Trucks for sale panama city fl

Panama City, Florida

2010.04.15 00:22 Panama City, Florida

Everything relating to Panama City, Florida — for locals and tourists alike. Covering the entire metro area including all of Bay County: Panama City, Panama City Beach, Callaway, Springfield, Cedar Grove, Parker, Lynn Haven, etc.
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2013.01.17 22:24 robotsexx Panama City Beach

Subreddit for Panama City Beach, FL, for locals and tourists alike.
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2011.08.04 07:49 Gulf Coast State College

Official subreddit for Gulf Coast State College in Panama City, FL!
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2023.05.28 05:12 Kemizty Is AMC just not doing many screenings of Asteroid City?

So tickets are on sale now but none of my local AMC theaters have screenings for Asteroid City. The closest AMC that’s showing the movie is an hour away and I’ve seen some people on Twitter also talk about not having any screenings nearby.
It could be because the movie is still a month out but all of my nearest Cinemark theaters have plenty of screenings up already. Did AMC do this with previous Wes Anderson movies as well? This’ll be my first movie of his that I’m seeing in theaters since discovering his movies a couple months ago.
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2023.05.28 05:00 Own_Stay_1120 Appropriate Settlement Offer

I was in a car accident in March in California. As I was going northbound in the far right lane, a Fred Loya client made a right turn on red. I went into the middle lane to avoid FL, but unfortunately she decided to come in the middle lane hitting me. This ended up pushing me into the left lane, jumping the barrier, the turn lane on the Southbound side, and I ended up hitting a Progressive client driving southbound in the left lane.
I was the only one that left the scene in ambulance. I had an ultrasound and some x-rays and was discharged in a few hours. I have been going to the chiropractor due to my back and neck issues.
Not sure if my car was actually totaled, but due to being a 2014 with over 100,0000 and the out of pocket cost of renting a car, I went ahead and bought a new one. My old one had been towed from the scene and was in a junkyard. At the time I was working with a lawyer who FALSELY told me FL client did not have insurance. I received a $1800 lien of sale from the junkyard. Since I had a new car, I handed over the title of the old car to the junkyard so that they would call it even. I know that probably wasn't the smartest thing, but I didn't want the old vehicle.
There was an off duty police officer who was traveling southbound with a dashboard camera. Police report and Fred Loya found/accepted FL client responsible for the accident.
As of right now, I have a $20,000 medical bill for just the hospital visit. $3,000 for ambulance. Unsure of the chiropractor costs. Between missed work and out of pocket expenses, it would be around $750.
submitted by Own_Stay_1120 to Insurance [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 04:54 FruityYummyMummy [H] Stuff & Things for you to buy! [Updated]

Recent seller feedback. Purchases are helping with bills. I really appreciate it!
Prices include shipping. Lot-buys may entail a combined-shipping discount depending on location.
No KOs below, all official releases:
All of the MOTU packaging below has some creasing and such thanks to the crazy-thin cards Mattel uses.
Box condition: Let me know if you are only interested in perfect packaging - I took separate pictures noting any issues I found.
Shipping: I'm selling only to the US residents unless you want to pay more for international rates.
Holding items: I don't hold items until later, sorry! If you take over a day to respond to any messages, I'm just going to assume you aren't interested and move on.
I'm open to haggling.
Please send counters if you would like something but the price seems too high as listed.
If interested in anything, please message with your location instead of using chat. Thanks!
submitted by FruityYummyMummy to toyexchange [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 04:52 PHATstuFF21 The back of my lottery ticket has care instructions for the ticket. One is do not iron.

The back of my lottery ticket has care instructions for the ticket. One is do not iron. submitted by PHATstuFF21 to mildlyinteresting [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 04:51 Junior_Button5882 11 Terrifying-But-True Horror Stories Reported in the News - From fatal exorcisms to unexplained deaths and devil worship—these are some real-life nightmares.

A terrifying movie or book or show gets your blood pumping in the moment of consumption, sure—we covered our eyes in Squid Game with the rest of the world. But for the most part, you rest easy afterward knowing that what you've witnessed is fiction, deliberately spun up to creep you out. When the real world gets eerier than anything Stephen King could dream up, that's when you have every right to get a little scared of the dark.
Once in a while, a story of a dreadful disappearance, demonic possession, or devil worship will land in the local paper instead of a pulpy old paperback. We've rounded up the most unnerving real-life tales below. In honor of spooky season, here are eleven we can't stop thinking about.

The Axe Murder House

The Villisca Axe Murder House in Villisca, Iowa is a well-known tourist attraction for ghost hunters and horror lovers alike. The site of a gruesome unsolved 1912 murder, in which six children and two adults had their skulls completely crushed by the axe of an unknown perpetrator, was purchased in 1994, restored to its 1912 condition, and converted into a tourist destination. It costs $428 a night to stay at the old haunted home, where visitors always report strange paranormal experiences, such as visions of a man with an axe roaming the halls or the faint screams of children.
But in November of 2014, the haunting took a darker turn. Robert Steven Laursen Jr., 37, of Rhinelander, Wisconsin was on a regular recreational paranormal visit with friends when true horror struck. Per VICE:
His companions found him stabbed in the chest—an apparently self-inflicted wound—called 9-1-1, and Laursen was brought to a nearby hospital before being helicoptered to Creighton University Medical Center in Omaha.
The Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office said Laursen suffered the self-inflicted injury at about 12:45 a.m., which is around the same time the 1912 axe murders in the house began.
Laursen recovered from his injuries, but has never spoken publicly about what occurred that day. For Martha Linn, the owner of the home, the incident was very upsetting. "It's publicity, but it's not exactly the kind of publicity you desire to have. I don't want people thinking that when they come to the Villisca Axe Murder House something's going to happen that's going to make them do something like that.” The house remains open for tourist visits and overnight stays today.
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The Haunted Doll

When you think of haunted dolls, it’s likely the creepy old Victorian-looking porcelain kind that springs to mind. None of which you probably have laying around. Still, don’t get too comfortable around any kids toys too soon, though: a Disney’s Frozen Elsa doll that was gifted for Christmas 2013 in the Houston area made headlines earlier this year when it seemingly became haunted.
Per KPRC2 Houston News:
The doll recited phrases from the movie Frozen and sang “Let It Go” when a button on its necklace was pressed.
“For two years it did that in English,” mother Emily Madonia said. “In 2015, it started doing it alternating between Spanish and English. There wasn’t a button that changed these, it was just random."
The family has owned the doll for more than six years and never changed its batteries. The mother says the doll would randomly begin to speak and sing even with its switch turned off.
The family decided to throw the creepy doll out in December of 2019. Weeks later, they found it inside a bench in their living room. “The kids insisted they didn’t put it there, and I believed them because they wouldn’t have dug through the garbage outside,” Madonia told KPRC2 Houston News.

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At that point, Elsa ceased to sing the English rendition of “Let It Go” altogether, speaking only Spanish when pressed. The family then double-bagged the bizarre doll and placed it at the bottom of their garbage which was taken out on garbage day. They went on a trip shortly after, but when they returned, Elsa too had come back, and was waiting in the backyard of their home.
This time, the family mailed Elsa to a family friend in Minnesota, who taped the haunted doll to the front bumper of his truck. It doesn’t seem to have made its way back to Houston yet, as per Madonia’s latest February Facebook update on the creepy doll.

A Deadly Exorcism

In August 2016 in North London, 26-year-old Kennedy Ife began acting strange and aggressive following a pain in his throat. He reportedly bit his father, threatened to cut off his own penis, and complained of a python or snake inside of him before his family restrained him to a bed with cable ties and excessive force.
As the BBC reported:
“The family then set about attempting to ‘cure’ Kennedy through restraint and prayer over the next three days, the court was told.”
His brother, Colin Ife, told police:
“It’s clear that thing was in him, what we believed was a demon because it was not natural. It was clearly trying to kill him,” he said.
“We had to restrain him for himself. It was clear if we didn’t restrain him, he could have tried to harm people in our family.”
Kennedy Ife had been bound to his bed for three days without medical attention when his brother called emergency services, explaining that Kennedy Ife was complaining of dehydration. He appeared to have developed breathing issues, and was pronounced dead at 10:17 a.m.
As The Independent reported:
While police were at the house Colin Ife allegedly carried out an “attempted resurrection” by chanting and praying for Mr. Ife.
All seven of Kennedy Ife’s family members were accused of manslaughter, false imprisonment, and causing or allowing the death of a vulnerable adult. A post-mortem examination revealed over 60 wounds including a possible bite on Kennedy Ife’s body, and his father, Kenneth Ife, along with four of his brothers, sustained injuries as well.
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The BBC reported:
Kenneth Ife told jurors he ordered his sons to take shifts and use "overwhelming force" but denied that an "association with cults, occults and secret societies" played any part in the death.
After a four day jury deliberation, all seven family members were cleared of charges on March 14, 2019.
📷Witches prepare themselves for a journey by broomstick to the Black Mountain, circa 1650. From a 17th century Dutch copperplate by Adrianus Hubertus.Hulton Archive

Dead Animals in the Walls

When the Bretzuis family decided to insulate their home in Auburn, Pennsylvania in 2015, they discovered that it had already been—with scores of dead animal carcasses.
As Fox reported:
The dead animals were wrapped in newspapers from the 1930s and 40s and were among half-used spices, and other items.
After removing the items they sent hundreds of artifacts and carcasses to an expert in Kutztown.
The expert attributed the rotting animals in their walls to Pow-wow or Dutch magic, a ritual originating in the culture of the Pennsylvania Dutch to treat ailments and gain physical and spiritual protection. The Pennsylvania Dutch were a group of German-speaking settlers to Pennsylvania in the 1600 and 1700’s, and are often of Lutheran, Mennonite, or Amish faiths.
The Washington Post notes on the magic:
Many of the spells deal with the care of livestock, finding water, or the treatment of minor ailments, reflecting the conditions and concerns of early American settlers.
But powwow also has within it a tradition of darker spells, and even of such things as conjuring demons.
One notable ritual in their tradition is this hex to create loyalty in a dog:
To attach a dog to a person, provided nothing else was used before to effect it: Try to draw some of your blood, and let the dog eat it along with his food, and he will stay with you.
The mold found on the rotting carcasses in the Bretzuis home has caused illness among the family members, and they say that the odor hasn’t gone away.
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Florida Devil Worshipping

Friends noticed that Danielle Harkins, a 35-year-old schoolteacher near St. Petersburg, Florida, started acting strangely in June of 2012, developing an interest in demonic rituals.
Soon after, she was arrested for abuse of seven of her former students, as the Tampa Bay Times reported:
Danielle Harkins told the kids they needed to rid their bodies of demons as the group gathered before dusk Saturday around a small fire near the St. Petersburg Pier. They should cut their skin to let the evil spirits out, police said she told the children. Then, they needed to burn the wounds to ensure that those spirits would not return.
When Harkins held a lighter to one teen's hand, wind blew the flame out, police said. That prompted her to douse his hand in perfume before setting it on fire. The boy suffered second-degree burns, police said.
Another teen was cut on the neck with a broken bottle, police said. Harkins used a flame to heat a small key, which she then used to cauterize the wound.
The police were notified because a friend of one of the students who participated in the ritual raised alarms. However none of the students themselves told their parents about the event or would comment following the arrest of Harkins for aggravated battery and child abuse.
NBC reported:
Investigators said they've spoken to Harkins, but she didn't spell out what type of religion would require such drastic measures.
"She hasn't informed us exactly what she was trying to accomplish with this," Puetz [of the St. Petersburg Police Department] said.

