#retrace 103

[lacie-child-of-ill-omen]

[fivekrystalpetals]

Glens, Children of Misfortune and the Baskervilles

[When I say Glens, I am referring all Glens- past and present: Levi, Oswald, Gil and Leo. Hella lot of lore is here that I wanna write about ;-; so I might divide this into different posts let's see. Also fair warning: I might criticize Oswald's actions-past and present- a bit, since I love looking at characters from an unbiased pov. Also, maybe some characters' past actions in order to point to their character development so that too.]

[ Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 ]

1] Glen, Jury and the knowledge of the Abyss

Starting off with this panel, although it is passed off for gags, I realized something very important here (and got me to love Leo even more lol droopy eyed jerk yeah!!) (Retrace 103:)

Only after reading Retrace 93 onwards and actually visiting the Sablier from hundred years ago do we get the real, undistorted lore of why Children of Misfortune exist, what exactly is Glen, where the Juries come to play into this whole scheme and so on. But before I elaborate on the above panel, let's go back to go back to these ill-fated panels—the literal start of everything going wrong—Oswald casting Lacie into the Abyss for her sin of being born as a Child of Misfortune. (Retrace 69)

Two things to remember here:

i.) Oswald can't go against the Glen's orders until after the succession ceremony. He is bound to his master, the then Glen, Levi by the oath on his left hand so the only way to break free of it is by cutting off his hand like Gil did. ii.) Immediately after the last chain, the fifth one- Jabberwocky is transferred to his body, Oswald becomes the next Glen.

Now, if I think about it, with Jabberwock having been transferred into his body, Oswald had already become Glen when he was saying these words to Lacie. He was Glen when he cast her into the Abyss. He was Glen, the absolute head of the Baskervilles, whose orders can't be disobeyed by any of his people.

Maybe, this doesn't seem much significant. It didn't, to me, while I was reading this chapter,, because I was still under the impression that 'Glen' was a spirit passed down from one host to another as the Will of the Abyss said here to Vincent (Retrace 39)—

If that were the case, then, well, nothing. Oswald's body would have been taken over by 'Glen' at the Succession Ceremony. Nothing of Oswald's soul would remain,, so, it won't be Oswald, but 'Glen' that's casting Lacie into the Abyss— Lacie who is not the younger sister but a sinner bearing the Eyes of Ill-Omen as far as the spirit of Glen is concerned.

But... later, we get the reveal it's quite not the case. (Retrace 91)

It was because the tale would be boring otherwise.

Everything was a story for the Juries who have been collecting and preserving these for centuries. In their stories, worlds exist where humans never walked the earth at all. Or, stories where the world ended within a century of its beginning. Or even, stories where the world ran identical to this one but decisively different. The main point is the Juries decide whether the tale is interesting enough to continue or to be brought to an end so it can be 'shelved in their library'. There comes the significance of Glen. The Juries are present in every story and use a turning point (here, the Abyss and the Glen) to try and bring the tale to a climax. In this case, they were probably pinning their hopes on Oswald.

Anyway, back to the night of the Succession Ceremony. Glen, now we know is just the title given to the head of the Baskervilles who is a potential candidate for generating a main turning point for the Juries, the reason why they keep an eye of them. It's no spirit hosted in Oswald's body or some such but Oswald himself that cast Lacie into the Abyss.

Why I stress this again is because—Oswald could have stopped her execution. Just like that, he could have given the command: 'As the new Glen, I have decided that we are no longer executing Lacie, does anyone have a problem with it?' Yeah. Just like that. Like, who'd dare challenge his decision? The previous Glen? Levi? A guy left with a broken body and no chain? The rest of the Baskervilles? The same people who obey his every order without a question?

No, the only ones who could and would veto his decision are the Juries. Because they know that only a Child of Misfortune has the power to affect their tales in an unpredictable way since this child was birthed directly by the Abyss (Retrace 91)

However, this aside, I want to point out that Levi, who was the Glen at least three generations before Leo, did not know the actual reason for casting a Child of Misfortune back into the Abyss up until this moment. I am honestly appalled.

So, my first point of this section: i.) severe lack of knowledge about the Abyss/little knowledge is dangerous—

—since even the Glen, who is supposed to be the protector of the Abyss, the origin of all Life, does not know the exact reasons for why things happen as they do; they simply take things for granted. Levi does speculate that the chains are what hold up the world from being swallowed up by the Abyss. Although proven wrong in Retrace 91/92, ig there is some truth to his speculations after all—Jack, believing his words, goes about cancelling the chains and succeeds in sinking Sablier into the Abyss before Oswald and Alice manage to stop him.

The reason for this practice of taking things for granted is my second point. ii.): Every Glen was raised as a valet to the previous Glen.

The Glens are valets before they become the next head; they are practically raised to be good servants, not good leaders. They don't even think of questioning anything their master/Jury tells them.

Truth be told, they are probably programmed from a young age to be subservient to their Master, to kill all of their Master's enemies etc. etc., by either brainwashing, intensive training or torture. See here, Retrace 38:

Think of only your master. Serve only your master.

In fact, as early as Retrace 13, Break questions this extreme devotion of Gilbert's, bordering on obsession.... and wonders if it is not abnormal (although he, as well as Gilbert, think his loyalty is for Oz):

Since Gil had lost all his memories of his past, there was no way for them to know that he had been brainwashed into absolute obedience and this was not natural. (more on this in part 2)

Plus, we don't know what else they have been conditioned to accept as the indisputable truth.

As I said earlier, Oswald was already Glen at the point. Why did he not deliberate if he really wanted to cast Lacie into the Abyss? He had become the sole absolute command there; he had all the powers of the Abyss. Why did he not question the whole point of it? Why did he not even make an attempt to save Lacie?

Well, this is the reason. The Glens were never meant to be someone strong enough to decisively change the story. The Juries needed someone to make wrong decisions so that the 'tale' can be brought to an end. They were waiting for the Glens to mess up. And it was passed down from Glen to Glen, and taken for granted that if they were to become the next head, they had to take in five chains and cast their red-eyed sibling into the Abyss.

