#solid state bonus tracks

[christiansorrell]

TTRPG Read-Through: Patchwork World

Here is a read-through I did last year (originally posted on Twitter) of one of the most unique PbtA games I've ever read: Patchwork World by Aaron King! - Christian

Credits up first. I know a lot of these folks and they are really cool! Excited to dig into this. I've heard good things, and it's been a while since I've read or played any Powered by the Apocalypse.

This is a cool, strong set up for me. I really like settings that ask characters to face a changing world and either take up change themselves or work to restore the old way of things. It's a headspace I find myself in a lot IRL these days so it's fun to explore.

I'm interested to see how the no stats, no playbooks angle of this game works, considering playbooks are typically such a staple of PbtA games.

Standard three-tired success, mixed success, fail forward resolution for rolls here and questions on the moves determine your bonus to the roll. Easy peasy. +2 is the max bonus.

Other types of rolls are described here. Interested to see how they come into play. I also love clocks and use them in pretty much every game I run so it's nice to see those laid out here too.

We just love a lil guy, don't we folks?

A good chunk of the opening here is spent on laying out a lot of solid foundations of roleplaying generally. It feels like a book (so far) that would work for entirely new players. It doesn't feel essential for me, but I never mind a game that supports varied experience levels.

Character creation is wide open, especially since there aren't playbooks and the text stresses that character creation is very much worldbuilding because of this. Fate-like concepts and tags are in here too which are things I generally enjoy. I like the Drawback mechanic.

Moves are in the playback I set in the other room so I'm gonna go grab those. You get two chosen moves and everyone has access to a number of default moves. You've got three other life/XP things to keep track of too. I'm especially interested in Hex.

There are a lot of moves! They seem quite varied and often very weird, fitting well with the titular patchwork world. You can have a duck's slick soul to dodge more easily or a magical space suit or speak to birds or be good at cartography. Overwhelming, but in an exciting way.

You also choose a community as a party. While PCs all have their original homelands (before the end of the old worlds), you know have a community that gets its own little sheet. This is a cool reshaping of the Gangs from Blades. I also like how the community can change over time.

Coming back to a PbtA game after months of more OSR-minded stuff, I think a lot of what these games contain are things that experienced players would say you could just do in any game at any time that it makes sense in the story, but I do find value in stating what's possible.

Esp since many players come to games with artificial limits on their options (whether that's from video games, more traditional RPGs, etc.). I just think good GMing here requires making sure that the players don't limit themselves just to the bevy of explicit options either.

GM moves (mostly to guide the response to failed rolls). I really think the community aspect of this set up is one of the biggest appeals to me so far. That and the wild list of moves, which I'm sure makes for amazing parties of characters.

I always feel like it's never something I should be in my own writing (for some probably unnecessary reason), but I enjoy the first-person, casual writing style throughout the book. Makes for a very chill read.

Good to see this game employs the Branson Reese style of NPC naming.

Stress acts as a single catch-all health and challenge rating for NPCs. Ideally, I'd hope this would help lead to the PCs approaching encounters with more than just violence.

Sections like this are what I'm referring to when I say this book feels very friendly to new players. It's got little anecdotes and thoughts like this throughout.

Look, it's been a while since I've seen A Christmas Story but... it didn't have ghosts in it right?

There's a sample adventure in the back (which I'll skip for this read-through) plus loads of random tables. Some wonderfully bizarre stuff in the characters and faction tables. Really gives you a good idea for how gonzo you can go with the setting.

Love these two in particular

Optional rules include hard mode (which I just think is kind of funny to see in PbtA, but could be cool if you lean heavy into the post-apoc setting) and some optional moves. I like that some moves focus on romance, something I enjoy IRL but never think to focus on in games.

I was wondering why this was the sixth edition!

That's all for the book itself. Going back to the packet to dig into the things I missed. Some expected bits in here but always one or two unique options I really enjoy. Leaking hex is cool (and could have some troubling cascade effects in certain situations).

I definitely wish, at least in sitting down to read like this, that the contents of the player packet was also in the book itself. I think PbtA has this tendency of leading to loads of pages on the table, but it can make them very easy to pick up and play or to learn as you play.

That element is definitely here, but I think the vast number of wide-ranging moves and the excitement that would drum up in my player group would more than makeup for that initial overwhelming feel of "whoa, that's a lot of papers out on the table".

Overall, it's the most I've wanted to play a game in this style in a while. I like that the base setup for the world is very much up to the players to determine via the characters they make. I like that PCs here will probably feel unlike any other folks have played before.

The community aspect feels like where I'd want to center my story around, as a player. Seeing that shift and change over time feels like it would be very rewarding and would help lean into the "the old world is dead, what do we want the new world to look like?" theme I enjoy.

Because Aaron King is cool and recently hit a lot of Twitter followers, Patchwork Worlds is now Pay-what-you-want over on Itch.

I'm not sure if physical copies are readily available. For full disclosure (guess I should have said this up front), I got this copy for free from Aaron! Not for the purposes of this thread or anything, just for fun a while back.

Thanks for reading more ramblings from me! If you like to do that sort of thing, check out my newsletter - Missives from the MeatCastle. It's got writings on my work, cool stuff I've run across the web in the last month, and exclusive rpg stuff! https://meatcastle.substack.com

[thepalmofyourfreezinghand]

If you had to remake TTPD (featuring TA) which 16 tracks would you use to make a solid album?

This is so difficult! But I’m gonna try.

So, the og album already tells a pretty cohesive story on its own, but there are a few “missteps” (in my eyes, of course!) that can be fixed. These are the songs I’d remove from the og tracklist:

1. MBOBHFT: This is just a bad song, imo. Very flat and repetitive. “Rivulets descend my plastic smile” is also a perfect example of a lyric that uses a whole lot of words without saying anything. There are a couple of important lines here (like “pull the string and I’ll tell you that he runs because he loves me”), but the song is just really bland.

2. The Alchemy: Worst song on the og tracklist and perhaps worst song overall. Again, its biggest crime is just being flat (IMO!). I also think that we don’t need the Travis narrative to make a complete and cohesive album. He’s clearly extremely important in Taylor’s life! But I don’t think we need his piece of the story to make sense of TTPD. Every other album has a moment at the end when the tension of the album is released (the world is sad but let’s go to the lakes! The world is painful but the pain won’t be forevermore! This heartbreak was horrible but now I’m gonna begin again! This was the worst year of my life but on New Year’s Day everything changed!). But TTPD’s story is more compelling if we remove that part of the story, imo.

3. ICFH (NRIC): Again, not important to the story (it’s already evident that she couldn’t “fix” him) and I really dislike the song.

4. And then I’d remove TTPD, just because I don’t like it hahah. It has a few moments that are relevant to the whole story, but nothing we can’t do without for a song that’s below average, imo.

5. Finally I’d remove Clara Bow. I love the song but it’s better as a bonus track, imo! I don’t really see how it would fit the main narrative.

Now, by removing these ongs, the only big narrative gap we create is the marriage one (in relation to MH) but we still have loml that talks about it, so it’s okay.

This would me my new tracklist!

INTRODUCTION

1. Fortnight. Of course, it’s an amazing opener. It sets the scene for the whole record and the “failed American dream” story is so mesmerizing.

2. COSOSOM: This is Fortnight sister, and it serves the purpose of bringing the album to a more “real” setting: first we see that the American dream has failed, and then we see why her specific story has failed.

SETTING THE MOOD FOR TAYLOR’S STATE OF MIND

3. I Hate It Here: “this place made me feel worthless” is a fundamental lyric to understand the entire album, imo

4. Florida!!!: again, with this song and the following one we have a “fantasy/real” scenery, just like in the first two tracks. She’s so bored and she feels so disconnected from her life that she dreams of doing the most crazy stuff (burying bodies in swamps…)

5. Guilty As Sin?: the “real” part of the consequences of her boredom: she won’t uproot her life and move to Florida, but she might reconnect with an old flame

THE END - THE BEGINNING - THE END (AGAIN)

6. So Long, London

7. Fresh Out The Slammer

8. BDILH

9. Peter: I know this is technically about the past, but I like the idea of placing the song here, because it’s kind of like… you said you were gonna grow up and you were gonna come find me, and now you’re here, you’ve found me, but you’re still not grown up.

