Garage builders with financing near me

Hello! I’m newer to the Episcopal Church and have felt called to discern the priesthood in the near future. My only inquiry is that I am cohabitating with my significant other and we aren’t married nor in a place to get married at the moment. Is that something that would bar me from the discernment / ordination process? Are there any official canons that address that anywhere? Thanks & love!

I appear to be high in the running for a remote job which I sought out because I needed a job that could follow me if I need to move (also who am I kidding, the Great Panini made me intolerant of other people and I want to move out to the country without a huge commute to an office where I'll begrudgingly sit hoping people don't breathe near me - I mean, the audacity of other people to exist in the first place, amirite).
ANYway, I verified with the interviewer that it was, in fact, a true remote job with no HQ and that I could move States later on if need be. My question is, how does locality pay work in that situation? Even the outlying counties around the city I want to move to have a 5% higher locality pay than where I currently am. Would my pay increase if I move there a year after accepting the job or nah?
I mean, it's not a dealbreaker since the difference in property taxes is almost 5% anyway (yeah the taxes in my current city are THAT high), but it'd be nice to know in advance.

From the National Institution of Health's National Library of Medicine:

A study of peanut reactions noted no significant difference in the rates of accidental peanut exposures that occurred at schools that prohibited peanut versus those that allowed it

The National Institution of Health's conclusion was strongly worded:

Removing peanut from schools has not been shown to prevent food reactions. As a result, peanut should be allowed in schools.

...

Peanut-free policies do not accomplish the goal of preventing systemic reactions.

...

There are more effective policies that can prevent a serious reaction in children with peanut allergy... Proper hand-washing... Policy of no food sharing...

Banning peanuts from lunch was found to be ineffective in another way:

79% of peanut and tree nut reactions in schools occurred in classrooms and only 12% occurred in the cafeteria

The researchers continue that the risk of anaphylactic shock is almost exclusively from eating peanuts, not merely from touching peanuts or being near them:

no detectable peanut protein in the air... including after volunteers danced on a floor containing peanut in a poorly ventilated room. No anaphylactic reaction from salivary peanut contact has ever been documented at a school.

The first sentence of the conclusion of this huge study on peanut bans reads:

Peanut exposure at school, unless peanut is ingested, is unlikely to cause a reaction.

The largest and most thorough study regarding the effectiveness of peanut-free policies was conducted in Canada, published in Clinical and Translational Allergy. The study's findings are identical:

We did not observe a difference in the percentage of AEs occurring in schools/daycares prohibiting peanuts... peanut-free policies may create a false sense of security.

They continue with more evidence peanut bans are wrong-headed:

Studies of fatalities from anaphylaxis have clearly documented that risk is related to lack of epinephrine use... 53% of schools surveyed had no policy for dealing with anaphylaxis and 38% of school nurses were unwilling to administer epinephrine in an emergency.

The school nurse statistic is absolutely shocking to me.
The conclusion of the study in full:

Peanut exposure at school, unless peanut is ingested, is unlikely to cause a reaction. In addition, no significant difference has been observed in the percentage of accidental exposures to peanut that occur at schools that prohibit versus allow peanut. Other policies, such as proper hand-washing and prohibiting food sharing, might be equally effective. In addition, our focus should be shifted to proper education about recognition and treatment of allergic reactions when they do occur.
Peanut is only one of several common allergens in children. In fact, a survey of 132 children noted milk to be the most common cause of food-allergy reactions in children. It might not be possible to completely eliminate all offending allergens from schools attended by children with allergies. It should be possible, however, to implement policies to protect our children and educate school staff to treat a reaction should it occur.

Whatever arguments people may have, whatever (understandable) appeals to emotion people may made by parents who rightfully fear for their children's safety, the evidence shows that peanut bans simply are not effective in preventing allergic reactions in a school setting.