The Death of Elisa Lam

Elisa Lam was last seen on January 31, 2013 in the lobby of the Cecil Hotel in downtown Los Angeles. She was vacationing through the West Coast, documenting the trip on her blog, and checking in with her parents every day. On January 31 those calls stopped. Lam had vanished. Soon the police were involved and her parents arrived to help with the search.
They had nothing. That February, LAPD released elevator surveillance footage of Lam before her disappearance. The footage shows Lam behaving strangely in the elevator, appearing to talk with invisible people, peering around the corner of the door, crouching in the corner, and opening and closing the door. But what exactly is going on in this video raises more questions than answers. Theories range from psychotic episodes, to demonic possession, to unknown assailants just out of the camera's view:
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Around that time, hotel guests started reported weird things happening with the Cecil Hotel water supply. As CNN reports:
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"The shower was awful," said Sabina Baugh, who spent eight days there during the investigation. "When you turned the tap on, the water was coming black first for two seconds and then it was going back to normal."The tap water "tasted horrible," Baugh said. "It had a very funny, sweety, disgusting taste. It's a very strange taste. I can barely describe it."But for a week, they never complained. "We never thought anything of it," she said. "We thought it was just the way it was here."
On the morning of February 19, a hotel employee climbed to the roof and used a ladder to investigate the hotel's water storage tanks. That's where authorities found the decomposing, naked body of Lam, whose personal items were found nearby. After an autopsy, her death was labeled accidental. NBC Los Angeles reported at the time about the strange circumstances in the hotel's past:
The tank has a metal latch that can be opened, but authorities said access to the roof is secured with an alarm and lock.The single-room-occupancy hotel has an unusual history. "Night Stalker" Richard Ramirez, who was found guilty of 14 slayings in the 1980s, lived on the 14th floor for several months in 1985. And international serial killer Jack Unterweger is suspected of murdering three prostitutes during the time he lived there in 1991. He killed himself in jail in 1994.In 1962, a female occupant jumped out of one the hotel's windows, killing herself and a pedestrian on whom she landed.
In February 2021, a Netflix doc called Crime Scene: The Vanishing at the Cecil Hotel explored Elisa's tragic case and the history of the "cursed" Cecil Hotel.

An Exorcism in Indianapolis

Last year, the Indianapolis Star published a lengthy report on a family terrorized by three children allegedly possessed by demons. The account of Latoya Ammons and her family tells disturbing stories of children climbing up the walls, getting thrown across rooms, and children threatening doctors in deep unnatural voices. It would seem like something straight out of a movie–a work of fantasy, except all of these accounts were more or less corroborated with "nearly 800 pages of official records obtained by the Indianapolis Star and recounted in more than a dozen interviews with police, DCS personnel, psychologists, family members and a Catholic priest."
One of the more chilling sections of the report includes a segment about the possessed 9-year-old:
According to Washington's original DCS report—an account corroborated by Walker, the nurse—the 9-year-old had a "weird grin" and walked backward up a wall to the ceiling. He then flipped over Campbell, landing on his feet. He never let go of his grandmother's hand.
Another segment of the piece reads:
The 12-year-old would later tell mental health professionals that she sometimes felt as if she were being choked and held down so she couldn't speak or move. She said she heard a voice say she'd never see her family again and wouldn't live another 20 minutes.
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Utah Murder-Suicide

In September of 2014, a Utah teen returned to his home to find his parents and three siblings dead. "In a notebook, a 'to-do list' had been scribbled on the pages ... The list looked as if the parents were readying to go on vacation—items such as 'feed the pets' and 'find someone to watch after the house' were written," The Salt Lake Tribune reported. It appeared to be murder-suicide, but there was no suicide note, no prior indication that they would do this, no explanation. Police could not figure out why two parents would kill themselves and three of their four children.
For a year, no one knew exactly what happened to the family, or what would drive the parents to do something so unthinkable. In January, police released more chilling details in the case. According to accounts from family members and an investigation by police, the parents were driven by a belief that the apocalypse was coming and an obsession with a convicted killer. As the Washington Post reported:
Friends and family told police that the parents were worried about the "evil in the world" and wanted to escape a "pending apocalypse." But most assumed they just wanted to move somewhere "off the grid." Investigators also found letters written by Kristi Strack to one of the state's most infamous convicted killers, Dan Lafferty, who was convicted in the 1984 fatal stabbing of his sister-in-law and her 1-year-old daughter. According to trial testimony, he killed the victims at the order of his brother, Ron Lafferty, who claimed to have had a revelation from God. The story became a book called "Under the Banner of Heaven."Police said Kristi Strack became friends with Dan Lafferty, and she and her husband even visited him in prison.

The Phone Stalker

In 2007, ABC news documented a series of cell phone calls to families with terrifyingly specific death threats. The unidentified callers knew exactly what families were doing and what they were wearing.
The families say the calls come in at all hours of the night, threatening to kill their children, their pets and grandparents. Voice mails arrive, playing recordings of their private conversations, including one with a local police detective.The caller knows, the families said, what they're wearing and what they're doing. And after months of investigating, police seem powerless to stop them.
This went on with the Kuykenall family for months, who reported a caller with a scratchy voice threatening to slit their throats.
When the Fircrest, Wash., police tried to find the culprit, the calls were traced back to the Kuykendalls' own phones -- even when they were turned off.It got worse. The Kuykendalls and two other Fircrest families told ABC News that they believe the callers are using their cell phones to spy on them. They say the hackers know their every move: where they are, what they're doing and what they're wearing. The callers have recorded private conversations, the families and police said, including a meeting with a local detective.

"The Watcher"

After moving into their $1.3 million dream home, a New Jersey family started receiving creepy death threats from someone who identified themselves as "The Watcher." As CBS News reported earlier this year:
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Since moving in, the owners said they have received numerous letters from the mysterious person. "The Watcher" claimed the home "has been the subject of my family for decades," and "I have been put in charge of watching and waiting for its second coming," Castro reported.The new owners have several children, and other letters asked, "Have they found out what's in the walls yet?" and "I am pleased to know your names now, and the name of the young blood you have brought to me."
The family was forced to flee from their home and later filed a lawsuit against the previous owners.

Issei the Cannibal

In 1974, 24-year-old Wako University student Issei Sagawa allegedly followed a German woman to her home in Tokyo, Japan, broke into her apartment while she was sleeping, and attempted to cut a piece of flesh off her body to consume. When she awoke, she reportedly fought him and he was later captured by the police. According to a 2012 Vice documentary that covered Issei's bizarre story, he was mistakenly charged with attempted rape and his wealthy father paid the victim a settlement outside of court to have the charges dropped.
Seven years later, in 1981, he allegedly committed a murder in France—shooting and eating a fellow University student, Renée Hartevelt. Issei creepily documented the entire experience with photographs and he was captured by authorities once again while attempting to dump the rest of her body in the Bois de Boulogne lake. He was deported back to Japan and committed to a mental institution. For reason unknown, his psychologists in Japan declared that he was sane. Furthermore, a legal technicality involving the French government refusing to turn over the documents from his case meant that his murder charges were dropped completely. He checked himself out of the mental hospital and has reportedly been walking the streets as a free man ever since. Issei has even become a controversial celebrity, writing over 20 books. According to Japan Today, he most recently fantasized about an unnamed TV actress, saying:
"I'll catch a glimpse of her thigh and think, 'That sure looks tasty.' But I don't feel like I actually want to eat it. As I accomplished the act of cannibalism once, there's no meaning to maintaining the desire for it anymore. In my book, I wrote that it [human flesh] was tasty, but that was not really true; I'd much rather eat Matsuzaka (Kobe) beef. But because I'd desired to consume human flesh for so long, I'd managed to convince myself that it would necessarily be delicious."
Issei Sagawa was also referenced in the Rolling Stones song "Too Much Blood," with the lyrics reading: "And when he ate her he took her bones/To the Bois de Boulogne." He is currently 73 years old and continues to live in Kawaski City, Japan. To this day, no one knows why France did not allow Japan to give him a trial.
📷MATT MILLER
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2023.05.28 04:49 moe_master The world longest joke (Pt 2)

