#if I had a nickel for every time I got into a podcast with a name that started with ''w'' and started recommending it to all my friends

[rateatinginsulation]

Started listening to malevolent and it's already consuming every waking I thought I have

(Alt version under the cut)

[undeadenn]

If I had a nickel every time a nearly omniscient eldritch being from a horror podcast got overly excited about not knowing something, I’d have two nickels which isn’t a lot but it’s weird (and kinda adorable) that it happened twice.

[sunnydaleherald]

The Sunnydale Herald Newsletter, Wednesday, July 17

OFFICER: That's some artillery you two were puttin' together. You with one of them girl gangs? FAITH: (sarcastically) Yeah. We're the Slayers. The officer laughs. Faith doesn't think it's funny. FAITH: (quietly to Buffy) You wanna get outta here? She slouches down in the seat. Buffy realizes what she intends. FAITH: (impatiently) We can't save the world in jail. Buffy slowly slouches down also. Faith raises her legs, and Buffy follows her lead.

~~Bad Girls~~

[Drabbles & Short Fiction]

Not So Fragile by badly_knitted (Buffy, Joyce, PG)

Weekly Drabbles #148 — Believer by veronyxk84 (Buffy/Spike, PG-13)

Lies My Teachers Told Me by SouthSideStory (Buffy/Spike, M)

Restless by killerqueen1985 (Kendra, G)

as close to you as I can get by evesock (Buffy/Giles/Jenny, E)

From a Certain Point Of View... by Saranac (Buffy/Spike, Adult Only)

Every Step To That Dance by Miss Marisol (Buffy/Spike, R)

What the Drabble? Vol. 2 - Ch. 48 by VeroNyxK84 (Buffy/Spike, PG-13)

[Chaptered Fiction]

Infinitely - Ch. 61 by Laragh (Willow/Tara, M)

The Engagement - Ch. 10 by ChecksAmali_23 (Buffy/Faith, E)

The Idol - Ch. 1 by TiffyB (Buffy/Faith, Buffy/Dawn, E)

Faith: Five Dollars, Same As In Town - Ch. 6 by Michaelt (Faith, T) COMPLETE!

Carpark fun - Ch. 2 by Rippertish (Giles/Faith, E)

Blame the candy - Ch. 3 by Rippertish (Buffy/Giles, M)

In Case You Haven't Noticed... - Ch. 26 by Sdhuskerfan (Buffy/Giles, E)

With Arms Wide Open - Ch. 35 by jaybird023 (Buffy/Giles, E)

something so lonesome about you - Ch. 3 by silvain (Jenny/Ethan, Giles/Ethan, M)

Close to Home - Ch. 3 by Sigyn (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Wedding Belles - Ch. 3 by buffy_loves_spike (Buffy/Spike, R)

Buffy Summers and the Major Case of the Wiggins - Ch. 3 by Soulburnt (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

The Watcher - Ch. 19 by In Mortal (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Love Lives Here by Passion4Spike (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Under the Influence - Ch. 9 by Hostile17-1996 (Buffy/Spike, R)

Love Can't Fix Us - Ch. 2 by calikocat (Xander-centered, Herbie the Love Bug and Teen Wolf xover, FR15)

Crave - Ch. 1 by NautiBitz (Buffy/Spike, Adult Only)

Blood and Fame - Ch. 4 by Desicat (Buffy/Spike, Adult Only)

Unicorn - Ch. 5 by Desicat (Buffy/Spike, R)

The Watcher - Ch. 19 by In Mortal (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Eyes Forward, Monster - Ch. 5 by Desicat (Buffy/Spike, NC-17) COMPLETE!

Love Lives Here - Ch. 87 by Passion4Spike (Buffy/Spike, NC-17)

Shaping Trust - Ch. 5 by Desicat (Buffy/Spike, PG) COMPLETE!

