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miraculouscontent · 3 years

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where do i even begin

The focus in this episode is all over the place and also on none of the right things.

Let’s just start with the obvious: they didn’t even bother showing Alya's reaction to Marinette being Ladybug. We got nothing. Marinette revealing her identity to Alya is supposed to be a big deal, but the episode brushes it under the rug and even seems to lowkey blame Marinette for not telling Alya sooner, to the point where it outright lies and has Alya claim that Marinette’s secret was responsible for all of Alya’s Lady Wifi appearances.

It’s not like I’m surprised anymore when the show blames Marinette for like--anything, but the fact that this season seems to brag about its continuity by being on a firm timeline and then keeps going against continuity is really irritating.

And speaking of continuity, the Adrien pictures are back on the wall with absolutely no reason given. Narratively speaking, the show put them there so Alya would see them and think of bringing up Adrien to get Marinette to take a break, but the show can’t just do that if it wants to imply that it has continuity. Worse still is that this is the episode featuring “Charm Bug” (does her form have a name? I just call it Charm Bug and continue to do so), meaning that “Gang of Secrets” (where there were no Adrien pictures) has to take place before this and “Furious Fu” (where there are also no Adrien pictures) has to take place after.

At this point, they might as well just confirm that “destiny” is a real force and the ladybug miraculous is messing with Marinette’s room and twisting her emotions to make the love square endgame because--yeah, that’s all it is at this point.

The other thing is that Alya shoos Marinette away from her guardian duties so Marinette can go comfort Kagami (let’s be honest, the best part of the episode was Alya being like, “but what about Adrien?” and Marinette was basically like, “what about Adrien?”), which sounds great, but then it all goes back to Adrien, because of course it does.

Not only that, but the episode mocks Marinette for worrying about Kagami. Not only does Alya doubt Marinette’s concern, but Kagami isn’t at all affected by the break-up and isn’t even touched by Marinette’s worry.

The thing is, I get where Marinette’s coming from, because this is the Kagami who told Ladybug in “Heart Hunter” that she (Kagami) and Adrien were perfect for each other to the point where Kagami prioritized her potentially getting together with Adrien over her friendship with Marinette. Also keep in mind that Marinette is Kagami’s only friend, and it makes total sense that Marinette would expect Kagami to be devastated by the break-up.

But because it’s Miraculous, the show makes Marinette look like an idiot for being concerned for Kagami, as if saying, “Silly Marinette! Kagami’s not like you! Kagami is a strong independent woman!! You’re just so over-emotional and you were ridiculous for being sad about your own break-up! You should be more like her!”

I also don’t like it because it presents Kagami as this character who really does feel nothing due to the show not letting her. She was angry at Adrien, obviously, but she was also immensely upset and it made sense when she put so much effort in trying to get him to return her affections.

Buuuut no. Kagami is just annoyed by Marinette’s efforts to try and get her back together with Adrien (it’s not that her anger isn’t warranted, but that’s all they let her feel instead of any genuine sadness over the break-up).

And of course, there’s no mention about Marinette literally trying to help get Kagami back together with Adrien and how selfless that is on Marinette’s part. Obviously I don’t agree with Marinette disregarding Kagami’s feelings (I do hate though how the episode refused to have Kagami explain why Adrien upset her, which would help Marinette understand because she seems to think there’s a misunderstanding/Kagami doubting herself), but the episode refuses to acknowledge Marinette’s good intentions because it’s Marinette and because she’s supporting Adrimi and not the love square, so they’ll make her look as bad as possible. This led to the fandom talking about Marinette and her oBsEsSiOn with Adrien instead of saying UM HI YEAH MARINETTE IS DOING A “HEART HUNTER” 2.0??

(The show also does this consistently, by the way.)

Another thing the show won’t acknowledge is that what Marinette does with Kagami is extremely similar to what Alya does with Marinette. Alya has ignored Marinette’s agency, physically pushed her towards Adrien, and locked her in a room with Adrien no matter how many times Marinette has told her no and that she doesn’t want that.

But because it’s Marinette and because what she’s shipping is Adrimi (i.e: a ship that interferes with the love square), the episode absolutely tears her apart for it. If Alya’s meddling was treated the same way - where she’d be constantly put in the wrong and punished for it - I wouldn’t say a word about this, but we know that’s not the case from “Reflekdoll” (where Reflekta targeted Marinette and Rose of all people) and “The Puppeteer 2″ (hey, remember when Alya did all of that and then it was the museum staff who did nothing wrong who got the worst of Puppeteer’s wrath?).

And this isn’t even taking into consideration that, once again, Marinette has learned something from someone else because they were never called out or punished or learned (originally being Adrien/Bustier where she “learned” to trust Chloe and see where that got her???), and then she’s the one who gets the heat for it.

Might I also add how insulting it is that the episode before this had Marinette saying that she “didn’t want to focus on love,” and then immediately afterwards, Alya is pushing for Adrienette and the episode itself won’t let anyone shut up about Adrien?

Like, this is the episode where Marinette does guardian stuff, gets an upgrade in Charm Bug, and yet the episode hyperfocuses on Aaaaaadrien. He doesn’t even do anything; he’s just a black hole that inhales all available attention and magically pulls all the characters towards his general location.

Then the episode keeps breaking its own continuity as an excuse to make things more about Adrien and also more about the love square, like saying that Marinette carries her disguises everywhere when it’s really just an excuse for Marinette to conveniently have the umbrella so that they can recreate the umbrella scene (by the way, the line from Marinette about “recreating Kagami’s moment where she fell in love with Adrien” is both incredibly forced and incredibly obvious because we’ve never even seen how Kagami fell for Adrien).

And when you already know how the show goes, it all becomes so predictable, which is a huge problem. By the time you hear Marinette say that she “didn’t want to focus on love” last episode, you already know what’s going happen. This episode reaffirms Marinette’s crush on Adrien, which is weird because it’s not as if there was ever any doubt in the first place? The show didn’t even try to convince its audience that Marinette was actually trying to move on, which gives the scene no impact when it happens. We already know that Marinette isn’t really in denial (she’s not stupid) and is very likely saying that she’s not in love with Adrien because admitting it hasn’t gotten her anywhere and she’s repeating something to herself is an attempt to make it true (which is a common coping mechanism for people with self-esteem issues/anxiety), so the scene is just for shipping fuel.

We’ve seen future episodes that show that Marinette hasn’t made any actual progress, hence being another piece of evidence towards my theory that the show does it on purpose to get the Adrienette fans to freak out when anything happens even if it’s reversed in the end. It’s particularly frustrating because it denies Marinette of agency yet again, with her saying something and the show then going lol okay but what if--

It’s gross, and made more so by Kagami watching Marinette and Adrien from a distance and saying that they’re “made for each other.” I’ve talked many times before about how the show is too lazy to have actual chemistry between the love square so they’ll just have characters say that they’re meant to beeeeee, so I won’t go into that, but really, actually think about what Kagami’s saying here.

This is the guy that, in her eyes, abandoned her repeatedly on dates and lied in order to get away from her. She stated outright that Adrien had disappointed her to the point where all of her feelings for Adrien seemed to have completely disappeared and she didn’t even want to be friends with him anymore (at least for now).

Yet, the show had Kagami not only say that line, but told Marinette directly that Adrien was perfect for her. This means either one of two things, neither being good:

- the show intentionally had Marinette do all this so that Kagami would feel embarrassed for Adrien and thus fix all of Adrimi’s relationship problems without Adrien having to do any work to earn her trust back (notice how Adrien in this episode is an “extra good boy” this time around, probably even more than they usually try - keyword: try - to portray him)

- Kagami’s opinion on Adrien hasn’t changed at all and she’s essentially saying that Marinette belongs with this guy who has hurt Kagami, betrayed her trust, and will probably do the same to Marinette

And obviously the show doesn’t think about any of that. It just wants to push for the love square. The only reason there was any focus on Kagami at all was to have a reason to get Marinette to go to Kagami, for Kagami to get angry at Marinette because - as we all know - Marinette “has to mess up and learn in every episode,” so there’d be a reason to go to where Adrien was, and so Kagami could become the next local shipper for the love square.

Marinette didn’t even get to figure out the magical charms by herself; Rena Rouge gave her the answer. It was like the show saw her doing guardian work and shoved her out the door because the only thing she’s good for is being part of the love square. Alya gets seconds of time shown with her looking over the grimoire to figure out the trick, which makes the whole thing underwhelming and rushed when Rena comes up and tells Ladybug that it’s essentially “just been about her” the whole time, meaning it’s just the show yet again being like “see, Marinette? If you’d just figured this out bEfORe...” (note that the episode never tells Marinette that she’s unnecessarily guilting/blaming herself)

But yeah, despite the episode not giving Adrien anything to do, characters talk about him constantly, Marinette somehow doesn’t get the spotlight she needs despite getting a power-up form, and the episode feels the need to constantly railroad Marinette exactly where it wanted to go, not for her, but for the love square, which has always been about not her. It’s already bad when the episode itself is bad, but when it has so much to throw in and delivers on absolutely none of it, it just makes it all the more painful.

#category: salt #episode: Mr. Pigeon 72 #other: ml spoilers #other: ask and answer

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blazehedgehog · 3 years

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So rather than attach it to the last (rather large) post thread, I’ll start a new one. If you didn’t catch it on Twitter, friends managed to raise some money through nothing but sheer good will and I ended up booking a stay at the same hotel we should have gotten for free.

I’m starting a new thread because I want to ask a question, but first I want to clarify and provide a better timeline of everything that’s happened. This isn’t exact, but it’s as close as my memory can remember right now:

Late 2019/Early 2020: Whoever owns my apartment complex sells it to a new company in California. The complex is in Nevada. It’s a big apartment complex; it used to be two separate ones that were right next to each other and they merged to create a “project” that houses something like 150-200 units. If you consider families, somewhere in the realm of 300-700 people live here.

April/May 2020: We get a notice on our door announcing that our new owners want to renovate the complex. Every single unit. It’s such a big ordeal that they have to put in to get funding from the State of Nevada to do it. The initial claim is that they will move us out of our apartment unit in to a new unit for up to a month or two (at no cost to us) while they renovate. More information will come in summer 2020 during a town hall meeting we will attend in person. I expect that with the pandemic starting and “shelter in place” orders going out that there’s no way they’d be dumb enough to go through with any of this. The notice ends with them pleading with people not to take this as a cue to move out. In the months to follow, we spied at least four people who were smart enough to get out before the renovation hit. We considered it, but the housing authority we have to rent through went dead silent the moment the pandemic ramped up and have yet to say even a single word to us (even now).

Late October/Early November 2020: The town hall meeting finally happens, online, in a Zoom meeting. Three people in California dictate to the 40 or 50 tenants (maybe more) that attend the meeting how this is going to go. Plans have changed: the renovation will take place across ten days. Very tight schedule. In and out as fast as possible. In batches of 4-5 units at a time, going alphabetically across the complex, units will be renovated. New paint, new carpet, new cabinets, new sinks, new toilet, new shower, new appliances, redone balcony. Renovation teams will come in at 8am and work until 5pm. After 5pm, we will be allowed to return to our unit and sleep there. We will be allowed to keep one bed (per person) and one TV, which the renovation team will move out of the way during the day and return to our unit when they leave. We are also told we will be getting a sealable plastic tub to store personal items (toiletries and such) that the renovation team will also handle. We are assured they will be adhering to rigorous sanitization standards, with multiple temperature checks daily, masks, and gloves. During the day, we are free to go wherever, but the complex will be setting up what they call a “hospitality trailer” -- a communal space for everyone currently effected by the renovation to hang out inside, together. There will be port-a-potties and wifi. We’re told meals will also be provided, possibly in the trailer, but details are unspecific. We’re also told some landscaping will be done. All told, between renovating units and landscaping, they say the whole process from beginning to end will take 18 months or more. Tenants in the Zoom call ask questions -- if we don’t want to stay at the hospitality trailer, we’re told we should consider staying with family during the day. They ignore multiple questions from people asking if this will cause the rent to go up.

December 2020: Renovation begins, starting with apartments in the A block. We’re somewhere near the middle of the alphabet, and going by the ten-days-per-unit estimate, we’re expecting the renovation to hit us around March-ish, maybe even as late as April. I develop an ugly toothache; my face swells up. I do a phone visit with a dentist and he prescribes me antibiotics and schedules me for an appointment on January 18th to pull the tooth.

Early January 2021: Going to check the mail one day, I notice it feels like they’re spending a long time on the first few sets of units. Then, all of a sudden, renovations surge ahead, and units worryingly close to our letter start putting tarps up over their balconies, signalling they’re either mid-reno, or at least packing.

January 18th, 2021: Tooth is “fine” (big cavity, no pain) but we discuss options for pulling multiple bad teeth with this problem tooth, since a lot of my upper teeth aren’t in great shape. Will require multiple rounds of surgery to remove them all and set up replacements. First round of surgery is on February 24th. I immediately wonder if we’re going to get called early for renovation and it’ll land simultaneously with the surgery. I try not to think about it.

January 30th, 2021: We receive a notice that our apartment’s number is due. It’s post-dated, which means the notice is late. We’re supposed to have 45 days notice, and the move-out date listed in the notice is February 23rd. By the 45 day rule, this notice should’ve arrived January 9th. There’s also a degree of confusion: the notice was delivered to our apartment, but the notice is addressed to the apartment below us. Parts of the notice still mention our apartment number. We call the front office for clarification, and they tell us that the notice was indeed meant for the people below us. According to them, we’re in the clear for now. “You’re close...” tells us the person on the phone, “But it’s not your time yet.” We consider preparing early, but it sounds like we have to use the provided packing materials for organizational reasons when the movers come.

February 5th: I record my Patreon Podcast. I mention the renovation. If you consider 10 days per renovation, based on when the notice was actually delivered, I’m expecting we’re going to get our notice in the next few days.

February 8th: We get a knock on the door. A man from the front office is checking in with us to see how packing is going. Packing because the notice was actually for us. It was for all four units in this block. We tell him: we called. They said it wasn’t our time yet. He just kind of shrugs and asks if we need boxes. Of course we do. Our 45 day notice has been cut down to less than 14 days. On top of that, we’ve got doctors appointments and things coming up that’s going to eat in to this time. He says everything has to be in the office-provided UHaul boxes. Even if we have items already in cardboard boxes, they have to be specifically repacked in UHaul boxes.

February 13th: After days of trying to contact my dentist office via email, I finally get a hold of them via text. I try to reschedule my appointment, but the receptionist tells me it’s just another consultation, not surgery. I hope she’s right. The stress of all of this is making it hard to get packing as fast as we need to.

February 15th: My Mom tells me she’s managed to book an appointment for her first round of covid-19 vaccinations. Unfortunately, it’s on February 23rd, the day we’re being moved out.

February 16th: We talk to the people below us, an elderly couple. They’re panicking about packing because they have so much stuff. They mention that the front office booked them a hotel for the duration of their renovation. All they needed was a doctor’s note proving they needed it. Given that my 75 year old mother has a doc appointment literally the next day, this seems like extremely good timing. After doing curbside pickup for a grocery order that day, we pass the movers on our way back in as they are loading a unit in to their Ryder truck. None of them that I see are wearing masks or gloves.

