Just watching the damage done to cars and I can't BELIEVE They haven't done anything to smooth that Suposed Racetrack! I knew if I had a $Million Dollar Vehicle I wouldn't want to be driving it around that bumpy ass Airport

I will be flying to Bangkok in july and i have to choose between those two airlines. Both cost the same and both are direct flights (from MUC with Thai, from VIE with Austrian). It now only comes down to the flight experience. What would you choose?

Timestamps: https://imgur.com/a/NTZ87kt I have two 3090's that I got about 6 months ago, one is brand new and is still in it's original packaging, and the other I've used for about a week or less as I got gifted a prebuilt rig shortly after getting them.
I am local to 37064 zip code and willing to drive half an hour to meet you in a monitored area like a police station parking lot.

Model	Condition	Price
MSI GEFORCE RTX 3090 VENTUS 3X 24G OC GRAPHICS CARD	New	$950
MSI GEFORCE RTX 3090 VENTUS 3X 24G OC GRAPHICS CARD	Lightly Used	$800

I had a 500GB Seagate drive die on me somewhere around 2009. I had some personal photos on it but couldn't afford any professional data recovery service at that point so I just put the drive in a closet and forgot about it, until now that I was cleaning I found it again. Is there still hope at recovery?
How it died: As I remember it I was copying files on Windows (I'm guessing Windows 7 or maybe Vista at that point) when the system suddenly became very unresponsive. Okay, happens with Windows all the time so I rebooted but it didn't help, it could barely load into Windows at all. At this point I suspected the drive was dying so I desperately started copying files to an external drive, but couldn't get many files and most of them ended up being corrupted anyway. Eventually it refused to copy any more files and wouldn't do anything else either so I shut down and removed the drive and haven't touched it since. It shouldn't have been exposed to any harsh elements while sitting in the closet.
I suppose the data should still be there and hasn't deteriorated any further during this time? I can now afford to pay some data recovery expert to try it, but if it's hopeless I don't want to waste my money. Do you think it's doable and how much would they charge for it?
Thanks for any input.

Hey all, my wife and I bought this neon sign a long while back and had this issue with it. We ended up getting a refund and they didn't ask for it back, so it's been sitting in the closet for awhile. We found it recently doing a spring cleaning, and I've had some issues finding out if the issue here is something that's fixable, and if it is, how to go about it. Could anyone point me in the right direction please?

We booked a trip from Cleveland to Salt Lake City a few months ago to visit my in laws. Yesterday our train from Cleveland to Chicago was canceled the day before our trip due to communication issues. We looked into driving over there from Ohio but it would be expensive to drive, and park for our 2 week trip. With that being said we decided to cancel the entire trip. Amtrak offered to give us the full refund for the canceled train but the rest would be $228 in my original payment and $244 in vouchers. Is there any way to get the whole refund back in original payment? That’s a quarter of what we paid for the trip to begin with and we may not take a train again….

Foreword:

We tend to get the same sorts of questions for the same budgets and same scenarios. This is my attempt to codify the good advice I've seen and my own experiences with my own rifles as a long range, non-competitive shooter. These opinions should be largely uncontroversial to the folks who shoot long range.
Prices and ballistics are current as of Mar 12, 2023.

Additional Reading

/longrange
/SmallGroups
Trollygag's Stats on Barrel Length
Trollygag's Opinion on Picking a Barrel Length
On-Paper Cartridge Comparison
Trollygag's Youtube Channel with some parts review and shooting
Trollygag's Noob Guide to the 1000 Yard AR-15
Trollygag's Noob Guide To The Entry-Level Custom, Part 1
Trollygag's Noob Guide to the Entry Level Custom, Part 2
Trollygag's Noob Guide to the 6.5 Creedmoor
Trollygag's Noob Guide to the 6.5 Grendel
Trollygag's Noob Guide to the 308 Winchester pt.1
Comparison between the Athlon Ares ETR, Vortex PST II, and Sightron SIII
Comparison between the Match Pro ED, S-TAC, PST II, Forge
Phildesbois's Ruger Precision Rifle vs Tikka TAC A1 vs Bergara BMP, comparison

Glamour Shots

Super Grendel
Gator Grendel - RIP
One Punch in F/TR dress and in BR dress
Buddy and updated

What you need to know up front

What your budget is.

The budget for the rifle is a start, but a budget for the rifle, optic, and accessories is more ideal. Accessories include:

• Rifle bag or case
• Bipod and/or bag set
• Rails/mounts
• Additional equipment you may need like chronographs or reloading setups

How far you can shoot

This is probably the biggest hurdle to most Americans. Not everyone lives near some place that has enough space and is set up for long range shooting. Pretty frequently we get help questions from people who live in the Northeast where long ranges just aren't that common. It doesn't make sense to spend a bunch of money on a long range shooting rig if your local ranges only go out to 50 yards.
Even at only 100 yards, it is the length of a football field, and you often can't hide one of those easily. Plus there is the NIMBY factor and the danger that most rifle rounds will travel miles before hitting the ground again if they are fired at the wrong angle.
Because of that, long ranges are relatively rare.
What you do have access to can dictate your rifle and cartridge selection.

