The vehicle still runs, but the transmission is showing signs of problems. I’m not interested in replacing the transmission due to the cost.

This morning, I tried to start up my Mazda3 and it failed to start. The engine would crank and I can hear it attempt to turn over but it would fail after a few seconds. The interior electronics work properly and attempting to jump the car failed. I read a few posts that mentioned people starting the car while giving it some gas and it would work fine after that. I attempted to do the same and it started up, but a lot of smoke came out the exhaust so I shut it off immediately. I gave it another shot in a few minutes and the car started up immediately with no issue. However a strong smell of gas started to come from the engine.
I saw a previous thread that mentioned cleaning the throttle body and using fuel injector cleaner. I think that’s the next viable step but the smoke and smell of gasoline has me feeling like that may not be a permanent fix.
I am reluctant to do anything else without some guidance so any advice would be appreciated! Thank you

It’s finally happened, L’Oréal hydraperfect was finally discontinued, it was my holy grail. I’ve had a feeling this was coming. Walmart was the only one still getting me through and I would by two at a time when I was out but that supply is dwindling. Now I need to find a replacement product!
I loved this powder. It was truly translucent. It didn’t have to be caked on to achieve it’s finishing goal. It would leave my skin looking hydrated with just the right amount of matte finish. It didn’t settle into lines and wrinkles. And it was $11!
I travel all over the cost spectrum of makeup and skincare, but would love something under $20. I really only like loose powder and I’m pasty AF so I like translucent, but not necessarily the all white powders (I didn’t love the makeup forever white powder). Most of all I would love it not to migrate to my developing lines and wrinkles and feel light on the skin. I’m currently using Skin Better Science sunbetter tone smart as a foundation (a bit thicker than a tinted moisturizer).
Any product recommendations would be greatly appreciated. I started doing some research today but got overwhelmed! Thanks so much!!

Note: This is a series I want to create, centred around some given element or facet of worldbuilding and storytelling. Primarily, each post will either be a piece of hard science in terms of physics or logistics or otherwise core elements of the setting itself (such as military structure), or non-physical core elements of the people and their world (such as sports and personal enjoyment matters, for emotional regulation and social stability, among other reasons). In short: all the things that actually create a functional, realistic culture.
A random (meaning, I have just picked it at random for today), often overlooked element within space opera (and sci-fi in general) would be all things recreational. You might not find a good way to heavily feature this into your (say) novel, game, or screenplay, but it can be something to just touch upon, and have in your notes, as it will at least indirectly relate to the wider world you're building (so, it's worth knowing, as the author).
The logic is very simple: using humanity as a fundamental base (technically, an axiom), we can conclude that any humanoid or even alien species would have to gift themselves some kind of national sport, wargame, gambling system, or otherwise. The real-world examples literally encompass almost all of culture itself, making me believe that if your people are even remotely humanoid in their fundamental nature, then the recreational is a core facet of culture itself. This is so integrated into our real culture (rather, cultures) that we take it for granted, and don't even think about it when it comes to fiction-writing. But, it's a nice thing to add if you want added realism and stability, or an extra human touch.
For whatever reason, fantasy seems to feature invented sports and the like far more than sci-fi (unless such is the entire narrative of the sci-fi story, of course -- and, then, it's typically car-based). If we look to history, we clearly have the very creation of modern dice (India) as a gambling tool, and we have wargames (Go and Chess, etc.) as either direct military training tools (wargames proper), or abstracted wargames for more general use, since at least 3000 BC. Sports-wise, we see Blood Bowl (Warhammer fantasy sports game), Quidditch (fantasy; Harry Potter, which is akin to football mixed with netball in the air), and a dozen major examples from sci-fi, often featuring murder and cars (which we could see as a kind of replacement for the Roman and Greek sports), or else some kind of American sport hybrid. These include Real Steel, Futuresport, The Running Man, Rollerball, and Death Race (also, movies by the same names).
The aforementioned are obviously plot devices, and possibly don't have a place within your space opera setting and story. But, the fundamental drive and psychology are there. There are a few other examples from sci-fi board games and novels. Not to mention general sports and activities, such as Swimming.
Personally, I have made my national sport and recreation activity Swimming. The reason is four-fold: (1) it is a driver for both health and relaxation; (2) it can be social and peaceful; (3) for symbolic reasons; and (4) because there is likely not much water in space, yet humans still have a deep drive towards water (naturally, this is only applicable to any water-based culture, such as humans). It also occurs to me that water is a natural fitting for space, more so, if we take the TV trope, 'space is an ocean' (which does seem to be the natural categorisation, though it's not the only one). Another reason might be that it creates a reward system/social mobility, or at least the implication of such. Maybe, boarding a spaceship and taking a trip to the 'local' Swimming Centre is the week's holiday for your lower class people. On the other hand, maybe the high class types sit in Swimming Centres all the time. Not an uncommon trend throughout both fiction and history, as you might imagine.
That's just my own example, and may act as a springboard (no pun intended). You can justify dozens of real sports and otherwise activities, or invent your own. They may be readily accessible, or limited to certain classes of people or otherwise groups. There will likely be many different activities and sports for all your peoples, just as we see on Earth.
If you're writing a novel, just one trip to one sports centre or otherwise will do the trick, assuming you have planted in the reader's mind the notion that this is very normal and healthy for the culture/people. Best is to try and fit it into the wider plot, or else as a passing element (a few pages). One natural way to deal with this is to tie such into a wider theme or plot-point. Don't just have people randomly go Swimming just to inform the readers that they are Swimming. You need to work it in a bit better than that.
Depending on your culture, you may want a dozen violent/unhealthy sports and activities, or you (i.e. your culture's governing body, etc.) may only regulate more peaceful, healthy ones. I would try and tie this into the wider theme, anyway, and take into account the kind of people/culture you have. For example, you may or may not want Football with ant-like robots. On the other hand, bottle-tossing for big space Russians always sounds like a fun game.
If your culture is based on Americans or Hongkongian, for example, then you should think about their native sports and activities, and how that might fit into whatever you're doing with them in space/the future. Other than that, you need to consider the (a) disposition of your culture; (b) the history of your culture; (c) the function of your culture; (d) the state of your culture; and (e) the peoples of your culture. Although this is not an exhaustive list, it should suffice.
It also occurs to me, we just don't see enough sports in space outside of these movies/stories that are wholly dedicated to said sports, which is weird considering how sport-obsessed humans have become since 500 BC (but, especially since 1920 AD). This is often in relation to the ruling classes in rich, urban settings (cities/towns), or the average citizens in urban areas, finding a bit more free time on their hands (i.e. Scotland and England circa 1920 AD). Makes sense: you have bored, work-less nobles, or even workers with nothing to do. They need something to do; thus, they invented all sorts of games, wargames, and sports. You see this with horse-related games, ball-related games, and even something like fox tossing. Tennis was 'the game' (popular sport) of the middle classes and above by the 1880s through the 1980s (hence, most early video sports games of the 1950s through 1970s were all Tennis-based). Worth noting that most early video games were themselves sports games or wargames! Actually, most video games are wargames circa 2023 AD, with a vast number of the rest being sports. I stress this only to stress the importance of such things to human culture and entertainment... indeed, most of our entertainment is also either war-based (Boxing, etc.) or otherwise sports (Football, etc.). Not shockingly, most modern sports were invented, therefore, in the British Empire (sometimes with French or Dutch roots). Older sports are seemingly universal -- ranging from Africa to Native Americans to India -- and are typically ball-based (classically, often using heads, or else leather balls).
Of course, most sports are impossible in zero gravity, so I'm just assuming you're creating some kind of zero gravity war-based game, or otherwise sport (fundamentally throwing-based or ball-based), or your culture is on a planet or space station of some kind, which has artificial gravity.
Tron is a great example of offering some inspiration (duel type, and others), not to mention Spy Kids 3D (car race), Speed Racer (car race), and Ready Player One (car race). Then, you have combat training type games (I'll just call these 'physical wargames') and VR games (Gamer movie, for example), not to mention VR holiday trips.
Speaking of which, I'm reminded of Germany's vast, cheap, powerful cruise trip system by 1938, which saw millions of working (and fairly poor) Germans taking such Party-run trips and holidays (mostly a propaganda tool, funded with blood money, of course). In the more modern context, this is what we saw by the 1950s in America and England with various holiday sites, theme parks, modern cruise trips, and beach holidays (though these do date to at least 1920, but typically only by the middle classes and above). No less, Tolkien himself once came on holiday to the town I live in (on the coast, North of England), which was a famous holiday town back in the 1850s through 1960s. This was commonplace, including long walks through the woods and various built-up areas. Even in the 1700s, people began going to the 'sea air' for so-called health benefits. In reality, this was likely due to the fact the city air was unhealthy. The sea air was simply fresh, clean air (though, it likely is good for you, psychologically speaking, compared to the grey-state of city life). All of this to say that humans have a deep desire to be in nature, and to relax. This is true most of all for the rich and urbanised (as you can imagine).
Space theme park, anyone? Giant cinema on the Moon? Sure, why not. Titanic cruise trip across the galaxy? Doctor Who already did that, but you get my point! There is much to be done, and you only have to add a few such items, and briefly touch upon them, but I think it does wonders for the human connection, and some added realism (assuming such correctly fits your setting and themes).
There are many other activities of note, of course, including but not limited to art groups, acting/plays, drinking games, general board/video games, card/dice/token games, sword-based sports, hunting, Shooting (sport), and actual warfare.
The only other thing I should like to say is that gambling is not always wholly a negative, nor drinking. These ensure that people have something to do at the end of eacfh day/week, without rioting against the system or going insane/depressed. Gambling and drinking are about as old as modern culture itself (at least 7,000 years), so it's not a trivial matter. You may or may not want these in your setting in some manner: think that the key positive function to gambling is social mobility, as it allows poor people to climb up the social ladder by winning large sums of money (or, rather, gives them the hope of such). However, this needs to be contained, because (a) you actually need people to climb the social ladder, unless they are kept there; and (b) studies indicate that gambling doesn't actually work in this way, as most winners fall back to zero after 12 months. This assumes you have some kind of social caste system, which is money-driven, of course (which is very common). Drinking is simple: it keeps men off the streets and not as depressed, which is very good for a functional culture (despite the major negative social (and health) impacts of drinking itself according to studies). Alcohol comes to us via the Arabic, and I read that it comes from at least 7,000 BC. I read that gambling stems from many games/betting from 'knucklebones' (goats/sheep, mostly, around the Near East, then India, China, Greece, etc.), around 5000 BC (at least). I'm not sure if this was purely for gambling purposes, or the later form of divination (hence, the origin of dice). We still treat dice (such as in modern board games) as if we are fighting the gods of fate... as if we are making a bet with the future itself. This is part of 'divination', at least. This makes sense, if you think about it in a Jungian and Darwinian context (most of all, of the typical male brain pattern of high risk and high reward, clearly stemming from hunting). This would be pure speculation, but I like to think that these early gamblers were betting on Fate, struggling with the spirits of the animals of said bones (goats/sheep), maybe trying to get good omen/luck from them. We have certainly seen a great deal of such activity in the past, as evidenced by cave paintings and various omen rituals. I believe a future space human culture would have such things in place, too, just in different ways.
Right now, for example, the major form of gambling is hitting young boys via video games and their 'loot crate' systems, which is actually very dangerous and often illegal. These are almost always on war-driven games, so the connection back to hunting goats and bone-dice is not such a leap -- it's just a simulated, digital, nested form. Another major form of gambling over the last few decaes has been Boxing, which is literal combat/fighting between man. If your space opera has a primary focus on actual warfare, however, I think such sports and games are unneeded (for the most part). Only within a non-war context would your culture require such replacements (i.e. sports and wargames), but I do believe the royals/nobles of your setting would have such activities, as they are likely to have great amounts of free time, and not actively enage in warfare (though, you could primarily fill their time with politics and/or religion).
I have said enough for today. Ah, speaking of which: talking might be another consideration for your culture. This is literally as old as man, and does count as such an activity in the context of debate. You famously find this within the Jewish and Islamic worlds: likely because they don't enage with the other items I mentioned as much, and their religions require great moral debate and such. On the other hand, Buddhism requires a lot of silent thinking (which is a kind of debate, in a sense). This heavily depends on your culture's primary religion and otherwise. Some cultures are almost purely geared towards warfare, for example, like the Akkadian Empire (though we are likely a bit harsh on that). In this case, the focus would be on action. If your culture is anything like the modern West, then it's also going to be heavily driven by action, purely due to the speed of the culture and its workers. How this manifests itself depends on the type of government and culture you have in place (the Dutch Empire vs. the U.S., for example).
I'm sure I've forgotten a few key items and categories, and I'm sorry for that!
(Clearly, within a cyberpunk direction or more classical space opera context, the primary free-time activities and modes tend to be centred around sex, war, and/or slave-labour, as shown by Star Wars in general, for example. This may or may not fit your world and story, however. The other core negative item would be gambling, which is the only item which doesn't innately involve the body, though often bleeds over into various animal gambling games/activities. You may find that you have certain sci-fi/space creatures in your world, for example, and find yourself creating a gambling game out of that. Typically, you either make said creatures fight each other or race/run. This typically keeps the more lower classes engaged in the 'slums' sector (typically of a planet). Very common trope/theme, as noted in the bright-cyberpunk-space-opera sort of movie, The Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), when they go to a trading hub planet, filled with crime, sex rings, and gambling, including little weird creatures fighting each other, akin to dog fighting or such on Earth. But, again: you don't actually require this, it's just one popular way to go within the wider sci-fi context, and it serves a few purposes, in-universe.)