Early in my marriage the struggle of finances was real and so was my faith. We literally ended up with $3 in our account after we paid tithing and fast offerings one month, including no assurance of another paycheck as I was self employed. We put our faith in the lord by trusting that our money was better ‘used’ by his church. It was a faith promoting story that makes me shudder now as I look back and can see how much life can really throw at you in terms of financial wrenches.
In the voice of William Dozier: Can TSCC actually exercise its own faith these days? Is it now too large to fit through the eye of a needle? Find out next GC to learn how they will continue to disappoint its members.

I think of myself as a versatile person..I have so many hobbies and interests. And these are not do it once or twice and then forget about it kind of hobbies. These are things that I have been interested in doing for years since I was a 12.
Now I have the issue of being indecisive and not fully committing myself to one thing so I am always here or there. Because I want to do so much of everything that I love but I know realistically it is not possible. I love origami and arts and literature and working for ngos but I also love ballet and film and physics and computer science and law and animation and I love fashion. I also love drama and acting but then I also want to be a professor and teach science to kids or be a child psychologist.
And I don't know what to pick from all these endless list of options that will surely have a huge impact in my life (butterfly effect sort of thing). And I am afraid that if I pick something then I will be discarding the rest for the time being and will always think back..what would happen if I had chosen the other option or did this or studied that.
Does anyone relate to this. I know people in my life say thaf I am still young and I have a whole life ahead of me and I don't need to do everything all at once and can do some professionally and the rest as hobbies but I am not satisfied with that. I feel like there is need for me to do all of what I mentioned right now at the same time or otherwise I will explode.but my rational side knows that if I don't stick with at least one thing then I will forever be dangling in between and never reaching my full potential.
It reminds me of Sylvia Plath titled "The Fig Tree." Here's the text of the poem: "The Fig Tree" The fig tree stood, tall and leafy, Its branches stretching towards the sky, Bearing fruits, ripe and succulent, A feast for the eager passersby. Each fig, a world unto itself, Its sweetness tempting all who gaze, But as I stood beneath its shade, I felt a familiar sense of haze. For the fig tree, in its abundance, Mirrored the choices in my life, Each fig a path, a possibility, Causing me both joy and strife. Should I pluck the fruit that's near, Settle for what's within my reach? Or should I climb higher still, To a fig that seems just out of reach? The fig tree whispered secrets, As I pondered the paths unknown, Its leaves rustled with uncertainty, As I stood there, all on my own. And as the sun began to set, I made my choice, though not with ease, To climb the branches, take a chance, And taste the fruit that fills my dreams. For life is but a fig tree, With choices dangling in the air, And only by reaching for the highest, Can we find what we seek, and dare. So let the fig tree guide you, Through the labyrinth of desire, Embrace the unknown, the possibilities, And set your spirit free, higher and higher.