[Images, Audio & Video]

Artwork: [taking requests!!] illustrating memorable scenes from the show Buffy... by ibtravart (Buffy, Dawn, worksafe)

Artwork: Slayers - by tiredsai (Buffy, Faith, worksafe)

Lyrics: virginia woolf, the waves by dogmetaphors (Buffy/Spike, worksafe)

Lyrics: clementine von radics, the lion by dogmetaphors (Buffy/Spike, worksafe)

Gifset: Buffy the Vampire Slayer 2.22 | 5.14 | 6.06 by spikedaily (Buffy, Spike, Joyce, Dawn, worksafe)

Gifset: And it just takes so much strength. I don't have that much. -- Well, I've got so much strength, I'm giving it away. by ladyverdance (Buffy, Willow, worksafe)

Gifset: ALPHABETICAL FAVES ⟹ S is for… Spike by clarkgriffon (Spike, Buffy, worksafe)

Gifset: ANGEL THE SERIES | (2.15) & (3.02) by cangelgifs (Angel, Cordelia, worksafe)

Gifset: Ranking Buffy Summers' hair evolution (as voted by my followers) 2/11 by buffysummers (Buffy, worksafe)

Fanvid: did it to myself | the dark age + passion GILES AND JENNY TIME!!!!!!! by watchriverdale (Giles/Jenny)

[Reviews & Recaps]

3x11 Gingerbread is hilarious by classified12345

"Inca Mummy Girl" Gets a Bad Rep, But It Has Good Moments... by Randy_Giles1880

PODCAST: Episode 65: The Initiative by Gym Was Cancelled: A Buffy Podcast

[Recs & In Search Of]

ISO: Mother-Ad-3324 seeks help identifying Mystery Autographs

[Community Announcements]

summer_of_giles: Summer of Giles 2024 is now open

[Fandom Discussions]

... bianca lawson was brought onto buffy thinking... by tridentarius

If I had a nickel for every time a guy on Buffy metaphorically cheated on his girlfriend... by slayer-pride-parade

I'm never not thinking about drusilla. [also Buffy] by fallinginaforrest

[Meme] by emilylovesdean

... Faith Lehane is 90% (at least) a female Xander Harris by confusedguytoo

smg does not get enough credit for her comic timing. by comradesummers

POLL: Vampire Media Guys Round 20: Spike or Carlisle Cullen [from Twilight]? by vampirewrestlinglover

POLL: have you watched Buffy and/or Angel? [is it worth watching Angel?] by dancedance-resolution

POLL: who is THE STRAIGHTBAIT EVER? [barbie characters or] angel and cordelia chase by straightbaittournament

Question - Who really is Buffy's "best" friend? updated by multiple

Halloween Implications by Sarlax

Warren didn't need the trio. (Part 2 of the trio going solo) by drawandpaintbyfire

Souless Angel:BtVS2 vs An4 [calling him Angel vs Angelus] by Evening_Teaching_710

Should Xander have gotten powers or been apart of the Initiative after season 3? by melanieispunk

How can people be cool with an ensouled Spike wearing [his jacket] by SafiraAshai

Better Portrayal: SMG as Faith or Eliza as Buffy by D_B_4986

Tales of brave Ulysses [Giles playing this song in Forever] by Beans_0492

Favorite Non-Canon Ship by Past-Throat-6788

Loved this from Cordy… [Cordelia in Helpless] by DanTrueCrimeFan87

Scrubs' hospital in S02E03? by Smashman2004

I finished watching Buffy... [are the comics worth reading?] by cyruscrawler

Comics [should I read them?] by incantopatronus

[Articles, Interviews, and Other News]

James Marsters to Attend Huntington Comic & Toy Con 10-11 August 2024 [Huntington WV] via dontkillspike

Patrick Dempsey and Sarah Michelle Gellar Spotted Together On the Set of Dexter: Original Sin via DexterDaily

Juliet Landau Joins San Diego Comic-Con [schedule] via reddit user middleageyoda

Comic-Con 2024: Buffy: “Once More with Feeling” [screening] via reddit user Visual-Ad-2262ww

SMG to moderate the Dexter: Original Sin panel at San Diego Comic-Con 2024! via DexterDaily

Submit a link to be included in the newsletter!