Day 2 came to a close along with the betting circuits. As by law, the betting circuits closed the moment ten tributes remained which was brought about by Carnelia’s death. Artemis and Luther revealed the betting statistics. The top three tributes from top to bottom were Mortimer, Cat, and Wolvthorne. Artemis claimed to have taken a gamble and betted on Cat. Luther stuck with his Mortimer vote, uttering his signature catchphrase, “Always vote for the best story”. Their attention was diverted to the victor’s lounge where Candace Freeman (victor of the 4th Hunger Games) drunkenly accused Gill of cheating and then devolving into a rant about how unfair it was that District 1 hadn’t done well in recent years. Bacchus Johnson (victor of the 9th Hunger Games) blamed their district mayor Baron Moriarty for his materialistic viewpoints and encouragement for overindulgence spoiling the district youth rotten. Fabeline Granger (victor of the 15th Hunger Games) chalked it up to Candace being a privileged drama queen before making a snide remark towards her husband, Capital superstar Paris Dinkley. Candace broke a bottle over her head in retaliation. Silas MacIntyre (victor of the 7th Hunger Games) wrapped Candace in a bear hug and threw her out of the room. Fabeline was taken to the infirmary, where she was treated for a gash on her head, receiving four stitches. Back in the commentator’s booth, Artemis was so far deep in the juicy drama that she missed the arena’s great reveal.
After a light breakfast, Mortimer and Cat decided they were ready to push through the brush. They were still feeling woozy from the powerful smell but felt the need to persevere. Cat took the lead and used her sword to cut through the foliage. Mortimer kept the rear and scanned the lake, searching for any approaching tributes. After about ten minutes, Cat cut through the last bush and was mystified by what lay ahead. Mortimer caught up and turned to see the arena’s hidden surprise.
It was a derelict pirate ship nestled on a mound of sand. The ship appeared abandoned and worn down, the cameras spotting holes in the hull. It was also without sails, leaving naked wooden poles. Cat wondered why this would be such a big deal, saying the place looked unsafe. Mortimer agreed and guessed it wasn’t for floating, using the holes and lack of sails as proof. Cat suggested they check it out anyway, guessing this was where the final showdown will take place. He agreed and the two made their way up.
Now that the secret location was found, the gamemakers made preparations for the finale. The alligators were called back, but not soon enough for Peggy (8), who was ripped to shreds and cannon sounding as Mortimer and Cat climbed the ship’s ladder. Head Gamemaker Grimstone’s voice rang throughout the arena. He congratulated the remaining six tributes and instructed them to make their way across the lake for the final showdown. Suddenly, large stones rose from the lake’s depths, all lining up to create a path towards the ship. For those farthest away, a large blue light emanated above the ship. All the remaining tributes rushed towards the ship as fast as they could. Jassy (12) was the first to make it across the lake despite falling off the stone path three times. Andrei (2) and Wolvthorne (7) were both minutes behind her and after grabbing their supplies proceeded onto the stone path. Wolvthorne was following behind a disoriented Andrei and took this opportunity to lodge his axe into his back, fracturing his spine. Andrei roared in pain and anger, but his cries were silenced when he was thrown into the lake. His injury prevented him from staying afloat and his cannon sounded three minutes later. Horace (10) was the last to make it across, feeling weak from the smell.
Mortimer and Cat were already on the poop deck when the announcement happened. They were elated to discover the sulphur smell to not be present anymore and tore off their masks. They hastily surveyed the deck, looking for a hiding place or any sort of useful tool. Cat realized that the entrances into the bowels of the ship were closed off, leaving them stranded out in the open on the deck. Mortimer considered their options and surrendered to their only option: making a stand. The two brandished their weapons and waited by the ladder, waiting for anyone to climb up.
Jassy noticed this and circled around to the other side and found another ladder. Wolvthorne followed suit. Jassy crept up onto the deck and spotted Mortimer and Cat staring down the ship. She notched her last arrow into her bow and aimed carefully. Her accuracy was slightly off when she released, and the arrow landed in Mortimer’s left bicep. He grunted in pain, causing him to drop his trident off the side of the ship. The surprised Cat turned to see Jassy standing there shell shocked over her failed assassination attempt. Cat chased after her around the deck, attempting to swipe at her with her sword. While the two were distracted, Wolvthorne pulled himself up and narrowed his sights on Mortimer. Weaponless, Mortimer nevertheless stood his ground and faced him. Wolvthorne told him he would pay for killing his partner, but he scoffed and reminded him there could only be one winner. An enraged Wolvthorne charged with axe in hand. Mortimer dodged his attack and began to run across the deck. Wolvthorne continued in hot pursuit, with Mortimer continuously evading his attacks. This became a hilarious game of cat and mouse, Artemis flinching every time Wolvthorne’s axe was within an inch of Mortimer’s head.
Meanwhile, Horace (10) finally emerged and noticed the separate fights going on. He decided to go after the girls, seeing the two men as a greater threat. Cat chased Jassy up to the steering wheel and managed to corner her. Jassy begged for her life, even offering to help defeat Wolvthorne. Cat remained unfazed and thrust her sword into her chest, sounding her cannon seconds later. Horace used the distraction to tackle Cat to the ground. He held her down with all his might and tried to wretch the sword out of her hand. She bit down on his hand so hard that blood began to pool. The crowds in Maximus Square were surprised by the power of her jaw. Cat ripped a flap of skin clean off Horace’s hand, drops of blood decorating her face. She regained possession of her sword and swung it back behind her. The blade lodged itself into the side of his head, sounding his cannon instantly. Out of breath, she limped to the railing and saw Mortimer was in trouble. She ran down the stairs to help her ally.
Despite the harrowing battle Cat was enduring, most of the attention was on the game of cat and mouse between Mortimer and Wolvthorne. At the same time Cat was struggling to escape Horace’s weight, one of Wolvthorne’s strikes demolished a wooden support beam that held a small above deck which would’ve led to the captain’s quarters. A particularly large cornerstone of the deck above fell onto Wolvthorne’s head, causing him to stumble back and collide with the ship’s edge. Mortimer used this opportunity to rush him and try pushing him off. Wolvthorne was much bigger than him and barely budged. However, Mortimer was successful in making him drop his axe. Wolvthorne headbutted Mortimer and shoved him to the ground. He attempted to choke him, but Mortimer twisted himself around and wrapped his legs around Wolvthorne’s torso. He used his elbows to push himself over his opponent’s back and pulled on his right arm all the while still keeping his leg grip. Wolvthorne struggled for a moment before wrestling himself free. He put him in a chokehold and slammed his face into the ground. He squeezed as hard as he could while Mortimer tried and failed to struggle. Many viewers in Maximus Square were cheering for Mortimer to fight back, mostly due to their betting money going towards him.
The prayers of the Buccaneers were answered when a sword entered Wolvthorne’s back and exited out his abdomen. Wolvthorne’s grip softened, enabling Mortimer to squeeze himself free. Wolvthorne turned to see Cat standing there with a determined look on her face. With the last bit of his strength, he lunged at Cat and pulled her into the blade protruding from his stomach. Cat let out a gasp as the blade entered her body. The Capital was shocked by the sudden turn of events but not as horrified as Mortimer. He grabbed the handle and looked at Cat. She looked upon him in sorrow and nodded her head. Mortimer unsheathed the sword from both bodies and thrust the blade into Wolvthorne’s brain, sounding his cannon instantly.
Mortimer thanked her for being his ally and a true friend. He quickly surveyed the skies. He leaned forward, brought his mouth to Cat’s ear, and began to whisper. The arena’s concealed microphones couldn’t decipher anything. Cat’s final words were, “Don’t worry. Patient confidentiality.” Her cannon sounded seconds later. Head Gamemaker Grimstone declared Mortimer Beckett of District 4 the victor of the 17th Hunger Games. Mortimer felt immense relief and let himself crumple onto the floor. The retrieval team arrived to pick him up and he came with them without a fight.
Mortimer was airlifted to the Maximus Hospital for medical examination. The arrow wound was stitched together and the cut over his eye received treatment, leaving two tic marks at the 2 o’clock and 8 o’clock positions. He was released two days later and was instructed to take it easy. Minerva escorted him back to the apartment, feeling happy he won. They reunited with Gill Henderson, who congratulated him for his win. While Mortimer admitted he felt grateful to have survived, he couldn’t stop thinking about Cat and how she was more deserving. Gill assured him that she sacrificed herself because she believed in him. He remained unconvinced, so Gill took him on a field trip to the Capital’s Oakley Museum of Art, recently erected by Silas MacIntyre (victor of the 7th Hunger Games) and Candace Freeman (victor of the 4th Hunger Games). It was there he met Phoebe Bentley and the two spent hours at the museum talking. Their intimate conversation helped Mortimer significantly, cheering him up enough to meet Gill at the Dipping Downer’s bar to drink with Bacchus Johnson (victor of the 9th Hunger Games) and Quarry Grounds (victor of the 12th Hunger Games).
The victor’s interview arrived and gathered a decent turnaround. Artemis and Luther wore matching outfits, reminiscent of the clothes swamp tour guides wore before the Dark Days. During the opening monologue, Luther expressed how pleased he was of the recent games giving them powerful personal journeys with the victors. Artemis said that while he was no Ashley Chen (victor of the 13th Hunger Games) or Sherpa Kapoor (victor of the 16th Hunger Games), she greatly enjoyed Mortimer’s performance. Mortimer entered the stage sporting something completely unexpected. His now famous tattoo was visible, but the suit he wore was intricately cut around it. The top half was sky blue while the bottom half was dark blue with wavy patterns making it look almost like the ocean. The funny part was him wearing a cap with a small cartoonish gator's head attached to the front.
Artemis and Luther started off by marveling at his outfit, calling it a revolution in fashion design. Mortimer attributed this to Minerva, the same person who polished the tattoo for the pre games interview. Artemis asked if he would get new tattoos, him saying he is planning on it. The first half of the interview was casual, covering topics of tattoo suggestions, his time at the bar with Bacchus and Quarry, and Minerva’s hard work on his outfit. The games eventually came up in conversation with Mortimer describing it “as if walking in a wet blanket that was also in the sewer”. Luther asked about the alligators and what motivated him to wrestle them. Mortimer tensed up but answered that he was trying to save Pearl. Artemis asked how much of a role she played in his victory. Mortimer credited her for getting the ball rolling in helping him realise to not give up on humanity. He saw her as the little sister he never had and wished he would have thanked her. Luther noted that since she got the ball rolling, it was someone else who broke through to him. Mortimer realised he was talking about Cat. He expressed how he felt she deserved to win more than him and how he chose to not let her sacrifice go to waste. Artemis admitted that while she betted on Cat, she was glad he made it, calling her Golden Victor material. Mortimer appreciated her sentiment. Luther reminded them that he was certainly a Golden Victor, citing his impressive chemistry skills and literally wrestling with an alligator. Him and Artemis dismissed Mortimer from the stage to rapturous applause, calling him “Captain Gator”, which became his victor’s nickname.
Mortimer was invited to some parties in the Capital. Gill accompanied him and stole the spotlight numerous times when requested to do shanties. Mortimer would dance along always with a drink in hand. He returned to District 4 and received a warm welcome from its citizens. He used the stage to openly apologise to those he turned away and for being a hoodlum. His reunion with his girlfriend Meridia was passionate and heartwarming, but not as much as the one with his father. Two weeks later, his request for Edward Beckett to undergo back surgery at the Capital was improved with a letter of recommendation personally penned by Gill. Edward’s damaged spinal disc was replaced with a flexible prosthetic. However, the surgery was a minimal success, removing some of the pain and enabling him to walk only small increments with assistance from a cane. Mortimer felt dejected over this but was humbled when several townsfolk pitched in to craft a wheelchair for him. Mortimer and his father partnered with Gill to start a rehabilitation center to help the injured and disabled workers of District 4 and the Island Bases. He further expanded his knowledge of chemistry and medicine, becoming District 4’s chief doctor. He crafted pain medication from the SHC compound delivered to him by Phoebe Bentley and prescribed them to various members of the district.
Mortimer made right by his promise and mended his relationships. He and Pearl’s father Alexander Riverstone crafted new nonalcoholic drinks, a certain cherry lime drink inspiring the Johnson’s Jazzy Juices future classic: the Beach Blanket. He also patched things up with Meridia’s father, the two often going on fishing trips together. His reputation only grew and grew until he was elected mayor of District 4 by the 31st Hunger Games. Mortimer grew closer to Gill and mentored alongside him until the next D4 victor was crowned. He became good friends with Phoebe Bentley as well, supplying him with chemistry textbooks and new batches of the warmweed’s SHC compound. In honor of Cat, he had Meridia etch a sea green ribbon tattoo, which represented mental health awareness, around the treasure chest. He was also friends with Corpse Beckford (victor of the 10th Hunger Games) who gifted him and Meridia tattoo inks for his birthday. Quarry Grounds (victor of the 12th Hunger Games) was also in Mortimer's good graces after he gifted Edward a special redwood cane with a beautiful marble topper.
Things were complicated when it came to his relationship with Meridia. Initially, they grew much closer, her giving him sea serpent tattoos on both his arms in addition to the ribbon. Unfortunately, five months before next year’s game, the two broke off the relationship. However, after the tumultuous 18th Hunger Games, the two reconciled and married a week before the reaping of the 19th Hunger Games. The two had five kids, naming his first daughter Katherine, after his deceased ally.
Mortimer was one of the four Golden Victors to disappear alongside Vixen Furtherson (victor of the 14th Hunger Games) after Savannah Pickett (victor of the 6th Hunger Games)’s death before the 41st Hunger Games. Days after the 47th Hunger Games, the underground terrorist group The Phoenix Fighters leaked two dossiers days apart. The first revealing reports of many accidents taking place on the military island bases. It also highlighted some cases of peacekeepers overworking and in some cases beating workers. The same dossier also revealed how Edward Beckett’s ‘accident’ was actually caused by the Faroe Island Base’s assistant supervisor Plutarch Manson. Manson was found dead in his Capital apartment three days later, his throat slit.
The second dossier revealed evidence of the reapings being tampered with over the years, whether it’d be names added, taken out, or scrubbed. The second dossier instigated some chaos in the districts, which was hastily subdued by the peacekeepers. Mortimer was never seen again, though there was heavy speculation regarding his possible membership in The Phoenix Fighters. On occasion, Capital navy ships and submarines would be attacked and looted under mysterious circumstances. One survivor named Lemuel Stanton blamed everything on a ‘ghost submarine’, one no one could see on the radar nor in person. A fair pocket of Capital analysts suspected Mortimer but lack of evidence kept his bounty from increasing.

Hey all,for almost a year now I've been composing a document based on theological and scientific findings related to Human Sexuality and Social issues and their place in the Catholic Church.Since I am writing this based upon a marginalized community it would seem bias and unjust if I published this document to Bishops and Church Leaders without the advice and consul of the community itself.I want to ask for help and even consider co-writers from this community.It may sound naive,but I believe this document and writers like this can inspire the kind of Just and Unrebellious change the Holy Spirit desires,I think there is a real problem in our Church and the decline of Religiousness is a serious threat to the world with Reformation being the solution,May God forgive me if im wrong but what can I do if im right? So please,any and all help regardless of Religion or Self is appreciated,my plan is to send this document out to several Church Leaders and Theologists once this document is well developed and consuled.
I also apologize,this is quite a long document!
Here is the text:
lus corporis A collage of opinions and facts alike on the use of gender and sexuality in today's world and how the Catholic Church can "Listen,Reason,and Propose" as said in "Male and Female He Created"
"What you are now,I once was,What I am now,you will be." -Father Mike Shmitz

 Disclaimer 

This document should not be taken as Anti-Catholic or Heretical,I,the author, fully believe and agree and have Faith in the One Holy Roman Catholic and Apostolic Church,as of now Current Church Teachings describe Homesexual acts and the "LGBTQ+" Community as sinful,and therefore this should be taken as Christian law,this document is a proposal,rather then a "93 Theses" and should not be acted upon until declared Canonical or False by the Catholic Church.Another fair argument to bring up is that I as an individual writing this may be,in my innocenc,biased towards subjects I consider indisputabl,such as abortion,despite this I will do my best to providea neutralargumentbased on facts and testimony outside of my own self. Additionally,please feel free to criticize or disprove anything stated in this document aswell.I thank you for your time in listening to me, and may God's peace be with You,always.

 Chapter One On Current Catholic Church Teachings 

1.Pope Francis and the Churchs currently teach that God Created Man and Woman,and while Genders role in Society and biology can be distuginshed,they must not be separated,additionally Masculinity and Femininity are created by the body,and are two pillars that hold up society.

1. Pope Francis has been considered very radical and liberal on the Catholic Churches stances concerning the LGBTQ+ community,while he has condemned abortion,calling it "The same thing the Nazis did but with White Gloves"

3.LGBTQ+ Catholics are not permitted certain Sacraments in the Church,not out of discrimination,but because the Church believes they cannot truly lead a full life of Christ and guiding others to Christ if they continue to deny the Church's teachings and the Word of the LORD.
4.The Catholic Church has been critzied for not taking the opinions of LGBTQ Catholics on certain documents concerning the topic,however until proclaimed Infallibile under the Doctrine of Papal Infallibility,these documents are technically still up for slight discussion as said in Male and Female He Created them,with"Listen,Reason,and Propose",however they are Church Teaching and must still be followed

1. The lives of every single person from conception to natural death are sacred and matter greatly to the Church,that must be clear as the Church has been accused of discrimination,the People of the Church(Failable) and The Church(Infallibile) must be distuginshed

6.Transgender people and members of the LGBTQ community often feel true disorder and uncomfort on their current identities, and many LGBTQ Christians believe they are acting in the full authority of God,through Jesus Christ our Savior
7.Gender Disorder is something many people go through in life,especially during puberty and teenage years
8.A potential theory for the rise in Transgenderism is the decrease of testosterone due to products that take it away,and an increase in estrogen levels from birth control pills and etc flushed in our water that filters cannot take away,even the US Ground Water Authority agrees with the Estrogen Increase in Public Water via Contraceptive Pills.

1. The Church teaches that God created man and women and that the sacrament of Holy Matrimony can only be celebrated by a true Male and true female
   

    Chapter 2 

   A statement on the ex cathedra status of LGBTQ and the Church's stance on Homesexuality
   

The Catholic Bible has a few mentions of homesexuality, such as 1 Corinthians 6:9-11
"Do you not know that the unjust will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators nor idolaters nor adulterers nor boy prostitutes* nor sodomites nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor robbers will inherit the kingdom of God. That is what some of you used to be; but now you have had yourselves washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God"
However,when reading the footnote given by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops You will find that the Greek word translated as boy prostitutes may refer to catamites, i.e., boys or young men who were kept for purposes of prostitution, a practice not uncommon in the Greco-Roman world. In Greek mythology, this was the function of Ganymede, the “cupbearer of the gods,” whose Latin name was Catamitus. The term translated sodomites refers to adult males who indulged in homosexual practices with such boys.Refers to the boy prostitutes and sodomites,also translated as homesexuals,refers only to the act of lustful homesexuality,and while homesexuality may be lustful,some homesexuals claim the love the feel is true romantic and unified love
However, when reading Romans 1:26-27 St Paul States
Therefore, God handed them over to degrading passions. Their females exchanged natural relations for unnatural,27-and the males likewise gave up natural relations with females and burned with lust for one another. Males did shameful things with males and thus received in their own persons the due penalty for their perversity."
This shows us that St. Paul describes the act of Homesexuality as Unatrual,however, when St Paul describes, "and the males likewise gave up natural relations with females and burned with lust for one another. Males did shameful things with males and thus received in their own persons the due penalty for their perversity." He does not specify necessarily that the act of true unification of flesh between the same sex as sinful,however he does describes the act of Man and Woman's relationship as natrual,this should be noted as this suggests Saint Paul is saying that a Man and A Man,or vice versa,cannot have true sexual unity,however this interpretation is quite "wishy washy."
In Ephesians 5:31-33, St. Paul states
For this reason, a man shall leave [his] father and [his] mother
and be joined to his wife,
and the two shall become one flesh.”x
32-This is a great mystery, but I speak in reference to Christ and the church.33-In any case, each one of you should love his wife as himself, and the wife should respect her husband.
The footnote given by the USCCB states " prostitute: the reference may be specifically to religious prostitution, an accepted part of pagan culture at Corinth and elsewhere; but the prostitute also serves as a symbol for any sexual relationship that conflicts with Christ’s claim over us individually. The two…will become one flesh: the text of Gn 2:24 is applied positively to human marriage in Matthew and Mark, and in Eph 5:29–32: love of husband and wife reflect the love of Christ for his church. The application of the text to union with a prostitute is jarring, for such a union is a parody, an antitype of marriage, which does conflict with Christ’s claim over us. This explains the horror expressed in 15b. "
This shows that the USCCB belives Saint Paul meant that Marriage demonstrates the love of two flesh as a reflection of the love of Christ and his Church.Testimony from Homesexuals argues that the love two homesexuals feel for each other is real and just love,like Christ and his Church,whether or not this is real or a delusion caused by a psychological disorder,only The Lord knows for certain as of now.
One issue on the approvment and justification of Homesexuality given by the Bible is when Saint Paul states "Female gave up Natrual Relations,likewise did the Males" Saint Paul is specifically referring to the union of male and female as natrual and anything otherwise as unatrual,this could technically be countered by saying that Saint Paul did not mean that the act of homesexual love was unatrual,but the abuse of it was,however this is slightly unclear
The footnote on 1 Timonthy 8-11 by the USCCB states
"Those responsible for the speculations that are to be suppressed by Timothy do not present the Old Testament from the Christian viewpoint. The Christian values the Old Testament not as a system of law but as the first stage in God’s revelation of his saving plan, which is brought to fulfillment in the good news of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ."
This reveals to us that the act of Homesexuality as it is described in the Old Testament as sinful is not necessarily Christian Law, but rather part of God's First stage of Salvation

 Chapter 2 Conclusion Therefore,while definitively not Infallibile,the conclusion of this document is that there is no definitive New Covenant Biblical bases for the disapproval of Homesexuality,however Christ gave the Church the authority to proclaim Christ Teaching,and therefore,just because it is not in the Bible doesn't mean homesexuality is in line with The Teachings of Our Lord and Savior,Jesus Christ of Nazareth. Chapter 3 On "Non Binary," "Third Genders," and "They/Them pronouns," 

Genesis 1:27 states -
27-God created mankind in his image;
in the image of God, he created them;
male and female* he created them
The footnote given by the USCCB states
"Male and female: as God provided the plants with seeds (vv. 11, 12) and commanded the animals to be fertile and multiply (v. 22), so God gives sexuality to human beings as their means to continue in existence."
Also, note that Genesis states that man and women came from each other and were once One.This has potential to theological development, but more time and research is needed to process this.
Based on this,this document can this not justify that the Catholic Church can recognize "Third Genders,or Non Binaryness" as God Created only two Genders Male and Female.A mix of the two sexes may be possible,but more evidence is needed to even consider this seriously.

 Chapter 4 On the Ordination of Women 

You may have noticed Genesis states that "God Created Man and Woman in his image" this could be a reasonable argument for the Holy Ordination of Women,however it should be noted that while Jesus had many Female Disciples,he did not have any Female Apostles.
The following information,Passages, and reference belong to the Catholic.com Website in an article written by Jason Evert
1 Corinthians 12:5-9 states
There are varieties of service, but the same Lord . . . All these are inspired by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as he wills. For just as the body is one and has many members, and all the members of the body, though many, are one body, so it is with Christ. . . . If the foot should say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,’ that would not make it any less a part of the body. . . . If the whole body were an eye, where would be the hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? But as it is, God arranged the organs in the body, each one of them, as he chose. If all were a single organ, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. . . . Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it. And God has appointed in the church first apostles . . . Are all apostles?” (1 Cor. 12:5–29).
This shows us that while Saint Paul may have said "Women or Man,No matter" he was referring to the role of all of us as the Body of Christ,while not everyone is subject to every role,everyone has a different role in the Body of Christ,this Biblical Passage could also be used to argue that God designated and designed each Humans role in the Body of Christ at Birth and that Role should not be reconstructed
It should also be noted that the Bible refrences a female "Phobe" who is a deacon.Combine that with the matter that Temporary Diaconate is not full Preistly Ordination and the lower case ordination of Women may be possible in the form of temporary Deacons.
Pope John Paul II declared, “Although the teaching that priestly ordination is to be reserved to men alone has been preserved by the constant and universal Tradition of the Church and firmly taught by the Magisterium in its more recent documents, at the present time in some places it is nonetheless considered still open to debate, or the Church’s judgment that women are not to be admitted to ordination is considered to have a merely disciplinary force. Wherefore, in order that all doubt may be removed regarding a matter of great importance, a matter which pertains to the Church’s divine constitution itself, in virtue of my ministry of confirming the brethren (cf. Luke 22:32), I declare that the Church has no authority whatsoever to confer priestly ordination on women and that this judgment is to be definitively held by all the Church’s faithful

 Conclusion 

Therefore, this document is in agreement that the Ordination of Women Onto the Holy Ordination and the Sacrament of Holy Orders is declared definitively incorrect,however, female Diaconate may be Scripturally,Theologically,and Spirtualy possible.