How much you care about the logistics

What I mean is, how involved do you want to get in the process?
Things like:

• How important is good box match ammo to you? Many long range cartridges are chosen because of the availability of ammo. There are lots of wildcats and special snowflake cartridges (6.5x47L, for example) that lose out to others because of this availability.
• Do you plan to handload? Some cartridges have more, reliable, better load information out there for them than others. Some cartridges have a wider powder selection than others. For example, 6.5 Grendel, 223 Rem, and 308 Win can all use 8208 XBR, a relatively common, premium powder. 6.5 CM really can't. Because of the pressures developed at relatively low volume charges, XBR isn't considered a 'safe' powder in the CM. Varget and some others can be used across all of the cartridges relatively safely.
• Do you plan to stockpile? 6.5CM, for example, really needs a particular powder (H4350) to match the most load data, but this powder is frequently out of stock. It really makes sense to stockpile components, whether it be powder, brass, primers, or bullets, and that can add many hundreds of dollars up front.
• Do you expect Walmart to carry ammo for your rifle? What about Cabelas?

About long range shooting

You don't necessarily need to be familiar with range estimation or how to make a cold bore unknown distance shot factoring in humidity, Coriolis, spin drift, and all sorts of other things...(I sure as hell can't) but you should at least be able to:

1. Shoot a rifle accurately/precisely in the position you will be shooting long range from
2. Know how to arrive at a ballistic solution given your velocity and bullet choice
3. Know how to dial in for elevation and hold off for wind
4. Understand your 'zero', how to arrive at it, how to adjust to it, and have it recorded.
5. Understand the other functions of your optic like parallax adjustment, focus, units of your reticle, units of your turrets, how to convert between them if you need to, and how much elevation you have to work with.
6. Understand the terminology. Understand what a Mil is, what a MOA is, what mirage is, what windage/elevation are, etc.

What makes a good starter long range platform?

There are things that are important for a long range rifle:

1. Comfortable ergos. It can make shooting prone or off a bench for long periods much easier. Part of this is rifle weight. It can be helpful to have a heavy rifle to reduce fatigue over time.
2. The ability to shoot off bracing. This usually means a rigid stock, free floated barrel, so that a bipod or front bags can be used. Ideally, it would have a butt that is shaped either to ride bags or hook into the hand or shoulder. When you are fighting the conditions and the environment, stability and accurate shooting are key.
3. Precision. Not everyone feels strongly about this. Some folks think a 1-1.5 MOA rifle is okay. Personally, I think you should go as precise as you can at close range so that you aren't guessing at what you screwed up at long range. Long range shooting is very difficult to get right consistently. It takes a lot of practice, a lot of learning. Not knowing if you shot a flier or mistaking fliers for bad calls can, IMO, hamper the learning process. I would always prefer to have faith in what I'm shooting on.
4. The ability to zero, make adjustments. There are optics out there that rely more on the reticle than the adjustments, and some people learn on those, but IMO, they are inferior to having a good set of turrets. Good turrets aren't cheap, and it isn't often that a cheap scope has the type of adjustments or the adjustment range for long range shooting. That being said, there are some good options out there for what I would not consider to be outrageous money, and that can get you to any distance you would want to shoot.
5. Capable ballistics. Some folks come from the perspective that you should start with bad ballistics (like 223 Rem) and work your way to something with great ballistics. To me, that is counter-intuitive. It seems like learning to drive on a stick shift, no traction control, no ABS Dodge Viper. IMO, you should give yourself as big of an advantage as you can right out of the gate, and once you've learned the skills, then dabble in something that requires more skill to get shooting well.
6. Ability to handle heat. Rifles can be adversely affected by heat and heat can wear out barrels faster. Heavier profiled barrels can help absorb that heat and dissipate it faster. More heat dissipation means more shooting before you have to break for cooling. It also adds weight, which, as I mentioned before, can be very beneficial. All of the rifles you see me recommend will be heavy barreled.

Expanding on 5, these are the cartridges that I would green light for a beginner to learn on:

• 308 Winchester - High availability of good match quality, tactical type ammo that can reach out to 1000 yards. Federal Gold Medal Match can be had in a 175 gr SMK variant for $1/round or less from Palmetto State Armory. For close range, PMC Bronze at about $0.50/round is great for practicing. For handloading, the 185 Juggernaut, 175 TMK, 155 Palma, and 178 ELD-M are all popular options in this cartridge. Varget, IMR 4064, XBR, H4895, CFE223, BL-C2, Win 748 are all popular powders. Recoil is most stout out of these.
• 6.5 Grendel/6ARC - This is really an option limited to Howa 1500s, CZ 527s, Ruger American Predators, and AR-15s. In the past couple years, availability has gone up. It isn't uncommon to see Hornady Black in gunshop shelves and sometimes even more exotic ammo, like Federal GMB, can be found too. Bulk purchase for $1.50/round for long range shooting, Federal American Eagle or Hornady Gunner for accurate mid-long range, or shoot out to 500+ yards with $0.25/round Wolf steel case. Not anymore. Mild recoil, neat looking, neat shooting cartridge. They are pets of mine. Handloading for this cartridge can be tougher due to availability of load data, die options, and some finickyness with the cartridge, but this is improving all the time and may no longer be true. Typically, 6mm/6.5mm bullets cost as much as 30 cal bullets. Barrel life is longer than any other option on this list.
• 6CM/6.5 Creedmoor - These are the big hot thing for long range. Moderate to high availability of very high quality match ammo, outrageous ballistics compared to the other options in this list. With Hornady American Gunner, you can get high precision 1000 yard ballistics for $0.70/round. S&B also plans to release 6.5CM ammo later this year. For 6.5CM Hornady offers several 147gr, 140gr and 120gr ELD-M options at the $1.40-1.75 price point that are excellent. 6CM, that is a $1.50-1.65/rd 108 ELD-M ammo. There is no super cheap ammo option in this cartridge with entry ammo prices in the $0.85-1 range. Barrel life is also shortest of all of these.
• 223 Rem - This is another option for mid-range shooting, but I would discourage it at very long range if you are shooting box ammo. It goes subsonic at 700-850 yards depending on barrel length and bullet selection, and gets pushed around by the wind a lot. The bullets that are common for ARs are also quite pricey, with match ammo costing as much as 308 Win, 6.5G, or 6.5CM and bullets themselves costing more than the 30 cal Hornady offerings. But in a bolt gun, there are a lot more options for bullets that cost less than the 77gr SMK commonly shot in ARs. Cheap ammo availability is high and there is a wide selection. It, like 6.5G, are great for smaller folks as the recoil is almost negligible. Handloaders can fit very long ogive bullets in the 80-90gr range and extract much better performance from it.

Ammo price comparison - prices are out of date, expect 25% higher prices.
Now, before you get upset that I didn't pick your pet cartridge for the list, realize, there are many cartridges out there that are common or that people love that just aren't good for beginners. 30-06, for example, is a great cartridge with a long history, but is severely lacking in long range match type ammo and therefore does not make the list. For handloaders, it can be great like a 300 Win Mini Mag compared to 308 Win. Same goes for many other cartridges on paper like 7mm-08 or 243 Win. They all have faults on the cost or logistics side that makes them less than ideal options.
For a little further shooting, look into the 6.5PRC, 7PRC, and 300PRC.

Optics

There are too many optic choices to go through so I am going to focus on a few at a few price points and use them for the templated build. You may feel that there are better optic choices out there at a price point, but I haven't been able to handle or shoot on all of them and therefore, I do not include them.
I am going to list fixed, SFP, and FFP models. I do not feel I have gained anything from paying more for FFP scopes vs the SFP versions or the fixed scopes. With the type of shooting I am doing, I typically shoot at measurement magnification.

• $300 ($210 on sale) - SWFA SS 12x42 MRAD/Mil-Quad. Excellent optic. Rugged, accurate adjustments, no-nonsense, great reticle, good glass. There are lower and higher magnifications available. I suggest you stick to the 12x. It is at the sweet spot for magnification and glass quality. There is a MOA-Quad option as well. If you want that instead, then get it. Back in my day there was only a Mil-Quad and Dot, so I haven't played with the MOA model. There is an HD model that costs a lot more. Stick to the one I gave you. There are vari-powered models. Stick to the one I gave you. Its competitors are the Athalon Argos, Sightron S-TAC, Primary Arms 4-14x, and others.
• $450-500 - Bushnell Match Pro - Solid design entry level optic. Good, robust turrets, readable markings, tactile feel, solid internals, great reticle. Illumination costs $50 more.
• $600 - Vortex PST II 3-15x - Good option for illumination and a hunting/crossover form factor.
• $700 - Bushnell Match Pro ED 5-30x - This is the new current meta for scope under $1500. Better glass and features than the PST II at similar money. It's primary competitor is going to be something like the Ares ETR, with the ETR having a little better CA performance but the Bushnell having better resolution (IMO).
• $2200 - Vortex Razor HD III 6-36x - This optic came out as the 'ZCO Killer' with near alpha tier glass and every feature you could want from a high end tactical optic. It isn't quite that, but at half the price if you know where to buy, it is so close that a higher end $3000+ optic can be really hard to justify.
• $4000 - ZCO 420/527/840 - This is about the entry to the alpha glass. As close to perfect as you can get in optics, and a price to match.

Mounts - I don't believe in over-spending on mounts.

