#maintaining wakefulness between moves is the mark of the true party master

[unconventiononthelawofthesea]

party ended. an hour until sunrise which I have plans to watch with s girl. 2 hours until work. I will endure

[jennifercrowart]

D&D Diary - The Yawning Rodent, 15

Refresher: Our adventurers Lugs (grung barbarian), Lurk (grung rogue), Aelia (tiefling cleric), and Valas (drow sorcerer) with tagalong Deku (ratfolk cleric) fought Belak, his giant frog, McKennedeigh, and Bradley in Belak's grove. While Belak was taken down fairly easily, his death caused McKennedeigh and Bradley to go in a frenzy, drinking the blood from his body and becoming stronger. After a tough fight, the party managed to kill Bradley, and tie up an unconscious McKennedeigh. Lugs and Lurk grabbed the ruby red fruit of the Gulthias tree before it was set entirely ablaze, filling the cavern with smoke. The party took shelter in what seems to have been Belak's study.

Sunless Citadel spoilers!

Now in Belak's study, Lugs sits at his desk and tries to mime doing work with all the papers. He finds a candle in a candle holder, and deduces that it had been burning several hours ago - someone must have been here recently!!! Thinking hard, he takes the candle stick and eats it.

Aelia finds a few spell scrolls, as well as a mantle of some more valuable items; gem stones, Belak's stash of gold, a glove with a rune on the back of the hand, and a silver circlet inlaid with a sapphire. Meanwhile, Deku goes through the bookshelves, and finds several titles placed closer to the desk that look more heavily used. One is called Born to Die, a book in Common about the Druidic theories of the life and death cycle. There's also Treasures of the Fire Lords, a collection of ancient journals written in Elven, and, finally, his stolen library book Cults Around the World.

Cults Around the World:

True to the title, it details several cults around the world. One such cult is called the Cult of the Dragon, also known as the Keepers of the Secret Hoard, who lived in the Sunless Citadel for 1400 years, until the Cataclysm. The citadel was once called Maetrine Keep, home to a powerful vampire called Illythia. The cult took over, but were a secretive and shadowy group. It's said that a huge red dragon could be seen about the citadel during the cult's reign. The cult is said to have perished when the Sunless Citadel - along with other citadels across the continent - sunk beneath the earth during the Cataclysm 800 years ago.

Although he recognises the popular language the script is written in, Deku passes the old diaries to Valas, who can read Elven. Deku assumes, with disgust, that they're Belak's journals regarding his experiments.

The Vampire Diaries:

Written in Elven, this appears to be a collection of journals kept by an old, experienced, and powerful vampire woman called Illythia. It talks about her building a large citadel for herself called Maetrine Keep, in which she ruled over the nearby lands with her army of vampire spawn for approximately 300 years. The land Maetrine Keep stood over is described in the journals as a large and dense forest with a winding river running through it from the ocean, and seems to be set pre-Cataclysm. There are pieces of more recent parchment in-between some of the pages, with annotations written in Common that seem to be making note of vampire biology.

Valas flips to the most recent page of the unfinished final diary. The last pages tell of Illythia's army and of the threat of an encroaching army - led by Ashardalon - but doesn't end. Interspersed throughout the journals are much more recent slips of parchment, with a different handwriting and notes taken in common on vampire biology and magic.

Next, Deku tries to read Treasures of the Fire Lords. As he opens it up to the second page, a warding glyph on the paper lights up, activating an icy explosion that fills the room. On instinct, Deku immediately throws the book away from himself before hiding inside his oversized armour like a turtle, and Valas - unable to take much more pain - uses his last spell slot to cast Absorb Elements on himself and take just a quarter of the damage. Wounded from their previous battle, Lurk and Aelia take the full brunt of the explosion, slamming them against the study's walls with ice before they slump to the ground, unconscious. Lugs, brawnier than most, is able to absorb the hit, and he rushes over to his brother's body to start helping him. He tips water from his barrel into Lurk's mouth, filling it up his cheeks like a balloon.

Deku comes over and pushes Lugs out of the way, complimenting him on his good work, before gently compressing Lurk's chest so the water squirts out of his mouth like a fountain instead of drowning him. With his cleric knowledge and his medicine kit, he's able to stabilise both Lurk and Aelia. The still conscious party members make some space on the rug for Lurk and Aelia to rest and sleep it off, Lurk on a bed of books that Lugs made him.