I told you that you'd heal quickly now."
"Yeah, well, still," said Jack, "it's the principle of the thing. And nobody likes being bitten in the butt! Couldn't you have gotten my calf or something instead?"
"More meat in the typical human butt," replied Nate. "And less chance you accidentally kick me or move at the last second."
"Yeah, right. So, tell me all of these wonderful secrets that I now qualify to hear," answered Jack.
"Ok," said Nate. "Do you want to ask questions first, or do you want me to just start talking?"
"Just talk," said Jack. "I'll sit here and try to not think about food."
"We could go try to rustle up some food for you first, if you like," answered Nate.
"Hey! You didn't tell me you had food around here, Nate!" Jack jumped up. "What do we have? Am I in walking distance to town? Or can you magically whip up food along with your other powers?" Jack was almost shouting with excitement. His stomach had been growling for hours.
"I was thinking more like I could flush something out of its hole and bite it for you, and you could skin it and eat it. Assuming you have a knife, that is," replied Nate, with the grin that Jack was starting to get used to.
"Ugh," said Jack, sitting back down. "I think I'll pass. I can last a little longer before I get desperate enough to eat desert rat, or whatever else it is you find out here. And there's nothing to burn - I'd have to eat it raw. No thanks. Just talk."
"Ok," replied Nate, still grinning. "But I'd better hurry, before you start looking at me as food.
Nate reared back a little, looked around for a second, and then continued. "You, Jack, are sitting in the middle of the Garden of Eden."
Jack looked around at the sand and dunes and then looked back at Nate sceptically.
"Well, that's the best I can figure it, anyway, Jack," said Nate. "Stand up and look at the symbol on the rock here." Nate gestured around the dark stone they were both sitting on with his nose.
Jack stood up and looked. Carved into the stone in a bas-relief was a representation of a large tree. The angled-pole that Nate was wrapped around was coming out of the trunk of the tree, right below where the main branches left the trunk to reach out across the stone. It was very well done - it looked more like a tree had been reduced to almost two dimensions and embedded in the stone than it did like a carving.
Jack walked around and looked at the details in the fading light of the setting sun. He wished he'd looked at it while the sun was higher in the sky.
Wait! The sun was setting! That meant he was going to have to spend another night out here! Arrrgh!
Jack looked out across the desert for a little bit, and then came back and stood next to Nate. "In all the excitement, I almost forgot, Nate," said Jack. "Which way is it back to town? And how far? I'm eventually going to have to head back - I'm not sure I'll be able to survive by eating raw desert critters for long. And even if I can, I'm not sure I'll want to."
"It's about 30 miles that way." Nate pointed, with the rattle on his tail this time. As far as Jack could tell, it was a direction at right angles to the way he'd been going when he was crawling here. "But that's 30 miles by the way the crow flies. It's about 40 by the way a man walks. You should be able to do it in about half a day with your improved endurance, if you head out early tomorrow, Jack."
Jack looked out the way the snake had pointed for a few seconds more, and then sat back down. It was getting dark. Not much he could do about heading out right now. And besides, Nate was just about to get to the interesting stuff. "Garden of Eden? As best as you can figure it?"
"Well, yeah, as best as I and Samuel could figure it anyway," said Nate. "He figured that the story just got a little mixed up. You know, snake, in a 'tree', offering 'temptations', making bargains. That kind stuff. But he could never quite figure out how the Hebrews found out about this spot from across the ocean. He worried about that for a while."
"Garden of Eden, hunh?" said Jack. "How long have you been here, Nate?"
"No idea, really," replied Nate. "A long time. It never occurred to me to count years, until recently, and by then, of course, it was too late. But I do remember when this whole place was green, so I figure it's been thousands of years, at least."
"So, are you the snake that tempted Eve?" said Jack.
"Beats me," said Nate. "Maybe. I can't remember if the first one of your kind that I talked to was female or not, and I never got a name, but it could have been. And I suppose she could have considered my offer to grant requests a 'temptation', though I've rarely had refusals."
"Well, umm, how did you get here then? And why is that white pole stuck out of the stone there?" asked Jack.
"Dad left me here. Or, I assume it was my dad. It was another snake - much bigger than I was back then. I remember talking to him, but I don't remember if it was in a language, or just kind of understanding what he wanted. But one day, he brought me to this stone, told me about it, and asked me to do something for him. I talked it over with him for a while, then agreed. I've been here ever since.
"What is this place?" said Jack. "And what did he ask you to do?"
"Well, you see this pole here, sticking out of the stone?" Nate loosened his coils around the tilted white pole and showed Jack where it descended into the stone. The pole was tilted at about a 45 degree angle and seemed to enter the stone in an eighteen inch slot cut into the stone. Jack leaned over and looked. The slot was dark and the pole went down into it as far as Jack could see in the dim light. Jack reached out to touch the pole, but Nate was suddenly there in the way.
"You can't touch that yet, Jack," said Nate.
"Why not?" asked Jack.
"I haven't explained it to you yet," replied Nate.
"Well, it kinda looks like a lever or something," said Jack. "You'd push it that way, and it would move in the slot."
"Yep, that's what it is," replied Nate.
"What does it do?" asked Jack. "End the world?"
"Oh, no," said Nate. "Nothing that drastic. It just ends humanity. I call it 'The Lever of Doom'." For the last few words Nate had used a deeper, ringing voice. He tried to look serious for a few seconds, and then gave up and grinned.
Jack was initially startled by Nate's pronouncement, but when Nate grinned Jack laughed. "Ha! You almost had me fooled for a second there. What does it really do?"
"Oh, it really ends humanity, like I said," smirked Nate. "I just thought the voice I used was funny, didn't you?"
Nate continued to grin.
"A lever to end humanity?" asked Jack. "What in the world is that for? Why would anyone need to end humanity?"
"Well," replied Nate, "I get the idea that maybe humanity was an experiment. Or maybe the Big Guy just thought, that if humanity started going really bad, there should be a way to end it. I'm not really sure. All I know are the rules, and the guesses that Samuel and I had about why it's here. I didn't think to ask back when I started here."
"Rules? What rules?" asked Jack.
"The rules are that I can't tell anybody about it or let them touch it unless they agree to be bound to secrecy by a bite. And that only one human can be bound in that way at a time. That's it." explained Nate.
Jack looked somewhat shocked. "You mean that I could pull the lever now? You'd let me end humanity?"
"Yep," replied Nate, "if you want to." Nate looked at Jack carefully. "Do you want to, Jack?"
"Umm, no." said Jack, stepping a little further back from the lever. "Why in the world would anyone want to end humanity? It'd take a psychotic to want that! Or worse, a suicidal psychotic, because it would kill him too, wouldn't it?"
"Yep," replied Nate, "being as he'd be human too."
"Has anyone ever seriously considered it?" asked Jack. "Any of those bound to secrecy, that is?"
"Well, of course, I think they've all seriously considered it at one time or another. Being given that kind of responsibility makes you sit down and think, or so I'm told. Samuel considered it several times. He'd often get disgusted with humanity, come out here, and just hold the lever for a while. But he never pulled it. Or you wouldn't be here." Nate grinned some more.
Jack sat down, well back from the lever. He looked thoughtful and puzzled at the same time. After a bit, he said, "So this makes me the Judge of humanity? I get to decide whether they keep going or just end? Me?"
"That seems to be it," agreed Nate.
"What kind of criteria do I use to decide?" said Jack. "How do I make this decision? Am I supposed to decide if they're good? Or too many of them are bad? Or that they're going the wrong way? Is there a set of rules for that?"
"Nope," replied Nate. "You pretty much just have to decide on your own. It's up to you, however you want to decide it. I guess that you're just supposed to know."
"But what if I get mad at someone? Or some girl dumps me and I feel horrible? Couldn't I make a mistake? How do I know that I won't screw up?" protested Jack.
Nate gave his kind of snake-like shrug again. "You don't. You just have to try your best, Jack."
Jack sat there for a while, staring off into the desert that was rapidly getting dark, chewing on a fingernail.
Suddenly, Jack turned around and looked at the snake. "Nate, was Samuel the one bound to this before me?"
"Yep," replied Nate. "He was a good guy. Talked to me a lot. Taught me to read and brought me books. I think I still have a good pile of them buried in the sand around here somewhere. I still miss him. He died a few months ago."
"Sounds like a good guy," agreed Jack. "How did he handle this, when you first told him. What did he do?"
"Well," said Nate, "he sat down for a while, thought about it for a bit, and then asked me some questions, much like you're doing."
"What did he ask you, if you're allowed to tell me?" asked Jack.
"He asked me about the third request," replied Nate.
"Aha!" It was Jack's turn to grin. "And what did you tell him?"
"I told him the rules for the third request. That to get the third request you have to agree to this whole thing. That if it ever comes to the point that you really think that humanity should be ended, that you'll come here and end it. You won't avoid it, and you won't wimp out." Nate looked serious again. "And you'll be bound to do it too, Jack."
"Hmmm." Jack looked back out into the darkness for a while.
Nate watched him, waiting.
"Nate," continued Jack, quietly, eventually. "What did Samuel ask for with his third request?"
Nate sounded like he was grinning again as he replied, also quietly, "Wisdom, Jack. He asked for wisdom. As much as I could give him."
"Ok," said Jack, suddenly, standing up and facing away from Nate, "give it to me.
Nate looked at Jack's backside. "Give you what, Jack?"
"Give me that wisdom. The same stuff that Samuel asked for. If it helped him, maybe it'll help me too." Jack turned his head to look back over his shoulder at Nate. "It did help him, right?"
"He said it did," replied Nate. "But he seemed a little quieter afterward. Like he had a lot to think about."
"Well, yeah, I can see that," said Jack. "So, give it to me." Jack turned to face away from Nate again, bent over slightly and tensed up.
Nate watched Jack tense up with a little exasperation. If he bit Jack now, Jack would likely jump out of his skin and maybe hurt them both.
"You remember that you'll be bound to destroy humanity if it ever looks like it needs it, right Jack?" asked Nate, shifting position.
"Yeah, yeah, I got that," replied Jack, eyes squeezed tightly shut and body tense, not noticing the change in direction of Nate's voice.
"And," continued Nate, from his new position, "do you remember that you'll turn bright purple, and grow big horns and extra eyes?"
"Yeah, yeah...Hey, wait a minute!" said Jack, opening his eyes, straightening up and turning around. "Purple?!" He didn't see Nate there. With the moonlight Jack could see that the lever extended up from its slot in the rock without the snake wrapped around it.
Jack heard, from behind him, Nate's "Just Kidding!" right before he felt the now familiar piercing pain, this time in the other buttock.
Jack sat on the edge of the dark stone in the rapidly cooling air, his feet extending out into the sand. He stared out into the darkness, listening to the wind stir the sand, occasionally rubbing his butt where he'd been recently bitten.
Nate had left for a little while, had come back with a desert-rodent-shaped bulge somewhere in his middle, and was now wrapped back around the lever, his tongue flicking out into the desert night's air the only sign that he was still awake.
Occasionally Jack, with his toes absentmindedly digging in the sand while he thought, would ask Nate a question without turning around.
"Nate, do accidents count?"
Nate lifted his head a little bit. "What do you mean, Jack?"
Jack tilted his head back like he was looking at the stars. "You know, accidents. If I accidentally fall on the lever, without meaning to, does that still wipe out humanity?"
"Yeah, I'm pretty sure it does, Jack. I'd suggest you be careful about that if you start feeling wobbly," said Nate with some amusement.
A little later - "Does it have to be me that pulls the lever?" asked Jack.
"That's the rule, Jack. Nobody else can pull it," answered Nate.
"No," Jack shook his head, "I meant does it have to be my hand? Could I pull the lever with a rope tied around it? Or push it with a stick? Or throw a rock?"
"Yes, those should work," replied Nate. "Though I'm not sure how complicated you could get. Samuel thought about trying to build some kind of remote control for it once, but gave it up. Everything he'd build would be gone by the next sunrise, if it was touching the stone, or over it. I told him that in the past others that had been bound had tried to bury the lever so they wouldn't be tempted to pull it, but every time the stones or sand or whatever had disappeared."
"Wow," said Jack, "Cool." Jack leaned back until only his elbows kept him off of the stone and looked up into the sky.
"Nate, how long did Samuel live? One of his wishes was for health too, right?" asked Jack.
"Yes," replied Nate, "it was. He lived 167 years, Jack."
"Wow, 167 years. That's almost 140 more years I'll live if I live as long. Do you know what he died of, Nate?"
"He died of getting tired of living, Jack," Nate said, sounding somewhat sad.
Jack turned his head to look at Nate in the starlight.
Nate looked back. "Samuel knew he wasn't going to be able to stay in society. He figured that they'd eventually see him still alive and start questioning it, so he decided that he'd have to disappear after a while. He faked his death once, but changed his mind - he decided it was too early and he could stay for a little longer. He wasn't very fond of mankind, but he liked the attention. Most of the time, anyway.
"His daughter and then his wife dying almost did him in though. He didn't stay in society much longer after that. He eventually came out here to spend time talking to me and thinking about pulling the lever. A few months ago he told me he'd had enough. It was his time."
"And then he just died?" asked Jack.
Nate shook his head a little. "He made his fourth request, Jack. There's only one thing you can ask for the fourth request. The last bite.
After a bit Nate continued, "He told me that he was tired, that it was his time. He reassured me that someone new would show up soon, like they always had.
After another pause, Nate finished, "Samuel's body disappeared off the stone with the sunrise."
Jack lay back down and looked at the sky, leaving Nate alone with his memories. It was a long time until Jack's breathing evened out into sleep.
Jack woke with the sunrise the next morning. He was a little chilled with the morning desert air, but overall was feeling pretty good. Well, except that his stomach was grumbling and he wasn't willing to eat raw desert rat.
So, after getting directions to town from Nate, making sure he knew how to get back, and reassuring Nate that he'd be back soon, Jack started the long walk back to town. With his new health and Nate's good directions, he made it back easily.
Jack caught a bus back to the city, and showed up for work the next day, little worse for the wear and with a story about getting lost in the desert and walking back out. Within a couple of days Jack had talked a friend with a tow truck into going back out into the desert with him to fetch the SUV. They found it after a couple of hours of searching and towed it back without incident. Jack was careful not to even look in the direction of Nate's lever, though their path back didn't come within sight of it.
Before the next weekend, Jack had gone to a couple of stores, including a book store, and had gotten his SUV back from the mechanic, with a warning to avoid any more joyriding in the desert. On Saturday, Jack headed back to see Nate.
Jack parked a little way out of the small town near Nate, loaded up his new backpack with camping gear and the things he was bringing for Nate, and then started walking. He figured that walking would leave the least trail, and he knew that while not many people camped in the desert, it wasn't unheard of, and shouldn't really raise suspicions.
Jack had brought more books for Nate - recent books, magazines, newspapers. Some things that would catch Nate up with what was happening in the world, others that were just good books to read. He spent the weekend with Nate, and then headed out again, telling Nate that he'd be back again soon, but that he had things to do first.
Over four months later Jack was back to see Nate again. This time he brought a laptop with him - a specially modified laptop. It had a solar recharger, special filters and seals to keep out the sand, a satellite link-up, and a special keyboard and joystick that Jack hoped that a fifteen-foot rattlesnake would be able to use. And, it had been hacked to not give out its location to the satellite.
After that Jack could e-mail Nate to keep in touch, but still visited him fairly regularly - at least once or twice a year.
After the first year, Jack quit his job. For some reason, with the wisdom he'd been given, and the knowledge that he could live for over 150 years, working in a nine to five job for someone else didn't seem that worthwhile any more. Jack went back to school.
Eventually, Jack started writing. Perhaps because of the wisdom, or perhaps because of his new perspective, he wrote well. People liked what he wrote, and he became well known for it. After a time, Jack bought an RV and started traveling around the country for book signings and readings.
But, he still remembered to drop by and visit Nate occasionally.
On one of the visits Nate seemed quieter than usual. Not that Nate had been a fountain of joy lately. Jack's best guess was that Nate was still missing Samuel, and though Jack had tried, he still hadn't been able to replace Samuel in Nate's eyes. Nate had been getting quieter each visit. But on this visit Nate didn't even speak when Jack walked up to the lever. He nodded at Jack, and then went back to staring into the desert. Jack, respecting Nate's silence, sat down and waited.
After a few minutes, Nate spoke. "Jack, I have someone to introduce you to."
Jack looked surprised. "Someone to introduce me to?" Jack looked around, and then looked carefully back at Nate. "This something to do with the Big Guy?
"No, no," replied Nate. "This is more personal. I want you to meet my son." Nate looked over at the nearest sand dune. "Sammy!"
Jack watched as a four foot long desert rattlesnake crawled from behind the dune and up to the stone base of the lever.
"Yo, Jack," said the new, much smaller snake.
"Yo, Sammy" replied Jack. Jack looked at Nate. "Named after Samuel, I assume?"
Nate nodded. "Jack, I've got a favor to ask you. Could you show Sammy around for me?" Nate unwrapped himself from the lever and slithered over to the edge of the stone and looked across the sands. "When Samuel first told me about the world, and brought me books and pictures, I wished that I could go see it. I wanted to see the great forests, the canyons, the cities, even the other deserts, to see if they felt and smelled the same. I want my son to have that chance - to see the world. Before he becomes bound here like I have been.
"He's seen it in pictures, over the computer that you brought me. But I hear that it's not the same. That being there is different. I want him to have that. Think you can do that for me, Jack?"
Jack nodded. This was obviously very important to Nate, so Jack didn't even joke about taking a talking rattlesnake out to see the world. "Yeah, I can do that for you, Nate. Is that all you need?" Jack could sense that was something more.
Nate looked at Sammy. Sammy looked back at Nate for a second and then said, "Oh, yeah. Ummm, I've gotta go pack. Back in a little bit Jack. Nice to meet ya!" Sammy slithered back over the dune and out of sight.
Nate watched Sammy disappear and then looked back at Jack. "Jack, this is my first son. My first offspring through all the years. You don't even want to know what it took for me to find a mate." Nate grinned to himself. "But anyway, I had a son for a reason. I'm tired. I'm ready for it to be over. I needed a replacement."
Jack considered this for a minute. "So, you're ready to come see the world, and you wanted him to watch the lever while you were gone?"
Nate shook his head. "No, Jack - you're a better guesser than that. You've already figured out - I'm bound here - there's only one way for me to leave here. And I'm ready. It's my time to die."
Jack looked more closely at Nate. He could tell Nate had thought about this - probably for quite a while. Jack had trouble imagining what it would be like to be as old as Nate, but Jack could already tell that in another hundred or two hundred years, he might be getting tired of life himself. Jack could understand Samuel's decision, and now Nate's. So, all Jack said was, "What do you want me to do?"
Nate nodded. "Thanks, Jack. I only want two things. One - show Sammy around the world - let him get his fill of it, until he's ready to come back here and take over. Two - give me the fourth request.
"I can't just decide to die, not any more than you can. I won't even die of old age like you eventually will, even though it'll be a long time from now. I need to be killed. Once Sammy is back here, ready to take over, I'll be able to die. And I need you to kill me.
"I've even thought about how. Poisons and other drugs won't work on me. And I've seen pictures of snakes that were shot - some of them live for days, so that's out too. So, I want you to bring back a sword.
Nate turned away to look back to the dune that Sammy had gone behind. "I'd say an axe, but that's somewhat undignified - putting my head on the ground or a chopping block like that. No, I like a sword. A time-honored way of going out. A dignified way to die. And, most importantly, it should work, even on me.
"You willing to do that for me, Jack?" Nate turned back to look at Jack.
"Yeah, Nate," replied Jack solemnly, "I think I can handle that."
Nate nodded. "Good!" He turned back toward the dune and shouted, "Sammy! Jack's about ready to leave!" Then quietly, "Thanks, Jack."
Jack didn't have anything to say to that, so he waited for Sammy to make it back to the lever, nodded to him, nodded a final time to Nate, and then headed into the desert with Sammy following.
Over the next several years Sammy and Jack kept in touch with Nate through e-mail as they went about their adventures. They made a goal of visiting every country in the world, and did a respectable job of it. Sammy had a natural gift for languages, as Jack expected he would, and even ended up acting as a translator for Jack in a few of the countries. Jack managed to keep the talking rattlesnake hidden, even so, and by the time they were nearing the end of their tour of countries, Sammy had only been spotted a few times. While there were several people that had seen enough to startle them greatly, nobody had enough evidence to prove anything, and while a few wild rumors and stories followed Jack and Sammy around, nothing ever hit the newspapers or the public in general.
When they finished the tour of countries, Jack suggested that they try some undersea diving. They did. And spelunking. They did that too. Sammy finally drew the line at visiting Antarctica. He'd come to realize that Jack was stalling. After talking to his Dad about it over e-mail, he figured out that Jack probably didn't want to have to kill Nate. Nate told Sammy that humans could be squeamish about killing friends and acquaintances.
So, Sammy eventually put his tail down (as he didn't have a foot) and told Jack that it was time - he was ready to go back and take up his duties from his dad. Jack, delayed it a little more by insisting that they go back to Japan and buy an appropriate sword. He even stretched it a little more by getting lessons in how to use the sword. But, eventually, he'd learned as much as he was likely to without dedicating his life to it, and was definitely competent enough to take the head off of a snake. It was time to head back and see Nate.
When they got back to the US, Jack got the old RV out of storage where he and Sammy had left it after their tour of the fifty states, he loaded up Sammy and the sword, and they headed for the desert.
When they got to the small town that Jack had been trying to find those years ago when he'd met Nate, Jack was in a funk. He didn't really feel like walking all of the way out there. Not only that, but he'd forgotten to figure the travel time correctly, and it was late afternoon. They'd either have to spend the night in town and walk out tomorrow, or walk in the dark.
As Jack was afraid that if he waited one more night he might lose his resolve, he decided that he'd go ahead and drive the RV out there. It was only going to be this once, and Jack would go back and cover the tracks afterward. They ought to be able to make it out there by nightfall if they drove, and then they could get it over tonight.
Jack told Sammy to e-mail Nate that they were coming as he drove out of sight of the town on the road. They then pulled off the road and headed out into the desert.
Everything went well, until they got to the sand dunes. Jack had been nursing the RV along the whole time, over the rocks, through the creek beds, revving the engine the few times they almost got stuck. When they came to the dunes, Jack didn't really think about it, he just downshifted and headed up the first one. By the third dune, Jack started to regret that he'd decided to try driving on the sand. The RV was fishtailling and losing traction. Jack was having to work it up each dune slowly and was trying to keep from losing control each time they came over the top and slid down the other side. Sammy had come up to sit in the passenger seat, coiled up and laughing at Jack's driving.
As they came over the top of the fourth dune, the biggest one yet, Jack saw that this was the final dune - the stone, the lever, and somewhere Nate, waited below. Jack put on the brakes, but he'd gone a little too far. The RV started slipping down the other side.
Jack tried turning the wheel, but he didn't have enough traction. He pumped the brakes - no response. They started sliding down the hill, faster and faster.
Jack felt a shock go through him as he suddenly realized that they were heading for the lever. He looked down - the RV was directly on course for it. If Jack didn't do something, the RV would hit it. He was about to end humanity.
Jack steered more frantically, trying to get traction. It still wasn't working. The dune was too steep, and the sand too loose. In a split second, Jack realized that his only chance would be once he hit the stone around the lever - he should have traction on the stone for just a second before he hit the lever - he wouldn't have time to stop, but he should be able to steer away.
Jack took a better grip on the steering wheel and tried to turn the RV a little bit - every little bit would help. He'd have to time his turn just right.
The RV got to the bottom of the dune, sliding at an amazing speed in the sand. Just before they reached the stone Jack looked across it to check that they were still heading for the lever. They were. But Jack noticed something else that he hadn't seen from the top of the dune. Nate wasn't wrapped around the lever. He was off to the side of the lever, but still on the stone, waiting for them. The problem was, he was waiting on the same side of the lever that Jack had picked to steer towards to avoid the lever. The RV was already starting to drift that way a little in its mad rush across the sand and there was no way that Jack was going to be able to go around the lever to the other side.
Jack had an instant of realization. He was either going to have to hit the lever, or run over Nate. He glanced over at Sammy and saw that Sammy realized the same thing.
Jack took a firmer grip on the steering wheel as the RV ran up on the stone. Shouting to Sammy as he pulled the steering wheel, "Better Nate than lever!", he ran over the snake.
THE END
submitted by moe_master to copypasta [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 04:24 hashtagjlove Parents' probate is taking way too long and I'm getting frustrated