In fact, what Levi says about the Children of the Ill-Omen born with the to-be Glen isn't the truth either, just some hearsay (Retrace 69)—

Because you're supposed to properly dispose of what you have created.

I don't think any of this is necessarily true. Because Kevin Legnard (Break), a Child of Misfortune, lived in an age around 10+ years since the Tragedy of Sablier. He served in the Sinclair family since a young age where, yes, a massive tragedy did occur, but it was only in his adulthood and due to political complications, more or less. So really, I wonder if the whole story of Children of Misfortune —the only threat to the Juries—attracting "misfortune" is not one cooked up by the Juries themselves, then accepted as such by generations of Glen? And even spread to the locals because both Lacie and Vince were bullied for their red eyes. Perhaps, so that such children, even if they might not become Baskervilles, will be tortured and eventually killed/take their own lives, and the tales of the Juries will not be interrupted.

This is why the first panel of Leo ordering Levi is so important to me. It's about the choice of your free will (which Oswald never had, he simply went with whatever was asked of him,, more on this in part 3). Leo started to actively fight for what he felt was right and even commands the previous Glen to obey his orders because "I am the current Glen! When I tell you to do something, you shut up and do it, you droopy eyed jerk!"

Oswald could have done this at the Succession Ceremony. I am pretty sure Levi would be more amused than angry at the rebellion against the status quo.

Because, even here, amused by Leo's words, Levi spurs into action only after this exchange: (Retrace 103)

Finally, it's Leo who puts an end to the ostracism of the Children of Ill-Omen—

—and discussed the problem of the Core of the Abyss learning and knowing what it is like to be lonely instead of merely looking upon her as something dangerous and to be untouched by anyone including the Glens.

I don't think he could have brought about such a major change without facing some kind of major uproar from the Juries, yes? In spite of that, Leo (with the rest of the Baskervilles) decided to stand by what he thought was the right thing to do and not condemn his first true follower, Vincent, for no reason but for being born with a red eye.

[ Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4]

[scribblesbyb]

Writing Game Week #1: Use These Prompts to Get Back Into Writing!

Prompt 1 Prompt 2 Prompt 3 Prompt 4 Prompt 5 Prompt 6 Rules: Sharing randomly generated prompts every day for a week. Create sth with it in only an hour (time yourself). Don't edit or proofread till the very end. Just. Write. Tags: cute idiotic fluff, voyeurism??, just two people being idiots really A/N: For this prompt, I chose Book I in the series, The Seven Realms (The Demon King). Feel free to pick wtv you like for your take. I colored the part I took from the book as well.

P.S. If you've never read the book/series, you'll be lost lol. I tried to leave as many context clues though so I hope you still enjoy it!

WC: 1637

Prompt 7: Turn to page 103 in Your favorite book, read the scene, and finish it yourself.

“Raisa swallowed hard and stepped into the shelter of the doorway. Amon planted a hand on Micah’s shoulder and propelled him down the corridor. But the look Micah fired at Raisa over his shoulder said this wasn’t the end of it.” 

Cowering back into her room, Raisa breathed out deeply, hand trembling as she carefully shut the door. Plopping herself onto the comfy mattress, her exhausted body spread like a starfish, she tried desperately not to think of Micah’s glare. 

It lingered on her skin. She hugged her body close, comforting herself, quickly switching topics in her mind. She thought of her fervent kiss with Amon; how his big arms embraced her and his worrying made her stomach twist with butterflies.

There was nothing to worry about, she reassured herself. Whoever made that tunnel must’ve died a long time ago.

“Whatever,” she mumbled under her breath, ignoring the creeping blush in her cheeks. “Let’s change out of this bothersome gown.”

While she did that, her mind continued to harass her, reminding her of how stupid it was to throw herself at Amon like that. He clearly didn’t seem to be into it. And something about that hurt the princess on a primal level. 

What was I thinking? Wearing a gown? Letting Magret know our secret place? Kissing him? Telling him about the tunnel? And now this whole mess with Micah?

Micah, who had sat in his room fuming, unable to believe that a man of the Queen’s Guard nevertheless dared emasculate him as such. Just like Raisa feared, this wasn’t over. Amon had made an enemy without even realizing it.

Bryne’s son was facing a difficult night of his own. Having seen Raisa after all these years sent his mind spiraling. Foolishly he tried to tell himself he didn’t know why. But he did. He absolutely did. Raisa in that gown? Raisa being the daring, do-first-think-later girl he admired? Raisa’s lips, her waist, her soft skin?

He shook his head; his movements deliberately slow as he undressed. He feared that if he moved any faster, it would prompt him to do something rash. Like go back, check on the princess, sweep her room—in the name of duty, of course, and then…well…things happen.

Then he remembered the tunnel. Raisa promised she’d do something about it but he knew her. She’s stubborn enough to think that it still posed no danger. 

Instinctively, his armor came back on and he retraced their steps back to the glass garden. Sure, he had to be up early. And yes, he probably wouldn’t hear the end of it from his dad if he’s incompetent tomorrow. It didn’t matter. He just wanted, nay needed, to know that the princess, his Raisa, was safe.

In no time, he was descending the ladder into the rat-infested pathway that led to her room. Worried she had already slept, he kept his footsteps light as he approached the end. It was hard to keep his breathing steady, though. His heart was beating too fast. Images that weren’t supposed to be running through his mind couldn’t stop emerging despite how hard they pushed them away.

Images of them kissing here only minutes ago. Images of what could’ve happened if he hadn’t stopped them. And why did he? Just why? Just because she’s the princess? Just because his righteous self wouldn’t let him?

His thoughts halted as he came to the door. Bracing himself, he put his hand to it and opened it slightly ajar. He paused to listen. Beyond the walls, he could hear the sound of water running. Perhaps the princess is taking a shower? 

Amon thanked the heavens. He thought he was going to have to work while Raisa slept. But if she was in her bathroom quarters, there was enough noise to cover his movements. He would work swiftly; board the door up before Raisa was done.

But Raisa was already drying herself off, seeing that she wasn’t enjoying her bath as much as she typically did.