• Base for your rifle - If you get the SWFA option, you won't need a canted rail, but if you get some of the other options, you may want a 20 MOA cant. You might as well get it canted because it costs the same. I buy Warne, EGW, and Weaver and have never had a problem with any of them. $35-50
• Rings - I am a big ol' fanboy of the Burris Signature Zee rings for really cheap rings. They don't mar your scope, lock up well, won't bend your scope tube, and either come with or have the option for inserts that let you put a cant on your scope from the rings to add or in replacement for the canted base. - $50-60. For most of the scopes in the list above and most contours, you want the High rings. For the 40-45mm, on lighter profile barrels, you want the Medium rings. If you pick a scope with a 34mm+ tube, you may need to spend closer to $150 to get a set of rings that will work for you. Seekins Precision, Vortex PM, and Hawkins rings are all popular options.

Plan for that combo to be +$100

But my budget is only a few hundred dollars and I can't shoot at 1000 yards anyways...

If you are only going to be shooting a few hundred yards, get a Savage Axis II combo and shoot it to death. You won't have most of the points I make above, but it will shoot and out to 500-600 yards, you won't need a ton of fancy features. Strelok (Not with the state department ban, need to figure out what works here, but you can use shooterscalc in the meantime) can tell you where to hold off based on information you get from the ammo box and ammo selection is wide and relatively cheap. Go shoot.

I saw the title and that sounded like what I wanted!

Template build 1:

• Ruger American Predator for $450. Another great choice. Comes in 308 Win, 6.5CM, 223 Rem, and 6.5G. Get the model that has AICS or AR magazine compatibility, not the rotary magazine model. Throw a Bushnell Match Pro on it.
• Howa Mini Action/1500 - Comes in 308 Win, 6.5 Grendel, 6.5 CM, and many other cartridges for around $490, more with fancy paint jobs. Throw an SWFA SS on it.

My budget is a little higher... I was looking at the Ruger Precision Rifle and...

• Bergara HMR - $950. They come in 6.5CM and 308 Win, and some others I think. They are very accurate out of the box, almost to the level of the entry level customs that you can read about in the guide above. They come threaded, with good adjustable stocks, DBM systems, and aren't super heavy.
• Tikka T3x CTR - $900-950. They come in 6.5CM, 308 Win, blued, and stainless. The actions are really good, the triggers are pretty good too and come with a really high end set trigger option. The barrels are pretty decent. This is a traditional-form-factor competitor to the Bergara HMR and some other rifles and is a great hybrid hiking and target rifle. They come with muzzle threading and DBM, but use proprietary magazines.
• Howa Bravo - $1100 in 6.5 Creedmoor. Pick the optic you want, but takes AI mags, good barrels, threaded, and a decent stock with lots of add-ons available.

But my budget is $2000+!

This category, you should be looking at guns that qualify for PRS Production class. This used to be a $2000 limit, then was changed to $2500, and most recently, to $3000.

• MPA BA PMR
• Seekins Havak Bravo
• Badrock South Fork - $2000-2200
• GAP makes one that you really want but can't buy
• Bergara Premier Competition - $2750
• ARC Rifle - $2500

Rifles in this price point I do not recommend:

• Christensen MPR
• Savage Precision
• DD Delta 5
• Ruger Hawkeye LR

You could also:

1. Dive into the entry-level customs guide at the top
2. Pick a rifle from the previous section and spend more on glass
3. Ask this again in /longrange, check my post history for information about my own builds.

Okay got it... now what?

Go shoot, ya doofus. Don't put long range on a pedestal. Getting good shooting is something that needs to be done with practice, so stop worrying so much about gear and go shoot.

It’s been about 3 weeks since we have been making plans. What can I say I’ve been depressed in the process of moving and I haven’t had any motivation. Not only that I didn’t want to come over his house. So when we’d make plans I’d say yeah and then I’d end up having to do something or just cancel. I’ve told the guy that it would be best not to talk anymore I’m tired of not committing to plans and making him upset. Instead he wanted to continue to talk to me. Then complain when I say I have to pack but I can still make it over later. I have really bad depression and anxiety finally opened up to him. All he says is aww well come see me and hangout with me. Driving half an hour to come see him idk I like him I just don’t have any motivation to really do anything and it’s taking me forever to pack . I have to move by the end of the week. And all he’s doing is well you said you’d come over and you’re making excuses. Be a adult and come see me. I feel very pressured and unheard by him . He’s like well you could’ve seen me earlier instead you went back to sleep. I had just woken up and went back to sleep due to being tired . And he’s like well you should’ve gotten up and this is why it take you forever to do things . Your outloook on life is sluggish.

How do channels like Mr. Nightmare work? Are all the stories sent in directly? Or do you find random stories on reddit and other sites? If so, do you get permission from the writer? Or, once a story is online, like here on reddit, is it free for anyone to use in a video?

36 M. Meds - Wellbutrin ( over 2 years ) 6 foot 1 , 206 lbs.
Last resort. Please help! 🙏
I have no idea what to do. I’m posting in hopes someone else knows about this or has had it too. My doctors look at me like I’m crazy.
When I move my eyes I get a pumping feeling in my head , it’s just 2-3 pumps. It’s not a heartbeat. It’s so hard to describe. It’s like whomp whomp. (Sorry I can put a word on it)
I can barely drive I don’t even know if I should cause it causes me so many issues.
The pumping sounds happens in the sides of my head. I am assuming my ears? I have no clue anymore. I’m so fed up with this. They ordered me an MRI but it’s over 18 month wait list.
I have tried everything, changing meds, eating habits, exercise( increase and decrease ) , sleep habits, stopped alcohol, stopped cannabis. Like I’m out of hope right now and I need help.
I just hope someone can read this and know what I am talking about.
God bless !