MAKING SENSE OF THE ENDING

10. Down Bad: again, I like the idea of having a “fantasy/real” pairing. In this case, she’s so distraught about being left alone that the only way she can make sense of it all is by thinking “maybe you were an extraterrestrial creature that chose me temporarily, there’s no rational explanation here”

11. TSMWEL: she can’t make sense of the ending, but in this case it all boils down to “you’re a small man” (so this is the “real” part of the pairing)

POST MORTEM

This is just about examining the two relationships with a clear mind.

12. How Did It End?

13. loml

AND NOW?

These are two songs about the two possible outcomes for the ending of a relationship, long term: you’re either wishing they’d look at you while happily celebrating Christmas, or you’re wishing they’re having a shitty night at The Black Dog

14. The Black Dog

15. I Look In People’s Windows

THE PATTERN

This is a section about examining the patterns in her life, very easily put: why the story keeps repeating itself and what can she do to prevent that from happening again

16. The Bolter

17. ICDIWABH

18. The Prophecy

19. The Manuscript

I’m sorry, they’re 19! And then I’d add Clara Bow and WAOLOM as bonus tracks about the different cascading effects of fame. And I wish I could add The Albatross because I ADORE it but the story can live without it, imo.

Also these don’t go in order musically but I just chose the story with a specific story in mind.

[l3rking]

The Wicked Implement Post

I’m gonna talk about the new exotic stasis scout, Wicked Implement, ad nauseam over the next however many paragraphs. 

I’m talkin’ stats, buildcrafting, and hard numbers. Real nerd stuff. Keep reading if you’re into that.

Wicked Implement: Exotic Stasis Scout Rifle

There’s been a lot of hearsay and unnecessary hate hitting this gun and I’m here to say that almost all of it is BS. Let’s get this out of the way: it’s not meta-defining, it’s not over powered, it’s not cuckoo crazy... 

...it’s reliable and consistent.

To really get across what I mean, let’s talk numbers:

Stats:

Impact: 62

Range: 62

Stability: 63

Handling: 44

Reload Speed: 41

Aim Assist: 65

Zoom: 20

AE: 65

RPM: 180

Mag: 15

RD: 94

Implement’s stats stand above most others in it’s archetype. Only an Adept Hung Jury or Harrowed DoC can get close. It’s our first exotic 180 in D2 so this shouldn’t be too surprising. It does mean that stat-boosting buffs feel particularly nice (On Your Mark, Hedrons, etc.). 

So it shoots like a normal 180. What makes it special? 

Remember, exotic primaries deal 40% more damage over their legendary counterparts. This means in most mid-high level content you’ll be 2-3 shotting minors with no buffs from a distance. Not bad. And it plays directly into the exotic perk. 

Creeping Attrition, Tithing Harvest, and the Catalyst:

Implement's exotic perk, Creeping Attrition, states: “Rapidly landing precision hits causes targets to become slowed.” Like I said, not flashy or crazy; simple and consistent. So how does it work? 

It takes 3 precision hits to proc Creeping Attrition. 

The buff will last 3 seconds. Every precision hit will reset the timer (timer not shown in game). 

When Creeping Attrition is active, it takes 3 precision hits to freeze on all combatants. Every precision hit within those 3 slows for 4 seconds (6 w/Durance). Note: in PVP: x20 stacks of slow per crit (5 crits to freeze with perk active), same timer.

The 2nd Exotic Perk, Tithing Harvest, will create a stasis shard for precision final blows while Creeping Attrition is active. This shard will track aggressively to the player from any distance. Picking up this shard will refill the magazine. There is a small cooldown after generating the shard (unsure on timer, ~3 seconds).

The catalyst will allow you to overflow the magazine by picking up stasis shards. These shards can be from any source and will overflow the mag 5 bullets per shard up to 30.

Buildcrafting:

Buildcrafting this gun is fairly straightforward. Mostly owing to the simplicity of its perks and how it functions. Thankfully this works to its advantage; creating a solid workhorse that is versatile as much as it is useful. Out of the box it can stun 2 champion types with no assistance (slow for Overloads and Freeze/Shatter for Unstops) but it can also freeze stun Barrier Champs (as long as you don’t miss a crit!). 

The obvious setup is going to be any aspect that generates shards (Tectonic, Grim, and Glacial Harvest on Titan, Hunter, and Warlock respectively) and Whisper of Rime and Conduction to generate overshield and pickup shards. But there are a few unique interactions you should watch out for: 

Grim Harvest on Hunters creates stasis shards when defeating Stasis debuffed enemies. This will stack with Creeping Attrition’s shard creating 2 on kill. Throw in Whisper of Refraction and now we’re regenerating dodge energy on Creeping Attrition kills too. I bring this up specifically to talk about Mask of Bakris. Bakris will give 4 stacks of Arc and Stasis weapon Surge. This equates to 25% damage buff in PvE and 6% in PvP. That is enough to 3 crit T6 and below in PvP at .67 seconds. Not that a lot of folk run less than T6 these days but the bonus damage will catch people out. Bakris buff lasts 11 seconds. Once over, you begin regenerating dodge energy. 

Warlocks also have quite a bit of interaction with Implement. Freezing with Implement will create shards with Glacial Harvest, of course, and shattering that enemy can proc Iceflare Bolts. But the slow from Creeping Attrition crits also stacks with the Bleak Watcher turret. Freezing enemies more quickly. Whisper of Rending should be a mandatory pick with running anything with coldsnaps. A bonus 42% damage to frozen enemies is huge. Especially when you’re freezing enemies from across the map with the same gun. It’s the safest weapon in the game. A soloists dream.

Stasis Titan can synergize with almost anything. Right now I’m gonna talk about the Lancecap. Constant lances, constant crystals, constant shards. Outside of that, it’s more of the same. Safe slows and freezes. You could realistically pair it with nearly any subclass without worry. Use an Incandescent Trace Rifle for 90% of a strike with solar Syntho-Hammers but break out implement to freeze or stun a troublesome enemy before getting right back into the loop. That’s what I mean by reliable. 

The Problems:      

The regard and general opinions of the Destiny Community at-large doesn’t hold much value for me. Especially when they reach a toxic low point like they have recently. Usually from hanging out in the same burnout afflicted echo chambers that they sit in day in and day out. But there can sometimes be a little bit of truth lost in the nuance. Wicked Implement is not making waves and for good reason. There are simply other tools that can do what it does. Some more effectively. Some more efficiently. It’s an unpopular frame of an unpopular archetype. Not every gun can be game breaking or Quicksilver. 

The Conclusion:

I’m a big fan of Wicked Implement. And not just because it’s our first Exotic 180. It is simple, effective, easy to understand, and easy to implement (lol) in any build. There are flashier options, sure. But it will always be a good scout and good scouts will always be useful. Pair it with your favorite fusion or wave-frame, and a god-rolled rocket, and you’re set. You don’t really need much else. AND there’s already been talks of possible buffs in the future. Get in on the ground floor. With Strand being reined back in and possible Stasis buffs, I think folk who get good with this thing now are gonna be a menace in the future. Especially if we get some good Stasis artifact perks in a coming season. 

Gun good Please use :) 

[187days]

Bonus Day

We were back on the track for practice this morning. Unsurprisingly, it was raining during warm-ups (this is a theme this week), but then it cleared up and we actually saw glimpses of the sun! Coach T decided that the team needed to play a game to get their energy up at the start of practice, so he organized a relay race in which teams had to maneuver a big tire up and down the track and around some hurdles. I have to admit, it was entertaining!

Afterwards, the sprinters did their usual plyometric warm-up, then I timed six 100m repeats with a 300m recovery between each. That’s a solid workout, and several of them remarked that it was something different, as well. I said that’s because we’re moving into a different part of the season: the run-up to championships. Athletes have two more chances to qualify for the conference meet, and then it’s onto States!

[audio-luddite]

Better / Worse / Different.

After a longish bike ride I came home to shower, and rest on the couch. Hey perfect time to try the streaming thing.

To avoid the dreaded "always playing the same thing" combined with my desire to nap, I set the system to the new toy input and let it warm up with Miles Davis from the phone. I did nap for a bit then decided to try listening to two albums I am very familiar with when I woke up.

Linda Ronstadt "Lush Life" was first. Frankly I do not like that they add bonus tracks. They should have a box to tick if you want those, I just want the album as I recall it. Still it sounded different.

Maybe if I spoke audiophile jargon better I could characterize my impression. It is good sound, but different. Everything is clean and clear, but something is missing. It may be noise actually. Or it may be they remixed the sound a touch. I think the sound is flatter lacking some depth or ambiance, which being a studio thing is probably artificial. Hey it could be that the phono section goes through a tube and this is pure solid state. Don't know.