Her mind had continued to incessantly worry over every little thing that happened throughout her long, exhausting day. It cut her bathtime short. She decided it was best she went to sleep; put an end to this day once and for all.

Wrapping her body up in a towel, she came out, steam trickling into the room, alerting her late-night intruder. He jumped, hiding behind the several dresses that hung in her wardrobe. Bones! He thought. She’s going to reach in here for clothes, isn’t she?

He glanced behind him. The door was already half boarded up. He couldn’t go back the way he came and come back later to finish his job. He was stuck. 

Raisa, unaware of her friend’s presence or his turmoil, shed the towel covering her up to the ground. Water rolled off her tan skin, dripping onto the soft rug beneath her soles. She went through the dresser near her bed, searching for a pair of undergarments suitable for bed. What pieces she deemed fit she threw onto her bed in one swift motion.

Amon watched. He didn’t want to. He begged his eyes to look away, tried to pry them off the lines of the princess’ curves or the fullness of her body. He remembered how firm yet frail it felt in his arms as he kissed her. How right it was to do so.

It was hard to stop. His lustful gaze followed her as she dressed. She bent over slightly to put on her underwear, covering her intimates first. Then, she glided a thin, pink nightdress over her glistening skin. It stopped at her knees, granting Amon a sheer view of Raisa’s front. 

Brushing her hair back, the blissfully unaware princess sat at her dresser to unbraid and brush her hair. Normally, Marget would be doing this for her. She didn’t mind doing it herself, though. 

Her mind drifted to Amon again as she combed through her hair. Where did he learn to kiss like that? It seemed to be the question that bugged her the most. Wouldn’t it be weird if I asked? She feared he’d jump to ridiculous conclusions.

He didn’t seem to have any trouble showing his jealousy, though, Raisa wondered idly, recalling how he reacted when she spoke of her suitors.

“It seems it’s going to be a long night.” The princess sighed to herself, giving up on brushing her hair just as she did with finishing that bath.

Not expecting to hear her talk, Amon startled where he stood, rattling a few hangers as he did. He held his breath and waited, closing his eyes and not wanting to see if Raisa had picked up on the noise. His heart danced wildly in his chest; his lungs filling up with air that begged to be released. 

Weary, he blinked open one eye. Raisa was still sitting there, only she was looking in his direction with fearful eyes. She can’t see me, he thought, but she did hear me.

Grabbing a pair of cutting scissors, Raisa slowly stood to her feet. In her panic, she seemed to forget about her state of undress as her light steps made their way to the closet.

Amon’s brain spiraled some more. Several scenarios ran through his brain, none of which were good. He tried to determine which one was the best case but came up empty. Exhaling loudly, the words came spilling out of him before he could even think.

 “I’m sorry Raisa,” he began quietly, “I only came because I was worried.”

The princess shrieked at her friend’s voice then quickly covered her mouth to muffle the sound. The last thing she wanted was to wake up the guards. Not with Amon here. Not with her dressed like this.

“Amon?” The name was a whisper in the air. “What in Hanalea’s bloody bones are you doing here?”

“I wanted that door boarded up.”

“I promised you I would do it!”

“Please.” He rolled his eyes. “We both know you wouldn’t have.”

The princess huffed, slamming open her closet doors to glare at her rude intruder. “What are you saying? That I’m stubborn?”

Amon’s eyes didn’t know where to look. He squirmed and fidgeted at the proximity of such breathtaking beauty. Face red, he replied, “Yes, Your Highness.”

“There you go calling me that again.”

“Would you look at yourself?” Amon’s eyes flicked to hers, tired of being the sane one here. “Look at yourself and tell me you’re not royalty.”

Embarrassed, Raisa hid her body behind clumsy arms. She looked away, turning to fetch a robe and cover herself up. Amon let out another heavy sigh.

“I’m sorry.”

Raisa stood there, too shy to speak. Tensed silence filled the room till she found her voice.

“I’m sorry, too.”

“For what?”

“For being stubborn, I suppose.”

Amon chortled, shoulders finally slumping back. “I’ll be going now…I didn’t mean to disturb you. Thought you’d be sleeping by now.”

“That makes the two of us.”

Amon smiled again. “Yeah, Da’ is never letting me live this one down.”

Raisa smiled back, stepping up and briskly patting his shoulders. “Well, then you’d better go soldier. And that’s an order from your soon-to-be queen.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

She could tell from his tone he didn’t mean it that time, and her smile widened.

She let him out the door, bidding him good night once more. Before he walked away, however, she asked, “by the way…how long were you in my room for?”

Amon halted, heart stopping in his throat as he turned back around. “I’d only just come in.”

With that, he rushed down the hallway, fleeing what felt like the scene of a crime. Raisa cocked her head in question, but being too exhausted from overthinking things, she didn’t dwell on it.

Then she noticed how far along the door had been boarded up and realized her late-night visitor had been here longer than he should’ve been. The thought filled her with an inexplicable anxiety that kept her up all of that night.  

[dragonflycap]

4 Trade Ideas for General Electric: Bonus Idea

General Electric, $GE, comes into the week sitting near support after pulling back from a second touch near 118. Since the gap up in July the price action has resembled a consolidation channel. The RSI is diverging lower though and on the edge of a move into the bearish zone. The MACD has turned negative and is dropping. Should it break the channel a 38.2% retracement of the full leg higher would be to 91.35, where it consolidated for 2 weeks in March. 

Despite the negative momentum divergence this stock has exhibited tremendous relative strength over the last 2 months compared to the S&P 500 and Nasdaq. There is support at 110 and 107 then 104.50 and 103 before 101 and 98.50. Resistance higher is at 111.50 and 114.50 before 116.50. Short interest is low at 1.1%. The stock pays a dividend with an annual yield of 0.29% and has traded ex-dividend since September 25th. 

The company is expected to report earnings next on October 24th. The October options chain shows very large open interest at the 110 strike on the put side and the 115 strike on the call side. The November chain is just starting to build with biggest open interest at the 110 put and 120 call strikes. The December chain is also light and biggest at the 90 put and 105 and 110 calls.

General Electric, Ticker: $GE

Trade Idea 1: Sell the stock short on a move under 110 with a stop at 116.50.