Well you see, nearly 10 years ago, my grandmother called CPS on my mother, for weed of all things. She was a good mother, she was nice, and CPS decided to take away her rights to me and my siblings.
I'm the oldest, I spent my life so far in 3 different foster homes, 2 mental hospitals, and 12 different schools. My father left when I was 4.
My life got fucked up, at the first mental hospital, it was like forced Christianity. They were psychotic.
Second one was my aunt and uncle's, aunt was just fucking rude, uncle was a drunk asshole.
Then a the first mental hospital, it was alright. Once got my toenail pushed in from a pull out chair there. A few days later I was tosses into an ambulance (not for the pushed in nail) and sent to another mental hospital, with a bunch of other kids up in North Dakota.
One girl there ripped her toenail off, me and another kid got someone's key card and ran to the door and nearly got out.
They got me, I had the card and they took it. Half a year later and I got let out and sent to the third foster home, good foster mom and great foster dad, and I loved my foster sister. Closest person I had. Things were great for 2 years, then a new kid game, a girl, an asshole named Marissa.
She played football, once I accidentally hit her leg, she got pissed, I ran all the way up to my room, she caught me and threw me at my wall and started just kicking me, full force. I hated her with all my being.
Then A got a boyfriend, (not even gonna censor his first name) Lee, I hated him. He drank and smoked all fucking day, and got A to start as well. S started becoming cold to me, and Bitch (Marissa) always hung out with her.
They hated me together. One day A blamed me for taking Lee's microphone for his headset, I didn't, they found it in my room. S and Bitch planted it in my room to get me in trouble. They took my Chromebook, I needed it for school work and without it I had nothing to do. And when I tried explaining why I wouldn't take it, because my Xbox controller was taken by them, they didn't care.
I ran away that day, it was raining. All I had was an umbrella, a hoodie, sweatpants, and my shoes that I'd worn all day. It was starting to become nighttime, and I had nowhere to go. So I started yelling, asking people passing by to call the police.
Eventually the cops got to me and brought me back to Hell, ("home") and I was shivering half to death, I got a warm shower, and S said "oh, so now he gets special treatment?!" By the way this was the early days of TikTok, after it was changed from Music.ly.
and BOOM! TIME TRAVEL!
A few years before things got fucked upside down and up the ass, they asked if I wanted to be adopted, I said yes. Then things got fucked upside the ass and then I didn't. The last year, okay, short part of the year, I was asked by a new social worker (old one was a bitch who cares only for money) if I wanted to go back to my grandmother, I said yes.
Then when it was time, I said my goodbyes, Sis didn't care, and A was crying, oh and Lee was gone at the time, main reason I left then was because I didn't have any reason left to stay.
Anywho, then I was back with my grandmother and grandfather, things were okay. My mom came back and I cried then, tears of joy. We all were living okay. But I still didn't get to see my siblings.
My blood sister, I missed the most. I still do. I've been here for five years... closest I've gotten was talking with her father, Steve Litzau. I remember my mother's Boyfriend (I like him, he's cool) asking him when a good time is. Steve's answer was "never, he's never gonna see her." And Steve can kill himself for all I care. Oh, and my sisters grandmother is Lori La Bey. She may seem like a kind lady, founder of Alzheimer's Speaks, truth is she's a terrible person. She's the reason I can't see my siblings, she fed lies to CPS and they believed her. Or she paid them. One of the two.
Family is supposed to help each other, so why did my aunt adopt my brothers and my grandmother adopt me?! My mother's brother died at 9 years old, hit by a train. Grandmother recently said to my mother in one of their thousand arguments, which granny cries for sympathy after each one, she said to my mom "I wish you died instead of [uncle's name here]!"
I dislike my grandmother greatly, and she's always rude to my grandfather who is currently on oxygen, he has to sleep on the couch apparently. Many inconsistencies in my life story because I've stuffed those memories deep, deep down, I'd rather not remember.
Oh, and S died in 2021. (If you want the obituary link, ask) I cried for the rest of the year. And all the ones after. (Let's just say that Pneumonia and Asthma are not a good combination) I'm still fucked up, depressed, damn near suicidal. And I feel miserable, empty. I rarely eat. I don't cry anymore.
OH! and I know why things got fucked at my old foster home. Marissa Jasso or some shit, she fucked with everything, IF SHE DIDNT SHOW HER UGLY ASS FUCKING FACE THINGS WOULD'VE TURNED OHT GREAT! I WOULDNT BE SO FUCKING MISERABLE RIGHT NOW! EVERY OUNCE OF HAPPINESS THAT I USED TO HAVE IS GONE! I'M FUCKING EMPTY! and that emptiness is overwhelming...
I visited FMom, she was doing much better, and she knows she did wrong back then, plus she lost her foster license...
Steve still hasn't gotten any reprocussions, but he will... one day.
Welp, that's my life story! Do with that as you will.
Sorry if you read this and wasted your time.
-My Life Story (so far, no TLDR) by V.

