuwwy wif weft fuuf."
The smarty could barely speak now because of a swollen and bloody mouth and nose, a chipped tooth and the tip of it's tongue is gone most likely biting down on it when the kick was delivered.
" You calling me a liar?"
With his left leg Leon kicked the smarty again but this time at slightly more force directly into the middle of the smarty's face causing it to completely fly out the yard and into the middle of the street.
The smarty laid there in a small pool of blood for a minute until it struggled to stand up back on it's hooves then the smarty started to staggering away down the street crying
"Huhuhuhu.."
and possibly back to it's herd but once it stepped into a nearby street light along with a well timed flash of lighting the illuminated smarty turned it's head to Leon showing it's face that's so mutilated that it's damn near impossible to know if there's a face there anymore. Leon keep watching the smarty stagger away further and further down the street until there was no sight of him.
Walking back to his porch Leon went to check on the mare and her foal, Leon picked up the mare who was cool to the touch ever so gently as the foal still asleep in it's mother's back and brought them inside. Leon placed the mare and foal on a empty counter space in the kitchen but just then Leon noticed how the mare's vibrant green eyes are now a faded milky white as both pupils are nearly rolled in the back of it head in different directions and upon further inspection he ran his hand against the mare's fur noticed the mare's fluff is really thin that multiple deep purple and black bruises can be easily seen all over it's body.She was dead for a little time now but how could she, she was just unconscious..or was she? then at that moment Leon realized that the mare must have died when she collapsed earlier.
Just then the young foal began to wake up as it began to make chirps and peeps calling out for it's mother it'll never get to know and love. Leon gently picked up the foal into his rough but gentle hands and noticed it was female. The foal start to quiet down as it held onto Leon's thumb trying to suckle for some milk. The foal's eyes were still closed but began to slightly open more and more with each passing second
"Sigh Since I went through all of this trouble to just save your life then I guess I'll take care of you then."
Leon spoked to the young foal as it's eyes fully open for the first time and gazing at the human before her.
"D..daddeh."
The foal spoke it's first words with a smile on her face as it's tail wags rapidly.
"Yeah..I'm ahem your dad now but you'll need a name too,"
Leon looks over at his vase of flowers his cousin sent to him from Japan.
"Your name will be Wisteria."

Hello again!
This one took longer to get out, not because it was a harder chapter for me to write or anything like that, but because I forgot to post and was busy writing the main story anyways. Challenge me on that, I dare you.
Nothing else really to say. Join the discord.
Previous/Main/Next/Discord!
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Fries dragged himself towards the LZs, hoping that someone had somehow waited for him. He could see the area where the dropship had been landed and the troops gathered by the amount of insectoid bodies littering the area. Among them, he could see a shattered CEVA helmet on the ground, the operator or suit nowhere nearby.
He approached slowly, keeping his rifle up and trained on the bodies if they got back up. He went straight for the helmet, picking it up and inspecting it once he reached it. There was a hole in the faceplate and no exit wound, though there was blood, skull fragmentation, and brain matter on both the back of the helmet and faceplate.
“Shit…” Fries muttered, shaking his head as he set the helmet down. He was about to check the area more when his audio sensors picked up hissing in the air.
Fries dove for cover behind the body of one of the insectoids, being sure to cover the breach in his suit. While the mechanical pressurization of the main suit hadn’t been compromised, a blast to the flesh could still prove fatal to the ODST.
He waited for an impact that never came, and instead watched as two Kxa’vara transports flew overhead.
“Well, that ain’t somethin’ we were briefed on…” He mused to himself, standing up and starting to run in the direction he had watched the craft go in. He slung his rifle onto his back and turned up the mechanical assistance in the suit, allowing him to run at an incredible speed for an incredibly long period of time.
He followed in the direction of the craft for what felt like an hour, the suit feeding him nearly pure oxygen to continue at the pace he was at, until he suddenly stopped upon seeing where the two craft were hovering. In the side of a rock face a kilometer or two out that extended around 150 feet into there air, he could make out clay and rock “houses” either carved out of the rock or built up with the clay. He used the suit’s zoom function to scope the place out. Outside of the houses though, Fries couldn’t see anybody or anything. The two ships hovered above it, but there was nothing moving around.
Finally thinking he had enough information, Fries attached a suppressor to his rifle and started moving forward. He had barely gotten four steps forward when he saw more of the insectoid creatures. They were out at the “houses” trying to climb up and reach the dropship. He could make out the tracings of kinetic-plasma fire. He started running towards the “town” before he noticed six or so of the bugs coming towards him.
