#and a 10-2 victory for the Pens

[icedbatik]

Reilly passed the helmet to Sid on his 1,200th NHL game played.

[see-arcane]

Cards with the Count

Thinking about how Jonathan is trying to pass the time during Vampire Hell Staycation with all the books in the library (a guaranteed Dracula Zone), no stationery (bastard), and a finite amount of secret pen ink and secret diary pages left at his disposal (shit). Reading and writing and art are all out. What’s left?

I like to think, in this order:

1)    He remembers that he has a pack of playing cards in the general luggage Dracula didn’t snatch. A gift Lucy had bestowed on him and Mina, a pack apiece, as she insisted that it was the best way to pass an hour in dreary company that wasn’t to do with gossip or politics.

2)    He doesn’t normally play, if only because he doesn’t have the coin to meet any real gambling stranger at a table. Just a ‘for fun’ thing.

3)    Fuck it. Solitaire. Card towers. It’s something to keep his mind off the…everything.

4)    He gets exactly one (1) day/evening of peace with this. Then:

5)    “Whatever are you up to, my friend?” 

(He didn’t even use the door to give Jonathan time to hide the pack. Misted in. No shadow to give him away. Fantastic.) Jonathan staples his smile back in place and rattles off something apologetic, so sorry, was he keeping the Count waiting? Let him just put this away, he wouldn’t be interested—

6)    Smash cut to the library. The cards are now unofficially confiscated/a staple of the Dracula Zone, alongside the fancy crystal chessboard the Count loves to crush him with on a semi-regular basis. Jonathan is walking him through the rules of sundry card games. Unsurprisingly, he latches onto the concept of American poker readily. The game is a soup of similar European predecessors that light up his eyes with recognition—primero, poque, brelan—sewn together with England’s game of brag into a medley of the initial rules, both written and unwritten.

7)    “A game of skill, then?”

“Skill, acting, and luck.”

Dracula grins as he produces a ransom of gold coins to use as chips. Jonathan deals. 

(What are the extra rules here? Does he throw every hand? Does he play in earnest and inevitably lose anyway? Does it even matter? It isn’t chess, after all. Not a proper strategy game. Cards happen. Guesswork happens. A winner and loser every turn. What does it matter?)

8)    Jonathan realizes two dozen hands later that what matters is, apparently, his face. One that, likewise apparently, cannot be read by the Count in this game. Out of those two dozen hands, Jonathan has won eighteen. Of those eighteen, his hand was the clear dud for nine. Through it all, Dracula’s eyes keep jumping from his own hand to Jonathan’s tired gaze. When Jonathan wins the twenty-fifth hand and the mountain of gold on his side of the table risks toppling off the edge, Dracula bites out a word Jonathan is sure is too caustic to have a spot in the lost polyglot dictionary.

9)    “You have a gift for schooling your face, my friend.” Every word is an icicle; each as sharp as the canines jutting out of the rictus grin.

“I don’t,” Jonathan says. 

And it’s true. Now he’s schooling his face—first lesson of anyone destined for the realm of serving others—but in the game, he’s barely thinking of anything else beyond the ticking of the clock. To punctuate this, he slides the heap of gold back to Dracula’s side of the table. 

“This is only a game for the fun of it. In a game with stakes, there would be something worth playing and worrying for. When you get to England,” his face is very, very schooled as he says this, “you’ll find a much more varied competition at gambling tables. The players who really train their expressions can do so with fortunes at stake, while novices reveal every victory or loss plainly on their face.”

10) Dracula considers this. And smiles.

11) “Ah, then there must be stakes before we can play the game properly. Still, you have won the bulk of these rounds, my friend—” his hand seems like it wants to be strangling something when it drums atop the gold heap, “—and done me the charity of not taking your rightful winnings.” He throws down his cards. Ace and deuce of spades. “I shall have to speak with the kitchen about producing a stand-in prize.” 

He leaves. Jonathan doesn’t blink when he hears the door lock behind him. A card pyramid is erected.

12) Paprika hendl for supper. As excellent as he remembers. Huzzah.

13) The next time he’s herded into the library, he sees what looks suspiciously like his travel paraphernalia flimsily hidden behind a bit of drapery. Dracula is shuffling the deck.

14) “A true prize on the table this time, my friend. I know you are one to appreciate the splendor of our beautiful country, just as I know it is, for your own safety, quite impossible to go exploring alone in the wild. Too many wolves about. But if you win the majority tonight, I shall see to it that my driver takes a leave from his own many errands to escort you beyond the castle for a time, if you so wish.”

“…And if I lose the majority?” He can’t help it: “I’m sure there’s little from me you’d be interested in.”

Dracula grins.

“We shall think of something, I’m certain. Here. Deal.”

15) As expected, Jonathan’s face isn’t effortlessly unreadable in its misery anymore. He has something to play for, even if his trust in Dracula’s dangling carrot on the stick is nigh nonexistent. He loses more. He struggles more. He worries more…

16) …But the wins and losses remain surprisingly even. On into the dawn they play, matching victory for victory. Even the Count seems puzzled. Jonathan is just tired. He was never going to win. The ‘driver’ will fall to some mysterious ailment, his possessions will disappear the moment he’s sent out of the room ahead of the Count. To Hell with it.

17) “I forfeit. We remain tied, so neither has to lose.” A sour smile curls. “Besides, I have kept you up too late again.”

“One more.”

“We can say you won—,”

Dracula gives him a Look.

Jonathan sits again. Plays again.

Wins again.

Dracula hisses several words the polyglot dictionary would be scandalized to translate. Jonathan feels the first genuine smile he’s wanted to make in a month and a half try to creep up on his lips, and stifles it.

18) Dracula turns over his cards and thumbs though the deck as if looking for a conspirator. He even scowls at Jonathan’s forearms, both bare through the whole game as he’d rolled up his sleeves. Still grumbling, his thumbnail finally hooks a card that makes a cloud pass over his face.

19) “What. Is this?”

Jonathan looks.

“Oh, that’s just a Joker.”

“Joker?”

“Yes, I thought I’d taken him out. He’s not a usable card in this game, but he’s sometimes used as a trump or wild card in others. That is, he’s there to turn the tide for whoever gets to play him.”

Jonathan reaches for the card to tuck it back in the box. Dracula pulls it out of reach, walks to the fireplace, and flicks it into the flames.

“Say what you will, but I recognize a symbol of sabotage when I see it. It should not be in the deck at all!” Still watching the little harlequin turn to cinders, he flaps his other hand at Jonathan. “Go rest, my friend. Take that infernal game with you. It is not a respectable pastime for men of our like.”

20) Jonathan gathers up the deck, gives his travel kit a last mournful look, and leaves for his bedroom, knowing not to ask after the walk in the forest as he goes. In his bed, he empties the deck into his hand again and thinks on four things.

Skill.

Acting.

Luck.

And…

21) He turns the deck’s neglected second Joker over in his fingers, the impish face seeming to hold a secret in its grin.

22) When he wakes next, he isn’t surprised to find the deck has been stolen. It doesn’t trouble him. Somehow, it even produces a tired grin on his face. It nearly matches the painted thing hidden, wild and powerful, in the pages of his journal.

[circeius-invidioso]

I am so unbelievably fucking tired of people on reddit being like...

Why square bases? They aren't allowed in the wargame.

You can't play competitive with square bases!

Square bases are against the rules, you can't have them! You need to remove them and put them on round ones!

Square bases are for display only!

And 20 more variations to that.

Firstly

no

Secondly

There are more ways to play games in the 40k setting besides competitive and the latest ruleset of the wargame.

A small and not complete list is.

1) Narrative play, where the rules are loose and the victory is not as important as the "just having a beer with the buds while having fun"

2) Space Hulk, where its more important where the mini is pointed than the shape of the base.

3) Rogue Trader, the tabletop rpg. Where the shape of the base is the least of our worries.