Hi,
So I'm starting a lease on a house. But now that we have the electricity/water connected, grabbed the keys, and working on filling the property condition report, we noticed that so many things are wrong with the place such as 1. Ducted heating not working 2. Split system aircons not going to heat mode 3. One of the aircon is turning on and off by itself 4. None of the FOB for the garage is working 5. Faucet seem to be close to bursting 6. One of the robes are so wobbly and the nails are not pinned properly that it seems to be a safety hazard. 7. So many more 😭
Now, we are starting to think that it's probably not worth moving there but we have paid the first month rent and the bond. The lease is fixed term for 12 months.
From what i read it seems like we can apply to VCAT to break the lease without penalty due to the place below standard? But i wonder if they'll give back our first month rent? And what are the steps i should take in this matter?
Thank you so much btw i wish y'all having a better day than me 🥹👍

After a nearly 20 year break, at age 46, I started playing in a local league this season. I am pretty healthy so despite my age (and the degraded speed that comes with it), I still play in the outfield and I run the bases pretty hard.
My team plays two games every Sunday, sometimes with an hour between games, sometimes back-to-back. Early season I was pretty sore the next day, but now my body has adjusted to the pattern and I am sure to get everything warmed up and loose before play with a focus on my lower half.
This past weekend, we had a 90 minute break between games and my body freaked the f out. Knees, hips, hamstrings all went nuts the first time I hit the gas to track down a liner in the gap.
I have 2 weekend tournaments coming up, 4 GG each. With more play and longer waits between games, I am not confident my body is going to hold up without employing some specific strategies and tactics to help.
What does the collective wisdom of slowpitch recommend I do to keep my body operational during these weekend tournaments?
(The answer for next season is "incorporate sprinting into my regular fitness program so your body is adapted" but that won't help me next weekend!)

Roughly 20% of new businesses fail during their 1st year, as per data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Recent research was able to shed some light on the biggest recent obstacles that have thwarted startups.
Skynova, which creates invoicing software for small businesses, surveyed 492 startup founders in Nov. 2022 and analyzed data from CB Insights for the new study. The purpose of this study was to compile the most widely-encountered reasons that caused startup failures in 2022.

1. Lack of financing or investors. About 47% of startup failures were due to a lack of financing, nearly 2X the percentage that went bust for the same reason in 2021.
2. Running out of funds was responsible for 44% of failures. While that can be the result of subpar financial planning, it can also be a sign of a dearth of available funding. These issues aren’t surprising, considering that fears of a potential recession have caused investments in US startups to fall by 63% in 2022 compared to 2021, according to Crunchbase.
3. Lack of initiative to establish a solid presence on major social networks and neglecting budget-friendly tactics, such as dedicated profiles on Instagram or Facebook, as well as tools for instant youtube views or accumulating follower traffic to help their product get its foot in the door quicker.
4. The unfortunate impact of the recently ended Covid pandemic. While 33% of startup failures were caused by the pandemic’s wide-reaching effects on the overall economy, further data shows that number was down from 59% a year earlier. This would be an obvious sign that a number of smaller businesses somewhat recovered from the pandemic the previous year, even as others continued to struggle to rebound.

When asked what they would’ve done differently when starting out, 58% of the founders surveyed said they would’ve opted for more detailed preliminary market research. The same percentage replied they would’ve looked to put together a sounder business plan.
In terms of their top advice to aspiring founders, 79% of the respondents urged to “learn from your mistakes.” These words would appear to stem from direct experience, as 40% of those polled said they would pivot their startups in some fashion to avoid failure, with 75% of these efforts proving successful.

