Chinese grocery store near me

Today the markets were all down, and so I sold all of my AMP for ENJ. ENJ was down slightly more than AMP in percentages, but I believe ENJ has more upside potential. I rode AMP from $0.054 USD, all the way down to $0.0019 It was time to move on from AMP. It was a good idea but now with some stores accepting BTC directly due to its low fee and fast transaction (thanks to the lightning network), I do not see any future use for AMP. This is my opinion, of course. All of you AMP supporters will give me the down vote and tell me why AMP is still viable. But it is not you who rode it all the way down like I did.
Good luck to you all. I hope that for your sake, I am wrong. But if I am then I will still ride my way up with another token. Long live cryptocurrency.

She said it so quietly that I barely heard her the first time.
“Sorry hun?”
She’d been chipping away on a research project all week. I was in bed reading a book and enjoying my night.
“Do you ever feel claustrophobic?” she asked again, more clearly this time, her face staring straight ahead at the computer screen.
Emily knew that I was all about clear communication - if she wanted to initiate a break-up conversation, she could say her piece plainly… and maybe make some eye contact at the very least?
“No, I can’t say that I do babe.”
She softly nodded to herself.
“Do you…?”
She stopped her scrolling for a moment. She still wouldn’t turn and look at me… but she was thinking.
“Who do you think put us here?”
Hm. She liked to wax philosophical every now and then.
“Well, I mean I can’t say for certain, but I believe that humanity reached this point through events that were way outside of our control, like, y’know, the big bang, cambrian explosion, evolution giving monkeys bigger and bigger brains, that sort of stuff. The holy trinity of chaos, time, and atoms doin’ their thing I suppose.”
She grimaced.
“I thought you’d say something like that.”
The response was a bit out of character for Emily. She was a staunch atheist, and she used the phrase “We’re all star stuff,” much more than the average person, to the point where it’d even get an eye roll out of me every now and then.
“And what’s your theory?” I asked.
She continued mindlessly scrolling away at the computer. It felt like her research was the priority, and her conversation with me was a weird aside to keep her awake. After a minute of me feeling like a piece of furniture, she spoke up again.
“My theory is… we tell ourselves this is all a cosmic accident to make ourselves feel better.”
An eye-brow raising comment from her, for sure. I know she’s the smarter half of our relationship, but… nah.
“Really? You think that accepting that everything around us is a cosmic accident is somehow soothing? You think it’s comforting to think that when we die, it’s all over?”
She continued scrolling.
“Yes.”
I shrugged.
“Well, uh, agree to disagree, I guess. I’d much prefer to live forever.”
“You’d much prefer to live forever…” she said under her breath.
I felt like she needed to take a break from her work. Maybe the stress was getting to her.
“Hey, you okay ba-”
“I think that we tell ourselves that everything is meaningless and finite, because it makes us feel like we have control. Agency. That we aren’t at the mercy of something we’ll never understand.”
“I can’t say I resonate with that, Em.”
“I think the creator leaves us hints. About what this is all about. And where it all goes.”
As she spoke, it felt like she was almost reading off of a website. I realized that I’d never asked her what her research project was about.
“When you look outside, what do you see?”
Christ. She did seem off.
“Uh, nature. I see nature, I guess,” I replied.
“What do you think of it?”
“I think it’s beautiful. Don’t you?”
She shook her head softly.
“It’s a mirage. It’s pleasing if you don’t zoom in or pay attention. If you do, it’s a system of creatures devouring each other for energy. Creating more of themselves, devouring each other, reproducing again, devouring each other: an endlessly cruel loop. Have you ever seen an animal get eaten before?”
What the fuck Em. I needed to get her out of this headspace. Something was very wrong.
“Uh, no, outside of a random Youtube video here or there, I don’t think I’ve seen an ani-”
“It’s not natural. Nothing about it looks natural. You see it, and it’s a visceral hint that this whole thing isn’t right. Nothing folds in and accepts its fate in the food chain. They all fight and claw and scream as they’re torn apart. They cry out the exact same way a human would.”
“Babe, you really shouldn’t be watching shit like–”
“Babe, you really shouldn’t be watching shit like–”
She said the words out loud just as I said them. Like she knew exactly what I was going to say. She didn’t lip-read or anything - her eyes were still straight ahead on the computer screen, her finger on the scroll wheel.
I wanted to ignore it.
“What, am I starting to get predictable?" I asked her.
She didn’t respond. But her breathing started to quicken. Short breaths in and out, reaching a frantic tempo.
I got out of bed. I ran to her and turned her chair away from the computer. We locked eyes.
“Hun, what is your research project about?”
Between her panic attack, she answered -
“Free will.”
“Free will?”
“Only one day into starting the paper, and I felt something calling to me. It all started to make sense.”
“What, what started to make sense?”
“What all of this is. What everything is. Energy, energy is-”
“God, Em, shut up about energy, we need to like get you to a hospital or someth-”
“No, look, everything is energy devouring itself, right?”
I realized that I needed to engage her to calm her down.
“Sure, yes, animals eat each other for energy. Bring home the point, hun.”
“There’s an energy inside us too. Something that can be devoured.”
“Well yeah, I mean we’re a part of the animal kingdom, so I’m sure if I ran into a lion or something it’d eat me–”
She pointed at her chest. Her heart. Something inside her.
“No. Us. The real us inside. Our soul. Our essence. There’s something out there trying to take it.”
It was clear to me she wasn’t well. I went to fetch my cell phone. I needed to get her to the hospital pronto. As I scanned the room, my eyes caught what was on her computer screen.
A website that looked very dated. Early 2000ish. Amateur-ish.
The banner of the website read: Emily’s Free Will
We were near the bottom of the page.
On the site was a script of our conversation. Right up until the words she just said: “Our soul. Our essence. There’s something out there trying to take it.”
My exclamation of “What the fuck” echoed the very words I found myself reading on the website. I scrolled up. Everything her and I had discussed moments before was on the page. Identical to the word.
I closed the website immediately. I turned the computer off shortly after as well.
I held Emily in my arms. I told her that we’d go to sleep and forget everything that happened. I told her to discard the project altogether, that a failing grade was fine, and that we just needed to bury this and put it behind us.
She disappeared a week later.
The search went on for weeks. None of us had a clue where she was. She left us with no hints on where she was going and when she was coming back. She was just… gone.
As the depression sunk in for her friends and family and the search dwindled down, I followed the one lead I had.
When I was all alone, and away from the chaos…
I went to a secluded plot of land in the middle of the night, and after a few hours of digging, I found the coffin. I opened it up, and sure enough Emily was there, decay and all. The inside walls of the coffin etched in scratch marks.
If you’re wondering how I was able to find her body, the coordinates were there on the website, right underneath the line: “Mark closed the website in disbelief, and didn’t return for weeks after Emily’s disappearance.”
Of course, this time I had to keep reading. Underneath the location of Emily’s grave, was the final line on the page.
"And soon enough, Mark would wake up to discover himself buried as well. His body would never be discovered.”
I’m still here. For now anyways. But if the moment that is written does come to pass, I ask that you look for me. I don’t want my body to go unfound.
Emily, wherever you are, I’d like to change my answer to your question.