The Treasures of the Fire Lords book is worse for wear now, but what remains seems to be writing in Common matching the annotations in the vampire diaries - Belak's writing, research notes on his experiments on Chadley, McKennedeigh, and Bradley. It mentions that Chadley was experimented on differently to the latter two, and Valas and Deku are concerned to hear this - unsure if Chadley is currently ok at the Rat's Nest.

Lugs beckons his fire snake to sleep against the storeroom wall outside the study, and the snake does so, as Lugs seems to have had good luck with befriending the creature who's still full on the goblin he fed them. They bring McKennedeigh's tied-up body inside the study so they can keep watch over her, and wedge the doors shut with pitons in case of intruders. Secure, the party takes a long rest for the rest of the day, which passes by without issue.

They have the chance to inspect some of the potentially-magic items they'd picked up recently. The gold circlet with metal woven into flames and a ruby in the centre is called the Circlet of Ignition, which lets the wearer cast the 2nd-level spell Flame Blade once per day. The silver circlet with delicate weaving and a sapphire is the Sojourner's Circlet of Rituals, giving the wearer advantage on maintaining concentration during ritual spells. Lastly, the butler-looking glove is The Master's Glove, which can be used to cast Unseen Servant once per day. On the inside of the Sojourner's Circlet of Rituals are etchings in Dwarven, which read, "Made in the Glitterhame caverns of Khundrukar. Quality assured!"

Later, Deku checks up on Aelia and Lurk as they wake up. McKennedeigh has also woken up, and is writhing around, hissing and spitting in a vicious fury. Lugs gives her a few bonks with his club until she passes out again.

Aelia eagerly claims the Circlet of Ignition, Deku takes the Sojourner's Circlet of Rituals, and Lugs takes The Master's Glove.

The party leaves the study and heads back towards the remains of the Gulthias tree, intending on investigating it further now that the fire has gone out. Everyone else stays very far back as Lugs goes on ahead to crack open the burnt husk of the trunk. Inside is a lot of empty space, with burnt vein-like structures twisting all the way down from the outer shell of the tree towards its base, where it all comes together and twists into a wooden stake that's been jammed into the torso of a skeleton with enough force to break several ribs. Just the torso of the skeleton is visible above ground, never having had a proper burial. Lugs chuckles to himself, and uses The Master's Glove to have the unseen servant - an invisible, mindless force - puppet the skeleton's torso while he steps back and feigns surprise and fear. The performance is so overblown and shoddy that it doesn't fool anyone, and the brittle, ancient skeleton begins to break apart as it's manipulated and no longer pinned to the earth by the stake.

They think this is Illythia's skeleton - the corpse of the slain vampire who initially built this citadel before the Cult of the Dragon moved in.

Lugs breaks off the steak from the rest of the tree that grew from it, while Deku also takes some samples of bone and bark just in case. With nothing else of note, they begin heading back to the well shaft so they can leave the Sunless Citadel.

Aelia tries to come up with a plan on what they'll say to Yusdrayl when they get  back to the upper floor, as they obviously aren't returning with Calcryx like they kept saying they would. She points out that she and Lurk still bear the marks of ice burns from the glyph explosion before their rest, and hopes to use that as proof that they fought Calcryx down here, at least.

They reach the well shaft that is their only known path to the upper level of the citadel, and Lurk climbs on ahead to scout. Lugs takes a barrel and some chains from the laboratory they passed through, combining them with rope to make a big bucket his fire snake can climb into while he carries them up. Unable to carry both the fire snake and McKennedeigh, however, he opts to leave his heavy water barrel behind for the time being, and offers Aelia 100 gold to help him carry his fire snake, which she hesitantly accepts.

When Lurk's about 30 feet from the top of the 80 foot shaft, he hears Yusdrayl's voice calling out to him, asking him how their search went and what happened to Belak. Above him, Yusdrayl is leaning over the lip of the well, her big golden eyes peering down. Panicking, Lurk doesn't answer her question, and instead asks if she has a bathroom he can use. Dumbfounded, Yusdrayl says that the Kobold Gang often just goes out in the Underdark, away from the citadel. Lurk keeps insisting that they must have a bathroom and that he needs to use it, and Yusdrayl asks him why he doesn't just go on the lower floor, which must be empty of threats if they defeated Belak. Lurk gives in and climbs back down, to do his 'number 3s'.