Hi, I was accepted to both UVA and NUS. At UVA, i'm planning to do economics and change my major to commerce at the UVA McIntire school of commerce. At NUS, i'm planning to do economics and data science for all my years there. I'm excited to go to the US to experience new environments and cultures since I have been in Singapore most of my life but at the same time, NUS is more highly-ranked than UVA. So, I'm not sure whether to choose UVA or NUS. Finances don't matter. I don't have any specific plans of where I would like to work in the future. I'm fine with the US and Singapore, or anywhere else internationally. If you have any advice, please let me know! I greatly appreciate it :)

Hey guys and gals ! Just wanted to rant/talk , ever since I could remember I dreamed of just packing up and leaving with whatever I could carry . Maybe it was my upbringing how we would always be moving around . Eventually we ended up in Texas , I grew up and that thought would always be in my head . I loved the idea of it ! Guess I was just to scared or cautious to do it . So in my opinion I did the next best thing , I became a truck driver. Keeps me moving and never really know where I’m gonna sleep .
I’ve been driving for many years now , I help out hitchhikers when I see them or just sit and talk to you guys ! Now with a daughter I know I could never live out my vagabond dream ( well at least til she grows up ) lol .
Anyways guys/gals y’all stay safe out there , and if any of y’all are near south texas and need a lift or some water or food let me know !

I live in Utah and a few weeks ago, I went to a Hyundai dealership in Washington state to lease a new car, as that was the only place I could find a particular trim/color that I wanted.
I got a 3-day trip permit from WA state to drive the car back to Utah, and since then, I have been unable to get the car titled and registered in Utah. Because the dealership is out of state, they just said they would give me the paperwork I needed and I could go in person to the Utah DMV to handle it myself.
They mailed me the MSO and the odometer disclosure statement, but the DMV says that because this is a lease, I need POA from the leasing company in order to title the car in Utah. The dealership thinks that is incorrect.
The dealership had me sign in Section 6 as the Owner on form TC-656 Vehicle Application for Utah Title. I thought this was weird as I'm not really the owner of a car in a lease. The DMV is expecting to see the leasing company as the owner listed on the form and their signature, OR they said I could sign for them as long as I had that POA I mentioned earlier. The dealership is insisting that this is wrong and they have never encountered this situation before doing other out of state deals, but admitted they don't deal with Utah much...
At this point I'm 3 weeks into a lease for a car that is sitting in my garage that I can't drive, and the dealership I've been dealing with hasn't inspired much confidence that they know what they are doing. Has anyone dealt with this situation before? Any advice on what needs to be done?

The other day I went out to eat with my GF, and there was a nice enough family sitting near me, a mom and a dad with a preschooler and a baby. The preschooler seemed antsy but they kept telling her to her sit in her seat, and trying to entertain her and the baby and encourage them to eat.
We finished at the same time, they got up and as they neared the door I guess the preschooler’s impulsive thoughts won and she ran out the door into the parking lot near an admittedly busy street where nobody gives a single crap about speed limits or anything. The mom ran and picked her up and said “EMMA! Absolutely not, don’t do that again, that road is close and busy! I’m not mad I’m just scared!” And the girl looked sad and worried.
I told the mom “Hey, what the hell dude? Relax, you could’ve just talked to her!” Because honestly, scooping her up is enough, she didn’t need to yell. The mom rolled her eyes and walked off to their car. My GF told me to knock it off and stop being nosy and in other people’s business. AITA?

Hi,
I'm a 21-year-old woman with multiple chronic pain conditions, as well as the barrage of mental health issues that comes with it. I know it probably isn't healthy but I feel so overwhelmingly bitter towards people my age that can have normal lives, that aren't in near constant pain. I had a pretty good handle on how to deal with my chronic health conditions, and then I developed another one at the start of this year. I'm currently doing a treatment plan for it, but I have no idea if or when I'll feel better. I don't know what to do anymore, it feels like every time I get myself stabilised, life throws me another curveball. I don't know how it's even possible for one person to be so unlucky, but somehow I am. I was finally at a point where I was happy in my life and healing, just to have it all pulled out from underneath me. I'm trying to remain calm and optimistic but internally I'm near suicidal, the only reason I haven't seriously considered it is because I have a long-term partner who would be devastated by my passing. I was born with a chronic pain condition that will most likely shorten my life expectancy to about 50, and I feel so angry that I'm having to waste the good years of my relatively short life in bed crying, a shell of my former self. It just doesn't feel fair. I have absolutely no family support, and not very many friends either. I'm at the end of my rope with it all, and I don't know what I'm supposed to do. I just want the pain to end but I can't see that happening anytime soon. It fucking sucks.