Join the editor team :)

[smoreboi]

catching up on magnus protocol after I accidentally fell off for like.. seven weeks… dropping my opinion of 6, 7, and 8 before I continue:

6 -> love needles, fantastic character, manic pixie dream girl of my thoughts, he’s glorious, in competition w Michael for THE character ever in my brain rn

7 -> awe, she seems nice, and not at all suspiciously more aware of things I didn’t think would be talked about this soon, not much on the case itself, very Breekon and Hope-esque, it’s all for a good cause is pretty catchy, and I thought they may have been talking about a Gerry similar to our original Gerry there at the end

8 -> where do I even begin. Cool case file, love an other world of cannibals where your only escape is to go through some glass, if I had a nickel for every time, I’d have two, all that jazz (although slamming into a mirror isn’t nearly as bad of an exit as jumping out of the window of a skyscraper, good on the flesh for upping the stakes of escape), meanwhile, in leading-the-plot city, we’ve got an email from a jo(h)n (idk if it’s h or not, haven’t been reading the transcripts, although feel I’ll have to for this one, I think even this scene was in a different ep, I’m just lumping all the plot here), we’ve got Gerry and Gee Gee, or Gertrude, living together and having some attachment to the Magnus institute, and we have Georgie who runs a podcast, so like.. I mean, just a bunch of stuff for my little brain to take in, I thought they’d ease into plot a little more, but no, we’re off to the races it seems, unless the next four slow back down immediately.

In any turn, great eps, will reblog w further thoughts as I continue to listen

[foxymoxynoona]

You know, if I had a nickel for every time BTS made me stop listening to them due to their actions- I’d have 2 nickels. Which isn’t a lot- but it’s weird that it happened twice. Neither of these occurrences are recent so feel free to ignore this but I need to rant because I found out about it last night and it hasn’t left my mind since. And I’m ranting to you because you seem to have a pretty strong moral compass and you seem to be able to handle some bad stuff and I respect you. Also if I were to post this on my main- I’m afraid that some ARMYs would doxx me. It wouldn’t be the first time.

Anyways this’s got me all in a huff bc last night I found out that during the period I stepped away from supporting them (originally because they worked with Nikki Minaj while she was actively defending her brother who raped his 11 year old stepdaughter. Here’s the link to an article about it, should you want to know more: https://www.essence.com/celebrity/child-rape-trial-begins-nicki-minaj-brother-jelani/. I know now that this was probably less their decision and more their companies but I was also 17 when this info came out and I’m happy that I stuck to my guns then, but I digress) that yoongi fucked up and he fucked up big time.

Anyways- during 2020, when he was releasing his second mixtape, he and two other producers thought it would be a good idea to sample one of Jim Jones’ sermons. And I say him because at the end of the day he’s the artist; it’s his name this will all come back to. Not only that but you have to pay a LOT of money to get any of Jim Jones’ sermons/speeches when you’re not using it for educational purposes (for example in a true crime documentary or a podcast). You have to hunt to get that shit, and it’s not like there’s a lack of information about Jonestown available. This isn’t to say that you can’t employ the words of bad people in media- but you’ve got to do it right. An example that comes to mind is post Malones (not that I’m a big fan of his but he has a catchy song every now and then) song “Jonestown.” Granted, that song still feels icky but Malone demonstrates a knowledge of what happens and that he’s invoking it for a reason. Yoongi doesn’t do that. He picked a soundbyte from a mass murderer and decided to add it to a track that had nothing to do with the context behind the clip. There was no purpose, there was no reference to the harm done during the song. It was a song about “flexing on his haters.”

What he did was stupid. Plain and simple. Because either 1: he didn’t check the source (and he’s notorious for producing his own stuff so this is on him either way) for a soundbyte in a language he doesn’t speak fluently. If this is the case, it reeks of a rookie artist which yoongi is not. He’s seasoned and BTS had been in enough controversies during their early years to know that they should research.

Or 2: he knew and he didn’t care. Unfortunately, due to some comments made after the song was initially released, this seems pretty likely (ie: saying that he was using it because Jim jones was racist to Koreans. Which Jim Jones was known to be racist via a white savior complex and it was mostly focused on black and brown people during the civil rights movement but that still doesn’t have anything to do with the context of the song. It feels like a lazy excuse because he liked the aesthetic of the soundbyte).

But you know what, everyone fucks up now and then. You don’t know what you don’t know- but you can help repair the damage after gaining insight. And the best place to start that process is with an apology, right?