When he gets to the bottom of the shaft, he tells the rest of the party what happened, and that Yusdrayl is on the lookout for them. Unsure of what else they can do, the party climbs up, and hears Yusdrayl calling back down to them again when they're about halfway.

Yusdrayl demands to know where Calcryx is, but Valas asks if they can answer her questions once they're done climbing up the shaft, as they're exhausted and don't want to fall. Yusdrayl says that they better answer her quickly, then. Indignant, Aelia starts arguing with her, confused as to why Yusdrayl has stopped trusting them. Ignoring Yusdrayl's warnings, Aelia continues climbing up the shaft, though she stops when Valas notices Yusdrayl's elite guards leaning over the lip of the well with their slingshots trained on the party.

Valas tells Yusdrayl that they did find Calcryx with Belak as they theorised they would, but that the white dragon was not yet loyal to the druid, and she fled into the Underdark soon after the fighting started. Unable to ignore Belak, the party had to stay and fight him instead of give chase to her. Yusdrayl wants proof of their story, but Valas tells her that they can't have proof because Calcryx is gone. The Kobold Gang leader relents and allows the party to climb up to Durnn's chamber, but on the condition that she'll be sending some of her bandits down to look for any traces of Calcryx to verify their story.

The adventurers climb to the top of the well, and find that they're surrounded by the Kobold Gang. Amongst them is Durnn, grinning sadistically. Yusdrayl explains that she's grateful that they took care of the Goblin Gang for her, but that Durnn had eventually come back to tell her about the party betraying her, saying that they took Calcryx from the Goblin Gang days ago but still never returned her to Yusdrayl. She was convinced that Durnn would just be trying to get her to turn against them, but resolved to see if the party would finally return with only excuses and no white dragon one final time.

Durnn tells her that, if Valas' story is true, Belak's grove and study - where Durnn says the druid would've been - is very far away from the one exit to the Underdark on that floor, which is very close to the well shaft. Valas says that a new rift opened up in the grove, which is where Calcryx escaped, but Durnn just comments how convenient for their story that would be.

Instead of climbing up with the rest of the party, Lurk had instead climbed back down the shaft. Yusdrayl demands to know where he's gone, and Aelia says that he wasn't done 'with his number 3s' yet. 'Number 3s' sound like a truly horrific burden to bear. Yusdrayl sends down two of her bandits as well as an elite guard to the lower floor to investigate for signs of Calcryx, and they pass by Lurk on his way up as they climb back down.

When Lurk reaches the top, he telepathically communicates to Aelia and Valas (as he can only do so with 2 people at a time) that he set his two hunting traps at the base of the shaft. He tells Lugs that in Grung, so the bandits around them don't understand. When the bandits and guard reach the bottom, those up top hear pained screams. The elite guard calls up that it was trapped, and that one of the bandits is badly hurt. Having used this to wipe out even just 3 of Yusdrayl's followers, the party readies to fight her as their betrayal is revealed!

[qucoxaudio]

SkullCandy Sesh Evo true wireless bluetooth Headphones review

As my original AirPods gradually lost their endurance, I also started searching for a TWS to replace it. I had heard of the name SkullCandy a long time ago, and all SkullCandy Sesh Evo true wireless bluetooth headphones are in my hands.

The packaging is still the same "popular style" as always, and its individuality points are also marked on the box: "24-hour battery life", "waterproof and sweatproof".

There are matching silicone eartips (L/M/S) and a short Type-C charging cable in the package. Yes, it uses the USB-C interface, so you don't need to bring an extra Micro USB charging cable.

SkullCandy Sesh Evo also has a few different colors this time. I have used the turquoise version, and the whole is very energetic. But I was really worried about stains, so I still chose the pure black color scheme, and the black color with SkullCandy Logo is also full of texture.

The SkullCandy Logo is etched from the left and right earphones to the earphone box. The logo is not big, maintaining a small but beautiful exquisite degree.

There are less obvious square red and blue LEDs on both sides of the earphones to show the charging and connection status, and there is also a string of white LEDs with uniform light next to the button on the body of the earphone box to remind the remaining power.