Welcome back blood suckers! We return with the next part of the Anne Rice vampire saga. I don’t know about you guys, but this section was a struggle for me. I was hoping Marius was going to snap Lestat back to reality and send him on his way to meet Louis. Instead, we got the backstory of all backstories without even a mention of Lestat for seven chapters. At times, I wished I could crawl into the dirt and experience my own ‘first death’, but I’m curious to hear what y’all thought so let’s dive in!
Part 7 Chapter 2: Lestat makes his way through Marius’ house and realizes it’s the first time he’s seen a vampire’s home fully stocked with awesome mortal stuff (including “giant stuffed beasts” which I originally thought said breasts). The guy really has everything: amazing murals, huge library, menagerie, indoor greenhouse, and sculpture hall. Lestat is eventually pulled away from these incredible sights by Marius’ heartbeat.
Chapter 3: Marius and Lestat sit down for the long-awaited chat and we learn that what I last week called ‘Lestat’s pity party/hunger strike in the dirt’ was actually his first death and is totally normal for vampires. Marius has such strong ESP that he can tell what’s going on with vamps all over the world, which is how he knew about Lestat (so vamp GPS does exist!). But, unlike other old vamps, Marius chooses to speak as he finds the ESP imprecise and prefers a consensual mode of communication. He also opts to move like a human as he finds this elegant and all those vamp powers tire him out. Marius wants to share his vampire secrets with Lestat and show him Those Who Must Be Kept, but warns him that he will still need to find ‘his own reasons to exist’. Forgetting all about the emo phase he’d just been having, Lestat is like, “Yeah, yeah whatever. You don’t even know how perfectly awful I am. But why me?” Marius tells Lestat he’s the chosen one since he’s an innocent and curious dude who’s happy just living in the moment. We learn that Marius was born at the start of the Roman Empire and that being born ‘on the cusp of the old way of seeing things’ also unites him with Lestat. Plus, they were both turned into vamps because they were…pretty? Before Marius will continue his story, he tells Lestat he wants to show him Those Who Must Be Kept.
Chapter 4: Marius takes Lestat down a creepy staircase to an ancient Egyptian vampire shrine where two figures are revealed. Lestat thinks they are the most incredible statues he’s ever seen until he touches the woman’s cheek and realizes…THEY’RE ALIVE! Lestat is initially spooked, but slowly understands that Marius cares for these beings and can’t really do anything else to them without being cruel. Lestat apologizes for being a rude scaredy cat and Marius tells him Those Who Must Be Kept don’t even eat anymore and haven’t had a drop of blood in 300 years. Yet even without food, they can move or control things with their mind, but never do so in Marius’ presence. At Marius’ urging, Lestat stares at the figures and tells them how beautiful they are and the woman’s name, Akasha, appears on his lips. Mesmerized, Lestat wants to KISS THE WOMAN AND SPIT BLOOD INTO HER MOUTH until he realizes he’s fucking nuts and pulls back, begging Marius to go upstairs. As they leave, one of Those Who Must Be Kept opens up the tabernacle, proving all Marius said true. Marius has a little meltdown upstairs wondering why Akasha revealed her name to Lestat and not him, her protector for the past 17 CENTURIES, but snaps out of it and is ready to tell Lestat the whole story.
Chapter 5: Marius was an illegitimate son in a rich Roman household who had everything he could desire except the love of his dead mother (but at least she gave him her beautiful Aryan looks). One evening, he’s in a Gaul tavern, so busy writing, drinking wine and doing his own philosophizing that he doesn’t notice a creepy giant staring at him. They have a long chat about Egypt and religion and, just when we’re about to die of boredom, the stranger tells Marius he is going to become a god and then knocks him out. Marius comes to in a wagon being pulled through a forest and eventually arrives at a Celtic fortress where he realizes that if he doesn’t want to become a human sacrifice he “had better try to get the hell out of here.” (Apparently, Marius also cannot keep the same speaking style).