PART 1 — The King’s Problem
The King did not know empathy.
If he saw somebody in pain, he felt nothing. If he watched a child cry, he felt nothing. And if he saw an injured bird on the road, he would press the sole of his boot on top of it without a second thought.
This was just as he governed.
The people lacked food, yet the King felt nothing. And did nothing. For in his palace, he had all the food he would ever need.
The people lacked medicine, yet the King felt nothing. And did nothing. For in his palace, he had all the medicine he would ever need.
The people lacked education, yet the King felt nothing. And did nothing. For in his palace, he had all the books and scholars he would ever need.
In his palace built entirely of solid gold, he was the most powerful King in all the land.
But the King had a problem. One thorn in his side. One little nuisance that kept him awake at night.
From nowhere, a man had appeared. His name: Rohe
Rohe spoke atop a platform in the streets to the people. He spoke of the unjust nature of The King’s rule, of the palace made of solid gold and the endless luxuries stored within it.
Rohe blamed the King for the hunger the people had suffered. And he blamed the King for the deaths of brothers, sisters, children, mothers and fathers due to the lack of medicine.
And finally, Rohe told the people to rise up against the King, storm the palace of solid gold and take back control of their food, their medicine and their land.
Worst of all, to the King’s terror, the people had begun to support Rohe. In the streets, Rohe would draw thousands of supporters. “Freedom for the people” they would chant in unison.
The King was utterly furious. How dare these low-born peasants chant such things. How dare these stupid, ignorant and inferior men even consider stealing his rightfully owned riches.
Something had to be done.
Not knowing what to do, he spoke to his 3 most trusted advisors.
The first advisor suggested he have Rohe killed.
The second advisor suggested he have Rohe thrown in jail.
The third advisor, the most cunning and mischievous of the 3, disapproved of the plans of the first 2 advisors. Killing him or throwing him in jail, he explained, would encourage the crowds still further.
Instead, he suggested something different entirely. He suggested they turn the people against Rohe.
“How?” asked the King curiously. “How can we turn the people against him”?
The third advisor adjusted the large, rounded glasses that lay on top his big, crooked nose and grew a mischievous smile. “Why the newspapers, of course.”
PART 2 — The Third Advisor
The lands had hundreds of different newspapers, but only 3 main ones, which were by far the most widely read.
The people believed these newspapers to be run by well-meaning people who aimed to tell them honestly of the goings-on throughout the world.
The truth was different.
While it was made to appear that these newspaper were run independently, they were in fact controlled by the King himself. Whenever the King needed, he could control everything that was written inside one of the 3 main newspapers.
The King granted the cunning third advisor the task of turning the people against Rohe. And so, the third advisor began his research:
To his dismay, he found Rohe to be perfect. A true hero.
Through his research, he discovered several things about Rohe:
- He had a loving wife and two young children.
- He had grown up poor and had managed to create a little bit of wealth through hard work on his farm.
- He was strong, with big, bulging muscles and a handsome face.
- On his farm worked 10 white men and 2 black men, all of whom he treated with great kindness and respect.
- He was rarely at home with his family. He was always working, helping at the local school or in the streets doing his speeches.
Upon finishing his research, a crooked smile crept upon the face of the third advisor. He adjusted his spectacles and muttered to himself.
“This is all I need…”
PART 3 — The Article
Rohe — The People’s Hero Or Attention Seeking Conspiracy Theorist?
Rising from an obscure background, Rohe the so-called “Hero” has ballooned in popularity in recent months. Everywhere he goes, commotion follows; drawing crowds of thousands of worshipping fans who hang on every word he says.
He has been reported bellowing his ideology in Lockwood, Brimshore, Farmsdale and even as far as Watershire. It seems as though Rohe is a mastermind at drawing the attention of others. Where does this attention go? Well, to himself of course. With his handsome dark hair and muscular physique, public image is seemingly the fuel that Mr Rohe feeds on. ‘
“He’s come from God! He’s like God himself!” exclaimed one of his fanatic supporters as we interviewed them.
Mr Rohe’s main message seems to be against the King himself; spouting obscure claims such as “The King is keeping all the food for himself while the people starve!”, he cried into a crowd in Lockwood last week. Of course, this isn’t a new line of thought, with other such violent figures as “John the Terrorist” and the now proven liar and fraud Christopher Whittle.
Experts tend to agree that the food hardship some are currently facing is due to a series of unfortunately poor harvests as well as changing whether conditions. We asked the lead food resource advisor in the kingdom for his opinion on the matter. “We’ve heard this all before” he said while holding back a laugh, “Mr Rohe is just parroting the same old conspiracy theories we hear every year”.
While Mr Rohe screams non-stop of the riches of others, his own wealth has been quietly building. Donations from his fanatic supporters have allowed him to purchase a second piece of farmland on top his already wealthy estate. Unsurprisingly, his workforce consists of almost entirely white men with a mere handful of coloured workers throughout his farms.
We travelled to Mr Rohe’s farm and spoke with his wife, who told us “We as almost never see him! He’s constantly on the road. He pops by to see the kids and check on the farm every week or so”. It seems as though it’s difficult to pay close attention to your family when you’re so busy drawing attention to yourself in the streets.
Mr Rohe’s fans seem to admire him deeply, but such adoration can turn nasty. His most extreme supporters have abused, harassed and on one occasion physically assaulted Mr Rohe’s critics. “His fans are relentless”, says well-known critic Johnathon Adams. “The harass me day and night and have even threatened to attack me.
While Mr Rohe does not endorse such violent behaviour, he does not exactly deter it either. He describes the King as “evil” and “corrupt” and once stated that “sometimes the power of the fist is necessary”.
Mr Rohe’s rhetoric seems to attract all kinds of unsavory characters; the aforementioned “Jack the Terrorist” as well as well-known woman beater Joseph Smith have both stated their support for Mr Rohe.
In the end, the key to Mr Rohe’s appeal is also his greatest weakness. He wants to be the man who knows everything and can explain everything. But his arguments are riddled with conspiracy theories and crude distortions of the truth.
Even so, his critics will have a tough time. Mr Rohe’s wave of popularity is unlikely to come crashing down any time soon.
PART 4
A year had passed, and over the months the third advisor wrote countless similar articles and published them in the 3 main newspapers.
To his and the King’s delight, their plan had worked flawlessly.
Support for Mr Rohe began to wane. Many began to accuse Mr Rohe as being a racist. Others claimed he was mistreating his wife. Most began to be see Mr Rohe as somebody not to be taken seriously.
The people started feeling a sense of distrust and dislike towards Mr Rohe deep in their stomachs. They didn’t know exactly why they felt this way, but felt it they did.
Something had switched inside their minds. They began to see everything Mr Rohe did through a negative lens. His previously heroic speeches now seemed shrill and childish. His impressive physique and sharp jaw now seemed vain and self-centred. And his claims about The King and what was really inside his palace made of solid gold now had doubt cast upon them. Some still believed Mr Rohe, some thought him to be exaggerating, most simply threw their hands up in confusion and forgot all about it.
When Mr Rohe made a speech on the streets, many rolled their eyes at his crazy supporters. And with growing frequency, an opposing group of protesters would appear and shout over him. They made claims that Mr Rohe was a racist, and they made jokes about the 2 farms Mr Rohe owned.
The King’s problem had been solved.
The third advisor became one of the King’s closest confidantes and was allowed access to many of the luxuries inside the palace: food, women and anything else he could possibly dream of.
As for the people, their lives steadily got worse and worse. Their food supplies dwindled, medicine became rare to find and the people became sadder, more depressed and more desperate. Despite this, most accepted their situation as “the way life is”, while others blamed God for their misfortune.
One day, another man began to make speeches on the streets against the King. His name: Varios. The People began to call him their “Savior”.
The King passed his pen over to the third advisor. “Ready?”
The third advisor grew a wicked grin.
“Of course”

Obviously quality matters as well - ex: prime cuts of meat will be more expensive than cheaper cuts etc. so use your best judgment.
One item that comes to mind is cheese. Buying a bag of shredded cheese instead of a block of cheese will often cost you a lot more for the convenience, but with a small amount of effort, shredding your own block will save you 40-50% (as well as not consuming a product covered in anti-caking agents like the shredded stuff).
This also has saved me tons of money when looking a BOGO/ 2forX deals. If you’re planning on buying a larger quantity of something and the smaller containers are on sale, check to see the price and weight on the larger container. Sometimes it’s cheaper to skip the sale and just get the larger container - the unit price can often still beat the sales price of multiple smaller ones.
Once you start looking at unit prices you’ll never be able to shop the same way again!