February 17th: Doc visit happens, she implies that he kind of blew her off. She’s had chronic pain in her hands and knees for years, and in particular, the pain in her hands has been getting bad, fast. She wraps her thumb in sports tape because bending it hurts. She used to be a waitress, she used to be a cake decorator, she did data entry for a couple years, and now she’s dabbling with painting. Her carpal tunnel is severe and its accentuated with arthritis. Doctor just kind of shrugs it off, tells her if it gets worse to come back in a few months, even though arthritis can kill people if not treated properly. Still, he writes her a cursory note for the apartment front office. She talks to them and they’re very glad she contacted them about this; it sounds like the kind of thing that’s only available to people who ask, since presumably the owners don’t want to shell out $900,000+ rooming the entire complex in a hotel. Either way, we’re excited; maybe this renovation won’t be so bad. They tell us the name of the hotel and where its located.

February 18th: While doing laundry in anticipation of packing things up for the hotel/renovation, we happen to catch someone in the laundry room who just got back in to her apartment after her reno finished. She tells us a horror story: everything they told us in the Zoom meeting was a lie. They are renovating way more than 4 units at a time, they aren’t going alphabetically anymore, and she theorizes they’re going with a cheaper renovation team because half of her apartment straight up wasn’t done. The new tile was cheap plastic, which was already gouged by the time she got there. No new fridge, no new shower or tub, no new toilet. “Those will be happening this summer,” she tells us. Sinks got replaced, but the new sinks are apparently bigger than the old ones, leaving less counter space (a particular problem in the bathroom). Carpets were new, but already a dirty mess because of the movers. She had to go around and pick up nails stuck in the carpet that were left behind by the renovators. Since they didn’t take the fridge, she got to keep her food in there, which was important for her because she had special dietary food that needed to be refrigerated. The bad news? Some of that food was stolen. She had a broom and a dust pan stolen, too. She mentions how poor communication has been. We mention the hotel, and she lights up. She didn’t stay in her apartment either, they put her up in the hotel, too. So at least there’s that silver lining. Though she regrets it, because they damaged her TV while she was away. She finally helps clarify the food situation for us, too: we’ll be receiving a “food voucher” to pay for our meals, whatever that means.

February 19th: My Mom was supposed to call the front office to confirm we got the hotel, but in all the confusion, she didn’t get around to it. We’ll have to wait the entire weekend to get confirmation. But if the elderly couple below us got a room, and the lady we spoke to at laundry got a room, it sounds like we’re a lock.

February 22nd: The front office checks in on us again, shrugs their shoulders at how behind we are on packing, and offers us more boxes. They only give us large boxes; we need small, medium and especially rolls of packing tape. They mention they’ll have more later once they open the storage unit, but we never get any. Across this entire ordeal, we’ve only gotten a single roll of packing tape. We bought several rolls of our own after being tired of waiting. Front office guy says our fridge is being replaced, but we can still keep food in our old one and we’ll just “come in and change it out.” Whatever that means. Later, after getting off the phone, we learn we were rejected for the hotel. The doctor’s note wasn’t good enough and the head office in California denied our request. My Mom tries to contact her doctor again to get a more detailed note, but he doesn’t return her call. We’re going to be living out of the car for the next ten days. We talk about protesting this; by stopping packing right now and refusing to leave, but eventually decide that would be a bad idea. We don’t want to risk the movers breaking any of our things. A couple friends start spreading around my paypal.me link in the hopes of raising money for us to stay at a hotel. They raise a little over $200, but it’s hard to justify spending that on a hotel.

February 23rd, Morning: By this point, we’re running on empty. No sleep, physically exhausted, stressed out of our minds. Both of us on the verge of tears several times. With everything going on, we’re a little over halfway done packing and there’s no time left. We quickly move from “pack everything” to “pack what’s important so the movers don’t have to touch it.” Whatever we can’t finish, the movers will pack for us. At 7:30am the movers arrive, and they knock on the door at 8am. They are very polite. They are all wearing masks and gloves. We tell them they are nowhere near ready, and they offer to do our unit last. We do the best we can and leave the rest to them. On our way out, we talk to the elderly couple that lives below us, who claim the moving truck won’t be enough to hold everything in their apartment. It’s a big truck and a small apartment. I find that hard to believe. We go park somewhere and doze in the car until my Mom’s vaccination appointment at 10am. More friends, some of them with very large followings, start spreading the paypal.me link around. Momentum begins to build.

February 23rd, Midday: We get to the vaccination place only to realize we forgot some things at the apartment. We quickly jog back across town and plan to ask them if it’s okay if we can go in to the apartment and retrieve it. When we get there, they’re still unloading the couple below us, and I notice they aren’t just taking UHaul boxes, but regular cardboard boxes, too. Given it’s been almost two hours, this might be second truckful, maybe even the third. I grab the stuff we’re missing and we head back to the vaccination park. Afterwards, we hang out at my brother’s just in case my mom has an allergic reaction to the vaccine and she needs help. She’s fine, and by the time we’re through there, it’s getting to be time to head back to our apartment for the night at 5pm. Before we leave my brother’s, I use their wifi to check my Paypal account. I joke, “I’m worried that I’ll open my account and it’ll say $2000.” Combined with the little bit of money I already had in my Paypal, the donations have pushed my account close to $2200. I burst out laughing. “YOU WANNA GO GET A HOTEL?!” I shout. We agree we’ll spend the night in the unit tonight and decide what we’ll take with us to the hotel in the morning.

February 23rd, Evening: It’s close to 6pm and the movers are still there. They were supposed to clock out almost an hour ago. I browse Tripadvisor and Expedia in the parking lot and decide to just book the same hotel they dangled in front of our faces, since reviews specifically point out it’s clean and has extremely good quarantine practices. Expedia lets me pay with Paypal directly, but there’s a problem where it won’t connect to my Paypal account. As I go to transfer the money out of my Paypal and finish booking the hotel, the wifi dies. The movers just unplugged our modem and packed it up. They probably weren’t supposed to do that, and they picked the worst time, too. We spend the next 45 minutes driving around town trying to find free wifi so I can book this hotel. We end up parking at my brother’s place and leeching his wifi from the driveway. Hotel booked, check-in is at 3pm on the 24th. For now, it’s back to the apartment to decide what to take with us.

February 23rd, Night: Upon getting back to the apartment around 7pm, we find it’s... a disaster area. They spent so long unloading all the other units, they did not have time to finish packing and unloading what was left in our unit. There’s garbage everywhere, it’s mixed in with the stuff we want to keep, some of it’s broken, it’s horrible. It looks like they just swept everything off the tables on to the floor. TV remotes and mail are spread out all over the place. They didn’t leave us any lamps, so the only lights in the apartment are the front door light, the kitchen light, and the bathroom light. They might have left us our mattresses, but they didn’t leave us any pillows or blankets. Still, we spent the better part of the night sorting through the “trash” and separating it out in to the stuff we wanted to keep. We pack up most of the apartment with whatever materials the movers left behind, but we eventually run out of boxes and tape. We still managed to pack 99.9% of what was left. From 7pm to 2:30am.

February 24th, Morning: At 7:30am I'm woken up by the movers pulling up. I can hear them joking in the parking lot about who gets the honor of being called "papi" and cracking rude jokes about "assuming gender." They probably think nobody's around to hear them. We ask them for more time so we can wake up and get dressed. As we're loading up the car with stuff to take to the hotel, we overhear the movers complaining about how they are being made to wait because we were supposed to be out of here by 8, and it's close to 9. My Mom gives them an earful about how little time we had to pack compared to how long we should've had. "That's been happening to a lot of people here." one of them tells her. My whole body hurts after days of little sleep and packing extremely heavy boxes. I’ve had a throbbing headache for almost 48 hours. With the dentist appointment at 3pm that afternoon, we go to a park and I doze in the car for another five hours.

February 24th, Afternoon: Dentist appointment goes smoothly; they offer to start surgery, but I explain to them what happened with the renovation and they are perfectly fine postponing until a later date. By now, my feet hurt where the soles of my shoes have been rubbing. My ankles and knees are hurting from being crunched up inside a car for two days. My back hurts from all the lifting. I’m beyond miserable and realize there’s no way I could bare to spend 10 days living in this car. Thankfully, with the dentist appointment out of the way, it’s check in time. The hotel room is nice, but given I’ve never stayed in a hotel before, I don’t have much of a comparison. But when I fall asleep that night, I sleep harder and longer than I have in years.

February 25th: The elderly couple that lived below us at the apartment are here at the same hotel we are, and we talk to them. Turns out, the lady has the same doctor as my Mom, and they were rejected from his note, too. The approval they got for the hotel came from her husband’s doctor, who wrote an extremely detailed note about his oxygen needs. They mention that people living in our complex with disabilities weren’t housed here and they don’t know where they are or what happened to them. They also claim that the food provision stuff from the apartment front office is apparently some kind of a $45/day meal credit we get at the end of the renovation. But again, it’s still not clear, and the apartment itself has never clarified. That night, we return to the apartment again to raid our fridge for stuff to bring to the hotel. Now, if you remember, we were supposed to be able to sleep at the apartment every night. The apartment we returned to was in such a state that it would have been impossible to sleep in. No sinks, no toilets, no stove, no running water of any kind, and all of the outlets stripped down. Literally the only thing we could have done was sleep there; nothing else was possible. And even then, remember: no bedding. No pillows, no blankets, and it’s still winter out there.

Update on things I forgot: Also on the 25th, elderly couple in the unit below us also told of how the movers had thrown their $950 couch outside and left it in the dirt for multiple days, asking if it was “trash” because one of the washable seat covers had a single pet stain on it. (When we visited the apartment that night to raid the fridge, we even saw it) Not only that, but last year, our bathroom tub had been leaking in to one of their closets. They had to shut our water off for several days and fix the pipes. Apparently this caused black mold in their apartment that wasn’t discovered until they started hauling boxes out. Upon bringing it up with the renovation team, they got told “there’s black mold everywhere! it’s in the grass! it’s fine!” The husband went in to take pictures of the black mold, but by the time he got over there with the camera, the renovation team had already painted over it. Apparently another tenant on the other side of the complex had mold problems so bad that she’s been paid to stay at this hotel for more than a month already while they deal with it.

Which brings us, roughly, to today.

Now, the question I mentioned way back at the top: what are my options here, legally? A lot of friends have told me up and down that this is either illegal, or should be illegal, but I have no idea where to start with any of this stuff and frankly I’m a little gun shy. I don’t know what Nevada housing law is like, what renters rights are, and I don’t want to risk being evicted. But I also know that the threat of being evicted is also what keeps people complacent.

All I really know is that basically everything they originally told us was a lie, and they never informed us of most of these changes. As for the rest, well... just read for yourself.

Whatever you know, I’d like to know.

#renovation #timeline

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kidscanbrief · 5 years

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Week 3

Today we presented our pitches that would ultimately decide what group we were put into for this brief. The idea of the pitches was to see what skills each person had and what things they could develop and work on, this is in order to widen the skills of everyone by putting people together that can learn from each other.

The first part of my presentation was the brief and what the brief was asking for. In this part I also included research into the charity ‘Kidscan’ to give myself a better understanding of the charity itself to help me in the long run and give me a better idea of what exactly the charity is about and what message it whats to relay the audiences.

In the next section of the presentation, I researched into existing charities campaigns. I researched into this so that I could see what techniques other charities, that may have more success or a bigger name than Kidscan, are doing to get their name and brand out there to audiences to get people to donate and create an awareness of them.

Save the children was an important charity to look at in comparison to Kidscan as its a very well known charity by a lot of people. However, Save the Children do use a lot of emotive videos in order to attract an audience, almost making audiences feel bad or guilty and making them feel like they have to donate, rather than doing it out of there own will. I don’t think that this is a very good approach when you’re trying to get people to donate to charity as I feel like donating your own money to help others should be something that you should do and feel good about yourself afterwards rather than feeling as if you were pressured into it. Therefore, I wouldn’t want to use a motion piece like this for Kidscan, although the video is effective at raising awareness of the charity and probably does get people to donate.

I really like this campaign done by British dyslexia association where screens were located in various places with long form text on. Using facial detection technology, the screens measured when someone stopped to read text so that the longer people looked, the more jumbled the words and letters became in order to show the public what it is like for people living with dyslexia. I think this interactive design that shows people what its like from a dyslexics world is very effective and is more likely to get people involved with the charity as they’ve had an actual experience with it that may make them feel more willing to donate rather than if they had just read the information from a poster or on a website.

I also think that this motion piece for the RNIB is effective as its also showing the audience what its like to experience it from another persons point of view that is dealing with the illness.

This is also an effective method as its a quick easy contactless payment that the public can use in seconds. Also, seen as the public can use WiFi and charge their phones from the bench, they would probably feel bad not to give something back. I think the idea of the bench telling people what the air quality is like in the area is also useful and effective as its raising awareness to the public which they may have not known before.

The final charity that I looked into was ‘The Passage’ which is a newer charity for homeless people. They showed the public a virtual reality experience of what its like being homeless and the things that they experience on a daily basis, this is an extremely effective method at raising awareness of homelessness as people probably wouldn’t have any clue on what it was like unless they had experienced it themselves, coming to the realisation of what its like for homeless people would probably open the public's eyes and make them more inclined to help out the homeless and probably donate to the charity.

Next, I looked at new technology approaches that had been used in campaigns or by brands outside of charities. I did this so I could see what ways brands were promoting their own brand in new innovative ways.

Even though some of these promotional campaigns were by big brands, I still think some of them are ineffective and don’t work. After presenting this to my class, we agreed that campaigns like the Tesco face scanning are not a successful way at promoting the brand, we felt like it was invading the public's privacy and they may not consent.

Then I started to come up with some of my own ideas of approaches that we could take in creating an interactive solution for Kidscan that would encourage the public to donate.

Idea 1: Charity app

An app that encourages users to raise money for charity everyday by walking, running, cycling as part of their usual exercise routine. The app can track the distance that the user has done and then donates a certain amount of money according to this. The app is easy to use and processes the payment automatically as long as you are tracking your exercise.

The app also benefits consumers by motivating users to exercise more. By using the app to encourage users to exercise more, the app is also helping to try and prevent these users being at risk of cancer as exercise has been linked to lowering the risk of various types of cancer.

Idea 2: Snapchat filters

A Snapchat filter perhaps used on world cancer day, where people can use the filter and once its posted or sent to someone else, a link can come up with the Snapchat that uses the filter, it can transfer the person receiving it to a page to donate to Kidscan.

The filter could include a different fact or piece of information about childhood cancer for each user. Therefore, if people are posting with the filter, people are finding out more information from each Snapchat, raising awareness of childhood cancer.

Idea 3: Interactive touch screens

A touchscreen display in public where people can interact with the board to find out information about cancer like treatments/cures, side effects, symptoms so that people can have more of an insight into childhood cancer.

The screens could be placed in places that parents or families may go so that it reaches out to that specific demographic (supermarkets, shopping centres etc).

Idea 4: A virtual reality experience

A lot of charities and campaigns seem to use the idea of giving people a virtual experience of what its like to deal with things that can effect certain people.

Perhaps Kidscan could use a VR experience to show what having cancer as a child is like, it could show how their life has changed from before they knew they had cancer to what their life is like now.

Kidscan also helps with children living in poverty so the virtual reality experience could show what it is like for these children, as it would show people how their life is so different to these children's life and how lucky they are, this may make them want to donate to the charity so they can help in some sort of way as it may be quite emotive for some audiences, especially parents.