Without hesitation this time, he raised his rifle and cut them apart, their hard carapaces completely ineffective against the armor-penetrating 4.5x49mm rounds from the ODST’s weapon. He continued forward, reloading his rifle and checking his underbarrel launcher for a round. He wasn’t sure what his plan was, but it involved something with a Kxa’vara ship.
He had run about 100 meters before the next batch of bugs came at him, this time much closer than beforehand. The first one immediately lunged at him and caught his right arm’s utility spike to the skull, going limp as soon as he removed the spike from the skull. The next two creatures caught .388 SP pistol rounds to their heads as they approached, Fries opting to leave his rifle for later engagements. The last one also jumped at him, but was caught by the ODST mid air, slammed onto the ground, and had its head stomped in by a boot.
Fries exhaled sharply while looking at his handiwork before quickly running off in the same direction again, this time at a much faster pace than before. It only took him a few minutes to be within 200 meters of the two craft, which had seemingly not noticed him, despite the ever-growing horde of bugs behind him.
It looked as if there was a closed entrance to the “town”, mainly as there was a large gate surrounded by twenty-foot rock faces. He quickly looked behind him to see where the horde was before he gritted his teeth and jumped, firing his jumpjets as he leapt up. He extended his spike and jammed it into the wall, settling his feet into cracks and divots before pushing off again and firing the jumpjets again. He repeated this process a few times before making it to the top and climbing up to look at the situation.
The two transports were hovering about forty meters away, above the residence area and dumping fire into the bugs below them. He could see right away that Kinetic-Plasma was much less useful against the bugs than his bullets, but they also had infinitely more bullets to fire than he did.
With some semblance of a plan starting to come together in his head, he pulled a disruptor grenade off of his kit and armed it, having the suit start to calculate where he’d have to throw it to hit the first ship. As soon as it was locked in, the suit took complete control over his arm, waiting for Fries’ signal.
He let the suit do its thing and watched as the disruptor grenade flew through the air towards the craft. He regained control of his arm and brought his rifle up, bringing his right arm to the trigger of the underbarrel launcher. As soon as he watched the grenade flash away the enemy’s shields, he fired a 40mm grenade at the gravitational stabilizer he could see. The side of the craft was engulfed in smoke as the HEDP round exploded on contact with the ship’s hull.
Almost immediately, the ship listed to the side, unable to maintain attitude control from the loss of the stabilizer. Fries immediately switched targets and began thinking of what to do for the other transport. His rangefinder gave the range as 43 meters, and Fries’ mind immediately went to a “solution”.
He had another 71 meters per second of fuel left, around eight seconds of hover time in this gravity, or just around enough to get him into the craft.
Taking a deep breath, Fries took a runup before jumping off the ledge he was on and fired the jumpjets, accelerating himself towards the transport. He knew that the energy shields would stop bullets, but they wouldn’t stop him. He extended his utility spike and cranked the arm back, preparing to jam it into the ship’s hull. As soon as he hit the side, he stabbed his arm in, the spike piercing all the way through until his fist hit the craft. He quickly pulled his handgun out and aimed towards the opened door to his right. Surprisingly, nobody came to look at him, as they were too surprised to watch their comrades’ craft go down.
Without warning, the ship tilted over and flew over to support the downed aircraft as insectoid creatures swarmed towards it. Fries sank in closer to the craft as they moved, trying to make sure he was able to stay onboard. It quickly leveled out over the wreck, the gunners at the doors opening up on the approaching horde. The ODST spared no time and crawled along the hull towards the door, the distance seeming an incredibly long 6 feet away. Using his spike and the “hand”holds on the craft, he made it to a point where he could leave his left arm spiked in and still lean into the cabin.
There were two Vakasi on mounted guns firing out of the door opposite him. In the cockpit, a Volaxin and Jokall sat at the sticks, the latter’s scaled, bat-like wings stopping him from seeing further in. He had just drawn his handgun to shoot at the two gunners when he heard one of the pilots yell out, his shields immediately flaring up as a few rounds from the Volaxin’s KP handgun impacted him.
Recognizing the immediate threat, Fries put a bullet into the skull of the pilot. He took note of the bullet tearing its way through his skull and out the glass cockpit as he leaned in further, using the remaining fuel in his jumpjets to give him enough force to remove his left arm from the hull and push into the cabin.
Neither of the two Vakasi had enough time to turn around and raise their weapons before Fries had kicked the first one out, immediately turning on the other one and putting a bullet into his chest/neck carapace. His shields flared again as another round struck him. He quickly whipped around, ducking to the side and raising his pistol towards the cockpit.