1
A man presses his hand against his daughter’s forehead. Hot. Too hot. She needs food, meat to be precise. Her mother works to keep the fire ablaze, the smoke painting the cave roof black with soot. The man’s brother found this cave before he… keep back the tears. No tears. Not here.
This cave is the only refuge for days, unless you wish to brave the snow. His family will not, his daughter won’t make it. But she has to make it. If she fails, he will too. And so he pulls the beast skin taught around him, the woolly barrier all that lies between him and the ice.
Spear in hand, he swears his return to his lover. He promises that their daughter will eat today. One step out of the cave, and the winds already confront him. They laugh at him, taunt him with their wicked cackling. He ignores them. They will not save his daughter, and so they are of no concern to him.
The man tries to hunt, but it’s hard to do when neither prey nor predator are about. They would be crazy to be out in the snow at this time, but the man has no choice. The memories begin to trickle back to him. His brother, laughing. He promised the meat for his niece. He promised his return. Promises broken by the cold.
A call sounds from beyond a hill. The man halts, for he knows that cry. Slowly emerging over the hill, he sees it. He sees the deadly tusks. He sees the powerful trunk and feet. He sees the delicious meat. He will not break his promise.
A roar answers a call. David answers Goliath. The rage against the snow, the grief for his brother, the hope for his daughter. All these things, the man channels into his spear. He releases his grip and the weapon begins its own hunt. He knows his aim is true.
___________
2
A quick swing of his scythe, and the stalk tumbles. Golden grasses spread out as far as the eye can see, the barn just barely visible in the distance. The farmer can hear his farmhands nearby, their own tools harvesting the hard-earned wheat. He will of course keep some for his family, and the farmhands will receive their share, but the rest he will sell. To whom? He does not care.
The wagon carrying the grown gold makes its way past the now empty fields, and playing children wave to the man at the helm, all the while giving the horses a wide berth. The driver does some quick calculations in his head and smiles, the price he paid for the wheat will be more than paid off by the Lord. Another great profit this year, as long as they can prepare in time.
All through the night, and the next day, and the next again, his family works, even the young one joining in. The kids cheer and holler as the final batch begins to bake, and the man’s wife gives him a proud kiss on the cheek. They’ll make their deadline after all.
Another wagon, this time with guards. The man didn’t even bother watching them depart, he knew that they wouldn't let anything happen to the edible treasure. Slowly making their way up the winding street towards the castle ground, the guards make sure to form a path through the commoners.
Arriving at the grand gate, the wagon halts as its merchandise is investigated. None shall dare steal from the Lord. Except maybe the young soldier, sneaking a single loaf while his superior is distracted. He will feast well tonight.
A feast indeed, though not for him. The dozens chefs work as one, everything must be perfect for tonight, not a single undercooked potato, not even a slightly charred fish. The bread is sliced and split and soaked. It is the foundation upon which the feast (and the chefs’ careers) depend.
The Lord smiles in his seat, his children to his left, advisers to the right, honoured guests at the far end. They all stand, awaiting his blessing, stealing glances at the buffet which their Lord so graciously ordered. He smiles and proclaims the beginning, and the wheat finds its purpose.
___________
3
Her majesty will not be disappointed, not with the captain, and not with her crew. They had been sailing for months now, and supplies were beginning to run low. Oh well, the captain thought, suck it up! Her majesty heard tales of this land, and they shall find it for her.
Tempers running high, and shouts ringing out in the night, all screech to a halt, when laughter comes from the crow’s nest. A cry of joy and of celebration. The captain didn’t believe it, she pushed aside her first mate, and raised the spyglass out into the sea. There, on the edge of the horizon, the greeny brown tips of land were visible.
An anchor dropped, and the crew practically tumbled out of their rowboats onto the sand. Landfall at last, her majesty will be so pleased. Most of the crew was ordered to search for edible plants to refill their reserves, while those that remained began boiling salt water. The first mate brought the flag, and they began walking towards a distant hill, the perfect place to claim for their queen.
Along the walk the botanist grew increasingly annoying. How could someone be so obsessed with stupid plants? He insisted on stopping every few minutes so that he could sketch the new findings. The ninth time this happened, the captain drew her cutlass and freed the plant from its stem. The botanist stayed quiet for the rest of the hike.
Finally, the trio crested the hill, and the land splayed out before them. A new land, all for their queen. She will be pleased with them at last. The pole stabbed into the untouched earth, and the flag was raised. The wind was perfect, blowing in from the sea, the flag waved in all its glory, reaching out over the plains.
While watching their feat, the captain felt the pestering botanist tap her shoulder. She reprimanded him, but he seemed distracted from the scolding. He pointed somewhere to the North, and following his finger, the captain saw a few small structures near the trees.
Huts? No it couldn't be. Raising her spyglass again, they came into view. And standing beside them, staring up at her majesty’s flag, where a few figures, confusion abundantly clear on their faces. Oh well. It looks like the captain has some work to do.
___________
4
Tears fall down her eyes and the nurses run around, trying to stabilise her. Even if she wasn't, she didn't care in that moment. How could she, while the newborn in her arms wailed? She looked up to find the boy’s father shedding his own tears. She was glad knowing that he would protect their son, no matter what.
The boy never took off his mother’s favourite pendant, the one she was wearing that fateful day all those years ago. Even when his younger siblings asked about it, or his new mother, he never let them touch it, not in all of these years. He loved them, he really did, but they could never understand. He wasn’t sure if he could either.
The pendant glistened in the sun, and for the first time in two decades, a hand that wasn’t his own held it. He trusted her like none before. He could fall into her eyes forever, and she could sink into his arms for eternity. Why would anyone give this up, for someone they are yet to know?
More crying, salty tears staining the floor. Finally, the cries of a woman came to an end, and they were replaced by those of a baby. The woman began laughing, for joy filled her heart so fully. As the man looked into his daughter's wondrous eyes, he finally understood.
The girl laughed and played with her friends, half of whom were her cousins. The boring adults sat inside, talking about ‘Will’, whoever that was. She didn’t care, because she wanted to show all her friends and cousins the birthday present she got from her father. The pendant gleamed, dangling from her fist as she held it as high as she could. She would treasure it forever and ever. She swore that no one could ever have it but her.
But time cares not for such things. The boy sat on the stairs outside the venue, rain pattering down beside him as the gas lamps pierced through the darkness. His grandmother told him to hold the pendant close to his heart, it’s silver dulled by the years but nonetheless beautiful. He stilled his nerves and turned to walk back inside. It was his third cousin’s wedding after all, the least he can do is be happy for them.
___________
5
The man may be annoying, but he is strategic. He stands at the place he knows has the most foot traffic at this time of day, that charming smile plastered on his face. He proclaimed his wisdom to all those who would listen, and many who would not. Horses were a thing of the past, electricity was the new craze.
Turning gears and rumbling motors, oh how wonderful they sounded to him. He would work until he dropped, for his message had to travel far and wide. Was he harassed? Of course he was! That was business! Stupid people who wanted to stick with the beasts and needed some sense knocked into them, and he was more than happy to take charge.
A failed engine or two, that's the price of progress! What, you think the first house didn’t crumble under its own weight? You think the first lightbulb didn’t burn out in mere moments? Innovation demands the tortoise, my friend, not the hare.
After all the hard work of him and his compatriots, the beeping sounds of car horns filled the cobbled street below. Success sounded from the road to his ears, and money into his pockets. A knock on his door spoiled his fun, but he knew it was for the best. His friends were here with more news from far away, broadcast to their home with that one doohickey, what was it called? A radio?
What next was there that they could do? What could they teach their children to do? Perhaps a portable radio? What could be more convenient than that? Ideas were the lifeblood of society after all, one of his many catchphrases. The world was changing, life was getting easier, and the salesman could not be happier.
___________
6
A dream adrift across a sea of consciousness, not one nor two nor three. A dream shared by many, deep within their hearts. A little girl tucked into bed, singing a song of twinkling stars. An old man looking out his window, and finding the moon staring back. An ambitious teenager wishing to one day visit the sands of Mars.
A dream that began in the distant past, when the ancients gave names to the stars, and wove stories of the planets. A dream that persists to the modern day, as humanity desperately claws at the void, begging for even a single foothold. A dream that will come true in the future.
Humanity knows it will come true, because it simply must. There is no alternative. They look up to the stars and imagine so many wondrous things. They imagine that they are not alone, that there are others out there, waiting for them. These other societies, surely they have been up there far longer than we have.
Surely they have solved all of their feeble problems by now… so why haven’t we? Why do we suffer on the Earth, while they revel in the heavens? Why are our feet on solid ground, while their wings span the stars? It isn’t fair, humanity thinks.
A ship ascends to the edge of space, close enough to reach for the vacuum. Another lands on the moon, but must retreat mere hours later. Years go by. The Earth spins, and the Solar system continues its celestial dance. Rovers landing on other worlds, only to be battered and broken by the elements. Craft flung out into the depths of space, only to be lost to the endless void.
Why is this so hard? Where is everybody? Are they ignoring us? Why are they ignoring us? Why can’t we do this? Why… why… why? It isn’t fair. IT ISN'T FAIR. We deserve this. We need this.
___________
7
Finally, after yet another monotonous day, I collapse onto my couch. Home sweet home at last. The train was late again, so it almost made me miss the bus, something that happens far more often then I would like. Bags abandoned thoughtlessly near the door, arms sprawled out beside me as I listen to the clock slowly ticking away on the wall, taunting me. Hm... maybe I have enough time tonight. A bottle of water and a bowl of chips beside me, the satisfying sound of a mouse and keyboard connecting fills my headphones. I open up a document already filled with tens of thousands of words, and prepare to add more yet. Fingers dancing across the keys, a new story unravelling onto the digital page in front of me.
First, a story of protection and rage. A father doing whatever it takes to save his daughter, and who will fell behemoths to make sure she is safe. Fueled by fury for a lost brother, his spear conquers the ice and snow. A story of humans unafraid to show our wrath, to bare our teeth and wield our strength.
Second, a story of joy and feasting. A farmer harvesting his well-earned yield, of wheat carried far afield to be kneaded by hard working hands all to be delivered to a grand castle, and placed on the table of a noble's feast. A story of humans embracing their gluttony, and thinking themselves so smart in their creations.
Third, a story of searching and tragedy. An explorer sailing the waters of a sturdy vessel, arriving to new lands with new people to meet, (not that she cares) and staking the banner of her majesty's power in the soil. Spreading and conquering, never satisfied. A story of humans feeding their greed, of claiming what they want, and believing it to have been theirs all along.
Fourth, a story of purpose and love. A mother, holding her first born in her arms. When he grows, his siblings follow suit, and he loves them with all his heart. His mother’s pendant in hand, the cycle continues. Parent to child, child to parent, again and again, as the family grows. A story of humans showing their lust as each generation expands faster and faster.
Fifth, a story of trial and innovation. A salesman displaying the latest device to appear on the market, a newfangled machine that gets you from point A to B. What's next? Something to warm your food for you, to cook for you, to drive for you, to work for you? A story of humans giving into sloth, as their intelligence makes it all so much easier.
Sixth, a story of longing and wonder. A civilization looking up to the stars above, and their minds wander. What could be up there? Who could be up there? Why are they up there, but we are not? We want it. It is our birthright. A story of humans succumbing to envy of those they can’t even prove the existence of… not that that will deter them.
Six ideas for a story, and none that I particularly felt happy with. I did a small draft from each, nothing major, but none of them grasped me. I lean back in my chair, contemplating. I need something... more human. Something that people can relate to, perhaps something they can enjoy reading... wait, that's it! I know just what to do.
My seventh idea is not a single written piece, for the story it tells is too broad, and all too common to be contained within this single page. It is a story of humanity, and triumph.
It is a science fiction work, fantastical, and post-apocalyptic. It is romantic, tragic, comedic, erotic, mysterious and meta. It is all of these, and none of them.
It is a story about humanity’s capacity to conquer fear and tame fury, of embracing joy and delighting in sorrow. It is all of these, and none of them.
Delving into worlds not our own, or perhaps those lurking in glistening shadows. Countless lands, countless critters, countless magics. A world of delving into dungeons, and a world of defying the will of dragons. A world painted across the silver screen, and a world engraved in pitch black ink.
You may be thinking, ‘what on Earth am I talking about?’, and oftentimes the answer lies beyond the planet. This story is told in the clouds of Venus, and the dunes of Mars. Racing through the Sun’s corona, fleeing across Pluto’s heart. A story of discovering friends and foes among the stars, and a story of being forever alone.
When we initiate first contact, they will finally see what comes out of cruel space. We show those who are out there why humans avoid war, and we will show them the nature of predators.
A story where humans control the galaxy.
A story where humans are long gone.
A story where humans dance with death.
These stories, you’ve read them before, haven’t you?
What could be more human, then indulging in our sense of supremacy? Creating propaganda so blatant that we revel in that fact. Delusions of grandeur that we clap and cheer for. Stories where we are simply better.
One which you are reading right now.
But you won’t stop, will you?
Don’t deny it.
I am no better.
I’m the one writing this, afterall.
Indulging in my addiction of creating worlds where we are better.
Where you feel powerful.
Where I feel in control.
Thank you for reading, my dearest sinner.
Oh, and don’t forget the most human sin of all.
One which neither you nor I wish to escape.
Pride

hi I'm recently into learning chinese and also have got interested in chinese input methods and I concluded that Taiwanese bopomofo is the best coz it looks more 'orthodox' and allows entering tones to narrow down candidate words list.
I installed Gboard in my android phone and added bopomofo and it works very well, just like the way the japanese keyboard works(Enter どうぶつえん and push 動物園 among the word candidates list that pops up above. Simple) and doesn't need to fill up every tone and even allows typing only consonants to perfect frequently used words or phrases. It's very interesting!
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So I installed bopomofo in my windows 10(now upgraded to 11) too,, but I don't know why I can't type more than a SINGLE syllable at once. It doesn't proceed to next if I don't complete each and each 字 and it's super annoying!
for example, if I want to write a word like 動物園, I have to type each ㄉㄨㄥ and look for 動 in the looong list, ㄨ to find 物 and ㄩㄢ to find 園... cannot type ㄉㄨㄥ ㄨ ㄩㄢ altogether to simply get the whole 動物園 at once.
I looked up the Microsoft manual for bopomofo but there was no relevant explanation on this and I left a question in Microsoft Forum but no one gave me a right answer how to solve this problem :(
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Plus, as a side note, this is an additional and somewhat not essential question.. anyone knows if there's another bopomofo keyboard installable either in windows or android that allows OMITTING the 'middle' vowel "ㄧ"?
For example, if I want to enter 家, I have to type ㄐㄧㄚ first. But I think we can type just ㄐㄚ to get 家, coz it's possible to identify ㄐㄧㄚ from ㄐㄚ coz it's always only "ㄧ" that comes between ㄐandㄚ and nothing else.
Of course I know it doesn't work for every double-vowel zhuyin combinations, but we can solve the issue by limiting it to only 舌面音s (ㄐ,ㄑ,ㄒ) which are always followed by either ㄧor ㄩ. And make it possible to skip ㄧ, like ㄒㄢ for ㄒㄧㄢ, but cannot omit ㄩ when you want ㄒㄩㄢ. Cozㄧis used way more often than ㄩ in total and it can be confusing if we can omit both. Moreover, this might have an upside that it doesn't give 西安 when it's ㄒㄢ, by omitting ㄧ ensures it's a single 漢字.
It must be really grateful if I can listen to the opinions on this from Taiwanese or any expats in Taiwan :)

What are some unconventional adhd hacks that you use? I for example chug lots of water before bed so that when my alarm goes of in the morning I really need to get up and pee lol. It keeps me from snoozing. I can also get really restless and bored when I am out walking and I forget my headphones so my solution to that is that I run even though there is no need to rush. I run to the grocery store all the time! Or sometimes I close my eyes and challange myself to walk as far as I dare with my eyes shut. Keeping things interesting ya know, living on the edge. Share your weird hacks!