After everyone had presented their pitches, each person in the class was put into the category that they had the most strength and skills in. These categories were ‘UX and UI graphical development’, ‘Motion’ and ‘Strategy’, I was placed in having the most skills in strategy, meaning I can come up with the ideas behind the project. From this I was put into a group with Matty and Glenn, I think we will work well as a team as we are all well organised and keen to get the job done, plus we all have different skills that we can bring to the project and teach eachother whilst doing this.

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robininthelabyrinth · 7 years

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Fic: Trouble on the Way - Chapter 1/4 (Ao3 link) Fandom: The Flash, DC's Legends of Tomorrow (total AU) Pairing: Mick Rory/Leonard Snart, very very mild hints of possible Barry Allen/Leonard Snart/Mick Rory if you want to read them in there Series: Sequel to Bad Moon Rising Warning: explicit adult content

Summary: It occurs to Len that maybe he's been willfully ignoring reality when it came to Mick's new condition. Oh, sure, he'd done the basic research, the public stuff, but he'd been so determined not to make Mick feel like any more of a freak than he already did that he'd perhaps skimped a little on some of the details that were turning out to be more relevant than he'd originally thought.

Time to fix that.

A/N: Will only make sense if you've read the first one in the series, as it follows straight on it, but I think the first one is one of my best standalones, so I'm making this a sequel instead

An executive decision was made that (in the spirit of the first one) this series is going to be like a minimum of 70% kinky smut, because we can always use more of that in this fandom, so, uh, mind the full set of warnings on Ao3.

Specially shout-out to @prouvairablehulk, who wanted very much to see this as a birthday gift - consider this a very belated one!

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Mick ends up making the chocolate chip pancakes, too, and insisting that Len eat some of those as well.

Len tries to sulk while he eats, because Mick is, as usual, cheerfully obstinate about explaining any details about, well, anything, but...it's very hard to convincingly sulk while eating chocolate chip pancakes piled high with whipped cream and maple syrup.

Not eating them when they're hot from the pan is, of course, unthinkable.

When Len is all full up on breakfast, to the point where he is seriously considering rolling himself back to bed for a nice follow-up nap, Mick finally stretches and pads out of the kitchen to start putting on his boots.

"Where are you going?" Len asks, twisting and frowning at him.

"Need to check out the various safehouses we’ve got," Mick says. "Full moon's coming up tomorrow."

"Is that going to be a problem?" Len asks. "You haven't needed the, uh..." He nods in the general direction of the old bank safe that they'd reserved for Mick's monthly complaint the first month or two. "...in a while, and you said you’d be better…?"

"Nah, nothing like that," Mick says. "Just some instinctual stuff. Don't worry about it. I'll be back in an hour or two."

"Okay," Len says, and waits for Mick to leave before going to get dressed himself. He gets the feeling that Mick intended for Len to stick around the house, lazing around the way he usually does after a night filled with adrenaline, but it occurs to him that he might have been willfully ignoring reality when it came to Mick's condition. Oh, sure, he'd done the basic research, the public stuff, but he'd been so determined not to make Mick feel like any more of a freak than he already did that he'd perhaps skimped a little on some of the details that were turning out to be more relevant than he'd originally thought.

Time to fix that.

He finds a WiFi hotspot with a public phone line he loop his burner phone into - three cheers for modern convenience - and dials the City Hall hotline.

"Welcome to Central City's supernatural service hotline," a perky recorded voice tells him. "We are happy to assist you with any supernatural issues you may be dealing with. If you're a homeowner concerned about the supernatural, press one." Len rolls his eyes. Of course they go first. "If you're a business owner looking for additional information about Central City's newly passed Supernatural Being Anti-Discrimination Act, or SBADA, please press two. If you've been recently transformed into -"

Len presses three. He didn't want the city's standard relax-its-fine patter; he wanted whatever the hell sort of intel it was that Mick got.

He ends up having to select werewolf out an increasingly bizarre list (vampire, sure, he gets, but he didn't even know you could be transformed into a dryad or a selkie - though maybe that's just more anti-discrimination measures?) and then waiting to be transferred to another line.

As he waits, he notices that some guy walking by is giving Len the eye. Like, he’s full on stopped walking and is staring, which, rude. Len knows he’s probably got a hell of a hickey (...hickies, plural, let's not lie to yourself, Leonard) from last night, which is probably what’s caught the guy’s attention, but still. Staring at Len like a yokel gawping at a tourist attraction is just not on. Len flips the guy off, making the man flush, cough a little, and skitter away.

"Thank you for calling the Central City Supernatural Hotline, werewolf division," a pleasant tenor chirps in Len's ear, drawing his attention back. "My name is Dan. How recently did you suffer the bite and are you in need of immediate medical assistance?"

"I feel like that question’d work better if I hadn't had to navigate a message tree to get here," Len says automatically, then shakes his head. He's here for answers, not for snark.

"We're aware of that difficulty," the man - Dan? Dan the werewolf? Really? Talk about family-friendly packaging - says apologetically. "While there is a supernatural division of 911 designated for immediate calls, sometimes people call this number instead. Is everything presently all right on your end?"

"Uh, yeah," Len says. "It's been - a few months already. Four or five or so." Very nearly seven, actually, if you counted by moons. "I just had a couple of questions about, uh, social aspects?"

"Oh, absolutely!" Dan trills, sounding legitimately delighted. They've got some heavy-duty telemarketer training over there, that's all Len's saying. "If you've been turned for a few months, then you should definitely be feeling the werewolf's innate need to join a pack. We have several excellent options right here in Central City -"

"Let's say I'd rather not," Len cuts in hastily before the guy can do his whole spiel.

“I would recommend against trying to stay on your own,” Dan says, in that irritating sympathetic voice people get when they think they know better than you but also that you’re only disagreeing with them because you’re poor, stupid and misguided. “As I’m sure you’ve realized, werewolves have extremely strong social instinct, much stronger even than regular humans. We’re not a species meant to live on our own. The pack instinct is one of the most dominating inclinations a werewolf can have outside of the moon, much stronger than either human or natural wolf instincts, and –”

"What if I wanted to start my own pack?" Len interrupts. “How’d I go about doing that?”

"Well, I wouldn't recommend that," Dan says, his voice notably less peppy. "It's a difficult and uncertain process, and -"

"Let's say I want to do it anyway. What happens?"

"Well, traditionally, self-started packs reflect natural wolf social standards, that of the family unit, which means you need to find a mate - and you must understand, it can't just be someone you're fond of, but someone strong and admirable that you can put first above all others -"

Well, so far, so good.

"- because the strength of a pack, you see, is judged a mix of two things: the power of the wolf and the strength of will of the mate, and that judgment can mean a lot of things for future social interactions with other packs, so it's really not a decision that ought to be entered into lightly. You have to think about the issues involved in taking a mate: commitment, for one thing; you don't want to commit to someone who isn't just as committed to you, especially in light of the changes that -"

"Yes, yes," Len says dismissively. He didn't really care what other changes Mick would undergo; Mick is his partner, damnit. Len is as committed as you get. Besides, Mick had said he would be calmer and more controlled now, which was all to the good. "What happens next, after you pick one?"

"Well," and now Dan sounded quite dubious, "the next step involves setting up a territory, usually a house or apartment, and engaging in acts of territorial display of both the location and the mate in question - especially in the beginning when the mate will be particularly appealing to other competitors in the period before the final claim, the degree of attractiveness depending on the desirable qualities of the mate you’ve chosen – demonstrations of willpower and independence in particular being the most attractive – but that's less important, really, I feel we should go back to discussing the issue of selecting a mate in the first place, which absolutely should not be done independently by a brand new wolf, without first bringing the intended mate in to talk with an established pack about the adjustments they will face -"

Len is not going to drag his relationship with his partner, now thirty years running, to goddamn City Hall for approval. Certainly not now that it’s apparently developed a sexual aspect, which they both seem to be pretty into and interested in continuing even now that the sorceress’ malediction has worn off.

Well, Len’s at least interested in continuing it, and judging from what Mick had promised over breakfast – plenty of pretty words about fucking Len till he couldn’t walk anymore, if Len recalls correctly – well, it sounded like he’s pretty interested in keeping it going, too.

"Got it," he says shortly. "Now, about mates, um - are there any sort of -" He hesitates a little, because he's not a shy man but he's in public and this is his and Mick's private business, but he's got to ask. "Are there any sort of unexpected sexual elements -"

"This hotline is not available to appease prurient interests," Dan cuts in, his voice suddenly steely. "If you want additional details, I suggest that you come down to City Hall and ask for them from a wolf in person - though you may not survive the encounter, so I'd recommend against it. It is absolutely none of your business; you're clearly not even a werewolf."

"But -"

"Thank you very much for calling, and have a nice day."

Then there's dial tone. Len stares at the phone. "Are you fucking kidding me?" he says, disbelievingly. Fucking Dan just hung up on him. He got hung up on by a hotline.

Well, that was a waste of time.

He didn’t even get to ask if lycanthropy could be sexually transmitted.

Len shakes his head and turns around and standing right behind Len, creepy as anything, is that fucking guy who was staring earlier, staring again. His nostrils flare like he's trying to smell Len or something, which is even creepier, and Len is taking a second to wonder how this guy snuck up on him, which is why the guy manages to stutter out, "Um, hi - I just -" and then he reaches out and cups Len's cheek with his hand.

What the fuck no.

Len snaps his hand up and catches a finger of the hand on his face, bending it backwards to the point of near snapping, sliding his leg forward and using his bulk and the man's own momentum to spin the guy around and slam him face-first against the nearest wall, arm jerked around behind his back until it's straining painfully out of its joint and Len still twisting the man's hand. He does it in one smooth move, so the guy barely has time to yelp before his face meets concrete wall.

"Now you listen here," Len says, very calmly. "I don't know what you think are proper manners when coming up to a stranger on the street, but I'm going to say that you're a very lucky man. You see, I gotta get back home, or else I'd show you, in detail, how inappropriate you were just being." He pulls the man's arm, forcing the man onto his tiptoes in an effort to reduce the strain, whimpering pitifully. "That being said, if I ever catch you just walking up to another person, any other person, that you don’t know and don’t know you and touching them like that again, you will lose the hand you did it with. We clear?"

"Clear!" the man squeaks.

"Good," Len says, voice still calm. Grabby assholes like this aren’t worth getting angry about, though he must admit that he hasn’t had to deal with them that much personally since his height first cracked six feet. "Then we're done here. No, wait -" He spins the man back around and slams his fist into the tender part of the man’s stomach, making the man retch and clutch at his midsection and fall back on his ass, back against the wall. Weakling. "- now we're done. Keep the bruises as a reminder."

With that, he turns on his heel and stalks off in the direction of home, uncomfortably aware that the guy behind him on the ground - and a small handful of other people in the milling crowd - are staring after him. Not creepy-staring, at least; more "put in their proper place" staring or "unaccustomed to public violence" staring, but whatever. Still staring. Fuck all of them.

Dan on the phone was basically useless, but he did say something about Mick being extra territorial for a bit, which means Len's got to get back to the safehouse before Mick realizes he's gone and starts burning things to relieve his anxiety.

Len was gone maybe thirty, forty minutes, tops, but Mick still beats him back home and is looking through the rooms of their safehouse with an anxious expression that eases when he sees Len. "Where'd you go?" his partner asks, stepping forward and pulling Len effortlessly into his arms, which is - unexpected, but rather nice, actually, the way Mick does it, all telegraphed motions and slow enough that Len can break away if he wants. Len can feel the tension from his earlier encounter seeping away into Mick's warmth. Mm, maybe he can ask for another massage. That is definitely a relationship perk that Len is going to insist on keeping.

"Nowhere important," Len says. "Wanted to jack the WiFi from somewhere that won't lead back to our safehouse, s’all."

Mick puts a hand on his cheek, right where the other guy had it, and pulls Len into a kiss. A hell of a kiss, too; it's messy and hard, just right, less a greeting than the promise of a real good fuck later, Mick's hands sliding down to cup Len's ass and bend him backward a bit as Len puts his hands on Mick's arm and back and kisses back as hard as he can.

Screw a good fuck later, that’s a promise of a good fuck now.

Yeah, Len's definitely okay with this whole mate thing. Pancakes, massages, and Mick's total devotion - what's not to like? He can handle Mick being territorial for a while; honestly, he can't see it being that different from usual. Even before the transformation, Mick was a possessive bastard, looming at Len's shoulder like a warning; back when they were in prison, especially in the beginning before Len had developed his reputation for viciousness and all people had to judge him on was his pretty face, Mick'd started fights over Len like that was his job.

Len chuckles a little at the memory and Mick breaks away.

"What's so funny?" Mick says gruffly, his voice deep like it had been yesterday, sexual and hungry, and it sent a shiver of lust through Len's spine like he’d already developed Pavlov's dog reaction to it. Fuck Mick's voice; how does he get it to just the right timbre to bypass Len’s conscious mind and go straight to his cock?

"Just thinking about being in the can, back in the early days," Len says. "You getting into that fight with the entire bleachers gang -"

"Yeah," Mick says, his voice getting deeper, somehow, his eyes glazing over with memory. He presses up against Len and Len can feel how hard he is; looks like bringing up that memory is like touching a live wire for Mick's libido right now. "Yeah, I remember that - they wanted your ass and I put them all down, every one of them, for even thinking of touching you -"

Territoriality, check. Len hides a smile; thank you, hotline Dan.

Mick's pressing his mouth against Len's jawline and kissing along his cheek, like he's determined to cover every square inch of where his hand had been earlier. "Yeah," he says again. "Len - Lenny -"

"Yeah?" Len says, rocking his hips back against Mick's, teasing them both with the glancing contact. It's been hours and hours since yesterday, and Len's sex drive has always been pretty high octane; he's ready to go again, definitely. All this talk of territory is revving him up as well - no one ever said Len wasn't a possessive bastard, too. No fucking City Hall pack taking away Mick, no sir, not while Len's around. He can handle this even without full information, so fuck you, hotline Dan.

"I want you," Mick says like it's not obvious.

"Sure," Len says agreeably, reaching down and cupping Mick's ass with both hands. "And how, exactly, do you want me?"

Okay, so the dirty talk yesterday really worked for Len. So sue him.

"I'm gonna fuck your face," Mick says, eyes gleaming. "I'm gonna take you up to bed, gonna push you down and climb on top of you; you'll be lying back, head on the pillows, no leverage at all, hands trapped under my legs - you won't be able to do anything but take it, how and when I feel like giving it to you -"

Len groans and kisses Mick, filthy and wet and open-mouthed. "What're you waiting for, then?" he says goadingly. "Let's do that."

Mick slides his hands down and Len knows he's going to try to lift Len before he does it, so Len helps, sliding both legs up around Mick's waist, trusting Mick's enhanced strength to carry him, and fuck, he loves it, he loves how easily Mick hoists him up; he liked being pinned, being manhandled, back when he was a teenager and waiting for that final growth spurt, and no one'd ever managed it properly since. No one until Mick, and that was even better - the hands that supported him on every mission, in every endeavor, pulling him up and moving him however Mick pleased; the guy that had his back, the guy who always listened and was the very first person to ever call Len 'boss', now taking charge and taking control, taking anything he wanted and Len letting him because he trusts him -

Len groans and starts working on a hickey on Mick's neck as well. Stupid werewolf healing probably meant it'd be gone within hours, but everyone on the street got to see that Mick had marked Len, so everyone should also see that Mick had been marked by Len as well. A sign to everyone: this one is taken, this one is mine. Yeah, Len likes the sound of that.