Next up was Paul Simon's "There goes Rhyming Simon". One of my favorite "test tracks" is the song Tenderness. That one has a backing group of singers that range from deep bass baritone to high tenor falsetto. Off my LP they stretch across the room with height and depth of almost spooky scale. Of the Apple Music Stream lossless it was flatter and impressed with no such scale. Again remixed?

Either one has excellent sound from bass guitar to the metallic ting of a acoustic guitar or the metal of cymbals. Nothing is done badly. Something is missing. The wonder is it something my phono system adds.

One definite advantage of streams is finding lost music. I had Paul Simon's Rhythm of the Saints CD. I lost it when a car CD player ate it. That ruined both the stock CD player and the disk. I was not able to play it very many times so never "learned it'". I played it on the apple music thing and enjoyed it immensely. He tapped into the African sound of Brazilian music and even had some of the South African musicians from Graceland on it. It is very visceral. Lots of drums as in those giant samba bands. Some must have been recorded outside as those are big groups.

OK as it sits like so many things Streaming is fine as a source. Is it better, hmmm.... It is different? Yes.

The streamer is the Bluesound Node-nano. I use the stock RCA cables, maybe I should braid up some of my own?

I was streaming lossless ALAC from my phone over my wireless network. (not Blutooth)

The rest of the system is the ARC SP 14 preamp, the Franken-Amp, and my invisible speakers.

It is not at all bad.

[maimedaffair]

❛  am  i  the  only  one  who  didn’t  know ?   ❜ : @aueternus + feyre ! ( + bonus azriel )

❛   no. i didn't learn until recently. i had to check for myself before i involved anyone else. especially given where we are. ❜ rhys does not like being in the spring court ------- can't shake the ache that comes with tamlin in the form of agony &* hate &* lost love all at once. he doesn't want to confront any of it -- it doesn't matter anymore. the spring court could fall &* that would be it.

except that wouldn't just be it. not with selene here.

he'd noticed something was off in prythian since feyre's arrival ----- figured it was just their mating bond pulling him to her relentlessly. but even azriel had been more frequently away from the night court. the other seemed to have a renewed interest in spying on the spring court more frequently to see what state tamlin would continue on in. rhys hadn't thought to check otherwise -- az was loyal &* dedicated ; everything checked out.

but there was something off. he couldn't shake the feeling. so he'd followed him just once ----- tracked him there to the hidden grove where that pool of starlight resided. felt the energy that came from something so distinctly night court. it hadn't taken him more than a minute to realize what was happening. to connect the dots of starlight &* azriel &* the feeling of such profound loss that azriel couldn't seem to swallow down in that grove.

so they said they were on a diplomatic mission -- gave him &* az an excuse to investigate. 500 years right under his damn nose. mostly , the time is spent with selene , rhy's powers helping her maintain hers more readily to manifest into that odd , sparkling version of herself. he talked to helion , eager to know if there was any way to break such a curse. thing is , it's not a curse. it's just pure magic. strong , strong magic. amren suggested she might have been able to help before , but no magic she had now was going to touch that of the high lord.

so he's only told feyre now ; only dared to bring her into the mess now that his leads have dried up. when he had no new news or ideas. feyre was one of the most powerful faeries around , still discovering half of her powers. explaining was harder than showing , so he brought her with him &* azriel this time. made sure tamlin was far , far away. he's not sure he has it in him to not turn him to dust if he came anywhere near selene.

sel is laying there against the edge of the pool , arms crossed on the grass as her chin props onto tan skin. violet eyes have lost so much light over these centuries alone. it's clear there is so very little hope left. the weight of rhys now also knowing the grief azriel has carried alone for so long makes her chest ache. she extends a hand to azriel as he sits as close to the edge as he can , her fingers gently brushing along the back of his hand. she feels as cool as the water around her , but at least in this manifested state she feels solid. the blue water-like pattern that decorates her skin seems to ripple wherever she is touched. not literally ; her skin does not move ------- it's just a visualization , like a projection overtop her skin.

rhys sighs &* pinches the bridge of his nose. ❛   i don't know what to do. my powers help her manifest easier , but nothing i do will reverse her magic. i'm not strong enough. ❜ coming from the strongest high lord to ever grace prythian ? he must truly be upset by this turn of events.

[bestpgdmcollege]

Find the Top MBA College in Delhi 2024

The pursuit of higher education or the leadership and management course, particularly that most young professionals are attracted to, is the trip taken by many in the throbbing heartbeat of Delhi. In the ocean of choice, the APIM is the speckle of excellence, an institute ranked as the Best Management College in India. Let us sail into the specialties the Asia-Pacific Institute of Management possesses that make it the top choice for the managers of tomorrow and the business leaders of the future.

A Legacy of Excellence

Asia-Pacific Institute of Management has had talent development and character-shaping as its chief goals and objectives since its establishment. Consecutively over the years, the school has developed a solid academic foundation plus a commitment to holistic development and it is one of the top business schools in Delhi. Today, the institute is regarded as Top 10 Management Colleges in Delhi and this is based on our forward-look visionary team, modern teaching methodologies, and industry-academia connections.

State-of-the-Art Infrastructure

Asia-Pacific Institute of Management indeed has several factors that stand as the premier MBA college of Delhi. One of the most important factors is that of its world-class infrastructure. Modern technology is used extensively while building the campus and it has all the latest facilities that give a wide perspective to the learning. In its fundamental components, the place will be a combination of efforts ranging from stocking libraries to the most technologically advanced classroom. Plans for the establishment of amphitheaters and seminars, the creation of a student center, and many other intermediate points were drawn up to ensure that the environment would be suitable for learning and personal development.

Innovative Pedagogy

The curriculum at the Asia-Pacific Institute of Management is a symbol of the high hopes to deliver the most up-to-date education. The instruction is constantly rewritten to stay up-to-date regarding what trends are in the business world. There is a cohesive mix of the theory and the practical. The case studies, simulations, and practical projects are the major sections because of their focus on the actual businesses. Such methodology is meant to make students not only knowledgeable and to know their theory on management perfectly, but also able to use their knowledge effectively in real-world conception.

Industry-Academia Interface

Asia-Pacific Institute of Management is identified as the leading MBA college at the top in Delhi because of the institute’s unique bridge to the industry. Besides, the institute keeps a track record of regularly inviting eminent personalities from the corporate sector, who are often graced by their insight and experience. Such collaboration allows students to learn comprehension of a business environment with the bonus of building strong professional networks. Hence, the wider networks with top corporates guarantee that students are provided chances to internships and jobs with the globally known companies that are headquartered in India or abroad.

Holistic Development

APM addresses the full human being, not just his or her intellect, with our wholehearted development of students. The program, which targets both academic and professional transitions, and the personal growth of students, is the one designed with that in mind. The institute provides varied extracurricular activities, for instance, sports, culture, and social initiatives, which help in developing leadership and skills teamwork, and a sense of social responsibility.

Experienced Faculty

The faculty at the Asia-Pacific Institute of Management has an experienced professorship and are professional business practitioners. The lecturers not only obtained high qualifications and education levels in their specialty, but they have also worked in the fields for many years. The experience of the teachers is an asset to the classroom. As they provide a lot of practical insights and background knowledge, they help students to realize the whole field in more depth and understand the concepts better. The faculty's superior knowledge, commitment to excellence, and eager willingness to help make them a much-treasured resource within the student community.

Global Exposure

In today’s world where globalization is to the fore and takes the driver's seat, the Asia-Pacific Institute of Management acknowledges the critical necessity to avail its students of a global perspective. Global learning starts in the classroom with the institute's collaboration with several international universities, promoting the participation of students in exchange programs and study abroad. With such choices, not only will the learners broaden their cultural perspective but they will also benefit from a competitive advantage in the world of work.

Commitment to Sustainability

The Asia-Pacific Institute of Management is strongly engaged in sustainable issues in curriculum and operations. Among the main objectives of the institute is to enable the students to think about business in a sustainable manner, which incorporates social and environmental issues. This commitment to sustainability is reflected in the coursework they provide, the research that they undertake, and the cooperation that they maintain among the students and the faculty.

Conclusion

In conclusion, the Asia-Pacific Institute of Management is regarded as a Top Management College in India, due to its outstanding legacy of performance, sophisticated infrastructure, innovative teaching, industry-university collaboration, holistic value system, experienced staff, world-class experience, and commitment to sustainability. The focus of the institute on students' future learning and business leadership in itself sets up the basis upon which the institute assumes a high status among schools that produce aspiring managers and business leaders.

