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khoicesbyk · 4 years

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The Royal Romance.

Second Chance Romance.

A/N: I’ve decided to go into my own little TRR/TRH world and create an AU. This will be fun! So; Talley Ho! *in my Sherlock Holmes voice*

Rated: Explicit. | Contains sexual content and strong language. (You know? The usual from me. 😁) | Bolded and/or italicized words are conversations and thoughts of the characters. | Main Characters: Leo Rys and Hana Lee | All Characters and names: (except MC and certain original characters, created by me) are property of Pixelberry.

Current Word Count: 2,000 words. (more or less. I stop counting after editing and re-editing. 🤷🏾‍♀️)

Prompt Time! Using @wackydrabbles prompt 70: “Not everything is a joke.” It will be in bold in black.

Tag List: @lifeaskim @texaskitten30 @glaimtruelovealways @kingliam2019 @txemrn @pixie88 @choicesfannatalie @lucy-268 @bebepac @choicesficwriterscreations @wackydrabbles

I AM UNAPOLOGETICALLY NSFW! READER DISCRETION IS STRONGLY!

If you’d like to be added to my tag list. Just reblog or DM me and I will gladly add you! 😁😘

This is a fun side story that I decided to write. I hope you enjoy the pairing.

Chapter 12.) About Last Night.

Leo Rys has always done his own thing and lived life by his own rules. He enjoys the freedom to go where he wants, when he wants and for however long he wants. With him no longer Crown Prince of Cordonia, he wasn’t beholden to the responsibility, commitment and weight that the crown carries. To him, that life was more a living nightmare than a dream come true.

Having the lives of Cordonia and all her people in his hands scared him. Which is why he told his father that the crown should go to his younger brother, Marquise. Marquise would be a far better king than Leo could ever hope to be. And he was right.

No matter where his new nomadic life took him, Leo always made sure to come home from time to time. Especially when there was a ball or party being thrown. Like the party for the debut of his soon to be sister in law, Duchess Shanelle Dawkins of Volterias.

The party was great. The drinks were flowing like a river. The people were mixing and mingling. And the dancing was on point. But the best part about the night is that he was home. Even though he was no longer Crown Prince, Cordonia is still in his heart and is still home. And he is home to celebrate his brother and future sister in law.

But that night wouldn’t go the way he’d plan it to go.

After catching up with old friends, rivals and several old flames, Leo was sitting at the bar going on his third whiskey neat, when he saw Hana. She was being tortured by Ambassador Kennett and his endless yapping. Whether it was about politics or worse his penchant for golfing, fishing, hunting or his vintage 1956 Roadster, the man NEVER knows when to shut up. So he had to rescue her from him.

He Interrupted their conversation and successfully saved her from a fate worse than death. And to make sure that they weren’t followed by the ambassador, he took her out on the dance floor. It might’ve been the alcohol in his system but, he noticed how petite and pretty she was. And that she was blushing.

“Maybe she…nah I’m not her type.” He thought to himself as they danced.

After dancing to song after song, Hana’s were getting sore so he suggested that they take a break and go for a walk. When she agreed to a walk, they took a stroll to his favorite side courtyard in the whole palace. It was one designed by Marquise’s mother Eleanor. She would sneak him and Marquise out of their lessons, just to spend time with them there. So it’s always been one of his favorite places to go to.

They sat down on a bench and talked about what their lives were like growing up. What they saw themselves doing in 10-20 years. And what his favorite destinations to visit were. And for her, he was something she never expected. He’s funny. He’s got a great smile. She loved his soft baby blue eyes. And he’s quite the accomplished dancer. She had never had a crush on someone but she felt like she was developing a crush on him.

“How about another drink?” He asks her.

“Haven’t you had enough to drink Leo?” She asked with a teasing smirk.

“Nooooo! Besides I got this killer bottle of tequila that I got in Guadalajara back in my room, that I’m dying to open. Soooo…pretty please?” He asks her, while batting his eyelashes. It made her giggle when he asked.

“Okay. I’m curious about this bottle you have.” She replies.

“Sweet! Follow me m’lady.” He says as he offers her his arm. When they got to his room, Hana was impressed by the size.

“You got one of the bigger rooms in the palace!” She says to him.

“Perks of being part of The Royal Family. I still get to be spoiled even though I abdicated the throne. Dad made sure that I got my favorite bedroom.”

“I’m glad that you and him are close.”

He sat down on the bench at the end of his bed before he spoke.

“Ohhh yeah. He was more disappointed than angry about me abdicating. He was hoping that me becoming king would mellow me out. But if anything it made me hate the throne even more. Which is why I don’t envy my younger brother. He bears the weight of an entire nation. Their expectations, their fears, their anger, their frustration and especially their judgement. I didn’t want that life for myself. I saw what it did to my dad. How it changed him. Made his paranoia even worse than it was before mom’s death.”

“So that’s why you left?” She asks as she sits next to him.

“Yes. Because, I was never meant to be a king. It wasn’t in my heart nor was it something that I wanted to do. I have a temper. Marquise has temperament. He always wanted the throne but, because of hierarchy and the rules behind it, the throne went to me. And believe me Hana, it wasn’t an easy nor overnight decision for me to come to. I knew I’d be disappointing my dad and leaving Marquise to bear the unbearable burden of the crown, but I just knew I’d never be the king that Cordonia desperately needed.” He replied.

Talking to her made him face some of the demons he’d been running from.

“Thank you for sharing that with me, Leo.”

“Nah. It’s the alcohol. My dad calls it my truth serum. Speaking of which! We got a bottle to open!”

He got up and walked to his suitcase and pulled out a bottle of golden tequila.

“May I introduce to you the finest tequila in all the lands? This is Dioses del sol y de la tierra. It is the best tequila I have ever had!” He said as he introduced her to the bottle.

She just shook her head and giggled.

“Let the shots begin m’lady!”

They drank, danced and laughed together. Hana wasn’t like Madeleine. She was a nightmarish robot who was after the crown. She was pure, wholesome, beautiful and sweet. And an absolute joy to be around. Especially when she was drunk.

“I have never had this much fun ever!” She drunkenly squealed.

“I sure have! I have it all the time!” He said to her.

“Of course you have! You’re freeeeee!”

“You gotta try it sweetheart! Freedom is the best medicine for the soooouuuul!”

Hana took a swig from the bottle then spun around but lost her footing and would’ve fallen if Leo hadn’t caught her.

“Whoa! Noble lady overboard!” He said as he caught her.

“Wheeeeeeeeee!” Hana said with a giggle.

With the bottle finally gone, the pair were sitting on his bed giggling at each other.

“Oh my God! Leo! This was soooooo much fun!”

“Yeah I know. We gotta do it again the next time I come home!”

They started laughing at each other again.

“Has anyone ever told you that you’re very very handsome?” She asked him.

“Not really. The ladies usually go for my brother.” He replies.

“Well I think you’re really handsome.”

“That’s the tequila talking. But it’s a good joke.”

“Not everything is a joke, Leo.”

“You’re serious?” He asks her. She nodded her head yes.

“Ohhh…so if I kissed you, you wouldn’t be mad?” He asked. She shook her head no.

“Ohhh well in that case…” he trailed off before kissing her. The kiss was sloppy at first but got hot and heavy fast. When the kiss came to an end, they were breathless.