And if it fades, well, Len will just have to do it again. It's a sacrifice he's willing to make...

Mick carries Len to his bedroom - Mick's, not Len's, which Len doesn’t mind in the slightest - and they can't get their hands off of each other the entire time. Len's managed to get Mick's suspenders off, hanging down low by his hips, and his hands under Mick's shirt, and then Mick dumps him on the edge of the bed, pulling away to strip off. Len pulls the stuff out of his pockets and dumps it on the bedside table, peeling off his pants and stripping off his shirt and sweater - why did he bother putting on so many layers again? - and he's just gotten naked when Mick is on him again, pulling him in for a kiss before pushing him back on the bed.

Len wiggles back until he's comfortable, his shoulders and neck supported by pillows, Mick watching him hungrily the entire time and then throwing a leg over him, settling down on Len's chest. Len's arms are pinned down by Mick's legs, just as Mick had said; he can run his hands along Mick's calves or the back of his thighs, but he can't get the leverage to escape, and he can't get free enough to touch himself at all.

Pinned down at Mick's mercy.

"You want my mouth?" Len says, looking up at Mick, who was so goddamn beautiful naked; his arms and chest and legs well-defined, muscles straining - real muscle, the sort you get from hard work and exercise, from lifting safes during heists and picking fights, and the slight plush curve of his stomach that Len had the sudden urge to run his cheek against, feeling the softness in contrast to the rest of Mick, warm and giving. And Mick's cock was big and heavy and hard and right there, making Len's mouth water. "You gonna give it to me, Mick? Shut me up?"

"I like it when you talk," Mick says unexpectedly. "I like how fucking smart you are, even when sometimes you go on about it too long." He smirks. "It's great background filler."

"You dick," Len says fondly.

"Yeah," Mick says. "Glad you noticed it; otherwise I might have to question your eyesight."

Len snickers. "Well, when the evidence is right in front of me -"

"You know what, I think you’re right, it’s definitely time to shut up, Lenny," Mick says with a chuckle of his own. He reaches for Len's head, wrapping one hand around the side and using his other hand to thumb Len's mouth open. "Time to use that smartass mouth of yours for something more useful."

Len would retort, but Mick's fingers are sliding into his mouth, heavy on his tongue, and he opts to suck on them instead, laving them with his tongue as he does, his eyes looking up at Mick's face. Mick starts moving his fingers in and out a little, mimicking the act of fucking, and his face is rapt with attention. Like he can't get enough of watching Len.

Len tries all the tricks he knows, using his tongue to show off what he'd do to Mick's cock if only he got a chance, but Mick keeps his fingers there instead, moving gently and infuriatingly slowly, until Len pulls back his head just the littlest amount the pillows allow him and Mick immediately removes his fingers in response. "Well?" Len pants, looking up at Mick. "You want my mouth or not? You just gonna play all day, or you gonna fuck me?"

Mick smirks and Len abruptly realizes that this is what Mick's been waiting for, that they've been playing a game of chicken and he hadn't even noticed. "You want my cock, huh?" Mick asks. "Is that what you want? My fingers not enough for you, huh? You need more? Gotta have more?"

"Yeah," Len says, because shame is useless to him when Mick is there instead, because Mick of all people will never use anything Len says against him. "Yeah, I want your cock, Mick, I want it in my mouth. I wanna taste you, I wanna suck you - I want my jaw to hurt 'cause I've been sucking you so long, 'cause I can't get enough of you; want to be on my knees or back for you all day, please, Mick, give it to me - let me blow you, let me suck you off - please -"

"Fuck," Mick breathes, eyes wide and cock twitching. So beautiful, Mick is, at the mercy of Len's voice even in a position where he has all the power. "Fuck, Lenny, you're so goddamn pretty when you beg for my cock -"

Len runs his hands over Mick where he can reach, looking up at Mick through his eyelashes. "C'mon, Mick," he coaxes. "Don't keep me waiting, don't keep me hanging - I want you to give it to me, I want you, I want your cock in my mouth -"

Mick groans and finally, finally, slides forward, pushing Len's mouth open with his fingers - Len's happy to comply - and using his other hand to guide his cock in. Len hums happily and takes it, sucking as best as he can in this angle, but this position gives Mick all the power, all the control; he can move as slow or as fast as he likes. And he's chosen slow, torturously slow, fucking Len's face with gentle, rocking motions of his hips, giving Len just a taste of him.

Len whines a little, wanting more, and Mick snarls with pleasure, thrusts changing until he's deeper, still moving slow but letting himself pull almost all the way out and the sliding in, big and relentless until Len's almost choking on him, would be choking on him if he hadn't gotten rid of his gag reflex years ago, practicing on other, lesser people. There's nothing Len can do, his own cock twitching untouched, his hips jerking futilely; he just lies there and takes it, takes whatever Mick wants to give him, and what Mick wants to give him is slow and intense and fuck, Len's going to go crazy -

Len's phone rings.

What the fuck.

Both Mick and Len stop where they are; Len can't even turn and stare incredulously at the phone like he wants to, his mouth still wrapped around Mick, but - seriously? Who the fuck is even calling?

Mick reaches over - the temporary change in angle making him slide in just that little bit deeper - and picks up the cell phone to look at the caller ID.

Len would ask who it was, but, again, his mouth is stuffed full of cock. He expects Mick to hit ignore and get back to what they're doing, but unexpectedly Mick chuckles.

And then he answers the phone, what the hell.

"Hi, Flash," Mick says, and then Len does actually choke a bit, mostly in surprise; shit, the Flash must be calling to arrange their post-fight download - normally Len calls him, not vice versa, but Len had totally forgotten about it today in light of pancakes and werewolf issues -

Len tries to wiggle a little, trying to indicate to Mick with his eyebrows that Mick should pull out and give Len the phone, but Mick ignores him, reaching down with his free hand to wrap his fingers back around Len's head, and he starts moving his hips again, thrusting into Len's mouth in long, rolling thrusts just like Len likes.

"No, Len can't come to the phone right now," Mick says into the cell. "He's a bit pinned down at the moment - "

Len can't believe Mick sometimes. He isn't seriously -

Yes, yes he is.

The worst part of it, too, is that Len can feel his cock twitching at it, because he likes this, too; he likes the idea that Mick's talking to the Flash, casual as anything, while Len gags on his cock, sucking him off as best as he can. Fuck, and the Flash would have no idea, of course, just talking on the phone like normal, no idea that Len's pinned there and Mick's taking his mouth like it's his right, not unless he hears the slick sound of Mick's cock moving in and out of Len's mouth -

Len moans around Mick's cock, his voice muffled, and starts sucking again in earnest.

"Yeah, he's all filled up with other stuff today," Mick says into the phone, hips moving faster now. "Schedule's totally -" he thrusts in again "- full, I'm afraid. And tomorrow's the moon, so I wouldn't recommend it - maybe the day after?"

Len whines a little, knowing there's a risk the Flash could hear him - goddamn supernatural senses - and finding himself unable to care, the thought of it spurring him on, making him moan and whimper under Mick, suddenly vocal, and that just makes Mick go faster, too.

"Yeah, that'll work," Mick says, voice straining a little to keep his calm. "I'll tell him. He'll call you. Yeah, sounds good. Bye."

He pulls the phone away from his ear and clicks the end call button with a vicious jab of his finger, throwing Len's phone carelessly across the room a second later.

"You liked that, didn't you?" he growls, voice making Len's hips jerk up helplessly in automatic response. "You liked moaning and whimpering like that, liked the idea of him hearing you, hearing how much you want me, how much you're mine - you don't care, you're shameless, you'd be on your knees for me in a heartbeat, no matter who's around, you'd let me push you over the bar at Saints, let me have you right there where everyone can see, show them all that you belong to me, that you want me - me and nobody else -"

Len keens a little. Yes, yes, Len's Mick's, whatever Mick wants, yes -

" - yeah, you can't keep off of me, can you?" Mick says, and his voice is ragged, breath coming hard. "You can't stay away, you need me, my Len, my Lenny - you're all mine, body and soul, my mate, and no one else gets to touch you - just me, whenever I want, however I want, and you'll let me do anything I want because you want me that fucking much -"

He pulls out of Len's mouth abruptly, wrapping his hand around himself and starting to jerk himself off. "Gonna come on your face," he pants. "Gonna mark you up, gonna show everyone you're mine -"

"Yeah," Len says, voice raspy. "Yeah, Mick, all yours, always yours, anything you want, because you're mine, too -"

He closes his eyes and opens his mouth, and with a grunt Mick comes, spurting on Len's lips, Len's cheeks, and Len lets his tongue flick out to catch some because it makes Mick groan, makes him pump out a bit more until Len's dripping with it. Definitely more than a human would produce, Len thinks to himself, and then Mick's thumb is there, rubbing it into Len's cheek.

"Show them," Mick mutters to himself, sounding almost dazed. "I'm gonna show them you're mine - they shouldn't touch you, how dare they touch you -"

The man from earlier, Len suddenly realizes; Mick must've smelled his hand or something. He can't help but smirk - if this is what it gets him, then maybe Len shouldn't have been so mean to the man.

Nah. Creepster deserved it.

Mick leans down and kisses Len, hard, possessive. Len's breathing hard when Mick pulls back.

"You know," Len pants, "I think we're forgetting something important here."

Mick draws back a little, letting Len prop himself up on his elbows. "How's that?" he asks, starting to smirk a little.

"Yeah, me," Len says tartly. "Only one of us got off just now, if you remember."

"Oh, I remember," Mick says, his smirk growing wide and wolfish. He rolls off of Len onto his side on the bed, running a lazy hand down Len’s torso teasingly.

"Well?” Len prods, pointedly arching his hips up a little. “You going to do something about it?"

Mick’s hand goes lower and lower and right as he gets an inch away – "Nope."

"Nope?!” Len yelps. “What do you mean, nope?"

"I mean, nope," Mick says, and stretches lazily. Len's protest catches in his throat as he watches Mick, glorious in his nudity.

Well, if Mick won't offer a hand for some reason known only to him, at least he provides a hell of a visual. Len's been jerking it to Mick on the down low for years anyway; Mick sated and post-coital is even hotter than he imagined it being.

But as Len reaches for himself, Mick catches his wrist.

"Mick," Len says warningly.

"Nope," Mick says, smirking.

"I wanna get off, Mick," Len says, aware that he's perilously close to whining.

"But you're not going to," Mick says confidently. "My werewolf metabolism means I'm gonna be ready to go again in a couple of hours, but if you get off now, you'll be too tired for more than one other round today. So you're going to keep your hands to yourself like a good boy, and I'll let you ride my cock later on."

Len swallows. "You make it sound like something we wouldn't do anyway," he says haughtily, but unfortunately he's naked and Mick can see the way his cock jumped a little at his words, which Len is choosing to ascribe to his stupid Pavlov's dog reaction to Mick's voice.

"Oh, I'm going to fuck you later," Mick says agreeably. "That's not in question. Full moon's tomorrow, and I'm going to spend all night and day fucking you till you forget your own name. But I want it to be good for you, so if you just be good for a few more hours, till the sun sets, I'll let you set the speed for the first round, let you crawl up into my lap like the needy thing you are and make me give it to you as long and as hard as you like. Or you can jerk off now. The choice is all yours."

He leans in close, his eyes fixed on Len's, face close enough that Len can feel his breath. "How's it gonna be, Lenny? You gonna be a good boy for me?"

"Yeah," Len breathes, and Mick kisses him like a reward.

Then he pulls away and gets up out of bed. "I'm going to pack our stuff," he says. "I've decided - as much as I like this place, lots of nice memories already - that the house on Sullivan will be most appropriate for the full moon this month."

The house on Sullivan is in the rich man's district, empty for the summer as they flee to cooler climes. It's a long abandoned house, ugly as sin on the outside but sweet as hell on the inside. It's got a king sized bed, soft as a cloud.

"Okay," Len says. "Sullivan is fine."

Mick pads towards the door.

"Hey, Mick," Len says. Mick looks back, raising his eyebrows. "How will you know if I've listened to you or not?"

Mick smirks. "I'll smell it on you. Like I said, Lenny; choice is all yours."

Len watches him go, then looks down. He's hard enough for it to start to ache with the need for release, between the events of yesterday and today, and he's never gone without unless circumstances meant he had to. Besides, it's not like Mick won't fuck him either way, and it's not like he needs a particular position or -

Fuck.

Fucking Mick and his way of finding kinks Len didn't even know he had. Len wouldn't put up with this shit if it wasn't Mick, but Mick has a way of making it seem like it would be worth it and damnit, Len actually does trust him that it will be worth it.

Len rolls out of bed, and pulls on his pants grumpily.

Len’d never tell anyone, but the smile Mick gives him when he joins him in the packing is worth it already.

#my fic #dccoldwave #mick rory #leonard snart #bad moon rising

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the-headbanging-ballerina · 7 years

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Cultural Appropriation Rant From A Caribbean Perspective

So y'all wanna talk about “share your culture” but banning immigrants and everybody who doesn’t fit your standard white ideals. Firstly, culture is developed based on the people in a geographic location and their history. The Caribbean has an extremely rich history with many different groups being brought here and thus our unique culture was created. Culture evolves and changes and by no means am I saying theres a problem with people enjoying our culture. The problem is when they do so without acknowledging its origins. yall out here feeling like twerking is a new thing when we been here winning and bubbling since the beginning of time basically. Our beats and our rhythm that a lot of foreign artists all of a sudden want to mimic and yall think this is so new and cool and completely unaware of where it comes from. And these are artists are here shamelessly taking all the praise. Yall out here and wanna be edgy and cool and cultured so bad but yall so damn uneducated. Why is it that yall want the accent, the body, the music, the dances but when we travel we still get questions like “what tribe are you from?” “Do you eat coconuts everyday?” “Do you even speak english?” “Is that in Africa?” “Do you have wifi?” “Do you have like one school on the island?” Yall are so oblivious to life here. These people conveniently acknowledge us then proceed to claim what is our culture and act like its theirs. So you want us to “share” our culture? Know it first. And know that it is not yours and you haven’t discovered something new. “Share” our culture? You want us to share our culture, 1 it doesn’t work that way, 2 yall don’t even want us in your country but you want to conveniently use ours. Yall also feel a need to "fix us". Nothing is wrong with us and our culture. You can't say we're ghetto or have no morals or are promiscuous and vulgar and all sorts of shit about is and our festivals and how we live life. You can't speak about or judge Caribbean culture because you are not apart of it and don't understand it. We live our lives and have our systems and values in place based on our needs and how we live life. So by all means, enjoy it, but know the truth about it first please. It’s for us, not you. And don't judge my culture then wanna jump on the bandwagon. Don't try to judge my culture when you've never lived in it. This is all entirely my opinion, I am by no means speaking on behalf of every Caribbean person. I just have never seen anyone else speak up about it and I felt to.

#cultural appropriation #caribbean #trinidad #music #soca #dancehall #dance #carnival #drake #trinidad and tobago

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charllieeldridge · 4 years

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15 Must-Have Items For A Remote Work Office

One of the best parts about being a digital nomad, travel blogger & web entrepreneur is the ability to work anywhere in the world from a remote office.

We’ve set up our office on the beach, in the middle of the rainforest, beside a waterfall, on top of a mountain and on the shores of a volcanic lake.

But even though the best part of a remote office is often the location, there are a few other things that you can do to really improve your workspace.

Over the years we’ve found some pretty amazing tools that have helped us to be more ergonomic, more efficient, and more excited to be location independent.