Apparently not, because while bighit released a statement in Korean and not on their main profiles (which is an odd choice because it seemed like it was mostly western fans upset at the usage). Despite saying that they vet the sources seriously, somehow they let this one slip through. You can’t have it both ways; you either vet it or you let stuff slip. And that yoongi was “embarrassed.” If he’s embarrassed he can say that himself. He was 27 at the time, which is far old enough to know better and to be able to take responsibility. In fact, it would probably get him a lot of brownie points if he humbled himself, but he didn’t. He stayed quiet and that was what really set me off.

These are grown men. Adults- Jin was in his late teens to early 20s when they debuted. They’re not stupid- they’re UNICEF reps for gods sake. Yoongi should’ve known better and the group isn’t in the precarious position they were in when they had their first controversy over Namjoon wearing a Nazi cap. That’s when you let your company protect you. This is not like that. I’m sick of the fan base treating these adults like they can’t think for themselves and that they should be protected from the harm they’ve caused.

So that brings me to why I’m telling you all of this as well as how I found this information out 4 years after the fact. It was through a meme. You know that one that’s used mainly for FICTIONAL characters that are evil but well loved (read: hot)? It’s the “my little meow meow” one. So one of the first uses, if not the first use, was an ARMY using it to defend Yoongi’s actions. Why they thought this was appropriate, I don’t know. But that’s what it’s from.

Now why am I telling you this? Well i know that you joined the fan base in like 2021, right? So this would’ve passed you by theoretically. And if I knew that someone I supported fucked up pretty massively, I’d want to know about it. This is also a reminder (not necessarily to you but to the fan base as a whole) that these are men. They fuck up and they don’t need you to defend them. We don’t know them, we have an idea of who they are in our heads but that image is incredibly manufactured. Fanfic and fan art aren’t as serious because they have personas they put on for the camera. But when it comes to posting about the members and sort of glorifying them (again, not you directly but I feel like this could start an interesting conversation) it feels like you’re letting the harm go unnoticed

Anyways that’s my rant. I feel better now. Again, feel free to ignore this. I just trust you with the info because you’re an adult and you seem to show a lot of compassion and a good moral compass not only through what you post on here, but also through what you write

I am actually aware of this and also felt severe disappointment because what I know of it seemed like an example of creatives hyping themselve up and doing something "edgy" without thinking of the real world response, then hiding behind a smokescreen to protect the artist. The apology didn't feel like there was accountability --unlike Namjoon's response many years ago the response to I think War of Hormone and sexism where he went to learn more and self reflect.

There is definitely this harmful cycle that can happen with celebrities where people are willing to forgive them for just about anything, and in turn they are surrounded by people who enable them to drift further from reality and do things that are less acceptable. I have worked with the music industry for 14 years, I cannot emphasize how many hours i have spent debating whether we should/should not work with this or that artist, whether what they did was bad enough to refuse, who has a right to draw those moral boundaries, etc. It's distressing how much of the industry have done really regrettable things --and that's just the stuff we know about. The profits enabel it.

Everyone has to decide for themself what the limits and application of their morality are, who they choose to support and in what fashion. Supporting someone doesn't mean you can't be critical of their mistakes, and everyone has their own line of "I admrie this person but they fucked this up and I want to see evidence of them doing better" and "I absolutely cannot support this person any longer."

Personally, I do think Yoongi learned and grew from this experience becuse while I don't admire that the self reflection was not public in a way that felt sincere, I don't think I've seen repeat behavior since that incident years ago. Could I be wrong about that? Totally. We make the best choices we can with the knowledge that we have.

That meme use is inappropriate and I don't doubt that there are always plenty of folks who are unbothered by what another person considers an egregious behavior. I think that's what you meant about glorifying, those who act like the people they admire can do no wrong. It does both ourselves and the artists and the whole value of "famous" people a disservice: they like us can make mistakes they learn and grow from, and we can learn and grow alongside them, but the hard part for them is that their mistakes are incredibly visible. I don't envy them that.