“Woooooow!” He said to her.

“Was it bad?” She asked.

“Hell no! As a matter of fact, I’d like to do it again.”

“Fine by me.”

He pulled her into his lap as he kissed her again. Her skin was smooth. Her lips are soft and supple. She tasted like tequila. Not that he was complaining about it. There was something about Hana that he couldn’t get enough of. With his arms around her petite frame he deepened their kiss. One thing is for sure, Leo is no slouch when it comes to kissing. He broke their kiss to look in her eyes.

“I’m sorry, Hana. I shouldn’t have done that.” He said to her.

“No you shouldn’t have. But I’m glad you did.” She replies. Every ounce of shyness Hana had was replaced with lust thanks to all the drinking they were doing.

“Is this about to go where I think it is?” He asks her.

“I wouldn’t mind.” She replied.

With that he kissed her again, harder and deeper than before. They were blissfully drunk and horny for one another. He trailed kisses from her jaw to her neck. Eliciting a sound that was a mix of soft moan and a gasp. They made quick work of getting each other out of their clothes. She was beautiful to him and he was hot to her.

He resumed kissing her neck with his hands all over her. When his hands reached her nipples, he ran his thumbs over them making them harden under his touch. She couldn’t help but moan when he touched her. He kept rubbing her nipples and sucking on her neck He let one hand travel lower between her legs. When he reached her center, she was warm. But he was about to make her hot.

He began using his fingers to circle her clit and play with her entrance. The sensation was causing her to grind against his fingers. He wanted her soaking wet for him. Thankfully it didn’t take long for that to happen. When she wanted more, she groaned impatiently.

“I guess that means you want more.” He whispered in her ear.

“Yes! Yes!” She moaned.

He took that as a cue then grabbed a condom out of his wallet and put it on. When he turned back to look at Hana, he was in awe. She really was beautiful naked. She bit her bottom lip as she looked at him. With a crook of her finger she beckoned him to her. With a sly grin he went to her. He climbed on top of her with lust in his eyes and a question on his lips.

“Are you ready?” He asks.

“Hell yeah!” She replied.

She didn’t know what to expect when it came to sex with Leo. But if anything she wasn’t expecting him to be big. But when he entered her, she found out that she was wrong. He was well endowed. He went slow to allow her muscles to get used to him being inside her. She moaned impatiently because she wanted him to fuck her.

Taking that as another cue from her, Leo found his groove and began to really fuck her. Every thrust from him was fast and hard. He was going deep inside then coming almost all the way out, just to slam back into her. Her moans, groans, cries of pleasure, shrieks and whimpers were fuel to him so he would keep going.

He had one hand on the headboard behind her to steady himself and the other rubbing her clit. He wants her to explode with him. The stimulation from him sent her over the edge and crashing into her orgasm. Feeling her muscles squeeze his length sent him to the moon. He emptied himself into the condom then passed out with her.

When Leo woke up later, he was hungover and pretty sure he’d just had in a weird dream that involved him and sex with Hana. The dream became reality, when he saw the empty tequila bottle and the used condom. That’s when he looked over and saw Hana passed out next to him.

“Oh shit! This is VERY bad!” He muttered, before grabbing his phone and texting the person he knew to text: His brother Marquise.

#choices #pixelberry #choices stories you play #khoicesbyk #choices fanfiction #fanfic #the royal romance #hana lee #leo rys

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bigcat-hanson · 4 years

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Down In Flames [Part Two] | Arin Hanson X Reader

After your apartment complex burned down, you had nowhere to go, but you would never put that burden onto anyone, especially not your friends. How long can you hide it?

Word count: 1,313

“Hey, (Y/N), you up for lunch?”

The voice behind you snapped you out of your thoughts, causing you to jump a bit out of your seat. You turned around to see who had posed the question to you, only to be greeted by Arin’s concerned expression.

“You ok?”

“Uh, yea, sorry. I, um, I was just zoning out a bit,” you lied, desperately hoping he wouldn’t suspect anything further than that.

“Sounds about right. So, do you wanna go to lunch? Jory and I were thinking of grabbing some sushi.” Thank god, he didn’t seem to notice. It took just about every ounce of energy you had to contain the newfound urge to cry until you passed out.

“Sure, yea. Let me just, um, let me just grab my stuff real quick, just a sec,” you stuttered out, quickly shutting off your computer screen and fishing your wallet and car keys out of the drawer of your desk before following Arin out to the parking lot, where Jory had been waiting for the both of you in his car. You were willing to take any distraction that came your way, and getting lunch seemed like a pretty good one.

Then Jory drove past the apartments.

He slowed a bit as you went by, but somehow everything seemed to go much slower than they already were. Every detail of the scene hit you like a truck. The swarms of aid cars, news vans, fire trucks, and police cars surrounding the building, or at least what was left of it. Even though the flames were out, smoke still poured out from the charred remains of what you once called your home. There was no going back there. You swallowed hard, trying to keep your composure.

“Holy Jesus fuck, what happened there?” Arin exclaimed, leaning towards the scene as you passed.

“It’s all over the news, man. They think someone burned it down on purpose. I think like, 6 or 7 people were killed, too. It’s messed up,” Jory replied. The lump in your throat felt like it grew bigger and bigger the more you were faced with your inevitable future.

“God, that sucks ass. Hopefully the rest of them’ll be able to find places to stay.” Arin’s comment just about broke you. Had you not been sitting in the back seat, they both would’ve caught the few tears that managed to escape your eyes. You wiped them away as quickly as possible in a desperate attempt to mask your emotions.

The sushi place that Jory chose was almost packed, with one table clearly open. As the boys decided amongst themselves whether they wanted to sit down or take out, you tried to focus your attention on the menu. As you scanned over every item listed, you realized that none of it sounded appealing. You were almost nauseated by the thought of eating just about anything right now.

The more you stared at the board, the less sounds you registered around you. Everything became muffled, as if you were staring at the rest of the world from the inside of a glass jar. You saw flames in the chalk writing, smelled the smoke as if you were standing right in the middle of it. The sound of the sirens rang through your ears and-

Jory clapped his hand on your shoulder, shaking you a bit. For a split second, you had completely forgotten where you were.

“Are you ok? You look really distracted.”

“Uh, yea. Yea, I’m fine. I just remembered the last time I had sushi wasn’t exactly a fun experience.”

“Oh, crap. I remember that. This probably wasn’t the best idea for lunch then.”

“No, you’re fine. I’ll just, um, I’ll just get something else later. No big deal.”