I just need some confirmation or maybe some relatable anecdotes about a pretty sad situation I'm dealing with because it's causing me major anxiety and I have no idea how to approach it and idk maybe I just need to vent and idk a more appropriate place for this post. I tried the AITA subreddit but it kept deleting my post.
So to set the stage; 2021 was an awful year for my family. Shortly before the pandemic my father was diagnosed with cancer of the mouth from his lifelong dipping tobacco habit. He was going through that while the pandemic took hold and not long into it my stepmother began to lose balance a lot and would fall and not be able to get back up frequently. My dad underwent treatment and went into remission very briefly before having to go back for a skin graft while my stepmom would slowly become wheelchair bound. Then in March of 2021 my dad went to the hospital for shortness of breath. The doctors put him into a medically induced coma to run tests, and the next day my stepmom had to go to the hospital for major stomach pain (bowel obstruction from the wheelchair). I lived in FL at the time, they lived in TX. I flew out and found that my dad had a mess of chest/heart/lung complications related to his cancer and the only options were hospice or numerous surgeries for a very long shot with lots of suffering so me, my stepsister, brother in law and her children all had to go to my stepmom's room across town and first explain the situation to her which crushed us, then she and I had to sit down and make the decision to let him go into hospice peacefully and we managed to get her to his hospital to say goodbye and I flew out shortly after. I flew back into town for my dad's funeral, my mom was now starting to lose her voice and upper body strength. I fly home, a few weeks later mom is back in the hospital and I get the call from my sister who also told me one of her sons had passed shortly after she went in and I got to fly in to town to see mom and we had to tell her as a family about my nephew which was heartbreaking. Another month goes by, we finally get mom's diagnosis: ALS (Lou Gehrig's Disease). By this time she has to be on a respirator and I'm flying into Texas every few weeks to visit her but she eventually became unresponsive in September and we had to let her pass, too, and to cap it off it happened on my dad's birthday. I flew back shortly after to scatter her ashes on the beach (which she made sure all of us knew she wanted before she lost her voice, she didn't want us to not know like we went through with dad). So to recap, Dad passes in March, nephew passes in June, Mom passes in September. I lost my parents and a nephew inside of six months. My biological mother is still alive and I've become a little worrisome about her now but still it was the hardest year of my life.
​
After the worst year our family ever experienced I just wanted some time to process it all and grieve and I'm glad to say I'm at a point where I'll catch a glimpse of something that reminds me of them and I'll just think of whatever memory is attached to it for a minute and smile, though the anniversaries are still hard. Thank you for sticking with me so far. So during that time the process of probate was going on but I didn't much care about that, I just wanted to grieve and see my other nephew get married last year which was beautiful but..
​
It's almost two years now since mom passed away. She named my brother in law as the executor of her will. I think he was the best choice bc he would be the one to get things done and stand up to my stepbrother who was kind of the black sheep of the family (long story) but still thinks he should have been the executor. He's started a few fights over it. Anyway, about a year ago I had managed to move past the grieving process and it felt like my sister and BIL had, too. We've grown a lot closer over this time so I didn't want to ask about probate besides keeping up with how my parents' house is holding up (and retrieving a wooden chest I had made in high school that mom cherished and my dad's ring that my mom left to me) because I trust them. I also feel like asking about money after someone has passed is in poor taste.. but like I said we're almost two years past that now.
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My mom left me, my stepsister and brother in law equal portions of her estate after the specific things like furniture, jewelry etc, and a small portion to my stepbrother. I haven't heard anything about that and until recently I was content to let it be bc I wasn't the only one that had a really hard time with so much loss so suddenly but the house hasn't even been listed for sale. I've tried asking what's going on with it, it seems there's a plumbing issue that needs to be addressed but the house is an hour and a half from their house so scheduling is hard. I get it but... stepsis doesn't work. She has health issues that slow her down but nothing that stops her from taking a day to go to the house to meet a plumber. Mom left her car to her so she definitely has her own transportation and she can do exactly what she does at home.. at mom and dad's house. She smokes cigarettes and does puzzles on her porch. She can bring her dogs for company. I don't understand how this plumbing issue has held things up for at least two months. I've tried suggesting ways to have someone meet the plumber and alert her so she can drive to the house (neighbor, friends, someone from the law office). The last option kind of put a little unwanted intrusive thought into my head, though. When I suggested just having someone from the law office as a throwaway bc I'm getting a little frustrated my sister told me "Oh, the lawyer's job was done a long time ago."
​
What does that mean? Sister had to let me go before I could ask, claiming she had to go to the doctor for a possible infection (which is was but she's fine now). I haven't called since then because I'm more than a little frustrated after that last conversation. I'm assuming it means all my parents' debts have been paid, all insurance policies have been collected, savings/retirement accounts have been consolidated etc. The only thing that appears to be left is the house. That's a monthly mortgage payment, insurance, possibly utilities and probably the car. I'm not going to lie, I have thought about what I might do with my inheritance. Nothing concrete but I've considered using it for a house or to get some training to switch careers and I'm in no immediate rush to get it but my main issue is how in the dark I feel. Stepsis and brother in law have since bought their first house and have done extensive renovations to it. I'm willing to give them the benefit of the doubt bc BIL had been promoted at work shortly before everything happened and they were looking at houses.. but I'm not unconvinced their budget didn't get bigger? Like I don't think they're spending my portion of the inheritance... but it's a bad look isn't it? They're the only family I have left on my dad/stepmom's side and I don't want to cause tension with accusations but I don't even know how much the estate was. I'm still paying off the flights, rental car and hotel bills from all the trips to Texas. I have severe PTSD and chronic anxiety diagnoses and piling this on top has been keeping me up at night for a year now. WIBTA if I called the probate lawyer and asked to see all the statements? Is this normal?
submitted by hashtagjlove to venting [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 04:17 aCrabRangoon Cannondale Compact Neo vs COOP E1.2 ?