The HUD quickly flashed a 46% warning as a few more KP rounds passed nearby the ODST, initiating the shield sensors.
He fired a few rounds at where he assumed the Jokall was, the bullets failing to penetrate the metal wall separating the cabin from the cockpit. Knowing that neither of them could currently shoot each other with the weapons they had out without coming through the door gap, he holstered his pistol and raised his rifle, aiming at the same spot on the metal wall as before. He fired six times into it, knowing he had successfully penetrated the wall when the ship suddenly listed forward. Quickly moving into the cockpit, he pulled the nearest body away from the controls and off their chair, immediately putting himself in control.
Unlike what he was hoping for, it wasn’t controlled by a joystick, but instead a floating sphere. It had holes in it like a bowling ball and glowing lines snaking across it, the ODST able to see no reason for them other than aesthetic purposes.
He grabbed onto the sphere and pulled back, failing to do anything other than partially pull the sphere out of the “gravity track” it was in. He attempted to pull up by rotating the ball towards himself, immediately causing the craft to snap its nose up to almost the exact degree he had just rotated the sphere to at incredible speeds.
He let out a small yelp as he started to rapidly lose altitude, the engines seemingly powered off suddenly.
He rotated the ball again, trying to level the craft out, but wound up tilting too far to the side. The sudden shift caused him to lose grip on the ball and brush one of the lines on it. The craft immediately accelerated towards where the nose was pointing; just below the horizon. He grabbed hold of the ball again, now somewhat having an idea of what to do.
He was about to start angling the craft when the starboard side caught something and threw him out of the seat, twisting the craft out of position and sending it to the ground. Fries had already curled himself into a ball as much as the ECS would allow, the suit’s thick armor keeping him from getting as tight as he wanted to be.
He uncurled and stood before the craft had even come to a stop, trying to find a good standing position to fight from while standing on the side of the glass canopy of the transport. Clearly, the craft had stayed on its side during the crash. He brought his rifle to his shoulder and started moving towards the door.
Almost immediately he could hear the skittering of legs on metal, and two of the smaller insectoids dropped into the cabin. Wasting no time, he brought the rifle up and shot them, moving out of the cockpit and pulling himself out of the cabin and on top of the craft.
He looked around and froze up, immediately seeing that the craft was surrounded by insectoids. In front of him, two large bugs looked at him. They towered above everything else, being an easy 12 feet in height.
While he was trying to think of his next course of action, he realized that the bugs were not advancing on him. They were all holding around 30 meters out from the wreck.
“Well? Come on then!” He yelled out, putting a fresh magazine into his rifle.
Still, the creatures didn’t move. He kept his eyes on the big ones, waiting to see if they would make the first move.
“Computer, recharge shielding. Prepare to use shields to counter direct hand-to-hand impacts.” He whispered in his helmet, using the time they were paused to ready himself for one final engagement.
He almost opened fire as he saw the two big creatures shift. However, they moved off to the side instead of towards him, though none of the smaller ones did anything. He was trying to gauge what they were doing when he noticed a creature, one he would hesitate to call “humanoid” but definitely bipedal, tentatively approaching past the big creatures.
It was still some thirty meters away when the ODST zeroed his rifle onto it. He restrained himself from pulling the trigger, but instead used his suit’s imaging systems to get a better look at the creature.
Surprisingly, it was very familiar in a vague part of his mind. Though he was sure he hadn’t seen one of these before, something told him that it was very familiar.
“Computer… bring up helmetcam footage of March 27th, 23:47…” He muttered, trying to pay attention to both the creatures around him and the HUD footage.
He watched through the footage, still keeping his rifle on the slowly approaching creature. He had nearly given up on finding anything and shutting off the video when he noticed something that again nearly made him shoot the creature.
He watched as he entered Zeta Zero, the ship’s main meltdown runaway room, where four CEVA Marines were guarding the door, two inside and two outside. A scientist and a medical officer were also inside, also wearing EVA suits. In the middle of the room, strapped down to a medical bed with metal clamps, was the empath.
The empath was a bit different from the creature now only 20 meters away, but they were most certainly the same creature.

I just got my room offer for a shared double in Howe hall Cameron, is there a way to get out of this I had Howe hall as a choice on my application but didn’t have a shared double on there. I am not too keen on sharing a room and would really prefer a single im not entirely against a double I’d just like to have a space to myself.

Studio Version SUGGESTED SCALE: 1-4: Not good. Regularly skip. 5: It’s okay, but I might have to be in the right mood to listen to it. 6: Slightly better than average. I won’t skip it, but I wouldn’t choose to put it on. 7: This is a good song. I enjoy it quite a bit. 8-9: Really enjoyable songs. I rank them pretty high overall. 10: Masterpiece, magnum opus, or similar terminology.