Why wait - take the lead of your future and apply today at the Asia-Pacific Institute of Management!

[denimbex1986]

'It's taken an unusually windy road, but Ripley, the latest adaptation of Patricia Highsmith's classic novel The Talented Mr. Ripley, is finally going to see the light of day at Netflix. The series, which was originally developed at Showtime, stars Andrew Scott as Tom Ripley and comes from four-time Oscar nominee Steven Zaillian.

Whether you're a longtime fan of the classic story or just somebody looking for a dope new show to binge, we've got all the details about the upcoming Ripley series, including the cast, crew, and when you'll be able to inject Ripley directly into your veins.

Ripley trailers and teasers

The full-length trailer for Ripley, released in early March, gives us our solid look at the series, showing just how effortlessly Tom Ripley (Andrew Scott) inserts himself into Dickie Greenleaf's (Johnny Flynn) life, much to the suspicion of those around Dickie. "He's a liar," Marge (Dakota Fanning) says, in an incredible understatement. "It's his profession." He's also a murderer and a con artist, but who's keeping track?

Ripley's first teaser, released in February, was not particularly story-focused, with more of an emphasis on what sort of vibe you should expect from the series — but what a vibe it is, with the very stark and eye-catching black-and-white cinematography from the great Robert Elswit, and Ripley (Scott) looking appropriately creepy.

Ripley release date and episode count

Ripley will launch on Netflix in the United States on April 4, 2024, with all eight episodes of the series dropping that day. Ripley is a limited series and is not expected to go beyond this season.

What is Ripley about?

The Talented Mr. Ripley novel focuses on a con man named Tom Ripley who is hired by a rich man to encourage his prodigal son vacationing in Europe to return home to the United States. But Tom, who got this gig by pretending to already be friends with the man's son, has more nefarious plans as he attempts to ingratiate himself with these wealthy socialites.

The appeal of the Ripley character isn't just in what he does, but how. Tom is a charmer who very effectively carries the pretense of true culture despite having none, and his sexual flexibility gives him some bonus animal appeal. In other words, Tom Ripley is the sort of character who, if handled correctly, is hard to look away from.

This is the sixth time that the complicated sociopath Tom Ripley has been given life in a screen adaptation, and some big names have taken on this role in the past: Barry Pepper, Dennis Hopper, John Malkovich (who appears in Ripley as a different character), and most notably by Matt Damon in the late Anthony Minghella's The Talented Mr. Ripley. That last film, and performance by Damon, is the standard by which Netflix's Ripley will be judged.

But the new Ripley, Andrew Scott, is no slouch himself, and he's certainly got the skills necessary to make his mark in the role if the show is good enough.

Who will be in Netflix's Ripley?

Aside from Ripley himself, the key characters in the book being adapted here are Dickie Greenleaf, the man that Tom is hired to bring home, and Marge Sherwood, Dickie's girlfriend. Dakota Fanning will be playing Marge in this version of the story, with Johnny Flynn as Dickie — these are the roles that were played by Jude Law and Gwyneth Paltrow in the 1999 film. And John Malkovich will make some kind of appearance — he makes a lot of sense to play Dickie's father, which is a relatively small but very key role in the story.

Who created Ripley?

This new Ripley adaptation was created by Steven Zaillian, who also wrote and directed all eight episodes. Zaillian is best known for his prestigious career as a movie screenwriter, which earned him four Oscar nominations, most recently for Martin Scorcese's The Irishman. Zaillian also co-created the HBO mini series The Night Of, and directed all but one of the episodes of that series.

Where to watch Ripley

Ripley will be available exclusively on Netflix when it's released on April 4.'

[casspurrjoybell-30]

Howling Love - Chapter 24

*Warning Adult Content*

Amille Laurent

He wasn't telling me something or I was just paranoid, was it bothering so much that Camryn was in a way perfect.

He had doted on me, made sure I was comfortable, breakfast in bed being an added bonus, he was living at my house with dad and I.

It was bliss having him there, he was extremely manly that sometimes even dad found it endearing, towels and clothes everywhere, feet propped up on the table whilst watching a game but then never missed out on getting flowers for me and making all of us dinner, he was a true gentleman.

"Camryn," Dad yelled and I was sure it was the third time today.

"What did I tell you about leaving your drying towels on the floor," he fumed stomping outside where I was with Camryn.

He was fixing a car, well he was done fixing it after it poured oil on him when it first got here and his cheeks, plus those rock solid abs were smeared in it as was his overalls that were tied to to his waist.

Moon Goddess, I had a great view but besides that.

"Sorry Mr L," he mumbled looking away from the car and giving one of those lazy smiles making dad stop in his tracks deflated, who could stay mad at the large wolf who looked like every gay boys dreamboat.

"Fine," dad sighed wistfully, like I said... Camryn got away with a lot.

"So when are you guys leaving?" dad asked and I sat up in surprise.

I had totally forgotten that we were going camping tonight.

"Relax duck-face, I already have everything set," Camryn intercepted my already panicked state earning a chuckle from dad.

Since the time Camryn had come to live with us, I had gotten back to school and caught up with everything.

I painted and delivered all my orders, caught up with my share of pack papers that I ordered Camryn not to do, hung out with my cousins and I also had my sleepover with Max.

I was back in the loop with everything, except that nagging feeling that I couldn't explain whenever I saw Camryn.

I couldn't bring myself to tell him I was ready to be marked,or that I had given the enforcers the glass dad drank from and his mother's fingerprints were found on it but they were looking for more evidence.

It's why I had strongly advocated for this camping trip, so we could talk, lay everything on the table and have some sort of conversation about it all.

[You seem worried, what's up?] I turned on my heel with my hand on my chest as Dean showed up next to me.

I hadn't even felt him until he was close and my dad was nowhere to be seen.

"Hey man, you got what I asked for ready?" Camryn called out as he closed the hood of the car he was fixing.

"Definitely, I got it all sorted, you good?" Dean called back and Camryn gave him a thumbs up as he winked my way making me blush.

I knew he was going to take the car on a test drive, leaving me with Dean.

"You still haven't told him huh?" he mentioned and I groaned.

[I know I should've but I couldn't, I was hoping tonight we would talk] I replied with my cell-phone and Dean lightly snickered.

"You should've talked to him. Listen I know you feel weird about him being your first and I actually talked to him about it, not directly but after walking in on you two, in the kitchen, almost ripping each other's clothes off, that tells me both of you are ready and I'm sure you know that, just take the plunge, okay?" he reassured me as well as make me cringe.

The kitchen incident wasn't my finest moment.

[I know Dean and I promise I'll take your advice] I told him and he nodded.

I was a virgin, not a big shocker looking at my love life track record, even my first kiss, my epic kiss was with Camryn the day I woke up.

So it wasn't easy but I was sure about myself now, I just needed to have Camryn be sure to take the plunge.

After the test drive, Camryn came back just in time for a quick snack and a really much needed shower.

Dean had left a while ago with dad, the two were inseparable lately, but I knew it had something to do with Dean having unexplainable feelings for Orlando and what it meant when he turned eighteen next month.

I didn't want to meddle yet since I had my own wolf troubles but when I was needed I would.

"You ready cup-cake?" Camryn asks as he stood out side, we were packed and ready to go, everything from food to band-aids was in there, even a map for some reason, it was slightly amusing since we weren't leaving pack territory but I guess we needed to prepare for anything.

So I nodded, locked up the house and smiled toward my beautiful mate, he was gorgeous and he had a growth spurt recently which made him close to a 6'8/9 in height but I still loved him anyway. 

I hadn't told him but tonight I was going to, he needed to hear it, of course I was sure both of us were going to say it tonight, as I looked back at the house.

I couldn't help remember a day in the past week that I had caught Alpha Summer sneaking out of our house in the dead of night, of course I never questioned dad about it, he was a grown man.

I'm sure he knew what he was doing and I left it at that as Camryn's hand squeezed mine and my thoughts all centred on him.

We drove out into the woodland part of the pack territory and since it was so huge, it felt as if we had driven miles away from the house and the pack nucleus which honestly we had.

As the sun dipped behind us and the stars began showing, we got there and I was surprised to see a tent, and most of what we needed to camp already there.

[Wow, how did you] my fingers were stuck, I couldn't finish, all that packing I wondered why I hadn't seen a tent till now.

"Dean arranged it," Camryn replied and it clicked, that's what they had been talking about earlier.