4) Dark Heresy, the tabletop rpg again. Where the shape of the base is not very important. Again what are the odds.

5) Deathwatch, another tabletop rpg. I won't repeat myself you get it.

6) Black Crusade, see above. Again.

And the list could go on but I am not that petty...

Well actually I am so let's continue.

7) A Dnd module, because 40k is not only a wargame it's also a setting and what if I want to play a dnd game and my character to be a dazzling space monk in chrome. Who will stop me? The fun police?

8) A wargame with friends, because everyone can indeed be fine with me having square bases and we count distances from the middle of the mini. Why not? Who is going to stop us? The thot police?

9) Wrath and Glory, another tabletop rpg set in the 40k universe.

10) A custom module of Shadow of the Demon Lord, it's weirdly and oddly fitting for grey knights. I don't know, maybe I am just insane but I liked it.

And I could go on.

Because again, 40k is a setting not a ruleset.

You can take the minis you bought and do with them as you please. Paint them, keep them in a cave, even eat them if you have the stomach for it.

I am just exhausted of having to explain my choices time after time.

Not everyone in the community plays the wargame. And that is ok.

We exist. We might be few and far between but we exist dammit.

I don't know what kind of fumes they are huffing in there and are so comfortable popping out of the bushes being like

You can't do that. You will not he allowed in a tournament with those bases.

Maybe I don't give a single flying and swimming duck about competitive, Kyle.

Maybe I play the rpgs, Kyle.

Maybe I am not going on a tournament, Kyle. I didn't ask for advice for tournament rules, Kyle.

I swear if this stick continues for the rest of the year Imma start designing a tabletop game where you can only use square bases for your minis.

Old world style.

Space hulk on speed.

Pen and paper Ultrakill.

Roided out dnd.

The sky is the limit.

God is dead.

🌈And the wargame is not the only option if you want to play a tabletop game in the 40k setting.🌈

[carnagechicken]

the Florida Panthers won the Stanley cup

and with that I have officially watched my first season of hockey.

I started as a fan of the penguins with an affection towards Flower as well. Now I’m ending the season a kraken fan, pens fan, flower fan and with more mattdrai interest than I expected.

The kraken stuff happened in mid April really suddenly, but ever since I started dabbling in hockey fandom in late 2021 I knew that becoming a kraken fan was going to happen eventually, a matter of when not if. Those beautiful jerseys, my love of cephalopods, and the team’s newness were strong draws but I still needed to have a special little guy to seal the deal. I discovered Adam Larsson in late march (thanks @angry-geno-is-score your fics* are brilliant<3) and what do you know that’s kraken hockey baby!

They’re probably going to be my main team next season. Still love the pens, their narratives are exquisite, but my brain wants kraken more.

(The mattdrai is a playoffs discovery that I fear I’ll never recover from. Leon’s disdain for the media and Matthew’s understanding that hockey is supposed to be theatre entertainment is *chef’s kiss*)

And with that here is a list, in no particular order, of some of notable things I saw this season,

: Tristan Jarry goalie goal!!! There was so much to like about this, the bench reaction, EK shaking Jars vigorously, Lars Eller going for a head boop and missing and then going for another one with more force, Ned trying to get Jars to skate over to do a fist bump line at the bench, Jars looking so bashful at the attention. :When Bryan Rust had that mustache and it was….kinda working. : Jeff Carter, the team Old Man that season, scoring like 3 breakaways and 2 short handed goals. : that shootout that went for 12 rounds (thank you Ned). : when Tanger got on all fours and started rocking back and forth in the locker room during Sully’s pre game speech (seriously wtf). : when Rusty scored in OT, had it waved off, and like ten seconds later scored again in a cooler way. : Sully becoming a grandpa<3. : when Jeff was a healthy scratch (the only time) and when he was asked about it was basically like ‘whatever, it doesn’t bother me, I just work here’. This was when I really started to like him btw. : Flower getting to 1000 games!! : Flower reaching the most wins!!! : kreider pulling out Matthew Tkachuk’s mouth guard and failing to throw it over the glass. : Florida beating Boston *again*. : that game were Sid got so pissed he screamed ‘no! No!’ at a ref so loud you could hear him over the crowd. He then proceeded to tell the ref ‘you fucked up’ :when Erik Karlsson made a mistake that sent the game to ot, scored in ot and then fell to his knees in relief. : that 10 to 2 victory over the sharks that was also Sid’s 1200 game. : sid scoring a goal off his ass. It had to happen one day : the pens ot win against vancouver back in Feb. The notable thing was that I was there with my dad and sisters <3

It's the little things that make hockey so fun!

Here's to a wonderful 24/25 season!

(*Seriously, if you haven't already, read Serenity in Those Deep Waters by @angry-geno-is-score on ao3, it's *fabulously* emotional and I can't recommend it enough)

[leximicham]

Friendship as a Force Multiplier

I wrote a preface (read: rant) about this but I want the methods below to stand on their own. Feel free to read it. Or not. I'm not a cop.

The below terms are meant to be ways that you can help others or ask for help from others with increasing productivity. These are execution skills as in they allow you to execute on tasks and get shit done. Skills; not crutches, not cheats or hacks, and not anything else which you might feel ashamed of. People want to help you and you probably want to help people get more done so let's build these skills together.

Task Activation

Sitting down with someone for 5-10 minutes to help one of you focus on a task long enough to build momentum or "flow state". Go to a designated workspace together, clear and otherwise prepare said workspace, pull out/open the tool of choice for this task, talk about the goals of the current big thing, start working for 5 minutes. Task Activation complete! The helper can go back to whatever they were doing. The tasker can either continue working if the activation has put them in flow state or they can go back to the drawing board because there may be unforeseen roadblocks or this may just have been the wrong day to do work or the wrong task to work on. Cost of this Task Activation? 5-10 minutes from 2 people and hanging out with a cool person. Cost of trying again if the first activation failed? The exact same.

Rubber Ducking

An intimate (/s) roleplay experience where one person plays the role of an expert trying to suss out a path through a complicated problem and the other person roleplays an inanimate object. Maybe the first player drops the mask and steps away to search for something on the internet because they need more expertise than they're ready to act out. Maybe the second player breaks character by asking helpful questions to set the first player back on track through their musings. Or maybe the forget that rubber ducks can't play Pokemon on their Switch while someone is talking at them. This is a safe space, there are no judgements if everyone's having a good time.

Body Doubling

Very similar to Rubber Ducking but with structure and tomato shaped egg timers. And less talking. Read up on the Pomodoro Technique if you're not familiar. One person (at least) gathers one other person (at least) to sit in a room with a timer and strict expectations about how long productivity periods and break periods last. I like 25 minutes of working and 10 minutes of break. Don't let productivity spill into breaks. Don't forget to keep planning your tasks and future working cycles. Don't shame anyone for playing Pokemon on their Switch during productivity cycles - rest can be productive, too. Avoid disturbing other people during productivity periods except with time checks, cries of victory, or reminders to not beat heads against walls or keyboards. Task Activation can lead into Body Doubling. Body Doubling can be paused for Rubber Ducking. All bodies involved should be breathing.

Paired Productivity

This is just Pair Programming but with a conjugation and more generalized activity term change. Two people enter (a prepared and organized workspace), they have a task or two which they've both agreed to work on, one has the tools to perform the task, the other has a device which can search the internet, they do work, two people leave. Tomato shaped egg timers are encouraged. Rubber Ducking may occur. One person attempts to do the task while discussing the steps, actions, and open questions with the other. The other person checks work, researches particularly difficult questions, and does not touch the tool for this task. Trading roles at predetermined times is fine. I recommend that the more experienced person give the less experienced person more time working with the tool. Take breaks if either the task or other person wears you out.