Trade Idea 2: Sell the stock short on a move under 110 and add a November 115 Call ($3.20) while selling the December 95 Put ($1.07).

Trade Idea 3: Buy the December 105 Put and sell the November 100 Put ($1.92).

Trade Idea 4: Buy the November 110/115 Strangle ($7.40).

If you like what you see sign up for more ideas and deeper analysis using this Get Premium link.  

After reviewing over 1,000 charts, I have found some good setups for the week. These were selected and should be viewed in the context of the broad Market Macro picture reviewed Friday which with the 3rd Quarter in the books, saw equity markets continue to show weakness.

Elsewhere look for Gold to continue its short term trend lower while Crude Oil may consolidate in its uptrend. The US Dollar Index continues to trend to the upside while US Treasuries trend lower. The Shanghai Composite looks to continue the slow drift lower while Emerging Markets consolidate in a broad range.

The Volatility Index looks to remain low and stable making the path easier for equity markets to the upside. Their charts look weak on the shorter timeframe, with the QQQ the best at support. On the longer timeframe both the QQQ and IWM are holding in consolidation ranges while the SPY is teasing a continuation lower. Use this information as you prepare for the coming week and trad’em well.

[springheeledhugo]

Hugo’s Tomorrow War Bio:

Age: 26 / 103 (at time of death)

Status: Dead

Species: Shapeshifter

Bio:

∙ In the years following 2022, before the vampires begin to even feel a drain in their power and far far before the first rebellion, Hugo leaves his job at Krov’s Castle after Andy is freed by Dusty a few years after present day. The pair settle together in a small town and eventually begin travelling to retrace Hugo’s lost family. Eventually reunited with his mother, father and siblings who had been residing in France at that time (in hopes that staying in their motherland would reunite them with their lost son) Hugo feels at peace after this.

∙ They live quietly, Hugo protective that his family, Andy or himself may fall victim to a life of slavery again, and so they keep to themselves, to live out their lives together happily. During this time Hugo and Andy own a small pub together.

∙ At the age of 103, Hugo dies peacefully of old age with Andy his side.

∙ Suddenly finding himself snapped forwards into this new future, Hugo’s remembers nothing past the Krov’s of 2022 he knows and instead faces a new world under the command of the witches.

[digitaltrand]

DeFi token AAVE faces major correction after soaring 100% in a month

DeFi token AAVE faces major correction after soaring 100% in a month

The price of Aave (AAVE) has more than doubled in a month, but its bullish momentum could be reaching a point of exhaustion. AAVE price tests key inflection level Notably, AAVE has surged by over 103% after bottoming out locally at $45.60 on June 18, hitting almost $95.50 this July 15. Nevertheless, the token’s sharp upside retracement move has brought its price closer to the level that triggered…

[coinwealth]

Are the Cryptos Terra LUNA and Polkadot Resuming the Uptrend?

Cryptocurrencies went through a major retreat in the last three months, with Terra LUNA and Polkadot losing more than half of their value. But this retreat might have come to an end now, as cryptocurrencies have gained confidence again in the last few days, making some decent gains. Bitcoin is moving towards $45,000, after reversing at $33,000, so it seems like this might not be just another retrace before the bearish trend resumes, as we have seen in the last few months.

Terra LUNA Pushes Above the First Obstacle

Terra LUNA had an amazing run from July until the end of December last year, pushing higher even as the market found itself in the middle of this major retreat. But, the continuing negative sentiment in the crypto market, along with the controversy with Wonderland, has started weighing on this cryptocurrency, sending it down from $103 to $43.

However, Terra LUNA remains one of the major names in the DeFi scene, behind Ethereum, regarding total value locked (TVL), despite a considerable drawdown as a result of the Wonderland controversy. So, the demand for LUNA coins remains high, and it has bounced off the 200 daily SMA (purple) now, pushing above the support/resistance zone around $55. But buyers still have to take out the 50 SMA (yellow) and the 100 SMA (green) above for the trend to be considered bullish again, so let’s see if the sentiment in the crypto market remains positive.

Polkadot Facing a Major Support/Resistance Zone Upwards

Can Polkadot buyers push above the resistance?

Polkadot reversed from $55 in early November, declining to $16 in the last week of January, but after trading near the lows for some time, it has started to make gains as well, although DOT/USD is now facing the previous support zone around $23, where the 50 SMA (yellow) also stands.

This will be a major test for Polkadot. If buyers push above these resistance indicators, there will be a real opportunity for buyers. Until then, the trend is still bearish, but the positive thing is that the sentiment in the market is improving.

DOT/USD

source https://usapangbitcoin.org/are-the-cryptos-terra-luna-and-polkadot-resuming-the-uptrend/

source https://usapangbitcoin.wordpress.com/2022/02/08/are-the-cryptos-terra-luna-and-polkadot-resuming-the-uptrend/

[inkovsky]

The Hong Kong stock market was obviously weak after the sharp rise the day before, and closed higher on Thursday. The Hang Seng Index opened 159 points higher at 24,561, hitting a one-and-a-half-month high and looking up to the 100-DMA (24,658). The uptrend was not guaranteed, and it fell at most 112 points to a low of 24,289 points, but after repeated struggles, it finally rose 27 points to close at 24,429 points. Large technology Internet stocks retreated across the board, with the HS technology index down 103 points to close at 5,796. Market turnover was HK$136.3 billion .

Old economy stocks and financial stocks again topped the market. HSBC Holdings (00005) closed at an all-day and 52-week high of HK$53.65 , up 1.71%, recording 5 consecutive gains and hitting a new high in the past two years. New-economy stocks fell too much last year and have yet to regain their lost ground. We must gradually stabilize the regulatory news and introduce more economic stabilization measures in the mainland, which may boost new-economy stocks and drive the HSI further.

The Hang Seng Index has been rebounding for several days, and it was a black candle yesterday. It saw profit-taking at the 100-DMA resistance level. If the market outlook fails to break through this resistance, it will be calculated according to the retracement of fibo 0.382, or it may be adjusted to 23,800. The Hong Kong stock market as a whole has limited room for further upside, and the medium and long term is still weak.