Waking up with a coffee in hand, still in our pyjamas and sitting down at our perfectly set up remote office is still a reminder of how happy we are to be away from our office & oil rig jobs back in Canada.

In this post I’m going to share our favourite gadgets and tools that we use every day to maximize the “cool factor” of our remote office.

These are all add-ons, apps, software, and gadgets to make your location independent work life easier. If you’re a digital nomad or just a person who spends a lot of time working from your computer, then this post is perfect for you!

Let’s get started…

In Case You’re Wondering, Our Computers Are:

2019 MacBook Pro 13″

2019 MacBook Pro 15″

Disclaimer: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links, which means that if you make a purchase through them, Amazon gives us a small commission, but you will never pay anything extra. These links help to keep this blog running for free, so we do appreciate your support. Also, I’ve added prices to many of these items, but prices on Amazon fluctuate frequently, so note that prices may vary slightly depending on current sales & promotions.

1. Laptop Stand

This is an essential and once you have one, you won’t ever want to go back to looking down at your laptop screen. By easily elevating your laptop, you can look straight forward, making your remote office much more ergonomic.

You can also easily adjust the height to be just right, no matter what table you’re sitting at.

For portability and ease of use, we recommend the Roost Portable Laptop stand. At just 3.2 ounces, and folding up to just 13″ x 1.3 inches, this case proves that good things do come in small packages.

It can raise your laptop up to 12 inches off your desktop surface and helps make your remote office more ergonomic in just a few seconds.

ROOST PORTABLE LAPTOP STAND ON AMAZON (From $75)

Update: We now have 27″ LG monitors for our computers, which aren’t good for when you’re moving around, but if you’re working from home, it’s nice to have a large screen.

2. Cordless Mouse / Trackpad & Keyboard

A cordless keyboard and mouse (or trackpad) is essential if you’re going to have a laptop stand because once you place your computer on the stand, the keyboard and trackpad will be out of reach and at an awkward angle.

Because I use a Macbook Pro, I have an Apple keyboard and trackpad. I love the trackpad, but there are definitely more ergonomic keyboards available on the market both for Mac and for PC.

If you are a Mac user and decide to shop for non-Apple products, Just be sure that they’re compatible with your Mac product and its current operating system (most are).

I still love the tip-tap feeling of a good Apple magic keyboard, so I do forgo some ergonomics for the more compatible set-up.

Apple keyboard & mouse COMBO ON AMAZON (from $213)

SEE ALSO: 10 Best Tips For Working Remotely From Home

3. Portable Projector

A portable projector isn’t just a great item for a remote office, it’s an essential travel item that I think everyone should have!

If you do a lot of presentations, Powerpoints etc, then a small, palm-sized projector is essential. But even if you don’t often use them for work, these things are great for watching movies while on the road.

We used to have the Rif6 Cube and it was okay for the time, but the resolution was pretty bad and it just wasn’t very bright. Currently we have the Axxa P300 Pico Projector and we love this thing.

It’s bright enough that you can watch it during the day with the curtains drawn and with 720p HD resolution that fits in the palm of your hand, it’s an incredible piece of tech.

When we first picked the P300 up, we just displayed it on the white wall at our apartment and it looked great. Also, if you’re planning a bit of “van life” you can just use your white sheet draped over the side of your campervan and have a theatre anywhere you stop for the night.

Since we’re living in Grenada for a while, we picked up a cheap projector screen on Amazon and now our theatre room is looking pretty amazing. Pair this with a good set of Bluetooth speakers and you’re good to go.

axxa projector on amazon (from $269)

4. Better Back

If you watch Shark Tank, you may have seen this wonderful contraption come into the “tank” and if you’re like us, you were instantly hooked.

Dariece has already had a history of back pain, so this ergonomic posture control system could be a lifesaver. We’ve both been waiting to be a bit more stationary to pick these things up, but they have been proven to help with lower back pain, inflammation and aches.

Basically a strap goes around your knees and then up around your lower back to make sure you’re keeping your body in the optimal position while working at your remote office.

The product folds up small enough to fit into a purse or a small backpack, so you can pretty much take it anywhere.

Betterback on amazon (from $59)

5. Wi-fi Range Extender

If you’re sick of trying to connect to the internet and seeing only 2 signal bars, you NEED to pick up a range extender.

I honestly don’t know what we did without this thing. Basically, it’s a tiny little device that you plug into the wall. Once you set it up to be connected to the wifi at your hotel / hostel / cafe / apartment, etc., it can extend the signal by up to 3X.

If there are dead zones in your accommodation, you should get one of these. They’re only about $70 on Amazon, are very compact and they’re a lifesaver for remote offices.

I recommend the NETGEAR AC1200 Wall Plug Version Wi-Fi Range Extender. It has a dual antenna system that offers further range, compact size and amazing speeds.

I can’t count the number of times that we checked into a hotel that claims to have “wi-fi in every room” only to lie on the bed and see that I can’t connect to the signal.

Once I plug-in the range extender, the signal goes up to full bars and suddenly the internet is as fast as it would be if I was sitting right next to the router.

AC1200 RANGE EXTENDER ON AMAZON (FROM $65)

6. Surge Protector & Multi-Plug

There are simply never enough plugins. Whether you’re in your hotel room, at the airport, at a cafe or sitting in your house, every remote worker needs more power!

Not only that, but there are also unreliable outlets all around the world where power surges can quickly destroy your electronics. A good surge protector and multi-plug is an essential item for any remote office.

When you’re shopping for a multi-plug, make sure that it has at least 3 DC power spots, a few USB and USB-C outs and of course, make sure you also have an international adapter so that you can plug it in wherever you are.

For sheer portability and functionality, I prefer the Belkin SurgePlus Swivel Power Adapters, but there are also some other great options on Amazon.

Belkin surge protectors on amazon (from $15)

7. Noise Cancelling Headphones

There’s nothing worse than sitting down at a cafe to get some work done and a loud group of people shows up. Pop in a set of noise cancelling earbuds and suddenly the world around you disappears.

Personally, I can work fine with lyrical music, but Dariece prefers to listen to music without words while she works. We use YouTube to search for classical or vocal-free playlists, but you can also easily find them on Spotify and Pandora.

To keep it compact and portable, I prefer to use earbud-style, noise canceling headphones. They don’t cancel as much noise as the full ear covering style, but they are about 1/100th the size and weight.

For anything audible, I always recommend Bose. They make an amazing set of noise cancelling earbuds (Bose QualityComfort 20), but at $250, they’re a bit steep.

For a bit of a cheaper set, you may want to check out TaoTronics Active Noise Cancelling Ear Buds which come in at a much more reasonable $50 or so.

If you’re not a person who tends to lose small things while travelling, consider picking up a pair of wireless bluetooth noise cancelling headphones.

noise cancelling earbuds on amazon (from $50)

8. Power Bank

No remote office is complete without a good power bank. No matter how many power outlets there are, there can always be outages or places get too busy to plug in.

The power bank technology has improved drastically over the years and now there are power banks that can even charge DC outlet devices like older laptops and camera batteries.

Power banks that have USB and DC charge functionality tend to be a bit larger, but they also offer a lot more juice. Some power banks can charge a 3 devices at once including a laptop from 0% – 100% and an iPhone over 20 times!

find AC power banks ON AMAZON (from $79)

9. External Hard Drive

Even though we upgraded our laptops to have over 2TB of SSD disk space each, we still love to have an external hard drive.

Make sure if you’re shopping for external hard drives that you pick up an SSD and not an HDD. HDD (Hard Disk Drives) are the older model of hard drives and they have a very tiny needle and disk to read the data. This means that they’re extremely fragile.

I’ve personally dropped a 1TB HDD hard drive and lost all of my data. Sure you can recover the data by taking it in and spending more money than the hard drive is worth, but why not just buy a more durable SSD in the first place. They’re faster, more compact and most importantly, more durable.

FIND SSD HARD DRIVES ON AMAZON (from $99)

10. 1080p Webcam & A Good Microphone

Our job sometimes requires us to do interviews for podcasts, YouTube and big media. There’s nothing worse than watching back an interview and having poor quality audio and video.

It just doesn’t look professional. We’re also now creating WordPress Blogger Courses and I wanted to make sure that my course looks and sounds as professional as possible.

You may be thinking that the built-in webcam and mic that came with your laptop is just fine, and if you don’t ever use them for creating video content, voiceovers or interviews, then you’re probably right.

But if you ever record audio or video with your computer, you should pick up a cheap mic and webcam on Amazon.

I highly recommend having a good mic. Believe it or not, it’s actually more important (in my opinion) than a good camera. By having your voice full and clear, you’ll be able to present your message in a professional way.

We’ve used the Samsung GoMic in the past and it’s decent, but now we’re using a (much larger) Pyle USB mic. The best USB mic on the market right now is probably the Blue Yetti Blackout Edition and it’s still compact enough to travel with.

For our webcam we have a Logitech c615 1080p Webcam and it looks great. If you want to have some shots further away from your computer, I’d also recommend picking up a USB cord extension.

find webcams and mics on amazon (from $19)

11. A Good Electronics Bag

If you find yourself heading at cafes or co-working spaces to set up your remote office, then you may want to pick up a good travel rucksack for your electronics.

There are so many on the market, but the best ones will be lightweight, easily organized and often have their own power banks built in. I still love Vanguard bags and highly recommend them as they’re durable, lightweight and super well-thought-out.

I used the Vanguard Uprise II bag for my Phantom drone when I had it, but now with the much smaller Mavic and Spark drones on the market, you really don’t need such a large backpack. The best overall electronics bag right now is probably the eBags Pro Series Backpack.

Find electronics bags on amazon (from $99)

12. aText

A good remote office is one that helps you be as efficient as possible and this cheap app for Mac has saved me hundreds of hours over the years. It really is one of the best productivity apps out there.

Basically it allows you to type special codes that you set yourself and it will auto-paste content for you.

For example, I have an aText code saved for every one of my affiliate links. So if I am writing an email or a blog post and I want to add my affiliate link for World Nomads Insurance, I simply type WNlink and it pastes the URL for me.

Similarly, I have an aText code for a lot of different email templates.

As a blogger, I get requests for ads, sponsors and brand ambassadorships on a regular basis.

If the person sending the email sounds serious, I’ll type them a personalized email, but 90% of the time I just type in my code and automatically paste a 4 – 5 paragraph email explaining what we can offer, what our rates are, how we can work together etc.

If you get a lot of the same questions via email, aText is great. For example, we have people emailing us about where to rent a motorbike in Viñales, Cuba all of the time (even though I wrote the address in our guide).

Instead of emailing each person back separately, I just type “cubabike” in the email and it automatically pastes:

Hello,

thanks for emailing us and for reading our blog! You can rent motorbikes on the main road in Viñales near the bus station. We paid $20 / day for 3 days, but I believe they cost $25 per day for shorter-term rentals. I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any more questions.

Best,

Nick.

Before aText I found myself writing that email out over and over again every week. I have dozens of codes for emails, affiliate links, blog post templates, HTML and more. It’s the best productivity tool that nobody seems to know about.

Download atext now ($4.99)

13. Better Touch Tool

Another great little app for Mac, Better Touch Tool allows you to program specific functions into your trackpad.

If you’re already a Mac user, you’ll know that Apple comes with a few of these standard gestures like 2-finger scroll down, 5 finger together brings up the app window etc., but with BTT, you can program a nearly unlimited amount of custom gestures.

For example, you can make a 3 finger click to open up Google Chrome.

You can even program a series of finger gestures to do a wide range of complex requests on your Mac. I have so many of these set that I can basically do everything I want right from my trackpad.

It may not sound like that big of a time-saver, but once you’ve mastered and memorized a dozen or so custom gestures, you’ll shave milliseconds off of every command you do on your computer.

Those milliseconds quickly add up and over the course of a month you could be saving hours.

Download BTT now (FREE)

14. Handpresso

Waking up to no alarm, rolling over in bed and getting to work in your pyjamas is great, but what would it be without a delicious cup of espresso coffee?

The Handpresso is one of our favourite travel tools and it really does add to our remote office, especially when we’re travelling and staying in hotels & guest houses that don’t have an espresso machine.

All you have to do is buy some espresso coffee grounds, pack a pod, pump up the Handpresso, add some hot water and voila! You have a delicious cup of coffee every time.

At the time of writing, we have a nice electric espresso machine in our house in Grenada, but for when on the road, the Handpresso is our go-to.

I really can’t recommend this thing enough. It’s a bit heavy, but if you’re like Dariece and I and you don’t enjoy filtered coffee, then this is a must-have travel item for sure.

shop for handpresso on amazon (from $100)

15. Wireless Hot Spot

We never travel without a local SIM card because you never know when your wifi is going to go out randomly. That’s why a portable hot spot is a must-have travel item.

If you already have an iPhone, you can likely just tether your computer to the mobile data by following these steps, but if you want to have multiple devices hooked up, don’t want to waste your phone battery or want further range, you should definitely consider a mobile hot spot device.

For speed, portability, ease of use and nice design, I’d say that the Huawei E5787s-33a is the best on the market. It supports up to 10 devices at once, offers 10 hours of battery life at full use and works pretty much anywhere in the world.

It also has blazing fast speeds at up to 300mb/s when hooked up to a good 4G/LTE network.

You can pair a wireless hot spot with a good international SIM card as well. These cards tend to be a bit slower than local SIMs, but they are still convenient for when you first arrive at airports and don’t have a local SIM yet.

Huawei hot spots on amazon (from $220)

In Closing

Starting to shop for remote office gadgets on Amazon can be a slippery slope! There are just so many cool products available on the market and as this laptop lifestyle movement continues to grow worldwide, we’re seeing more and more nomad-friendly products available.

While I have seen plenty more items online and in stores, these are the ones that we’ve found that we actually believe to be essential in creating the perfect remote office.

What are your favourite products and how did you create the perfect remote office for yourself? Share with us in the comments below!

Like This Article? Pin it!

The post 15 Must-Have Items For A Remote Work Office appeared first on Goats On The Road.

15 Must-Have Items For A Remote Work Office published first on https://travelaspire.weebly.com/

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cdrforea · 4 years

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Nokia 4.2 Review: One Big Flaw

New Post has been published on https://bestedevices.com/nokia-4-2-review-one-big-flaw.html

Nokia 4.2 Review: One Big Flaw

"The Nokia 4.2 has many advantages, but it is affected by the processor."

Good battery life

Nice design and build quality

Notification light, NFC and a dedicated Google Assistant button come in handy

Android One means 2 years of quick updates

Affordable

Slow performance

Slow camera, mediocre photos in low light

Doesn't work with Sprint, Verizon

Micro USB connection

The Nokia 4.2 was a roller coaster ride. My first test device suffered from constant jerking and freezing, which made using the phone a hair-raising affair. The second device delivered a significantly improved experience, but it doesn't prevent this $ 189 phone from making several compromises.

Affordable phones have to make sacrifices, but the problem is with the competition. Motorola makes a phone with a much better performance for just $ 10 more: The Moto G7 Play. It also has the more convenient USB-C port, in addition to a decent camera, excellent battery life, and an almost standard Android experience.

The Nokia 4.2 from HMD has a lot to offer. The camera is slow, but can be used in broad daylight. The price doesn't look good (in a good way), the battery life is amazing, and I love the notification LED that circles the power button. It is also an Android One phone, so updates are guaranteed for two years. But it all comes down to performance and it can be frustrating.