 Chapter 5 On Transgenderism and the use of Hormone Replacement Therapy(HRT) and Sex Reassignment Surgery(SRS) 

1.The Bible doesn't give any clear insight on the Early Churchs exact position on Gender Ideology,therefore we as the Body of Christ must primarily rely on current medicial and psychological findings aswell as Church Teachings rooted in Scripture and Tradition
2.The Catholic Church currently teaches that one is born and conceived Male or Female,and that to try and change this is an act of disobedience of God's Ultimate Design of Humanity,Catholic and Christian Transgenders claim they are not acting out of disobedience,but rather are medically aligning their "God Given Identity" with their Physical Form.

1. This should be taken relatively seriously, however,as most medical and psychological institutions agree that "Gender Dysphoria" is not simply a disorder but a realization of one's true identity and a genuine medical concern

4.The use of pronouns that do not align with a Person's God-Given Gender is prohibited by the Church,however a Male living a Feminine life style while recognizing he is still a Male at Birth,and vice versa,is not taken as an act of disobedience toward ones own biological gender by the Church
5.New Ways Ministry,A organization dedicated to building a bridge between the LGBTQ Community and the Catholic Church(not necessarily in full Communion with the Church)seems to support idea of Gender Ideology,however evidence to suggest anything further is low.

1. Tia Michelle,an openly intersexual and transgender,received support from her Preist at the idea of becoming a Nun,Tia has stated that there is nothing stated in the Bible that undermines the credibility of Christian Transgenders and that,like aerospace engineering,our modern idea of this concept did not exist at the time of the Bibles writing.The Catholic Church has not responded to this case at the time of writing.
   
2. Pope Francis famous "Who am I to Judge?" quote on Gay Preisthood suggests his openess to the idea od acceptance of an "LGBTQ" lifestyle,however this quote was directed toward Homesexuals and does not mean the Church support the use of HRT or SRS,additionally Pope Francis was likely referring to the fact that homesexuality in itself isn't sinful,rather the act upon this tendency is the sin in question.
   

8.The LGBTQ Community,especially the Transgender community revolve heavily around the arguably selfish idea that their attraction and change is based on what they desire and their feelings and what makes them happy.This is contrary to Church Teaching because God's will and Feelings are more important than ours.However it should be noted that some people do feel very strongly about their identity and believe it is in Communion with God's will and The Salvation of the World,and that one's own medical and mental needs are permitted to be fulfilled by the Church.

1. Something to point out is that all Catholics believe in the Reuninfication of Body and Soul at the Second Coming,this could be taken to suggest that Body and Soul are 2 different things that can be separated in the form of Transgenderism,or that Body and Soul are 2 things that work together in harmony with each other.However,in Catholic Teaching,while on Earth you are your body,and so to separate solid and biological sex with a social "twin",Gender, could be harmful,we may even be seeing the effects of this rapid accepting of this ideology today.
   

    Conclusion 

   Therefore,as the act of conforming to one's psychological and medical identity is described as Gender Ideology,the act of using HRT,SRS,and Opposite Sex Pronouns should very much be up for open debate and change in the Church based on current medical and psychological findings.
   

    Chapter 6 On Abortion and Sexual Intercourse 

The Catholic Churches stances on abortion are very clear,the act of purposeful termination of a human fetus is to commit a serious sin,that of murder.However many people disagree with this as they claim that decision is the right of Woman,and not the Church.This can be proved false,as any Child that has the potential to be born,albeit even with serious medical conditions or without a biological family to support them,has the right to live.Even Science supports the Pro Life Movement,as life begins at conception in the scientific world aswell.However,a Child who ends up in one of these difficult situations is the moral and just responsibility of society to raise and educate,we do not kill people with Cerebal Palsy because of their condition,even if they suffer because of it,do we? We do not terminate the life of someone in foster care,do we not?Also,Groups Like Catholics for Choice seem to have no Scriptural or Theological bases for their beliefs and claim that the majority of Catholis believe in abortion,however likely the majority of lapsed Catholics are the ones who believe in this act of murder,however evidence to prove this is lacking,although likely.However in very rare and specific circumstances,(eg,the mother and child are both in danger) and unintential death of the child may occur.This shows that while abortion is a serious act of murder,in certain very specific situations,some form of "abortion" may have to occur.Also,any Religion that claims and abortion is mandatory is wrong,while religious Freedom is a God-Given right,nowhere should the act of innocent murder be a freedom of humans.Therefore it is with confidence I can conclude that the act of abortion,while in many situations may be desirable as pregnancy is a very,very difficult Miracle to go through,is wrong and the Catholic Church has no right to agree to or support this act of murder unless a very specific circumstance occurs,unintential in this case.
The Act of In Virto Fertilization,while may seem Unitive,is not considered such.The Gift of life in the form of Sexual Intercourse is required for a relationship to be Unitive,as this is what God has desired for us.However the Church must be empathetic with infertile couples and hear their situations and stories out.Using Contraception during Intercourse may be Unitive,but it is not open to the gift of procreation and life,and therefore cannot be supported by the Catholic Church.However,Couples who cannot conceive naturally but do not lack the procreative and unitive intentions could potentially be a reason for just changing of this teaching,and should be listened to,aswell as those who are victims of Rape and Incest so long as the Contraception is not in the form of Murder(abortion).
Additionally,the Sacrament of Marriage is required for two to become one flesh,this is transparently stated in the Bible by Jesus Christ Himself,and therefore the Church must never conform to the Societal acceptance of Pre Marital Intercourse and the related social and medical,including mental, issues caused by such acts.

 Chapter 7 On Asexuality and Aromanticness 

The Catholic Churchs stance on Asexuality is clear,No person is without the desire of the gift of life,to not have any sexual stance is impossible,however the Churchs Clergy practices the desire to not have sexual or romantic relationships,therefore Sexual Aromantancy is fine,However Nonsexual Asexuality is non existent as God made all Humans in his image,even the infertile.

 Chapter 8 A conclusion on these findings 

Therefore Brothers and Sisters in Christ,I believe I can say with confidence that while writing this,I have felt the support of the Holy Spirit through me,whether that means an approval of my proposals,or a desire for this document to be proven false,I am not sure,but with the full confidence of The Most Holy Trinity,I can say that the Church’s stance on Homesexuality,including Lesbianism,is very much up for discussion and Biblical discourse,additionally it may be said that these findings can be proven "Natrual" (However,see section on Saint Paul's "Male and Female gave up Natrual Relations and turned to unatrual relations with their same sex."),Additionally the Church’s stance on Gender Ideology can be considered medically,psychological,and theologically incorrect in certain instances,Being Non Binary(No Gender) on the other can be said as with confidence wrong as God Created just Man and Woman,although certain Catholics and Non Catholics alike disagree with this and should be heard out.Also keep in note the specefic mention of Man and Women coming from each other from One.The Combination of Two Genders/Sexes may be possible if proven Solid based on Medical and Psychological findings.Premarital Intercourse,Non Unitive,and Non Pro Creational intercourse can be said as wrong as Marriage,Unity,and Procreation are required for the proper,just,and God Given use of Sex.Abortion,however I can say with confidence is murder,as there are ways around it and ways to help Children who are saved from the Abortion Holocaust,whether Society has the ethical and morality to take these steps is unclear to Man,unfortunately.Aromanticness,the desire to refrain from sexual and romantic relationships is already practiced by Church Clergy,however the idea that a person cannot have some form of Sexual Drive or Desire,even if smaller than others,is wrong.The Ordination of Woman into the Holy Orders of Preisthood has been definitely declared as outside of the Churches Authority by John Paul and until the Church takes a different stand in this,this should be considered Christian Law,albeit up for some slight discussion.
Therefore Brothers and Sisters,as God has given us free will and reasoning to further the Church in her Glory,I formally conclude this document "lus corporis"(The right of the body),and propose this to the Catholic Church:The Right of the Body belongs to God,however based on Medical,Psychological,Theological,and Biblical findings,the definition of what we consider to be altering God's Ultimate Design for us all is very much up for discussion and debate
I thank you for taking the time to read this letter,and once again emphasize the importance of following current Church Teaching as Christian Law,even if that Teaching or Teachings are debatable,Because the Vatican must listen to the pleas and cries of the Body of Christ,Amen.

 "Be strong and courageous for the Lord is with you," 

• Joshua 1:9

I recently got a 1995 EZGO golf cart for light usage around our property - 15 minutes/day max with moderate hills. The six 6V batteries are old and weak, so I'm thinking of replacing them with three 12V deep cycle 75Ah AGM batteries. (I don't think the cost of upgrading to lithium is worth it for this old cart.) The AGM batteries would reduce weight by 150 lbs and cost about $400 less than a new set of six 6V LA batteries. Most golf carts have 200-250Ah, but I think 75Ah is enough for just 15 minutes/day usage. And sealed, no water, AGM seeems like a good technology for being jostled in golf carts. I aleady got a new "smart" charger compatible with lead acid, AGM and lithium batteries. Are there any reasons going with these AGM batteries is a bad idea?
Thanks in advance for your advice...

I'm staying with a friend who has a very troubled pool. We visit about once a year and I usually spend most of the week trying to get her pool back into shape. Last year I was trying to help sort out why the water was so nasty; I was looking at the display on the chlorinator and as I'm standing there, the fitting just MFing started splitting and leaking! I got her a new fitting and glued it in, all good. Other drama happened, but not interesting. This year, I opened the valves for the heater and it just started pissing water inside. The pressure switch just erupted and shot out! Now, a valve body (has automated open/close motor) is leaking. There is also a pvc elbow that's also leaking. Additionally, the filter head valve has a mild split in the body itself that is also leaking. WTF?!
I swear this pool is cursed because it just keeps blowing fittings, and splitting stuff. They bought the home about a year ago and the previous owner didn't seem to really know how to operate the system. Filter was freaking NASTY like it'd never been backwashed. The pump was replaced in 18 with a Pentair 3HP 3.95 SFHP pump (variable speed). The pool is about 30 x 15 inground. Does this pump seem like it's overspec'd for this pool? I have had my own pool previously and worked at a hotel with three pools and two spas. I've NEVER seen failure of simple things like PVC elbows and certainly not anything else. The pump head pressure gauge is dead, so I can't tell what the head pressure is. I can't for the life of me understand why I've had to help her replace so much of the damn plumbing! FWIW, the system is fully automated and there is also a hot tub that uses the same pump/heater equipment. It's on a schedule where they alternate filtering/heating.

We have done it. The end of another school year! Before we jump into this last set of stories, remember to subscribe to ReddX, home of the best cringe content on YouTube. Promise, swearsies, it’s just a fact and it’s totally science. Go ahead and look it up!
I miss that intro a lot so I figured I’d just write it in. I waited until after graduation to post this because, with ManiBeard at graduation, I figured anything could happen. And it did. And with that, let’s jump into this last set of beardy tales (for this school year). Let’s a-go.

1. “No Place Like Home (Campus)”

I was in a pretty good mood because I found out that district was ticked off at admin for considering moving my Cave to a different room next year and because they keep using my Cave as ‘backup’ for state testing. Evidently, the district was unaware this was happening but after I had complained to Cook about the extent of it she went to the district and, well, I’m keeping my Cave next year right where it is, and testing use will be limited. I won without lifting a finger. Sometimes bureaucracy works. Not often, but it’s beautiful when it does.
Of course, that good mood was not to last…
On this day I had a meeting with all the other Graphic Design teachers at another campus. We will call it Clique High School (because ‘cult’ may or may not be YouTube-friendly).
The first thing you need to know is I have a history with CHS. Remember, all the way back in chapter 1 where I mention I was a substitute teacher at Standard High before they hired me as a teacher? Well, there was one part I left out because it was irrelevant to that story, but it becomes relevant here. It is true I did sub at SHS, but the part I left out was that for half of the 2020-2021 school year (Covid year), I was a long-term sub at another campus and that campus was Clique High School. To say it was a poor experience would be underselling it immensely. You could say that Elon Musk is well off but that doesn’t really express the massive mounds of money that malevolent menace truly had. Likewise, saying I had a poor experience at CHS doesn’t really express the absolutely traumatizing, terrible, troublesome experience that my life there. It got so bad that I would leave work, cry the entire 30-minute drive to SHS, pick up Beatle, and make him drive the rest of the way home because my eyes were sore from crying.
What did I do at CHS? Well, I was a long-term sub in ESL. That’s where I got my start with it. When I walked in at the start of that year I’d never had a high school classroom before, I had no lesson plans, limited access to the curriculum since I was a sub, and I was teaching virtually because Covid…and what did I do? I build a curriculum, bonded with my class, and wrote my own lesson plans (even though subs generally don’t write plans). Basically, I rebuilt their ESL program. I did apply for the job. After all, I was already doing all of the work for substitute pay. I may as well get teacher pay for being a teacher. Right? Wrong.
They did interview me for the job but then proceeded to yank me around for half a semester before finally saying they were going to hire someone else. Who? No idea. But not me. But they wanted me to continue to long-term sub and do what I was doing until they found someone. Honestly, when I didn’t get the job part of me was pissed because of all the work I put in, but part of me was relieved. You see, the culture at CHS isn’t like the culture at SHS. Their principal, whom we will call Mr. D (for reasons that will soon be clear), had been named the district’s principal of the year and his staff completely fawned over him…a staff mostly comprised of women. The male-to-female ratio at CHS was considerably more unbalanced than at SHS. What struck me as odd was that Mr. D did not seem to warrant such admiration. During my interactions with him, I got slimy car salesman vibes more than high school principal. I would come to find out that this went deeper than I knew.
Remember AVIDBeard? Yeah, to her credit she was the one that warned me. Mostly I think she saw a chance to gossip, but nonetheless. I was visiting SHS and telling the English dept. how much I missed subbing for them (they actually liked me at this time…this was long before EnglishBeard even worked there so certainly before that whole thing made me a pariah). They missed me too. Although honestly, they missed having a sub at their becken call. Let’s be real. Anyway, AVIDBeard was all too happy to jump in with gossip.
“Be careful over there Mandy,” AVIDBeard said.
“Why? What do you know?” I asked.
“I had a training over there once and this teacher that works there started freaking out because the instructor, who was also a teacher there, was late. She started to have an anxiety attack and when I asked her what was wrong she said ‘Daddy isn’t going to like this’,” AVIDBeard explained.
“What?!” everyone in the room asked at once.
AVIDBeard nodded, “I know! So I asked her, ‘you call your principal Daddy?’ and she said ‘of course.’.”
I raised an eyebrow. I was skeptical, to say the least. Even then I knew AVIDBeard was not a reliable source. But, on the off chance she was telling the truth I had to know. CHS wasn’t exactly full of friendly teachers. In fact, where everyone at SHS had been welcoming, it had been the very opposite at CHS. They treated me like an outsider they were skeptical of. I had managed to at least have somewhat of a dialogue with the librarian. She helped me to ensure that my ESL students had books in their native languages to read during the pandemic. I went to her one day to ask about scheduling some book pick-ups for the students (this was when teachers were on-campus but students were virtual).
“Hey, can I ask you something?” I asked after we had figured out scheduling.
“Sure, what’s up?” she asked.
“OK, so it’s dumb, but someone told me you guys call Mr. D ‘daddy’. Silly, right?” I said with a laugh.
She just blinked, “Who told you that?”
Her reaction caught me off guard. She wasn’t laughing. My eyes widened, “Um, I don’t remember, it just got mentioned in passing.”
“Don’t ask anyone else that question…just…don’t even mention it,” she said.
I blinked. I wanted out of this conversation, “OK, I won’t. I’ll just forget I ever heard about it.”
She nodded and turned away, “I have work to do. If you need more books let me know.”
I rushed back to my classroom. After that, the librarian was very cold toward me.
To this day I honestly believe that the reason Mr. D didn’t hire me was because I’m too strong-willed and I have a big mouth…neither fits well into a cult-like structure, which it is very obvious CHS is.
At the semester break, they hadn’t yet hired anyone and asked me to stay for the rest of the year as a long-term sub. Basically, they wanted to pay me sub pay for an entire year of teaching. I told them ‘no way’ and I begged the district and Mr. Principal to let me return to subbing at SHS. I didn’t even care that regular sub pay was less than long-term sub pay. I just wanted out…and it turns out it all worked in my favor because obviously Mr. Principal ended up hiring me for the very job that Mr. D rejected me from and I’m very happy where I am now. And I don’t even have to call Mr. Principal ‘daddy’. Gag! Say what you will about Standard High, but I’ll take it over CHS any day.
OK, I know that was a lot of backstory, but I truly need you to understand why I so vehemently loathe everything about CHS and moreover why even being there gives me a mild case of PTSD.
Alright then, where were we? Oh yeah. Meeting for Graphic Design teachers over at CHS. I was not happy about this because I hate being at CHS of course, but I also hated leaving my students with a sub this close to the end of the year. But, alas, there I was. I walked into the familiar, loathsome halls. Daddy was in the main hall greeting his subjects.
“Mandy? What are you doing here?” he asked as he looked me over. I was in full-school spirit mode. SHS staff shirt and matching school spirit Converse I had custom-made.
“Graphic Design meeting,” I said.
“Oh, you teach Graphic Design now?” he asked.
I nodded, “Yeah, I did so great at fixing their ESL program they gave me my true dream job and now I’m relaunching their graphic design program.” OK, so it was a bit of embellishment, but I wanted him to know that his loss was SHS’s gain.
“Shame…we have an ESL position open here at The Clique,” Mr. D said. That’s how he referred to his campus. Imagine if the school’s name was Blue Mountain High and he called it The Mountain. Yeah…cringey.
“Oh yeah? I heard Patty didn’t stay,” I said. Patty was who they hired instead of me. She ended up retiring after one year at ‘The Clique’.
“Yeah, well we hired Emmy to replace Patty and now she is leaving,” Mr. D said.
“Shame…yeah, I’m still at SHS and quite happy. I heard principals were turning to poaching from other high schools so I’ll save you the trouble. I’m not poachable,” I said, wanting to get away from him.
“You could have your old job in your old room,” Mr. D said in a tone that made me very uneasy.
“I have a perfectly lovely Cave. Besides, my husband works at SHS too and I like being on the same campus as the love of my life,” I said, pointedly.
“If you change your mind, let me know. Enjoy your meeting. Welcome back to The Clique,” Mr. D said as I quickly walked away to find the room Graphic Design was meeting in.
Now, this may come as a surprise to you all, but I am NOT a social creature. Truly. Beatle is my best friend and aside from Cali all my other friends are on the ReddX Discord (hence my desire to not get myself banned over there). And I am 150% ok with that. At that moment I wanted to be in my Cave more than anything. The pressure to be ‘on’ and social was beyond exhausting to me, especially this late in the year. But, always the professional, I mustered every bit of perky in me to be lovely to my other-campus counterparts.
This proved to be a challenge. One of them, more of a Karen than a Beard really, would not shut up about how amazing her campus was and how she never had issues with phones because her kids were so well-behaved. She also said she couldn’t post work early because they would have it done before they ever got to class. Oh, and of course she is teaching graphic design because she needed a break from her real job as an engineer. And oh, did she mention she is an engineer? Because she’s an engineer. She also went on and on about how she didn’t like the curriculum at another campus she was at so she complained and got 68 teachers from all over the country to back her up and they changed the whole curriculum to what she wanted. OK, whatever. I wanted to ask if everyone stood up and cheered too.
Another teacher was just insufferable. She kept asking for the same bloody stuff over and over even after being told it wasn’t in the budget. She didn’t know the cost of any of it, just that everything she wanted (think equipment and software licenses) was expensive and our budget is next to nothing right now. She didn’t even make arguments as to why we needed it. She just kept asking for the same stuff in the same way. All of it was stuff we didn’t need and most of us wouldn’t even use.
I contributed my thoughts on what I felt needed to be added to the curriculum, which was met with agreement. I really only had that one suggestion. The rest of the time I let them do their thing, which was woefully unorganized, disjointed, and overall a waste of time I could be grading papers. And so I decided that while they did their thing I would organize my Google Drive. As I was doing this I noticed something. I was still the owner on ALL the ESL files for SHS. Not just the ones I created…ALL OF THEM. If I were to hit delete SHS would literally have to start from scratch organizing their program with new teachers next year. But Ms. Dean did make clear I was to have nothing to do with ESL anymore. If I deleted the folders was that malicious compliance? Or just being a bitch for the sake of it? I still haven’t decided…I find the situation humorous, in not a bit morally ambiguous.
Ultimately, it was decided that 1 day wasn’t enough for our meeting so we would meet again one week later at the same place. I declined. I needed to be on my campus because I did have actual work to do. Grades would be due the day they wanted to meet. I wasn’t the only one. About half of the graphic design teachers agreed to meet again the following week and we would all be meeting again August 1st. So I get to start my school year back at ‘The Clique’. Lovely.
Yeah, this was a very real reminder that for all the beardery at Standard High, it could be SO much worse.