“Alright. We’ll stop wherever on the way out of here so you can grab something that doesn’t make you sick.” Was that even possible?

~~~~~~

Time seemed to have no meaning anymore. It had somehow been both the shortest and longest four days of your life. Everything blended together in a haze of exhaustion, anxiety, and the back pain that came from sleeping in your car. Nobody knew that at this point, you were technically homeless, and you weren’t about to let it slip to any of them. Finding a new place to live was hard enough without people constantly interrupting your work to ask questions.

The soft light of your computer screen reflected off of your dull eyes as you fought to keep awake long enough to finish editing the last sixty seconds of the video you were working on. Your arms and eyelids felt heavier and heavier as the seconds ticked by. The most excruciating minute of your life was finally over after what felt like half an hour.

“Ready to head out?” Arin stood next to your desk, jacket slung over his shoulder. Fuck. The promise you had made him earlier that morning completely slipped your mind. His car battery had died before he came into work, and when Vernon said that he could only bring him to work and not take him home at the end of the day, you blindly offered to help. Pre-coffee decisions weren’t exactly your strong suit.

“Yea, uh… let me just save this, then we can head out.” The closer you got to your car, you realized just how compromising the inside probably looked. Given it was after dark, you were banking on him not being able to see the makeshift bed in your back seat.

“Thanks for driving me, by the way. First thing tomorrow, I’m getting a new battery,” Arin stated. You looked at him and gave him a half smile before walking around to the driver’s side door, mentally crossing your fingers.

“Okay, where to?” You clicked your seatbelt and started the engine as Arin rattled off his address. Thankfully, you had a pretty good idea of where he lived. You didn’t want to use up any more of your phone’s battery power than you needed to.

The ride was filled with conversation, mostly about the most ridiculous food combinations that both of you had ever heard of. It was nice to get completely lost in a conversation with someone, even if the topic was a little ridiculous.

“And here we are,” Arin announced as you pulled into his driveway. Your foot pressed down on the brakes, and the car was put in park to let him get out and say his goodbyes for the night. “I’ll probably be in late tomorrow because of the whole battery thing, so let Tucker know I’m sorry if I delay any recordings or anything.”

“Will do. Good luck with that. Anyways, um, goodnight, Arin.”

“See you tomorrow, (Y/N). Get home safe, ok?” With those words, he smiled, shut the car door, and disappeared into his house.

Maybe it was the thought of having to sleep in your cold car another night, or the fact that he said ‘home’, as if you had one anymore, but the wall that you forced yourself to build finally came crashing down. The second he was out of sight, all of your emotions hit you at once, and you started crying. Waves of tears poured down your face and into your hands and lap. Sobs overcame you. You couldn’t breathe. Every bad feeling that you were trying to avoid was suddenly engulfing you in misery. You couldn’t drive like this. All you could do now was take a few minutes to let it out, and hope that you would calm down enough to drive away soon.

It took several minutes of attempting about a thousand different breathing techniques before you could even remotely see anything clearly. Shaky hands reached up and wiped the tears out of your eyes, and you attempted to get your bearings. There was a knock at your window.

Shit.

#arin hanson #arin hanson x reader #game grumps #down in flames #this is angst right?

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good--bye--binary · 6 years

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Help Me Survive the Summer

My PayPal e-mail: [email protected]

I have an immense favor to ask of you all. First, a little background. For those of you who don't know, I'm an adjunct college English teacher, which is basically academic talk for part time. Don't let that fool you though; between the TWO colleges I work at, I teach 5 classes--that's about 120 students--every semester. "Full time" (aka tenured) instructors also teach 4-5 classes but at one school. Like most jobs these days, "full time" and "part time" aren't differentiated by hours worked but rather pay rate, benefits, and job security.

On the topic of job security, I have once again not been given a single class to teach this summer, which means I'm unemployed. However, state laws prevent adjunct faculty from collecting unemployment insurance because they assume that they'll get rehired in the Fall. Basically, the state says, "Well, you're not unemployed, you're just taking a break."

And for the record, I have been looking for summer jobs not just in teaching, but in retail and food service as well. No place will hire me of course because I'm overqualified and/or they don't want me for less than two months (I have to report back to teaching for the Fall semester in mid-August).

So, if you could find it in your hearts and virtual wallets to kick a few dollars via PayPal my way this month, it would mean more to me than anything. Thankfully, the Fall semester is coming and I’ll be making a decent wage again in August, but I need to survive June and July first. So again, please, if every one of you just gave me one dollar this month, it would alleviate so much of burden. And if you can’t, I completely understand, but please at least signal boost/reblog this post so that as many others as possible can see it.

Thank you and I love you all!!! 😙

My PayPal e-mail: [email protected]

#me #personal #help

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purintarts · 7 years

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RFA reacts to “MC wants to be a Stripper”

This was supposed to be a funny more of a joking MC saying “Imma be a stripper” but I accidentally made it slightly angsty ==;;

Oh well!

Also, they are just friends here (or more than friends but less than lovers) or meh.

YOOSUNG

Because of your studies, you had moved away from your family and ended up getting a small apartment but your parents are hitting a rough patch and the rent date is getting nearer and your bills are overdue

You went to Yoosung’s place to study for your upcoming Mid semester test because you know you will breakdown if you stay in yours, plus, Yoosung needed some help with his upcoming language test too

As you helped each other studied, you received a text from the apartment’s owner stating that they will need the rent a few days earlier because repairing matters

Your mood had changed negatively and you tried to hold in the tears from falling

“MC? Are you okay?”

“No I’m not”

You began pouring out your problems and Yoosung listened quietly

“Urgh... That’s it I’m becoming a stripper”

“Wait what? MC... You’re joking right?”

“No, I’m serious. I heard it pays well and fast too. Right now I need the money”

“But MC! The environment isn’t safe and what would your parents feel if they know about this”

“They wouldn’t have to find out... and to be honest Yoosung, I could careless what other people think”

You shut your books, your mind was full of determination. You got to do what you got to do right?

“MC!”

Yoosung grabbed your arms as you stood up to pack your stuff

“Stay with me”

“Yoosung I can’t stay, I need to go-”

“No! I meant lived with me”

“I can’t, I barely have money to pay my current bills, I can’t pay you-”

“You don’t have to worry about the bills! At least for now. Just.. come and lived with me. My apartment is big enough for two people and if you want to help on the bills, you can do so once you’re stable”

“...I don’t know Yoosung”

“At least it’s safer than working in a club and dance for strangers. I swear I’ll keep my hands to myself!”

He released your arm and raised his hands up like surrendering

“Think about it MC”

“... I will”

ZEN

It’s hard to get a stable job and you ended with working two part time jobs to make ends meet. However, no matter how many shifts you took, you barely had enough money to get at least one proper meal a day. There were even days when you go on with only water.

You had to lie to RFA if they asked if you eaten. If only they knew you didn’t. CALL THE POLICE AND FIREMAN

To be honest, you didn’t mind as long as the bills were paid, that was until you had passed out and unfortunately, your employer sent you to the hospital and left you with a medical bill which you had to paid since you didn’t have any medical insurance due to part time

The medical fees had land you to give up your savings for the rent and the due was a little over a week.

Desperate times calls for desperate measures and you were thinking of going for it. Working as a stripper. You were thinking of just going into one of the strip clubs in town and go for it. After all, you heard they will hired you on the spot especially if you look good enough.