I'm glad it made you feel better to get this off your chest! And I'm touched that you consider me a safe place to vent your feelings to 😊

[lycanlovingvampyre]

MAG 121 Relisten

Activity on my first listen: baking something with apples

This is the last episode with my favorite ambiance track :´) We haven't heard it at all in S3. All in all, the ambiance music in S3 got a lot less melodic than the one in S1 and S2. Although, S2 already used the less melodic tracks as well.

Oh right, the Patreon thanks are starting now! I haven't given all of them a listen, I think I'll do it here. 

To add something about Jon's coma: I read in a post yesterday that someone wondered how they even found out Jon was still alive. I'm kind of guessing there is something like Section 31 in medical as well. People who are somewhat trained for "weird" cases, even though they don't understand them. To fix that plot hole I'd say Elias called in, telling them this particular person is still alive even though he's neither breathing nor has a heartbeat. And considering, that Jon is dreaming, I'd headcanon his closed eyes rapidly moving.

OLIVER: "Um. Hello, Jon. Do you… mind if I call you Jon? I, I mean, you don’t actually know me. It’s just, well. 'Archivist.' It’s so formal, isn’t it?" Reasons why I love Oliver Banks, exhibition #658 xD No seriously, I think Oliver Banks is one of the most interesting Avatars out there and I'd say he's my favorite of all those Avatars we only meet tangentially. Death is such a complicated subject in itself and Oliver makes it look so... neutral. I mean, the End in itself appears relatively inactive, not having a Ritual and all. Anyway, Oliver calls Jon by his (human) name, is even unsure if he's allowed to do that, since they don’t "actually" know each other. But he respects that this is, who Jon is. Who he wishes to remain, regardless of which choice he’ll make. Oliver thinks of this although he has kind of lost touch with his name(s), since he'll just take any identity which works best for him at the moment.

OLIVER: "And I do kind of know you…? Haven’t had much choice, really. Dreams are like that, you know." I really, really wonder what that means. Did he see Jon's life hanging by a thread. Did he see nothing at all because he’s in a place where the End can’t touch him? Or does he already see a root piercing his heart? Does Jon actually have any agency in this? (He has been denied to die once before, MAG 101...)

OLIVER: "No matter how lucid you think they are, there’s always that part that just drags you along." Meta-comment about said agency?

OLIVER: "That’s how it works, right? Give you a terror; give you a dream?" Oliver in his dreams being like "Alright, I'm done checking out how person A, B and C will die, time for my Point Nemo date with Jon..."

Hmm, is there a soft crackling sound in the background?

"So. My name is Oliver Banks. In my other statements, I used the name Antonio Blake" When I was first listening I still could recall the general premise of MAG 11 quite well, including the name of the statement giver. So I already had my suspicions after all this talk about dreams, especially when talking about Gertrude. And then he says this sentence! I love those "I knew it!" moments^^

"I knew exactly what I had to do. He didn’t look anything like me, not really" Not really! Iirc, this season will have tons of not reallys. So I'll start counting! S4 Not Really #1

"There were a couple of marine biologists on board, a meteorologist, an engineer, someone who called herself a “macro-ecologist” – though at times, she looked almost as out of her depth as I did." Fake it till you make it!

“This too shall pass.” If I had a nickel for every podcast with a troubled, with eye imagery associated Eldritch character named Jo(h)n who owns a mysterious lighter and had a life altering experience while in a coma I'd have 2 nickels. Which isn't a lot, but it's weird that it happened twice...

"The rest of the crew didn’t seem to notice, walking through the immense, grasping tendrils like they weren’t there at all" Wasn't there something about "TMA will not have tentacles!"? xD

"But I barely got the first word out before the falling satellite debris hit the ship at 200 miles an hour, killing us instantly." So, did Oliver just walk on the ocean floor back to London?

OLIVER: "Honestly, I’m still not exactly sure why I’m here. But you know better than anyone how the spiders can get into your head. Easier to just do what she asks." More of the Web shenanigans to make sure Jon stays on the right path...

OLIVER: "Oh, I, I’m a friend. Of Jon’s." GEORGIE: "Are you, now." OLIVER: "Uh, y-yes." I mean, Oliver seemed to be a kind of hesitant type there at the beginning of the episode. But this seems like he's a bit intimidated? Considering this is no-fear-because-touched-by-the-End Georgie, it would fit.