Task Dump

Giving someone a pen and paper and making them write out every worry, chore, deliverable, past due library book, and passion project idea they have until they start remembering missed homework assignments from the last school they graduated from. Alternatively: be the person who has a pen and paper thrust upon them. Getting Things Done (this is a book and paid coaching program but the link gives a good synopsis) teaches that the worst place to store information and to-dos is your brain. We forget things and we worry about forgetting things. We feel pressure when tasks are a cloud of associations and worries about missed deadline repercussions or would've, could've, should'ves for how our life might have been if we'd done this important task yesterday instead of playing Pokemon on our Switch. We must always forgive our past selves, accept our present selves, and be kind to our future selves. Once a task is on that list it's a future item and past us is off the hook. Having everything listed in front of us helps us figure out and accept the current state of the world. Determining next steps gives our future self the best chance of being proud of themself for accomplishing cool and important stuff. It's hard to say what to do with the big list of tasks from your brain once you have it. This isn't a planning or project management guide and I haven't written one (yet). It's up to you what you do with the list but I guarantee that you'll be in a healthier place when you can see everything on paper instead of listening to the tasks and worries buzz angrily around your head. Here's some suggestions to get you started:

Separate the hastily scrawled list into several lists based on themes:

work

hobbies

errands

passion projects

gifts for the wonderful friend helping you with this

Stack rank things based on a combination of urgency and importance:

Capture the bug which just landed on the corner of your desk?

High urgency (it's gonna fly away!)

Low importance (unless you eat bugs?)

Figuring out where to send humanity in the cosmos when our sun inevitably expands?

Very high importance (we need to live somewhere not inside the sun)

Very low urgency (we hope...)

Figuring out what you're going to eat for your next meal?

Medium-high importance (don't forget to eat!)

Medium-high urgency (you've forgotten to eat while reading this post, haven't you?)

Do this one!

My main suggestion is just to learn to do this Task Dump regularly. This is a tool which you can use in response to "oh no, my head is full of things to do and I don't like it!" You can cross things off the old list or add them to another system but at the end of the day writing things down helps. Keep your old lists around and rewrite them but skip things which are done or that you've decided you don't need to worry about anymore. Add new things. Observing and measuring your task load like this will eventually get you taking on more manageable loads and prioritizing things (with your Task Dump buddy) and feeling really accomplished.

Kind Interrupt

This is not a planned event. If you see someone you care about is hyper fixating on something but making no progress because they're just spinning their wheels and banging their head against a wall then there's actions you can take to help. Breaks are important so you want them to step away at least for a little bit. It's important to be careful not to force someone away from something that they're stuck on, though. You also want to avoid guilting them; they probably already know if they're running late or not making a lot of progress. Try replacements and simple choices: "Would you like to go for a walk or would you rather get a snack and something to drink with me?" Don't shy away from sharing your needs, though. If you need this person to do something else for you then don't shy away from that. Focus on the help, "Can you help me get ready to go?" or "Can I get your help with this task?" Helping people is stimulating and you shouldn't underestimate how much people in your life want to help you.

This list was originally 5 skills until my "15 minute blogpost" became 3 hours and my wives had to rescue me to work on other things.

That's it for now. Read this with someone who you want to unblock or who you know is willing to help unblock you. Become force multipliers together. Keep this in your back pocket for a bad executive function day. Steal it for your own blogpost or website but please give credit to the trans and ungovernable catgirl, Lexi Micham. Have a nice day!

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

Habakkuk's Prayer

1 A prayer of Habakkuk the prophet. On shigionoth.

2 Lord, I have heard of your fame; I stand in awe of your deeds, Lord. Repeat them in our day, in our time make them known; in wrath remember mercy.

3 God came from Teman, the Holy One from Mount Paran. His glory covered the heavens and his praise filled the earth. 4 His splendor was like the sunrise; rays flashed from his hand, where his power was hidden. 5 Plague went before him; pestilence followed his steps. 6 He stood, and shook the earth; he looked, and made the nations tremble. The ancient mountains crumbled and the age-old hills collapsed— but he marches on forever. 7 I saw the tents of Cushan in distress, the dwellings of Midian in anguish.

8 Were you angry with the rivers, Lord? Was your wrath against the streams? Did you rage against the sea when you rode your horses and your chariots to victory? 9 You uncovered your bow, you called for many arrows. You split the earth with rivers; 10 the mountains saw you and writhed. Torrents of water swept by; the deep roared and lifted its waves on high.

11 Sun and moon stood still in the heavens at the glint of your flying arrows, at the lightning of your flashing spear. 12 In wrath you strode through the earth and in anger you threshed the nations. 13 You came out to deliver your people, to save your anointed one. You crushed the leader of the land of wickedness, you stripped him from head to foot. 14 With his own spear you pierced his head when his warriors stormed out to scatter us, gloating as though about to devour the wretched who were in hiding. 15 You trampled the sea with your horses, churning the great waters.

16 I heard and my heart pounded, my lips quivered at the sound; decay crept into my bones, and my legs trembled. Yet I will wait patiently for the day of calamity to come on the nation invading us. 17 Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines, though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, 18 yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.

19 The Sovereign Lord is my strength; he makes my feet like the feet of a deer, he enables me to tread on the heights.

For the director of music. On my stringed instruments. — Habakkuk 3 | New International Version (NIV) Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® All rights reserved worldwide. Cross References: Genesis 21:21; Exodus 7:19-20; Exodus 12:29-30; Exodus 14:16; Exodus 15:2; Exodus 15:8; Exodus 15:14; Numbers 11:1; Numbers 14:19; Numbers 31:7-8; Deuteronomy 33:2; Deuteronomy 33:15; Deuteronomy 22:29; Joshua 10:12-13; Judges 7:22; 2 Samuel 2:18; 2 Samuel 5:20; 2 Samuel 24:15; Job 21:18; Job 26:14; Job 30:17; Psalm 7:12-13; Psalm 10:8; Psalm 18:12; Psalm 18:14; Psalm 68:7; Psalm 77:16; Psalm 77:19; Psalm 78:16; Psalm 93:3; Isaiah 41:15; Jeremiah 12:4; Habakkuk 2:20; Luke 1:47; Luke 21:19; Romans 5:2-3; 2 Corinthians 4:8-9

Commentary on Habakkuk 3 by Matthew Henry

[nervous-leader-idv]

"WAAAAAUGHHH!!!" *thud*

"O-Owww... Ugh, my hips...! W-Wait a minute..."

"What... What is this place...? And what's this contraption...?"

Oh Dwight, how easy it is to be abandoned like a lost puppy... But this time it's different, this time you're somewhere unexplored. Maybe you'll put your leadership skills to use with your new game life here!

~~~ BLOG INFORMATION:

~ This is a blog based of the Dead by Daylight survivor, Dwight Fairfield! All information will be regarded on his Wiki page for those who are interested! As a side note, this is a mix between canon elements (mostly) and some headcanons!

~ An individual who's used to hiding and becoming invisible, is surprisingly a well adapted leader when it's his turn to shine. Despite his anxieties, Dwight has faced harsher trials and understands the true extent of teamwork and efficiency.

~ Dwight is 21+

~ Dwight's identity is known as "Director". Despite travelling into the past, Dwight retains knowledge from the present. Curious to learn new things.

~The Entity is displeased with Dwight's shortcomings, as a result, It will disguise itself as Dwight's pet; observing his behavior through out his stay.

x.

- This blog will (for the most part!) be a text blog consisting of written responses. (Bc outside reasons / other blogs! :>)

- IDV characters (Canon, OC, Crossover, AU, etc.) are free to interact.

- The mun has a hard time typing / getting things done, please be patient with me. TT-TT

- Separate mun/mod as individuals, if you don't know Dead by Daylight, dark themes WILL take place on this blog. The warning tag #//dwight's dilemma will be used for more serious and sore topics. This is the first and final warning. Viewer discretion is advised.

Below is the reworked version of Dwight's DBD Perks into IDV's External Traits. Please note that these traits are a WIP and may be reworked in the future!

"Director's" External Traits

Calm and Collected - He carries a notepad with his trusty pens. He can keep track of his teammates decoding and kiting, if they are doing well, he can give them a boost on such skill or aid one they need help with. He is able to check cipher progression for 10s before putting the notepad away.

Blue Pen: Used for Kiting, if a survivor kites for an extended period of time, Survivors highlighted in Blue will gain a movement speed increase of 15% (60s-180s) / 25% (181s-360s) / 35%. (+361s). This trait deactivates once the survivor is out of the Fear Radius.

Black Pen: Used for decoding, if a survivor reaches certain progression on a cipher machine, Survivors are given a decoding speed increase of 5% for each complete cipher. (The buff negates if things like specific External Traits or Hunter Webs afflict other survivors.)

Red Pen: Used for negating either the Blue or Black Pen highlights if not required. (Notepad cooldown for 25s.)

~

Bond - The "Director" has picked up on previous trials to know his team's whereabouts. Survivor outlines are revealed to him for 5s for every 120s.

Prove Thyself - As a leader, one must know how to lead down a road to victory. For every other Survivor decoding a cipher within 4 meters, Prove Thyself increases his decoding speed by 10%, up to a maximum of 30%. Survivors can only be affected by one instance of Prove Thyself at a time.

Leader - Increases the Action speeds of other Survivors in healing, rescuing, and opening chests by 15% while they are within 8 meters of his location location.