Yesterday I was driving (no passengers) and passed out for unknown reasons. When I woke up I had hit a stone wall. No damage to the wall or other property, did not hit another car, etc. Police/ambulance came, I went to the ER. My car sustained significant damage to the front driver’s side and was un-drivable. Husband had it towed to our house. I have collision coverage on my car. A few questions:

1. Do I need to wait until I receive a police report to file the insurance claim? (Police said the report will be ready in 5-7 business days.)
2. Should I take my car to a mechanic to get a quote on damage before filing, or should I file first?
3. Is there any way to estimate how much my insurance premiums will increase? Have not made any claims/gotten in any accidents for the past 7 years. Minor accident 7 years ago where I was not at fault and did not file a claim.

So my Stepfather celebrate his birthday today.
Shortly before me and my BF and son were making us on the way I’ve got a call from my mom. She told me my youngest brother claimed to be to sick to walk over to their place and asked if we’re willing to pick him up.
So I’ve called my brother to ask if he’s willing to come in the first place or if we just bring him some medicine and food. He (you could tell he’s very sick just by listening) that even while he has 40°C (the temperature you should think about going to the ER) he wasn’t willing to listen to her nagging if he didn’t came. So we picked him up. He obviously was very sick, could barely move, his nose swollen and red etc.
When we arrived people asked him what’s up and why he’s looking so wracked. He told the truth: that mom claimed he’s facing it and demanded to come. My mom got angry and got a clinical thermometer you can measure temperature on the forehead. With a huge smile thinking she would prove he’s faking it she waited till everyones there and where in the room she measured his temperature so everyone can see.
39,7°C - clearly high fever.
Only comment she made was she thought he was lying. Everyone was blaming him why he came and told him to go home. It’s cold outside and raining heavily. (I asked my bf if he’s willing to drive in case nobody else is going to)
So after 30 minutes people blaming him (I ended it by talking loudly with him so everyone can hear about how sorry I am that he first got forced to come by mom and is now getting blamed because they don’t believe him) my mom grabbed some food from the buffet and told him to leave. But not without asking him how he will manage to go to work tomorrow.
When she said bye to him she was confused why my bf was leaving to. After I explained he will drive my brother she only said „ohh I assumed he walk“.
She never excused herself, she never thought about helping him to get home, she didn’t even thanked us that we took care of him nothing. In fact I’m sure her only thoughts were about how she got exposed. She thinks she was in the right because he was also sick at Christmas (she knows he definitely was sick that time because she’s seen him the day before and after).
So now I don’t know if I should have say something.