OLIVER: “…have I upset you, miss –” GEORGIE: “No, you just remind me of someone.” OLIVER: “Ahhh, I’m sorry! Were they –” GEORGIE: “Evil. Yes.” Hm, another throwback to MAG 101,“Is a thing evil when it simply obeys its own nature?” What makes someone evil? It sounds like Georgie is implying that she considers Oliver evil as well? But if we going by that definition, Jon would be evil as well.. I think Oliver and Jon are quite similar. Neither of them asked for this but here they are.

GEORGIE: [sigh] "Sorry about that, but you really don’t need friends like tha…" Arg, this makes me so angry again! This constant patronizing... Georgie knew this was an End avatar, I mean she said he reminded her of someone evil - the corpse who took her fear. What was she thinking Oliver was doing here? That he had come and finally claim Jon? And she shooed him away because she didn't want that? Because she's not too happy about him waking up either, so was that the reason she wanted Oliver nowhere near Jon? Status quo can’t remain forever. So what's it gonna be? A dead human friend? Or an alive something-else friend?

@a-mag-a-day

[definitelynotshouting]

62, 65, 81, 91

Ask me fanfic writer questions!

Hey Book!! :D wouldve answered these last night but as you know tumblr crashed on me 😭😭😭😭 so im answering it now instead!!

62.) what’s the weirdest reason you’ve ever shipped something?

Idk if this counts as weird per se but i straight up started shipping winteriron (Tony Stark x Bucky Barnes) because of THIS FUCKING FIC. It sold me on them SO HARD. Sometimes all it takes is one godtier fic that does everything right to get you hooked on a rarepair ✌️😔😔😔

65.) what is your favourite title for a fic you’ve written? 

If we're talking og titles i came up with myself, the title of my unpublished TES Oblivion fic is The Stars Have No Names, which ive always been fond of, especially combined with its planned sequel, But Those We Give Them-- which makes a full sentence that just sorta encapsulates the vibe of the whole thing in a way that really scratches my brain just right. This is closely followed by the piece i did for the DSMP Comics Zine, A Few E.G.G.s Short of the Full Scramble, which has multiple layers of puns loaded into it and makes me laugh like a lunatic every time i remember them

As for stuff that isnt original (aka song lyrics or poetry verses, which i steal from shamelessly), i'd have to say im most fond of sightless, unless the eyes reappear, which is the tma fic i wrote that accidentally predicted a decent chunk of the podcast's ending 😭 if i had a fucking nickel.... The verse is ripped from T.S. Eliot's "The Hollow Men" and i really loved how it just perfectly hits the vibes i was going for in that fic. Extremely on-the-nose titles are a game and brother i am WINNING

81.) if you could go back in time and give your younger self a piece of writing advice specific to you, what would it be?

"Hello tiny TJ. First of all, you are a transgender dyke. No this isnt relevant i just thought you ought to know. Anyway cool it with the perfectionism man one day people are gonna read a fic where every individual tag warning you've added is its own separate vine boom and you're gonna get tons of compliments on it despite the fact that it isnt what you consider fully polished. Got that written down? Cool. Now go forth and kiss women, peace<3"

91.) how has your writing style changed over the years?

My writing's always been pretty descriptive, but over the last few years its REALLY shifted into overdrive on the imagery. I think thats always been my biggest strength as a writer, and its something i really, really enjoy doing. As ive said in the past: if im not painting pictures with my words then what, pray tell, is the point!!!

The other thing ive noticed is that ive been dipping my toes into more experimental formatting, whether thats in regards to the story's structure (shout out to that time i planned to write a fic in reverse chronological order), the points of view (second person my beloved), different narration styles, or just the way the words on the page look-- something i know has been directly inspired by my cousin, who has an unpublished 85k Dead Space fanfic which replaces an ENTIRE CHAPTER with a twine game. The man is insane and i love him so much and one day i will bully him into finishing this fic because its not even halfway done what the fuck. Anyway thats my answer THANK YOU BOOK FOR SENDING THESE :DD