Different Gear, Still Speeding - (Average: 6.57/10)
1) Four Letter Word - 7.84/10
2) Millionaire - 6.87/10
3) The Roller - 7.62/10
4) Beatles And Stones - 6.50/10
5) Wind Up Dream - 6.30/10
6) Bring The Light - 5.68/10
7) For Anyone - 5.00/10
8) Kill For A Dream - 6.66/10
9) Standing On The Edge Of The Noise - 6.05/10
10) Wigwam - 5.58/10
11) Three Ring Circus - 5.50/10
12) The Beat Goes On - 8.44/10
13) The Morning Son - 7.36/10
Singles/Bonus
1) Man Of Misery - 4.86/10
2) Sons Of The Stage - 6.92/10
3) World Outside My Room - 6.88/10
4) Two Of A Kind - 4.12/10
5) In The Bubble With A Bullet - 7.46/10
6) Across The Universe - 7.71/10
Noel Gallagher's High Flying Birds - (Average: 8.12/10)
1) Everybody's On The Run - 8.86/10
2) Dream On - 7.04/10
3) If I Had A Gun... - 9.33/10
4) The Death Of You And Me - 8.52/10
5) [I Wanna Live In A Dream In My] Record Machine - 7.75/10
6) AKA... What A Life! - 8.14/10
7) Soldier Boys And Jesus Freaks - 7.08/10
8) AKA... Broken Arrow - 8.42/10
9) [Stranded On] The Wrong Beach - 8.60/10
10) Stop The Clocks - 7.50/10
Singles/Bonus
1) A Simple Game Of Genius - 9.32/10
2) Alone On The Rope - 9.13/10
3) The Good Rebel - 7.05/10
4) Let The Lord Shine A Light On Me - 9.33/10
5) I'd Pick You Every Time - 6.70/10
BE (Average: 6.87/10)
1) Flick Of The Finger - 8.67/10
2) Soul Love - 7.07/10
3) Face The Crowd - 6.00/10
4) Second Bite Of The Apple - 4.87/10
5) Soon Come Tomorrow - 7.41/10
6) Iz Rite - 7.22/10
7) I'm Just Saying - 7.16/10
8) Don't Brother Me - 5.50/10
9) Shine A Light - 5.77/10
10) Ballroom Figured - 8.00/10
11) Start Anew - 7.96/10
Singles/Bonus
1) Dreaming Of Some Space - 3.33/10
2) The World's Not Set In Stone - 5.72/10
3) Back After The Break - 7.23/10
4) Off At The Next Exit - 8.31/10
5) Girls In Uniform - 5.28/10
6) Evil Eye - 7.05/10
Chasing Yesterday (Average: 8.33/10)
1) Riverman - 9.01/10
2) In The Heat Of The Moment - 8.03/10
3) The Girl With X-Ray Eyes - 7.62/10
4) Lock All The Doors - 8.11/10
5) The Dying Of The Light - 9.16/10
6) The Right Stuff - 8.60/10
7) While The Song Remains The Same - 8.51/10
8) The Mexican - 6.91/10
9) You Know We Can't Go Back - 8.39/10
10) Ballad Of The Mighty I - 8.99/10
Singles/Bonus
1) Do The Damage - 7.15/10
2) Revolution Song - 7.47/10
3) Freaky Teeth - 7.89/10
4) Leave My Guitar Alone - 7.12/10
5) Here's A Candle (For Your Birthday Cake) - 6.25/10
As You Were (Average: 7.77/10)
1) Wall Of Glass - 7.92/10
2) Bold - 8.15/10
3) Greedy Soul - 7.78/10
4) Paper Crown - 8.11/10
5) For What It's Worth - 8.12/10
6) When I'm In Need - 6.48/10
7) You Better Run - 6.95/10
8) I Get By - 7.32/10
9) Chinatown - 7.08/10
10) Come Back To Me - 8.58/10
11) Universal Gleam - 7.63/10
12) I've All I Need - 9.12/10
Singles/Bonus
1) Doesn't Have To Be That Way - 7.50/10
2) All My People / All Mankind - 6.15/10
3) I Never Wanna Be Like You - 5.62/10
Who Built The Moon? (Average: 6.94/10)
1) Fort Knox - 6.92/10
2) Holy Mountain - 7.44/10
3) Keep On Reaching - 6.99/10
4) It's A Beautiful World - 7.43/10
5) She Taught Me How To Fly - 9.26/10
6) Be Careful What You Wish For - 5.90/10
7) Black & White Sunshine - 6.53/10
8) Interlude (Wednesday Part 1) - 5.15/10
9) If Love Is The Law - 7.38/10
10) The Man Who Built The Moon - 8.56/10
11) End Credits (Wednesday Part 2) - 4.75/10
Singles/Bonus
1) Dead In The Water - 8.90/10
2) God Help Us All - 7.64/10
Black Star Dancing (Average: 6.86/10)
1) Black Star Dancing - 6.34/10
2) Rattling Rose - 6.40/10
3) Sail On - 7.83/10
Why Me? Why Not. (Average: 7.66/10)
1) Shockwave - 7.32/10
2) One Of Us - 8.33/10
3) Once - 9.25/10
4) Now That I've Found You - 7.33/10
5) Halo - 6.48/10
6) Why Me? Why Not. - 7.95/10
7) Be Still - 7.97/10
8) Alright Now - 7.00/10
9) Meadow - 6.57/10
10) The River - 7.68/10
11) Gone - 8.43/10
Singles/Bonus