[You sneaky wolf] I accused as he chuckled coming over to hug me and we leaned on the hood of the Spyder R8 he drove now.

"I wanted to surprise you," he muttered and I turned to face him with a smile, I definitely loved the surprise.

[Colour me surprised, I love it] I signed and he nodded with a grin, kissing my temple afterward.

[Camryn, I love you] there I said it.

I didn't use my phone. I used my hands and it surprised him.

[I know I hadn't said it and I'm sure that's what was holding you back but I love you Camryn. I feel more of what a mate should feel and I know in my heart that I love you, you mean the world to me and I am so grateful that the Moon Goddess gave me a mate like you, clumsy as a neanderthal but devoted and loyal like an Alpha] I finished wiping away my tears and he wiped away his own too.

The distance closed between us as he hoisted me up to his waist and we kissed.

This was different, it burned like a fire in me, eliciting a desire I never knew.

"I love you Amille. I love you my beautiful mate and I thank the Goddess too, each day of our lives."

I knew that it wasn't just Camryn who had spoken to me, but his wolf as well and I smiled.

[Can I meet him?] I asked Camryn who nodded, he first let me down and  took our stuff from the car, placed them in the large tent, I was patient enough until I wasn't.

[Come on Camryn, I want to meet him] I used my cell-phone to yell and he chuckled walking out of the tent naked.

I quickly looked away but a growl later I was facing him, all of him, all of his generously endowed self, he was going to rip me in two but I wanted it.

"I can't exactly shift in clothes and don't ever look away from me. I am yours, this body is yours," he asserted and I nodded.

Camryn took a few steps back and without warning only the slight break in bones, a few seconds in, he shifted, like I had seen before, a monstrous wolf stood before me.

I wasn't afraid, he was my mate and I closed the distance and hugged him, well tried to since he was really huge and I was still my tiny self.

A content rumble came from him as our heads met, I rubbed his neck, feeling his rough fur but most of all I'm sure I saw the same shine in his eyes that I'm sure I held.

I couldn't say anything but I was sure he knew my love.

We stayed for an hour like that, his body curled around mine, tentative licks and barks, even a short run, until his snout passed by my neck and slowly wolf turned to man.

I gulped down hard realizing that Camryn was aroused or maybe it was me.

[I need to tell you something] I stated but he stopped me as his lips caught mine in a kiss that made sure I knew the arousal I felt wasn't Camryn's at all.

"Not now," he whispered as we stumbled into the tent.

I couldn't get a good look as I was struggling with my clothes and Camryn tore them off, his mouth sucking on my neck, kisses that left a trail of shivers on my naked body.

He lay me down on the mattress, caressed me, more rather worshipped me with his tongue, tasted, nibbled on my flesh making me moan unashamedly.

I didn't know what to do so I let him take the lead, as his lips found the hem of my shorts and his eyes turned to me, I nodded then, I wanted this, I wanted him.

[I give you my all, my consent] I signed and there it was, as if all the barriers were torn down and my back arched in pleasure.

I could have never guessed what it felt like to have his mouth suck on my member, pump and jerk eliciting unhindered moans that if I tried to supress he would spank me for.

"I want you to moan and scream," Camryn growled as he upped his pace,pumped harder, faster, my body jerking at an awkward angle as he took all of me in his mouth.

I held on to his hair, tugged on to it so hard that he grunted but the reason was true.

He didn't stop, he pumped harder until I couldn't hold it anymore and I moaned louder, as my release came I shivered, shook as the bliss of it all boggled my mind, a pleasure that left me awe-stricken.

Finally I slumped down to the mattress and Camryn hovered over me and kissed me.

I didn't taste just myself, no I tasted him too as in the moment we parted I held his hard member in my hand making me gasp.

"We've only just begun," he huskily reminded me, flipping over to my knees as my naked ass was in the air, his tongue dove into my rosebud and instantly I was hard again.

He didn't stop until I was moaning again, kneading my cheeks, spanking them making me moan, then the first intrusion came with a finger coated with a warm liquid, he distracted me from it by biting gently on my back, kissing me until I felt not one but four fingers in.

"I'll be gentle, I promise," he whispered.

I knew it would rip me apart, he was after all well endowed.

I had seen it, it didn't matter, as the pain bloomed, being stretched so much that tears burned my eyes but he was true to his promise.

He entered me slowly, communicating, making sure I was fine, halfway he pulled out, then rammed into me until what I felt was his large sac.

"Sorry baby... I couldn't help myself, you're so... tight," he whispered as I adjusted, the pain slowly subsiding leaving something else that made me shiver.

Camryn made love to me, his thrusts, his pace, it wasn't only for his pleasure but mine.

We went on for a while until finally he quickened his pace knowing I couldn't hold out anymore, I moaned loudly letting him know.

"Not yet," he growled as he thrust deeper, his sac hitting my entrace in its heaviness, his other hand clamped down on my shaft.

"Amille," he grunted out as his face shifted and his fangs elongated.

"Release with me mate," I heard him as his fangs bit down on my neck... hard.

I released as did he.

I could feel it, so warm inside me, filling me so much so that it slightly hurt but I could less care for the pain.

I felt weightless, compared to my first climax, it was rather in another level because all I felt was pleasure in weightlessness.

'I was marked and I knew something was different about me but before I could truly grasp what that something was.'

'My mate finally fucked me till he knocked me out with a smile on my lips.'

[all-the-fun-of-the-cirkus]

so here's every album i heard for the first time in 2023

grace under pressure (rush) - heard signals last year and loved it, so i thought i'd finally cracked rush. i have not cracked rush. it's the last two albums again, only not as good. best song - afterimage

the bends (radiohead) - i do not like 90s alt-rock, so i am very annoyed at how good this is. can't remember half the songs but as an album it works surprisingly well. best song - street spirit. or my iron lung if i'm in the mood

ok computer (radiohead) - a very good album! not enough classics to be the best album of all time!!!1!! i've come to see radiohead as possibly my favourite second-tier band; lots of great songs, not enough genuine genius. although the climbing up the walls/no surprises/lucky run of tracks is almost enough to convince me otherwise, bc this works really well as a cohesive album. the cacophony of fitter happier, electioneering and cutw makes no surprises sound like the most beautiful song on earth. best song - one of that run. probably lucky

king of limbs (radiohead) - three good songs on side two sandwiched within a load of dull noise. everything else off here sounds better live anyway; bloom in concert is just jawdropping, but this version's just enh. best song - give up the ghost

moon-shaped pool (look i was having a moment) - typical radiohead. lovely atmosphere, nothing offensive, just not enough great songs. best song - ful stop, although i'm warming to present tense

peter gabriel 1 (guess) - turns out sometimes you can just fuck around with no idea what you're doing and accidentally stumble into a pretty good album. best song - moribund the burgermeister (also best title)

hard promises (tom petty) - every petty album is three or four bangers and a load of enjoyable filler. best song - the waiting

a song for all seasons (renaissance) - perfectly listenable, and i haven't felt the desire to listen to anything off it since. best song - title track

the construkction of light (king crimson) - blah. self-ripoffs, monotonous, lifeless. get heavy construkction instead, everything from here comes to life and you get the best songs off thrak and some cool improvs too. best song - prozakc blues (yeah fuck you it's great)

transgender dysphoria blues (against me!) - shut up, i'm a cliche. pop punk is very much not my sort of thing, and most of this didn't leave as much of an impression as it has on a lot of people i know. one or two tracks did hurt, though. and the one-two punch of paralytic states and black me out is a nice way to round things out, i love black me out as a defiant "no things WILL get better if i have to fuck someone up to do it" closer. best song - true trans soul rebel

interview (gentle giant) - if anyone else listened to albums by against me! and gentle giant this year i'll be astonished lmao. anyway not the unlistenable trainwreck or complex masterwork people proclaim it to be, it actually feels kind of throwaway. all of the songs are okay (well, not convinced on timing or design) but together they don't quite work. best song - i lost my head, which absolutely rules

the missing piece (gentle giant) - this, however, absolutely warrants its reputation. best song - memories of old days

giant for a day! (gentle giant) - it's good! yeah, i said it! shame the only people who hear it are prog nerds, bc it's cheesy and dumb, and the lyrics are atrocious, but it's a solid pop album. best song - thank you (my version of the album has single edits as bonus tracks that shave a minute off this and words from the wise, and i think it's to both their benefits)