Chapter 6: Marius’ captor, Mael, and his Druid pals are now dressed in white robes and tell Marius he will drink the Divine Blood and become a father of gods. Until this occurs, Marius is kept under constant watch and passes the time getting drunk and eating. To keep his boredom at bay, he listens to Mael tell him all about their gods, especially the god he is to become who goes by many names including ‘the lover of the mother’. This god takes blood sacrifices every full moon but on All Saints Day gets to have a yummy feast and make prophecies. He serves the Great Mother who ‘is without visible form but nevertheless present in all things’ (Ok, so Mother Earth, not a literal mother. Phew). Marius recalls others who have served this goddess and things don’t go particularly well for them (castration, dismemberment, etc.) so he’s not feeling too great about his upcoming transformation and continues to get drunk and yell at Mael. Eventually, Marius’ hair is long enough and it’s time for the feast. After a little makeover, Marius is placed in a wagon and driven deep into the forest. He is shocked to see the Druids have made two massive wicker figures and are filling them with evildoers who will be sacrificed in the ceremony. Marius is taken to the ‘sanctuary of the gods’, a grove with creepy faces carved into the trees and skulls on spikes. A voice comes from within one of the trees, double checking that Marius is indeed the chosen one, and then invites Marius to come on down.
Chapter 7: Descending a set of winding stairs, Marius is no longer afraid, but excited that all the nonsense Mael’s been spouting is true and he really is about to become a god. But this feeling doesn’t last long as he comes face to face with a shrivelled, burnt skeleton-like figure (but with beautiful hair of course). The figure tells Marius he will make him a god, but only if he promises to escape the Druids, go down to Egypt and figure out why the sun is burning up all the gods of darkness (aka vampires if you haven’t caught on). Marius is turned into a vampire and, as the blood is passed back and forth, is given his own set of vamp rules to follow. The figure drains Marius one last time and is like, “Go feast. But don’t forget to run away after. I’ll be dying now. Buh bye.”
Chapter 8: Confirming the Druids’ hopes and beliefs, Marius emerges and he is STARVING. He feasts on dozens of men and then plays judge for a while until finally the festival is over and Marius knows he must escape and go to Egypt. He tries to use his god status to persuade the Druids to leave him alone, but they’re not falling for his nonsense and try to force him down into the tree dungeon. They grab the old, shrivelled god out of the tree and casually chuck him into the fire, and his last words to Marius are to obey his command and go to Egypt. Pretending he’s a weak, scared boy, the Druids loosen their grip on Marius and he is able to break free. Sprinting into the forest, Marius finally realizes he has some sweet vamp powers but doesn’t have time to appreciate these as he's being pursued by thousands of Celtic worshippers. He still manages to escape and digs down into the Earth for his first day of vamp sleep. When he wakes, Marius is hungry and is like, “How the hell was that burnt guy only eating once a month!?” After some dinner, he decides he will go down to Egypt, but not for the gods, just to have a vamp adventure! Yet when he finally arrives, Marius realizes how alone he is among mortal men and cannot bear being ‘the relentless bringer of death’ so continues to seek out the old gods.
Chapter 9: In Alexandria, a god appears to Marius in the middle of the night and the next evening something speaks to him, telling him to come to a door. Down another windy stairway, Marius finds an underground temple where he encounters another burnt vamp god with beautiful hair who’s like, “Hey, how come you’re not all crispy?” We then meet the Elder, a vamp god that survived ‘the burning’ and who Marius recognizes as the one that came to him the previous night. Breaking his years of silence, the Elder tells Marius that vampires started BY ACCIDENT four thousand years ago. After Osiris was killed, dismembered and then put back together by Isis (except his penis of course), he became the immortal ruler of the dead and drank blood sacrifices. But who knew that drinking blood would have so many fun side effects!? So Osiris and Isis became the first vampires. Despite