The size of the earphone box is actually not small compared to AirPods, and the size of the earphone is not extremely comfortable to fit in the ear. Fortunately, they can reach a 24h all-weather preparation state after the 6+18h battery life is superimposed.

I usually spend up to 3-4 hours a day on commuting, office study, and audio-visual experience. A full charge is enough for one week in my case.

Of course, when I go to the gym 2-4 times a week, I also care about its waterproof, sweat-proof and non-slip ability. The nominal IP55 waterproof capability, I can use it with confidence and boldness, after all, the warranty is two years. However, I still wipe it with a tissue after the exercise. After all, sweat is still corrosive, and the earphones are still affected for many years.

In terms of control, SkullCandy Sesh Evo supports dual headsets in master-slave mode with a certain degree of unity. Both earphones can combine various controls through the “click + multiple clicks" method.

For example, one click to play and pause, double click to adjust the volume, three clicks to wake up the voice assistant, four clicks to switch between three EQ modes, and long press to cut the song. The earphone box has only one circular button to check the remaining power.

After the first pairing, open the headset box and take out the headset to automatically connect, and put the headset in to automatically shut down are basic operations. Putting the earphones into the earphones is not magnetically attracted to charge, and the way the metal pin contacts are still slightly primitive.

For TWS, the most important thing is delay. The delay cannot be avoided, but the blessing of bluetooth 5.0 ensures that its delay is within the range that is not perceptible under normal circumstances. For example, daily audio and video and non-competitive games can have a good experience.

Specifically, after clicking the music play button, the music will be played synchronously while the progress bar is moving, and there will be no feeling of delay of one third or half a second.

In terms of games, especially audio games and listening games, it is difficult to guarantee a delay of milliseconds. For children’s shoes that have high requirements for this type of game, it is recommended to choose the corresponding brand of TWS. I have always had no high expectations for the sound quality of TWS. I think it can achieve sound insulation, balanced tri-band, comfortable wearing, and lower Noisy is very good. SkullCandy Sesh Evo first did a good job in sound insulation. Although there is no active noise reduction, it can also reduce environmental noise through a suitable silicone sleeve. Of course, it would be great if you could give away some C-like sets and brother sets.

Secondly, it provides EQ adjustment functions such as broadcasting and music in terms of sound quality, which to a certain extent compensates for the actual performance of flat and loose sound. Especially when it is adjusted to the music mode, the low frequency and human voice will be improved to a certain extent. In terms of wearing experience, due to volume limitations, I will feel a little discomfort in the auricle after wearing it for more than two hours. It is recommended to take a break in the middle section when watching a movie.

Overall, as the successor to my retired AirPods, SkullCandy Sesh Evo can give 85 points. A score of 5 expects it to add active noise reduction, a score of 5 expects it to adjust the flat sound orientation, and a score of 5 expects it to be able to improve the overall experience. Of course, for Yan control and the fitness party, all-weather battery life and overall balanced experience are bonus points. For younger brothers/young sisters, active blue-green must be the first choice. Children who are afraid of dirt can also choose my black, which is resistant to dirt and scratches and is more worry-free. Next, I will cook it again with pink and white noise. What if it gives me a little surprise?

[blogsamsamuniverse-blog]

“The 7 Struggles That Lie Ahead For an F-1 Graduate”

As a freshman, graduation seemed light years away. But as I find myself sitting on the cold floor of an old friend’s apartment, I think back to what I would have liked to know coming into this country, what I was told (or rather wasn’t), and what I have come to learn the hard way.

You packed your bags and headed off to the airport, excited for what was in store for you, ecstatic for the unknown. I understand, I was there too, once upon a time. But now all the fun times are behind you. You’ve drank, partied, made new friends, explored the dreamland called America, gotten those good grades. But now what? You thought your biggest struggle was that boy not texting you after last night? Haha. Well you’re in for the shock of your life so hold onto your seat and get ready for the realest advice no one told me about.

1. The debate between applying for OPT or Grad School

So I had three options: 

- The first was to apply for a Master’s degree in either South Africa, Australia or the U.S. This would mean paying on average $50 for application fees for these universities and spending time writing personal statements, getting people to proofread them and tracking down some of your professors or internship advisors to write stellar recommendation letters. This is all meant to be done while juggling your classes and maintaining a high GPA so your family is proud when they fly all the way to the U.S for graduation.