Just as you were about to get ready, your doorbell rang and Zen was at the door holding fried chicken.

“Hello babe! I hope you haven’t eaten yet because I got them as bonus from the commercial I just shot”

Your stomach rumbled at the scent which left Zen chuckling

“Well I’m glad you’re hungry! May I come in?”

You invited him, seduced by the fried chicken. Zen set the box down on your little coffee/dining table when he noticed your bedroom’s door was ajar and he saw the sexy mini dress and lacy red lingerie you left on your bed.

Zen’s eyes was so wide you could see the veins in the white of his eyes and his face was so red that it was redder than his eyes

“Y-you going out tonight?”

He croaked as he diverted his eyes somewhere else, quickly sitting down as he hugged a pillow nearby

“I was thinking of getting another job”

“But don’t you have two jobs already?”

“It’s not enough and I need the money”

“What job are planning to take?”

“I’m going to be a stripper”

Cue Zen chocking on his own spit

You sort of expect this kind of reaction. You understand if he have a different perception of you after this too but you could careless about what other’s would think about right now.

Zen on the other hand was glad you couldn’t read his mind. Oh boy his thoughts were wild.

You as a stripper. You wearing latex, you on a pole, you dancing provocatively, you giving that seductive stare, you giving him a lap dance, you giving a stranger a lap dance-

“WAIT ARE YOU KIDDING ME?”

“I’m not”

You calmly explain to him even before he gets to burst out about one of his speeches about the dangerous of the male species.

“But babe, you could try other things! Like modelling or acting. You’re beautiful and there are gigs that pays well. You can get 500 bucks up to 1000 on certain gigs”

“I don’t know Zen... That would take a while won’t it? I need to find an agent and all...”

“Honey, you have me. Hell, you have the trustfund kid and seven. You have RFA full or resources, we can help you”

“I don’t know if I can pull it off”

“You pulled off arranging a party less than a week, you can pull off a gig, trust me”

“...I’ll try”

“Good girl! Now let’s have fried chicken”

JAEHEE

Student loans. Oh how you hated those words.

Which is the reason why you were staring at your reflection, trying on two provocative dresses that you could find.

Living with Jaehee has it perks since you two could split the rent and bills. Plus with two working women, everything is great except the fact that you had student loans to pay and you do not feel happy letting Jaehee foot all the groceries bill

You were testing out walking with your 5 inch heels, trying a couple of moves feeling like a log instead of a stripper.

“Can I even do this?”

You rubbed your forehead at the same time the front door open revealing Jaehee

“I’m home- Where are you going?”

She shut the door behind her, locking it as she walked towards you

“I am thinking of getting a second job”

“That is?”

“A stripper”

Jaehee stared at you in surprised before asking you a list of questions. Why? Are you sure? Is there other options?

You answered her questions truthfully and she sighed in desperation

“I support you in everything but this isn’t... safe? I’m worried”

“You gotta do what you gotta do right?”

“True... But how about we look for other options before you jumped into this one?”

“...fine”

JUMIN

One of your parents had to go in for an emergency surgery, it didn’t help that they were the breadwinner of the family. It sure didn’t help that you had just started working in your new workplace under two months. What’s worse, you had your siblings who are still studying.

For the past week, you had gone in and out of the hospital to look after your parent and work. Their surgery was a success and your parent had to stay in the hospital for a few more days to recover.

Thankfully, their medical insurance from their workplace covered the surgery but unfortunately, it only covered 50% of the total bill leaving the other 50%.

Not to mention, your parent wouldn’t probably go to work for at least a month and you knew you had to figure something out to pay both the bills and support your family.

You knew what to do when a friend of yours had suggested a strip club that she worked at before. Apparently it’s famous and the more famous it is, more potential customers and that equals to more money. She even gave you a business card for that place.

Since your sibling was taking care of your parent tonight, you had the night to yourself to rest that is until the doorbell rang and by your doortep was Han Jumin standing with a paper bag.

“Jumin! Why are you here so late?”

“Sorry to disturb you. I just came back from the business trip and I got what you requested”

“Oh dear! Thank you Jumin but you could have told me and I’ll pick it up from you”

“Your house was along the way so why not. I hope it fits”

“Let me try, come on in”

“Then pardon my intrusion”

Jumin walked in as I motioned the sofa, putting down the paper bag on the dining table, I went to get him a glass of juice.

Jumin sat quietly as he looked over at you getting his drink before his eyes landed on the coffee table where your purse was at. Your phone, keys and wallet was spread out and what capture his eyes was the business card to a strip club.

“You’re going to a strip club?”

He questioned as you set down his drink. You cursed at yourself for not cleaning it up before you went to the kitchen but he’ll know sooner or later right?

“Actually... i was thinking of working there. As a stripper”

Jumin froze, his years of concealing his emotions did not betray him and he calmly asked why and you explained to him.

“If that’s the problem, you shoud have told me earlier, I can help you pay for it-”

“No Jumin! I do not wish to take advantage of you. I’ll feel very guilty about it especially since it’s my family matters”

“Well MC, rather than putting yourself at risk, vulnerable at a room full of strangers, I don’t mind if you were to take advantage of me in this matter”

“Jumin no! That’s wrong that’s”

It took you a whole 30 minutes debating with him about the medical fees but he managed to comply only if you get a job which is safe.

“Or you could work at C&R”

“...Thank you but I’ll figure something out”

707

Your parents was having a rough time and unfortunately, that affects your tuition fees. You were thinking of taking the semester off despite the fact you were left with a couple of semesters before you graduate. But you know your parents wouldn’t be able to afford it and it will lessen some of their burdens.

However, things at home weren’t so good and you were left with your finals before you take the semester off. Unfortunately, a few miscalculations happen and the tuition fees that were supposed to be fully paid had an overdue

A few thousands in fact

Afraid that your college tried to cheat you off, you asked for Seven’s help to hit a couple of keys to make sure.

“Yep. It’s true. Here’s the maths”

Seven showed you a table with numbers on the overdue and total amounts. Seeing the numbers made your anger rise.

Why must this happen now? Why must the miscalculation happen now? How the hell are you going to pay for this?

“Fuck this I’m going to be a stripper”

You blurted out making Seven raised an eyebrow at you

“Well MC, being stripper is one thing. But do you even know where you’re going to work at and the preparations?”

“What preparations?”

“Clothes? Skills? Confidence?”

“I’ll work it out some how... I can improvise”

“Or you can just borrow mine”

“What?”

Next thing you knew, Seven was in a two piece latex with a whip, he was even wearing a long red hair wig and a 5 inch heels.

“You’re joking?”

“Honey do I look like I am?”

Seven made kissy faces at you with a wink and what surprised you further was the fact he had a pole installed in one of his rooms. It ended with you two challenging each other song after song

How and When was he so skilled in pole dancing?

“You know what Seven, I’m not fit for this”

You slumped on the floor, panting.

“Well that’s too bad”

Seven turned away as he covered his victory smirk.

#mystic messenger #mystic messenger imagines #mystic messenger jaehee #mystic messenger jumin #mystic messenger zen #mystic messenger 707 #mystic messenger yoosung #yoosung kim #kim yoosung #kang jaehee #zen #jumin #han jumin #707 #luciel choi #choi luciel #choi saeyoung

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zicoo19-blog · 5 years

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The Big, Bold, and Brave

Zeyad Elsahn

Professor Nichole Frocheur

PHO-101

22 November, 2019

The Big, Bold, and Brave