ode to quetzalcoatl (dave bixby) - it's fascinating how much more interesting hardcore christian folk becomes when you realise the singer's trying to convince himself just as much as he is the listener. an excellent, moody listen, although it's not something i'm gonna stick on regularly. best song - lonely faces i guess? it's not really an individual track album

i'm in your mind fuzz (king gizzard & the wizard lizard) - oddly disappointing. monotonous, barely enough ideas to fill out a regular song, let alone a 12 minute suite (i'm in your mind sounds great, cool riff, nice groove, and then it just... doesn't stop. it just keeps going). at times it brings out the sort of kitschy flaming lips quirkiness, when it becomes a bit more enjoyable, but it's fleeting. not impressed. best song - satan speeds up, i guess (can't count the opener as its own song, that'd be like saying my favourite track from wish you were here was shine on part 1 or something), although i do enjoy the intentional banality of her and i's song portion

fox confessor brings the flood (neko case) - at time of writing i've just listened to this for the first time. i'm going to have to listen to it a great deal more. sheer poetry, absolutely outstanding lyrics, evocative, cryptic, emotional, always compelling. the actual songs live up to them, too, and the arrangements! always interesting, spicy dissonance thrown in regularly, frenetic background playing that didn't have to be there but really enriches the songs... i'm going to have to digest this more. best song - margaret vs pauline

i'm not counting the gazillion king crimson live albums i listened to (guess who found the starless boxset going cheap!!!) or we'll be here all day. suffice to say chicago 2017 rules, mainz 1974 rules just as much and the night watch/amsterdam 1973 makes crimson sound like the greatest band in the world for eighty minutes (the other four minutes is lament)

[televinita]

What I Watched in 2022 (TV)

I was going to fill out a survey about my TV-watching habits, but then I realized...I have a seive-like brain (now more than ever, considering that I watch things almost exclusively on streaming services and have little to no idea what is even currently airing on television), and my time would be better served just organizing the list I more-or-less kept track of throughout the year and trying to make some sense of it.

En...joy?

Current Scripted Shows (2021-22 and/or ‘22-23 season):

Abbott Elementary

Alaska Daily

Blood & Treasure

Ghosts (US version)

Pretty Smart

Severance

Sweet Magnolias

United States of Al

(I’ve got literally 4 ships across all of these shows, plus Densi on the side from NCIS: LA even though I’m not watching it. god. no wonder I feel so parched and/or go so off the rails when I stumble into a good romantic movie these days. or even just a movie with a solid romance in it.)

Current Reality/Game Shows:

The Amazing Race: Season 33 & 34 (but also: on Hulu I binged 23, 25-29, and a rewatch of 31)

Beyond the Edge

The Chase

The Floor is Lava

Jeopardy: the College Tournament of Champions & however much has aired so far of the Celebrity Tournament of Champions

Survivor

The Weakest Link (w/ Jane Lynch)

(WHY AM I THIS ADDICTED TO REALITY AND GAME SHOWS. How old am I. what year is it.)

Older Shows:

Alone (History channel): season 8/Chilko Lake

Bedlam (something British... SkyTV?): season 1

The Chair (Netflix miniseries)

The Circle (Netflix): season 1 & 2

Deadwater Fell (Acorn)

Enlisted (FOX)

The Exes (TV Land)

Fuller House: 1x01-06 (then I got too overwhelmed with joy and needed to save it)

Hit the Floor (VH1): season 1 & 2

Keep Breathing (Netflix miniseries)

Maid (Netflix)

Mythic Quest (AppleTV): 1x02, 1x08-2x04 w/ husband

Ultimate Beastmaster: season 3

Valor (CW)

Rewatches:

Blood and Treasure: season 1

Revolution: 2x13-22

The Office: 8x07-24

Siberia

Ally McBeal: Josh Groban's 2 episodes (which I forgot to post about, dangit)

Community (I lost count because I’m jumping around the series and rarely see more than 2 or 3 in chronological order, but I’ve definitely seen at least 50 of them for the umpteenth time)

Random rewatch episodes in syndication/Netflix:

Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders: Making the Team

Sabrina the Teenage Witch (just 2, but so fun that night)

Wheel of Fortune

King of Queens

Seinfeld

Bonus: One or Two Episode Wonders

(with 1 or 2 exceptions, there was nothing wrong with these shows, I just was like "wow this is good!" and then was too overwhelmed or unable to return)

American Housewife: 1x01-02 (still saved for when I need a comfort-food sitcom)

The Big Leap: 1x01 (I definitely MEANT and WANTED to continue, I was just never Ready)

Camp Snowflake: 1x01 (this one I bailed on purpose; it was awful.)

The I-Land: 1x01 (why does this look so good yet move so slowly and boringly)

The Last Cowboy: 1x01-02 (caught on TV; wish I could have watched more! a reality show about reining horses and their riders? DUDE. unfortunately I could only find this on live TV)

Mr. Mayor: 1x01-02 (Holly Hunter was truly That Repellent huh)

NCIS: LA: 13x08 (oh, wow, I meant to watch at least a couple more highlight eps...but really, I am now a shippy-gifsets-only kind of girl)

Redneck Island: 3x02-03; 1x02-09 (bless you late night syndication and insomnia lmao)

The Terminal List: 1x01 (I really did mean to continue, but then Matt Barr knocked Chris Pratt Owen Grady off the top of Handsome Mountain so now we're waiting until I am back in the groove of finding this man attractive under the right circumstances)

Conclusions:

Favorite show of the year is hands-down bar-none Blood & Treasure, but Abbot Elementary is a close second. The best reality show this year is definitely The Amazing Race. And among the older shows, Maid is fantastic and very much worth your time/my leading favorite among them.

Best comfort-food sitcoms: Ghosts, United States of Al, Family Reunion, Enlisted and The Exes are all a warm delight.

Also, doesn’t qualify as a comfort-food one but Mythic Quest is surprisingly entertaining, for someone who’s never played a MMORPG in her life and whose last video game attempts were done on a PS2. I just hate the language (and Ian).

And all of the rewatches, obviously, sheer perfection. *chef’s kiss*

[looye29]

Manifestation is a trending topic today and quite an eyebrow-raiser too! Well, if someone told you that it's possible to use the power of your thoughts to manifest your dreams into reality, it's definitely a lot to take in! Manifestation is a strong concept, and talking simply; it is about focusing on something specific until it becomes a physical reality. In layman's terms, it means that your brain has the power to believe something so strongly that it is bound to come into your life. Is it possible to manifest money, good health, success in your life? Let's find out if the product "15 Minute Manifestation" by Eddie Sergey can help you here! The Product The 15 Minute Manifestation program claims to rewire your brain to be more receptive and open. With the help of specific audios that you need to listen to every day, the program aims to stimulate and reorganize your brain cells. You will able to manifest your desires into your actual life. What the program does is that it clears your limited pre-conditioned mind and awakens its powerful attentive state by working with the subconscious. It removes toxic thoughts in the initial phases itself so that you are stress-free first. Then your brain can start focusing on abundance strong enough to attract it. What Do You Get? When you purchase ‘The 15 Minute Manifestation’ program, you get access to a member’s area containing: A 12-page Jumpstart Guide (on how and when to use the audio tracks) 3 Main Audio Tracks and 1 Bonus Deep Sleep Track Manifestation Wizardry eBook There are also a few upsells like: 15 Minute Money Magic ($67) 15 Minute Health Reboot ($47) 15 Minute Relationship Magic ($47) The upsells are of course, optional, and what I liked it that Eddie is not pushy about them. How Does it Work? You need to spend 15 minutes every day for at least 21 consecutive days listening to the audio tracks. You need to listen to the first track for seven days, the second track for the next seven days, and so on. The audio tracks are made up of Theta frequencies that 'speak to the subconscious mind’ and helps it become more open, aware, and confident. Of course, at the end of 21 days, you will not experience any magical awakening! Keep your expectations at a reasonable level. I found that the program works with concepts of Neuro Linguistic Programming (which is very much a science) to declutter and soothe your mind. Your mind, minus the stress and negativity, thinks much more confidently and powerfully. Let’s get into the Bonus: The bonus Deep Sleep track consists of Delta frequencies that work towards calming the brain into a state of rest and peaceful sleep. So, if you’ve been anxious and are having trouble sleeping, this track is a great way to get you the much – needed rest. Pros The basis of the program is rooted in science. The established rules of quantum physics and NLP are applied to manifestation techniques. Eddie explains his research, how his program works etc. all in detail and in layman's language. This is quite commendable since we are talking about brain science, one of the most medically challenging sciences there is. The program is not time-consuming. You just need to spend 15 minutes each day listening to an audio track, and that's all. Doing the program religiously does not require much effort on your part. There are no brain-challenging exercises or something. Whenever you are free, sit back and listen to a soothing audio track for some time. It really can't get easier than this! Also, it does not require a specific kind of environment that you need to create for it to work. You can just sit and listen in wherever you are. The Deep Sleep Bonus track is quite effective. You can actually get a solid good night’s sleep after listening to it. Eddie offers a one-year money-back guarantee. This is a rare one! You can try the program for a month or two and if you don't find it yielding results for you, just return it for a refund.