- The second option was to apply for my O.P.T which by the way does not come cheap. Besides the $400+ amount that needs to be paid you need to be very strategic about when you apply for it because you need to give it 2-3 months for processing time. Now for me, I left it until late November which was a lesson learnt because my card arrived in mid February 2017. I thought I would be really excited when it came but I still had no job offers. Therefore, it is smarter to be able to map out what you will do in the period you are waiting for your card other than applying for jobs. I spent most of my days between watching Netflix, practicing Mandarin characters or doing an online course that might boost my resume.

- Then finally there was the option of going back home, to a country characterized by economic turmoil and extremely high levels of unemployment. Who am I kidding, this was never an option. 

2. Credit Score and Co-signers

I remember in my  Sophomore summer, watching my close friends who had just graduated venting about the numerous challenges they were facing post-graduation as international students. Most times they spoke among themselves and so I never really understood what they were talking about and as I said before, my graduation seemed light ways away. One of the things that I did pick up was this concept of  having a good credit score. Now coming to America, the one thing you should know is that you need to prove to various institutions that you can be in debt and and regularly pay it back. If you want to buy a car or have a lease on an apartment you need to provide a good credit score that you build over time. So that plan of mine to get a credit card in my senior year should have been shifted to maybe Sophomore or Junior year. Either way, you need to be careful because it is always so easy to spend money that you do not have. It is also smarter when you still have a student worker job on campus that you can use to be paying off your card unlike when you are unemployed and have maxed your credit card.

If you do not want to go the credit card route then you can always have a cosigner who has to be either an American citizen or have permanent residency to co-sign for an apartment you want to move into or even to co-sign for any student loans you might want to take out. I leant about the co-signing saga the hard way when I was accepted to a Master’s program that cost about $50,000 a year and I had only received about $17,000. My admissions advisor and I had a conversation about other ways I could fund my education and she mentioned getting student loans as a plausible solution. Now what you don’t realize or aren’t told unless you do some research is that as an international student you need to have a cosigner. When you default their own credit score is affected. So in all honesty who would be willing to help me cosign over $30,000 worth of student loans unless they are my non-existent boyfriend or non-existent aunt who just received her American permanent residency.

3. When saving money is never enough

In all honesty it is important to save money because you will not have a paycheck that will be coming in every two weeks anymore and as you start the world of adulting you need to depend less on your family. However, I realized that all my savings were spent within the first month after graduating, this went to rent, relocation costs, food and transportation to get from one interview to another.  

One of the most important ways of trying to get a job is having to network, meeting alums around you and meeting them over some over priced  coffee. However, the saddest part is when you’re not even able to afford that. I’ve had to decline so many opportunities to meet people merely because I had no money to take the train and go down town.

4.  Picking which city to settle in

It is extremely important what city you decide will be your central base, whether it is where you went to college or whether it's where you have the most family and friends and are generally familiar with the area.

5. Job application process

Ticking that box of whether you need sponsorship and debating in your mind whether your ‘YES’ answer will lower the chances of you getting a job.

Unemployment is everywhere it’s the reality of the situation but you have to keep trying.

Waking up to three emails in the morning from companies you applied for all saying “We had such great candidates for this position (including you of cause) but we have decided to move on with another candidate.” Believe me I have tracked almost all the jobs I apply for and there is no perfect solution to the process. I still get job rejections for jobs I applied for while I was still in college six months ago.

6. Did I mention a Master's Degree is the requirement for almost all the jobs I am applying for?

It is important that you look into what your field of profession demands, whether it is having a professional video resume, keeping your social media platforms trending or going straight to graduate school after undergrad. Familiarize yourself with the key qualifications required for your ideal job positions so that you are able to start building up those skills.

7. America might be the beginning but it is not the end

It is true that America to some extent is the land of opportunities, however, it is important for us to be realist about the situations we are in and know when it is time to move on. I always say that some things are not meant for everyone and that people should not limit their options to just the U.S. Instead, it is important to keep an open-mind.

I am still unemployed with my OPT card, and I just reached my mark of 200 jobs that I have applied  to this morning. Needless to say, I still try to connect to people on LinkedIn and look for an extra dollar so I can go meet someone for coffee. It has definitely been a challenging three months that have taught me how to remain optimistic and build a sense of resilience in a time when there is a lot of uncertainty in my life.