The U.S. Federal Reserve hinted that it would tighten monetary policy to deal with rising inflation, and high-valued technology stocks faced a sell-off. U.S. stocks fell sharply on Thursday (13th). The Dow closed at 36,113 points, down 176 points. The benchmark index closed at 4,659 points, down 67 points. The Nasdaq closed at 14,806 points, down 381 points.

[lacie-child-of-ill-omen]

[takegeofftothemoon]

Gloom Boys.

He traced a finger over his lips as he sat outside of Dr Prince’s office, hoping desperately to hear something about his friend. He closed his eyes as he focused on his finger tracing along his bottom lip, his stomach tightening at the memory of stupidly deciding to kiss Alex. There was no way he could deny that the boy was cute, that he liked him more than he’d felt for anyone before. But he’d taken a chance that was poorly timed and Geoff knew that he’d continue to regret it. 

Geoff stuffed his hands into his pockets as he willed his limbs to stop trembling, hoping desperately to run into nobody on his way to Ellis’s office. He kept his head down, counting the steps that he took to try and calm himself down. Reaching the office, Geoff didn’t bother to knock as he pushed open the door, beginning to frantically ramble… “Someone is going to do something really bad and it’s my fault and I can’t stop him but I can’t just watch him do it and I’m sorry and I’m scared and – Ellis?” Geoff raised his head with an instant frown, finding the office empty. He groaned, instead kicking the door shut behind him and heading around to the desk, instantly raising the abandoned bottle of medication to inspect the label curiously.  

“Thank you, Mr Peter Evans.” Geoff mumbled tiredly to himself as he popped the cap on the bottle, tipping the bottle into his mouth and swallowing thickly. He rubbed his eyes as he flopped back into the doctor’s chair, propping his feet up onto the desk with a grunt. He swallowed a few more of the pills, grateful that Dr Ellis had left his office unlocked as he pulled open one of the drawers.

His hand instantly reached for the folder labelled with his name, pulling it open and narrowing his eyes to read it. He frowned as his eyes followed the lines, deepening as he read the doctor’s scrawled writing.

Name: Wigington, Geoff. D. O. B:  02/July/1989    Diagnosis:   Substance Abuse and Suicidal Behaviour  Reason for Admission: Attempted Overdose | Forced [x] Primary Doctor: Rowan Ellis  Location: Room 103

Patient has history of self injury resonating from previous physical neglect, possible instances of abuse (not disclosed). No reported Information of Kin or emergency contacts.

Patient has experience of past and present substance misuse, displaying multiple symptoms across a broad spectrum of substances and toxins. Reported: various prescription medications, alcohol, ecstasy, LSD and psilocybin.

Self Injury. Patient should be observed for self injurious behaviour, mutilation of skin on arms, stomach and legs. All injuries (currently reported) treated and wrapped. OBSERVE.

Medication. Due to diagnosis patient receives monitored administration of pain medication under severe circumstances of pain or injury.

Treatment Programme. Patient actively attends sessions of behavioural therapy and has undergone medical detox. Experience of no uncomfortable or threatening side effects reported.

R. Ellis.          

 Geoff rolled his eyes at the doctor’s notes, stuffing the folder under his arm as he pushed to stand. He frowned, pocketing the bottle of pills to then turn and head out of the office. He sighed a little to himself as he headed back to his room, his heart instantly dropping at the lack of the other boy. Alex. Alex Hoskin. The things that he’d said about himself had stung Geoff, but it was the intent and desperation in his voice that had worried him. He felt awful, regretting the decision to hunt out a doctor – he knew the younger boy wouldn’t trust him for getting the Doctor.

He had been irrational and panicked and he scared Geoff. He hadn’t even felt that scared when he’d found the boy’s brother passed out on the bathroom floor. Awsten had overdosed accidently, he was defiant of his father and his family but had never expressed that he had any intention to die. His younger brother showed the contrary.

Geoff sat himself on the bed, his eyes squeezed tightly shut as he tried to block out the images of the young Hoskin fighting against Prince’s grip. He’d condemned him to life in the place that he wanted nothing more than to be free of. He could imagine the look on Mr Hoskin’s face, the disappointment and fear that held his features the first time that he had turned up with David and passed out in the living room. He closed his eyes as they began to tear up, raising his hands to rub at his eyes.

He tugged his shirt up enough to rip away the wrap that one of the nurses had applied, his hand dipping to scratch at the healing wounds without thought, his teeth gritting at the instant pain that blossomed across his abdomen. Remembering the look on Alex’s face as he’d tossed the bottle in his direction, Geoff grumbled to himself and blinked back the tears welling in his eyes. He gave a shaky breath as he dropped his folder to the floor to instead reach for the book by his bed. He slipped free the small blade tucked into the cover of the book, tugging up his sleeves to work on retracing the scarring along his wrists.

[quranreadalong]

#103, Surah 18

THE QURAN READ-ALONG: DAY 103

The first half of today’s section will be about disbelievers burning in hell, but first, we must go through the Iblis-refuses-to-bow thing. Yes... again. This one is at least notable, though. 18:50:

And (remember) when We said unto the angels: Fall prostrate before Adam, and they fell prostrate, all save Iblis. He was of the jinn, so he rebelled against his Lord's command. Will ye choose him and his seed for your protecting friends instead of Me, when they are an enemy unto you? Calamitous is the exchange for evil-doers.

This is, to my recollection, the first time Iblis is explicitly stated to be a jinni so far and also the first time a jinn is shown to be an angel (We said unto the angels... they all fell prostrate, all save Iblis. He was of the jinn). I’ve already mentioned how the Quran is never sure whether it wants the jinn to be demon-type things or trickster figures similar to humans, but this is about a clear example as it gets. Previously, we’ve seen the jinn grouped with humans as their own race, and we will see later that Mohammed was sent as a prophet to mankind and the jinn (that’s the actual weirdest surah... this is only the second-weirdest one) but here it’s clear that there are also jinn among the angels. 🤷🏾‍♀️

Anyway, Allah says that he alone is god and Iblis and friends weren’t in charge of creating the world, so people shouldn’t worship them. (As we’ve already established, polytheists actually “worship Shaytan”... even when they don’t believe in him...)