Hiya,
We're e-bike newbs but my wife test rode a Cannondale Neo Allroad + Adventure 4 Neo, a Tern GSD, and a COOP E1.2 and she liked the COOP on 20" wheels the best.
I had planned to order a Cannondale Compact Neo, but it seems none anywhere around here are available for demo or inbound. In the event any of you have tried the two of them, I'd appreciate some comparative input. If you're more bike knowledgeable than me (you probably are, I promise) I'd also like to know how they stack up on paper per specs?
TBH the COOP options are $1198-1518 on sale this weekend, plus a $300 rebate from our city. The Cannondale is $1900 plus $600 rebate from my city.
P.S. other brands of bike are not really under consideration- we live under 2 miles from REI and purchasing either model from them is ideal for warranty / repairs.
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2023.05.28 03:54 FatCh3z Did the dealership F me?

https://imgur.com/a/bnV7SUq
Did a trade down to lower my DTI to purchase land towards the end of the year. They offered me more than my pay off amount for my vehicle ($37k). This was on May 2nd. I left with a truck and left my car there. My bank gave the Dealership my 14 day pay off (I put 3.5k down and the difference of pay off vs my appraisal was going towards truck). I called my bank from my cellphone and the sales manager dealt with my bank on speaker phone. Well today I got a notification from bank that my loan was denied due to dealership taking 20+ days to send pay off check. Financial advisor at dealership isn't there until Monday. Bank stated I'll have to reapply for loan which will result in another hard pull. I was looking through my papers from dealership, the 2nd paper on the link, when it came up, the sales manager said not to worry about it because something about them offering me $37k and it reflects on the first document. I'm so stressed over all this, especially having to wait until Monday to see if there's a resolution. When I was talking with bank about loan amount after dealership talked to my bank, i wouldve financed around 14k through my bank (between down payment and the difference in the 37k vs payoff brought truck price down to under 13k.)
submitted by FatCh3z to askcarsales [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 03:46 longbeachlocale 🚨 City Council • June 6, 2023 • 5:00 PM 🚨

🗓 Date: June 6, 2023 @ 5PM
🗺 Location: Long Beach Civic Center 411 W. Ocean Boulevard
📺 LiveStream (YouTube): https://www.youtube.com/c/LongBeachTelevision
📺 Live Stream (City Website): https://longbeach.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=84
ℹ️ Details: https://longbeach.legistar.com/MeetingDetail.aspx?ID=1105633&GUID=B4766DE1-9B6A-41D5-A545-7D151BE969EC&Options=info&Search=
📄 Agenda (PDF): https://longbeach.legistar.com/View.ashx?M=A&ID=1105633&GUID=B4766DE1-9B6A-41D5-A545-7D151BE969EC
🗣eComment: https://longbeach.granicusideas.com/meetings/4014-city-council-on-2023-06-06/agenda_items

Agenda Item

CD4 - Funds Transfer for Partners of Parks

Item #1 • File #23-0553 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to increase appropriations in the General Fund Group in the City Manager Department by $200, offset by the Fourth Council District One-time District Priority Funds transferred from the Citywide Activities Department to provide support to Partners of Parks for their Long Beach Charity ProAm event; and Decrease appropriations in the General Fund Group in the Citywide Activities Department by $200 to offset a transfer to the City Manager Department.

CD4 - Funds Transfer for LGBTQ Center Long Beach

Item #2 • File #23-0554 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to increase appropriations in the General Fund Group in the City Manager Department by $500, offset by the Fourth Council District One-time District Priority Funds transferred from the Citywide Activities Department to provide a contribution to The LGBTQ Center Long Beach in support of their Black & White Ball 2023; and Decrease appropriations in the General Fund Group in the Citywide Activities Department by $500 to offset a transfer to the City Manager Department.

CD4 - Funds Transfer for Wild West Women, Inc

Item #3 • File #23-0555 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to increase appropriations in the General Fund Group in the City Manager Department by $500, offset by the Fourth Council District One-time District Priority Funds transferred from the Citywide Activities Department to provide support to Wild West Women, Inc for their inaugural Long Beach Woman’s Fair; and Decrease appropriations in the General Fund Group in the Citywide Activities Department by $500 to offset a transfer to the City Manager Department.

CD5 - Funds Transfer to Support Community Events

Item #4 • File #23-0556 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to increase appropriations in the General Fund Group in the City Manager Department by $2,000, offset by the Fifth Council District One-Time District Priority Funds transferred from the Citywide Activities Department to provide a contribution to: · $500 to Partners of Parks in support of the Long Beach Juneteenth Celebration; · $1,000 to support the Uptown Jazz Festival; · $500 to the Long Beach Century Club in support of the Mayor’s Trophy Charity Golf Tournament; and Decrease appropriations in the General Fund Group in the Citywide Activities Department by $2,000 to offset a transfer to the City Manager Department.

CD4 - Funds Transfer for Rancho Los Alamitos Foundation

Item #5 • File #23-0562 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to increase appropriations in the General Fund Group in the City Manager Department by $2,000, offset by the Fourth Council District One-time District Priority Funds transferred from the Citywide Activities Department to provide a contribution to Rancho Los Alamitos Foundation in support of their Summer Concert Series; and Decrease appropriations in the General Fund Group in the Citywide Activities Department by $2,000 to offset a transfer to the City Manager Department.

CD4 - Funds Transfer for Long Beach Century Club

Item #6 • File #23-0561 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to increase appropriations in the General Fund Group in the City Manager Department by $500, offset by the Fourth Council District One-time District Priority Funds transferred from the Citywide Activities Department to provide support to the Long Beach Century Club for their Mayor’s Trophy Charity Golf Tournament; and Decrease appropriations in the General Fund Group in the Citywide Activities Department by $500 to offset a transfer to the City Manager Department.

Arcelia Delgado

Item #7 • File #23-0552 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to authorize City Attorney to submit Stipulations with Request for Award for approval by the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board, and if so approved, authority to pay $169,300.13 for Stipulations with Request for Award with a life pension thereafter of $170.04 subject to COLA increases per week in compliance with the Appeals Board Order for Arcelia Delgado. The City of Long Beach is entitled to credit for payments previously paid in the amount of $69,532.31.

Michael Hannan

Item #8 • File #23-0551 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to authorize City Attorney to submit Stipulations with Request for Award for approval by the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board, and if so approved, authority to pay $104,182.50 in compliance with the Appeals Board Order for Michael Hannan.

CA - Kayla Jentes

Item #9 • File #23-0557 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to authorize City Attorney to pay sum of $200,000, in full settlement of a lawsuit entitled Kayla Jentes, et al. v. City of Long Beach, et al., Los Angeles Superior Court Case No. 20STCV29354.

CA - Joel Reyes

Item #10 • File #23-0558 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to authorize City Attorney to pay sum of $399,000, in full settlement of a lawsuit entitled Joel Reyes, et al. v. City of Long Beach, Los Angeles Superior Court Case No. BC703737.

Martin Romo

Item #11 • File #23-0549 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to authorize the City Attorney to submit two Stipulations with Request for Award for approval by the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board, and if so approved, authority to pay 1) $17,545.00, and also 2) separate authority to pay $72,500.00 in compliance with the Appeals Board Order for Martin Romo.