Compact design, average display

The Nokia 4.2 is not like a budget phone. In comparison, the Moto G7 Play looks and feels very cheap. The Nokia 4.2 has a metal unibody with a polycarbonate frame and the back is protected by glass. This means that the likelihood is that repairs will be needed after a fall, but the phone will also feel more substantial.

A quick note on color. I recommend the Pink Sand over Black option. It is much more attractive and highlights the phone.

The back glass is a fingerprint magnet that you wipe regularly. Speaking of fingerprints: There is a fingerprint sensor here. It may be a little slow, which matches the Nokia 4.2.

You get a headphone jack at the top, a micro USB charging port at the bottom, a special Google Assistant button on the left and a volume rocker and an on / off switch on the right. The lack of a USB-C charging port is disappointing. Many other products have USB-C ports, from MacBooks and iPad Pros to Windows laptops and most Android smartphones. It is ideal to take only one cable with which everything can be charged. The $ 200 Moto G7 Play has one. Why couldn't HMD add it here?

The processor of the Nokia 4.2 paralyzes the phone.

The headphone jack is a welcome addition, and you should use it or use Bluetooth earphones because the bottom speakers aren't loud. However, the audio quality is decent. The buttons around the phone are clickable and the dedicated Google Assistant button is useful if you use the assistant a lot (you can turn it off, but you can't remap the button).

My favorite feature is the power button, which lights up when you get notifications. This is a good thing because the Nokia 4.2 does not have an always-on display when it is not being charged (due to the lack of an OLED screen). It looks good in the dark. It would have been nice to adjust the color, but you stick to white.

I like how compact the Nokia 4.2 feels. The screen is only 5.71 inches tall, which may sound big, but since the frames are narrow, a lot of screen is included in a small package. The rounded edges make the phone more comfortable to hold and the glass feels smooth.

The Nokia 4.2 (above) against Pixel 3a. Julian Chokkattu / Digital Trends

The HD + LCD screen is nothing to write home about. It is colorful and sharp (resolution 1,520 x 720) if you look at it from a reasonable viewing distance. Take a closer look and pixels are visible. It is a little dark, which makes it difficult to read the screen in broad daylight, and the black levels are not as satisfactory as with an OLED screen.

At the top is a drop notch in which the selfie camera is located. The phone still has a "chin" or bottom bezel, but the front design makes the Nokia 4.2 look more modern (and is slightly better than the Moto G7 Play).

Manageable performance

The Nokia 4.2 processor holds everything back. It is a Qualcomm Snapdragon 439 chipset with 3 GB of RAM and 32 GB of internal storage. While 32GB is average for such an affordable phone, you'll want to use the microSD card slot since my 101 installed apps (including preinstalled apps) have reached 86 percent of the allocated memory.

Julian Chokkattu / Digital Trends

My first review device frustrated me endlessly because I was hanging up and freezing when I used the phone. This turned out to be a problem with the device. The second model didn't have many of these problems.

The performance is decent. Expect stuttering here and there as you scroll through apps like Twitter and Instagram, but it's bearable. Games like Pako: Forever and Breakneck ran admirably, with just a few skipped frames here and there. I was able to do most of the tasks that I would do with a flagship smartphone. It just took a little longer.

Opening an app takes a few seconds. This also applies to loading a game, sharing an image or turning on the phone. There were moments when I had to quickly search for something on Google Maps and I was frustrated with how slow the phone took to give me what I wanted. This is not always the case, but usually when I juggle between some apps.

Here are the benchmark results:

AnTuTu 3DBench: 77.060

Geekbench 4 CPU: 896 single core; 3,313 multi-core

3DMark Sling Shot Extreme: 493 (volcano)

These values are below the Moto G7 Play with the superior Snapdragon 632 (as well as the Moto G7 Power). My colleague had no performance problems with the Moto G7 series when testing – everything worked smoothly. Unfortunately, the Nokia 4.2 will inevitably frustrate you at some point.

Android One

I love the HMD phones because most of them run the Android One program. You receive at least a two-year guarantee on Android software and security updates. These updates are also deployed quickly, so you hardly have to wait after Google introduces them. In comparison, Samsung Galaxy S9 owners had to wait six months for the company to bring Android Pie to the phone.

The benefit of updates means that the phone stays secure, you get new features, and bugs and problems are more likely to be patched. HMD beat Motorola here. Motorola offers barely a year of Android updates for its phones – the Moto G7 Play will only get Android Q and not much more.

Julian Chokkattu / Digital Trends

Android One doesn't just mean quick updates. You get standard Android that is clear, simple and user-friendly. Apart from pre-installed Google Apps, there is no bloatware. There is even NFC on board so you can use Google Pay (another plus over the Moto G7 Play).

While the software on Nokia 4.2 is a positive experience, I encountered an error. If the phone remains alone and in standby mode, it can sometimes disconnect from the WLAN. When you turn the screen back on, the connection will be restored, but it's a problem that I couldn't solve. We also noticed this bug with the Moto G7 series, so there is a possibility that it is Android related and not device specific.

Slow camera

The Nokia 4.2 has a dual camera system on the back – a 13 megapixel lens paired with a 2 megapixel depth detection camera. The camera may be slow to start and the shutter may take some time. For this reason, you must be quiet when trying to take a photo to avoid a blurry result.

Julian Chokkattu / Digital Trends

But with good lighting, the Nokia 4.2 can be capable. Dealing with high-contrast scenarios with HDR is decent, the details are solid and the colors look natural. A typical example? The picture of the ship in New York City and the photo of my dog lying on my bed. They are impressive for a $ 189 phone.

As usual, the quality of the camera deteriorates in low light conditions. Images are grainy. While I had to remain silent beforehand, you have to be as still as a statue in low light. I've seen better results with Pro mode in the camera at night, but not everyone will understand how to use manual controls.

Portrait mode works well in good lighting, but any exposure to light, including indoor use, can cause pictures to look bad. Focusing is difficult in these situations and photos never look so sharp. HDR never seems to work as well in portrait mode.

Sample photos from Nokia 4.2

The 8 megapixel camera on the front works well, but has a problem with high-contrast scenarios. In the selfie picture of me, the sky is completely blown out. The selfie photo in portrait mode is better because the exposure is accurate with no blown out areas and there is a nice bokeh effect.

It's a powerful camera that takes a negative turn in low light, like all low-cost phones. However, you have to work with the camera to stay extremely still, which is annoying. It's comparable to the Moto G7 Play, although I think the Nokia 4.2 does a little better in quality.

Good battery life

Finally, we come to the best part of the Nokia 4.2. Never in my time checking the phone did I worry that it would die on me. The 3,000mAh battery isn't large, but with low power specifications and a low-resolution screen, it's enough to keep the phone buzzing for more than a day.

In heavy use, the phone reaches about 20 or 30 percent by midnight. With light to moderate use, the juice is retained for a second day, although charging may be required until noon.

While I was satisfied with the battery in real tests, the Nokia 4.2 did not do so well in our battery test. I played a 1080p YouTube video with maximum screen brightness over WiFi, and the Nokia 4.2 only survived 7 hours and 38 minutes. It's a decent time, but the Moto G7 game lasted more than 9 hours and the $ 250 Moto G7 Power stayed alive for almost 14 hours.

Aside from the battery test, most people will be more than happy with what the Nokia 4.2 can offer here. It's just a shame that a micro USB cable is required for charging.

Price, availability and warranty information

The Nokia 4.2 costs $ 189 and is available from Amazon and Best Buy. It only works in GSM networks, so you can use it on network operators such as AT&T, T-Mobile, Cricket Wireless and Metro by T-Mobile. It doesn't work in CDMA networks like Verizon or Sprint.

HMD offers a standard one-year warranty that protects the phone from manufacturing defects one year after the date of purchase.

Our opinion

The good looks of the Nokia 4.2, the excellent battery life, the decent camera and the fast Android updates are slowed down by a weak processor. It is capable, but there are better alternatives.

Is there a better alternative?

Yes, the Moto G7 Play. It has many of the same specs as the Nokia 4.2, from the 3,000 mAh battery to 3 GB of RAM, but the processor is what drives it. The Snapdragon 632 is much more powerful and won't frustrate you. So I think the G7 game is the better buy for just $ 11 more at $ 200.

It depends on whether you want to choose longer software support instead of performance as these Motorola phones only deliver an Android version update (Android Q), while the Nokia 4.2 will also get Android R next year. While we usually praise phones that promise software updates for two or more years, I think the significant increase in processor performance gives the Moto G7 Play the edge.

If you spend $ 250, you can buy the Moto G7 Power, which has a larger screen – but you get the same performance as the Moto G7 Play. Better still, the 5,000 mAh battery means it's a two-day phone.

If you want to stay with the Nokia brand, it's worth spending $ 300 on the Nokia 7.1. It has good performance, the same Android One software, and a capable camera. If your budget is a bit higher, Google Pixel 3a should be on your list as it only costs $ 400.

For more information, see our guide to the best cheap phones.

How long it will take?

The Nokia 4.2 is in glass so you should get a case to make sure it doesn't tear through a drop. It is also not waterproof.

On the plus side, the phone gets two years of Android version and security updates, so it should take at least two years. This is the case if the performance does not deteriorate by then.

Should you buy it

No. A Qualcomm 600 series processor in the Nokia 4.2 would have changed history, but the Snapdragon 439 won't cut off if you can buy a better performing phone for just $ 11 more.

Editor's recommendations

#Big #Flaw #Nokia #Review #Product Reviews

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coreytravelogue · 5 years

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Dusseldorf, Germany - September 6, 2019

The worst thing about leaving early is not to so much the getting up early part for me because I am up early regardless but I feel like it makes my hosts think that I am in a rush to leave and that I don’t want to stay and when it comes to Maria, Raphael and Düsseldorf that could not be farther from the truth.

I knew Düsseldorf would be fun but it wound up blowing my expectations away to where I can nearly say Düsseldorf has set the bar high for the rest of my trip, so high that I don’t think it will be surpassed and I almost don’t want it to though if each next stop does it would be even more awesome for me but shitting for my liver and kidneys. I am already feeling the effects of the amount of drinking I have done in my first week of being in Europe to where I feel like Berlin needs to be my sober part of the trip but I doubt that will be the case.

Düsseldorf and the Rhineland will always hold a special place in my heart as anyone who has read this blog before 5 years ago w oils probably know. For those who don’t; Düsseldorf was my introduction to Germany and everything German. I was hosted for the first time in Düsseldorf by Maria and had my first German beer which was alt-bier. It was where I began to be sold on what good couch surfing could be for me and how vital it was for me during my first tour in order to make my adventure worth it. I only stayed with Maria for two nights then like now and she was a awesome host just like she was this time as well.

She taught me to always look someone in the eyes when toasting beer or seven years bad sex, probably not true but I don’t want to take chances and ever since anytime I toast beer with someone I always look them in the eyes. She brought me into her social circle and I was accepted. The other half of my time there without a host was a stark contrast to the first two nights because it was lonely and without me hanging out with anyone. These trips for me are to have cultural exchanges with people and to learn about them and them me if they care to know. It was the first successful couch surfing stop and it wasn’t the last.

Getting to Düsseldorf was a big ass hassle, I bought a cheap alarm clock years back specifically for these trips. I never used it and I put in a brand new battery. After having a cultural exchange with a British man living in Germany and a Iranian living in Paris both of whom were my bunk mates in Luxembourg city for the night I set the alarm to 6 am. I tested it out and the alarm seemed to work so when I set the time to be the time it was and the time I wanted the alarm to ring I put my trust in it and set out to get a good nights sleep early for once.

I wake up a few hours later to the sound of construction, it seemed like it was too early so I looked at the clock and it said 1:30 am so I thought it was strange that they were doing it that late and so I went back to sleep. An hour later I woke up and the construction noise was worse, I looked at the clock and it was 2:30 am so I thought it was extremely odd. So I got off my top bunk and looked out the window to witness the sun coming up. I stormed to my locker to check the time on my tablet to find out that it was 6:38 am. From that moment on for that day I was basically in a hurry which became the most stressful point of my entire trip thus far.

I got washed up as fast as I could and check out, I thankfully got station two hours early because I wanted to take absolutely no chances in missing my trains. My ticket to Düsseldorf was confusing to say the least but from what. I gathered from it I would take a train from Luxembourg to Koblenz then from Koblenz to Düsseldorf. I mean it seems simple enough when I say that but have to take into account that when you are in a foreign country, foreign language and foreign means of transportation it is not quite that simple. I mean once you figure it out it makes sense but for someone who has never done it before it is confusing.

Confusing at least for me because even though your ticket says Ghent to Luxembourg City it does not mean that your train says that or I should say the train listing at the station will say that. Luxembourg City may just be a stop along the way for that train so that list may or may not show the station you are getting off at. It will often list the end destination and a few of its main stops at the bottom, usually the first three. I will use Vancouver transit as a example because this train system in Europe is in many ways like one big transit system and every country has its own system of doing things though some of the basics are very similar. Let’s say I am at Joyce Station and I want to get to Surrey Central Station. When I wait or look for my train when it comes it won’t say Surrey Central Station but King George. To make sure you are taking the right train you would go to the train listing and match up the right train with the right stops it is taking. Which is what I have found to do to often help me especially when my transfers are not in major cities.

I would often make note of the time that train leaves as up until this half of my trip now was all I really had to go off of, most of the time it has been enough because most of the trains all have specific times they depart. Once I find the train that matches up to where I need to go to I go back to the main terminal area where 9 times out of 10 it was show all of the departing trains for that hour because it changes every hour and even within that hour depending on what goes on. Once you know your train and it is coming within the hour you look at that main screen and find out which track it is on. Once you know you head to that track and wait for your train to arrive. So you have to be wary of when that train leaves, and the train number, with that information you can find your train.

Again was not quite that simple for me to get to Düsseldorf. Realizing that I had flexible tickets to get to Luxembourg and the vagueness of most of my tickets at least till Koblenz I noticed that there is a train that goes to Koblenz every hour. I thought great I can possibly get to Düsseldorf early or at least to Koblenz an hour early so I don’t have to rush. However there was a problem, apart that problem under the early train that I couldn’t read because it was in Luxembourgish which from what I could tell closely resembled French. I could read it and it was very confusing. To be safe I went to the ticket station and shown them my tickets and they were nearly as stumped with my itinerary as I was. What I would end up finding out is due to construction the train ain’t going to a Koblenz today but anyone who is has to take a bus from Luxembourg city to Trier then take the train to Koblenz. This is where I nearly sabotaged my trip to Düsseldorf.

I misheard what she told me my options were. I thought she said only this one will have a bus ride but the next one will just be train rides through out. I have purposely tried to avoid bus rides because I have found traffic in Luxembourg to be bad and with all due respect to bus drivers because it is often out of their control they are not often/always on time. So I decided to not leave early feel I should take the safe bet and take the trains the way through. Not too long after that earlier train left I began to realize that the one I was scheduled to would be no better. I don’t know why I thought otherwise, I have been problem to exceedingly poor judgement this trip. Not the life threatening kind of judgement outside of drinking too much for the kind of judgement that puts in needed stress on me at times where there should have been.