I was impressed with the timeline of 365 days versus the usual 60-day period that most products offer. Cons This is not an instant solution. You need to be consistent with it for results. Being subjective by its very nature, it may take different time periods to develop for people. To notice significant effects, certain people may have to do it for a higher number of days. The audios and the guidebook are available online only. There are no CDs delivered to you. I would’ve liked to have a physical copy for ease. Some people have reported light headaches after listening in. It, of course, goes away soon. This just goes on to show that it may be for everybody. Here the money-back option has you covered. The Verdict This is where it gets complicated. The program deals with harnessing the power of your mind, so it is very relative in nature. To say it is good or bad is also relative. It can swing either way. It may not work for everybody. If it works well with you, it can do wonders for you in your life. After all, being able to get rid of negative energies and focussing on getting what you really want is in itself a very satisfying way of life. If the program doesn’t work, well, you can always get your money back!

[ericarnoldsblog]

Eric Arnold Planswell - Money Steps First-Time Earners Should Know About

The pay you earn from your first job is always full of excitement. It happens because you are enjoying your hard-earned money for the first time. However, planning is vital if you wish to be a responsible and independent young adult. 

This means unfollowing all the conditions that make you spend too much and save too little. In the initial days, it is okay to be inconsistent about solid financial planning. However, do not hesitate to take good help. 

Experts like Eric Arnold Planswell state that financial planning is a foundation for beginners. It helps in flourishing and stabilizing finances in the long run. But while we are at it, what are these money steps often regarded with huge importance? Read below to learn more. 

Create Financial Goals

Despite your current management situation, there is nothing wrong with setting good financial goals. This helps people to get the good motivation to save better. Therefore, setting short, mid, and long-term goals can help your start small and gradually progress to big saving goals. 

Be Consistent in Tracking Your Spending

A “maybe later” feeling often derives while tracking your expenses. Although it may be understandable, tracking is how your finances can be well controlled. Therefore, experts like Eric Arnold Planswell suggest new earners have good discipline in tracking their finances.

Learn About Important Financial Products

You can take your time and gradually make yourself capable of learning about some of the smart ways to invest or save. Financial literacy is a bonus point to save yourself from making serious mistakes.

Hear It From the Experts 

Someone like Eric Arnold Planswell is a well-experienced financial professional who suggests the usage of the monthly budget calculator. It determines better financial management and takes care of spending and saving issues. 

[jeremy-ken-anderson]

CoH Endgame Play

It’s really interesting to me how many of the problems I see with City of Heroes and its endgame play are largely graphics and UI and conveyance issues.

For instance, it’s confusing to build a powerful character. Sometimes when you level up you get a new power and other levels give you enhancement slots, which you can add up to five of to any power to make it more enhancable. On the power-choice side you can get something pretty solid easily just by picking up the whole kit of your primary and secondary power sets, but on the power-enhancement side it’s kind of arcane.

And like the power-choice you can do pretty okay with this for much of the game by just...adding slots to the powers you want to make better. You want to make your aura of defense less of a drain on your endurance, you add some more slots and put Endurance Reduction enhancements in them. Great.

As you get to endgame, though, you get Invention Sets, and these drive a lot of the power you can gain beyond level 50.

But the sets give specific bonuses, and tend toward generalization of what a particular power might need, and often serve toggle powers poorly and auto-powers even worse. If you have a power that gives you passive dodge chance and you add five slots to it you can make all six slots generic Defense with 25.5% bonuses each, or you can do a Defense Set like Luck of the Gambler, which gives you a set bonus of +10% regeneration, +1.125% max hp, +9% accuracy, 3.5% smashing/lethal resist, 7.5% negative stat resistance, and 4.5% psionic and toxic resist...but instead of 6 copies of “25.5% buff to the power you put it on” you’re getting 15.9% buff to the power and a 26.5% endurance reduction that’s wasted because Dodge is a passive power that costs no endurance anyway 15.9% buff to the power and a 26.5% recharge buff that’s wasted because Dodge is, again, always on... An enhancement that does NOTHING because it’s another copy of both of those 26.5% buffs that are doing nothing... 12.8% buff to the power and then another 21% to the two parts that do nothing... ...I could go on but you get the point. It’s wasting buffs just all over the place. So Dodge with raw defense is getting a total of 153% buffs, while Dodge with a full Luck of the Gambler set is getting 86% buff and then all that wild stuff for the set bonus.

And the thing is, I legit don’t know which of those is better. Or if they’re comparable, which situations one or the other is better for. When we were comparing the math of clear-cut incomparables I actually had information to make my decision: Did I want to improve how long this power holds someone immobile or did I want to improve its damage? Or did I want to put an enhancement slot in a totally different power that lets me increase my own defense? But once they start to tread the same ground, it’s tricky to tell. I presume if I successfully dodge something I don’t have to deal with damage or statuses, so it could be that in terms of how much damage and even how much crowd control you avoid the difference of 67% in raw dodge buff is worth more than all those defensive powers combined (though it gets weird when you add in that flat 9% accuracy boost to all your powers!)

On top of all this there’s some kind of diminishing returns rule, but...it’s not clearly stated. I don’t know how badly they diminish. Is Luck of the Gambler almost just as good as a 6 raw defense boosts in terms of how much it makes Dodge improve your dodge chance, due to some throttle at 90% of bonuses? That’s entirely possible! And I don’t know! And it feels weird to make decisions about how to advance my character in this game without a clue as to whether it even advances the character!

This is what I’m talking about in terms of conveyance.

In terms of graphic design, a really good example is that the colored text indicating the rarity (and therefore power) of an invention set is in some places but not others. This makes it so you have to jump back and forth between menus to keep track of what’s good and what isn’t and can easily lose track (I had both Red Fortune and Reactive Defense for my defense power and ended up overwriting my Reactive Defense because the individual enhancement was giving the same bonus as the comparable Red Fortune but I had all 6 pieces of the Red Fortune set. But Reactive Defense is actually rare, and the set bonuses for using it are notably superior to Red Fortune. How do you know that? Well, you can go down the set bonus lists and compare the numbers, or on some of the menus you can see that Reactive Defense is rare red while Red Fortune is the mere uncommon yellow.

Compare with FFXIV and their system for Materia. Items will have a stat cap interior to the item, and grant some stats inherently, and then you can fill out the rest with materia. And if you’ll overcap (Say, it has 110/120 Crit and you want to add a materia that gives +36 Crit) it displays the result (120/120 Crit) in red. It’s still kind of fiddly, but you know what you’re dealing with. (Maybe this is a bad example at large because the conveyance about what those stats mean is pretty bad, but it’s a good example of using the graphics/fonts to help inform the user)

Honestly some kind of internal system that just tells the user, on all pages where you’re interacting with the Enhancement, This Is An Uncommon/Rare/Legendary Set Enhancement, would be worth a ton.

And this isn’t some design request/petition for the volunteers who are running the servers for CoH now 10 years after the game “died.” This is advice for things to keep an eye on when one is developing new stuff. Recognize how important and valuable it is to keep your user fully informed about what things do and what bonuses they can receive, and how easy that can be if fully considered (it’d be as easy as font color being standardized for the set items across all pages where they show up, for example).

Oh yeah, that’s my other CoH Pet Peeve: On the page where you level up and gain new enhancement slots? It doesn’t show you what kind of Sets that enhancement is valid for. You have to make an educated guess.

[jonathancoultonquotes]

Dinner was a bag of cheese, and you just ate it standin' by the sink.

Jonathan Coulton. "Give A Little." Solid State (Bonus Tracks).

[rufusrant]

Florence + the Machine - Ceremonials: Album Review

I can't believe how long it took me to do this, considering the fun I had reviewing Lungs. But late is better than never.

As different songs are present and absent on both the standard and deluxe versions of Ceremonials, I've decided to combine the two. That means Breath of Life is present, along with the bonus tracks. However, I've cut out reviewing the acoustic and demo tracks of songs already present on the album, with the exception of Landscape.