I've been posting in some other subs but everyone is pretty much unanimously in favor of divorce and says she's still manipulating me and not being remorseful. I'm open to all of that, and it's honestly the direction I'm starting to lean, but part of me is stuck mourning the potential sunk costs. We are both children of divorce and always said we never wanted to do that to our kids and I hate to see them have to go through it too.
My wife had a toxic father who was obsessed with fitness and body image. This imprinted on her at a young age and she and her sisters were anorexic as teens. She got over that as she matured but developed a major fitness obsession that she nurtures for hours a day, even to the point of injuring herself and then exercising on top of injuries.
When I met her 10 years ago she was very athletic but average weight. I'm 5'9 and always fluctuated between 180-210; I was on the lower end when we met, higher 1 year later, middle 1 year after that when we got engaged, back toward the lower end 7 years ago when we got married, and have fluctuated a bit since then but generally (and including for the last couple years) been toward the lower end and sometimes even into the 170s. However, SHE has been really hitting the gym the past 2-3 years more than usual and is now very fit and muscular. Her "sexual market value", as some of the literature would say, has increased. She has started to resent being in the best shape of her life and feeling like she could get all the hot guys she didn't go after in her 20's when she had less confidence.
So, a few years ago, I started to feel her pulling away a bit sexually. We'd have sex, but she didn't seem to want it, and she was not really into kissing me. I also don't know that I ever really felt in our marriage like she was emotionally supportive or there for me. But this was hard, and I talked to her about it many times and she didn't really seem to be able to pinpoint anything. She thought maybe it was because my teeth weren't the best, so I spent like $6K on veneers. Then she said it's my weight. I'm slightly overweight, but nobody in my life would really call me fat and I'm pretty active and athletic. "Well, they don't see you naked, don't you want to look great for me?"
Anyway, about a year and a half ago, something changed. She met our new neighbor and instantly felt an attraction to him. That was around the time when she started commenting more on my weight. She was fantasizing about him and thinking about him a ton, to the point that she commented to some of her close girlfriends about how much she was thinking about him, and started talking about it with her therapist. But, he's happily married and talks about his wife all the time, so we were both a bit disarmed by that and she thought "nothing could ever happen." I was getting friendly with him and we got beers a couple times. He doesn't work (stay-at-home husband with no responsibilities, wife is a high earner and enables a nice lifestyle) and my wife works from home pretty cushy hours, so they found themselves outside chit-chatting a lot. One day we were all outside and ended up planning that he and his wife would bring beers over and we'd all hang out. At the last minute she couldn't make it (trial prep) so it was the 3 of us. We all had a few drinks, he's very charismatic, and was asking us all sorts of questions: what do we do for fun, what gets us out of bed in the morning, what's it like having kids, what do we love about each other...they seemed nice at first, like he was getting us to talk about all these great positive things in our lives. But then there was a little crack when he said something about fitness and my wife alluded to that being a point of contention for us. He apologized and said he didn't mean to touch on something difficult for us and moved on.
That night he texted my wife offering to be there for her "as a friend" if she ever wanted to talk about that stuff. Big red flag. She said thanks. Over the next couple months, they started talking more and more, going on walks together, etc. She confided a lot in him about her feelings in our relationship, while crushing on him. I felt like something was off, so one night after the 3 of us were hanging out, I told her basically, "you're acting like a girl with a crush, I don't think you should be friends with him anymore, I'm not comfortable with it but I'm not forbidding it outright, but infidelity is a line I'll never move on from." She said "nothing will ever happen, have you seen how much he talks about his wife?" I told her, "I don't think it's wise to risk our marriage and our future and our children on your assumptions about what he will or won't do." She was just so certain.
A few weeks later he admitted he also had a crush on her. He told her: "I have had an affair before and it really helped me in my marriage just to find some passion again. If you want, we can have sex once and maybe I can do that for you." Once turned into 6 times and a very intense emotional affair that she fell deeply into that included texting almost constantly and some sexting and some lying to me so they could sneak around. But, he was paranoid about his wife finding out and about 6 weeks later he told my wife they had to stop the physical affair because it was too risky.
My wife was heartbroken over this and I noticed a change in her immediately. After several days I decided to check her phone and found messages between them grieving their physical affair and talking about how difficult it is just being "friends." But, her goal here was clear: she wanted to maintain this emotional affair with him indefinitely and allow us all to get more friendly. He even brought gifts over on Christmas for me and our kids right in the middle of the affair, which pissed her off. She messaged him after that and asked if he's a sociopath and told him not to do that shit again. He also asked a lot of questions about me and our sex together, but he told him not to ask about me or our sex life.
The time since then has been tough. She says she felt like it was a drug and she let it creep up on her because she thought it was harmless because he seemed so unattainable and she never thought he would cheat. By the time she realized it was a possibility she was in so deep that it was heroin for her. She's very apologetic. Says she can't imagine a life without me and that divorce would be so hard on all of us and she definitely doesn't want that. She said she really wants to work on herself so that her feelings of desire aren't so deeply tied to physical attraction, and she also wants to be more physically attracted to me. She says she just has felt for so long like she needs the butterflies and she wants to learn how to be happy and content without them. I do see her doing hard work with therapy, really making an effort to show me affection, and we've been having a lot of sex these past couple months.
Still, I think what she did may have just been inexcusable. I mean, it almost certainly was. I really don't like the idea of being alone and I hate to see our family fall apart and do that to our young kids and to bury the coffin of our dreams together when she's SAYING she still wants those. But, it's so hard for me to think about going the rest of my life knowing she did all this shit, took this for herself, and has this "power" over me of being willing to cheat.
For some background on me... I've always been very emotionally intelligent, earn $250K/year with low-ish cost of living, respected in our community, people are always telling her how great I am and how much I help the nonprofits I work with and how effective I am professionally... So, I'm a great catch, and she says I'm basically the perfect guy minus the fact that I have a small belly.
I guess I still feel like there's a chance she can make the changes in herself she's talking about making. And, I do want to be more fit and have been hitting the gym a ton and I think I can get to a much better place and sustain it. From my reading of much of the attraction material out there, I do think it's possible for me to shift the power dynamic in the relationship by making myself more attractive in general. What I just can't decide is whether it's even worth trying to reconcile. When I type it out, it all sounds ridiculous.

Rockstar Games, the studio behind the hugely successful Grand Theft Auto franchise, has confirmed that the highly anticipated GTA 6 will have a revolutionary new storyline and characters. According to insiders, the game will take place in a new location and feature a fresh cast of characters, all with their own unique backstories and motivations.
Rumors are circulating that the game will take place in a fictional city based on Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with a focus on the criminal underworld and the struggles of everyday people caught up in it. The game is said to tackle themes of corruption, poverty, and social inequality, with players able to choose their own path through the narrative.
While details about the storyline and characters are being kept tightly under wraps, fans are already speculating about who might be involved. Some are hoping to see the return of fan-favorite characters like Trevor, Michael, and Franklin from GTA V, while others are looking forward to meeting brand new characters with their own unique personalities and abilities.
Regardless of what direction Rockstar takes with the story and characters in GTA 6, fans can expect the same level of high-quality gameplay and immersive open-world environments that the series is known for. The game is expected to be released on next-generation consoles like the PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X, as well as PC.
For those who can't wait to get their hands on GTA 6, GTA 5 Modder 👑 Buy gta 5 accounts http://Furymodz.com // Fortnite // GTA 5 Accounts, Mods 💎 Creator on Patreon: http://patreon.com/furymodz 🎪 offers a variety of mods and accounts to enhance the GTA 5 experience while we wait for the next installment in the series.