Tftftftftftftftftftftftftf! The sounds of M2 Brownings firing away at the civilians of the battle grounds in Vietnam. More than 3,000 are wounded, 600 dead. Fear and defeat fill the hearts of those who have lost their family members to this devastating tragedy. Without a soul present to record the losses of this historical time, rises a more than capable and courageous individual determined to expose to the world of these catastrophic events. Clipppp! A grenade is thrown causing a massive explosion with dirt and debris filling the grounds lowering the visibility of both sides of the battlefield. A hero with only the world left to document, arises from the slums of London’s Finsbury Park in 1935. 33 years later, Sir Don McCullin finds himself amidst the battle ground taking photographs of these frightened soldiers from the United States marines to Viet Cong’s political organization. Undoubtedly, it was McCullin’s unrelenting predisposition to capture these disheartening photographs and expose them at will that led to his paramount success even if it journeyed him to his own sacrifice.

McCullin’s Battle of Hue body of work was the most well-recognised body of work brought forth until today. This body of work consists of a slew of disturbing photographs that were taken in the broken city of Hue. These photographs were taken between January and March of 1968. Unfortunately, as grueling as it sounds, this was my absolute favourite work seen thus far from any artist. It was not only the content that he captured that made him different from other photographers, it was the choice that he made of whether or not he should give up and go home or walk onto a field surrounded by dead bodies and decide to stick around for the sake of showcasing to the world of these unruly circumstances. Its at that point where you are not simply just a photographer anymore, but this idol that teaches people of what our world is becoming. “We spent years photographing dying soldiers in Vietnam, and they are not going to have that anymore... you have to bear witness. You cannot just look away”...“Sometimes it felt like I was carrying pieces of human flesh back home with me, not negatives. It’s as if you are carrying the suffering of the people you have photographed”(“Hamilton’s Gallery”). McCullin states how it is difficult to look at these photographs and not feel anything; how their eyes just stare back at you and haunt you until you leave them. In Hamilton’s Gallery, it states: “McCullin took huge risks in order to take his photographs. He was threatened with a knife at a Muslim checkpoint in Beirut for having a Falangist press pass, blinded by CS gas during a riot in Derry, and wounded by fragments of mortar shell in Cambodia.” As part of this relentless expedition of life and death, McCullin was wounded from the aftermath of some mortar shell attack and thankfully recovered after having been almost taken hostage and could have easily been killed. It almost seems as if he does not value his life enough to stay away from the danger, rather, it is this stern drive and stubborn ego of his to continue even after being threatened with death.

McCullin’s second body of work analyzed was the HIV/AIDS Epidemic. This body of work is comprised of a careful selection of photographs taken by McCullin himself of the harsh and unbelievably troubling conditions for which surrounds the Eastern and Southern hemisphere of South Africa. This work was completed and compiled in the year 2000 where it was then showcased in a national gallery in Scotland. Again, with this idea of his to march out into the world and expose himself to even some of the most deadly aggravating diseases with no cures says something about his mission. He is a hundred percent convinced of his goal; to advocate to the entire world of how unacceptable it is to allow for these human beings to live in such distraught environments and about how something has to be done to relieve these victims of their helplessness and bring them into a world of light and love and care.

McCullin says:

I sat in England and I thought - what is the purpose of my life? I’ve been reading a lot about AIDS in Africa… I thought, I don’t want to sit in England looking at the beautiful landscape. I should be doing something.

McCullin believes that it is not appropriate to reject the health and well-being of others given that we are divided from each other and live in different parts of the world. Why should it stop me from caring about the welfare of others? Are they not human too? How can we sleep at night knowing that other parts of the world are filled with mass suffering and we can just sit here and bare no mind with our refrigerators stocked and wallets full?

McCullin further explains:

When I got to Africa, I found that it’s not a story just about AIDS. It’s a story about poverty. In a way, poverty is a war. It’s a disgrace; it’s abominable. To find people sleeping in darkened rooms, lying on the floor… finding people who have no medication whatsoever, no food, nothing, living in these intolerable conditions. It’s just unacceptable in terms of humanity.

McCullin’s genius is that like some wars, poverty is a type of war, in the sense that there is a struggle which manifests itself into this internal conflict. Meaning, although someone might not be physically fighting with others about a particular external conflict, this does not suggest however that anything less than a war is not seen as concerning. Suffering internally is if not as damaging, more damaging than struggling for external conflicts such as the annexation of land or gain of resources or money. McCullin puts aside these differences of not having any tangible connection to Africa and travels out of his way to widen the eyes of the world. This supports why he is massively successful; his capacity to raise awareness about serious issues around the world even if it means climbing out of his comfort zone just a little, or in his case, a substantial amount enough to get him killed.

In both bodies of work, they were quite similar in that they both portray danger and conflicts whether internal or external; either of a war between the United States and South Vietnam against North Vietnam and the Viet Cong, or some sort of humanitarian issue across the globe. Another similarity is that in both cases McCullin risks his life in order to reveal to his audience an excruciatingly honest selection of images of how the world is becoming far more destructive than could be imagined. Yet another similarity in both bodies of work were that he used gelatin silver process which was easily accessible for black and white film. A difference in McCullin’s work was that he used different technical choices to better outline the realities of what was happening at the moment. For instance, in one photograph, he might get a bit closer to his subject such as in the Shell shocked marine, Hue, Vietnam, 1968 photograph to better show the terror and fright in some of his subjects’ eyes. In another photograph, he might move further back in his photograph such as the US Marine hurling a grenade seconds before being shot through the left hand, Hue, Vietnam, 1968 (although it might also be because of the grenade part!). Another noticeable difference is that both bodies of work were shot in two different settings for obvious reasons depicting his willingness to travel outside of his bubble and interact with the unnecessary dangers that he could have avoided and chose not to. In terms of his technical style throughout his bodies of work, he strives to take mostly close-up shots and candids of exactly what the most imminently threatening photograph that could have been captured by his camera. He also used mostly either 20 x 24 or 24 x 20 inch film prints to emphasize the horizontal plane or vertical plane of his subjects.

McCullin states:

I've seen my own blood and broken a few bones, I've been hit, which isn't an entirely bad thing as at least you have a glimpse of the suffering endured by the people you are photographing. And in a sense, crumbling empires and war have been with me all my life.

McCullin’s strong sense of empathy is key to everything that he strives for. He uses this as a sort of fuel that just keeps him energized and going until he ends up there and takes what he came for. This type of dedication is not an attribute that can be found easily in just any photographer or photojournalist. It is something that is planted into the heart and allows for the roots to slowly dig deep in, much like a seed.

Notably, in one of McCullin’s books called

, Sean O’Hagan comments on McCullin’s statements regarding being called a war photographer:

There is a sense when talking to McCullin that he carries a great burden of loss and regret. He has, he says, seen too much in his lifetime and it has left its mark on him. He is recognised as our greatest living war photographer, though he bridles at the term. “Whatever I do, I have this name as a war photographer,” he says, ruefully. “I reject the term. It's reductive. I can't be written off just as a war photographer.”

McCullin discusses in this particular work about his numerous experiences when dealing with war all throughout his childhood. When he was little, him and his family were endangered amongst the attack of the Germany Nazis referred to as the blitz ambush. At such a young age, he was exposed to all of these real-life tragedies and it is quite clear of the impression made upon McCullin. This is what inspired him to feel a sense of commitment to put himself out there and expose the ill conditions of the aftermath of war and suffering.