~~~ RULES:

1. No sexual NSFW asks. You know what to ask and not to. Suggestiveness and flirting is fine.

2. Hate the character, not the mun/mod. Under no circumstances should the mun/mod's backgrounds make a fellow viewer uncomfortable with the blog.

3. Common courtesy. Please keep it civil between each other! We're all here to have fun anyways! ^_^ <3

~~~ MISC:

Mun's Blog: @justmandika

[penstarot]

5/06/24 Canes vs. Rangers Game 2 Who Will Win? Penstarot Game Forecast

If you are familiar with my game forecasts, you know that I usually did simple 3 card pulls for pens (sort of like yes or no spreads). This time I decided to experiment and do spreads on both teams so we can compare their energies and hopefully make a better prediction. Let's see if it works :) please bear in mind that I am still learning how to read cards when it comes to sports, so don't take it too seriously.

The first spread is for the canes. We got an emperor, which is a card of an organization and higher authority. Then we have a judgement card which represents radical changes for the better, or a literal judgement. 10 of pentacles represents long term success.

Here's my interpretation - maybe there will be some unclear moment in the game that will be resolved on a league level and it will be resolved in canes favour (Andrei's michigan against boston comes to mind). Generally I think judging will favour canes and their play will be a slow grind that will bring good results.

Here are the rangers' cards and wow they look way more dramatic. First we got the devil card which is self destruction. 3 of swords - heartbreak. 6 of wands - victory, public recognition.

I think rangers will play more recklessly (or even dirty), taking penalties and generally being their own enemies. In the first spread we got judgement card for canes, and I assume the ruling made by the league will crush rangers' spirit. But rangers will turn the situation aorund and overcome it, so maybe they will have a big comeback in the 3rd.

So based on these two spreads we got one team that plays a consistent game and has higher authority on their side and the other team that overcomes their struggles and shortcomings.

Personally I think canes will win just because they have more positive cards. But Rangers can also clinch a win at the last moment (6 of wands) .

[whgmasterofceremonies]

WHG 20 - Day 16

A cold wind blows through an arena that feels more like a graveyard.

The traps break loose. Birds swarm from nowhere, but they spread too far and wide to do damage. The ground breaks and cracks open, spewing flames, and machines rattle and rock temperatures up and down in random pockets. Lightning punches through the upper hull of the arena, blasting trees and lighting even more fires.

Amid all of this, Yuen somehow manages to die...of hunger. At least it’s fitting for the name?

And Maura prepares to defend herself. Initial fear overcome, part of the final three, she decides not to go down without a fight.

One more distorted cannon blast signals Yuen’s descent into the night.

Rain crashes over the arena, boiling in some areas and freezing others. Prowling, watching her back, Maura fails to watch her feet as the treacherous ground gives way, plunging her to a watery grave, ice forming so fast over the surface that she can’t break free.

But Lyra and Chess have had enough. Their shaky alliance has come to a moment of truth. This place is shaking itself apart. They demand that either a hovercraft pick them both up right now or they will let the arena claim both of them, proving to all of Panem that the Capitol doesn’t even have its own creations under control.

This works.

After sixteen grueling days, Lyra and Chess emerge victorious!

Everyone had a fair shot at redemption, and considering what we’re planning, nobody will truly achieve it--not yet, not even Lyra and Chess. But everyone put up a good fight.

Be proud of your characters. Be prolific in your writing. And may the odds be ever in your favor.

-

Thank you all once again so much for submitting your characters and playing along! Join the collaboration for post-Games heists or write your own separate sequence of events--whatever strikes your fancy. Thank you for making this big 20th round a good one.

District 1

Asher Sang (he/him) @maple-writes​

Ares Machina (she/her) @concealeddarkness13​

District 2

Yuen (he/him) @grailfish​

Razzle (they/them) @grailfish​

District 3

Cian (they/them) @ink-and-spite​

Steele (he/they) @grailfish​

District 4

Hugo Atwater (he/him) @ratracechronicler​

Vera (she/her) @bloodlessheirbyjacques​

District 5

Della (she/her) @ink-and-spite​

Maura (she/her) @bloodlessheirbyjacques​

District 6

Ash (she/her) @knmartinshouldbewriting​

Hadrian (he/him) @bloodlessheirbyjacques​

District 7

Silver (they/them) @pen-of-roses​

Layla (she/her) @pied-piper-of-hamlet​

District 8

Lyra (she/they) @forthesanityofstorytellers​

Najdinel Blytridj (she/her) @pen-of-roses​

District 9

Maya (she/her) @pied-piper-of-hamlet​

Graeme (he/him) @onmywaytobe​

District 10

Jubilee (xe/xem) @ink-and-spite​

Angie (she/her) @pied-piper-of-hamlet​

District 11

Triel Reeves (she/her) @concealeddarkness13​

Chess (she/her) @concealeddarkness13​

District 12

Beau (he/him) @drabbleitout​

Jaime Garnet-Batista “Garnet” (he/him) @drabbleitout​

[psalmonesermons]

The other side to the Christmas Story

Psalm 45

At this time of year many people think of the baby in the manger and it is good to reflect on the beautiful story of the nativity.

However, Jesus Christ did not remain a baby but became the mighty King of Kings and Lord of Lords, the Saviour of the world, and the Bridegroom of his church..

So often we can focus in on the wonderful meekness and humility of Jesus (the suffering servant of Isaiah 53; the crucified Messiah) and yet neglect His power and majesty as the

mighty conquering King!

Through the blood of the cross He defeated him who had the power over death and having risen entered the holy of holies and presented once and for all His holy sinless blood on the mercy seat as a propitiation (turned away God's wrath) for the sin of man.

We are now going to consider Jesus Christ as the conquering hero and Jesus Christ the victorious bridegroom.

We must never forget that Jesus Christ defeated sin and death and has the keys of death and hell, and he is able to save them to the uttermost that come to Him.

Psalm 45

To the chief Musician upon Shoshannim, for the sons of Korah, Maschil, A Song of loves.

45:1 My heart is inditing a good matter: I speak of the things which I have made touching the king: my tongue is the pen of a ready writer.

2 Thou art fairer than the children of men: grace is poured into thy lips: therefore, God hath blessed thee for ever.

3 Gird thy sword upon thy thigh, O most mighty, with thy glory and thy majesty.

4 And in thy majesty ride prosperously because of truth, meekness, and righteousness; and thy right hand shall teach these terrible things.

5 Thine arrows are sharp in the heart of the king's enemies; whereby the people fall under thee.

6 Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the sceptre of thy kingdom is a right sceptre.

7 Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.

8 All thy garments smell of myrrh, and aloes, and cassia, out of the ivory palaces, whereby they have made thee glad.

9 Kings' daughters were among thy honourable women: upon thy right hand did stand the queen in gold of Ophir.

10 Hearken, O daughter, and consider, and incline thine ear; forget also thine own people, and thy father's house.

11 So shall the king greatly desire thy beauty: for he is thy Lord; and worship thou him.

12 And the daughter of Tyre shall be there with a gift; even the rich among the people shall entreat thy favour.

13 The king's daughters are all glorious within: her clothing is of wrought gold.

14 She shall be brought unto the king in raiment of needlework: the virgins her companions that follow her shall be brought unto thee.

15 With gladness and rejoicing shall they be brought: they shall enter into the king's palace.

16 Instead of thy fathers shall be thy children, whom thou mayest make princes in all the earth.

17 I will make thy name to be remembered in all generations: therefore, shall the people praise thee for ever and ever.

To the chief Musician upon Shoshannim, for the sons of Korah, Maschil, A Song of loves.

This is a delightful psalm bursting with royalty and nobility, power, and majesty.

Shoshannim (lilies) might refer to the tune, a poetical title or even a musical instrument. Behold the lilies of the field even Solomon praised.