1. “Lunchtime!”

After that long mammoth of a tale that the last story was, here is a short one for you.
This happened the day after my meeting at CHS. Sonia wanted to end the school year with some team building so she asked Ms. Dean if they could have an off-campus team meeting at a nearby restaurant and grab some food. Ms. Dean told them no. Sonia then decided they would just order takeaway and do the same thing on campus. She reserved a conference room and everything.
So the day of the eat and meet came. Beatle had ordered some enchiladas and was looking forward to a hot meal during the workday. CovidBeard didn’t go because she said she wasn’t feeling well and needed to just go home early. I know that comes as a shock. Meanwhile, ManiBeard decided he would sit next to his bff, Beatle. ManiBeard hadn’t ordered any food because ‘the catering menu looked good, but nothing on the regular menu appealed to me’. What ManiBeard did have, however, was a bag of crackers. As Beatle tried to eat his food, ManiBeard both ate his crackers and talked at the same time. It didn’t take long for Beatle to realize that small bits of cracker crumbs were flying at him and his food. He shifted to the side to dodge the airborne particles that threatened to infect his space. It was here that ManiBeard declared he had signed his contract but still wasn’t sure if he would be back next year because he had until July 3rd to pull out of his contract and he really just didn’t want to make a commitment.
After the meeting, everyone went their own way, except ManiBeard, who cornered Beatle in the mudroom. I was in my Cave waiting for him when I got a text ‘SOS, I’ve been cornered! Mudroom!’
I sighed, “Come on Wee One. We have to go save Dad.”
Wee One chuckled, “Oh no.” She followed me faithfully as we headed downstairs.
“Oh, good, you’re here already. We gotta go Love. Wee One has that thing…see ya later ManiBeard!” I said as I grabbed Beatle’s arm as I passed and just kept walking.
The next day Beatle went into Sonia’s room for inclusion and she smiled at him, “Sure you got all the crumbs off?” she teased.
Beatle rolled his eyes, “Right?!”
Sonia nodded, “ManiBeard is why I don’t eat lunch in the workroom anymore. ManiBeard would walk over to me and just stand over me…like right over me…and talk while he ate which would just send food everywhere. One day he was eating some chicken salad and a piece of chicken flew out of his mouth and landed on my arm.”
“Oh bloody hell. That’s disgusting,” Beatle said before vowing not to be near ManiBeard eating ever again.

1. “Little Lies”

Ever since it was announced PastorBeard was the new dept head he had been walking around like a roster puffing out his chest. He had also been going out of his way to talk to Beatle, as if to rub in that he got the dept head job and Beatle didn’t. It was annoying, but I stayed out of it. I even played nice when PastorBeard stopped me in the parking lot one day and asked me about my weekend plans while I was waiting for Beatle.
“What are you plans this weekend, Mandy?” PastorBeard asked as he leaned against the side of my car.
“Oh, nothing major. Weekend chores. Beatle has some school work to get done and he’s going to put some snake repellant in the yard…I’ll probably clean the house and spend some time with my mum,” I said, trying to be pleasant as I could be. What I really wanted to do was to tell him he was a bastard that should never teach, let alone lead a dept.
“You should come to watch me on Sunday. I’m preaching his weekend,” he said with a smile. His tone came off like he intended it to be a flex.
I forced a smiled, “No thanks. Not my thing.”
“God isn’t ‘your thing’?” he asked, leaning towards me a bit.
I took a step back, “Not the same one you believe in.” I started absentmindedly playing with the Flower of Aphrodite pendant I wore around my neck.
“Are you Catholic or something?” he asked.
I fought the urge to roll my eyes. People presumed since Beatle was Irish that we were a Catholic family a lot. Instead, I shook my head, “No. Actually, if you must know, I’m Pagan.”
PastorBeard looked taken aback, “Oh…I see.”
“So, while I appreciate the invite…not my thing,” I said again.
“You should come anyway. I’d love to look out on Sunday and see you there. And who knows? If you hear what I have to say you may change your mind about being pagan,” PastorBeard said with a cocky smile.
I looked around hoping Beatle and Wee One were going to be there soon, “I doubt it…anyway…um…I hate to keep you on a Friday.”
“I’m not in a rush. You’re fine,” he said, “Did you hear I’m the new dept head?”
“Yeah. I know,” I said, “Beatle told me. He applied to you know.”
“I know. They need someone that is a strong leader for the job though, someone that can guide the dept the way I guide the church. They can’t pick someone with a weak personality. A man should be able to lead…his church, his work, and of course his wife,” PastorBeard said pointedly.
“Uh huh…a good leader knows when to defer to those wiser than he,” I said as I saw Beatle and Wee One, “Love! Hey!” I waved.
Beatle saw PastorBeard and looked unhappy, “Hi PastorBeard.”
“Have a good weekend you guys. See you later Mandy…think about my offer,” he said as he went and got into his truck that sat on tires far too big for it.
“What was that?” Beatle asked when we got in the car.
I shrugged, “He was either hitting on me or he was just being a pompous arse…or both. Hard to say.”
And we went on our way.
The next work day Beatle walked into the workroom and saw PastorBeard in there talking to Vera (the assistant mentioned in chapter 26.)
“Just do your best to set them up for success,” PastorBeard told Vera as he walked out of the workroom.
Vera sighed.
“Are you ok mate?” Beatle asked her.
Vera shook her head, “We’re almost done. Almost there.”
“What happened?” Beatle asked.
“Well, only 2 of the kids in that group in the hall workspace need my help,” Vera said pointing to a group outside PastorBeard’s room, “The others are kids missing work and PastorBeard kicked them out of the classroom. I’m supposed to watch them and make sure they behave but they already told me they aren’t going to do anything.”
Beatle’s expression went dark, “You’re a SPED assistant. Not a babysitter.”
“I know, but I’ve never seen him actually help anyone. He doesn’t go around the room to help. Just tells them to be quiet and pokes them. I don’t know why he feels the need to touch them. He tells them if they need help they can go to him and he just sits at his desk the whole time…but no one is gonna go to him for help because they don’t like him,” Vera vented.
Beatle sighed, “You know he’s dept head next year, right?”
“Oh, I know. He told me no one else wanted it,” Vera said sadly.
Beatle blinked, “No ma’am. I interviewed for it.”
“That’s just what I heard,” Vera said.
“He lied,” Beatle shook his head.
What PastorBeard didn’t know is that Beatle had something else in the works…we weren’t sure it would pan out at this point (as of this writing we still aren’t), but Beatle wasn’t going to take PastorBeard’s crap lying down…and for that, I was proud of him.

1. “Wrapping It Up”

3.5 days till summer. Grades were due. I sat at my computer to adjust the grade book and turned on some music. Not even kidding, ‘The Final Countdown’ was on the radio (yes, I listen to the radio. Satellite Radio to be precise). It was the perfect music for working on my end-of-year checklist. I felt like I was in a movie and this was my montage music!
We reached the point in the year when all the teachers were just playing movies. For my part, I was letting them watch the Super Mario Movie. I had some happy students. I also wrote Wee One a pass to spend the day in my room. She was done with her work and wanted to help me with some Graphic Design work for next year’s launch (we are launching an on-campus design firm). She asked me which workstation she could work at and I did the worst thing a mum can do to her child. I sat her next to my baby neckbeard. She started working but within 10 minutes she came to my desk.
“Mom…” she started.
I looked at her. “Excuse me?”
She sighed, “I’m sorry…Ms. Mandy?”
“Yes ma’am?” I asked her.
“Can I sit on the other side of the room…it’s less claustrophobic and I have a friend over there…” she trailed off.
I chuckled and leaned in so only she could hear me, “You don’t appreciate sitting next to the baby neckbeard?”
She looked sheepish, “Not really.”
“Can you smell him?” I asked.
She made a disgusted face, “Sort of, yeah.”
“OK, yes, go ahead and move,” I nodded.
In the meantime, Beatle was texting me:
Beatle: Why does ManiBeard always start class with “How are we?” instead of “How are you?”?
Mandy: Because that’s what’s in his programming.
Beatle: LMAO! Point. I will not miss him this summer. You know he said he is only helping with graduation because he didn’t help with either dance. I thought it was mandatory that we do one of the 1 dances.
Mandy: Sigh. 1) yes it is and I bet they got on him and forced him to help with graduation and 2) why the hell would they let him help with graduation? That event is stressful enough without adding ManiBeard to the mix.
Beatle: He said he rather work graduation because it’s his favorite event because he gets to see the kids move on.
Mandy: But he’s a freshman teacher. He doesn’t know many if any, seniors.
Beatle: I know! Oh, CovidBeard is leaving.
Mandy: WHAT?! FOREVER?!
Beatle: I’m watching her class for the rest of the period.
Mandy: Oh, just for today.
Beatle: Yeah. Don’t get too excited.
Mandy: Damn. 3.5 days left. Heaven forbid she stick it out.
Beatle: Right?
And right about the time I was hoping my Beard encounters were over. At least until graduation…it happened. I had to email EnglishBeard. Why? Because I needed one of his students (who happened to be one of my most talented graphic design students) to come to my class the next day during his class. I cringed at having to interact with him. I asked Beatle if I should even bother. “We’re not doing anything, why would he say no?” Beatle asked. “He’s a beard.” I replied. “Fair.” Beatle conceded.
Finally, I took a breath and started to type: “EnglishBeard, if it is alright with you, can Sara come to my class during 5th period tomorrow to do some Graphic Design work? Thanks, Mandy”
2 hours later, he replied, “What work? Why should I send her to an elective? My class is core.”
I sighed, “It’s ok if you are doing something in class. I just thought it would be ok if you are just watching movies.” I replied.
“We are just watching movies, but my class is still a core class and yours is not,” EnglishBeard replied.
“You are correct. However, Sara is going to be in my Graphic 3 class next year and I want to get all my Graphic 3 students together for a meeting before the end of the year and the rest of them are in my 5th period. If you don’t want to send her that is fine,” I replied.
“Ok, that would be fine. I will allow it,” EnglishBeard finally said.
I sighed and wrote a pass to give to Sara.
Meanwhile, in the English 1 meeting, Beatle was dealing with his own Beard.
“And the Beard came back….CovidBeard came back for the meeting,” Beatle texted me.
“WHY?!” I texted back.
“IDK! I’m spraying Lysol when she leaves the room. She’s like ‘I’m sitting here sweating. I have no idea what I have.’ I guess she came back for attention,” Beatle replied.
I sighed as I typed, “Probably.”
Why did all these Beards have to come back? Why couldn’t this be last year when we had the mass exodus of Beards? That was nice. I liked that.
Maybe they would get less beardy over the summer?
Probably not.

1. “Graduation Day”

Have you ever sat through a graduation ceremony? If you have you know how dull they are. Being part of it is even worse. Graduation in Australia was quite different, but when I graduated from college in America Beatle practically had to force me into the cap and gown. It was not something I have ever liked…so the irony that I volunteer every year (except next year when Wee One graduates) is not lost on me. Mostly, I do it because I know it means something to the kids to see their teachers there. That said, I silently curse in my head the entire time while making sure to smile, be peppy, and congratulate even the most ungrateful of students. While I don’t look back on my graduation fondly, some of them might and I want to help provide good memories.
Graduation isn’t just on that day either. The day before we have to participate in graduation practice, which is just as awful, if not worse. I did entertain myself by watching ManiBeard however.
We all gathered in the practice gym to line up and then once everyone was in place we processed into the main gym. The practice gym was so bloody hot that I was sweating. It was so bloody hot that ManiBeard actually took off his cardigan for the first time all year. I have now confirmed he does have arms under it. Bloke never takes off his cardigan/coat…even when the outside temp is 100+ in Fahrenheit. I further observed only to realize that they had, for some reason, put ManiBeard in the same row as 2 of the baby beards I’ve been observing over the course of the year. ManiBeard was as clueless as one might expect and had no idea how to manage the kids and telling them when to stand, when to sit, when to walk, etc. He made it through graduation practice, but I was seriously concerned about the next day. I was also concerned because I saw the gown they set aside for Mani. It was huge! He was going to look like a puppy wearing his owner’s sweater. Let the chaos commence!
And commence it did. Shortly after lunch Beatle texted me “OZZY ISN’T COMING BACK! WHAT THE HELL IS EVEN GOING ON AROUND HERE?!”
Remember Ozzy? The other Australian on campus? Yeah, evidently he said, “this really isn’t something I foresaw happening. It is something I needed to do. But please, I don’t want to make it seem like I’m excited to leave. I’m not. It’s actually been really hard packing up my things.” Ozzy had been around since the campus opened in 2016. It was a true shock to see him leave and Beatle was very distraught over it. Honestly, so was I.
After school Beatle barrelled into his classroom, “OK, mate, what the hell is going on?”
The conversation was private so I’m not going to detail it, but I will say that circumstances happened so that Ozzy had to go back to Australia. He was not happy about it. He said he thought he would retire from Standard High, but life happens. This was a blow, but we wish him the best.
I found out later that night that ManiBeard managed to out-beard himself. He did the beardiest thing he’d ever done.
“Did you guys meet today in E1?” I asked Beatle.
“Yeah, but it was more social than a meeting,” Beatle replied.
“ManiBeard? Social? How did that go?” I asked.
Beatle chuckled, “ManiBeard wasn’t there.”
“Why?” I asked.
“Because he miscalculated all his grades and had to redo them,” Beatle said.
I froze as I tried to register what he said. Finally I spoke, “But our gradebook is automated. We don’t calculate anything. We put in the number and bam…grades. How the hell did Mani manage to ‘miscalculate’ grades?”
“No idea, but admin wasn’t happy. They sent in Lana to guide him through it,” Beatle said.
I laughed, “Oh my god! After everything he did to keep Lana out of his room she ended up fixing his gradebook? The irony is too delicious! This has got to be the beardiest thing he has ever done. How the fuck do you miscalculate grades in and automated gradebook?!”
Beatle shrugged, “Talent?”
The next morning (THE LAST DAY OF SCHOOL) an email started circulating from teachers that were worried about getting left at the arena we were holding graduation in. They wanted to ensure the bus wouldn’t leave them behind. Beatle and I watched as the emails flooded our inboxes. ManiBeard: “I need a ride too.” EnglishBeard: “Don’t leave me behind!” HistoryBeard: “I look like too much of an escaped inmate to safely hitchhike. Don’t leave me either.” MathBeard:I need the bus to get back to school.”
It was at that point I texted my brother to see if he could pick Beatle and I up after graduation. To be clear, we have to ride the bus over with students so taking our own car wasn’t an option…but riding the BeardBus home did not appeal to either of us. I like getting fodder for stories, but I’m not a complete sadomasochist. My brother agreed and I felt relief wash over me.
Beatle and I ended up combining our classes in my Cave for the last day because we bought breakfast tacos and donuts for the kids and it was easier to combine classes than to try to split the food. So, most of the last day was the kids eating and playing Mario Kart on our Switch. It was pretty fun. I did leave the kids with Beatle at one point so I could go down to Cook’s kitchen and do my department check-out stuff. When I say Cook had a professional kitchen that is not hyperbole. The culinary kitchen at Standard High is anything but standard. We’re talking a state-of-the-art kitchen that any head chef would be in awe of. It’s truly a thing to behold and for high school students? Yeah, it is pretty bloody great. Oh, and the cutting boards…let me tell you about the numerous cutting boards!
…I’m kidding Red! Just kidding!
But yeah, the kitchen is pretty great. Anyway, when I went into said kitchen, MediaBeard was in there doing his check-out as well. When he saw me he smiled and turned to me.
“Mandy, thank you so much for everything you did for me this year. It was a rough year and you had my back. I truly appreciate you, thank you,” he said as he hugged me.
I hugged him back, “Aww, mate…I got ya. Anytime. Next year will be better.”
When I said back in Chapter 1 that MediaBeard was certainly a Beard, but one of the ‘good’ beards, this is what I meant. Yes, he can be a bit…well…beardly. But, the bloke has a good heart. And I am glad he will be back next year. I’m going to try to mentor him now that I’m settled in graphic design. I am also glad he will not be Wee One’s teacher next year. She’s decided to take graphic design 3 and animation 1 which means she will have me as her teacher for 3 out of 8 periods. Come to find out she likes me as her teacher. And I’m pretty hard on her. She said I made her better. I must be doing something right!
Cook has 100% become my work Mum and I adore her. She plans to have a department soiree before school starts and for the first time ever I’m actually looking forward to going to a department function, solely because of Cook. She is amazing.
Finally, as long last, the 2022-2023 school year ended. All the non-senior students left and the seniors arrived.
Beatle and I scarfed our lunch down and headed to the gym… this is where graduation truly begins.
I put my gown on over my work clothes as did Beatle. We sat together and chatted for a bit before he went to his row to help organize kids. I was left sitting alone in my row as the students filed in. And, as I usually do in these situations, I started to observe my surroundings and live a bit in my own head.
I saw some teachers grouped up talking and laughing near me. For a moment I felt that loneliness I felt all through school (until I met Beatle). I had a moment of feeling like that ‘weird blonde kid’ again. I guess it never really goes away. It was a reminder that from the day we met (see SquirrelBeard for that story) Beatle has always been where I fit. Does anyone else ever have a moment of reversion like that? Where even as an adult you remember how it was to be an outcast at 15 or whatever? Maybe it’s just me? Maybe it’s because I work in a high school?
In any case, I snapped out of it and looked around. What caught my eye was a pair of BRIGHT crimson skinny jeans. And the wearer? ManiBeard. OF COURSE! He also had on a plain white t-shirt with the district logo on it that we got free at the start of the year and Van trainers. What was the dress code for this event that admin had explicitly given us the day before? Dress pants and a Polo or button-up for men or a suit for men, a dress or nice pants and shirt for women, dress shoes, and absolutely no jeans, trainers, or t-shirts. Yeah. For J’s part he had on black pants and a black button-up shirt with a tie. He looked good. It was also the first time he got to wear his Master’s hood at a graduation, which was pretty frickin cool too! I had on black pants and a nice shirt. I was not wearing a dress at graduation. Just, no. Anyway…ManiBeard…right…so he wore EXACTLY what admin said don’t wear. Cause…ManiBeard. And I was right, his gown made him look like a puppy wearing his owner’s sweater. It would have been cute if it was anyone but Mani. Instead he just looked robotic and lost. And, exactly like I suspected, he didn’t talk to any of the kids. He didn’t even congratulate them. Probably because he teachers 9th graders and didn’t know any of these kids and had no connection to them. Beatle knew a lot of them. These were the kids that he taught his first year as freshmen so he had seen them through all 4 years. It was emotional for him.
It was around this time I turned around and noticed paramedics in the hall. I later found out a student (one of mine actually) had a seizure. I had seen them roll a kid out of the building on an office chair but I didn’t know who under Mr. Principal told me later. As all of this was happening APBeard said they put a sign up sheet on the stage for any teacher that needed to take the bus back to campus after the ceremony. A bunch of teachers headed to the stage. One that looked like a textbook beard said, as he walked past me, “that would be all of us. Like any of us can afford an Uber with what they pay us.” I raised an eyebrow and looked the man over. “That has GOT to be HistoryBeard” I thought to myself. Beatle ran up behind me.
“See that bloke up there…the one at the sign up sheet right now?” Beatle asked me quietly.
“Yeah,” I said.
“That’s HistoryBeard,” he confirmed.
“I knew it! I knew that had to be him. Damn, he is a beard and it’s not even just on the inside,” I said.
Beatle shook his head, “No, he’s one that is beard inside and out.”
I shuttered as Beatle returned to his seat.
About 45 minutes later we boarded the bus and headed to the arena. I hoped everything would be smooth sailing from there, but that would have been WAY too easy.
So, I need to paint a bit of a picture here…have you ever been backstage at an arena? It’s not a huge space…and when you put a couple hundred people back there…it’s a tight fit. We were lucky to have a 2 inch radius around us. Personal space does not exist when you cram everyone back there. And we had to line up in order. Each row had a letter. It seemed everything was fine. My row was in order…but something felt off. That’s when I realized whoever set the signs up doesn’t know the bloody alphabet because instead of A, B, C, D, E, F, G it went A, B, C, D, E, G, F. I was in row F. I realized the error but I also wasn’t about to move anything without telling an AP. So I found an AP that said he had to find another AP and 3 APs later I was told to swap Rows F and G. I helped correct the signed and then we had to shift the rows with VERY little space. It was…something.
It was hot, cramped, and miserable. Beatle told me later some of the kids in his row snuck back into a supply room and were stealing popcorn. It was in the moments of being back stage I remembered why last year I said to myself ‘never again, I’m never doing graduation again’. I’m really not next year cause of Wee One and I’ll probably forget the year after and volunteer again. Cause teacher brain. Anyway, it was finally go time and we walked out, sat down, and the ceremony started. All done? Not quite.
For the sake of wrapping this up I’ll quickly list the crap that happened during the ceremony:

1. Someone in the stands called to a kid ‘you look like ET but we love you anyway!’ to which a graduate yelled back ‘you’re an asshole’. Classy.
2. ManiBeard was clueless and lost. He may as well have not even been there because he was mostly just in the way.
3. The boys decided it was great fun to pretend to fall on stage just before the got to Mr. Principal. This happened 4 times. A 5th pretended he was about to fall then twerked instead. Again, classy. Ladies and gentleman, our future.
4. A boy in the row in front of me turned around and was using his program to sword fight with a boy in my row. I gave them the ‘mom/teacher look’ and they both got a panicked look and said ‘sorry ma’am’ before sitting straight for the rest of the ceremony. Maybe Wee One is right. Maybe I am scary.
5. MediaBeard made the senior video and it was awful. I have a hard time believing he worked ‘in the industry’. Next year I’m going to see if he will let me do some graphic design templates for him. It will be part of my proposal to mentor him.

And then graduation was over. Beatle and I checked with Number One and were cleared to leave. Brother picked us up and we headed to dinner (where Brother once again came very close to getting the name BrotherBeard) and summer began.
And that concludes this year of School of Beards. If there is any demand I will be back in the fall because with all the beards returning I am sure to have a new batch of tales. I sincerely want to thank everyone that had come on this journey with me, Red for reading (and being a mate), and Beatle for supporting me and allowing me to share his stories. I mostly want to thank everyone that has listened to Red read these stories because that is the most amazing thing…hearing these stories read and getting his insight. I do appreciate it more than I can say. Keep an eye out for the rest of BowserBeard this summer and maybe a couple of one-offs.
Now, to end this year I decided to try my hand at my first parody song. Apologies if it’s not very good. Like I said, it’s my first one. I hope it doesn’t suck!
“BeardSchool’s Out” (Parody of “School’s Out” by Alice Cooper)
Well, we got no choice
But to hear the noise
Listenin to the beards’ voice
The poor girls and boys
Well, we can't escape ya
Can't find an out
And when they start to shout
Education’s in doubt
BeardSchool's out for summer
Beards go into slumber
Beardschool makes us shutter
No more Mani
No more English
No more preacher's judgment, yeah
Well, Mani can’t control his class
And Pastor’s got the Principal
And the students pay the price
We can't even think about next year
BeardSchool's out for summer
Beards go into slumber
Beardschool makes us shutter
No more Media
No more Math Emails
No more two-faced Dean
Out for summer
Out 'til fall
Do the beards have to come back at all
Beards go slumber
BeardSchool's out for summer
Watch the Beards lumber
BeardSchool’s out till August

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The night air was brisk without his armor, and he could feel gooseflesh travel across his skin when a soft gale brushed through the empty street. There was a small thought at the back of Helbram’s mind that told him that removing his armor was a poor choice where he was going, but he did so anyway.
He was done fighting for today.
The Troll’s face flashed through his mind. His eyes in shock, brimmed with tears as its heart stopped beating from the spear that was embedded into his chest. Helbram shook his head to banish the image from his thoughts, but as he did the soreness to his body became all the more evident. Embers of pain rested in his arms, reminding him of how he pulled at the rope with all his strength.
Only for it all to amount to nothing.
Helbram closed his eyes and sighed before looking ahead, catching the sight of Sophia walking ahead of him.
“I thank you for your assistance,” Helbram said, “Elly may have been putting on a brave face but she took the hardest hit out of all of us.”
“It is the least I could do, healing is one of my duties,” The Maiden of the Sword glanced back, “Though from what I can tell, you require it more than she did.”
Helbram’s shoulder throbbed as she spoke, and he had to admit that she was correct. While the shield had absorbed most of the Troll’s blow, his shoulder took the rest, and he had the misfortune of landing on it when he hit the ground. The rush of battle and haze of his own anger had dulled the pain previously, but when all that had faded, he found himself hesitant to even move his arm for fear of the fire that would lance through him if he did so.
He clutched his shoulder with his uninjured hand, “Perhaps you are correct… though I will tolerate it for now. Let it serve as a reminder.”
Sophia nodded, and let silence fall over them again. They remained that way until they arrived at the Shrine. The water of the sea below reflected the blackness of the night above, but the restlessness of its waves allowed for no clear image of the starry night above to appear over its visage. When they crossed the bridge to the Shrine’s island, Sophia turned, avoiding the front doors and walking off to the building’s side. Helbram quirked an eyebrow and looked at her, and The Maiden only glanced at him before motioning for him to follow her.
He did, but he took in a small breath and focused his Ether into his ears. The sounds of the waves below grew more prominent along with Sophia’s own footsteps, but he could hear no other sounds. Helbram relaxed his posture when he did not detect anyone nearby and picked up his pace, walking right behind Sophia as she guided him to the back of the building. A cliff spiked from the isolated isle like a blade, pointing to the near full moon that glowed so brightly in the sky, casting its pale light across the cliff and the back of the building.
At the base of the cliff was, to Helbram’s surprise, a trapdoor. It was of the same wood of the Shrine’s own entrance and was surrounded by a border of the same pale stone. Its make was noticeably less elaborate, much more weathered than the building that loomed over it, evidenced by the rounded corners of the stone’s border.
Sophia pulled the trap door open, revealing a staircase. Rather than crafted, its stone steps appeared to be carved from the earth itself, and lead down far enough that he could only catch the hint of light at its bottom.
Helbram pressed his lips thin and looked at The Maiden, “Pardon my caution, but I am none too fond of going down mysterious doorways.”
Sophia frowned, “As understandable as your caution is, there are far less conspicuous locations for me to try and trap you.”
There was a bluntness to her voice that bled through her polite demeanor, revealing only a glimpse at the woman that sat behind the mantle of The Maiden.
Helbram snorted, “Fair enough, but ladies first.”
Her frown deepened, but she walked through the trap door first. Helbram waited a moment before following her, leaving the trap door open behind him as he made his way down the stairs. The air was still as he walked down the stairs, but the once distant sound of crashing waves grew closer,and clearer the further down that he went. The reason for this was made obvious when he reached the bottom of the stairs and was greeted by the cave that sat at its end.
It was not large, its size barely providing enough room for the small table and two chairs that sat at its center, rustic pieces crafted from lumber so worn it could be mistaken for driftwood. The far end of the cave opened out to the sea below, a simplistic railing of the same weathered wood serving as its border. Water crashed below, spraying the railing with a light mist. He could see the waves themselves reaching the lips of the cave on stormier days, but on this night he found the sight mesmerizing, its calmness a far cry from the chaos that occurred earlier in the night.
Sophia took a seat at the table and motioned towards the opposite chair, “Please, sit down.”
Helbram made his way to the table, noting that his height was enough that he felt the tip of his hair brush against the cave’s roof. Ducking instinctively, he took his seat as he looked out to the sea.
“I must admit, this is quite the unusual spot,” he said, “Never would I have guessed that such a hideaway existed.”
Sophia joined him in looking out towards the waves. When he looked out to her, the mask of the Maiden could no longer be seen. Gone was the serenity from her face, the stillness to her features, replaced by eyes cast downward, unable to look up as worry gradually furrowed her brow. Her upright posture was now slouched, hunched over as if the weight of the world sat upon her shoulders.
“It was made by those that built the Shrine,” she explained, a tiredness overhanging her voice, “It served as their place of respite, away from the town above.”
She looked at him, “Away from the voice of the Sword that whispered into their ears.”
Helbram nodded, understanding her point, “That is interesting… I wonder why that is.”
Sophia shrugged, “I have heard tales that those sailing the Black Sea will sometimes find their spells and magitek disrupted. Perhaps that is the reason.”
He rubbed his chin, “Would the Sword not notice your absence?”
The tired woman sat back in her chair, letting out a sigh, “If it has before, it has not made mention of it, and I am hardly the first Maiden to utilize this space for their own peace of mind,” she tapped her fingers against the table, “Besides, it has been preoccupied as of late, speaking to those it has chosen,” she looked him in the eye, “You among them.”
Helbram kept his expression blank, “I do not know what you speak of.”
“I am not a fool, Helbram,” she said, the spark of irritation in her voice fading to weariness, “Aside from the brief moment that you laid your hands on it, I am exposed to its voice at all times. It spoke to Marcus, to Marjorie… to you.”
He crossed his fingers and rested them against the table, “...yes, it did, but I spoke true when I told you it did not choose me.”
“It did not say it overtly to any of you three, yet it chooses to speak to you three among all others, and of all those that it spoke with, it is only with you that it appeared so earnest,” she said, “I could feel its desire as it reached out to you, speaking to you with visions of memories past.”
“How much did you see?” He asked.
“Glimpses,” she said, “the sight of a large, damaged rock, of a man splitting stone without an ounce of effort, but no more than that. I did not wish to glimpse too much. I saw even less of Marjorie’s.”
“And of Marcus?”
She closed her eyes, “Of that, I saw everything, felt everything. The hand that reached out to his father as he abandoned them, the tears that fell down his eyes as he cried with his mother. The anger, the sorrow, the burning flame of desire to surpass the man that left them behind… for the Sword that will grant that wish. It senses it, it calls to it, kindling the fire with trauma that should be long past, growing it with each passing moment.”
Sophia opened her eyes, the steel behind their gaze giving him pause, ‘Which is why he must never have it.”
Helbram regarded her words, resting his uninjured arm on the table, “And so you come to me.”
Sophia nodded, “Tell me, when you looked upon the murals within the Shrine, what was it that you saw?”
Helbram recalled the pictures that sat above the Sword, “The story of a hero, felling a great darkness that had befallen a land and making the ultimate sacrifice to finish it off for good,” he searched Sophia’s eyes as he spoke, noting that his recounting of the tale did nothing to bring a reaction to her expression, “But that is not what you see, is it?”
The tired woman sat back and sighed, “What you see is a vision of the past, what I see is prophecy.”
Helbram looked at her with questioning eyes.
“Not in the literal sense,” she said, brushing her silver hair aside, “all who look upon the mural praise the glory of the hero and his actions. None have ever considered the perspective of the hero himself.”
Helbram said nothing as Sophia continued.
“They see a man chosen to wield a powerful sword, chosen to banish an all consuming evil from his home. They see a man of great strength, of power that is to be admired and coveted… of a sacrifice that rings true of all heroes of legend. But what do they not see?”
She leaned forward, grabbing the edges of the table with a grip tight enough to turn her knuckles pale, “Do they see the weight of such responsibility? The pressure of the expectation that is placed upon a hero? Are they aware of the pain that man must have gone through, the abject terror and tribulations that plagued him as he not only fought that darkness, but harbored it within him until he found no other choice than to smother the very light of his own life?”
Sophia looked into Helbram’s eyes, “No, they do not. They see the opportunity for glory, the means to powers that they could only dream of, blissfully unaware that the tale of a hero is not one of such heights, but of peaks amidst a tide of lows that will erode a man’s very soul.”
Helbram leaned back, “And that is what you wish to spare Marcus from.”
Her eyes widened, “You are as perceptive as I hoped.”
“You would not be speaking like this were Marjorie were on your mind,” Helbram explained.
Sophia closed her eyes and loosened her grip on the table, “Of that… you are correct.”
He crossed his arm, “Do you not believe that he can handle the Sword?”
She shook her head, “I know full well that Marcus would be able to wield it, to bear the responsibilities that would come with it. Yes, he is naive, and untrained, but at his core he is a strong, good man,” her voice grew soft, “I have known ever since we were children, yet I would spare him of the burden all the same.”
“And place it onto me,” Helbram kept his voice and posture relaxed, studying Sophia’s body language carefully, “why not Marjorie? She would be more than eager to claim the Sword.”
She frowned, “Great though my desires may be, I do not aim to be foolish in my choices. Of the two others that the Sword speaks to, I trust you the most to take it.”
“And why is that?”
“Marjorie hungers for it, with a desire that I daresay matches that of Marcus’s, perhaps even more. But whereas Marcus’s rages like a flame hers serves to drown me like the ocean,” She motioned to Helbram, “You, however, seem almost adverse to the Sword, regardless of its desire for you to wield it. If you were to be the one to draw it… then perhaps you would be the one to best wield its power.”
Helbram nodded, “And so you deem me worthy enough to bear the burdens that you do not wish to befall Marcus. While I appreciate the honesty, I must say you are doing a rather poor job of convincing me to do so.”
Sophia did not look away, “You strike me as an honorable man. It would be unfair of me to try and deceive you.”
He snorted, “Marcus is indeed quite lucky to be in your care. I can see why he is enamored by you.”
A blush races across Sophia’s cheeks, “That is irrelevant.”
Helbram eyed her with doubt, “Hardly, but I shall prod no further on that subject,” he pressed his lips together and stared at her with a solemn expression, “Regardless, I am afraid I cannot do what you want. I have no intention of drawing the Sword.”
Her eyes became downcast, “May I ask why?”
“I’d say you made a rather compelling case as to why I should not do so,” he said, which brought about a defeated frown from her face, “But, more importantly, I cannot trust it.”
She looked at him with confusion, “What do you mean?”
“The words that it speaks to everyone… whispers that promise some sort of boon, some fulfillment of wishes, or even revelations that are too vague to verify, but broad enough that you cannot help but believe that it was speaking the truth,” he leaned towards Sophia, keeping a spark of anger contained as he grit his teeth, “But the words it spoke to me… I know them to be lies,” he said, feeling his shoulder throb, reminding him of the realities of his weakness, “none knows that more than I. So tell me, how could I draw the Sword when it chooses to lure me in with falsehoods?”
To his surprise, Sophia did not falter. Instead, the tired woman’s expression went still, a calmness to her features that was different from the guise she wore as Maiden.
“Are you certain that it was lying to you?” she asked, her voice steady.
Helbram’s eyes narrowed, “What do you mean?”
“I have seen the Sword speak to countless people,” she said, “And while I do agree that most of what it tells people are shallow statements, I have not known it to be wrong.”
She stood up from the table, walking up to the balcony and staring out to the sea, “When the Sword looks into someone… I am able to see what it sees,” she explained, “I have seen the potential of so many… of men and women seeking fortune, children brought by their parents in hopes that they would be chosen or some revelation of their potential might become apparent. In all of these situations I know what the Sword speaks is true, because I have seen it all as well.”
Sophia turned back towards him, “All except for when you took hold of it.”
Helbram said nothing.
“I do not know why that is, but I know that the Sword was not lying to you. In its eyes, you are the one that possesses the most potential to wield it.”
He grit his teeth, holding back the anger that rose in his chest, “Why would that be? I hold no power aside from a sliver of Ether that a child could cultivate in their sleep. The more that the Sword refers to my potential, the more I am forced to confront that simple, undeniable truth.”
Sophia’s eyes widened as a low growl traced his voice.
“I have traveled through the Six Kingdoms, consulting with scholars, pleading with healers in the hopes of finding some cure for the weakness that plagues me, and none could be found. I have crossed the ocean to Esperia, believing that perhaps that land of magitek could have discovered a method by which I could break the shackles of my own constitution, only to be told that yes, there are methods by which someone with my condition could eventually come to cultivate the strength that is denied to them… but that my particular case was too severe to treat,” his voice descended to resignation, “And in that revelation I found myself wandering, finding my way to the Freemarks, being given hope in a brief moment where I managed to do what was thought impossible by my own hands, finding companions that I do not deserve.”
He closed his eyes and sighed, “Hope that is smothered the more that I am forced to confront the reality that, in my own arrogance, I thought I could ignore for a time,” He stood up from his chair and walked towards the stairs, “I am not the one that will wield the Sword, “ he did not face Sophia as he spoke, “ I am sorry.”
He made way to the stairs.
“What if you spoke to the Sword further?” Sophia asked, steel in her voice.
Helbram stopped and looked back at her.
“You only touched the Sword for an instant, hearing its voice for only a moment,” she said, “Will you not give it a chance to explain itself further? To know for certain if the words it speaks are indeed the lies you believe them to be?”
Resolution was clear in her eyes, but Helbram could also see the desperation under it all.
He took a deep breath, “Marcus is indeed fortunate to have someone cherish him so… Fine, I will speak to the Sword once more.”
Sophia’s chest fell in relief, “I will take you to it now.”
He did not say much as they made their way back to the front of the Shrine, but as Sophia unlocked its doors and moved to go inside, he grasped her shoulder to stop her.
“I will speak with it alone,” he said, his voice calm, but with a weight behind it that gave her pause.
She bit her lip, brow furrowed in uncertainty, but she eventually nodded, “I will wait for you out here.”
Helbram gave her a small smile, “I thank you.”
He brushed past her and into the shrine, closing the door behind him. The Shrine was enshrouded by the night’s shadows, with only the tree at its center illuminated by the pale moonlight that leaked in from above. As he walked closer to the blackened wood his eyes wandered back to the murals that sat above. The tale of the nameless hero held a sadder tone to it within the pale light, and as Helbram stared at the image of the hero impaling himself with his sword, he could not help but understand the fear that Sophia felt.
He sighed again, “Gods, how do I find myself in these situations?”
His eyes fell back to the Sword, its silver make glimmering further in the as moonlight danced upon its exposed surface. The sight alone was entracing enough to drive him closer out of sheer curiosity, and to his surprise, there was no compulsion that moved him as there was at the beginning of the day.
He snorted, “Want to leave it as my own choice, I see…”
He rolled his good shoulder and took in a breath, staring at the blade’s handle. He grasped it before doubt could overcome him, and as he did, all went black.
The void surrounded him again, its formless floor supporting his body that, thankfully, reflected his current attire of simple clothes. There was a chill to his injured shoulder that he caught a fleeting feeling of, a brief flash that banished the pulsing waves of pain that would radiate from it, letting him move it like normal.
Helbram rolled his shoulder as he looked around, “I suppose that is a good start…”
He stopped as his eyes fell upon an expected sight.
A man that was as tall as him, but with a wider and sturdier build. Their hair was similar, though the burly man’s was more well kept than his. There was steel in his brown eyes, but the man’s face was a kindly one, possessing a gentle smile that brought an ache to Helbram’s heart.
His father walked up to him, arms open and welcoming.
“At last, we meet.”
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Author's Note: I wanted to use this chapter to flesh out the character of Sophia a bit. I didn't want her to be some simple Maiden of the Sword that did not appear that much in the story itself, and I feel like this goes a long way in giving her some dimension beyond what was shown of her before. Let me know how I did!
If you wish to read ahead and gain access to the audiobook version of this story, consider supporting me on Patreon. If you want to leave a donation, here is my Ko-fi. More than any of that though, I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and have yourself a very wonderful day! :)