1) Invisible Sun - 7.25/10
2) Misunderstood - 8.50/10
3) Glimmer - 6.50/10
4) All You're Dreaming Of - 8.84/10
This Is The Place (Average: 6.81/10)
1) This Is The Place - 7.53/10
2) A Dream Is All I Need To Get By - 8.22/10
3) Evil Flower - 4.69/10
Blue Moon Rising (Average: 6.53/10)
1) Blue Moon Rising - 5.96/10
2) Wandering Star - 6.81/10
3) Come On Outside- 6.83/10
Back The Way We Came: Vol 1 (2011–2021)
1) We're On Our Way Now - 8.55/10
2) Flying On The Ground - 8.42/10
C'mon You Know
1) More Power - 7.56/10
2) Diamond In The Dark - 8.44/10
3) Don't Go Halfway - 6.58/10
4) C'mon You Know - 5.69/10
5) Too Good For Giving Up - 7.84/10
6) It Was Not Meant To Be - 6.47/10
7) Everything's Electric - ?

When we think of wine, we picture traditional dry, fruity, or oaky varieties amongst Reds, Whites and Rose. Though some, like myself, enjoy all varieties of wine. In order to come to our own individual conclusions, we must understand the differences amongst the vast varieties of wine.
My adventures with wine have taken place over the past 15 years. I was 21 when I first discovered my love of wine. While many a young 21-year-olds desire to prove their adulthood and dive right into binge drinking beer and liquor as a sense of right of passage. I decided to become a wine snob.
What started with the preference of a dry chardonnay turned into appreciation of a full-bodied red pinot noir and finally a thorough appreciation and admiration for rose. Given that my preference had been for a drier variety. My ignorance told me rose must be fruity and therefore simply, not for me. I was introduced to rose later in life by a friend of mine who proved my theories completely wrong about rose. I was therefore introduced to one of the driest and tastiest wines I had ever had, La-Vieille Ferme Rose. Though rose wine comes with aromas of strawberries, cherries, or florals. There is at times a sweetness which can also range to a very dry glass of wine. I love that rose is known for shining due to its light and crisp bright characteristics. Rose can be treated as either white and chilled or much like red and left at room temperature. Rose wine gets its various colors from light to pink from its blend of red and white grapes. On a hot summer day a chilled glass of rose goes great with meats and cheeses.
Were the thoughts of a chilled rose on a hot summer day on a patio with delicious meats and cheeses enough to replace my love of white wine? Not hardly! My admiration for white wine comes from its dry and light-bodied characteristics, with aromas that may include citrus, apples, or pears. The flavor of white wine is refreshing. Compared to Rose, white wine has a much higher acidity level and ranges in color from yellow to a straw like yellow. White wine is ideal with the accompaniment of lighter foods and compliment shellfish, white fish and of course chicken.
Of course, I find myself always returning to reds. Red wines are full-bodied and earthy, with aromas of red and black fruits, plum, spice, tobacco, and leather. Red wines are tannic, with a velvety texture, and notes of black cherry, dark chocolate, and mocha. They are best served at room temperature to allow their complexity to open up. I find that even though I now drink rose and white most of the time. Some of my fondest memories are shared with a glass of red. I can’t think of a better style of wine to order while out to dinner on a date or purchasing to celebrate a special occasion. Since rose and white wine have become my go to most of the time. I now hold a special place for reds. Some of my favorite dishes such as pasta and beef are a perfect match for red wine. Red can accompany a warm evening or a cold winter’s night. Overall, all three types of wine offer something unique and enjoyable.