Speaking of polytheists, did you know that they’re doomed? Because they’re doomed.

And (be mindful of) the Day when He will say: Call those partners of Mine whom ye pretended. Then they will cry unto them, but they will not hear their prayer, and We shall set a gulf of doom between them. And the guilty behold the Fire and know that they are about to fall therein, and they find no way of escape thence.

Mohammed was quite fond of the Allah taunting polytheists prior to throwing them into hell thing, which is bad as always. Kuffar hell counter: 1!

The Quran is from Allah and people suck for disputing it. Now that they have the Quran, people have no excuse for not believing--“naught hindereth mankind from believing”, Allah says, perhaps forgetting the times he’s stated that he himself prevents them from believing. Regardless, people had better start believing pronto, “unless (it be that they wish) that the judgment of the men of old should come upon them or (that) they should be confronted with the Doom”. There’s another kuffar hell counter (2) hit.

But the dastardly disbelievers take that threat "with jest” and don’t believe it, and for that, Allah has cursed and blinded them so that they will never believe, no matter what Mohammed says or does. I feel like I rant about this circular “disbelievers disbelieve because Allah prevents them from believing to punish them because they don’t believe” thing but GOTDAMN it is dumb as hell. Bad. At least we’re over halfway through the surah.

18:58 is one of those classic ayat that never get old:

Thy Lord is the Forgiver, Full of Mercy. If He took them to task (now) for what they earn, He would hasten on the doom for them; but theirs is an appointed term from which they will find no escape. 

The reason why Allah isn’t bringing on The Doom of the polytheists now is because he is merciful. Instead, he’s delaying their inescapable punishment until an unspecified later date. Thanks, Allah! (In the next ayah he brags about all the places he’s destroyed again, which is bad as per usual.)

Now then! We have another one of Al-Kahf’s weird stories coming up.

Remember how in the intro to this surah, I said there was a variant of the story in which the rabbis asked Mohammed about the time when Moses followed a learned man? That is what we’re gonna talk about now.

The following story is not from the Bible and has no equivalent in any non-Muslim text that I am aware of, though its possible origins will be discussed obnoxiously in-depth tomorrow. However, if the rabbis did actually ask Mohammed about it, that indicates that they were aware of it and it was part of Jewish oral tradition at the time.

Moses is walking with his people. He says he won’t stop until he reaches “the point where the two seas meet”. Why is he doing this? Well, this requires an introductory section, because Mohammed forgot to put half of the story in the Quran. You have to grab one of the ahadith collections and look at this hadith to figure out what’s going on!

Musa stood to deliver a Khutbah (sermon) to the children of Isra'il. He was asked: "Who is the most knowledgeable among the people?" He said: "I am the most knowledgeable." So Allah admonished him, since he did not refer the knowledge back to Him. Allah revealed to him: "A slave, among My slaves at the junction of the two seas, is more knowledgeable than you." So Musa said: "O Lord! How can I meet him?" He said to him: "Carry a fish in a basket, wherever you lose the fish, then he is there." 

Moses says “im rly smart tbh”. Allah says “this other guy is smarter”. Moses wants to meet this Really Smart Guy, who is given the title al-Khidr (or al-Khadir) in the hadith. Allah gives him this needlessly complicated task involving carrying a fish around this particular spot, which is where they will find al-Khidr.

Moses and his servant, Joshua, travel along... wherever this is, and they lose the fish but don’t realize it... because of Shaytan, apparently. They sit down to eat breakfast and then realize the fish is gone. So they go back to retrace their steps, and there, as promised, is al-Khidr. (Or rather “one of Our slaves, unto whom We had given mercy from Us, and had taught him knowledge from Our presence”. He’s never actually named in the Quran.) One hadith narrator says they found him on a green carpet in the middle of the water, which is weird, but the Quran doesn’t say that. He was just chillin.

We will continue this very weird story tomorrow.

NEXT TIME: Urfavmurtad Presents: Strange Tales of al-Khidr

The Quran Read-Along: Day 103

Ayat: 16

Good: 0

Neutral: 10 (18:50-51, 18:54, 18:56, 18:60-65)

Bad: 6 (18:52-53, 18:55, 18:57-59)

Kuffar hell counter: 2 (18:52-53, 18:55)

⇚ previous day | next day ⇛

[dragonflycap]

4 Trade Ideas for Intercontinental Exchange: Bonus Idea

Intercontinental Exchange, $ICE, parent of the NYSE, comes into the week reversing higher after retracing nearly 61.8% of the move from the pandemic low to the top in November. The volume on the last leg down preceding the turn was massive, indicating capitulation. The RSI has turned and is working up from deep in oversold territory. The MACD is leveling and negative. These are all good conditions for a possible reversal higher. 

There is resistance at 99.50 and 103 then 105 and 107.50 before 109.50 and 114 then 117, a 50% retracement of the drop. Support lower is at 93.50. Short interest is low under 1%. The stock pays a dividend with an annual yield of 1.55% and will begin trading ex-dividend on June 14th. The company is expected to report earnings next on August 4th. 

The May options chain shows the biggest open interest at 135 and the 110 on the put side. It is spread from 135 to 145 on the call side. The June chain has biggest open interest at the 100 the 105 put strikes and above at the 130 and 145 call strikes. The September options have biggest open interest at the 125 and 85 put strikes and at the 130 and 140 calls.

Intercontinental Exchange, Ticker: $ICE

Trade Idea 1: Buy the stock on a move over 99.50 with a stop at 93.50.

Trade Idea 2: Buy the stock on a move over 99.50 and add a June 95/90 Put Spread ($1.55) while selling the September 120 Call (85 cents).

Trade Idea 3: Buy the June/September 110 Call Calendar ($2.60) and sell the June 90 Put ($1.55).

Trade Idea 4: Buy the September 85/105/115 Call Spread Risk Reversal (10 cents).

If you like what you see sign up for more ideas and deeper analysis using this Get Premium link.  