So I’ve been down the rabbit hole, trying to chase every off-the-cuff reference, stray allegory, allusion, comparison, and tangent. I’m going to need you to bear (hug) with me for a bit because I think I’ve stumbled on some truly insane parallels between this show and the myriad of references it makes and it will take a lot of text to justify to you that I'm not crazy (or that I am, but at least I do my research).
This is a show that employs a ton of intertextuality and what the poet T.S. Eliot (someone quoted frequently throughout the series) calls “the mythic method”: essentially using historical, literary, and mythological allusions to draw parallels between characters on the show and characters throughout history (real and imagined).
This method helps the audience to build both conscious and unconscious associations with each of the characters and, ultimately, underscores the Roys’ (and humanity’s) damning commitment to making the same mistakes over and over again. The show seems to draw a lot from Greek mythology, Arthurian legend, biblical parables, Shakespearean tragedy, and modernist poetry (among many other things).
These networks of symbolism span from the earliest recorded history to modern celebrity culture and yet they reveal frighteningly unchanged elements in the stories they tell. The parallels of these references throughout the show serve to highlight the cyclical (the illusion of progress) and deterministic (the illusion of free will) nature of existence.
While I will be dipping in and out of the existing references, I want to call particular attention to the poetry of the aforementioned T.S. Eliot (who champions the mythic method) and John Berryman’s poem Dream Song 29 because I believe much of their work has served as a foundation for characters.
In the show, Frank makes mention of his poem “The Long Song Of J Alfred Prufrock” more than once. Outside of the show, Matthew McFayden (the actor who plays Tom) references the same poem to describe his character. Jeremy Strong (the actor who plays Kendall) says Eliot’s work The Four Quartets is a huge inspiration to his acting and character. A line from this particular work did strike me as being quite on the nose, which is why I continued to comb the poem for more (which it does deliver on):

"In my beginning is my end. In succession Houses rise and fall, crumble, are extended, Are removed, destroyed, restored, or in their place Is an open field, or a factory, or a by-pass. Old stone to new building, old timber to new fires, Old fires to ashes, and ashes to the earth Which is already flesh, fur and faeces, Bone of man and beast, cornstalk and leaf."

This will probably be a monster of a post, so I will attempt to break down the following sections between poetic parallels, visual and dialogic symbolism of eternal recurrence, and an exploration of the historical and mythological allusions. Ultimately, I believe all of these clues point to the overwhelming conclusion that we will end where we began, in some way or another.
Circles & Cycles: Endless Recurrence & The Futility Of Progress
The show toys a lot with the philosophical concept of eternal recurrence, which postulates that “time repeats itself in an infinite loop, and that exactly the same events will continue to occur in exactly the same way, over and over again, for eternity.”
These eternal loops are symbolized visually with mirrors, water, fractal reflections; in the “uh-huh” and “mhmms” of repeated, near-palindromic dialogue; and in the show events that echo and repeat: in-air death scares, asynchronous business deals, family betrayal, weddings, retreats, implosions, family reunions, trauma bonding, baptism, funerals, etc.
In this understanding of time, there is no linear progress — or even progress at all. Time is cyclical. People are cyclical. As are the events that transpire. This is particularly interesting in a show like Succession whose title alone implies the phrase “line of succession.” Viewers would expect to see what comes next — who comes next — but as Logan himself yells, “Nothing is a line. Everything is moving all the time.”
Logan consistently evokes the circle shape in his speech, “Put a circle around him” he tells Shiv. “We’ve been circling for an hour, tell them we’re out of gas,” he complains in a moment of grim foreshadowing on his plane. “Crawl in a circle and close your eyes,” he shouts during the game of Boar on the Floor.
And he is the bright, burning nebulous center of this circle. He’s described as “carr[ying] his gravity. He's not a man, he's a f*cking planet.” And the people around him are described like satellites and moons. Characters exist in his orbit. And every complete orbit (or “revolution”) leaves characters in exactly the same place. There are motions, there is the illusion of progress, but the result is the same. Eliot again:

“every attempt Is a wholly new start, and a different kind of failure”

With this understanding, the show may just end where it begins. Not only in “nothing” happening, but in repeating the same events ad infinitum: A kid tries to take over the family business, they try to align with their siblings, they eventually backstab their siblings, they end out in the cold, and then they reunite, swear not to do it again, until it all repeats.
As most of us are aware, the show has made very direct mention of the John Berryman poem Dream Song 29. The names of the past three season finales (as well as the name of the upcoming fourth) are all direct excerpts from the poem, which deals with grief and sadness and the guilt of killing someone when you can’t even confirm there’s been someone killed at all.
Berryman consistently wrote about the guilt and grief he experienced from his father’s suicide. Berryman himself would eventually end up taking his own life, which on its own is a brutal reminder of the cycles of trauma. It also doesn’t feel insignificant that Berryman jumped off a bridge.
What’s really interesting is how each subsequent finale is named for a line that comes earlier and earlier in the poem. It also toys with this concept that things come full circle and end where they begin. This echoes Eliot’s essential thesis of the poem:

“What we call the beginning is often the end And to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from.”

But while the speaker of the poem comes to realize he has not murdered “nobody” by the poem’s last line; Kendall, moving through the poem backward, must reckon with the idea that he may have killed somebody even if they were a “nobody.” And while we may encounter this as a moment in which Kendall is genuinely despairing over his season 1 inadvertent murder, I believe we are far more likely to see Kendall embrace this moment.
We see "nobody" and "no one mentioned" a lot when it comes to Logan, who believes most people are "fungible as f*ck," and "pygmies" while he's "1,000 feet tall." When Kendall is involved in the accident, we see him echo "NRPI" or no real person involved.
The reason Kendall couldn’t live up to his father’s expectations is that he couldn’t be the killer his father needed him to be (even if his morality or basis of being a good person is off). This retroactive movement through the poem could be Kendall realizing he is, in fact, the killer his father always needed him to be, enabling him to take the necessary steps of seizing the crown on his own.
Allegories & Allusions: Mythic Comparisons & Determinism
It’s Shakespearean, like Roman says, “I kill Kendall, get crowned king, like we’re in f*cking Hamlet or something.” But it’s not just Hamlet, it’s King Lear, King Richard III, Coriolanus, Macbeth. And it’s not just Shakespeare, it’s Oedipus Rex, The Odyssey, The Waste Land, Thus Spoke Zarathustra, Cronus devouring his children, Romulus killing Remus, Noah cursing his child for looking upon him naked.
The concept of the monomyth was popularized in "The Hero With 1000 Faces" and discusses throughout history, throughout different times and places, different cultures, different religions, different people have developed stories with relatively similar fundamental elements. The show is rife with allusions of stories that follow that same thread. Logan is Cronus who is King Lear who is Romulus who is who is. This is another form of endless recurrence: the inability to break the cycle. Or, in a very Hamlet reference, "maybe the poison drips through."
The themes of patricide, fratricide, and incest in particular are rampant. Rhea (like Rhea Jarell) in Greek mythology is both sister and consort to Cronus. Both are part of the first generation of aptly named Titan gods. Cronus overthrew his father Uranus and learns his children are fated to overthrow him. So he eats them as soon as they are born. Logan does refer to people as food a surprising amount throughout the show, varying from red meat to vegetables. He outright calls for blood sacrifice, which evokes the language of the gods.
Logan is referenced specifically as one of the last real American titans in his obituaries and eulogies. The language around him is frequently god-like. He's known as "the big man" or even "the big man upstairs." Tom tells Greg to "be his representative here on earth"; Roman asks the audience, "who is going to climb Mt. Olympus and be the next Dr. Zeus?" And that's where the myth gets interesting.
The only child not to be eaten is Zeus, who does end up killing his father and was surprisingly interested in marrying his mother. We're familiar with this plot formula through a different archetype: the Oedipus Complex, which we see referenced in the show with “Oedipus Roy,” “Oedipussy,” and “stabbing my eyes out.” The same story is repeated again in Hamlet with brother killing and brother and son yelling at his mother about her milky breasts (something Roman does to Shiv more than once). In the show when Logan says to Roman, “You may want to f*ck your mother but I don’t.” We know none of these stories end well. As Connor muses, “It’s not right to kill one’s father; history teaches us that.”
In the story of Romulus and Remus (whose mother’s name is also Rhea), the two brothers were initially chased out of their city as potential threats to the King (yet again). They were left by the river to die and were saved by the river god (important). After successfully overthrowing the kingdom that left them for dead, they agree to found a new city. They ultimately disagreed on which hill to found it and decided to have a bird-watching competition to see who could see the most omens indicating they had divine approval for the hill. Remus says he saw 6 auspicious birds but Romulus claims to see 12. Romulus kills Remus over this.
It should remind you of Logan visiting his childhood home with Ewan: “I saw a mistle thrush at the bandstand,” and the log book he kept as a child of birds he “saw” that Ewan would cross out if he didn’t believe him. It may also echo a part of The Four Quartets, “Other echoes/ Inhabit the garden. Shall we follow?/ Quick, said the bird, find them, find them,/ Round the corner. Through the first gate,/ Into our first world, shall we follow/ The deception of the thrush?"
There is much to be said about the themes of warring brothers. Also the themes of fathers worried their children would one day overthrow them who take action to thwart or murder their children, which inadvertently sets into motion the very outcome they fear. It happens over and over again in stories old and new. As Panhandle Pete says, “I push him, he pushes me, and around and around we go.” Or as Eliot puts it, “that the wheel may turn and still / Be forever still.”
Much of these works touch on a sort of determinism, or the slow crushing reality that every action you take — even if that action is an attempt to thwart your fate — will ultimately lead to the same inevitable ending. This is the illusion of free will on top of the illusion of progress. And Logan, in fearing his children would usurp him (and also disparaging his children for not being able to), set into motion his own death and his own messy succession.
It’s also a reminder that the greatest men in life are all the same when laid to rest:

"O dark dark dark. They all go into the dark, The vacant interstellar spaces, the vacant into the vacant, The captains, merchant bankers, eminent men of letters, The generous patrons of art, the statesmen and the rulers, Distinguished civil servants, chairmen of many committees, Industrial lords and petty contractors, all go into the dark…"

Structure & Symbolism: Water As Rebirth & Destruction
The show has very much been structured around Kendall, and we watch him move through bodies of water with what feels like different symbolism each time. Is he drowning, is he reborn? We witness Kendall at his lowest point face down in a pool and at one of his highest, splashing into the Pacific ocean. We watch a man drown. We watch Logan beg Kendall for water as they walk through Adrien Brody’s maze. We watch Roman clamor for water at the funeral when he needs to calm down. Poetry has long played with this life and death dynamic in water, like the sailors dying of thirst in Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s The Rime of the Ancient Mariner who cry:

“Water, water, every where,. And all the boards did shrink;. Water, water, every where,. Nor any drop to drink. The very deep did rot: O Christ!”

This sub has noted Kendall’s connection to water, which has been represented over and over visually. But once you realize every metaphor, analogy, and simile he uses is water-based, you can’t unhear it. He calls his father “a tsunami of corruption” and describes things “as more precious than water”; he calls deals “choppy” and “dead in the water,” and asks to “help steady the ship”; he offers to “row back” on business deals, says timing is “high tide,” and that he has “bigger fish to fry.”
Logan is apt to use similar water symbolism, even telling Shiv that she’s marrying a man “fathoms” beneath her. As Rhea tells him, fearful of his own monstrosity, “I can’t see the bottom of the pool. I don’t know if you care about anything. It scares me.” ATN’s major scandal was “death cruises.” Even his operating nemesis is called “Sandy.”
In fact, there is mention of all elements and seasons — in particular, fire from Shiv, air from Roman, and earth from Connor. T.S. Eliot’s The Four Quartets confront these same themes and share some surprising similarities with show scene locations, dialogue, and plot points.
That’s because Succession is an allegory for the micro and the macro: the rise and fall of families, civilizations, monarchies, dynasties, and empires. Ashes to ashes and dust to dust, the cycles rinse and repeat. Eliot modeled the four quartets on the 4 elements and the 4 seasons. And you can see even in Succession a similar manifestation of 4 elements. And, well, 4 seasons of the show. (And what occurs after 4 seasons? A full revolution around the sun, bringing you to where you began.)
Water seems to be at the root of it all. Even Ewan’s eulogy meditates on his and Logan’s journey on a boat. Even their abusive uncle is named Noah. In the show, we watch our nobody die by water, we watch our main character nearly die by water, and then we watch him revive in the ocean. As Kendall and his father wind their way through Adrien Brody’s circuitous Long Island home, Kendall remarks, “I think this leads to the ocean.” Because every path leads to the sea in some way or another.
The overarching narration from T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land is the Arthurian Legend of The Fisher King. This story is told a million different ways with a million different outcomes, but always boils down to an injured or maimed monarch ruling over a dying land. Or as Ewan refers to his "empire of shit": “He’s built a wasteland and called it an empire.”
He’s looking for someone, anyone, to heal him, rescue the kingdom, and ensure the dynasty survives. This is the myth of the holy grail, which, in this show, can be seen as the throne: The original stories of the holy grail were not Christian/religious but they do employ a lot of the same mythmaking from earlier religions and mythologies to tell their stories and thus construct their new realties. As Eliot says in The Four Quartets:

"The whole earth is our hospital Endowed by the ruined millionaire, Wherein, if we do well, we shall Die of the absolute paternal care That will not leave us, but prevents us everywhere."

I believe Kendall (and the other children) represent the grail knights who try to save the king. (On the same level they stand in for the gods, the elements, or anything at all). When Christianity became more popular, these myths adapted to Christian overtones, but they still had the Celtic and pagan myths at their core: the grail becomes the chalice from the last supper.
That’s why Kendall’s easy comparisons of himself to Jesus feel less blasphemous than revelatory. Jesus is another hero archetype in the show’s mythology. He is willing to sacrifice himself, which Kendall must do in order to become the successor his father wanted. As he says, "this is a culmination of my life's journey to be crucified for you morons."
(It’s worth noting: In some legends, the knight saves the king; in others, he inadvertently destroys him. We know Logan dies, but it does feel less likely that Waystar Royco survives.) Drowning is a constant feature of Eliot's poems, but so is baptism and renewed life. It is difficult to determine the meaning of water in either instance, except that it doesn't discriminate as a life or death bringer, which is both beautiful and terrifying.
Parallels & Predictions: Piecing The Plot & Poetry Together
To repeat again, as this show is wont to do: “Crawl in a circle and close your eyes!” Logan Roy shouts during a game of Boar On A Floor. It’s an allegory, like many games on the series, and proudly says the quiet part out loud: Logan always wins. Here’s a little boar on the floor reference in The Four Quartets:

"We move above the moving tree In light upon the figured leaf And hear upon the sodden floor Below, the boarhound and the boar Pursue their pattern as before But reconciled among the stars."