Brace yourselves, this is gonna be a long one.
Table of Contents
1…… The Main Goal
2…… What I’m Seeking
3…… Personality
4…… Interests
5…… Physical Characteristics (with pics)
6…… Expectations of You
7…… Living Situation
8…… Deal Breakers
9…… Closing Remarks
(1)
The Main Goal:
Well if you’re browsing this subreddit then much like me, you were alone this weekend and I’m sure you’d like to change that as much as me. I won’t lie, I am going through a rough part of my life right now. It’s difficult for me to find the energy for anything at the moment and I’m just really seeking affection in general, anything that will give me a push. I don’t want to be that person who brings everyone down but I could really use someone to talk to right now. I’d really like to find someone who’s similar to me so much to the point that we do everything together and talk about everything while not having to pretend to be interested. I want someone with whom we can mutually spew our emotions onto and have those feelings reciprocated. Not an emotional punching bag, but an emotional teddy bear to hug and cuddle until everything feels better as many times as we need. There’s people who I’m sure have told you the same, they’ll be there no matter how many times you need the support, no matter how many times the insecurities and bad thoughts come back but they don’t mean it. I will be the exception, I’m not so ignorant to think some nice words and tales of relating to you will magically forever heal whatever ails you then get mad when you seek the same support again. Mental ailments are rarely temporary and I don’t care about someone because they’re perfect, caring about someone means being there no matter how many times they need you to be. It doesn’t feel like a chore, it doesn’t get old, and it never will.
(2)
(2.a)
What I'm Seeking:
I will upfront let you know if I’m clicking better with someone else or if you’re the one, I’m not here to tread the sea of fish or keep my options open, I’m here for one singular person.
(2.b)
Relationship:
A relationship is difficult for me right now, it’s been nearly half a year since I got out of my last relationship and the reasons for it ending are partially responsible for how I’ve been feeling and why it’s so hard for me to seek the comfort I so desperately crave. I will tell you about it but for the sake of not treating the entirety of the internet as my therapist, it’ll be in private. I really need the comfort of intimacy and the warmth of someone who cares. I'm not going to feel better if I just sulk and don’t move on. This is my attempt to get better, I’ll admit I’m not great right now and I don’t expect you to be either. If we can help each other heal, then I’d be more than happy :) A relationship isn’t just being there for when someone’s at their best. Even if a relationship is hard at the moment, I do want a life partner and I don’t want to be alone. Things aren’t going to get easier without you so I don’t want to hesitate. I view my other as an equal, I don’t like categorizing us into specific roles. We take care of each other and treat each other how we like to be treated, whatever that is, it's as simple as that. I don't care if you're "successful" or not, living simple lives with our days filled with love is the ultimate measure of success to me.
(3)
Personality:
(3.a)
On the Surface:
As you can tell I can be rather… stoic but that’s largely due to my current stressors, I truthfully am goofy and fun loving but I just can’t find it in me right now. I want to return to that but without someone to light up my world it’s been difficult to just have fun and enjoy stuff. I’m definitely more introverted, you won’t catch me at any parties or really outside at all. I definitely prefer being home though the occasional outing is not out of the question and one day I’d like to travel to other countries because I think that kind of perspective is important.
(3.b)
The Core of My Being:
I like being a spectator to it all and if we bear witness to humanity burning or its miraculous recovery, I want to watch it with you. I enjoy watching humanity advance, less so when it devolves but I want to watch it to the end nonetheless. I’m both a realist and someone who lives with my head in the clouds dreaming of scenarios or worlds that don’t exist. I’m saying that I enjoy a good narrative and can suspend my disbelief to enjoy something but you won’t catch me refusing vaccines or ignoring blatant facts for the sake of some pseudo science or witch doctor’s remedy. I’m an atheist but I do not rule out existence after death, not because I’m agnostic but because due to the nature of potentially infinite time at some point after how many googol years with a googol amount of 0s after that, something’s bound to replicate your consciousness perfectly at some point. It’s actually a really fascinating topic I like talking about. If infinite time and infinite possibilities exist, does non existence exist? Though that’s an awfully existentially dreadful thought process considering the ramifications of infinite existence and infinite possibilities during said infinite existence. I would say I’m confidently left leaning and I don’t think I could truly get along with anyone right leaning, at least America’s definition of right leaning. Left and right seems to have just become; do people deserve to suffer or do they deserve to live good lives? Being political is not something I expected to become but how can you not be when crimes against human rights are being passed on a daily basis and at the end of the day, everything’s political. Oftentimes I imagine the perfect moment as relaxing with my significant other playing games or cuddling in a cold room under blankets.
I value that special someone above all of the existential thoughts, the bad of the world, the good of the world, they practically become my world. So many worries wash away when I’m with them. I don’t know if that’s the defense mechanism my brain created to not feel bad 24/7 but if it is, I’m currently without it.
(3.c)
Insecurities:
I talk of philosophy and politics here but really I spend most of my time just playing games, watching stuff, and trying to not be sleep deprived. I’m also nowhere near as well spoken, heck sometimes I feel like my speech is broken. I won’t claim to be something I’m not, I sit at home while I complain about the world doing nothing about it wishing I had someone here with me. I’m not noble nor do I really want to be, I have morals I uphold but much like most other hypocrites I acknowledge that my comfortable life is built on the suffering of others without doing anything about it. Why? My sleep problems? Am I depressed? Is that why I have no energy to do anything? Do I just think nothing I could do could help? I can’t nail it down myself, maybe it’s a mix of everything, maybe I’m just a bad person. I have always told myself that if I had wealth I would help people but if I get that kind of wealth will I just become a wealth hoarder who tries to justify my riches as something I earned rather than something given to me through incredibly lucky circumstances? If I do help people is it because I’m a good person or out of guilt? Will I die alone? I feel like I drive everyone away with my clinginess, I get paranoid often and need reassurance often. It’s something I want to work on, something I’ve been trying to work on. Hearing that someone cares about me just never gets old. I value self awareness even if it’s painful.
(3.d)
Socializing:
I’m definitely a socially anxious/awkward mess, especially around strangers. I do feel a large amount of anxiety in public, people can’t tell by looking at my face since I kind of go stone faced in an attempt to block everything out but yeah you’ll notice that if we go out in public. Growing up my pediatrician said I was probably autistic, never got a formal diagnosis so that’s just great. But yeah that explains why I can’t make eye contact with people, I kinda just stare at the ground and avoid their gaze at all costs. A lot of these social struggles go away to a great degree once I know you for a bit but yeah I apologize for how terrible I am at socializing at first. Don’t let my social struggles fool you though, I love cuddling and being close with my person.
(3.e)
Sexuality:
I am a heterosexual male, though I’m not very masculine like at all. I may even be a bit feminine sometimes. Not that I believe any activity or manner of acting belongs to a gender but I don’t know how else to describe it. I’m definitely super affectionate and love it when my partner is too. I am open to dating demi people but I do have a libido so I don't think asexual would work out.
(4)
Interests:
(4.a)
Video Games:
As stated before, I do spend a lot of my time playing video games. It’s been hard lately with me having no energy but I really do want to play more games and have a good time playing them with you! I primarily play on PC though I do have a switch. I’m primarily into platform fighters, roguelikes, open world, survival, and sandbox games. As for single player story games, I enjoy watching them through twitch or youtube but for the most part I don’t play them myself. I’d watch you play them though!
Here’s a list of games we can play:
-Minecraft (Java)
-Risk of Rain 2
-Gunfire Reborn
-Roboquest
-7 Days to Die
-Phasmophobia
-Rust
-Unturned
-Bloons TD 6
-Platform fighters: Super Smash Bros. Melee, Slap City, Multiversus, Flash Party, Fraymakers
Whatever you want to play I’ll give it a shot! I will say that League bores me to death but I’ll play it for you :) I try to avoid MMOs, not because I don’t like them but because of how addicted I can get to them. I enjoy learning games in-depth so MMOs can be a fast track to addiction.
I recently got Kerbal Space Program 2 and ehhh not really worth it right now but hopefully later it will be? I’m super excited for Tears of the Kingdom! In the far off future I’m excited for Rivals of Aether 2 which is a platform fighter releasing in 2024, let me know of your most anticipated releases and I’ll see if I could play them with you!
Also I never got into FPS games but I could totally see myself playing like CoD with you or Escape From Tarkov. Any FPS really, I’m down.
I am a fan of Pokemon but with how things have been lately I don’t know how long that will last. Pixelmon is a common Pokemon mod I play for Minecraft if you want to play that! Also if I say I want to play something with you I mean it but there are often times when no matter how much I want to I'm just drained and can do little more than lay in bed so please don't think I'm making an excuse.
(4.b)
Science:
I really enjoy keeping up with the latest advances in pretty much everything, it could be biology, technology, astronomy, anything! I love seeing progression and I love talking about it! Really I could go on and on about what I’m obsessing about that day. I particularly love technology, ask me for my laptop specs I dare you. When I was little I always wanted to be a scientist of any kind but then insomnia and fear of college stuff hit me like a truck aaaand that’s the end of that dream.
(4.c)
Anime:
You got me, I like anime but I’d like to think my tastes are benign.
Here’s some of my favorites I can list from the top of my head:
- To Your Eternity
- Vinland Saga
- Spice and Wolf
- Re:Zero
- Mob Psycho
- Dr. Stone
- Attack on Titan
- Spy x Family
- My Hero Academia
- Ranking of Kings
- Demon Slayer
Okay I can go on and on but I will say I don’t like pointless fan service and the spamming of cliche anime moments. I mostly enjoy action and anything well animated if it doesn’t have a potato story. Heck Demon Slayer could be my top 3 out of season 2’s animation alone. I don’t watch slice of life often or romance but I would with you!
(4.d)
Misc:
I’m not going to go on and on about the tiniest little things when the main ones are covered but I’ll watch pretty much any show with you and anything really. I like random youtube videos that explain some kind of lore or mystery, sometimes mini documentaries too.
As for food I looove sushi and I’m a sucker for fast food. Okay and candy, definitely candy.
I used to play tennis but haven’t really had the opportunity nor friends to play it with and I’m way too socially anxious to seek it out. Also I will say that when we move to something like discord I type waaaay more casually. I’m not going to expect long paragraphs back and forth like we’re writing English papers for each other, I do enjoy long conversations but seriously don’t worry about having to put the utmost effort into every response, I just like making good first impressions I guess.
(5)
(5.a)
My Physical Characteristics:
I’m 5’8 (172cm), 128 pounds (58kg), with curly brown hair and blue eyes. I like keeping my hair long in the winter and cutting it in the summer. I’m pretty slim in general so if you’re looking for someone large, that’s not me. I don’t work out but my work is pretty physical so at least I’m not totally inactive. I don’t have the urge to work out or gain muscle but I do want to maintain my slim figure so if I start losing control of that I’ll work out. I like to keep my face shaved because I don’t think I look good with a beard/mustache so if you’re into those I apologize. I have an average amount of body hair? I’d prefer to be completely shaved but it’s easy to lose motivation with that battle, if you prefer shaved then I’d have no problem complying. Anyways here’s what I look like: https://imgur.com/a/MZZgf2t
(5.b)
My Physical Preferences:
Having physical preferences makes me feel shallow, if I could make myself not have them I would but unfortunately that’s now how that works. I don’t care if you’re shorter or taller than me and I don’t care if you weigh more or less than me. All I ask is that you’re slim-average weight. I would never ask for someone to be something I’m not. I don’t care about tattoos or piercings.
(6)
Expectations of You:
I am not looking for someone “exciting” or someone to “keep me on my toes” I’m not looking for someone to cater to my every whim or anything like that. I don’t care if you’re “boring” or if you aren’t “successful”. I know it’s a common thing for people to not want a “boring” relationship and to seek something argumentative or something with constant challenges but I just want to be with you. During the exciting times, the boring times, and everything in-between, all of it will be great with you! Maybe we do argue sometimes or maybe there will be challenges but that will never be something I purposefully seek out and I don’t want that to be something you seek out either. I will not play tricks on you and I will not play mind games, I expect the same from you. We all have personal measures of success we may or may not have lived up to but what I care about most is our commitment to each other. If we have each other we can get through tough times, near the ends of our lives I want us to look back and feel that this life together was worth more than anything. That’s not saying I want us to be haphazard, I don’t want us to make poor decisions for the sake of yolo and I want us to always be rational, especially with each other. I want you to be someone I can trust to make decisions and weigh the options with a level head, I’ll try my best to live up to the same for you. Most of all I want empathy, understanding, someone to feel the utmost comfort and trust in.
(7)
Living Situation:
Currently my life is pretty relaxed, I work 3 times a week as a night shift stocker. I currently live in a 2 bedroom apartment with my roommate but we’re looking to move into someplace larger by the end of the year if everything works out. The internet is weirdly great for Ohio too like I have fiber and later this year we’re supposed to be getting dedicated fiber so that’s neat. I’m not attached to Ohio so the ultimate goal living location wise is probably moving to a country that won’t send you into a lifetime of dealing with the repercussions from one medical emergency.
(8)
Deal Breakers:
Might as well make this simple and make it a list.
- Anti-vaxxers
- Unironically believing astrology
- Right wingers
- Hard drugs (occasional 420 and alcohol is fine, may even join you)
- Wanting children, there was a time when I was younger when I wanted children but with the state of the word that’s a definite no and I feel like I wouldn’t be able to handle the stress. I’d love a stress free life with as much time with you as possible.
- Homophobic
- Transphobic
- Racist
- Super Religious
- Don’t be a bigot and don’t deny facts.
(9)
Closing Remarks:
Well you made it, I was thinking that finding someone I’d be willing to put a lifetime of effort into at least required this much effort. If I think of anything more I’ll update the post. Also about timezones, it really doesn’t matter where in the world you are. I don’t have a sleep schedule and I have most of the week off from work so it really doesn’t matter.
I request that in your response you do put effort into it, it doesn’t have to be anywhere near as long as this but at least enough so I know that you read this and enough about you so I know why you saw potential compatibility. I will seriously read all of it and respond the best I can. I do also request a pic included in your response (sfw please) or one soon after we start talking to prove identity, I’ll send identity proving pics too. As long as this post is up, you can send a reply!