The sons of Korah were the specially appointed and trained singers for this, and other psalms and we are also trained to sing as a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should show forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

King Jesus ought to be praised by a specially chosen holy people!

Psalm 45 is a didactic psalm i.e. Maschil is a psalm that teaches us (about the power and majesty of God).

There is going to be royal wedding and you are going to take part in it ...as the Bride!

It is also love song and more specifically a wedding (nuptial song) about the forthcoming marriage of Christ the bridegroom and His bride the church of Jesus Christ.

Oh, the mystical union of between Christ and His church! Jesus is the King who set His love upon a bride of low estate, paid all our debts for us when we had no means to pay, exalts us to exalted position (seated in heavenly places) and bestows the wealth and honours of eternal life upon us. What a magnificent Bridegroom!

v.1 Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks! The writer’s heart is bursting with praise to the divine King and Bridegroom. His pen is guided by the passion in his heart. Is your heart full of passion for your King today?

v.2 Although Jesus has no physical beauty lest we desire him for the wrong reasons.

He has a surpassing beauty of spirit and nature. Only that which is truth, only that which is wise and gracious, only that which gives glory to His father pours forth from those anointed lips. Never a wasted or unnecessary word only that which is fitting like apples of gold in settings of silver, fell from the lips of the Son of God. Jesus Christ is a great high priest after the order of Melchizedek without beginning or ending of days. Father God has blessed Him forever!

v.3 Get ready for battle with the sword of the spirit, for the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart[1]. In the wilderness Jesus defeated Satan with the word of God and at the end of time He will destroy His enemies with the breath of His mouth. O most mighty, there never was anyone else who was able or worthy to this title, the one who defeated Satan, death, and hell by His death on the cruel cross and now has the keys of death and hell. O most mighty Jesus Christ. The Lamb of God is the only one worthy to open the scroll in the book of revelation.

v.4 When Jesus preached the Gospel He rode on the Word of Truth and meekness and righteousness not only proclaiming these but living them out before the very eyes of men. The glorious eternal Gospel was His chariot to bring salvation to fallen man. The Gospel prospered turning some peoples’ worlds right way up! Jesus the right hand of God brings salvation to the humble but a terrible and everlasting condemnation to the unrepentant wicked. There is no hiding place from the Son of God.

v.5 His words are arrows and never miss the mark! No one can stand against Him and survive. We are also His arrows in His quiver for he fires us out at the lost so that as we preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ by His spirit, he pierces their hearts with conviction of sin of righteousness and judgement! Some enemies fall convicted leading to salvation others refusing to repent to eternal condemnation. We were once His enemies but now are of His royal household!

v.6 This most mighty warrior is none other than God Himself, God the Son, Jesus Christ, the eternal word made flesh, He who was in the beginning was the eternal Word and was with God and was God. It is Him who has an eternal throne not like any earthly king but a divine and everlasting Kingship. Jesus Christ is King of Kings and Lord of Lords, Praise his holy name. he who was once a babe in a manger shall rule the nations with a rod of iron.

His rule, His sceptre is the only right and lawful rule that is fitting to stand for eternity.

v.7 Here is the Father’s heart he hates evil in all its forms and disguises but loves that which is truthful, pure, and holy and because this was what was Jesus lived and loved, He was anointed by the Holy Spirit without measure! Joy is a fruit of the Holy Spirit and He received joy without measure and yet there was another joy was that was set before Him (of seeing you and I saved) He endured the humiliation and suffering of the cross. he who gives most receives most joy!

v.8 Jesus Christ is our Great High Priest who offered His sacrifice to God for our sins.

the high priest in the old testament had special garments and was anointed with an exclusive holy and precious oil representing the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ was anointed not with the symbol but with the real thing, the fragrance of the Holy Spirit. Christians also have a measure of this aroma to those who are being saved but we are the stench of death to those who are perishing. Even the name of Jesus is as ointment poured forth! He is now at the Father’s right hand the ultimate dwelling place.

v.9 Whether we are high or low rank in society Jesus Christ has appointed all women who believe in his name to royalty and like Queen Esther, you have been born-again for such a time as this! That is to be willing to sacrifice your life for the salvation of those people who are appointed unto salvation. We do this by telling and living the gospel to them and before them. The Queen is the Bride of Jesus Christ and stands beside Him in the place of honour at the Father’s right hand. The purest gold is for those to whom Jesus has imputed and imparted His righteousness so that we might stand before God as part of the royal family.

v.10 We were formerly of our father the devil. The world, the flesh and the devil constantly besiege us in this life. When we go to heaven, we might lose relatives and friends forever because they have rejected Jesus Christ the only name given under heaven by which we might be saved. The Lord will wipe away the tears from our eyes.

It is our obligation to take the Gospel to our families, friends, and enemies but the response is their responsibility!

We must not be like Lot’s wife looking and longing for the former sinful things or like those who fell in the wilderness longing for the things of Egypt. We are washed with the holy and precious blood of the Lamb do not return like a dog to its vomit! In heaven we will put the past completely behind us, but we can start today! Forget the former things and press on toward the mark of the high calling in Christ Jesus.

v.11 As we forsake all that is ungodly so will become increasingly pleasing to our King Jesus and greatly desire us for the beauty of us being willing to give up everything for Him! At the end of day who do we want to please? He is our Lord and is the only one worthy of our worship! Why should Jesus play a secondary role to anyone or anything (idols) in our lives?

v12 Even the Gentiles will come to recognise Jesus as King of Kings and will bring their wealth to Him. We who were aliens and strangers to covenants and promises to Israel have become joint heirs through Jesus Christ. The costliest gift we can give to God is ourselves our very lives and the control of them. We are now rich through and in Jesus Christ and can ask for His favour!

v.13 The Bride of Christ is cleansed by the blood, washed by the water of the word, and is clothed with His robe of righteousness (the quality of which can only be represented by the purest refined gold). The Bride is now beautiful on the inside and the outside.

v.14 The Bride’s garment was carefully designed and put together and when she makes her entrance she will be accompanied by her companions (the angels who have protected and ministered to the Bride). All the heavenly host will be at the wedding.

v.15 What a wonderful and joyful spectacle the almighty and majestic Jesus Christ the Bridegroom with His Bride, the church radiant and shining, transported by the Holy Spirit, surrounded by the angels of God entering into the Father’s household. And we will be there and part of it!

v.16 Some of Jesus ancestors brought glory to God, David, Solomon, Judah etc. etc. but a special portion is given to the New testament church in that we shall rule as princes on the earth [2].

v.17 How can we fail to remember Him and give the glory due to His name, Jesus Christ.

The most mighty One. The Messiah of God. The One who died that we might live

Jesus, the author, and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. Death could not hold the Lamb of God. He is risen and having offered his blood as a once and for all sacrifice sat down at the Father’s right hand. Soon He is coming for his bride.

Even so come Lord Jesus.

Amen