We’ve seen the L.O.G.A.N. system at work many times and with many people. He dangles a carrot, a morsel of love, as each character attempts to play the game over and over while expecting different results. They are doomed to crawl in that circle, to play that blind game, as Logan angrily shouts, “It’s fun!” And this game doesn't end in death. The children still ask. "What would dad do?"
Games on Succession (which are a consistent refrain), it turns out, are rarely fun and are often designed to humiliate or inflict pain. The same goes when characters say “I’m just kidding” after an eviscerating remark. Logan thinks life is a game, and as he says, games should be taken seriously. And because Logan explicitly makes the rules, there is no winning, just trudging around the board, passing Go, and collecting $200. The games are essentially Sisyphean tasks that the kids wouldn’t be able to win even if they were actually competent enough to run the company. And yet they keep rolling the boulder. It’s endless. The repetition. It ends where it begins.

"Every phrase and every sentence is an end and a beginning, Every poem an epitaph. And any action Is a step to the block, to the fire, down the sea's throat Or to an illegible stone: and that is where we start. We die with the dying: See, they depart, and we go with them. We are born with the dead: See, they return, and bring us with them. The moment of the rose and the moment of the yew-tree Are of equal duration. A people without history Is not redeemed from time, for history is a pattern Of timeless moments."

Please also note the use of “the rose” and “the yew tree,” which are the names of Logan’s siblings Rose and Ewan, which derives from yew-tree. Other important name comparisons include Kendall’s association to spring/river valley; Siobhan’s nickname either a knife (Shiv) or Pinky (a variation of the name Rose); Roman’s connection to Romulus/Corialanus; Tom’s name meaning “twin” because there was already someone named Judas in the bible HELLO; Logan’s name meaning little hollow, which recalls another Eliot poem, The Hollow Men.
We know this show is a game, one that isn't fun at all, and one whose rules Logan made up. Even when there's a winner, there's no winner. So it's almost futile to play at all. That said, it’s impossible to make sense of any of it all without the ending — to confirm this ball has been rolling toward an inevitable conclusion, but given the show’s ending has probably occurred already, here are my thoughts:

• Kendall drowns

This may feel a bit on the nose given we’ve already seen this almost happen to “the Kurt Cobain of floaties,” but it would certainly be poetic. This could be sad (launched from a bridge); empowering (a la The Awakening); or metaphorical (a drug overdose). At some point Kendall says, "If dad didn’t need me right now I wouldn’t know what I would be for." The kids exist with Logan as their sun; they are moons, satellites, in orbit. And when their sun dies out, they repeat the motions in the cold, slowly losing their patterns and motions. The term is science is a rogue planet and the following lines from the poem remind me of Kendall and his broken, hollow stare.
“It would be the same at the end of the journey, If you came at night like a broken king, If you came by day not knowing what you came for, It would be the same, when you leave the rough road And turn behind the pig-sty to the dull facade And the tombstone. And what you thought you came for Is only a shell, a husk of meaning From which the purpose breaks only when it is fulfilled If at all. Either you had no purpose Or the purpose is beyond the end you figured And is altered in fulfilment.”

• Kendall is king of the ashes

Any victory feels like it will be a Pyrrhic victory regardless when you've had to systematically take down everyone you love to achieve it. The same lines above can echo here "the purpose is beyond the end you figured/And is altered in fulfilment." A hollow victory. The Fisher King question Logan poses is, "Who can replace me?" Logan wanted each of his children to display the killer instinct. Kendall’s backwards journey through Dreamsong 29 may very well see him realize he is, in fact, the killer his dad always wanted — with open eyes. This will probably involve taking down his siblings. In this version, winning is a lot like losing, which feels very Succession.

• Mattson wins it all

These Shakespearean histories and tragedies rarely end well for existing houses. With Richard III (the-multiple-lineage-ending war of the roses) and Hamlet (the-whole-house-dies-but-a-norwegian-king-swoops-in-to-take-it-all dynastic struggle) references abound. We may just see a new house rise up and rinse and repeat. This would probably also occur if the kids take each other down and leave it open for another party. We saw last season that Roman thought he had an in with Mattson until it didn’t serve Mattson anymore. I see the same thing happening between Roman and Mencken. This puts Mencken and Mattson in a position to take over, which may make Mattson win it or…

• Mattson destroys it all

When Mattson is introduced, he is referenced as a trickster. Generally, in mythology, this character is quite intelligent or in possession of secret knowledge, and he uses it for trickery and commandeering situations. (Is that blood thing real???). Hamlet concludes with every major character killing the other with their own tragic flaws until a third party Scandinavian comes in to take the crown with no necessary action or bloodshed at all. We already know he's unscrupulous; what is his end game? It reminds me of one of his early lines to Roman, which would be an eerie foreshadowing:
“Success doesn’t really interest me anymore, it’s too easy. Analysis + capital + execution. Fucking, anyone can do that. But failure, that’s a secret. Just as much failure as possible as fast as possible, burn that shit out, that’s interesting.”

• Tom betrays Shiv

We’ve seen it happen before (which is why it should happen again). We’ve also seen Tom remove the thin veneer of his ambitions to the point where he almost feels like Richard III. He has played the fool, which is Shakespearean estimation, is often equivalent to the trickster. This would be a fun and distorted parallel to Shiv offering this job to him for Logan to offer it to her. This would probably happen in conjunction with Mattson winning. As I mentioned earlier, the name Tom means “twin” and the apostle Tom was only called as such because there were already one too many “Judas” in the mix. He's also from Minnesota (the twin cities!), so this is becoming very real, you know???

• Greg betrays Tom

While we know Tom has betrayed Shiv before, we also know Greg betrayed Shiv and Tom when he spoke to Geri in the first season about Tom having a press conference on cruises. He leads Tom to believe Shiv has betrayed him, getting one over on both of them. There may also be something with the Rule of 3 and being betrayed 3 times that feels biblical. The show also makes TONS of references to holding on to blackmail for opportune moments. Will we see something like this?
I’m not a big believer that Greg will fail so far upwards that he will win (this would feel like a betrayal in its own right), but do I believe there’s a world where Greg gets himself on a piece of paper with a question mark. Maybe???

• Geri finally beats Tom

This is my personal hope because I want the Tom and Jerry allusion to be real more than any other I put together (we love a good cat and mouse game). If Mattson wins, he needs a US CEO. Geri has collected a massive amount of dirt on everyone. And to call back to season 1’s interim CEO discussions, Shiv says, “I don’t like Geri. But I don’t hate Geri either.” It would feel particularly good given how much time and effort Logan spent clarifying Geri would be terrible at the position. Especially as Logan disparaging someone generally means he’s afraid of what they can do.
I’ll end at the ending. Or conclude where Eliot did on The Four Quartets:

"We shall not cease from exploration And the end of all our exploring Will be to arrive where we started And know the place for the first time. Through the unknown, unremembered gate When the last of earth left to discover Is that which was the beginning; At the source of the longest river The voice of the hidden waterfall And the children in the apple-tree Not known, because not looked for But heard, half-heard, in the stillness Between two waves of the sea. Quick now, here, now, always— A condition of complete simplicity (Costing not less than everything) And all shall be well and All manner of thing shall be well When the tongues of flames are in-folded Into the crowned knot of fire And the fire and the rose are one."

PS. Given ‘Pinky’ is another name for ‘Rose’ does this mean Shiv wins??? JK let’s just watch the show tonight and laugh at our predictions in the morning.

Hi All. I hope this is the place for my question. Figured if there was a place full of pros with this type of issue, here you would be.
I have an MX 650 Razor motorcycle. It was stolen last year and by the grace of the heavens, some neighborhood kids found it.
I've been trying to bring it back to life. The issue seems to be the battery.
Simply put, when I turn the throttle, the motor occasionally goes full force and then stops. You can hear a clicking sound with the light indicating the battery is low.
I just bought replacement batteries for it, wired it perfectly and went to give it a charge. The indicator light on the charger remains green (supposed to go red while charging). I left it for 24 hours and the batteries didn't take a charge again.
My question is, what are the chances I have a wiring issue on the bike over these 'new' batteries just being bad? Is there a method to checking to see if the batteries are good? I've already replaced the throttle and the controller. The motor seems to be fine as when it does have power, it goes. The only issues I imagine now are wiring and batteries.
I again hope this is the place for this issue and hope I was descript enough. Ill gladly answer questions if it helps resolve the issue. Thanks in advance!

I'm not sure what else to call this. I've never hit the overweight bmi but I have horrible body fat distribution and am at a high risk of developing PCOS and thyroid problems (runs in my family). For a while I thought it might be ADHD, but now I'm thinking the fatigue might be from this? Does anyone else have experience with this and knows what the right steps are moving forward? I'm already trying to lead a more active lifestyle but it's pretty difficult juggling that alongside my academics since I'm sitting for board exams. I really need a quick (temporary fix is fine too) solution since I can't focus 100% when I'm studying which will cost me heavily
edit: It's mostly concentration related, I can do chores and walk for miles on end without exhaustion. Maybe the pandemic made me lazy? I'm having a hard time pinpointing what the issue might be and I'm too broke to visit specialists, LOL

In recent months, I've noticed significantly less activity on this sub, which makes sense. This trend will most likely continue until we get some info on Season 2 (not very soon). So, to lift some spirits, how about we discussed some plot elements for Season 2? I'm thinking villains. Or antagonists because that fits better with the morally grey themes of Arcane.
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Jinx
Jinx seems like the most obvious choice when it comes to the big bad of the next season. We know she comes back from the teaser alone and the show ended with her embracing the new identity and title life and the people in her life gave her. While she will most likely be a chaotic, antagonistic force in S2, it's hard to say if they'll stick with her for the entire season. While S2's continuation of the Sisters storyline can be about Vi coming to terms with the fact that her sister is gone, it can also be a story about forgiveness and healing. I'm not suggesting that they will give her a last minute redemption (Arcane's writers are more capable than that), but that they will most likely continue one of the show's main themes: bonds of love and why they aren't easily broken. I would also bring up what one of the writers said in the qna: "To me the story of Arcane is about whether or not the sisters will repeat the mistakes of their fathers." Jinx might turn full antihero after this is done (like she is in the main canon) or she might even die (though I doubt it). Whatever happens, I doubt they'll make her everybody's main enemy (no pun intended) for an entire season. She'll most likely be the central antagonist for Vi and Cait in the first half before the second civil war begins .
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Viktor
While it's easy to look at Viktor from League and call him a cartoonish villain, the people who read his lore know that he's essentially a "don't judge a book by it's cover" character. He's a good guy who's just trying to help by providing tech to those who need it. While we didn't see too much of his transformation in S1, S2 will most likely focus on his relationship with Jayce more and their unavoidable conflict most likely ignited by civil war. Viktor will no doubt try to help his fellow Zaunites by giving them tech to fight back, something that Jayce won't like, especially after the death of his girlfriend, Mel (debatable).
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Sevika
With Silco out of the way, it's interesting to think about where Sevika's path will take her. Some people are convinced she will take Silco's place as the so called leader of Zaun and the shimmer industry. Some fans even speculate that she might become the infamous chem-baroness Renata Glasc (she does kinda look like her). But I doubt that's the case. Sevika is not into business or money, she fights for a free independent Zaun and that's pretty much all she cares about. The possible civil war means she'll have to lead the fight against Piltover, possibly forming an alliance with Viktor, but we'll have to see. Part of me still thinks that she'll just hang up her coat and retire. This woman took way too many punches for her cause.
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Warwick/Vander ???
Out of all the Zaun characters who have yet to make their debut in Arcane, Warwick is the most likely to appear in S2. He can be heard in the teaser, seen during the ending of the show and he gets referenced over and over again during earlier episodes, especially around Vander. While lore fans know that Warwick isn't the most complex character, he is certainly one of the most iconic ones. His theme and trailer are praised to this day and he'd be an interesting addition to the cast. I'm still not sure how much they will lean into family and trauma with him, but I do hope that we'll get some iconic horror chase scenes. Seriously, if you haven't seen his old trailer yet, please check it out. It might give you some clarity in regards to what can you expect from this beast: https://www.youtube.com/watchv=fsnDbealN9E&ab_channel=LeagueofLegends
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Camille
Yet another character who Arcane fans might not recognize. This my friends, is Camille of House Ferros, a name that you've already heard from Mel in S1. Lore fans know by now that Camille is one of League's most well crafted characters. Her lore is great, even by Arcane standards. The thing is, it's not very compatable with Arcane's narrative. In lore, hextech was created and Camille's body was modified long before Jayce and Viktor came into the picture. Which is why she's over 100 years old. Her fans aren't too keen on Arcane replacing the main narrative we have now and it's easy to see why. Regardless, I hope they'll find some way to integrate her into the story even if she'll be much younger. Camille is a big part of Piltover, her role being on par with that of characters like Vi, Cait and Jayce. So leaving her out would feel like an odd choice. Her ruthlessly efficient methods would be in perfect contrast with Vi and Cait's more empathetic approach and you can bet she'd give us some cool action scenes. While in recent weeks she was portrayed in a more positive light with the Ekko Convergence game, don't be fooled. She would do anything for her family, even if that means leaving a few bodies behind.
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Urgot
Finally we get to my prefered main antagonist of S2. For those of you unaware, Urgot is the closest thing Zaun has to a main villain. He's a former headsman from Noxus (the place Mel and her family is from) who eventually gets banished to Zaun and turned into the thing you see before your eyes. The reason I believe Urgot would be the perfect main antagonist for S2 is because he embodies the antithesis to Arcane's main theme of love bonds that don't break. This man is ruthless, saddistic and pretty much the opposite of what Silco was. He's also hunting and killing chem barons to demonstrate true strength, because they weaken Zaun by becoming like topsiders, something that Silco brought up in season 1. "You've grown fat and complacent." Urgot also leads a cult that combines Noxian strength with Zaunite ingenuity. His twisted vision is brutal but fascinating. Regardless, I genuinely think he'd be the perfect antagonist to wrap up the Piltover and Zaun storyline.

Hey there :)
I've had great experiences on here before, so I'm back again to try my luck. I'm 35, male, 5'7(exactly, no lying here), Asian-American, decently fit. Think a cross between a powerlifter and body builder. I am single and have my own place! I'm really looking for in-person sessions and connections, but if you're online only I'm not opposed to chatting and seeing how we click.
I'm a very gentle daddy type, but I do enjoy being rough mean and nasty ONLY if that is a kink that gets you extra turned on. A few of my kinks are: Spanking, making u beg and call me daddy, humiliation, deep-throating, bondage, spitting, cnc and more. I also enjoy pleasuring my sub, so that could include body worship, fingering/eating you out, using toys on you, fucking, etc. I'm huge into verbal expression, so you'll be hearing a lot of "good girl", etc, throughout our conversations and sessions. My ideal mate is a girl who gets off being pleasuring me. But also can be the focus of my attention too.
Vanilla me: Currently employed, but about to switch jobs/careers. I am probably most available to talk later in the evening. I don't mind a little travel, but I have my own apartment, so it is most cost effective if we play at my place. But I do prefer to meet in public first, for your safety and mine. I also love daytime dates, so brunch, coffee, or shopping is always on the table. My hobbies include playing video games(League of Legends is my main), going to the gym, and working out. I'm looking for someone that wants to build a connection inside and outside of kink.
If you don't live near me we can still chat too! I am super into sexting, specifically video or voice chat. I love showing off and having girls watch me jerk off and cum, but of course you have to earn it ;)
Shoot me a message or a chat with a little about you and what you're looking for! Feel free to ask me any questions as well.
Thanks and hope to talk soon!

I've had great experiences on here before, so I'm back again to try my luck. I'm 35, male, 5'7(exactly, no lying here), Asian-American, decently fit. Think a cross between a powerlifter and body builder. I am single and have my own place! I'm really looking for in-person sessions and connections, but if you're online only I'm not opposed to chatting and seeing how we click.
I'm a very gentle daddy type, but I do enjoy being rough mean and nasty ONLY if that is a kink that gets you extra turned on. A few of my kinks are: Spanking, making u beg and call me daddy, humiliation, deep-throating, bondage, spitting, cnc and more. I also enjoy pleasuring my sub, so that could include body worship, fingering/eating you out, using toys on you, fucking, etc. I'm huge into verbal expression, so you'll be hearing a lot of "good girl", etc, throughout our conversations and sessions. My ideal mate is a girl who gets off being pleasuring me. But also can be the focus of my attention too.
Vanilla me: Currently employed, but about to switch jobs/careers. I am probably most available to talk later in the evening. I don't mind a little travel, but I have my own apartment, so it is most cost effective if we play at my place. But I do prefer to meet in public first, for your safety and mine. I also love daytime dates, so brunch, coffee, or shopping is always on the table. My hobbies include playing video games(League of Legends is my main), going to the gym, and working out. I'm looking for someone that wants to build a connection inside and outside of kink.
If you don't live near me we can still chat too! I am super into sexting, specifically video or voice chat. I love showing off and having girls watch me jerk off and cum, but of course you have to earn it ;)
Shoot me a message or a chat with a little about you and what you're looking for! Feel free to ask me any questions as well.
Thanks and hope to talk soon!

This is the definition of rags to riches to rags, not replacing their GK and sacking Brenden Rogers cost them this. Hopefully it works out all right for them and they get promoted in a few seasons.
This is the 2nd ever premier league champion to go down, the last time was Blackburn who went down 15 years after their win in 95 while Leicester went down after only 7.

I have recently developed a interest in late B-body wagons. I am trying to figure out how to do a big brake swap without breaking the bank. I now Kore3 makes billet hubs, but would it be possible (and safe) to get some rotors and turn them into hubs by cutting the rotor portion off and replacing the studs with longer ones. I am concerned about them cracking over time due to the load put on the studs from braking. The other thought I had was instead of machining new rotors every time they had to be replaced i would buy a 2 piece rotor ring and make some custom hats, but would those still need to be billet or would it be fine to use a more cost effective materials. Thanks in advance.

24M 180 lbs. 6’2 I take valacyclovir, strattera, adderall, propranolol, and lots of aleve
For some context, for the past year and a half I've been dealing with severe RSI in my hands. Still recovering.
A couple days ago I noticed a rice grain shaped bump under my skin. It’s at the palm side ball of my thumb joint. It's stationary and seems like it's attached to whatever body is right below my skin. I’ll sometimes get dull bruise like pain moving my thumb, but it’s really only painful on contact. Not protruding or visible.
Any idea what this might be?
I bring up my RSI, because I’m scared that I might have to do a surgery for it. That may seem like an over exaggeration, but RSI has been a living nightmare and has very much consumed my life.
Lost my job, my ability to do what I love, and the only viable treatment (besides a previous cyst removal I had elsewhere) is on the other side of the country, has costed my family a fortune, and is slow acting. If I were to get a surgery, I’d no doubt lose a lot of my progress.
It’d be nice to know if this is nothing, or something I need to take care of. Google’s best guess is that it’s a rheumatoid nodule, but I don't think the symptoms line up. I’ll see a doctor about it, but it’ll be a hot minute, as I’m tied up.