John Swain, a British Journalist and writer states:

As Don found in war it is difficult to photograph people who are dying without violating their dignity, noted John Swain, Sunday Times foreign correspondent. But with a unique sensibility, he brings to his work among people living with HIV/AIDS in Africa a depth of experience and ethical standards built up over years of working as a photographer amidst the most heart-rending and raw situations. Every film that he exposes is from the heart.

This statement made by Swain interestingly explains how even though McCullin was super inclined to capture photographs of the dead casualties of the Vietnam War, it was without saying that it was a difficult task to have done without feeling a sense of guilt for not respecting this sort of bounds of privacy when the soul leaves the body. McCullin goes right ahead and takes these photographs knowing that many of these subjects won’t make it towards the end. And I think that above all else, there is nothing more deep and dark than to expose the natural process of death takes place, especially when it happens right in front of you knowing that there is nothing you can do about it except document it for the rest of the world to see. Therefore, McCullin’s success stems not from his content, but from his sense of responsibility that it is his duty to uncover to the world of what has been covered.

Works Cited

“Battle of Huế.”

, Wikimedia Foundation, 15 Nov. 2019, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Huế.

“Don McCullin Biography.”

, www.hamiltonsgallery.com/artists/don-mccullin/biography/.

McCullin, Don.

. Jonathan Cape, 2010.

“Then and Now: Don McCullin on HIV/AIDS in Africa: Christian Aid.”

, www.christianaid.org.uk/news/then-and-now-don-mccullin-hivaids-africa.

Wroe, Nicholas. “A Life in Photography: Don McCullin.”

, Guardian News and Media, 21 May 2010,

www.theguardian.com/culture/2010/may/22/don-mccullin-southern-frontiers-interview.

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scavengersholocron · 6 years

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Open your wallets and get ready for the March release of the next wave of Star Wars Funko PoP! figures. Thankfully Funko has slowed down the release of its Star Wars releases to help ease the burden on our wallets and shelf space. While I say “thankfully”, I still want more. Can we ever get enough of these to fill our collections?

It appears that Target might be the exclusive store of choice in this release. We all are aware of the horror stories that result from Target exclusives. From store employees holding the exclusives for themselves to resell later, to exclusives being placed on the shelves earlier than their scheduled release dates, to the worst Target not having the item in their storeroom on the day of release. Hopefully, there will be the option to grab these online with either store pickup or free shipping to your local store for pick up at your leisure.

Either way, you look at it though, I am excited with this set and can’t wait for its release. I’m sure the common PoP! figures from this collection can be found at all your typical stores that sell Funko PoP! figures.

Now let’s take a closer look at what is planned for release.

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#286 Han Solo

#287 Princess Leia

#288 Darth Vader (Target Exclusive) Glow in the Dark

#289 Emperor Palpatine

#290 Wickett W. Warrick

#291 Lando Calrissian

#292 Baby Nippet (Target Exclusive)

#293 Wickett W. Warrick (Target Exclusive) 10-inch version

#294 Encounter on Endor Movie Moments

Since I’m a big fan of this set I’m going to include a list of my favorite. (Best-worse)

1.) #288 Darth Vader- I’m excited about this figure. Glow in Dark! Darth Vader is being electrocuted and his helmet is alight with electricity. This figure just makes me gitty with excitement. I think it is a proper use of the glow in the dark vs having the whole figure being glow in the dark. Full figure glow in the dark is only good for spirit figures and then, in my opinion, it is stretching it.

2.) #289 Emperor Palpatine-This is the figure you need next to Darth Vader as he is getting electrocuted. The pair here will create a nice movie moment set up without the added cost and taking up less space. Emperor Palpatine just looks plain evil here. I like the eyes, something they did recently with Anakin.

3.) #293 Wickett W. Warrick – A 10-inch Ewok, who can’t get behind that? Though I’m not sure how or where he will fit in with the collection. I guess he will just chill beside the 10-inch Porg in my collection. I like how they went with a different box number for the 10-inch vs the normal size figure. It really irked me the way there were multiple different versions of the Porg with the same box number. I get variants having the same box number but to have a 10-inch version with the same box number is pushing it.

4.) #292 Baby Nippet- It’s flocked need I say more? I have been a big fan of the flocked versions of PoP figures. While not a largely known character from the movies. We need to see a baby Ewok and should have seen it sooner in my opinion.

5.) #287 Princess Leia- We need more Princess Leia in our life. We need more people doing what’s best for the galaxy, fighting the hard fight. Seeing the scene of Princess Leia out of her normal wardrobe and into something that appeared more relaxing and comfy just made you think that the war was over and people could get easily fall back into a “better” time in their lives. We never knew what we had coming back in 1983, did we?

6.) #290 Wickett W Warrick- Now I know many people are going to complain because we have had a Wickett before, box #26, and we want to see “new” stuff, not just reissues of older figures. I get it I do, however, there is something more natural about his attire with this figure. I like him, he seems less cartoonish with this release. Plus he has a different stance than the previously released figure and the 10-inch version in this set.

7.) #291 Lando Calrissian- I still like the Solo movie version of Lando better but basically this is an update release of the previous Lando, box #30. But like I mentioned above this figure looks less cartoonish than the previous release and you can catch some of Lando’s style with his cape draped to the right. This figure also fits better with the Solo version. This looks like an older version of Lando when compaired to the Solo version and I think that is appropriate. The first release, #30, and the Solo version just did not match up.

#8.) Han Solo- Lastly Han Solo makes my list as my least favorite in this set. How many Han Solo figures must be endured with a similar pose. There is nothing to this figure that stands out to me, that makes me want to run out and grab it as soon as it hits the shelves. This is the first figure I predict going on clearance to get the stocked moved.

9.) Movie Moments- I collect them because I’m a completionist but I’m not and have not been a huge fan of these. That’s all.

Sound off in the comments your list of the new PoP! figures.

Return of the Jedi PoP! Figures Open your wallets and get ready for the March release of the next wave of Star Wars Funko PoP!

#Baby Nippet #Darth Vader #Emperor Palpatine #Funko #Han Solo #new star wars funko #new star wars pop #Princess Leia #star wars funko #wicket

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heliosfinance · 7 years

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Financial Confessional: “I Was a Check-Bouncing, Collector-Dodging Accountant!”

[Welcome to a new post in our Financial Confession Series :) Up today, Christine Luken who went from financial mess to financial coach! Whip out your coffee and donuts this morning, and enjoy the story…]

*******

Four years after I graduated from college, I hit financial rock bottom – hard.

I owed three different payday lenders money. I received regular collection calls on my credit cards and car loan. And I was on the black-list at all the local grocery stores because I’d bounced at least at least one check at each.

What’s worse – I was an accountant! First for an interior decorator, then for my father’s business – a multi-million-dollar machine repair company. Talk about feeling like a hypocrite!

How does a smart girl who made the National Honor Society make such stupid mistakes with money? Because I made emotional decisions with my personal finances, not logical ones. I let my heart hijack my wallet. From the time I was nineteen, I dated and then eventually became engaged to a guy; we’ll call him “Jeff,” who handled his money irresponsibly. Unfortunately, many of his bad money habits rubbed off on me.

Here are three of my most horrifying money mistakes and the lessons you can learn from them.

Horrifying Money Mistake #1 – “Theft by Deception”