After reviewing over 1,000 charts, I have found some good setups for the week. These were selected and should be viewed in the context of the broad Market Macro picture reviewed Friday which heading into May options expiration week, saw equity markets showed a strong finish to a week that began really weak and fearful, giving hopes for the worst being over.

Elsewhere look for Gold to continue its pullback while Crude Oil consolidates for a possible move higher. The US Dollar Index continues to the upside while US Treasuries may see a bounce in their downtrend. The Shanghai Composite looks to continue the bounce in its downtrend while Emerging Markets continue to trend lower.

The Volatility Index looks to remain elevated making the path easier for equity markets to the downside. Their charts are set up for potential reversals on the longer timeframe, with Hammer candles after drops of over 30% for the IWM and QQQ, and almost 20% for the SPY. The daily charts are not convincing of a turnaround yet though with prior resistance closing in overhead. Use this information as you prepare for the coming week and trad’em well.

[abangtech]

Bitcoin struggles to hold ascending triangle pattern

Bitcoin is trading lower after dipping below a critical level, with extended losses potentially bringing prices to around $8,100

Bitcoin is set to turn bearish as price breaks below $9,300 to nosedive past key support. Despite its resilience since the March market crash, the price of Bitcoin has dropped to lows of $9,050 in the past 24 hours after recently testing highs of $10,500.

It is a move that gives bears a likely opportunity to mount a challenge that could plunge the cryptocurrency below the critical ascending triangle pattern.

The pattern is a key bullish technical indicator for macro prices, so a break below would invalidate the bullish momentum that has held since early May.

Bitcoin’s 3.3% decline means it is trading below the ascending triangle support. Price breakdowns below these levels usually mean a drop matching the triangle’s height. The current pattern puts the potential retracement at a height equivalent of $1,800, which means prices could continue to slip down to levels around $7,500.

Fig 1: Chart of Bitcoin price showing decline past the Ascending Triangle. Source: TradingView.com

Bitcoin’s price has also moved below the 50-day moving average, which held as support in a tight range where prices have oscillated between $9,900 and $9,300 over the past month.

That leaves any further downsides relying on support at the 100-day and 200-day moving averages. The 200 MA falls at around $8,100. An upside from this bottom, however, is set to see prices rise to bring back highs of $11,800.

Fig 2: Bitcoin price chart showing a break below 50 MA: Source: TradingView

On-chain metrics suggest a price breakdown is likely

Several on-chain metrics suggest things are turning dire for Bitcoin’s price. BlockTree’s Charlie Morris has noted that the price is likely to drop because network velocity, transaction value, average transaction size and network fees are all down.

The 1-week miner rolling inventory (MRI) is at 85% while it’s up to 94% in the past 24 hours according to data from on-chain analysis platform ByteTree. The 5-week MRI is at 103% to mean miners have sold more bitcoins than they mine. If the figure rises to these levels in the short term, it could be difficult for prices to hold up above $9k.

Meanwhile, the number of addresses holding more than 0.1 bitcoins has crossed 30 million. A dip at current prices may present another buying opportunity for long term investors.

Fig 3: Chart showing surge in the number of addresses holding +0.1 bitcoins. Source: Glassnode Source

The post Bitcoin struggles to hold ascending triangle pattern appeared first on abangtech.

from abangtech https://abangtech.com/bitcoin-struggles-to-hold-ascending-triangle-pattern/

[michaelbennettcrypto]

One Big Bearish Pullback Could Send Ripple’s XRP Back to YTD Highs

Ripple blockchain’s native cryptocurrency XRP hit its seven-week high during Wednesday trade. The gains came as a part of a broader cryptocurrency market uptrend that saw every high-cap token painting fresh local highs. But XRP’s interim uptrend could run out of breath as price tests a strong technical resistance. XRP, the cryptocurrency that finds use in Ripple’s blockchain payment protocol, was trading higher during Wednesday’s trading session. The fourth-largest crypto token surged 8.26 percent into the day to hit a seven-week high at $0.231. Its move uphill brought its net rebound up by 103 percent, more than a month after the price fell to the year-to-date (YTD) low near 0.114. At its highest in 2020, XRP was trading at $0.346. Driving Under Influence XRP wasn’t the only cryptocurrency registering gains. Its strong performance was reflected in the rest of the cryptocurrency market. After the epic crash in March, all the coins rebounded to negate their losses, with Bitcoin, Ethereum, Binance, EOS, and many others making a full retrace. So it appears, price rallies in the altcoin market tailed optimistic sentiments in the Bitcoin market. The benchmark cryptocurrency, BTC, will go through a scheduled block reward halving event, wherein its daily mining reward will go down by half from 1,800 coins per day to 900. Traders believe higher scarcity could make bitcoin more valuable. Correlation chart between different leading crypto tokens | Source: CryptoWatch XRP has a moderately positive correlation with Bitcoin – ticking at 0.80 on a 30D timeframe, according to data available at CryptoWatch. It shows that the Ripple crypto’s gains merely tailed the halving optimism in the Bitcoin market – and may continue to do so heading further into the second quarter of 2020. Big Ripple Pullback Reading of Ripple’s daily charts, on the other hand, shows a cautious price outlook. The XRP’s daily Relative Strength Indicator (RSI) represents it as an overbought asset, noting that its price is way out of its neutral zone and, therefore, must correct lower. Meanwhile, another technical fractal somewhat says the same thing. XRPUSD near key technical resistance, awaiting pullback | Source: TradingView.com, BitStamp The XRPUSD exchange rate is trending upwards in an Ascending Channel, now testing its Resistance trendline for an interim pullback. Meanwhile, the resistance coincides with the 0.23% Fibonacci retracement level of the graph drawn from $0.346-highs to 0.114-lows. Coupling both the indicators with Ripple’s daily RSI readings raises the possibilities of its price heading lower in the coming sessions. Ideally, it would retest the Channel support that falls alongside the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement level – at $0.20. A pullback does not take Ripple out of its bullish bias but creates opportunities for new traders to enter the market. Therefore, the Ripple price may bounce back – also owing to its positive correlation with a bullish Bitcoin. A higher low formation, as noted trader Michaël van de Poppe thinks, could lead XRP to its YTD high. Photo by Kupono Kuwamura on Unsplash from Cryptocracken WP https://ift.tt/35f0CJg via IFTTT