Yesterday was my second day of pushing carts and I'm proud that i was able to walk 26k steps but at the cost of sore hamstring and a dry cough. Well, I don't want to be rude to my team but I decided to take a day off as I don't want to work with my legs sore.
It was only me and my coworker and 1 other cart pusher flaked on us Apparently. I noticed that 3 cart pushers is needed to have a more carts to leaving customers ratio but damn it we still did well even on the less bussiest day of the week. . I was constantly delaying breaks as we were running out of carts very fast.
As my coworker took his hour break I was hand pushing about 6-8 carts at a time with good speed and consistency. AND I KNOW ABOUT THE CART MACHINE. I rather not use it as it's not optimal for me and it's a safety issue for me. I was pushing in carts as more cars came and customers. Customers leaving trash on the carts and on the ground instead of walking 3 steps to the trash can that was located at every cart station outside[Someone built a baby carrige at one of the leave your cart stations and left the bigcardboard box there with the Styrofoam and parts left in it]. A nice old lady tipped me but I gave that money away to a homeless couple. I only stopped to get a drink of water and went backout. My feet was no longer just sore now it's in slight pain. I continued this for an hour or so and then I started to get a dry caugh and from time to time i would spend 10 seconds constantly coughing. The store finally started to slowdown. I sat down on my butt inside the exit and welcome area as I needed a rest for my feet. Co worker came back and the store was at a stable enough speed to where it was enough for 1 or more cart pushers can take their time. I layer their thinking about my fabricated wife and non existant child.
The hardest part was that the customers would leave their carts to where they see fit. I love the elders for taking care of the carts and making it a bit easier for me.
I left like 10 minutes early since I developed a dry caugh and my feet was in pain. I was not proud of this but I have to listento my body. On my way home I noticed that my average steps per day went from. 2k to 8k with that day alone.
I slept well and soreness hit after I woke up. I won't be going to work as my fabricated wife and nonexistant child wants me to heal up before I go on Sunday as it's the bussiest day of the entire week.
Clocking out - Your fellow cart pusher

Hello, I was just wondering for those that are staying with your parents, do you contribute to the household financially? For context, I have been giving my parents $100 each since I’ve started working. I am turning 22 this year, and have a relatively stable income. However, recently my parents are thinking of hiring a maid to help with household chores as both my older siblings and I work and we don’t have much time to contribute to household chores. Sometimes I work until the night so I reach home late. My dad travels often for work so most of the load is done by my mum and occasionally us.
Now, they are suggesting for me to pay them $500-600 monthly that includes utilities and part of the fee for the maid. My siblings are expected to pay as well but my brother lesser as he earns less and just started working. Now, my parents earn a decent amount so they are not struggling financially, but we are middle-class income i’d say. I think this is more of filial-piety money. I won’t be struggling a lot as well if I do pay them as I don’t spend excessively but I’d rather save up for my future and buy a house in the near future. I am quite diligent with my savings. Is this a reasonable / common amount..?

Little gossling is doing pretty good. Humaine society wouldn't take him. They sent animal control. She was young and inexperienced, but pretty nice. I was trying to explain symptoms and death of Sibbling. She said well its the cirle of life? LOL! No it has nothing to do with that. I wanted to Scream. She told me to releace him/her to family. I tried to tell her that possable leathle agression. Again She Said cirle of life. OMG. I will never call you mean Society or animal control again when it's regarding a situation like this only if it's a serious emergency and I'm going to do research to find out who's our local wildlife Rehabilitation place if anyone knows of who that is in the San Francisco Bay area or the Redwood City Peninsula please let me know cuz I don't want to deal with this anymore I stayed up really late I sat there and gave up a bunch of stuff I had to get done tonight waiting for this woman just to tell me that she wasn't going to take him that I need to be release him and this is all just the circle of life. I don't see how being sick has anything to do with the circle of life or having your head taken off by another bird from aggression from acting different is circle of life I just it doesn't fit in that category to Me Maybe people don't agree with that but I thought the circle of life was a little bit different. anyway he's resting very well he's wheezing and he's making little noises in his sleep poor little guy and then he'll wake up and if he doesn't hear me he'll like tap on the box with his beak it's kind of cute so and my cats aren't bothering him I have him covered in a way that they can't get to him anyway but they show no interest in they're really good kitties. he's been eating and drinking and making a mess and he's had the most spoiled box ever so he's had a really warm cuddly night cuz yesterday he look like he was really cold most the day and he couldn't get snuggled up. he also is acting really lethargic and spaced out yesterday where the other ones would be eating and acting normal and he just stand there and stare off into space and I think it's because he's you know not getting nourishment and he's the smaller of all of them and you know he's just getting kind of spaced out. cuz when I picked him up he is underway you can tell and any suggestions or help that would be great I am not quite sure how I feel about if I'm releasing him back to his family I'm going to make sure to do it when I am able to be right there and watch what's going on because we have one Canada Goose here that is so aggressive I mean I've seen these guys get aggressive and fight and Feathers flying and I've seen them dive bombing each other from the sky I've seen some crazy stuff but they eventually they kind of back off but there's this one Goose that is so aggressive and like will latch on and not let go and goes after the babies and doesn't care I mean just really aggressive like with the intent to kill and no second chance it's like there's no black or white with this one it's like you're you come near me you're dead you stay away you're going to live I mean it's just that it's weird so I'm a little hesitant so any suggestions I don't know if anybody's going to read all this it's really late and I'm super tired and I would love to hear some suggestions I have thank you so much for you guys as patience with me and helping me with everything I do appreciate it.