With that said, let's plunge in headfirst!

#1: Only If For A Night

This was inspired by a dream Florence had about her late grandmother, in which she told Florence to, ad verbatim, “concentrate on her perfect career”. It’s such a bittersweet, ethereal song that sets us up so well for recurring themes of loss and grief on this album.

For me, this song is so tame compared to the dive of darkness the album takes later — and even though I like the song overall and love the story it tells, I regret to say that although it works as an opening song I find it the weakest one yet out of all 5 albums so far from a musical standpoint. 6/10.

#2: Shake It Out

HHHHHH. I’m sorry. I can’t stand this one. I feel that this is very much the Dog Days Are Over of Ceremonials, but even Dog Days is enjoyable to listen to. Though I appreciate the triumph in Florence’s vocals and the vow to renew and restart herself in the lyrics, I mostly find the production of this one so overblown that it strips the song of its rightful poignancy, and has thus truthfully never struck that much of a chord with me. 4/10.

#3: What The Water Gave Me

Florence said My Drowning Obsession’s Back, Baby! 

The subtle rock beat, harp and shivery yet strong, solid vocals inspired by Virginia Woolf really shine here. Though it doesn’t have as huge or overwhelming a sound as compared to some of the band’s other water songs, there’s no doubt that you still feel Florence’s deep, cavernous body of water lapping at your knees as the harp trills and her voice glides over the surface. 7.5/10.

#4: Never Let Me Go

This song always reduces me to tears. I don’t think I’ve any way to aptly express what exactly this song means to me without having a crisis, so here’s the gist:

It’s a love song, a Don’t Forget About Me song, a grief song, a song about someone making peace with dying even though they’d like to stay and heading back to the source of all life — the arms of the ocean. The lyrics and Florence’s delivery of them are so unbelievably beautiful, sad and mournfully heartfelt. The instrumentals all around enhance the melancholy that just consumes you like a wave, and for this reason I can absolutely understand why Florence avoided performing this for the past 10 years. But nowadays I’m genuinely so glad that she’s in a better place than when she wrote this and is willing to perform it once again. 10/10. 

#5: Breaking Down

I know this is meant to be a song about depression but for screwball reasons that even I can’t fully understand, I’ve always thought this song had such “hey there demons it’s me ya boi” vibes. But I can’t help but think that it also describes Florence and the personification of her said depression holding hands so well, like they’re friends keeping each other company, repeating I think I’m breaking down again like a mantra that’s ironically supposed to keep them grounded. And I think that’s a huge mood.

But despite that, I find that I don’t really think very much about this song, and it doesn’t stand out that much in this album. 6/10.

#6: Lover To Lover

The sheer POWER of this song. It’s a fuck-all song, that’s why. There’s no salvation for me now and I’m gonna go to hell, but that’s alright. Florence stated that she wanted to make this song feel like it’s sung by a male soul singer, and thank you Florence because I feel that this showcases one of her most excellent hurricane-force vocals ever. 9/10. 

#7: No Light, No Light

Florence delivers a double act here with yet another of her best vocals. She goes from soft morning shy to loud, pounding cathedral voice. I find it so interesting that in both these songs one is about not giving a damn about herself anymore and this one here is about feeling insecure and immensely troubled by love. Coupled with the poetic lyrics conveying feelings of trepidation, of having to face fears and ugly truths, the song is so palpable; the song feels like an almighty plea for some higher power to lighten the pain yet a chastise of a partner who just can’t see eye to eye with her. The duality of this woman. 9/10.

#8: Seven Devils

This song is in hell. It’s so atmospheric and it really feels like a war or disaster is about to rage on. The slow, dark crawl of the drums and piano during the chorus is so skin-crawling, I can feel it drip over me like water. 9/10.

#9: Heartlines

A much-needed levity in the middle of the dark — surprising, but much needed. With upbeat drums, Florence’s inspiring message of simply following your heart and the grand imagery of journeying there delivers. It paints luscious, rejoicing visuals that fittingly feel like a reprieve from the siege that happened in the previous track. Unlike the last time she did a breather song in Lungs (Between Two Lungs after the epic Drumming Song), this song definitely feels more solid, more of its own thing and undoubtedly catchier. 7.5/10.

#10: Spectrum

GAY RIGHTS GAY RIGHTS. It feels so fun and starry and is a proper club-jumper, but because of that this song feels jarringly out of place on this album, even with the lightheartedness of both the preceding and succeeding track. 5.5/10. 

#11: All This And Heaven Too

One of the best songs there is about writer’s block. Because what is writer’s block if not your heart trying to express itself with all the best words and then screaming when it can’t. Creation is a divine thing and Florence really makes us feel it with this.

I really adore this from a musical standpoint because it sounds so harmonic and falls into place in a somehow easier way than any other song on this album. And I love how despite it’s really about frustration, Florence sings so hopefully, and why not, because writer’s block is always meant to be temporary and soon we’ll be up and creating again. 9/10.

#12: Leave My Body

I used to be so frightened of this song. Now it’s one of my favourites off the album. In the vein of grieving and with the themes of death on Ceremonials, Florence really does give one final grand moment with this one — it’s so strikingly mournful and has so much strength in it, especially when we discover that this song is how Florence describes the all-encompassing feeling of ascending as she performs live: it appears to be a song about dying and your soul exiting your body, but it’s actually about living purely in the moment and being here now, and I think that is such a beautifully genius, absolutely perfect duality to end the album on. Her melismatic vocals enhance the ocean of sound, both a send-off and yet a fully-live thrumming of the soul. 10/10.

#13: Breath Of Life

Recorded and released for the 2012 film Snow White and the Huntsman, this song is exactly what Florence + the Machine were MADE to do. The annihilating orchestral sound, Florence singing majestically with a backup choir, and the heart-pounding drums make this a brilliant dark fantasy song, albeit more PG than the holy terrors of Seven Devils but on a louder, more majestic-feeling scale. 9/10.

#14: Take Care - BBC Live At Maida Vale

A Drake cover. I did not realise this cover existed until fairly recently this year, but it’s definitely more of a pleasant surprise. In terms of a live cover it sounds much better than Florence’s cover of The Beatles’ Oh! Darling and I like the use of the piano, but when compared to the original song, I find that I like them both an equal amount. 5/10.

#15: Remain Nameless

I can never remember anything about this song. It’s one of the Florence songs I know exist, but always forget about. To me it just sounds so stilted, way too downbeat and repetitive. And I’m sorry, but Florence just sounds like she’s on the verge of falling asleep and jolting awake to go higher at random points. 1.5/10.

#16: Strangeness And Charm

Florence wakes up fully and kicks it up a notch immediately, matching the reactive, almost explosive quality of this chemistry-inspired song. The lyrics here incorporate scientific terms so naturally, combined with the general upbeat quality of the melody and Florence just sounding like she’s having a gas make for a generally cool song! However, as compared to what we’re going to hear next… 6.5/10.

#17: Bedroom Hymns 

I’m an asexual, but this song FUCKS SO HARD. This has been my top-played song on Spotify for the past two years. This song is the definition of le petite mort. This song resurrects the dead. This song is both Creation and the Apocalypse. It’s so tight, infectious, demonically horny, shoots both light and darkness out of it all at once, and that howl of Florence’s is primally perfect. 11/10. 

#18: Landscape - Demo

This is the most finished demo I have ever heard. It’s almost a pop number with the lively drums and Florence’s striding vocals, but the lyrics speak of a woman seeming to struggle with herself and her mental health, complete with a past that’s not exactly bright. Still, I all around like this one, and is definitely the other track next to Bedroom Hymns that I wish had made it onto the standard version! 7.5/10.

Overview: There's no doubt that this is the band's darkest and most emotionally fraught work to date, with so many songs about death, drowning, and straight-up leaving your body. Florence herself was going through the worst of her own pain and addiction at this era of her life, and thus I think that speaks for itself. Looking back on this album must not be the most joyous experience in the world, and I can't blame her at all.

Ceremonials was my favourite album for the majority of my time as an F+TM fan, because I discovered it during a rough period in my own life and it made me feel truly seen and heard. But that doesn't mean that as I heal and move on I don't love this album as dearly as when I first found it. Ceremonials is made from pain, because of pain, and for that I love it even more for being there when I needed it, with Florence's almighty sound to wash over me and remind me that I should pick myself up while I am very much alive. 9/10.

Stream Ceremonials on Spotify!