Notion has emerged as an essential writing tool over the past few years. It already allowed users to manage virtually every aspect of the content creation process in an easy to use interface. That’s why I was excited to see that Notion just lauched its AI tool, Notion AI. But what exact is Notion AI and what are the potential uses of Notion AI for writers? Read on to learn more!

What is Notion?

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Notion is a digital workspace that allows you to organize and manage various aspects of your life, including tasks, projects, notes, and more. It is a flexible, all-in-one platform that combines the functionality of various productivity tools, such as project management software, note-taking apps, and databases, into a single workspace.
Notion features a customizable interface that allows users to create pages, databases, and templates that suit their specific needs. It also supports a wide range of integrations with other tools and services, such as Google Drive, Trello, and Slack.
Notion is available on desktop and mobile devices, and it offers both free and paid plans with varying levels of features and capabilities. Its popularity has grown rapidly in recent years, making it a popular choice for individuals, teams, and businesses looking to streamline their workflows and increase productivity.

What is Notion AI?

Notion announced on February 22, 2023 that all users could access notion’s latest tool, Notion AI.
Notion AI is an artificial intelligence assistant that can be used natively within Notion documents, spreadsheets, or other Notion products. Notion AI uses the same GPT-3 language model that is behind ChatGPT.

What Are The Features of Notion AI?

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Notion AI contains a number of features designed to enhance productivity for writers within Notion.
Notion AI allow users to:
- Create a content calendar to plan ahead and stay organized with your blog posts.
- Write catchy headlines that will grab your readers’ attention and encourage them to read further.
- Use visuals, such as images and videos, to make your blog posts more engaging and memorable.
- Make sure your blog is mobile-friendly, as more and more people are accessing content on their smartphones and tablets.
- Use social media to promote your blog and reach a wider audience.
- Engage with your readers by responding to comments and encouraging discussion on your blog.
- Focus on a niche or specific topic to establish yourself as an expert in that area.
- Collaborate with other bloggers or brands to expand your reach and bring new perspectives to your blog.
- Use SEO techniques, such as keyword research and meta descriptions, to improve your blog’s visibility on search engines.
- Experiment with different types of content, such as listicles, how-to guides, and interviews, to keep your blog fresh and interesting.
You can see a full list of the current Notion AI features in the screenshots below:

Notion AI Pricing

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Anyone (including users with a free Notion plan) can try Notion AI for free, in order to test its capabilities before purchasing the add-on subscription.
However, once you’ve used all your complimentary Notion AI responses, you will see a message that a Notion AI add-on subscription is necessary to continue using AI features. You’ll then need to purchase the Notion AI add on.
The Notion AI add-on costs $8 per member / month for users choosing the annual plan (an additional $96 per year) if you already have a paid Notion account.
If you have a paid Notion plan and choose to purchase the Notion AI add-on but pay with monthly billing, or decide to keep your free Notion account and only upgrade to receive Notion AI, you will be charged $10 per member / month ($120 per year).

How Can Writers Use Notion AI?

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Having experimented with Notion AI (both as an early beta tester and using the plan currently available to all users), here are some of the top use cases demonstrating the value of Notion AI for writers:
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1. Summarizing Written Content

Notion AI offers an easy to use, one click command, that automatically summarizes a portion of text highlighted.
For the purposes of this example, I entered the text of a recent WSJ article, Fed Minutes Show Most Officials Favored Quarter-Point Rate Rise.
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The original article text is listed below:
Most Federal Reserve officials thought slowing the pace of interest-rate increases at their meeting three weeks ago offered the best way to balance the risks of doing too much or too little to combat inflation, but some warned against the hazards of slowing or stopping rate increases too soon.
“A number of participants observed that a policy stance that proved to be insufficiently restrictive could halt recent progress in moderating inflationary pressures,” said the minutes of the Jan. 31-Feb. 1 meeting, released Wednesday.
Fed officials unanimously approved raising their benchmark federal-funds rate by a quarter percentage point to a range between 4.5% and 4.75% on Feb. 1. That increase followed six larger increases, including a half percentage point in December.
Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday the central bank will raise interest rates a quarter-percentage-point. Powell said more increases will likely be needed to continue lowering inflation.
The minutes of the gathering said that “almost all participants agreed that it was appropriate” to raise rates by a quarter point, or 25 basis points. Many of these officials “observed that a further slowing in the pace of rate increases would better allow them to assess the economy’s progress… as they determine the extent of future policy tightening,” the minutes said.
But a few participants favored or would have also agreed to a larger half-point move, the minutes said. “The participants favoring a 50-basis-point increase noted that a larger increase would more quickly bring the target range close to the levels they believed would achieve a sufficiently restrictive stance,” the minutes said.
Their discussion suggested another increase of a quarter point was likely at their next meeting on March 21-22. Since then, new data indicated stronger economic activity and slower progress on inflation than previously expected, which could keep the Fed raising rates longer than anticipated before the latest reports.
At the time of the recent meeting, Fed Chair Jerome Powell was facing increasing skepticism from investors over whether the central bank would continue raising rates because economic activity had been mixed around year’s end, with signs that consumer spending had moderated and weakness in the hard-hit housing sector was spreading to manufacturing. Investors were also anticipating rate cuts later this year.
The Fed raises rates to combat inflation by slowing the economy through tighter financial conditions—such as higher borrowing costs, lower stock prices and a stronger dollar—that curb demand.
Most Fed officials projected in December that they would raise the fed-funds rate to 5.1% this year, which would imply quarter-point rate increases at their next two meetings, in March and May. More than a third of officials anticipated lifting the rate above 5.25%. No officials projected rate cuts this year.
Some officials at the meeting observed that any continued easing in financial conditions could require the Fed to raise rates to higher levels or keep them at higher levels for longer than anticipated.
In the three weeks since they met, fresh U.S. economic reports showed that hiring and retail spending surged in January. The unemployment rate fell to 3.4%, a 53-year low, surprising economists who have long anticipated that Fed rate increases would slow economic growth soon. Economic growth also has rebounded in Europe, further easing worries of a global recession this year.
As a result, investors now expect the Fed to lift the fed-funds rate to around 5.4% in June–more than central bank officials had projected in December.
Inflation’s swift decline late last year also stalled in January. The 12-month inflation rate edged down to 6.4% last month from 6.5% in December and a recent high of 9.1% in June, according to the Labor Department. The department’s widely followed gauge, the consumer-price index, rose a sturdy 0.5% in January from the month before, a sign of still strong price pressures.
Two Fed presidents said last week they would have supported a larger half-point rate rise at the last meeting, rather than the quarter-point increase approved. One of them, Cleveland Fed President Loretta Mester, said officials aren’t limited to quarter-point steps. “We can move faster, and we can do bigger [increases] at any particular meeting.”
St. Louis Fed President James Bullard also said he would support moving as quickly as possible to raise the fed-funds rate to 5.4%. “I don’t see much merit in delaying our approach to that level,” he told reporters last week.
Most other Fed officials have expressed a preference for quarter-point increases. Richmond Fed President Tom Barkin told reporters last week he liked that approach “because I believe it gives us the flexibility to respond” depending on how the economy evolves.
Mr. Barkin said he didn’t favor moving rapidly to an estimated peak rate before pausing because he isn’t confident the central bank can gauge how much its past rate moves are slowing the economy. “That theory, to me, requires more confidence in understanding” the effectiveness of tighter rate policy “than I have,” he said.
Overall inflation had slowed in recent months largely because of falling prices of energy and other goods. Large increases in housing costs have slowed, but haven’t yet filtered through to official price gauges. Mr. Powell has nevertheless justified continued rate increases by pointing to still-tight labor markets, elevated wage pressures and high inflation for labor-intensive services.
Mr. Barkin noted the surprising strength in January spending and hiring, but said he wasn’t ready to substantially revise his economic outlook because of the potential for unusual seasonal volatility, including a longer holiday spending season in the fourth quarter, warmer weather and changes in how employers are managing their staffing given recent difficulties hiring workers.
Investors’ shifting expectations about the Fed could already be helping the central bank because interest-rate policies work through financial markets. Changes to the anticipated trajectory of rates, and not just what the Fed does at any meeting, can influence broader financial conditions.
Since November, anticipation of a milder interest-rate path led financial conditions to ease somewhat after tightening substantially last year. The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate, for example, jumped from 4% one year ago to 7% in November. It then edged lower, to around 6% earlier this month.
Over the past two weeks, however, financial conditions have tightened again as investors anticipate an interval of higher short-term interest rates. Mortgage lenders have reported rates are returning back to 7% in recent days.
After a few seconds, Notion AI generated the following text summarizing the article:
The minutes of the Jan. 31-Feb. 1 meeting of the Federal Reserve show that most officials favored slowing the pace of interest-rate increases to balance the risks of doing too much or too little to combat inflation. However, some warned against slowing or stopping rate increases too soon. The minutes also suggest that another increase of a quarter point is likely at the next meeting on March 21-22. Fresh U.S. economic reports showed that hiring and retail spending surged in January, which could keep the Fed raising rates longer than anticipated before the latest reports.
Investors’ expectations about the Fed could already be helping the central bank, as interest-rate policies work through financial markets. Changes to the anticipated trajectory of rates, and not just what the Fed does at any meeting, can influence broader financial conditions. Since November, anticipation of a milder interest-rate path led financial conditions to ease somewhat after tightening substantially last year.
Over the past two weeks, however, financial conditions have tightened again as investors anticipate an interval of higher short-term interest rates. Mortgage lenders have reported rates are returning back to 7% in recent days. Two Fed presidents said last week they would have supported a larger half-point rate rise at the last meeting, rather than the quarter-point increase approved.
St. Louis Fed President James Bullard also said he would support moving as quickly as possible to raise the fed-funds rate to 5.4%. Most other Fed officials have expressed a preference for quarter-point increases, as they believe it gives them the flexibility to respond depending on how the economy evolves.
Overall inflation had slowed in recent months largely because of falling prices of energy and other goods, but large increases in housing costs have slowed, but haven’t yet filtered through to official price gauges. Mr. Powell has nevertheless justified continued rate increases by pointing to still-tight labor markets, elevated wage pressures, and high inflation for labor-intensive services.
While not perfect, this is a really good summarization of a complex article/topic. And the Notion AI tool also provided options for further editing this text, including making the summary longer, rewriting the entire summary, or replacing a section of the article.

2. Changing Tone of Text

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Another great feature of Notion AI is its ability to change the tone of text.
For example, I used the following excerpt from a Washington Post article on winter weather:
A strong, intensifying storm system continued its trek across the Lower 48 early Wednesday, unleashing high-impact winter weather that could cause widespread power outages and grind travel to a halt. At least 75 million Americans are under winter storm, ice storm, blizzard warnings or winter weather advisories.
In addition to hefty precipitation in much of the Midwest and parts of the Plains, there could also be snow in notably low elevations — including in areas that rarely see measurable snowfall. Even the Los Angeles County mountains are included in a rare blizzard warning — the first issued by the National Weather Service office there since 1989. Snow levels could descend to below 1,000 feet elevation as extreme anomalous cold at high altitudes whips up a serious elevation storm.
That same lobe of frigid air aloft is also spawning a surface low that’s marching across the country. Over the Upper Midwest and the northern Plains, up to two feet of snow could fall in what the National Weather Service office in Minneapolis is calling a historic winter storm. It could prove to be a top-5 event in the Twin Cities, where blizzard warnings slice through the metro.
On the southern fringe of the snowfall, mild air a mile above the ground will favor freezing rain, with a quarter- to a half-inch of ice accumulation, or glaze, possible in some areas. Parts of the Corn Belt and Michigan are expected to be hardest hit, including places like Dubuque and Cedar Rapids, Iowa, or Lansing, Kalamazoo and Ann Arbor in Michigan.
The storm should finish its cross-country assault in the Northeast late Thursday into Friday, where additional winter storm warnings are in effect for northern New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine.
I then used the Notion AI change tone function, and selected the “casual option”:
The Notion AI tool then quickly generated the following text:
Wowza, we’ve got a major storm system heading across the US of A, bringing some serious winter weather that could knock out power and put a stop to travel plans. That’s no joke, folks! It looks like around 75 million Americans are under winter storm, ice storm, blizzard warnings or winter weather advisories, so you know this is serious business.
And get this, it’s not just heavy precipitation we’re talking about – parts of the Midwest and Plains could get snow, and we’re talking about areas that don’t usually see snowfall. The Los Angeles County mountains are even included in a rare blizzard warning – the first one issued by the National Weather Service office there in over 30 years! The snow could even come down to below 1,000 feet elevation. Yikes!
There’s a lobe of frigid air up high that’s causing all of this, and it’s also spawning a surface low that’s going across the country. In the Upper Midwest and the northern Plains, we’re talking up to two feet of snow in what the National Weather Service office in Minneapolis is calling a historic winter storm. That’s right, it could be a top-5 event in the Twin Cities, where blizzard warnings are all over the place.
On the southern edge of the snowfall, freezing rain is likely, and some areas could see a quarter- to a half-inch of ice accumulation. The Corn Belt and Michigan are expected to be hit hard, including places like Dubuque and Cedar Rapids, Iowa, or Lansing, Kalamazoo and Ann Arbor in Michigan.
This storm is going to finish up with a bang in the Northeast late Thursday into Friday, where more winter storm warnings are in effect for northern New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Stay safe out there, folks!
While perhaps a bit over the top, it definitely demonstrates the AI tools ability to create content using different tones.

3. Writing Social Media Posts

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While the previous two use cases demonstrate the Notion AI tool’s ability to synthesize and mimic different forms of text, this next example shows its power to create text based off of very short prompts. Specifically, how it can quickly generate social media posts.
I selected the option from the Notion AI menu to write a social media post. It asked for me to enter a prompt to complete this sentence:
Write a social media post about_____________
And I simply entered “spring cleaning.”
In response, it generated the following social media post (including the hashtags):
Spring is here and it’s time for some cleaning! Whether it’s decluttering your home, organizing your closet, or deep cleaning those hard-to-reach areas, now is the perfect time to get started. A little bit of cleaning can go a long way in making your space feel refreshed and renewed. Don’t forget to donate any items you no longer need to charity or recycle them responsibly. Let’s all welcome spring with a clean and organized home!
#springcleaning #declutter #organization #cleanhome #refreshed #renewed #donate #recycle
While not perfect, I didn’t give the AI tool much information, so I was fairly impressed with this output.

4. Writing a Blog Post

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Similar to the last use case, I wanted to further text the Notion AI tool’s ability to generate written content. So I selected the “write a blog post” option and entered the following prompt:
The tool generated the following blog post:

The Benefits of Jogging

Introduction

Jogging is a popular form of exercise that has numerous benefits for both physical and mental health. It is a low-impact exercise that can be done anytime and anywhere, making it a convenient choice for people of all ages and fitness levels. Jogging is also an affordable form of exercise, as it requires no special equipment or membership fees. In this blog post, we will discuss some of the benefits of jogging and how it can improve your overall health and well-being.

Physical Benefits

Jogging is an excellent way to improve cardiovascular health. It helps to strengthen the heart and lungs, lowers blood pressure, and reduces the risk of heart disease. Jogging also helps to build endurance and increase stamina, which can improve athletic performance in other activities.
In addition to its cardiovascular benefits, jogging can also help with weight loss and weight management. It is an effective way to burn calories and boost metabolism, which can help to shed excess pounds and maintain a healthy weight. Jogging also helps to build muscle and tone the body, giving you a leaner and more sculpted appearance.
Jogging is also good for bone health. It helps to strengthen bones and prevent osteoporosis, a condition that causes bones to become brittle and weak. Regular jogging can also improve joint health and flexibility, reducing the risk of injury and improving overall mobility.

Mental Benefits

Jogging is not just good for physical health, it also has many mental health benefits. It is an excellent way to reduce stress and anxiety, as it releases endorphins that promote feelings of happiness and relaxation. Jogging can also boost self-esteem and confidence, helping to improve overall mood and well-being.
Regular jogging can also improve cognitive function and brain health. It has been shown to improve memory, concentration, and overall brain function, reducing the risk of cognitive decline and dementia in later life. Jogging can also help to improve sleep quality, which is essential for overall health and well-being.

Social Benefits

Jogging can also provide social benefits, as it can be a great way to meet new people and make friends. Joining a jogging group or running club can provide a supportive and motivating environment, where you can connect with other like-minded individuals who share your passion for jogging.

Getting Started with Jogging

If you are new to jogging, it is important to start slowly and gradually build up your endurance. Begin with short, easy runs and gradually increase the distance and intensity over time. It is also important to wear proper shoes and clothing to prevent injury and ensure comfort while jogging.
To make jogging more enjoyable, try listening to music or a podcast while you run. You can also join a jogging group or find a jogging buddy to keep you motivated and accountable.

Conclusion

In conclusion, jogging is an excellent form of exercise that can benefit both physical and mental health. It can improve cardiovascular health, aid in weight management, strengthen bones and joints, reduce stress and anxiety, boost self-esteem and confidence, and improve cognitive function and brain health. Jogging can also provide social benefits, making it a great way to meet new people and make friends. If you are looking for an easy and convenient way to improve your health and well-being, jogging is a great place to start. So put on your running shoes, hit the pavement, and enjoy the many benefits of this simple yet effective form of exercise.
Overall, I was very impressed with how quickly it generated this grammatically correct and well written blog post. It’s worth noting that once the Notion AI tool finishes generating the text, there is a button you can click to make the article longer, which it also does with ease.

5. Finding Action Items

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Last, I wanted to test the “finding action items” tool. To do this, I found a publicly available copy of a county’s meeting minutes over their local water authority (see PDF here):
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I then ran the text through the AI tool, using the “find action items tool”:
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Notion AI generated the following:

• - [ ] Purchase hydrants to replace existing hydrants in the Pinebrook Water System
• - [ ] Complete the activation of the system, replacing the hydrants, and other miscellaneous punch list items to complete the Pinebrook Water Interconnection Project
• - [ ] Engage legal counsel to advise on the assignment from Global Foundries to Onsemi
• - [ ] Request a preliminary meeting with the Poughkeepsie Joint Water Board to discuss issues and concerns regarding the assignment from Global Foundries to Onsemi
• - [ ] Speak to the Deputy County Executive, Ron Hicks in regard to the request to assign the water sale agreement to Onsemi
• - [ ] Consider retaining auditors, RBT to review Onsemi’s financials
• - [ ] Follow up with Ron Haase, Rust & Co. about purchasing the Market Street Plant

Overall, I was very impressed with the ability of the AI tool to generate action items. Since many Notion users (students, office workers, etc.) use Notion for note taking, this seems like an extremely valuable feature.
Conclusion
The examples of Notion’s AI tool make a strong case for adding the Notion AI tool to your writer toolkit! And the examples above only represent a fraction of the total use cases. Notion is already one of the best productivity tools for bloggers, and the addition of Notion AI for writers further cements its place on this list!