So I went to the ticket agent again and she better explained it to me and I basically now only had one option. Either way I had to be in Trier exactly as it would leave in order to catch my reservation in Koblenz, if I didn’t I would lose out on my reservations and have to pay for new tickets. The bus ride to Trier was fine enough but as we got closer to Trier I quickly realized time was running out. The bus was supposed to arrive about ten minutes before the train leaves but it wound up arriving with about 4 minutes before the train leaves so I had to flat out run into the station and not only located

Which train I was taking but where and get there before it goes because the departure times unlike planes are almost always the time it leaves so if you ever take a train in Europe be at the track at least 5 minutes early, at the very least.

Luckily I found everything I needed and ran to the track and got in one minute before the train would leave. From that moment on the rest of the trip was smoother sailing. I still had less than ten minutes to find my train in Koblenz to Düsseldorf but I knew what train I was take, when and when it was leaving. I think because it was German ticket because Germans like to be exact, clear and on point at least from my experience and my ticket was. I got on the train to Koblenz and watched a Canadian movie called Astronaut as I to to Düsseldorf. As we passed through Koln I got a bit nostalgic as last time Koln was probably the biggest highlight of my trip last time and I felt sad that I would not be able to see it this time, 30 min later I was Dusseldorf.

Unlike my other hosts Maria still lived in the same place, I spent so much time. In the downtown area of the city I felt like muscle memory would help guide me to her place. It did not take at all to realize that that was all utter bullshit. Like the last time Dusseldorf has two entryways and they for some reason always send my sense of direction. Thankfully unlike last t ice I didn’t have a full bladder and it wasn’t raining so getting to her place wasn’t going to be a stressful ordeal. I knew her place was not far from the station, a easy ten minute walk and I had my own directions but thankfully Maria have me better directions and Düsseldorf Hbf gives you free wifi for 30 minutes with great range, enough to show me I initially was going the wrong way and to go the other way. By the time the wifi cut out I knew exactly where I was going and I met up with Maria at a cafe a block away from her place.

Maria took me back to her place to find that while many things were the same a whole lot had changed. There was still a long and steep walk up to the forth floor like the last time, her flat was mostly the same but her old bedroom now became what I can only describe as possibly the coolest nerd/gaming room I have ever personally witnessed. Littered with video game stuff, anime stuff, movies and comic book stuff. The 15 year old me would have found this room to the be the coolest room I have ever been to but let’s be honest at 34.7 years old it still would be the coolest room I ever been to.

Realizing my time here was short we set out while the weather was nice to get done what I wanted to get done. I basically told her that I came to hang out with her and along the way Jayne hat and drink local beer and Maria went above and beyond to accommodate me. I think she took my Jayne hatting more seriously than me because she wanted to make sure I Jayne hatted everything while I was content with five statues. If I could find five I would be happy because more often than not I am lucky to even get 2 most of the time, especially on this trip. However even though she didn’t know where to find statues she knew who did and after having Buddha bowls with the person she lent us a book that shown every statue in Düsseldorf. I went from thinking or feeling like there were not many statues I could Jayne hat in Düsseldorf because the web was not helpful in locating them. I wish I could have this kind of book for every place I go to because it was extremely helpful and we were able to get 5 statues Jayne hatted within the next two hours because once Maria knew the address she could find it easy.

Surprisingly enough I was more content with my haul for the day that she was, Maria was more than happy to make sure I Jayne hatted the entire city’s amount of statues. However the weather was getting very inconsistent and which would be the theme my two nights in Düsseldorf. For one hour it would be sunny and bright, another it would be pouring rain then another just cloudy. Every hour it would randomly rotate between these three weather patterns for the two nights I spent in Düsseldorf. We decided to grab beer at a liquor store that specialized in craft beer. They didn’t have much of a selection of Düsseldorf beer. Well I shouldn’t say that I should say when I asked the cashier if they have a Dusseldorf beer section and he said no it is scattered everywhere so when I looked for beer I only really picked up the styles I liked. I picked up hefeweizen and a dunkelweizen. Here should be self explanatory for those who know beer or know my blog. It’s my favourite style of beer, the style that made me a full blown beer lover and practically a alcoholic (not brag worthy but I am self aware of my problem). Dunkelwiezen is a style I have only really been aware of in the last two years. It was a style I missed out on last time I was in Germany and what I had in Vancouver wasn’t enough to make me really care to have it. But when my girlfriend took me to Haundorf in Australia I decided to give it another shot. Thankfully I did because both were absolutely awesome tasting. Dunkelweizen is basically a Hefeweizen but dark coloured where a hefe is light coloured.

We also got a local rock band’s own brand of beer which was a lager as well as local alt-bier. When we arrived home Maria’s boyfriend Raphael came home and we met. They made pizza for me that we all shared while I got to know Raph and exchanged culture with him and Maria. I basically drank all the beer I bought and tried the ones Maria picked which I bought for her and Raph. sufficed to say even though it was bottled it was still so good. My donair face came out again as it would multiple times during those two nights.

Noticing he had the new Nintendo system and Mario Kart I asked if he would indulge me in a game as I was very interested in playing the new rendition. As much as I have had a dislike for Nintendo mainly because working as a tester I have discovered how difficult they can be to work with it goes without saying they truly are. One of the if not the best creators of games in the industry, they are the bar every company should strive for, they are the Disney off video games. They may not make the best games all of the time but the quality is almost always there and they are the most consistent with both their brand and their game quality. This version of Mario Kart was no better. While it may not be my favourite of the series (the first or the Wii version may be my favourites) it was still a great and fun game to play. After a few hours of playing we all went to sleep.

For the first time in my trip I had a great night’s sleep where I got to sleep in as much as I could. After a good breakfast me and Maria left to do more Jayne hatting a sigh seeing. We went to another part of the city I never been to which was the old ruins. Before we left however we crossed paths with her neighbour who took a particular interest in me and the whole couch surfing situation. She asked me if I could interview her for her newspaper later in the day, surprised and bashful I said yes. I have never been interviewed like that or been in a newspaper to begin with so it was interesting proposal.

After or I should say during the ruins you may as well say the day turning into a alt-bier tour. The rain forced us into a small bar next to the ruins where I had two beers in the early afternoon. We took a train to the old town where then I proceeded to have another alt-bier at what looked like a Hungarian market. This was followed by going to her friend’s bar where I had her favourite alt-bier. I had at least three of those and immediately started getting buzzed, I wasn’t drunk but it was going through me with only a couple slices of toast and a pretzel in my stomach.

We proceeded to our next stop which became the most weird but in a good way stop in my time in Düsseldorf. We agreed to meet up with Maria’s neighbour at this French fry house that sold itself as a Canadian French fry house which peaked my interest because they sold not just one kind but two kinds of poutine, I had to try it. I ordered the Montreal style while Maria got the Quebec style. I am not a poutine expert but I had a fair bit of poutine in Montreal and this wasn’t it. Maria’s poutine was pretty much accurate, can’t say it was ok it was average as well mine but they were edible. It is hard to really mess up poutine since you just need fries, cheese curds and good gravy.

Maria’s neighbour came with two dogs whom I immediately gravitated towards. For next hour she interviewed me. I was expecting her to want o know my entire experience with couch surfing and I was more than happy to tell her but I wound up realizing that this was just going to probably be a small piece or just a piece of bigger story I assume about options travellers have in Europe. She basically just asked me questions about our experiences together in couch surfing; Maria as the host and me as the guest/surfer together.

Last stop of the nigh was to a resteraunt named Frida’s which was themed after the artist Frida, it is Maria’s favourite place to eat and I could see why. I hung our with her new circle of friends and her boyfriend while drinking copious loads of more alt-bier and a Hefeweizen. By the end of the late night I was sufficiently drunk and ready to sleep because I had a long day ahead of me the next day. When we finally got back Raph gave me one last hefe for me to try, I drank it and of course I loved it but I was more than done that night but I still shown them some anime and tried to indoctrinate them into watching Evangelion. They also helped me figure out how I could print out the rest of my train tickets for my trip and invited me to stay with them in Brussels at the tail end of my trip if something went sour or if I just wanted a detour. I doubt that will happen but I told him maybe. I wish I could join them but my reservations are set everywhere and I would lose a fair bit of money cancelling each trip at this juncture but you know what I am only half way through my trip and anything can happen, who knows. I do know that I would love to hang out with Maria and Raph again.

So here I am on a train to Berlin, thankfully not hung over but my stomach and bowels are definitely not happy with the amount of alcohol I have put into it. I can’t. Help but wish I put more time into Dusseldorf and less into Leipzig and Nuremberg, I put a fair bit of time in those places because I never been there before but now I regret it because I would like to have two more days in Düsseldorf. I made sure Maria knew that I wanted to stay longer and I should have but everything has been locked down. My time in Düsseldorf was needed and reignited while I enjoy traveling like this.

Ghent was disappointing, only meeting up with Katarina and Dirk made it worth while as they were great to me and made my time there worth while. Luxembourg was a nice visit but nothing I could scream home about. Dusseldorf was a home run fund time I needed. I am heading to Berlin where I am spending three nights which isn’t enough to see it but I am not sure what to expect. I am trying to keep my expectations low. I liked Berlin last time but the distance I was from it last time on top of rain left me feeling like I didn’t get all of Berlin that I wanted. Maria told me that it may rain all t brought Europe this weekend which is not reassuring but you know what it doesn’t matter to me because I am staying with another former host from my last tour. This time it’s Missy who let me stay with her in Saltcoats, Scotland and saved my ass when I was nearly stranded two days after staying with her.

Berlin is going to be extremely busy for me as I try to Jayne hat places and do museums while hanging out with her and maybe Cristina as well. Cristina was a person I met in Galway as we sat together during the Cliffs of Moher tour. We have kept in touch ever since. I hoping I fit it all in during this part of the trip but one thing is for sure I fully intend to sleep in more, I need more sleep. Before the trip I was lacking sleep which was fucking up my mental health, then plane ride where I didn’t sleep at all followed by adjusting to time zone change left me with nearly sleepless nights till Luxembourg and last night I only had four hours. Now that I feel like my body has adjusted to the time zone I should take full advantage of the extra sleep from this point on before my adventure ends and I get back to the work grind. I am hoping this trip will help me reset my internal clock. Over the past few months I have been going o bed later and later losing more and more sleep which has negatively effected me as much as my work load, bike problems and other internal emotional issues I have been navigating. These sort of trips always seem to get me back into nocturnal equilibrium at least for awhile but then my typical Newfoundland trip is not too long from now which should easily reset it again too.

I am just glad that I should not have anymore train issues going forward. If I do have any issues it should just be getting to the train station on time, not the trains itself. That being said I have been wrong more than my fair share of t ones as of late. Berlin is a big city and I need to be smarter. Leipzig and Nuremberg is smaller but no less daunting in I have never been there. Amsterdam I am not worried about, yet.

So let’s review Düsseldorf, I will start with the lowest rating because I think Dusseldorf May have one of the higher ratings in my list of cities I have been to.

Food. Is a 2/3 C on the Corey scale, you don’t come to Dusseldorf for food though but I give it a medium rating because there is not city particular d is he’s and the city has an average selection in food variety. I still liked everything I ate in Düsseldorf but again given it as on a budget and relying mostly on the kindness of Maria and Raph as they fed me mostly. I don’t give it a full grade because that would mean they are like a Vancouver which has food choices up the wazo and all are good and it doesn’t have a city signature dish either.

Vibe I will give a full C on the Corey scale, everyone I met was good to me and it doesn’t hurt that I stayed with someone from here who went the extra mile to make me feel at home in her city. Quite honestly I feel like if I had to choose a new place to live outside of Canada to live I would seriously give Dusseldorf a hard look. I would have to learn German but besides that I felt at home her thanks to Maria and thanks to everyone I met here so I can’t see any real reason not to give it a full grade.

Transit will also get a full C but like another thing I am grading it was the one thing I knew I was going to give a good rating for. Germany or at least the main and most of the places I have been to have been to have an excellent transit and transportation system, so good that they make Vancouver look like a 2nd world country and Vancouver in my opinion has the best transit system in Canada if not in the top 3. In Düsseldorf you got buses, you got trams, you got bike lanes and you can easily walk anywhere you want. On top of that it is all easy to use and extremely straight forward to pick up on. They also do multi day passes which it’s extremely good for tourists like me who don’t want to fuck around with buying multiple tickets either throughout the day or even once a day. I can buy a 24 to 48 hour day pass allowing me to use transit anytime I bloody well please and not have to worry about anything but it expiring when the 24 or 48 hours are over. I wish Vancouver and other cities did that, Vancouver has day passes but that is it. You don’t have that in Toronto, Edmonton nor Montreal I believe but I may be wrong. You sure as shit don’t have it in more rural places either. So with all those options, the user friendliness and flexibility what more can you ask for. It gets a full C full stop.

Beer should not be a big surprise either as I will still give it a full C on the Corey scale. Why? They got so many breweries all over the place, liquor stores that give you a varied selection. Most if not all the beer I have had was good to excellent and above that they have their own style of beer that is all their own I alt-bier which is the determining factor.

Lastly is things to do; I didn’t imagine there was much to see in Düsseldorf the first time I came and again I thought that way again but I was pleasantly surprised as there are museums and there are places you can go if you so wish to see them but also the city is very walkable. If you lot museums this city has them, not many but I mean it’s not Berlin. If you are looking for beer touring then this city has you covered in spades, if you want to explore old historical places this place got you covered. Again it’s not Berlin where four nights would not be enough to get everything, I think three full nights would give you this city which is still good for the most part. Like Vancouver is the bar for food places like Toronto and Berlin are the bar for things to do. Dusseldorf is a great place to go but it’s not the best amongst things to do but not many are. So it gets 3/4 on the Corey scale which I feel is more than fair for Düsseldorf.

Bottom line Düsseldorf gets CCCC5/12 on the Corey scale, without the benefit of a database for reviews and starting this grading system after my trip to Europe I am willing to bet Dusseldorf gets the highest rating of any city. That being said is it my favourite that I have ever been to? I don’t know but with Maria there on top my experiences there I have had fun both times I have been there, it’s a place that I would not think twice going to. I went to Düsseldorf and chose it as my first stop in Germany first because it didn’t look like a tourist trap, it looked like a ordinary city and I want to ease in slowly. Dusseldorf is not a tourist city but just because it isn’t doesn’t mean it is not worth going to. I consider it as well as Koln to a degree a hidden gem in Germany. If you want your museums, history and the main points of Germany sure go to Berlin and have fun but if you want to go to a place with fewer tourists photo opting everywhere that still has a shit ton of culture, history and all things German that you are coming to the country for then I say give Düsseldorf a chance like I did and you will be pleasantly surprised and want to come back again.

With Düsseldorf out of the way Berlin is next and I am curious as to how it will stand up this time versus how it stood last time. I remember the transit being excellent, things to do second to almost none except for Toronto, the food being pretty good and as for the beer well I wasn’t hunting for beer then because I couldn’t bring beer with me to camp and I couldn’t stay our late. Given my condition right now I d not feel like drinking for this part of the trip, save my live for my education with Gose but knowing Missy and possibly her husband I should be obligated to drink with them. Just got to learn to slow down but this rabbit/bear (depending on who asks or knows me) doesn’t know how to slow down and can’t. Slow down with beer yes but slow down with life, fuck no! I do not have enough time in my life to slow down, life is too short and the rest of my youth is withering away with every day I am living and I am no longer wasting a drop of it.

Get busy living or get busy dying, I chose to live. A far cry from what I chose the last time I left Dusseldorf. Shazbot nanu nanu

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freeleaflife-blog · 6 years

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Social media surveillance: creepy or actually dangerous?