That same baby in the manager is now the risen Lord seated at the right hand of the Father in Heaven. This is why the Christmas story is so very wonderful.

Amen

Personal prayer

[mendolan]

The animal that I drew for the assignment is a horseshoe crab

Some facts about them are that:

their books is blue

they can lay about 4,000 eggs at a time

they glow under UV light

their pointed tails are not used for self defense, but instead to help them flip over

Horseshoe crabs are not true crabs and are more closely related to scorpions

https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/news/10-incredible-horseshoe-crab-facts

Some of the pictures that were included in the artwork include:

converse:

were originally athletic shoes

own a recording studio

once made rain boots

Rocky ran in them

initially only made high tops

https://twistedsifter.com/2022/08/9-facts-about-iconic-converse-all-star-shoes/

Blue light glasses:

blue light can endanger your future health

cataract surgery can increase the impact of blue light on your eyes

eyes can't naturally block blue light

Blue light is everywhere

Its the primary source of eye strain

https://blutechlenses.com/blog/6-facts-you-need-to-know-about-blue-light/

Pens:

Pens were used as long as 5000 years ago by ancient egyptians

on average a pen can write 45,000 words

more than 2 billion pens are manufactured in the United States annually

pilots used ballpoint pens in WW2 because they don't leak at high altitudes

pen caps cause about 100 deaths a year from people accidentally swallowing them

https://www.pushcases.com/blogs/news/13-facts-you-never-knew-about-pens

Forrest Gump:

Not everything in the book made it to the movie

John Travolta was the first choice to play Forrest

A sequel novel was made following the movies success

plans for a second movie were washed away bacause of the affects of 9/11

Tom Hanks won an Oscar for best actor because of Forrest Gump

https://www.yardbarker.com/entertainment/articles/20_fact_you_might_not_know_about_forrest_gump_100123/s1__35216153#slide_12

Pittsburgh Steelers:

team was founded in 1933

they have won 6 super bowls

several former Steelers are in the NFL Hall of Fame

The Rooney family are long time owners of the Steelers

Terry Bradshaw is one of the most iconic player in Steelers history. He led them to 4 Super Bowl victories in the 70s

https://facts.net/lifestyle/sports/14-facts-about-pittsburgh-steelers/

Attendance:

one thing that I found interesting In the passage was on page 141 when the author says "It requires a lot of insects-around 70,000 dries bugs for a pound of raw cochineal". This is interesting to me because there is so much work and so many bugs that go into a single pound of cochineal which is probably not as much as we think.

[coffee-in-veins]

Day 15: Old Bones

an entry for darkest prompts promptober 2022

previous days: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14

now available on ao3 too

Bone NOUN - a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals; one's body; a corpse or skeleton.

* * *

Most of the time, Dismas harboured a feeling that religious folks were just as mad as the cultists they were hired to hunt down - if not more. The ways they honoured their deity bordered on his masochism they condoned themselves, and their zealotry came indistinguishably close to the indoctrination cultists apparently were subjected. The self-inflicted misery was borderline self-abusive, and way, way too off-putting to an honest rogue who wanted to forget the suffering of their shared mortal coil instead of adding to them.

The highwayman refrained from asking why the hell all of this was happening if the Light was supposedly a caring and benevolent god - the brawl that followed the first time he voiced his doubts had put both Reynauld and him into Sanatorium for a week and a half. Thus, he changed tactics. He observed. He asked. He pondered.

Some of it made sense if he squinted long enough or tried to see who could benefit from a whole order of single-minded servants, always ready at one's back and call. Other things sounded like simple application of the army's rules in a religious connotation - which wasn't too hard to deduce, after all, those zealots were expected to die, spreading the Light's glory or whatever.

When he asked Rey if he got pleasure from being hurt and if that's what all those scriptures were about, the crusader became offended. And yet it was the only way Dismas could explain some of the things the knight put himself through.

Because there were practices in the rigid crusader's life that he couldn't explain with anything else even if he genuinely tried. Like waking up in the middle of the fucking night to mumble words of Light's glory, probably to add to the issues of bad sleep, cold and nightmares. Or having to play some bloody mind games to simply be able to eat for a couple of weeks each year, as if they didn't have enough problems with provisions already. There were also times when the crusader would insist there were angels around them, and those angels needed the blood of the saints to grant them victory, and he was the only saint in the vicinity. Or that his battered body needed to be starved and lashed even more, because only pain and deprivation were a way to repent for his sins - thankfully, those moods weren't too frequent for the knight, else Dismas would go insane trying to take care of him.

There was another practice that could only bring Rey pain, but he still stuck to it vigorously.

As the infected were finally considered sentient and the ban on their executions was finalized, the whole Hamlet succumbed in disarray. Hastily built holding pens those religious mooches dared to call "quarantine zone" were abandoned in equal haste, their unfortunate habitats let out with gushing meaningless apologies. The abbot even held a special sermon to "beloved martyrs", as if they weren't his victims.

The rogue could only imagine where it left the Church's executioner.

Dismas followed the shoddy cobblestone path to the less-frequented side of the Graveyard, and - quite expectedly - found a kneeling figure he was looking for. Reynauld was quietly tending to the purple hyacinths and white asphodels planted on the unmarked graves in the corner - without armour, with no regalia, just a man with a loose shirt and dirty hands.

The whole scene was too symbolic for the highwayman, and he hurried to break it into a more mundane one, stepping closer.

"You needn't worry, my friend," was what he heard instead of a greeting. "This is merely one more burden to add to my sins."

The highwayman stepped closer, unsure what to say to those words. Finally, he offered a simple:

"I'm here if ye need me, tin man."

That earned him a mirthless chuckle:

"I appreciate your attempts to cheer me, but I don't deserve them," the knight shook his head slowly. They fell into silence for a while, but unlike their usual ones, this felt scratchy and awkward. When the ex-brigand was contemplating taking out a pipe, Reynauld finally continued. "You know, Dis... last time I was here, I caught myself thinking - Gracious Light, thank you that we at least were out of time and wood to build pyres. Because... because those were planned, you know?"

The rogue felt his fists clenching. The same fists that still remembered the feeling of claws tipping each finger. Still, Dismas' voice was quiet as he came closer to place a hand on the crusader's shoulder and breathed out:

"Yeah. That was lucky."

If they could call desperate sabotage that the then-forming Hive did "luck". Still. Dismas sat beside the knight and gave him the time he so obviously needed. The rogue wasn't too surprised when, despite his big words, after merely a few moments, the zealot bit his lips and hid his face in the worn-out fur of his overcoat.

"I'll face them during my final judgement, and they'll be in their right to demand my eternal damnation," Rey muttered. "I robbed them of any hope of salvation."

Not exactly what the former infected expected to hear.

"How so?"

Another bitter chuckle:

"Isn't it obvious?"

"Not t' me," Dismas mused, eyes darting between the distraught crusader in his arms and too-familiar names etched into the gravestones.

"They died as monsters, without the salvation of being a human," the zealot insisted as if he was explaining obvious things, but his voice was weak and wavering. "Without returning to being a human."

That was one fucked up reason if Dismas ever heard one. Being infected himself, he could argue he remained human all the time the Crimson Curse burned in his veins.

He didn't, letting the crusader vent instead.