Mario Talavera

Item #12 • File #23-0550 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to authorize the City Attorney to submit two Stipulations with Request for Award for approval by the Workers’ Compensation Appeals Board, and if so approved, authority to pay 1) $27,695.00, and also 2) separate authority to pay $80,982.50 in compliance with the Appeals Board Order for Mario Talavera.

CC - Damage Claims

Item #13 • File #23-0547 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to refer to City Attorney damage claims received between May 15, 2023 and May 26, 2023.

CM - Federal Lobbyist RFP

Item #15 • File #23-0563 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to Adopt Specifications No. RFP CM-23-236 and award a contract to Holland & Knight, LLP, of Washington, D.C., for federal legislative representation services, in a total annual amount not to exceed $130,000, for a period of two years, with the option to renew for three additional one-year periods, at the discretion of the City Manager; and, authorize City Manager, or designee, to execute all documents necessary to enter into the contract, including any necessary subsequent amendments. (Citywide)

FM - Coastline Equip. for the purchase of a John Deere 332G skid steer

Item #17 • File #23-0566 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to adopt resolution authorizing City Manager, or designee, to execute a contract, and any necessary documents including any necessary subsequent amendments, with Bragg Investment Company, Inc., dba Coastline Equipment, a Long Beach distributor of John Deere Construction Retail Sales, of Moline, IL, for the purchase of a John Deere 332G skid steer, with related equipment and accessories, on the same terms and conditions afforded to Sourcewell, in a total amount not to exceed $153,097, inclusive of taxes and fees. (Citywide)

FM - Coastline Equip-John Deere 310P backhoe

Item #18 • File #23-0567 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to adopt resolution authorizing City Manager, or designee, to execute a contract, and any necessary documents including any necessary subsequent amendments, with Bragg Investment Company, Inc., dba Coastline Equipment, a Long Beach distributor of John Deere Construction Retail Sales, of Moline, IL, for the purchase of a John Deere 310P backhoe, with related equipment and accessories, on the same terms and conditions afforded to Sourcewell, in a total amount not to exceed $169,631, inclusive of taxes and fees. (Citywide)

Mayor - Cancellation of July 4th City Council Meeting

Item #23 • File #23-0560 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to suspend Council rule contained in Municipal Code Section 2.03.020 (B) relating to the meeting schedule of the City Council in order to cancel the City Council meeting of July 4, 2023.

PRM/PW - Capital improvements at El Dorado East Regional, El Dorado Park West, Houghton, and Stearns Parks D4,9

Item #33 • File #23-0582 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to authorize City Manager, or designee, to accept and expend grant funds from the California Department of Parks and Recreation for capital improvements at El Dorado East Regional, El Dorado Park West, Houghton, and Stearns Parks, in an amount not to exceed $15,400,000; Increase appropriations in the Capital Projects Fund Group in the Parks, Recreation and Marine Department by $342,000, offset by grant revenue; Increase appropriations in the Capital Projects Fund Group in the Parks, Recreation and Marine Department by $342,000, offset by a transfer of California Department of Parks and Recreation grant funds from the Capital Grants Fund; Increase appropriations in the Capital Projects Fund Group in the Public Works Department by $15,058,000, offset by grant revenue; and Increase appropriations in the Capital Projects Fund Group in the Public Works Department by $15,058,000, offset by a transfer of California Department of Parks and Recreation grant funds from the Capital Grants Fund. (Districts 4,9)

Resolution

CC - Destruction of Records

Item #14 • File #23-0548 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to approve the destruction of records for the Health and Human Services Department; and adopt resolution.

FM - Ray Gaskin Service for for the purchase of one Ford F-550 refuse truck

Item #16 • File #23-0565 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to adopt resolution authorizing City Manager, or designee, to execute a contract, and any necessary documents including any necessary subsequent amendments, with Ray Gaskin Service, an authorized distributor for New Way Trucks and Scranton Manufacturing Company, of Fontana, CA, for the purchase of one Ford F-550 refuse truck, with related equipment and accessories, on the same terms and conditions afforded to Sourcewell, in a total amount not to exceed $167,457, inclusive of taxes and fees. (Citywide)

FM - The Quinn Co. for the purchase of 4 Caterpillar 430 backhoe loaders

Item #19 • File #23-0568 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to adopt resolution authorizing City Manager, or designee, to execute a contract, and any necessary documents including any necessary subsequent amendments, with Caterpillar Inc., through its local dealer, Quinn Company, of City of Industry, CA, for the purchase of four Caterpillar 430 backhoe loaders, with related equipment and accessories, on the same terms and conditions afforded to Sourcewell, in a total amount not to exceed $1,016,512, inclusive of taxes and fees. (Citywide)

DS - Noise Element

Item #22 • File #23-0564 (Details, PDF)
Recommendation to receive supporting documentation into the record and conclude the public hearing; Adopt resolution approving and certifying the Environmental Impact Report EIR 03-20, State Clearinghouse No. 2019050009 and associated findings;

DS - Noise Element

Item # • File #23-0585 (Details, PDF)
Adopt resolution replacing the current Noise Element with the updated Noise Element of the Long Beach General Plan; and

ED - 702 Anaheim Shelter – LB Rescue Mission and First to Serve D3

Item #24 • File #23-0584 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to receive and file Contract No. 36576 with Long Beach Rescue Mission Foundation, Inc., a California public benefit corporation (Lessor) and the City of Long Beach (Lessee) and Contract No. 36578, a Sublease between the City of Long Beach (Sublessor) and First to Serve Ministries, Inc., a California nonprofit corporation (Sublessee), or its assignee, for approximately 17,000 rentable square feet of space at 702 West Anaheim Street, for use as an emergency shelter, made pursuant to Chapter 2.85 of the Long Beach Municipal Code (LBMC) and in response to the emergency proclaimed regarding homelessness. (District 1)

FM - Transfer of FY 23 gross operating revenue, from the Harbor Fund Group to the Tidelands Operating Fund

Item #25 • File #23-0569 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to adopt resolution requesting that the Board of Harbor Commissioners approve the transfer of 5 percent of Fiscal Year 2023 (FY 23) gross operating revenue, from the Harbor Fund Group to the Tidelands Operating Fund Group, with a true-up adjustment, if necessary, to reflect the final gross revenue amount upon issuance of the Harbor Department’s FY 23 audited financial statements. (Districts 1,2,3)

FM - Velocity Truck Centers for the purchase of 7 CNG powered Crane Carrier LNT-26 trucks

Item #26 • File #23-0572 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to adopt resolution authorizing City Manager, or designee, to execute a contract, and any necessary documents including any necessary subsequent amendments, with Los Angeles Truck Centers, LLC, dba Velocity Truck Centers, an authorized distributor of Crane Carrier trucks, of Whittier, CA, for the purchase of seven CNG powered Crane Carrier LNT-26 trucks, with New Way rear loader refuse bodies, on the same terms and conditions afforded to Sourcewell, in a total amount not to exceed $2,951,446, inclusive of taxes and fees. (Citywide)

FM - Velocity Truck Center-10 CNG Crane Carrier Roto-Pac side loader refuse trucks

Item #27 • File #23-0573 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to adopt resolution authorizing City Manager, or designee, to execute a contract, and any necessary documents including any necessary subsequent amendments, with Los Angeles Truck Centers, LLC, dba Velocity Truck Centers, of Whittier, CA, an authorized distributor of Crane Carrier trucks, for the purchase of 10 CNG Crane Carrier, Roto-Pac side loader refuse trucks, with related equipment and accessories, on the same terms and conditions afforded to Sourcewell, in a total amount not to exceed $4,765,507, inclusive of taxes and fees; and Authorize City Manager, or designee, to execute a lease-purchase agreement, and related financing documents, with Banc of America Public Capital Corp, of San Francisco, CA, for the financing of Roto-Pac refuse trucks, payable over a seven-year period at an interest rate to be determined when the agreement is executed. (Citywide)

FM/PW - Velocity Truck Center-20 CNG Crane Carrier side loader refuse trucks

Item #29 • File #23-0574 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to adopt resolution authorizing City Manager, or designee, to execute a contract, and any necessary documents including subsequent amendments, with Los Angeles Truck Centers, LLC, dba Velocity Truck Centers, of Whittier, CA, an authorized distributor of Crane Carrier trucks, for the purchase of 20 CNG Crane Carrier side loader refuse trucks, with New Way side loader refuse bodies, on the same terms and conditions afforded to Sourcewell, in a total amount not to exceed $9,322,091, inclusive of taxes and fees. (Citywide)

PRM - Reso w/LAFCO-LA for final District Boundary Map

Item #31 • File #23-0581 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to adopt resolution in support of the formation of the Lower San Gabriel River Recreation and Park District; direct City Clerk to file the resolution with the Local Area Formation Commission - Los Angeles (LAFCO-LA); and, authorize City Manager to approve the final District Boundary Map on behalf of the City. (Citywide)

PRM/DHHS - Accept grant funds for Wrigley Greenbelt and Multi-Service Center D7

Item #32 • File #23-0577 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to adopt resolution authorizing City Manager, or designee, to execute any necessary documents including subsequent amendments, to accept grant funds from the California Natural Resources Agency for capital improvements at Wrigley Greenbelt and Multi-Service Center, in an amount not to exceed $5,200,000. (District 7)

ABC License

PD - ABC License - Tacomasa D3

Item #20 • File #23-0576 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to receive and file the application of Tacomasa 1 LLC, dba Tacomasa, for an original application of an Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) license, at 4740 East 7th Street #130, submit a Public Notice of Protest to ABC, and direct City Manager to withdraw the protest if a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) or Conditional Use Permit Exemption (CUPEX) is granted. (District 3) Levine Act: Yes

PD - ABC License- Northern Café D3

Item #21 • File #23-0575 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to receive and file the application of TCRY Incorporated, dba Northern Cafe, for an original application of an Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC) license, at 4911 East 2nd Street, submit a Public Notice of Protest to ABC, and direct the City Manager to withdraw the protest if a Conditional Use Permit (CUP) or Conditional Use Permit Exemption (CUPEX) is granted. (District 3) Levine Act: Yes

Ordinance

DS - Noise Element

Item # • File #23-0586 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Declare ordinance implementing associated amendments to the Noise Ordinance, Long Beach Municipal Code Chapter 8.80, read for the first time and laid over to the next regular meeting of the City Council. (Citywide)

CM - Ordinance Amending LBMC 5.92

Item #35 • File #23-0532 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to declare ordinance amending the Long Beach Municipal Code by amending Chapter 5.92 to reinstate language related to the operation of adult-use dispensaries in mixed-used buildings in Downtown Long Beach, read and adopted as read. (Citywide)

Contract

FM - South Coast Fire Equip. for 10 Pierce Enforcer Triple Combination fire engine pumper trucks

Item #28 • File #23-0571 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to adopt Specifications No. RFP FS22-175 and award a contract to South Coast Fire Equipment, Inc., of Ontario, CA, for the purchase of nine Pierce Enforcer Triple Combination Fire Engine pumper trucks, and one Pierce Enforcer Triple Combination Rescue Engine pumper truck, with related equipment and accessories, in a total amount not to exceed $11,328,555; and, authorize City Manager, or designee, to execute all documents necessary to enter into the contract, including any necessary subsequent amendments; and Authorize City Manager, or designee, to execute a lease-purchase agreement, and related financing documents, with Banc of America Public Capital Corp, of San Francisco, CA, for the financing of fire engine pumpers, payable over a 10-year period at an interest rate to be determined when the agreement is executed. (Citywide)