It has become no secret in recent times that social media platforms, like Facebook in particular, are guilty of gathering personal data of its users and selling or allowing companies like Cambridge Analytica access to its’ users’ data (Chang, 2018). Data surveillance in social media can be used for advertising purposes, in order for corporations to gather information about their target market or audience in order to create appropriate marketing campaigns and to aim them at the right people. It can also be used for political purposes, as see in the Cambridge Analytica scandal, where Facebook, in short, sold data to help Donald Trumps’ election campaign (Chang, 2018). The surveillance of our usage of social media as well as search engines, gives corporations the power to dictate what we are exposed to and ultimately change our perceptions of the world (Boyd, 2014). However, this is done so subtly and discretely that we hardly notice it, and even once we have been informed about it, we still use Facebook, Twitter and Instagram anyway. This blog post aims to explore an argument centered on security. I’d like to navigate through the possibility that social media surveillance, despite us already knowing the creepy and dangerous aspects of it, may have positive possibilities in allowing a state to keep its citizens somewhat safer by monitoring the use of social media in order to pick up on possible security threats. Is this possible? Is it just a way for a government to protect itself?

The reality of this situation is that if you are tweeting or commenting on a post with the use of any words considered to be a ‘security threat’ by the government, they have access to technology that can lead them straight to you…in your house (Swart, 2018). Yes, this is creepy, but more than that, it is a complete violation of privacy. But if the government is doing it with the intention of ‘security’, is it bad? The problem here is that the government can choose what counts as a security threat, and this may be more about their own agenda than it is about actual security of the country and the people (Swart, 2018). The government does not need anything but a public post of yours and the right surveillance technology to track you down, right to your physical address (Swart, 2018).

Companies like Media Sonar are equipped with technology and software that performed geofencing, which aims to track the geolocation of the social media user at hand (Swart, 2018). They have a dashboard that has a bird’s eye view of an area using GPS co-ordinates (Swart, 2019). Even when one’s location services on their phone is switched off, there are still ways in which these companies can track your location (Swart, 2018). When your location service is off, your phone can only work when connected to a WiFi hotspot or cell phone tower (Swart, 2018). The location of the cell phone tower or WiFi hotspot is known, making it possible to track the location of the phone. If the signal is weak, the phone would be further away, if it connects to more than one tower or hotspot, it makes it easier to locate the phone through triangulation (Swart, 2018).

This technology makes it possible for the company to track and monitor your posts over any specific time period and also, to track certain words or phrases that are deemed a threat (Swart, 2018). So…if you thought it was scary how Facebook could advertise things specific to you that you were talking to your friends about, or how Google could curate what is shown to your search, the government being able to find your location through your social media takes it to a whole new level of scary.

This software is relevant and at large in South Africa. The location based technology of Media Sonar makes it possible to track a certain location, like a university campus (Swart, 2018). The government clearly saw the #FeesMustFall protests as a threat, and therefore would have an interest in monitoring what the students were saying online. Because social media platforms have become an integral part of mobilizing and spreading awareness of movements, the government could easily have the upper hand in knowing exactly what the students are thinking and planning, by being able to detect specific words, phrases and hashtags, and in a specific location (Swart, 2017). The software is also able to pick up on the sentiments and emotions of a post by reading into the emoticons or emojis used in the post (Swart,2018) .

On the other hand, another source of surveillance is being used in America, where people are being requested to provide their social media details to the authorities before being allowed entry into the country (Statt, 2016). This is mainly targeted at Muslim people. This goes to show that your social media action and interaction has become one of the most important factors of your identity, to the point where what you post can affect whether or not you are allowed into a country.

A government can easily justify these practices by saying their intention is for ‘security’ purposes, however, it is clear that all of the ways in which our social media interactions are monitored to the point where the government can find our exact location, is a huge breach of privacy rights and begins to challenge our democracy. If protestors are being monitored closely, when protest is one of the most important practices of a democracy, surely one can say that this is taking away our freedom, slowly but surely. If innocent people, Muslims in particular, are being forced to present extremely personal and private information from their social media accounts, one can see a red flag pointing towards signs of racism and prejudice, again, completely contradicting the values one can expect from a democratic and free nation. It is safe to say that although the word ‘security’ is used to justify these creepy stalker practices, it is the furthest thing from safe for us. If I was to participate in a protest, in a completely legal manner, and exercise my right to a democratic practice, but knew that the government, the very people I am protesting against, are monitoring my posts, movements and emotions, I would most definitely not feel safe.

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noplacecalledhome · 6 years

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9 Best Hotels To Stay In Pine Bluff Arkansas – Top Hotel Reviews

Pine Bluff Arkansas is beautiful and has lots of hotels. Ofcourse we are only looking for the best hotels in Pine Bluff Arkansas. It’s important to compare them because there are so many places to stay in Pine Bluff Arkansas. You’re probably wondering where to stay in Pine Bluff Arkansas. To see which hotel sounds better than the other, we created a top 9 list. The list will make it a lot easier for you to make a great decision. We know you only want the best hotel and preferably something with a reasonable price.

Our list contains 9 hotels of which we think are the best hotels in Pine Bluff Arkansas right now. Still, some of you are more interested in the most popular hotels in Pine Bluff Arkansas with the best reviews, and that’s completely normal! You can check out the link below.

Skip to the most popular hotels in Pine Bluff Arkansas.

9 Best Hotels In Pine Bluff Arkansas:

Econo Lodge Pine Bluff

Description:

Featuring free WiFi and a seasonal outdoor pool, Econo Lodge Pine Bluff offers accommodations in Pine Bluff.Each room includes a private bathroom. A TV with cable channels is provided.There is a 24-hour front desk at the property.The nearest airport is Little Rock National (Adams Field) Airport, 36 miles from the property.

Reviews:

The room was dated but comfortable, much like every other Econolodge. No carpeting, just fake wood floor which was damp and gritty. The location was perfect for our trip (just a stopover for the night). The breakfast was sub par..no fruit, no juice, no hot cereal or hot anything, only white bread and corn flakes. When we went to breakfast, we were automatically checked out of our room and the cards wouldn’t work to get back in. The new cards didn’t work and we then had to be escorted to our room because we were told the battery in the door wasn’t working. All in all it was about 5 trips back and forth between the main office and our room to check out. Not a great way to start the day.

It was low to the ground and the bed spread had cigarette burns in it

The sheets and main room were clean enough. The staff was very friendly. I wish I could rate between fair and good. It was descent enough for a nights sleep.

Location, nice facility, good lighting in room and outside, friendly staff.

Früherer Check-in war ohne Aufpreis möglich, TV gute Qualität, viele Sender, Guide

For more info click here.

Hampton Inn & Suites Pine Bluff

Description:

The Arts & Science Center for Southeast Arkansas is a short drive from this Pine Bluff, Arkansas hotel. The hotel offers a free daily breakfast and free high-speed internet access.The Hampton Inn & Suites Pine Bluff features guest rooms with a flat-screen LCD TV. Select rooms include a microwave and a mini-refrigerator.An indoor pool and a fitness room are on-site at the Pine Bluff Hampton Inn & Suites. The hotel offers laundry facilities and baggage storage.The Pine Bluff Convention Center is within driving distance of this Pine Bluff, Arkansas Hampton Inn & Suites. Harbor Oaks public golf course is also nearby.

Reviews:

This hotel is nice. It’s my preference compared to all the other hotels in the area. The locations is great the facilities and the property are always clean.

Great variety of both hot and continental type food items. Great choices for coffee.

Nice variety of choices for breakfast. Excellent coffee, in lobby and restaurant. Comfortable bed. Extremely large room. Convenient to shopping and eating places.

We loved everything about our stay from the breakfast bar down to the pool the staff was so accommodating we will definitely stay their again.

Room had a slight odor, but it was comfortable. Location was good and staff was friendly.

For more info click here.

Motel 6 Pine Bluff, AR

Description:

Located in Pine Bluff, 31 miles from Stuttgart, Motel 6 Pine Bluff, AR features air-conditioned rooms with free WiFi.Each room is fitted with a TV. Some rooms feature a sitting area to relax in after a busy day. All rooms have a private bathroom.You will find a 24-hour front desk at the property.The nearest airport is Little Rock National (Adams Field) Airport, 39 miles from the property.

Reviews:

Clean. Nice service in the reception comfortable bed and proper water pressure in the shower.

Great update from the previous owners. The room was clean and well accented. The young man at the front desk was very pleasant and courteous. I always forget they don’t have coffee in the rooms…or hair dryers/irons, so come prepared. There is a microwave and refrigerator, nice big TV and soaps, but that’s about it. The bed was comfortable (nice sheets – not thread bare) and the amount of pillows made up for the lack of fluff. The price is outstanding and the location is not bad (by the old mall, if that matters to anyone) with a Huddle House right down the street. All the doors faced an indoor corridor, so no access from the street without a key card and the elevator worked great. I will stay here again when I come back to town.

This facility has been owed by a few different owners and motel 6 is by far the best I’ve seen.

Good parking..the only good thing I can say about our stay will never go back again Roaches every where should be closed !!!!!!

everything was great and king size bed was so comfortable

For more info click here.

Presidential Hotel & Suites – Pine Bluff

Description:

One of our best sellers in Pine Bluff! This hotel is a 5-minute drive from Pine Bluff Lake and the downtown Pine Bluff. It has a seasonal outdoor pool, an on-site fitness room, and free in-room Wi-Fi.The simply furnished guest rooms at Best Western Plus Presidential Hotel & Suites Pine Bluff feature a microwave and refrigerator. Free local calls and cable TV with the HBO channel are included.A continental breakfast is served every morning at this Pine Bluff hotel. There is a business center.The Arts & Science Center for Southeast Arkansas is less than 3 miles from the Pine Bluff Best Western Plus. The Arkansas Rail Road Museum is a 5-minute drive away.

Reviews:

It was easy to access off of the interstate. Comfortable bed , large room

The front desk associate was so very friendly and helpful. The accommodations were clean and the bed was comfortable. Great value.

We’ve stayed at this hotel a couple of times and have been pleased both times. It’s clean, comfy, and convenient.

The stay was nice, I enjoyed the room and staff. The location was close to the places I needed to be. The hotel is under construction/renovation. For that to be the case, it was in pretty good shape. My rooms toilet and tub were stopped up in the middle of the night, and the representative moved my room and upgraded me to a suite. Breakfast was bare. There weren’t any eggs made for breakfast. Sausage looked like it had been cooked too looking.I had a waffle and orange juice. The ice machine was broken on two of the 3 floors, exercise room left a lot to be desired. The business office was under construction. The stay overall was great For the condition the hotel is in.

My stay was good was there in town for family business.

For more info click here.

Plaza Hotel and Suites

Description:

Featuring free WiFi throughout the property, Plaza Hotel and Suites offers accommodations in Pine Bluff.All rooms are fitted with a TV with cable channels. You will find a coffee machine in the room. The rooms come with a private bathroom equipped with a bathtub or shower.There is a 24-hour front desk at the property.The nearest airport is Little Rock National (Adams Field) Airport, 37 miles from Royal Arkansas Hot Suites.

Reviews:

Once the hotel is fully functional, it will be a nice place to visit.

You would think this is a really nice place when you first walk in but please!! please!! do not go there I did not like anything in that hotel the worst rooms ever.

Booking.com you need to stop booking this hotel

It was a hotel that they said they were renovating. At one time, it was a grand hotel.

Comfortable bed. We were upgraded to a large suite.

The family that purchased this hotel are extremely courteous and will go above and beyond to make you comfortable during this stay. A short conversation with them fills you in on how hard they have been working to rebuild this hotel! The price they are asking is realistic for this hotel in its current condition.

For more info click here.

Holiday Inn Express & Suites Pine Bluff

Description:

Holiday Inn Express & Suites Pine Bluff offers accommodations in Pine Bluff.Every room at this hotel is air conditioned and is fitted with a TV. The rooms include a private bathroom fitted with a bathtub or shower.You will find a 24-hour front desk at the property.The nearest airport is Little Rock National (Adams Field) Airport, 39 miles from Holiday Inn Express & Suites Pine B.

Reviews:

The bed was very comfortable and everyone was real nice

The staff that checked me in was very accommodating and friendly. The bed was super comfortable

I liked that when I arrived 2 hrs. before check-in my room wasn’t ready but I was told give housekeeping about 20 mins they would attend to my room fist thing. I enjoyed the breakfast each morning! As well as the wine/beer that was served along with a complementary dinner. Dana had a fantastic attitude, greeting the guests. She was the one that attended the dining room. She was polite,friendly, and professional. When I first walked through the hotel I noticed the deodorizer spray that’s used smells good. The shampoo/conditioner and lotion smells Wonderful! White Citrus- from Bath & Body Works. Overall my room/ hotel is very nice.

Eggs didn’t have any taste and the pancakes were a little too dry. Biscuits and gravy were ok.

Breaffast attendant was nice but staff to guest ratio could have been better. Omlets were cold and juice dispenser was broken.

For more info click here.

Quality Inn & Suites Pine Bluff

Description:

Featuring free WiFi throughout the property, Quality Inn & Suites Pine Bluff offers accommodations in Pine Bluff. Free private parking is available on site.The rooms have a flat-screen TV with satellite channels. Every room comes with a private bathroom fitted with a bathtub or shower.The nearest airport is Little Rock National (Adams Field) Airport, 39 miles from Quality Inn & Suites Pine Bluff.

Reviews:

It was clean and no hassle at checkin considering how I just booked it five minutes before I got there

The bed was very comfortable. The staff was very courteous and friendly.

I enjoyed the comfy bed, my overall stay was good.

The bed was really comfortable. Staff were very helpful and friendly. Breakfast was good but would like wheat bread. The air conditioner was very quiet and did not keep us awake.

Very clean, comfortable room. Best one we stayed in th8s trip. Very happy with our stay and the price was exceptional.

For more info click here.

Super 8 Pine Bluff

Description:

Super 8 Pine Bluff offers accommodations in Pine Bluff.Certain rooms include a private bathroom with a spa tub, and others have free toiletries and a hairdryer. A flat-screen TV with satellite channels is available.You will find a 24-hour front desk at the property.Little Rock National (Adams Field) Airport is 39 miles from the property.

Reviews:

Easy access & very clean. The breakfast was fresh an d tasty.

Clean rooms, good breakfast, friendly, helpful staff. Would stay here again when in the area.

It was excellent.Felt very safe and comfortable.The staff was really nice.

Very courteous and helpful staff…will stay there again!

Friendly staff. Rooms and exterior clean. Comfortable bed. Great wifi.

For more info click here.

Redwood Inn – White Hall

Description:

Featuring free WiFi throughout the property, Redwood Inn – White Hall offers accommodations in White Hall.Every room at this hotel is air conditioned and features a flat-screen TV with cable channels. Certain rooms include a sitting area to relax in after a busy day. All rooms are equipped with a private bathroom.There is a 24-hour front desk at the property.Little Rock National (Adams Field) Airport is 34 miles from the property.

Reviews:

No reviews yet.

For more info click here.

Top Hotels In Pine Bluff Arkansas Conclusion:

The above is a top selection of the best hotels to stay in Pine Bluff Arkansas to help you with your search. We know it’s not that easy to find the best hotel because there are just so many places to stay in Pine Bluff Arkansas but we hope that the above-mentioned tips have helped you make a good decision.

We also hope that you enjoyed our top ten list of the best hotels in Pine Bluff Arkansas. And we wish you all the best with your future stay!