"Without dying with human dignity," Reynauld continued, blissfully oblivious to the highwayman's predicament. "Now they'll never be able to return to Light's embrace, do you understand? I robbed them of this mercy!"

Dismas sighed, eyeing the hyacinths, but his treacherous hands were already rubbing soothing circles into Reynauld's back. And even if, for once, he was willing to try and prod crusader's beliefs without his usual caution about the inevitable consequences, he couldn't force himself to do it. Not while listening to the stifled, hiccuping sobs of a man his silly heart decided to fall for. A sincere man who wanted to do what was right but ended up being tricked into becoming a cold-blooded executioner by what was supposed to bring people warmth and salvation.

A little bit later. They would talk about it. Surely.

Just a little bit later.

—- 

Purple hyacinths usually mean regret and asking for forgiveness, while white asphodels mean being sorry and wishing peace after death.

[jdgo51]

DAILY DEVOTIONAL FOR MAY 17, 2023

Everything We Need

By Mary Charles (Nairobi City, Kenya)

READ EXODUS 4:1-17

The Lord said to him, “What’s that in your hand?” Moses replied, “A shepherd’s rod.”

EXODUS 4:2 (CEB)

"'Moses felt unequipped for the task God placed in front of him. However, in God’s eyes, Moses had what he needed — a rod. With that rod, Moses performed miracles in Egypt and used it to part the Red Sea, allowing the Israelites to pass through. That same rod brought Joshua victory in battle. And it made water gush from a rock. What Moses overlooked, God used to shape the course of history.

Today, God is asking the same question of us: “What is in your hand?” It could be a pen, cooking utensil, computer, ball, phone, certificate, diploma, or small plot of land. We should not dismiss what we have, no matter how small or unworthy it may seem. God is ready to use it to fulfill God’s purpose in our lives.

God created us that we may serve. We read in scripture that there is much harvest on God’s farm, but harvesters are few; so God is calling on us. Let us embrace the tools God has given us so that we may be ready and willing to serve. God will transform that which we see as “just a rod” into something great for God’s glory."' God will enhance your life in many ways. Be there ready for Him!

TODAY'S PRAYER

"God of possibilities, thank you for the gifts you have given us. Teach us to see the value in what we have and to use it to serve you." Amen.

Exodus 4:1-17

"'1 Then Moses replied, “But what if they don’t believe me or pay attention to me? They might say to me, ‘The LORD didn’t appear to you!’” 2 The LORD said to him, “What’s that in your hand?” Moses replied, “A shepherd’s rod.” 3 The LORD said, “Throw it down on the ground.” So Moses threw it on the ground, and it turned into a snake. Moses jumped back from it. 4 Then the LORD said to Moses, “Reach out and grab the snake by the tail.” So Moses reached out and grabbed it, and it turned back into a rod in his hand. 5 “Do this so that they will believe that the LORD, the God of their ancestors, Abraham’s God, Isaac’s God, and Jacob’s God has in fact appeared to you.” 6 Again, the LORD said to Moses, “Put your hand inside your coat.” So Moses put his hand inside his coat. When he took his hand out, his hand had a skin disease flaky like snow. 7 Then God said, “Put your hand back inside your coat.” So Moses put his hand back inside his coat. When he took it back out again, the skin of his hand had returned to normal. 8 “If they won’t believe you or pay attention to the first sign, they may believe the second sign. 9 If they won’t believe even these two signs or pay attention to you, then take some water from the Nile River and pour it out on dry ground. The water that you take from the Nile will turn into blood on the dry ground.” 10 But Moses said to the LORD, “My Lord, I’ve never been able to speak well, not yesterday, not the day before, and certainly not now since you’ve been talking to your servant. I have a slow mouth and a thick tongue.” 11 Then the LORD said to him, “Who gives people the ability to speak? Who’s responsible for making them unable to speak or hard of hearing, sighted or blind? Isn’t it I, the LORD? 12 Now go! I’ll help you speak, and I’ll teach you what you should say.” 13 But Moses said, “Please, my Lord, just send someone else.” 14 Then the LORD got angry at Moses and said, “What about your brother Aaron the Levite? I know he can speak very well. He’s on his way out to meet you now, and he’s looking forward to seeing you. 15 Speak to him and tell him what he’s supposed to say. I’ll help both of you speak, and I’ll teach both of you what to do. 16 Aaron will speak for you to the people. He’ll be a spokesperson for you, and you will be like God for him. 17 Take this shepherd’s rod with you too so that you can do the signs.”' Moses was hesitant and did not believe in himself. So God sent, Moses' brother Aaron with him. Together they accomplished what God was asking for. Be a servant of God and assists all that are in need. It is your mission on earth. Be blessed ! Joe

[mariska]

got my income for the month the other day and after 6+ months of not being able to make digital art the way i'm used to with my specific accessibility needs because of physical health symptoms with my hands, i was finally able to buy myself a new Paint Tool Sai license today, since a little while back i successfully installed an optional Windows 10 operating system on my Macbook (Sai doesn't run on Mac, at least not Version 1 which is what i need and have been using for over a decade) that i can switch back and forth between whenever and i am so so so so happy and relieved about it and so fucking excited to get to draw digital lines the way im used to drawing them after trying so many other similar programs and failing to find anything that worked exactly the same as Sai's basic built-in pen stabilizer 😭😭😭😭😭😭

i was able to quickly test out my (also ancient lol) art tablet with it and make sure everything works and it doesnt lag or anything like that and its perfect its exactly like i've always used it, i remembered which pen stabilization number setting i've been using for years and like.

dude. i know i sound dramatic right now LMAO but i CANNOT sketch or draw properly on traditional paper or sketchpads anywhere near what i can do in Sai because of all my tremors and shakiness and sudden muscle movements that make accidental lines and all that. and when i drew just one regular brush stroke in Sai and felt it move like im used to and got that super smooth sensation of 'pretty much just drawing like im holding a pencil/pen but with the shakiness of my lines improved'....almost cried a lil not gonna lie fjsgdgsgdhsgshf its been so many months and i've put so much mental energy into researching how to do that whole windows installation on my 2012 era macbook and somehow did that without completely messing it up and then having to wait until a month where i have enough extra money to buy the official version (Sai is so important 2 me and the most accessible digital art program i've ever used for my specific hand problems and i've used it for so long that i am only comfortable using the officially licensed version of it, yknow?) and also theres just something so nice about finally being able to use it again a few days before my birthday even though that timing wasn't on purpose...

AHHHHH im just so relieved. i feel like im free to just be able to make sketch pages and draw stuff whenever i have free time to and i have an idea in my head again and i havent felt that in so long and it was making my depression so much worse....and also because i've been doing my best to adapt to the similar but different settings in Clip Studio Paint, i have 2 really nice digital art programs with a lot of cool and useful features between the both of them now that i can use to like, mix and match with my art!! which is awesome!! i think Clip will mostly be used by me now for more graphic design type projects since Sai's always been my core art program, but i'd love to experiment with drawing/sketching/painting pieces in Sai and then plopping them into Clip and adding some extra fun effects or background elements or even just easier to repeat patterns with its' huge free-to-use resource library for like stamps and texture effects and more photoshop-y things like that.

ANYWAYS!! im just rambling to myself because im so happy and relieved to have My Art Program back so i thought i would share since its rare for me to feel as happy and excited and get some sense of normalcy back in any capacity these days, being immunocompromised and stuck in my house as long as i have been the past 3 years and counting. it has been a good amount of time since i've felt like i have A Victory To Celebrate and i hope that feeling lingers as long as it can 🥹✌️