My Steam: https://steamcommunity.com/profiles/76561199036840408/
Hey guys! As you might have somewhat guessed from a look at my steam profile, I'm currently doing a run of the AC series starting from Unity. I bought AC Unity on Steam around Jan, finished it, loved it. Then I got AC Syndicate on Ubisoft Connect, finished it, loved it. Paris and London were fantastically recreated by Ubisoft, imo, and I REALLY loved the parkour and Assassin gameplay. Stories and characters were decent.
I'm currently on AC Origins and it was one of the best games I've ever played in my entire life! I finished the main story a month back and I'm just currently doing side quests/dlc because I loved the game so much and I can never get bored of it. They did a really good job with Ancient Egypt and it is truly breathtaking. I absolutely loved Bayek as a character and also the other activities such as hunting, gladiator arenas (my god they were especially spectacular), and also exploring the pyramids. The soundtrack of the game always plays in my head when I think of it lmao.
I think the main story was very interesting, too. It had a revenge theme where a father was trying to avenge the death of his son and hunts down members of the Order. I also really liked how they added Julius Caesar and Cleopatra, but the only problem is that they rushed the story brutally near the end. And for some reason, the ending focused on Aya and her monologue even though the entire game was about Bayek.
But my experience with this game has been truly amazing and I think these kind of exceptional games only come out once in a while. Never seen anything like it before. I want more, so I'm planning to finish Odyssey and Valhalla as well.
AC Odyssey, a game set almost 400-500 years before the events of Origins, is set in Ancient Greece. The game lets you play as a mercenary and is more RPG-heavy than Origins, and introduces choices and lets the player take different paths in the story. People have said the VA for Kassandra did a fabulous job and I can't wait to explore the Spartans and Athenians along with their myths and legends, and the naval battles; I'm genuinely interested and super excited about playing this game!
Odyssey is currently on a huge discount on Steam so I thought this would be the best time to request for it. I would have bought it myself, but unfortunately, I already spent too much of my pocket money on buying Unity, Syndicate, and Origins :(
If any of you would gift me this game, I would forever appreciate it and remember it. It would be wonderful if I could get the Gold Edition since I really love to play dlcs as well and it comes with AC3 Remastered for free, which is also another game I am super keen on trying out sometime. I'm trying to finish this series before my college starts later this year and I get busy. Thank you!
Even though I would really love getting the Gold Edition of this game, I completely understand if it's a bit too costly/unaffordable and I will gladly take the Standard Edition instead as it still means a lot to me :)
AC Odyssey on Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/812140/Assassins\_Creed\_Odyssey/

I looked over and there was a church window covered in nests with mother birds sitting on them. There were seagulls, pigeons, eagles pelicans and other birds. I remember thinking "why are there predators nesting with prey" one mama bird a black colored bird flew from her nest. In her nest was one huge egg. Above her nest a seagull was nesting. It reached down and cracked open the egg. In the egg were several fully developed feathered babies looking around. I looked to see if the momma bird was coming because I thought to myself "the seagull is going to eat them" I looked over and the babies seemed fine. I looked for the momma in the sky but when I looked at the babies they were being swallowed by the seagull. Everyone on the ledge watched as it happened. In my head I knew I shouldn't interfere with nature. There were soon only three or four babies left. I jumped off the balcony and ran across the grass and reached in the nest to grab the babies. There was only one left. It was blueish green like a a peacocks colors. It tried to jump out of my hands but I held it firm. It bit my hand. I soothed it and held it differently. I was going to keep it safe till the momma returned. I asked my son to get me something from the car to put the baby in. He came back with a paperbag. I put the baby in the bag and folded the top. As I was talking with others I looked down to check and the baby bird was suffocating. There was no air in the bag. I opened the bag and saw the bird start to breathe again. I folded the top but left a small opening for air this time. I told my son go get a box from the car. This time he came back with a flimsy cookie box. I put the baby bird in it and it tried to fly away but did not know how to fly. So I reached up and caught it. I put it back in the flimsy box. But this time I held it so it would stay closed. I looked over at the nest and momma bird was returning. She looked horrified and started calling for her baby. For some reason I was no longer in my hands. It was off to the side next to my ex husband. The baby was calling back. I told him to hand me the box he didn't. I went to pick up the box myself. I went and put the baby back in the nest with its momma. I returned to the patio and the momma bird flew back over. Leaving her baby alone. She accused me of stealing her babies and I got angry. I yelled at her pointing out the seagull and how it had eaten her babies. I yelled how I tried to save her babies. I went to check on the baby and mom had moved it next to a pelicans nest. I thought to myself. That's not safe either. The pelicans was asleep. It cracked one eye to look at me then went back to sleep. The nest next to the baby bird had no momma and a baby pelican in it. I stood near the nest to make sure my baby bird would be safe. That's when I woke up.

PART 1 — The King’s Problem
The King did not know empathy.
If he saw somebody in pain, he felt nothing. If he watched a child cry, he felt nothing. And if he saw an injured bird on the road, he would press the sole of his boot on top of it without a second thought.
This was just as he governed.
The people lacked food, yet the King felt nothing. And did nothing. For in his palace, he had all the food he would ever need.
The people lacked medicine, yet the King felt nothing. And did nothing. For in his palace, he had all the medicine he would ever need.
The people lacked education, yet the King felt nothing. And did nothing. For in his palace, he had all the books and scholars he would ever need.
In his palace built entirely of solid gold, he was the most powerful King in all the land.
But the King had a problem. One thorn in his side. One little nuisance that kept him awake at night.
From nowhere, a man had appeared. His name: Rohe
Rohe spoke atop a platform in the streets to the people. He spoke of the unjust nature of The King’s rule, of the palace made of solid gold and the endless luxuries stored within it.
Rohe blamed the King for the hunger the people had suffered. And he blamed the King for the deaths of brothers, sisters, children, mothers and fathers due to the lack of medicine.
And finally, Rohe told the people to rise up against the King, storm the palace of solid gold and take back control of their food, their medicine and their land.
Worst of all, to the King’s terror, the people had begun to support Rohe. In the streets, Rohe would draw thousands of supporters. “Freedom for the people” they would chant in unison.
The King was utterly furious. How dare these low-born peasants chant such things. How dare these foolish, ignorant and inferior men even consider stealing his rightfully owned riches.
Something had to be done.
Not knowing what to do, he spoke to his 3 most trusted advisors.
The first advisor suggested he have Rohe killed.
The second advisor suggested he have Rohe thrown in jail.
The third advisor, the most cunning and mischievous of the 3, disapproved of the plans of the first 2 advisors. Killing him or throwing him in jail, he explained, would encourage the crowds still further.
Instead, he suggested something different entirely. He suggested they turn the people against Rohe.
“How?” asked the King curiously. “How can we turn the people against him”?
The third advisor adjusted the large, rounded glasses that lay on top his big, crooked nose and grew a mischievous smile. “Why the newspapers, of course.”
PART 2 — The Third Advisor
The lands had hundreds of different newspapers, but only 3 main ones, which were by far the most widely read.
The people believed these newspapers to be run by well-meaning people who aimed to tell them honestly of the goings-on throughout the world.
The truth was different.
While it was made to appear that these newspaper were run independently, they were in fact controlled by the King himself. Whenever the King needed, he could control everything that was written inside one of the 3 main newspapers.
The King granted the cunning third advisor the task of turning the people against Rohe. And so, the third advisor began his research:
To his dismay, he found Rohe to be perfect. A true hero.
Through his research, he discovered several things about Rohe:
- He had a loving wife and two young children.
- He had grown up poor and had managed to create a little bit of wealth through hard work on his farm.
- He was strong, with big, bulging muscles and a handsome face.
- On his farm worked 10 white men and 2 black men, all of whom he treated with great kindness and respect.
- He was rarely at home with his family. He was always working, helping at the local school or in the streets doing his speeches.
Upon finishing his research, a crooked smile crept upon the face of the third advisor. He adjusted his spectacles and muttered to himself.
“This is all I need…”
PART 3 — The Article
Rohe — The People’s Hero Or Attention Seeking Conspiracy Theorist?
Rising from an obscure background, Rohe the so-called “Hero” has ballooned in popularity in recent months. Everywhere he goes, commotion follows; drawing crowds of thousands of worshipping fans who hang on every word he says.
He has been reported bellowing his ideology in Lockwood, Brimshore, Farmsdale and even as far as Watershire. It seems as though Rohe is a mastermind at drawing the attention of others. Where does this attention go? Well, to himself of course. With his handsome dark hair and muscular physique, public image is seemingly the fuel that Mr Rohe feeds on. ‘
“He’s come from God! He’s like God himself!” exclaimed one of his fanatic supporters as we interviewed them.
Mr Rohe’s main message seems to be against the King himself; spouting obscure claims such as “The King is keeping all the food for himself while the people starve!”, he cried into a crowd in Lockwood last week. Of course, this isn’t a new line of thought, with other such violent figures as “John the Terrorist” and the now proven liar and fraud Christopher Whittle.
Experts tend to agree that the food hardship some are currently facing is due to a series of unfortunately poor harvests as well as changing whether conditions. We asked the lead food resource advisor in the kingdom for his opinion on the matter. “We’ve heard this all before” he said while holding back a laugh, “Mr Rohe is just parroting the same old conspiracy theories we hear every year”.
While Mr Rohe screams non-stop of the riches of others, his own wealth has been quietly building. Donations from his fanatic supporters have allowed him to purchase a second piece of farmland on top his already wealthy estate. Unsurprisingly, his workforce consists of almost entirely white men with a mere handful of coloured workers throughout his farms.
We travelled to Mr Rohe’s farm and spoke with his wife, who told us “We as almost never see him! He’s constantly on the road. He pops by to see the kids and check on the farm every week or so”. It seems as though it’s difficult to pay close attention to your family when you’re so busy drawing attention to yourself in the streets.
Mr Rohe’s fans seem to admire him deeply, but such adoration can turn nasty. His most extreme supporters have abused, harassed and on one occasion physically assaulted Mr Rohe’s critics. “His fans are relentless”, says well-known critic Johnathon Adams. “The harass me day and night and have even threatened to attack me.
While Mr Rohe does not endorse such violent behaviour, he does not exactly deter it either. He describes the King as “evil” and “corrupt” and once stated that “sometimes the power of the fist is necessary”.
Mr Rohe’s rhetoric seems to attract all kinds of unsavory characters; the aforementioned “Jack the Terrorist” as well as well-known woman beater Joseph Smith have both stated their support for Mr Rohe.
In the end, the key to Mr Rohe’s appeal is also his greatest weakness. He wants to be the man who knows everything and can explain everything. But his arguments are riddled with conspiracy theories and crude distortions of the truth.
Even so, his critics will have a tough time. Mr Rohe’s wave of popularity is unlikely to come crashing down any time soon.
PART 4
A year had passed, and over the months the third advisor wrote countless similar articles and published them in the 3 main newspapers.
To his and the King’s delight, their plan had worked flawlessly.
Support for Mr Rohe began to wane. Many began to accuse Mr Rohe as being a racist. Others claimed he was mistreating his wife. Most began to be see Mr Rohe as somebody not to be taken seriously.
The people started feeling a sense of distrust and dislike towards Mr Rohe deep in their stomachs. They didn’t know exactly why they felt this way, but felt it they did.
Something had switched inside their minds. They began to see everything Mr Rohe did through a negative lens. His previously heroic speeches now seemed shrill and childish. His impressive physique and sharp jaw now seemed vain and self-centred. And his claims about The King and what was really inside his palace made of solid gold now had doubt cast upon them. Some still believed Mr Rohe, some thought him to be exaggerating, most simply threw their hands up in confusion and forgot all about it.
When Mr Rohe made a speech on the streets, many rolled their eyes at his mad supporters. And with growing frequency, an opposing group of protesters would appear and shout over him. They made claims that Mr Rohe was a racist, and they made jokes about the 2 farms Mr Rohe owned.
The King’s problem had been solved.
The third advisor became one of the King’s closest confidantes and was allowed access to many of the luxuries inside the palace: food, women and anything else he could possibly dream of.
As for the people, their lives steadily got worse and worse. Their food supplies dwindled, medicine became rare to find and the people became sadder, more depressed and more desperate. Despite this, most accepted their situation as “the way life is”, while others blamed God for their misfortune.
One day, another man began to make speeches on the streets against the King. His name: Varios. The People began to call him their “Savior”.
The King passed his pen over to the third advisor. “Ready?”
The third advisor grew a wicked grin.
“Of course”

Hello, I've just landed in Rome. I'll be here for a year and I am searching for an apartment. As I relocate, I brought all my luggage with me. There are not so many apartments available immediately and it looks like I will have to hop between different airbnbs in the meantime. Is there a place where I could store my luggage for a few weeks? (I tried easybox and it proved very challenging). I am open to all ideas and tips. grazie!