Over 10 years ago, I started making TRE2 by making binary edits to the original TRE1 (which itself was a binary hack of Pokemon Red).
Eventually, I realized this was incredibly inefficient, and abandoned it for a disassembly version. I have decided to release that unfinished, binary hack, version today! It was last touched in 2015, and has a lot of bugs. But, I actually fixed a few of them so it is more playable (and it definitely solidified my decision to move to the disassembly).
I honestly don't know how far this version goes, so I started a playthrough myself. You can watch the first story sequence here: https://youtube.com/watch?v=Y9390NFm6jI (never thought when I started that I'd be playing it on a device like the analogue pocket 😂)
Since most of you are probably unaware of this hack, I can share a few more links:
The website detailing this hack is: https://poketre.com
Here is the post on pokecommunity: https://www.pokecommunity.com/showthread.php?t=318873
And finally, as I stated I abandoned this to work on a disassembly. You can find that (and even compile and build it!) here: https://github.com/Pokeglitch/poketre2 Please note that the disassembly is starting with reworking the game engine, so there is no story to play at this time.
If you don't want to click those links, here is a brief rundown of what this hack includes (in varying states of completion) * New story, region, graphics/tilesets * New pokemon & types * Day/Night, Weather, Season * Better screens (battle, dex, start, inventory) * Battle types (horde battle) * Achievements and secrets!
And many more, all of which is accessible in the demo!
You can find the patch here: https://drive.proton.me/urls/D7AR3ASKJG#DV0n2uzJsUYa
Let me know what you think!

My (English) Ltd Co went insolvent following Covid leaving several large debts. One of these was corporation tax for which I was personally liable to HMRC where the company was unable to pay, even though it was limited liability. Following the latest update from the accountant it appears that most of this tax should have been written off due to losses in the final year, meaning a tax refund is likely due and I should not have had to make the personal payment.
Given that I personally paid a [related] third-party debt, should I request HMRC make tax refund to me directly or do I need to lodge a claim against the business / insolvency? I believe it should be to HMRC because this was to discharge my personal liability, i.e. it was between me and HMRC, not the Ltd Co.
Any help appreciated, thanks