[brettzjacksonblog]

One Big Bearish Pullback Could Send Ripple’s XRP Back to YTD Highs

Ripple blockchain’s native cryptocurrency XRP hit its seven-week high during Wednesday trade. The gains came as a part of a broader cryptocurrency market uptrend that saw every high-cap token painting fresh local highs. But XRP’s interim uptrend could run out of breath as price tests a strong technical resistance. XRP, the cryptocurrency that finds use in Ripple’s blockchain payment protocol, was trading higher during Wednesday’s trading session. The fourth-largest crypto token surged 8.26 percent into the day to hit a seven-week high at $0.231. Its move uphill brought its net rebound up by 103 percent, more than a month after the price fell to the year-to-date (YTD) low near 0.114. At its highest in 2020, XRP was trading at $0.346. Driving Under Influence XRP wasn’t the only cryptocurrency registering gains. Its strong performance was reflected in the rest of the cryptocurrency market. After the epic crash in March, all the coins rebounded to negate their losses, with Bitcoin, Ethereum, Binance, EOS, and many others making a full retrace. So it appears, price rallies in the altcoin market tailed optimistic sentiments in the Bitcoin market. The benchmark cryptocurrency, BTC, will go through a scheduled block reward halving event, wherein its daily mining reward will go down by half from 1,800 coins per day to 900. Traders believe higher scarcity could make bitcoin more valuable. Correlation chart between different leading crypto tokens | Source: CryptoWatch XRP has a moderately positive correlation with Bitcoin – ticking at 0.80 on a 30D timeframe, according to data available at CryptoWatch. It shows that the Ripple crypto’s gains merely tailed the halving optimism in the Bitcoin market – and may continue to do so heading further into the second quarter of 2020. Big Ripple Pullback Reading of Ripple’s daily charts, on the other hand, shows a cautious price outlook. The XRP’s daily Relative Strength Indicator (RSI) represents it as an overbought asset, noting that its price is way out of its neutral zone and, therefore, must correct lower. Meanwhile, another technical fractal somewhat says the same thing. XRPUSD near key technical resistance, awaiting pullback | Source: TradingView.com, BitStamp The XRPUSD exchange rate is trending upwards in an Ascending Channel, now testing its Resistance trendline for an interim pullback. Meanwhile, the resistance coincides with the 0.23% Fibonacci retracement level of the graph drawn from $0.346-highs to 0.114-lows. Coupling both the indicators with Ripple’s daily RSI readings raises the possibilities of its price heading lower in the coming sessions. Ideally, it would retest the Channel support that falls alongside the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement level – at $0.20. A pullback does not take Ripple out of its bullish bias but creates opportunities for new traders to enter the market. Therefore, the Ripple price may bounce back – also owing to its positive correlation with a bullish Bitcoin. A higher low formation, as noted trader Michaël van de Poppe thinks, could lead XRP to its YTD high. Photo by Kupono Kuwamura on Unsplash from CryptoCracken SMFeed https://ift.tt/35f0CJg via IFTTT

[joshuajacksonlyblog]

One Big Bearish Pullback Could Send Ripple’s XRP Back to YTD Highs

Ripple blockchain’s native cryptocurrency XRP hit its seven-week high during Wednesday trade. The gains came as a part of a broader cryptocurrency market uptrend that saw every high-cap token painting fresh local highs. But XRP’s interim uptrend could run out of breath as price tests a strong technical resistance. XRP, the cryptocurrency that finds use in Ripple’s blockchain payment protocol, was trading higher during Wednesday’s trading session. The fourth-largest crypto token surged 8.26 percent into the day to hit a seven-week high at $0.231. Its move uphill brought its net rebound up by 103 percent, more than a month after the price fell to the year-to-date (YTD) low near 0.114. At its highest in 2020, XRP was trading at $0.346. Driving Under Influence XRP wasn’t the only cryptocurrency registering gains. Its strong performance was reflected in the rest of the cryptocurrency market. After the epic crash in March, all the coins rebounded to negate their losses, with Bitcoin, Ethereum, Binance, EOS, and many others making a full retrace. So it appears, price rallies in the altcoin market tailed optimistic sentiments in the Bitcoin market. The benchmark cryptocurrency, BTC, will go through a scheduled block reward halving event, wherein its daily mining reward will go down by half from 1,800 coins per day to 900. Traders believe higher scarcity could make bitcoin more valuable. Correlation chart between different leading crypto tokens | Source: CryptoWatch XRP has a moderately positive correlation with Bitcoin – ticking at 0.80 on a 30D timeframe, according to data available at CryptoWatch. It shows that the Ripple crypto’s gains merely tailed the halving optimism in the Bitcoin market – and may continue to do so heading further into the second quarter of 2020. Big Ripple Pullback Reading of Ripple’s daily charts, on the other hand, shows a cautious price outlook. The XRP’s daily Relative Strength Indicator (RSI) represents it as an overbought asset, noting that its price is way out of its neutral zone and, therefore, must correct lower. Meanwhile, another technical fractal somewhat says the same thing. XRPUSD near key technical resistance, awaiting pullback | Source: TradingView.com, BitStamp The XRPUSD exchange rate is trending upwards in an Ascending Channel, now testing its Resistance trendline for an interim pullback. Meanwhile, the resistance coincides with the 0.23% Fibonacci retracement level of the graph drawn from $0.346-highs to 0.114-lows. Coupling both the indicators with Ripple’s daily RSI readings raises the possibilities of its price heading lower in the coming sessions. Ideally, it would retest the Channel support that falls alongside the 38.2% Fibonacci retracement level – at $0.20. A pullback does not take Ripple out of its bullish bias but creates opportunities for new traders to enter the market. Therefore, the Ripple price may bounce back – also owing to its positive correlation with a bullish Bitcoin. A higher low formation, as noted trader Michaël van de Poppe thinks, could lead XRP to its YTD high. Photo by Kupono Kuwamura on Unsplash from Cryptocracken Tumblr https://ift.tt/35f0CJg via IFTTT