PRM - Great Scott for as-needed tree trimming

Item #30 • File #23-0579 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to authorize City Manager, or designee, to execute all documents necessary to amend Contract No. 35545 with Great Scott Tree Service, Inc., of Stanton, CA, for as-needed tree trimming and removal services, to increase the annual contract amount by $1,949,030 with a 15 percent contingency in the amount of $292,355, for a revised total annual contract amount not to exceed $3,211,410. (Citywide)

PW - As-Needed Architectural Services

Item #34 • File #23-0583 (Details, PDF)
Sponsors:
Recommendation to authorize City Manager, or designee, to execute all documents necessary to amend Contract No. 33926 with Architects McDonald, Soutar & Paz, Inc., of Long Beach, CA; Contract No. 33912 with Kardent, of Long Beach, CA; Contract No. 33913 with Mary McGrath Architects, of Oakland, CA; and Contract No. 33917 with Alomar Rania, dba RA-DA, of West Hollywood, CA, for as-needed architectural services, to extend the contract terms for an additional one-year period through July 19, 2024; Authorize City Manager, or designee, to execute all documents necessary to amend Contract No. 33498 with Hirsch & Associates, Inc., of Anaheim, CA, and Contract No. 33504 with RJM Design Group, Inc., of San Juan Capistrano, CA, for as-needed landscape architectural services, to extend term the contract terms for an additional one-year period through August 1, 2024; Authorize City Manager, or designee, to execute all documents necessary to amend Agreement No. 34375 with AKM Consulting Engineers, Inc., of Irvine, CA; Agreement No. 34376 with AndersonPenna Partners, Inc., of Newport Beach
submitted by longbeachlocale to LongBeachCA [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 03:43 Intel81994 Got Scammed By Life Coach for ~7K, Marketing as Therapist with Unaccredited PhD

Am I crazy here for thinking this is highly manipulative and what he's doing is messed up?
I'm not new to the high ticket coaching world.
I understand most of it is MLMy but there are some good coaches but I feel scammed by this guy (name is Chris Bolger - name of his business is Healus Neurocoaching under PureFocus Media LLC).
I got taken advantage of by this life coach selling what appears to be some quasi MLM (All of his clients are coaches who also coach other coaches and a friend of his whom I checked with claimed that he was in fact coaching this guy for his mindset because his methods did not work and he needed help...)
My context: I was a in a very rough mental place, I was the victim of a cyberhack that led to the theft of ~80K and messed me up beyond just the immense financial stress due to the computer intrusion. Fight or flight, PTSD symptoms, flashbacks, etc.
Now unemployed currently, lost both of my jobs in Feb (had to get 2 jobs after the hack) and job market is rough right now, having tough time, panic attacks due to the pressure, applying to grad school. Anyway that's beside the point -
I suffered a serious mental health episode during his program (not blaming him for that), and I sought professional emergency help and medication.
This guy sold me 1:1 coaching - 12 sessions for $6800 but I cancelled halfway through after 6 sessions because I became suspicious I had been scammed and clear terms of the contract were not delivered.
For example call recordings and some other resources were not given. Refund clause in his contract is void due to this as well. Contract says Slack access, many other things. He did do the 1 hour calls but that's it. And the quality was subpar.
I just don't think this was worth over $560 per call...
He was on vacation on some calls, I could not hear him. He talked about himself and other clients and talked down upon respected clinical therapies and said he has some method that works better but we never really got to it.. it was all generic stuff he kept hashing.
He was NOT selling therapy or saying he was a psychologist in his contract (his contract makes clear it's not therapy and only coaching)
BUT he did charge me the money before I signed the contract and that was not mentioned on the "sales call" -
He had me pay over messenger by just sending my card details and I also paid a deposit via the phone call (it was a sales call and he mentioned he needed to hire someone for sales calls instead of him doing it, ugh).
This has been extra shameful and hurtful given the hack now that I'm out several thousands on top of that hack....
My mental health is extremely bad some days and I'm having panic attacks. I let him know all of this via email and he ignored it all.
What’s important here is he didn’t deliver a lot of what was stated and used deceptive marketing to sell something egregiously priced.
The issue here is: I partially thought he was also a licensed therapist... he has a PhD listed prominently on his LinkedIn and he has logos of all the brands he has worked with (I now think he made them up - he lists JNJ, NYU Stern, Nestle...).
I dug deeper and found out that his PhD is from an unaccredited spiritual 5013c university so it's NOT licensed/accredited and he is NOT a psychologist or therapist but only a life coach...
but the PhD is titled to sound scientific (Psychoneurology) and I believe he's doing it to seem more legit than he is.
I have since found a proper therapist who has a legitimate PhD and charges much less, with proper regulation and is MUCH better. I just feel so ashamed I fell for this and got scammed and don't know what to do. Been having serious mental health struggles and I trusted this guy and now really feel scammed.
Even services like Talkspace are like $100 a session for actual legitimate psychologist and even psychiatrists...
He refunded me half when I cancelled (gave me $3300 back) but I still don't think that's fair - it still comes out ton over $560 per session...
I emailed him several times very politely to ask for an additional $1700-2000 back so that the 6 sessions we did he still gets paid out over $300 per session or $1800 total which IMO is MORE than fair, no?
Entire thing is icky and gross to take advantage of someone struggling with mental health.
Am I being crazy here?
He ignored my emails and proceeded to instead ridicule me on his social media - didn't mention my name but made it very clear it was about me - he posted some. false things about me, told me to "man up", gaslit me into thinking it should be normal to pay high ticket for this sort of experience.
I've COACHED and consulted over 100+ high ticket business owners B2B... guarantees are commonplace now in the market - if a customer truly feels scammed you should just refund. I did this as legitimate consultancies not MLM business coaching programs.
Looking back it's clear he preys on people suffering mentally and who don't have the means to pay $6800
He told me several stories bragging almost about how he got someone scraping by to open a credit card to do his program.
When I did the chargeback, he also shared my confidential mental health struggles with Amex - a creditor - due to the dispute which I find to be insane, if a regulated therapist did that they would lose their license.
I believe this sort of service he is selling and his behavior could cause harm to vulnerable individuals.
MY OPTIONS
Not sure what to do outside of reviewing him online but don't want to get sued for libel as these fake gurus tend to do that stuff.
Write to BBB? and FTC? (did both)
Write to the State AG (he is New Jersey)?
Write to Consumer Affairs of his state and Psych board tipping them off that he might be attempting to practice regulated therapy?
His contract has an arbitration clause but I am not going to travel from FL to NJ over $3300 nor is that worth suing over... also I don't think that's fair.
I believe he is doing coaching so he can do it unregulated unlike therapy (since his PhD is fake/unaccredited and he legally cannot call himself a therapist or psychologist but is basically doing that and charging far more than any would).
I don't believe that coaches can attempt to treat PTSD and emotional distress symptoms, but sure, nothing wrong with life coaching, charge whatever you want that the market is willing to pay for you, but don't do predatory marketing and then not deliver what's in the contract.
It's fine if some executive coach with an actual client roster of CEOs charges 20k for mindset coaching, but for context I found this guy used to be a fitness trainer just a year back.
Never went to a real college. It's just a different league than the exec coach example. My therapist I have now went to Yale (not trying to be snobby) and has a PsyD. And still charges less and is super gifted.
His only testimonials are all other coaches that coach other coaches to coach coaches, and I also believe the logos he lists are fake... found a few other of his clients and uncovered that some feel the same way and regret it. Taken advantage of and brainwashed.
Only after digging did I realize it was a fake unaccredited school. The entire thing is just so disgusting, feel taken advantage of, gaslit, gross.
Basically this high ticket coaching craze took off on socials for people to scam others where people charge 10-15k for "coaching" despite being 20 years old - different when qualified people do it - but he bought into the cult a bit too hard.
submitted by Intel81994 to LifeCoachSnark [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 03:37 bluegrassatthelake Bluegrass at the Lake @ Lake Wazeecha

Bluegrass at the Lake June 8, 9 and 10. Music, food and drinks. Tickets available online or at the gate. Check us out on Facebook or at bluegrassatthelake.com It's a great family friendly music festival!
submitted by bluegrassatthelake to WisconsinRapids [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 03:19 ChiefTestPilot87 Deceptive GM Dealership

Went to a dealership today to look at a new truck. Test drove it, talked to the sales guy for a bit finally got to talking prices. Once I asked about current incentives, she went away for a bit, then came back and put a paper in front of me showing the OTD price with the current incentives and explained the breakdown. Then I asked about GM supplier pricing, she left, came back with another sheet, put both of them side by side and highlighted that their incentive price was $500 less than supplier pricing, then took the supplier pricing sheet away and acted like they were giving a great deal. Does this sound right or deceptive??
submitted by ChiefTestPilot87 to askcarsales [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 03:07 QuotaAchiever General Motors sellers - friends discounts authorization code??

I'm looking at buying a new truck and came across this "friends and family discount"
https://www.gmfamilyfirst.com/program-overview/sdff2/
I've never heard of it, neither has one of my friends who's a sales manager at a GM dealership for 20+ years.
He said he'll look into it Monday for me and see if he can get me an authorization code.
He's aware of employee pricing, family pricing, and supplier pricing....but has never heard of the "friends" part.
Is this legit? Anyone ever used it?
submitted by QuotaAchiever to askcarsales [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 02:52 goozmakappa Was I scammed by a gas station employee the other night?

So on thursday night I drove out to a house near the city because my friend and I were looking to rent it. Place ends up not being what we were looking for so we decided to go grab a bite to eat. My friend forgot his wallet and was able to use apple pay to pay for the food but he said he was worried it wouldnt work at a gas station and asked if I would meet him at a gas station in case i needed to spot him for the gas. I agreed bc I obviously didnt want to risk having my friend get stranded in the city without enough gas in his tank to drive an hour and a half back upstate where he lives. We leave the restaurant and I hop in my truck and drive to the gas station nearby. I got there a few minutes before he did and remembered I needed some windshield washer fluid so I decided to go inside and grab some.
So I walk inside, I go up to the counter where the cashier is standing, the guy asks what I need and I tell him windshield washer fluid. He proceeds to say “okay, thatll be 25 dollars”
I paused for a moment to consider what he just said. Could I have misheard him? Surely he must have said “$2.25” and my mind, exhausted from working all day, had registered it as “25 dollars”. Just to be safe, I looked up at the cashier and said “*25 dollars??” and this mf looks me dead in the eye and says “yeah”. I swiped my card, grabbed a jug of washer fluid, and left the store.
Since that night, I have been utterly fucking bewildered by what happened. I have sat at my desk at work for hours racking my mind as to how I didnt get absolutely swindled by this guy. 25 dollars for fucking windshield washer fluid, which I dont think I have ever paid more than 5 dollars for, was just such an outrageous number that I didnt think he could possibly be scamming me. And what the hell would he have to gain from this? He was working at a Circle-K and I paid with a credit card. There is no way he got a dime out of doing this. Is inflation that high? The gas station was in an expensive part of town so maybe that was literally the price of a jug of washer fluid? Was this some sort of game for him? When he gets bored at work, does he throw out absolutely insane asking prices for certain cheap products the store sells, just to see if people will actually pay for it? Was I unknowingly a subject of some fucking social psychology experiment?
Honestly, if my suspicions are correct and he managed to trick me into paying 25 dollars for a jug of washer fluid, I’m not even mad about it. He got my ass. His ability to look me dead in the eyes and tell me the cost of a blue colored jug of methanol and ethylene glycol is 25 fucking dollars deserves a certain degree of respect.
Tldr: was possibly swindled by an absolute mad man working the night shift at a gas station
submitted by goozmakappa to NoStupidQuestions [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 02:41 Lve_loutus13 I missed you today pops