How martial arts and massage are intertwined.
In martial arts there is a concept called, “relaxed heaviness.” We don’t always want fast twitch, fascia whipping, type II muscle fiber recruitment, explosive power. Sometimes it’s best to use relaxed heaviness. It’s a feeling of dropping all of your weight into your opponent. It’s a “sinking in“ feeling. You cannot do that if you’re holding onto too much tension. It’s more of a feeling of letting go. Like an “ahhhhhhh” feeling…like after you sink into a steaming hot jacuzzi. Conor McGregor has that type of relaxed heaviness.
I’m a natural fast twitch power athlete. This has its benefits too no doubt, but it also takes a fair amount of physical and mental energy and can be inefficient at times. Where as relaxed heaviness doesn’t take much energy but is a hard skill to develop. Boxers call this being heavy handed. It took me probably a decade to finally have that feeling in my body. You might intellectually understand principles but to actually carry out the principle in your body in the real world is very hard to do, especially in a high pressure situation. The natural instinct when you’re scared is to tighten up…which isn’t always a bad thing but you should learn the ability to get away from that. Quick note…even if you can master these qualities, that still doesn’t guarantee victory. Someone with no knowledge on any of this could still beat your fucking ass possibly. So be humble but also…be hungry.
I watched my karate teacher use this principle a lot and was always like “how is he able to do that?” It still had so much penetration power but looked almost effortless. It looked like you were about to get hit by something far heavier than his body but it wasn’t through concentric power. This is relaxed heaviness.
Massaging actually taught me how to do this far quicker than martial art did. When I massage I think most people are shocked at how much pressure I can use. But I’m not using my muscular strength to do it. I’m using relaxed heaviness. It’s my body weight attaching to my massage strokes. It’s almost like a soggy wet feeling. You do need to keep some structure though, but you line up your bones in a way where everything is stacked on top of one another while you drop your weight into your client. Imagine a coat hanger holding a wet sweatshirt.
If I were to try and use muscular strength to massage, it probably wouldn’t feel very relaxing. You can feel that type of angst. It still might release the desired tissue but it doesn’t give the client a soothing or relaxing feeling with the heavy pressure. Relaxed heaviness does. Also, good luck massaging all day using muscular strength. It’s not maintainable.
Side note…yes when I massage your neck that’s my hand strength and not relaxed heaviness. Yes my hands are that strong ;D. Still not as strong as my dad’s though!
Concept 2…connection and disconnection. In martial arts you don’t want your psychology trapped into your opponent’s psychology. My master would always say “don’t get trapped into someone else’s game.” It’s the same principle. When you get trapped into your opponent’s psychology, your body is now trapped too. There’s a lot of stuff happening in that empty space between two fighters. A scientist might call it just empty space…but it is not empty. You can feel pressure, weight shifting, emotions, aggression, confidence, fear, readiness etc. With a lot of experience you eventually can feel what your opponent is going to do before they do it. Intuition meets experience. The goal is to detach from that so your body can move freely. A very zen approach. Bruce Lee’s “be water” is the same thing.
When a client comes in for a massage they can be frantic, chaotic, and irritable. In the beginning my massages would suck with these people because I would feel their emotional state and start massaging quicker with anxiety. I would always feel like I couldn’t tap into myself. I got “stuck” in their psychology. It felt like I was now matching their emotions when they don’t serve either of us or the goal in mind. This is when you need to now, disconnect. Step away, connect to your breath, and reconnect to their tissues…not their emotions. Go slower and be dangerously patient.
Now when these clients come see me I go so slow. Almost uncomfortably slow. So slow to the point they start taking massive deep breaths and eventually their nervous system settles and now they are forced to match me…not vice versa. Now our connection is formed. You must lead the dance. I would argue this is one of the major differences from working in a chiropractic/PT office vs. in a spa. I’ll make a post about that maybe in the future if there’s interest.
Of course when you have someone relaxed and ready for a massage…connection first is vital but those ones are easier to form. I’m more so referring to those other clients. You can actually feel it when that connection happens though. It’s a cool feeling.
Concept 3…flow. In martial arts and massage you want to be able to flow from one technique to the next with seamless effort. Karate gets a bad rap sometimes, where it’s characterized as being choppy, stiff, and robotic. I’d argue only bad karate is like that. Once you get to a certain level, you want to get away from that basic robotic karate and become more fluid. When we spar or fight we want to almost fall into our next technique. If option A failed, then I go into B C D etc. It’s a feeling that happens almost by itself and has minimal stop and go characteristics. Imagine your techniques connecting like cursive handwriting…but also ready to slam down an exclamation point if the opportunity presents itself either by the nature of the battle or because you lead the dance right to it.
Or it’s like driving stick shift but you want your RPM’s always slightly on and then you control the gears and gas pedal. But your RPM’s are never just off, because then you have to start again, and that’s too slow and choppy. You want continuity from one technique to the next. Punches in bunches (boxing). Rhythm and broken rhythm (Bruce Lee). Moves and counter moves (Hunger Games). Lol.
Concept 4…energy. This one is really in every concept I’ve mentioned. Energy is everything. No, I do not mean Reiki per se. If you think reiki alone can fix muscular skeletal dysfunction, you’ve been conned. Don’t be a fucking goober. For those that don’t know, reiki is a no touch treatment where the practitioner hovers over certain parts of your body to put energy from God or the universe into your body. If you think this will fix frozen shoulder, lower-cross syndrome, sciatica, or overuse muscular tension relationships in the body…unfortunately you’ve been conned. It’s all spiritual placebo and gives you a temporary sense of relaxation. I’m not trying to deny you of your spiritual experience, but I’d be careful giving all your light and power away to “guru’s.” No one has anymore connection to god or the universe than you do. No one has more powers than you do. Be careful of snake-oil practitioners. Some of them aren’t even aware they’re conning you btw. They’re lost in their own delusions from a lack of questioning and/or critical thought. They got lost in their own dogma because it feels good. Similar to a religious person who thinks THEIR text has more “truth” in it than a different religious text. What a fucking coincidence that YOUR book is the one true one. Ignorance is bliss right?
The take aways for me at least on the topic of reiki is being in the present moment and having a sense of compassion and warmth in your physical tough. This to me is an amazing quality to have and develop. I do believe reiki is one avenue that can teach that. I’m just not sure why you didn’t already have those qualities or feel you need reiki in order to do that. I never needed reiki for that. But if it makes you a better massage therapist then that’s awesome for you and worthwhile.
You can feel it when someone mentally checks out giving you a massage…it feels a bit sterile, like they just don’t give a shit. Like they’re just rubbing you but it has no rhyme or reason. You can also feel when someone is fully present. Be present with your client. Some of my reiki friends when they do deep tissue have an incredible touch. I’m just not fond of weak cult shit that doesn’t deliver what some claim it to, while simultaneously charging you an arm and a leg for it.
There’s far more concepts than the ones I’ve written. Those are the ones that intrigued me this morning.
This is how you become an artist in whatever you do.
Don’t be someone who practices martial arts…that’s a disconnection. You must interweave it into your very being…your soul. This is being a martial ARTIST not someone who practices martial arts. Now be a massage artist ;).