[navree]

if i had a nickel for every time i listened to a podcast where i wanted the villains to win and got really depressed when they didn’t i’d have two nickels which isn’t a lot but it’s upsetting it’s happened twice

[art-of-manliness]

Look for Financial Big Wins

Over the past decade, my homeowner’s insurance has slowly increased in price. It was never enough to motivate me to look for a new company. I figured it was your typical price increase that you see in a product over time due to inflation and whatnot. But then, a few weeks ago, I got my homeowner’s insurance bill for the coming year: the price had gone up $5,000.  $5,000! I also had my vehicle insurance with this company, and they raised it by $1,000. That lit a fire under me to find a new insurance provider.  So I took some time last week to shop around for new homeowners and car insurance. I figured it would take me all day to find new insurance and that my effort might save me a thousand dollars. I had a new insurance company with better coverage in about two hours.  And I reduced my insurance costs by $7,000. Two hours of tapping at my laptop and talking on the phone made me $7,000 richer. Talk about a fantastic ROI!  My experience with saving big on insurance reminded me of a key idea that I took away from AoM podcast guest Ramit Sethi, author of I Will Teach You to Be Rich. One of Ramit’s personal finance mantras is to focus on the “big wins” when it comes to money. According to Ramit, too many people focus on the minutiae of personal finance. They try to nickel and dime themselves to prosperity. They spend most of their bandwidth trying to shave a few dollars off their budget. “Got to give up my daily latte!” “Going to drive 20 minutes across town to save $.20 a gallon on gas.” “I shouldn’t splurge on getting an appetizer.” While there’s virtue in practicing frugality, and every bit saved does help, when penny-pinching is taken to an extreme, it becomes miserly. And it just isn’t that effective: concentrating on small ways to save money can take up a lot of bandwidth without significantly moving your finances forward.  While it’s fine to pursue these “little wins,” people can get so caught up in thinking about them that they overlook the opportunity to score financial “big wins.” What are financial big wins? They’re high-ROI moves: making or saving thousands of dollars without much effort.  Saving $7,000 a year on insurance with two hours of work? Definitely a financial big win. Negotiating a $20,000 raise? Big win. Starting an automatic investment plan that can result in tens of thousands of dollars in accrued interest? Big win. Ramit told me in our interview: “Instead of asking $3 questions, I want people asking $3,000 or $30,000 questions.”  So start thinking about a $3,000 question you should be asking and where you can score a big win with your finances.  For more insights on building your personal wealth, listen to our interview with Ramit Sethi: The post Look for Financial Big Wins appeared first on The Art of Manliness. http://dlvr.it/SxtwPS

[strawberri-syrup]

if i had a nickel for every time the pcs in a dnd podcast got a briefcase of holding i would have 2 nickels which isn’t a lot but it’s weird that it’s happened twice

[curiositykilledtheradiostar]

hey wait welcome to nightvale slaps hard actually

[raiii-bee]

couldn't decide which I liked better so have the product of my little pea brain.

[dissolving-mansion]

If I had a nickel for every time a cosmic horror podcast protagonist was British, became entangled with an eldritch god, tried to unravel a mystery involving a dead woman who herself had a partner in crime, was accused of a murder by the police (and he didn't even commit it), got chased through some underground tunnels by a scary monster, got kidnapped, got put into a coma, had a lighter that ended up being plot-relevant, got burned, forgot where he stood with an eldritch monster and yelled at it until it got annoyed, found the answer to the mystery before the story that led there, said "I need to know" and had an audible smile, I would have two nickels, but it's weird it happened twice.

[catdadeddie]

If I had a nickel for every time I found out a 911 actor finally got married to their fiancé from a podcast, I'd have two nickels, which isn't a lot about its weird that it happened twice

[archivistorage]

if I had a nickel for every time I got attached to the main character of a podcast who narrates strange and spooky happenings, is connected to eye related imagery/powers and is also mlm, I'd have two nickels - which isn't a lot, but it's weird that its happened twice.

[thebisexualdogdad]

If Carlos Reyes had a nickel for every time Y/N wrangled him into a ghost or monster hunt for their vlog/podcast and he got chased, he could pay for college

I just imagine him in a scooby doo montage running away from the ghosts/monsters