I took a trip up to cross village and passed father joes cross. I sat at the resting place for about an hour I’m burnt for sure but it was so worth it. The drive was amazing that was always my favorite in that old truck all those back roads back to the city. I didn’t cry today I smiled and laughed I brought cupcakes the kids had a ball throwing rocks just being out by the water. Samuel is so big you should see him. I’ve never been so proud to have such a sweet boy. You never did get to meet paisley though I’m not sure what you would’ve said I can only imagine. I know your out there looking out for us. I’m trying hard pops my absolutes best. I’m going to follow through with my dreams I promise although I’m not sure what that means right now. I will get back to my work out routines hopefully I’ll keep pace and be healthy I’m sorry I haven’t stopped vaping I did quit smoking though not sure it much different. I wish I could go back to the days on the beach with you and grams on Memorial Day but something’s always last forever I’m just not a kid anymore I’m the one driving. Everything is different now even the swings. Soon nothing will be the same and we all learn to adapt to change.
submitted by Lve_loutus13 to UnsentLetters [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 02:39 Ornery_Wolverine_770 I’m looking for someone to fill a c32 in nation 730, the city isn’t for sale, just a filler, if you doing good with the city, you can have it. 2 condition that’s to be old player in the game and a spender as it’s gonna be c33 soon.

submitted by Ornery_Wolverine_770 to AgeofZ [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 02:35 bbqcornnuts312 Does anyone have leads on recruiters for remote jobs outside of software engineering?

Eg, for sales support, office, and admin jobs. I'm asking in this sub because it seems there's an advantage being available for something like a monthly meeting as a city resident, even if the job is 90% remote.
Linkedin has not be helpful and I've found most of my jobs through staffing agencies or recruiters. I don't know where I could find this.
(For more info, I am a sales coordinator using Salesforce for 90% of my jobs working on an admin cert, but not fully certified...unfortunately the only jobs I see that are remote are for software developers or in finance.)
Thanks in advance.
submitted by bbqcornnuts312 to NYCjobs [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 02:32 ItsTommy11 In need of Sherwin Dating Advice!!!!!

I know this post may not belong here but I would rather hear from my fellow coworkers than strangers. I just had my first date in 5 years with a part timer. I was a disaster.
So, I (29M) haven't been very lucky with the dating scene, until last week. I liked this part timer (F18) from another store for a couple of months. To my surprise, we ended up exchanging numbers after i asked for it when she called my store for a product check. We texted and she was responding to my messages although herself admitted she was a bad texter and would often left me on read, which is not a problem for me.
So, I finally had the balls to ask if she wanted to meet up. She agreed, yay! Now, I wasn't going to slack on this opportunity, it was the first date I had in 5 years, I needed to work hard on it. First of all, I made a list of possible topics to talk about based on what I knew of her. From another one of her coworkers, i heard she was really into Anime and Cosplaying. So, I decided to quickly learn the plot to the most popular animes to not be caught off guard if she asked my opinion on anything related. I also bought an amine green checkered Demon Slayer shirt wear as well. She also happened to be of Hispanic descent. I found out that there was a museum of Mexican History and got two tickets. She was also into becoming a sales rep one day so i learned much about the role to discuss it with her (I’m only a full timer lol). And finally, she seemed to be very into soccer, so I found this Mexican restaurant that usually plays soccer games on TVs where we could meet up.
The perfect date was set. We would meet for Tacos at the mexican restaurant, talk a bit about anime and the sales rep role and then head to the Mexican museum. If I got lucky, maybe a hug at the end?
I met her at the door and we went inside. The place was very nicely decorated and the TVs were blasting this game between Real Madrid and Manchester city? (I probably should’ve done my research on that). So we spend some time watching the game and talking about it. Then, enters waiter Jose (fictional name)
-“If you would like a better view of the game, come sit over here by the bar.”
-“We should totally go over by the bar” Rebecca (fictional name) said.
We went to the bar and the guy immediately started taking to rebecca. The guys procedes to start talking about games and players i’ve never heard about. He got personal to her on a personal level talking about teams from her home country, I could see the effect it had on her. She keep looking deeply at his eyes as he went on and on about soccer. I felt kind of left out, to be honest. Time went by and they're still talking, about life, relationships etc. Now I'm really bothered by all of this. So I try break it off by saying.
-“So Rebecca, do you wanna go to the Mexican history museum now? I think they might close soon..”
She smiled, looked at Jose and said:
-“Dude, you would totally love this Museum. You should totally go with us.”
And there you have it. She invited tall, handsome Jose to the museum. And he agreed. They kept talking the whole way there. At the door I pretended to take a phone call, and left saying that there was an emergency. She said that it was a bummer, but didn't seem very sad about it.
I went home and cried in the shower. I never felt so useless in my entire life. This dude just snatched my date away, and all I could do was watch it. I didn't had very high expectations for how the date would end, but holy shit.
Is there any way that I can avoid this kind of situation? Should i completely avoid talking to her over the phone at work????
UPDATE: We’re snapchatting right now and she apologized for leaving me. We’re planning a 2nd date.
submitted by ItsTommy11 to sherwinwilliams [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 02:17 Specific_Boot_8572 Milwaukee Brewers Baseball Club Inc.

To: Milwaukee Brewers Baseball Club Inc. This is a letter to describe my admiration, memories, and theories of your organization that I have been a fan of for about as long as I can recall. There’s been hard times but overall, I've enjoyed having an MLB team in my backyard. Even when the incompetent management of your organization yielded regular dismal seasons during the late 90s and into the mid-2000s I attended frequently and enjoyed the games. County Stadium had that old baseball charm and admittedly it was aged but beloved by the fans. Regardless of that, the team boldly went ahead and insisted they needed a new stadium for several reasons, but part of it was to make the Milwaukee Brewers a competitive team again. The thought of a winning team sold many people on the idea.
The new facility opened during that dark period, and the Brewers opted for the addition of several state-of-the-art features for that time including a highly touted roof that allowed games to be played during inclement weather. It could also be retracted within minutes for an outdoor baseball experience too. I remember several interesting moments involving the numerous leaks during rain showers and thunderstorms provided by the roof’s sieve-inspired construction which generally required some fans to move to other areas to avoid being deluged. In 2002 I lived on Milwaukee’s East Side, and I can still distinctly remember the synergy of excitement provided to the city from MLB and the Brewers organization from the flatulent ending of the MLB All-Star game in Milwaukee and the 100+ losses the Brewers accrued that season, it was all magic back then.
With respect to the positive features of the new stadium frequently advertised, some residents of Milwaukee, Waukesha, Ozaukee, Washington, and Racine counties who were then a few years into living with a tax bestowed on them for 23 years to provide the funding for the stadium and the needed infrastructure couldn’t help but be caught up in the moment. We are all grateful to the Brewers for providing discounted tickets to 4 of the 81 home games held per season to residents of these counties as a demonstration of the gratitude for their involuntary funding their new corporate headquarters. I operate a sole-member LLC and admittedly am a layman with respect to operating a large organization like the Brewers. I’m sure there are good reasons that it has been decided that the 5-county discount promotions do not apply toward tickets in certain sections of the stadium, parking charges, food or beverages, or any other items such as clothing, hats, etc.
I think it is general common knowledge that utilizing an immense facility will inevitably present a need for occasional maintenance, renovation, and facility upgrade projects. We all understand these upgrades are necessary for the Brewers due to the nature of the business they are part of. These projects will allow the team to remain competitive on a mediocre level and increase annual net profits by sticking with a consistent business plan revolving around demanding that the facility upgrades are to be publicly subsidized. Like your strategy in the late 1990s, the Brewers have hinted that without the Milwaukee area providing all funding, there is a possibility they will then have to offer residents in a different United States metropolitan region discounts for 4.9% of the home games held there per season as a thank you for their funding of your new facility. This will then give the Brewers another opportunity to be provided with a new multi-million-dollar corporate headquarters virtually for free, and then insufficiently maintain that facility as well.
Many businesses set funds aside incrementally to cover the costs associated with facility needs and if the situation arises where they do not have the sufficient budget to pay for these projects, they will get a business loan and pay it back to the lender via the terms of the contract. It is now evident the Brewer’s plan was to send the residents of Wisconsin another invoice with hinted threats to leave Milwaukee if they don’t pay. To your credit, that tactic worked in the past with universal enthusiasm. It had been so long that many people had moved on and forgotten about that time, so I admire the clever way the team went about stirring up all that enthusiasm once again. Not having to apply or account for expenses associated with the initial construction and renovations associated with your business site to maximize net profits is innovative. As a business owner, I had never thought to gouge and bully my clients to increase my project margins so I appreciate the different perspective.
I sense that if negotiations regarding the funding come to an impasse, the Brewers will be left with no other options but to positively market the potential creation of low-paying part-time jobs without benefits as a spin to convince another city to build them a stadium that meets their specifications. Luckily, the Brewers and the MLB have great resources to mask how lopsided a stadium deal in a new community will be and the consequences associated with full public subsidizing of private entities. It will get everyone on board to provide the Brewers with a new site equipped with 300-foot double-sided 4K scoreboards, a 400-speaker audio system, and the requisite number of bistro restaurants, distilleries, brew pubs, swimming pools, upscale shopping options, champagne and wine bars, spa centers, farmers markets, and rock-climbing walls.
I do genuinely hope the club is not forced to move due to the overwhelming greed of local governments prioritizing the use of their limited budgets towards necessary municipal services instead of covering the Brewers and their lack of willingness to save and pay for conspicuous facility renovations. Should they leave though, I'm sure the current stadium will still hold a concert or monster truck rally here and there for about a five-year period until being abandoned, stripped of any copper materials, fully vandalized, and left to rot.
In summary, the Brewers have held a special place in my life for a long time. I realize that the current lease will be in place for several more years but it makes sad to know that I will likely still end up having to experience a momentary period of sorrow when a door hits your ass on their way out of town. But I also know everything will all be OK because the moving expenses will not be paid by the team, and that thought makes me feel much better.
On behalf of the State of Wisconsin,
We’re tired of your bullying tactics and your shitty overpriced product. Pack up - but before you leave, grab a bratwurst or hot dog or Polish or whatever….and shove it far up your ass. Enough is enough. Go charge $10+ for a beer from a major brewery located in plain sight not even mile from the stadium just because you can somewhere else.
submitted by Specific_Boot_8572 to Brewers [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 02:12 False-Promotion-8654 Gotta love annual city yard sale ; 1$ each, the lady let me have it for a 5$ bill.

Gotta love annual city yard sale ; 1$ each, the lady let me have it for a 5$ bill. submitted by False-Promotion-8654 to u/False-Promotion-8654 [link] [comments]

2023.05.28 02:00 snapple-chia Lawn tickets for sale at less than face value! Salt Lake City concert on July 7th

Hello all! I have 2 lawn tickets for sale for the concert on July 7th at USANA Amphitheater. I am unable to make the show so I’m looking for someone that I could sell and transfer the tickets to. I’m selling them for $50 each or $100 total. I bought them at $118 total.
submitted by snapple-chia to FallOutBoy [link] [comments]