Because Jeff rarely had his fair share of the bill money, we were constantly in the red. On more than one occasion our refrigerator was bare and payday still several days off. My brilliant solution: write a check for groceries despite the lack of funds to cover the amount! (This was back in the late 90’s when there wasn’t the instant communication between banks like there is today.)

At one point, a check was actually returned twice by my bank for insufficient funds. Rather than try to collect the money directly from me, this particular grocery chain turned it over to an attorney which led to me going before a judge and admitting that yes, I owed them money. I then had to arrange a payment system with the court, which included fees on top of all that I owed.

If that wasn’t horrifying enough, several months later when I applied for the accounting job at my father’s company, I received a call from HR. Something came up when running my pre-hire background check: “theft by deception.” That’s the scary legal term for writing bad checks. Imagine how mortified I felt trying to explain this to the HR manager and my father!

Horrifying Money Mistake #2 – “We’re Coming For Your Car”

There’s nothing quite like a collection call to stir up a cocktail of terror, shame, and embarrassment. I distinctly remember the call from my local bank informing me that my car payment was two months past due. The man on the phone pressed me to commit to a payment.

“If I had the money, I would have already sent it!” I wailed.

“Well, just imagine how embarrassing it will be when you neighbors see the tow truck coming to get your car if we don’t have a payment by Friday,” he threatened back.

For the whole next month I hid my car while I scrambled to come up with the past due amount. I would park my car in another part of the apartment complex, backing it in just right so the license plate couldn’t be seen from the street. I then walked half a mile back to my apartment in high heels, praying the whole time that my car would still be there when it was time to go to work in the morning.

Horrifying Money Mistake #3 – “Payday Lender Roulette”

It’s never fun when the alternator goes out on your car or truck. It’s even less fun when you have zero dollars in the bank to fix it. Not only do you have a transportation issue, but you also have a money crisis on top of that.

Thankfully (not), when my alternator went out, I remembered the commercial I’d recently seen from the nice folks at “Check N Go” who gladly lent me the money I needed until payday. What the payday lenders don’t tell you is that borrowing from them starts a vicious cycle. Once you receive your pay check and have to hand it over to them, you still have bills to pay and need to borrow even more.

At one point I tapped out the max amount Check N Go would lend me, so I came up with a bright idea: borrow from one of the other payday lenders in my town! When my financial house of cards finally fell, I owed three different payday lenders money. I ended up closing my checking account, letting their checks bounce, and arranged to send each of them a certain amount every month.

To say that this destroyed my credit would be a vast understatement.

[EDITOR’S NOTE: See our post on facts about Payday Lenders – they’re horrible!]

Lessons Learned Through All This:

#1. Even smart people do dumb things with money when they are financially desperate. The lesson here is to insulate yourself from financial desperation by having two things: an emergency fund, and a spending plan (budget).

#2. Guard your financial reputation! Those bounced checks that resulted in my “theft by deception” charge could have cost me an important job opportunity. Many employers check credit as part of the pre-hire process, even if the job doesn’t involve money. Why? Credit scores are an accurate indicator of general responsibility! Employers also know that financially stressed employees are less productive and have higher absenteeism than their financially healthy colleagues.

#3. Money is emotional. Personal finance isn’t just about the numbers. Our mindset, emotions, and relationships affect our money behaviors. I made countless financial mistakes despite majoring in accounting. I allowed my heart hijack my wallet. Shame and embarrassment kept me from seeking the help I so desperately needed.

When our finances are a disaster, there are usually non-financial factors contributing to the situation. We must address and correct those issues if we are to get and stay financially healthy. My money only improved when I broke off the engagement with Jeff and removed myself from that toxic relationship.

#4. Bonus Lesson: The people in your inner circle impact your financial well-being, either positively or negatively.

The Recovery To Financial Health

It wasn’t a fast or easy journey back to financial health. When I decided to end the relationship with Jeff, I had no money, almost $10,000 in debt, and ruined credit. I moved in with my dad and step mom for several months so I could regroup and save up for first month’s rent and a deposit for a place of my own.

The first thing my dad said to me was, “You need a plan to straighten out this mess!” He helped me create a budget and a plan to pay off my debt. I was so stressed out and emotional about my financial situation that I needed an objective person to help me sort out the details.

I remember looking at the department store credit card bill and seeing a charge on there for a gift Jeff had “bought” me for Valentine’s Day. (Seriously people, I cannot even make this stuff up!) When I realized I was now going to have to pay for it, I was livid. However, to my dad, it was just one bill in the stack that needed to paid.

I followed the plan, and slowly but surely my debt began to shrink and my savings balance grew. Seeing the incremental progress month after month motivated me to stick with it.

About a year later, I was driving to work and an amazing thought struck me: “I can’t remember the last time I worried about money?” It was such a shock to me because I used to have almost constant money anxiety. That’s when I realized there had to be other people out there who were just like I was, living under a heavy burden of money stress and worry. I decided then and there I would find a way to help them get on the road to financial health, too.

I’m happy to report that now, 17 years later, I have an awesome relationship with my money. When I started dating my husband, Nick, we talked openly and freely about personal finances. He’s always been very responsible with his money and he positively influenced me with his good habits. I went from $10,000 in the hole and nothing in savings to having a years’ worth of income saved up and a net worth in the high six figures.

We’re on pace to hit the million-dollar mark in five years or less!

All my horrifying money mistakes have a silver lining, because now my full-time profession is to help others avoid the same shame, pain, and embarrassment of financial desperation. As the Financial Lifeguard, I now teach people how to swim in the choppy waters of personal finance. I’ve even published a book about it – check it out! Money is Emotional: Prevent Your Heart from Hijacking Your Wallet

****** Christine Luken is Certified Financial Coach, speaker, and author. She helps individuals, families, and entrepreneurs design a financial road map to help them arrive at their Preferred Financial Destination. You can find Christine’s blogs, podcasts, webinars, and videos on her Financial Lifeguard website.

Like this series? Here are some other Financial Confessionals to peruse next:

“I Used to Hire Escorts”

“We Used to Blow Our Money on Motorcycles & Airplanes”

“I Turned My Back on My Wealthy Parents to Live a Life of My Own.”

“I’ve Spent over $40,000 on Amazon”

“I Bought a Used Honda for $45,000”

“I Became So Obsessed With Being Rich That I’m Now Sitting in Prison”

Financial Confessional: “I Was a Check-Bouncing, Collector-Dodging Accountant!” published first on http://ift.tt/2ljLF4B

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fesahaawit · 7 years

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Financial Confessional: “I Was a Check-Bouncing, Collector-Dodging Accountant!”

*******

Four years after I graduated from college, I hit financial rock bottom – hard.

What’s worse – I was an accountant! First for an interior decorator, then for my father’s business – a multi-million-dollar machine repair company. Talk about feeling like a hypocrite!

Here are three of my most horrifying money mistakes and the lessons you can learn from them.

Horrifying Money Mistake #1 – “Theft by Deception”

Horrifying Money Mistake #2 – “We’re Coming For Your Car”

“If I had the money, I would have already sent it!” I wailed.

“Well, just imagine how embarrassing it will be when you neighbors see the tow truck coming to get your car if we don’t have a payment by Friday,” he threatened back.

Horrifying Money Mistake #3 – “Payday Lender Roulette”

To say that this destroyed my credit would be a vast understatement.

[EDITOR’S NOTE: See our post on facts about Payday Lenders – they’re horrible!]