A last little follow on from this. https://www.reddit.com/ExNoContact/comments/13tk3jj/well_time_at_the_ba?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android_app&utm_name=androidcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button
Yesterday the agency for the place she and I had got in touch stating that the landlord had been to check the house out and noted a few problems and listed them...they were the bits (not difficult bits) I left for her and her side of the family to do when they go to the house foe the final clean up on the last day of the tenancy and drop off the keys following this.

• So they never turned up...
  
• So they literally left it all to me...
  
• So the scratches I saw all over the walls when I went back the day after her dad went to pick up her stuff after I had repainted the entire place could have been deliberate/saw they did by accident but didn't bother to fix it.
  

We were notified about the issues with the property via a cc'd email asking how we would like to proceed ie either fix the issues ourselves or have the money deducted from the deposit and straight away I got a cc'd reply to the agency from her saying that she "understood and accepted the issues" and asked how much money would be deducted.
On the one hand I believe it is right to not potentially have a scobble over who should do what etc and just get whatever money back and draw a line. On the other hand for about 30 mins (until I jumped into the gym to work off the emotion) my blood was BOILING because of:

• How disastrously she handled the BU but seen as I wasn't allow any input I can't be blamed at all for the state of the situation now.
  
• The idea that even though there is no victim in this situation she is playing it and (obviously I know family will always back family) but her parents are backing her and even being passive aggressive with me
  
• It looks likes I'm the one to get all the blame for everything (see point #1)
  
• She is still avoiding anything that has to do with me ie that house, no thought of 'I don't want to waste money when I/we could fix the house things ourselves', it seems like the reply was a 'THAT IS CONNECTED TO MY EX, AVOID. AVOID. AVOID. TAKE THE MONEY' and given she got everything (see point #1) I don't get (but it's not my duty to now) why she's still unhappy/angry
  

Based off our last run in (the photo incident - see story for details) she still isn't processing the BU/has turned pain she feels and is projecting it into anger towards me instead.
Now, it's been 6 months since the BU, but the healing for us both could only start 3 months ago as we were living with eachother still/in the whole "door is ajar"/following her breaking NC 3 days into it we were messaging/calling/spent the evening with eachother.
But over those 3 months of radio silence (both have blocked eachother on everything + before you say anything we are not the emailing sort) the strides I've made through therapy in the first 3 weeks of NC, achieving career goals and actually going beyond them, improvements in fitness, filling all the voids with positive experiences etc has got me to the place where I don't hate her (I did and very strongly until therapy helped process that and undo it) and I don't love her. So although I do feel like I'm getting the shit end of the stick here with regards to the attitude of her family, her reactions when encountering eachother in public and how the BU overall went. Through the strides I've mentioned, I am able to use radical acceptance - acknowledge the anger, feel it, then let it go as there is nothing you can do.
I don't feel the need to rise to this because of a piece of advice that friend on the phone (he's a therapist but obviously isn't MY therapist, he gives best mate advice) which was, "mate she's acting like a fucking child which is a surprise honestly but, it says alot more about her and how she's handling the BU more than it does about you. Look at what you've done since it happened, look how you are when you clock eachother, you have all the strides YOU'VE made to thank for that". I had a 15 min phone vent with him, did some exercise, felt miles better and that evening went to a gig to watch an HUGE band who grew up in the city I live in do a 'welcome home' gig, bonus was the tickets were free as I did some work for a member of the band (one of the "beyond career goals") and I took a girl mate who subsequently ended up "hoping on the good foot and doing the bad thing" with.
Point is, keep going with the self improvement guys and girls. Because when you are faced with any form of interaction with that ex, you'll come face to face with how you've been spending your time since the split. And I'm these 3 months I'm nearly (in the top 90% I'd say) back to my pre relationship self. Still more work to do like work on emotions so if anymore negative stuff from her side comes through to me I don't feel it, but apart from that I have the rest covered.
Again to clarify, THERE IS NO VICTIM IN MY STORY. It's just a BU, something that happens in life that everybody experiences.