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

Ode for a Royal Wedding

To the choirmaster: according to Lilies. A Maskil of the Sons of Korah; a love song.

1 My heart overflows with a goodly theme; I address my verses to the king; my tongue is like the pen of a ready scribe.

2 You are the fairest of the sons of men; grace is poured upon your lips; therefore God has blessed you for ever. 3 Gird your sword upon your thigh, O mighty one, in your glory and majesty!

4 In your majesty ride forth victoriously for the cause of truth and to defend the right; let your right hand teach you dread deeds! 5 Your arrows are sharp in the heart of the king’s enemies; the peoples fall under you.

6 Your divine throne endures for ever and ever. Your royal scepter is a scepter of equity; 7 you love righteousness and hate wickedness. Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your fellows; 8 your robes are all fragrant with myrrh and aloes and cassia. From ivory palaces stringed instruments make you glad; 9 daughters of kings are among your ladies of honor; at your right hand stands the queen in gold of Ophir.

10 Hear, O daughter, consider, and incline your ear; forget your people and your father’s house; 11 and the king will desire your beauty. Since he is your lord, bow to him; 12 the people of Tyre will sue your favor with gifts, the richest of the people 13 with all kinds of wealth.

The princess is decked in her chamber with gold-woven robes; 14 in many-colored robes she is led to the king, with her virgin companions, her escort, in her train. 15 With joy and gladness they are led along as they enter the palace of the king.

16 Instead of your fathers shall be your sons; you will make them princes in all the earth. 17 I will cause your name to be celebrated in all generations; therefore the peoples will praise you for ever and ever. — Psalm 45 | Revised Standard Version (RSV) Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright © 1946, 1952, and 1971 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. All rights reserved. Cross References: Genesis 18:12; Exodus 39:2-3; Numbers 24:6; Numbers 24:8; Deuteronomy 21:13; Deuteronomy 32:23; Judges 5:30; Ruth 1:16-17; 1 Kings 2:19; Ezra 7:6; Psalm 2:2; Psalm 2:6; Psalm 5:5; Psalm 21:6; Psalm 21:8; Psalm 22:29; Psalm 42:1; Psalm 65:5; Psalm 68:29; Psalm 138:4; Song of Solomon 1:3-4; Song of Solomon 7:1; Malachi 1:11; Matthew 25:33; Luke 4:22; John 19:39; Ephesians 5:33; Hebrews 1:8-9; Hebrews 4:12; Revelation 1:16

[tdvotes]

Ranking the Votes, s3a

Welcome back to... Total! Drama! Ranking... the Votes! Today we will continue the series and analyze the elimination ceremonies from the team portion of World Tour. As always, 11 will be the easiest to figure out and 1 will be the most difficult. (Though admittedly, the most difficult to figure out this season was easier than most in Island and Action, because most of the eliminations had us see flat out who voted for who.) We WILL be counting the fake eliminations in The Am-AH-Zon Race and Greece's Pieces because they happened this season. But we will NOT count Broadway, Baby and Sweden Sour because there was no vote in those episodes.

Note: I realized that I accidentally posted the next Counting the Votes prior to this one, so I went back and posted this.

Today we feature 9 real and 2 fake elimination ceremonies:

Walk Like an Egyptian Part 2 (Zeke)

Super Happy Crazy Fun Time Japan (DJ Harold)

Anything Yukon Do, I Can Do Better (Bridgette)

Slap Slap Revolution (Leshawna)

The Am-AH-Zon Race (Heather)

Can't Help Falling in Louvre (Lindsay)

Jamaica Me Sweat (Izzy and DJ)

I See London... (Noah)

Greece's Pieces (Duncan) An intern

The EX-Files (Tyler)

Picnic at Hanging Dork (Gwen)

And let's get the technicalities out of the way: Harold volunteered for elimination even though DJ had actually been voted off. Lindsay was eliminated in a walk off. ~~Izzy~~ Brainzilla went down by injury. And DJ was eliminated automatically as the last member of Team Endless Non-Victory.

11. Jamaica Me Sweat. Izzy Brainzilla was eliminated by the military, and DJ was eliminated by being the last member of Team Opposite of Victory. 3 votes for Izzy Brainzilla (from the military guys), 1 vote for DJ

10. The Am-AH-Zon Race. Gwen and Courtney voted for Heather because they hate her. Sierra voted for Heather as part of a deal with Gwen to stop being so nice to Cody. Heather voted for Gwen because she (unintentionally) got them lost and then got herself stabbed with Cody's epi-pen. And Cody voted for Sierra because "she's like the stalker girlfriend I always thought I wanted... until I got one!" That makes it 3 votes for Heather, 1 for Gwen, 1 for Sierra

9. Picnic at Hanging Dork. Gwen and Heather voted for Courtney for throwing challenges. Courtney and Sierra voted for Gwen for being kissed by Duncan. And Cody (accidentally) voted for Sierra. 2 votes for Gwen, 2 for Courtney, 1 for Sierra

8. Can't Help Falling in Louvre. Chris, Owen and Heather were the voters this time. And they all agreed that Lindsay's design sucked more than DJ's. So 3 votes for Lindsay

7. I See London... We didn't see who voted for who on this one either, but it was pretty obvious. Chris said that Noah lost by a count of 3 votes to 2. That means Noah voted for Alejandro because he didn't trust him, and he convinced Owen to do the same. But Alejandro voted for Noah because he knew he was onto him, and he convinced Tyler and Duncan to do the same. 3 votes for Noah, 2 for Alejandro

6. Greece's Pieces. Chris said "Your choice is pretty clear" meaning that Alejandro, Owen and Tyler all voted for Duncan. And I'm going to go ahead and guess that Duncan voted for Tyler for exposing his secret. 1 vote for the intern, 3 for Duncan, 1 for Tyler

5. Walk Like an Egyptian Part 2. Lindsay voted for everyone. Zeke voted for DJ. Leshawna, Harold and Bridgette all voted for Zeke. DJ couldn't decide who to vote for, but I'm giving his vote to Zeke. And Duncan eliminated himself in Part 1, so he took the Drop of Shame as well. That makes it 5 votes for Zeke, 1 vote for Duncan, 2 for DJ, 1 for Lindsay, 1 for Bridgette, 1 for Leshawna, and 1 for Harold

4. Super Happy Crazy Fun Time Japan. Lindsay didn't vote. Bridgette stamped her vote quick enough that I couldn't tell who she voted for, but the wiki says she voted for Harold. DJ voted for himself. Harold voted for the deflated beach ball. The panda voted for DJ. And Leshawna couldn't decide between Harold and DJ. For that reason I had to put this one lower. But, if Leshawna had voted for Harold, we would have ourselves a tie. (Or, like the wiki says, if Harold had voted for himself after voting for the beach ball, Leshawna's vote would be the tiebreaker.) So I have to assume she voted for DJ. So we have 3 votes for DJ, 1 for Harold, 1 for the beach ball

3. The EX-Files. Duncan voted for Tyler and made a deal with Alejandro to do the same. (I think both for exposing his secret and for being the only person he could convince Alejandro to vote off.) Tyler obviously voted for Duncan, given his enthusiasm about Duncan's elimination at the ceremony. But what about Owen? He was out for most of the challenge. But he did tell Tyler that he thought Duncan was "a double gold medalist in the Total Drama babe Olympics", so he probably didn't vote Duncan. He also tells Duncan in a later episode that he promised to stay loyal to Al till the end. That leaves him with one option, and it leaves us with a final count of 3 votes for Tyler, 1 for Duncan

2. Slap Slap Revolution. We're not shown who voted for who. Lindsay could have received a vote because she (indirectly) caused the avalanche. DJ could have received a vote because of his animal curse. Leshawna must have received a vote or two because she threw the dance challenge. Since Lindsay received the first barf bag, I'm guessing she didn't receive any votes. So that means Lindsay and DJ had to vote for Leshawna, and Leshawna had to vote for DJ. Making it 2 votes for Leshawna, 1 for DJ

1. Anything Yukon Do, I Can Do Better. We were never shown who voted for who here, but I'm thinking Bridgette and DJ voted for each other. Leshawna and Lindsay wouldn't have voted for each other given how they were chatting it up in the back of the sled, so seeing as Bridgette lost without a tiebreaker, that means Leshawna and Lindsay both voted for Bridgette. 3 votes for Bridgette, 1 for DJ

And that's it for the team portion of Total Drama World Tour! Tune in next time for the individual portion of that season!