Lessons Learned Through All This:

#4. Bonus Lesson: The people in your inner circle impact your financial well-being, either positively or negatively.

The Recovery To Financial Health

I followed the plan, and slowly but surely my debt began to shrink and my savings balance grew. Seeing the incremental progress month after month motivated me to stick with it.

We’re on pace to hit the million-dollar mark in five years or less!

Like this series? Here are some other Financial Confessionals to peruse next:

“I Used to Hire Escorts”

“We Used to Blow Our Money on Motorcycles & Airplanes”

“I Turned My Back on My Wealthy Parents to Live a Life of My Own.”

“I’ve Spent over $40,000 on Amazon”

“I Bought a Used Honda for $45,000”

“I Became So Obsessed With Being Rich That I’m Now Sitting in Prison”

Financial Confessional: “I Was a Check-Bouncing, Collector-Dodging Accountant!” posted first on http://ift.tt/2lnwIdQ

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militaryspouse101 · 8 years

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New Post has been published on Military Spouse

New Post has been published on http://militaryspouse.com/career/money/government-cuts-your-paycheck/

What To Do When the Government Cuts Your Paycheck Short

Show of (virtual) hands: How many of you have had the “absolute pleasure” (note sarcasm) of having your service member’s pay messed up?

That’s what I thought. I wish I could say I am surprised, but the truth is most (if not all) of us have or will experience a military pay issue at one point or another in our service member’s career.

To add ‘insult to injury’, the vast majority of these pay discrepancies always seem to occur during periods of transition that are already stressful enough. PCS, deployment, TDY, unaccompanied orders, reenlistment, separation or retirement…you name it and Murphy has his hands all up in it.

The military pay system is complex, and it can often be difficult to navigate trying to correct errors within it. There are several errors that you might encounter, and several ways to go about correcting them.

Make sure you know how to read a Leave and Earnings Statement (LES), which is basically your service member’s check stub, and have your service member check it each payday to make sure it’s correct. Your wallet will thank you in the long run for being prepared for potential errors.

WHAT TO LOOK FOR

UNDERPAYMENT & NO PAY DUE

Picture this: It’s payday and you’re at the commissary (which is brave of you by the way). You’ve picked your items, thrown them into the cart and navigate your way through the sea of people to go to the checkout line. You go to use your bank card…and it declines. “What the HECK? I know we have money in there…we just got paid!” So you check with your bank only to find out that there is literally NO money in your account. Chances are, you just experienced an underpayment or the dreaded No Pay Due.

OVERPAYMENT

As much as I would LOVE to tell you that your service member just got an unexpected raise; I can’t. I really wish I could, but if you’re seeing extra dollar signs in your bank account then it’s probably a mistake. Trust me, it’s happened to my husband as well. It’s payday and I’m getting ready to do the bills and see that he was just paid an extra $400!

“YES!” I think to myself. “The Marine Corps FINALLY sees just how AWESOME my husband is and they gave him a RAISE! YAY!” Thankfully, my husband was looking at the bank account right around the same time and called me to tell me that YES, he really IS that awesome, but NO…he didn’t get a raise.

In this case we left the funds in our bank account, and I’m so glad we did. His next paycheck was $400 less than what it usually was because they had noticed the mistake and recouped it on the back end. Had we gone ahead and spent the money without realizing that the overpayment was an error, he could have contacted his finance office and worked out a payment plan to garnish future checks over time.

WHAT YOU CAN DO

It’s definitely difficult when you experience a lack of funds unexpectedly. Your service member’s pay may have been cut, but that doesn’t mean that the bills will wait to be paid. There are a few things you can do, though, that might help ease the burden while you and your service member straighten it all out.

Prioritize Your Bills. Concentrate on the necessities. Food, housing, gas for your car…all of these things are absolutely necessary to live while you’re figuring out this pay issue. Those are what you should concentrate those funds on.

The Finance Office. This should be your service member’s first stop. Sometimes, depending on the issue, they are able to correct quickly to avoid any issues.

Talk to Your Creditors. As soon as you know that you won’t be able to make payments on any credit cards or loans right away, contact your financial institutions and let them know what’s happening. Often they will delay your payments without penalty, or at minimum they could waive any late payment fees.

Savings. If you have any savings available, this would be the time to use it. My husband and I didn’t have a savings back in the day, but we do now. After the first ‘no pay due’ we received, we decided to set up a separate savings specifically for any military pay errors. TRUST me, it’s absolutely worth it. We recommend having enough saving to cover one month of bills and expenses, since it usually takes about a month to correct some of the more complex pay errors.

Credit Cards. I know, I know. You don’t like to use your credit cards and they are only for emergencies. Well, guess what? This IS an emergency! This is exactly why most of us have these credit cards. Just make sure and remember to pay it off once the pay issue is corrected.

Seek Assistance. If you do business with a military-affiliated banking institution, like USAA or Navy Federal, give them a call and see what kind of a loan they can offer you. They might be able to give you a low rate personal loan on the fly. If you’re considering a loan, make sure that you go with this route first and try to avoid pay-day loans and lenders.

Service Relief Aid. Several of the services have relief aid entities that are specifically around for emergencies like this! The Air Force Aid Society, Navy Marine Corps Relief Society, Army Emergency Relief and Coast Guard Mutual Assistance programs all vary in the assistance they provide, but many of them include a no or low interest emergency loan as well as budget counseling to avoid something like this in the future.

Military pay problems suck, no doubt about it. If you haven’t experienced any of this yet, KUDOS…but you most likely will. Hopefully you will take some of these suggestions and prepared for if (or when) you do.

If you have experienced this before, then most likely you have used some of these suggestions or have found another way to mitigate the damage of the dreaded pay problem and we’d love to hear about your battle plan!

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heliosfinance · 7 years

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Financial Confessional: “I Was a Check-Bouncing, Collector-Dodging Accountant!”

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Four years after I graduated from college, I hit financial rock bottom – hard.

What’s worse – I was an accountant! First for an interior decorator, then for my father’s business – a multi-million-dollar machine repair company. Talk about feeling like a hypocrite!

Here are three of my most horrifying money mistakes and the lessons you can learn from them.

Horrifying Money Mistake #1 – “Theft by Deception”

Horrifying Money Mistake #2 – “We’re Coming For Your Car”

“If I had the money, I would have already sent it!” I wailed.

“Well, just imagine how embarrassing it will be when you neighbors see the tow truck coming to get your car if we don’t have a payment by Friday,” he threatened back.

Horrifying Money Mistake #3 – “Payday Lender Roulette”

To say that this destroyed my credit would be a vast understatement.

[EDITOR’S NOTE: See our post on facts about Payday Lenders – they’re horrible!]

Lessons Learned Through All This:

#4. Bonus Lesson: The people in your inner circle impact your financial well-being, either positively or negatively.

The Recovery To Financial Health

I followed the plan, and slowly but surely my debt began to shrink and my savings balance grew. Seeing the incremental progress month after month motivated me to stick with it.

We’re on pace to hit the million-dollar mark in five years or less!

Like this series? Here are some other Financial Confessionals to peruse next:

“I Used to Hire Escorts”

“We Used to Blow Our Money on Motorcycles & Airplanes”

“I Turned My Back on My Wealthy Parents to Live a Life of My Own.”

“I’ve Spent over $40,000 on Amazon”

“I Bought a Used Honda for $45,000”

“I Became So Obsessed With Being Rich That I’m Now Sitting in Prison”

Financial Confessional: “I Was a Check-Bouncing, Collector-Dodging Accountant!” published first on http://ift.tt/2ljLF4B

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