Brace yourselves, this is gonna be a long one.
Table of Contents
1…… The Main Goal
2…… What I’m Seeking
3…… Personality
4…… Interests
5…… Physical Characteristics (with pics)
6…… Expectations of You
7…… Living Situation
8…… Deal Breakers
9…… Closing Remarks
(1)
The Main Goal:
Well if you’re browsing this subreddit then much like me, you were alone this weekend and I’m sure you’d like to change that as much as me. I won’t lie, I am going through a rough part of my life right now. It’s difficult for me to find the energy for anything at the moment and I’m just really seeking affection in general, anything that will give me a push. I don’t want to be that person who brings everyone down but I could really use someone to talk to right now. I’d really like to find someone who’s similar to me so much to the point that we do everything together and talk about everything while not having to pretend to be interested. I want someone with whom we can mutually spew our emotions onto and have those feelings reciprocated. Not an emotional punching bag, but an emotional teddy bear to hug and cuddle until everything feels better as many times as we need. There’s people who I’m sure have told you the same, they’ll be there no matter how many times you need the support, no matter how many times the insecurities and bad thoughts come back but they don’t mean it. I will be the exception, I’m not so ignorant to think some nice words and tales of relating to you will magically forever heal whatever ails you then get mad when you seek the same support again. Mental ailments are rarely temporary and I don’t care about someone because they’re perfect, caring about someone means being there no matter how many times they need you to be. It doesn’t feel like a chore, it doesn’t get old, and it never will.
(2)
(2.a)
What I'm Seeking:
I will upfront let you know if I’m clicking better with someone else or if you’re the one, I’m not here to tread the sea of fish or keep my options open, I’m here for one singular person.
(2.b)
Relationship:
A relationship is difficult for me right now, it’s been nearly half a year since I got out of my last relationship and the reasons for it ending are partially responsible for how I’ve been feeling and why it’s so hard for me to seek the comfort I so desperately crave. I will tell you about it but for the sake of not treating the entirety of the internet as my therapist, it’ll be in private. I really need the comfort of intimacy and the warmth of someone who cares. I'm not going to feel better if I just sulk and don’t move on. This is my attempt to get better, I’ll admit I’m not great right now and I don’t expect you to be either. If we can help each other heal, then I’d be more than happy :) A relationship isn’t just being there for when someone’s at their best. Even if a relationship is hard at the moment, I do want a life partner and I don’t want to be alone. Things aren’t going to get easier without you so I don’t want to hesitate. I view my other as an equal, I don’t like categorizing us into specific roles. We take care of each other and treat each other how we like to be treated, whatever that is, it's as simple as that. I don't care if you're "successful" or not, living simple lives with our days filled with love is the ultimate measure of success to me.
(3)
Personality:
(3.a)
On the Surface:
As you can tell I can be rather… stoic but that’s largely due to my current stressors, I truthfully am goofy and fun loving but I just can’t find it in me right now. I want to return to that but without someone to light up my world it’s been difficult to just have fun and enjoy stuff. I’m definitely more introverted, you won’t catch me at any parties or really outside at all. I definitely prefer being home though the occasional outing is not out of the question and one day I’d like to travel to other countries because I think that kind of perspective is important.
(3.b)
The Core of My Being:
I like being a spectator to it all and if we bear witness to humanity burning or its miraculous recovery, I want to watch it with you. I enjoy watching humanity advance, less so when it devolves but I want to watch it to the end nonetheless. I’m both a realist and someone who lives with my head in the clouds dreaming of scenarios or worlds that don’t exist. I’m saying that I enjoy a good narrative and can suspend my disbelief to enjoy something but you won’t catch me refusing vaccines or ignoring blatant facts for the sake of some pseudo science or witch doctor’s remedy. I’m an atheist but I do not rule out existence after death, not because I’m agnostic but because due to the nature of potentially infinite time at some point after how many googol years with a googol amount of 0s after that, something’s bound to replicate your consciousness perfectly at some point. It’s actually a really fascinating topic I like talking about. If infinite time and infinite possibilities exist, does non existence exist? Though that’s an awfully existentially dreadful thought process considering the ramifications of infinite existence and infinite possibilities during said infinite existence. I would say I’m confidently left leaning and I don’t think I could truly get along with anyone right leaning, at least America’s definition of right leaning. Left and right seems to have just become; do people deserve to suffer or do they deserve to live good lives? Being political is not something I expected to become but how can you not be when crimes against human rights are being passed on a daily basis and at the end of the day, everything’s political. Oftentimes I imagine the perfect moment as relaxing with my significant other playing games or cuddling in a cold room under blankets.
I value that special someone above all of the existential thoughts, the bad of the world, the good of the world, they practically become my world. So many worries wash away when I’m with them. I don’t know if that’s the defense mechanism my brain created to not feel bad 24/7 but if it is, I’m currently without it.
(3.c)
Insecurities:
I talk of philosophy and politics here but really I spend most of my time just playing games, watching stuff, and trying to not be sleep deprived. I’m also nowhere near as well spoken, heck sometimes I feel like my speech is broken. I won’t claim to be something I’m not, I sit at home while I complain about the world doing nothing about it wishing I had someone here with me. I’m not noble nor do I really want to be, I have morals I uphold but much like most other hypocrites I acknowledge that my comfortable life is built on the suffering of others without doing anything about it. Why? My sleep problems? Am I depressed? Is that why I have no energy to do anything? Do I just think nothing I could do could help? I can’t nail it down myself, maybe it’s a mix of everything, maybe I’m just a bad person. I have always told myself that if I had wealth I would help people but if I get that kind of wealth will I just become a wealth hoarder who tries to justify my riches as something I earned rather than something given to me through incredibly lucky circumstances? If I do help people is it because I’m a good person or out of guilt? Will I die alone? I feel like I drive everyone away with my clinginess, I get paranoid often and need reassurance often. It’s something I want to work on, something I’ve been trying to work on. Hearing that someone cares about me just never gets old. I value self awareness even if it’s painful.
(3.d)
Socializing:
I’m definitely a socially anxious/awkward mess, especially around strangers. I do feel a large amount of anxiety in public, people can’t tell by looking at my face since I kind of go stone faced in an attempt to block everything out but yeah you’ll notice that if we go out in public. Growing up my pediatrician said I was probably autistic, never got a formal diagnosis so that’s just great. But yeah that explains why I can’t make eye contact with people, I kinda just stare at the ground and avoid their gaze at all costs. A lot of these social struggles go away to a great degree once I know you for a bit but yeah I apologize for how terrible I am at socializing at first. Don’t let my social struggles fool you though, I love cuddling and being close with my person.
(3.e)
Sexuality:
I am a heterosexual male, though I’m not very masculine like at all. I may even be a bit feminine sometimes. Not that I believe any activity or manner of acting belongs to a gender but I don’t know how else to describe it. I’m definitely super affectionate and love it when my partner is too. I am open to dating demi people but I do have a libido so I don't think asexual would work out.
(4)
Interests:
(4.a)
Video Games:
As stated before, I do spend a lot of my time playing video games. It’s been hard lately with me having no energy but I really do want to play more games and have a good time playing them with you! I primarily play on PC though I do have a switch. I’m primarily into platform fighters, roguelikes, open world, survival, and sandbox games. As for single player story games, I enjoy watching them through twitch or youtube but for the most part I don’t play them myself. I’d watch you play them though!
Here’s a list of games we can play:
-Minecraft (Java)
-Risk of Rain 2
-Gunfire Reborn
-Roboquest
-7 Days to Die
-Phasmophobia
-Rust
-Unturned
-Bloons TD 6
-Platform fighters: Super Smash Bros. Melee, Slap City, Multiversus, Flash Party, Fraymakers
Whatever you want to play I’ll give it a shot! I will say that League bores me to death but I’ll play it for you :) I try to avoid MMOs, not because I don’t like them but because of how addicted I can get to them. I enjoy learning games in-depth so MMOs can be a fast track to addiction.
I recently got Kerbal Space Program 2 and ehhh not really worth it right now but hopefully later it will be? I’m super excited for Tears of the Kingdom! In the far off future I’m excited for Rivals of Aether 2 which is a platform fighter releasing in 2024, let me know of your most anticipated releases and I’ll see if I could play them with you!
Also I never got into FPS games but I could totally see myself playing like CoD with you or Escape From Tarkov. Any FPS really, I’m down.
I am a fan of Pokemon but with how things have been lately I don’t know how long that will last. Pixelmon is a common Pokemon mod I play for Minecraft if you want to play that! Also if I say I want to play something with you I mean it but there are often times when no matter how much I want to I'm just drained and can do little more than lay in bed so please don't think I'm making an excuse.
(4.b)
Science:
I really enjoy keeping up with the latest advances in pretty much everything, it could be biology, technology, astronomy, anything! I love seeing progression and I love talking about it! Really I could go on and on about what I’m obsessing about that day. I particularly love technology, ask me for my laptop specs I dare you. When I was little I always wanted to be a scientist of any kind but then insomnia and fear of college stuff hit me like a truck aaaand that’s the end of that dream.
(4.c)
Anime:
You got me, I like anime but I’d like to think my tastes are benign.
Here’s some of my favorites I can list from the top of my head:
- To Your Eternity
- Vinland Saga
- Spice and Wolf
- Re:Zero
- Mob Psycho
- Dr. Stone
- Attack on Titan
- Spy x Family
- My Hero Academia
- Ranking of Kings
- Demon Slayer
Okay I can go on and on but I will say I don’t like pointless fan service and the spamming of cliche anime moments. I mostly enjoy action and anything well animated if it doesn’t have a potato story. Heck Demon Slayer could be my top 3 out of season 2’s animation alone. I don’t watch slice of life often or romance but I would with you!
(4.d)
Misc:
I’m not going to go on and on about the tiniest little things when the main ones are covered but I’ll watch pretty much any show with you and anything really. I like random youtube videos that explain some kind of lore or mystery, sometimes mini documentaries too.
As for food I looove sushi and I’m a sucker for fast food. Okay and candy, definitely candy.
I used to play tennis but haven’t really had the opportunity nor friends to play it with and I’m way too socially anxious to seek it out. Also I will say that when we move to something like discord I type waaaay more casually. I’m not going to expect long paragraphs back and forth like we’re writing English papers for each other, I do enjoy long conversations but seriously don’t worry about having to put the utmost effort into every response, I just like making good first impressions I guess.
(5)
(5.a)
My Physical Characteristics:
I’m 5’8 (172cm), 128 pounds (58kg), with curly brown hair and blue eyes. I like keeping my hair long in the winter and cutting it in the summer. I’m pretty slim in general so if you’re looking for someone large, that’s not me. I don’t work out but my work is pretty physical so at least I’m not totally inactive. I don’t have the urge to work out or gain muscle but I do want to maintain my slim figure so if I start losing control of that I’ll work out. I like to keep my face shaved because I don’t think I look good with a beard/mustache so if you’re into those I apologize. I have an average amount of body hair? I’d prefer to be completely shaved but it’s easy to lose motivation with that battle, if you prefer shaved then I’d have no problem complying. Anyways here’s what I look like: https://imgur.com/a/MZZgf2t
(5.b)
My Physical Preferences:
Having physical preferences makes me feel shallow, if I could make myself not have them I would but unfortunately that’s now how that works. I don’t care if you’re shorter or taller than me and I don’t care if you weigh more or less than me. All I ask is that you’re slim-average weight. I would never ask for someone to be something I’m not. I don’t care about tattoos or piercings.
(6)
Expectations of You:
I am not looking for someone “exciting” or someone to “keep me on my toes” I’m not looking for someone to cater to my every whim or anything like that. I don’t care if you’re “boring” or if you aren’t “successful”. I know it’s a common thing for people to not want a “boring” relationship and to seek something argumentative or something with constant challenges but I just want to be with you. During the exciting times, the boring times, and everything in-between, all of it will be great with you! Maybe we do argue sometimes or maybe there will be challenges but that will never be something I purposefully seek out and I don’t want that to be something you seek out either. I will not play tricks on you and I will not play mind games, I expect the same from you. We all have personal measures of success we may or may not have lived up to but what I care about most is our commitment to each other. If we have each other we can get through tough times, near the ends of our lives I want us to look back and feel that this life together was worth more than anything. That’s not saying I want us to be haphazard, I don’t want us to make poor decisions for the sake of yolo and I want us to always be rational, especially with each other. I want you to be someone I can trust to make decisions and weigh the options with a level head, I’ll try my best to live up to the same for you. Most of all I want empathy, understanding, someone to feel the utmost comfort and trust in.
(7)
Living Situation:
Currently my life is pretty relaxed, I work 3 times a week as a night shift stocker. I currently live in a 2 bedroom apartment with my roommate but we’re looking to move into someplace larger by the end of the year if everything works out. The internet is weirdly great for Ohio too like I have fiber and later this year we’re supposed to be getting dedicated fiber so that’s neat. I’m not attached to Ohio so the ultimate goal living location wise is probably moving to a country that won’t send you into a lifetime of dealing with the repercussions from one medical emergency.
(8)
Deal Breakers:
Might as well make this simple and make it a list.
- Anti-vaxxers
- Unironically believing astrology
- Right wingers
- Hard drugs (occasional 420 and alcohol is fine, may even join you)
- Wanting children, there was a time when I was younger when I wanted children but with the state of the word that’s a definite no and I feel like I wouldn’t be able to handle the stress. I’d love a stress free life with as much time with you as possible.
- Homophobic
- Transphobic
- Racist
- Super Religious
- Don’t be a bigot and don’t deny facts.
(9)
Closing Remarks:
Well you made it, I was thinking that finding someone I’d be willing to put a lifetime of effort into at least required this much effort. If I think of anything more I’ll update the post. Also about timezones, it really doesn’t matter where in the world you are. I don’t have a sleep schedule and I have most of the week off from work so it really doesn’t matter.
I request that in your response you do put effort into it, it doesn’t have to be anywhere near as long as this but at least enough so I know that you read this and enough about you so I know why you saw potential compatibility. I will seriously read all of it and respond the best I can. I do also request a pic included in your response (sfw please) or one soon after we start talking to prove identity, I’ll send identity proving pics too. As long as this post is up, you can send a reply!

I want to preface this, to say that this is sourced for the Blue Protocol dev stream itself and the translation that is available today (from youtuber, communities etc). I understand that some people will refuse to acknowledge it, but it's based on fact and not made up by me.

1. Battle pass
   • Free one giving you Battle imagine Alpha (lvl 40 with less stats)
   • Paid one giving you access to some boost items + Battle imagine Beta (lvl 50 with higher stats than the free one)
   • Royal one: extra items + rank boost
2. Gacha system
   • Banner system for mounts and for skins
   • Pulls rate unknown
   • Unique gift (emote/wings etc) each 10 pulls
   • Duplicate cannot be sold, but send to another account, send to a friend or exchange it for BPP point
   • 1 Pull is 50 orbs, 11 for 500 (~30 USD the 520 orb pack, to compare 10 pulls in Genshin is around 20 USD)
3. BPP store
   • List of items can be exchanged for BPP points
   • BPP point can be earned by participating to the gacha, progressing battle pass, but it's unknown if those could be obtainable by playing the game and for free
   • You can purchase Battle imagine too
4. Orb systems
   • Free ones that could be obtainable by playing but the use would be limited as any other gacha game
   • Paid ones that you could purchase, for a rate of 520 orbs for 4000 yens, equivalent of 30 USD.
   • Expiring: more likely only in JP due to law about taxing digital currencies.
5. Consumable shop
   • Skins (ugly ones for 30$)
   • Potion, stamina, and other bonuses potions
   • Extra Reward tickets (limited to 3 for a day/week? unknown...)
   • Plugs increase chance tickets (to get better affix)
   • Plugs removal tickets (to transfer your plugs with the affix to the new weapon)
   • Immediate deliverable quest ticket?!

I feel like people are focusing too much on the gacha, but there are many aspects it's P2W. The battle pass is P2W because of the different battle imagine you can obtain with different stats.
Also I am not sure if F2P will be able to get free Plugs tickets through the battle pass, I feel like it will not be possible for them, making this even more P2W. But we will have the answer at the release with the full battle pass plan to compare.