their blood creating stronger and stronger vamps, Osiris and Isis eventually got stingy and refused to let others drink from them, while also starving themselves. Because of the blood connection, whatever happens to Isis and Osiris happens to all other vampires, so it was not so nice of them to have these suicidal ideations. Their keeper eventually decided this must all be a big joke so left Osiris and Isis out in the sun. But surprise, surprise, it was all true and thus caused the BBQ vampire fest. The other vamps managed to get Osiris and Isis (who only got a nice suntan) back underground, but they no longer chat or eat and DEFINITELY aren’t letting anyone have their blood now. But guess what!? That’s just the version told in Egyptian mythology. Now we get to learn the real story. (And at this point I let out a vamp-volume scream and curse Anne Rice’s ghost.)
Chapter 10: Two humans, Akasha and Enkil, came into Egypt from ‘some other land’ and taught the cannibal Egyptians how to play nice and worship Mother Earth. One day, a furniture-throwing, dirty-language-loving, demon was causing problems with the royal steward so Enkil decided to go have a chat with it. After a night in the haunted house, Enkil emerged with the knowledge that demons are so grumpy because they don’t have a body! Akasha then joined her husband for another wild night in the demon house. Everyone else was terrified of the demonic commotion and ran away, except for a small group of men who were fed up with the Mother Earth ways and wanted to go back to eating people. These men entered the house in the middle of the night and stabbed Enkil and Akasha over and over. Out of nowhere, Gabrielle emerged and was like, “You done fucked up now.” Ok, just kidding that didn’t happen. But it was a horrible idea because the stab wounds were now convenient openings for the demon to enter the bodies of Enkil and Akasha. When their blood mixed, a new creature was created, with the intelligence and souls of the mortals and the mind reading abilities of the demon. But the worst of all was that they could only be kept alive by drinking blood! Enkil and Akasha also learned immediately that fire and sunlight would kill them. The King and Queen tried to keep all of this a secret, but people were a bit weirded out that they no longer saw their mighty rulers during the day and could only worship at night. Conspirators continued to try and kill Enkil and Akasha, but they always magically healed, so people instead sought to gain their immortality by taking their blood and drinking it. We learn that the vampire transformation is only successful if the mortal is near to death so we don’t know if some people figured this out or if Enkil and Akasha chose to pass on their ‘gift’ to people out of loneliness, but more vampires were created and spread throughout the world. In an attempt to rationalize what happened to them, Enkil and Akasha placed themselves within the world of myth and made up the story of Osiris and Isis. This went well for a few thousand years, until societies began to open up their temples to the sun god and let all the vamps burn to a crisp, leaving only a few places on Earth where vampires gods were left in peace. We learn that there have always been rogue vampires who don’t need no goddess and just want to have fun. But no matter what type of vampire they were, they all went crispy when Mother and Father were put out in the sun. As the story finally comes to a close, Marius is like, “I don’t believe this crap,” and storms out of the temple, laughed out by the Elder.
Chapter 11: As Marius lays in bed at night, he has to admit that the whole story may actually be true, but is still pissed because he wants to be an individual, not a host to a blood-thirsty demonic parasite. After getting drunk on blood and coming to terms with his destiny, Marius decides he has to see this Mother and Father and hide them in order to keep them (and thus all other vamps) safe forever. Conveniently, the Mother then appears to Marius, telling him to take her and the Father out of Egypt. The Mother leads Marius out into the desert where he finds a trap door and...you guessed it...another twisty staircase! At the bottom, Marius finally meets Akasha and Enkil. A burnt vamp suddenly appears out of nowhere and wants to put them back into their chamber, but Enkil and Akasha decide they’re going to move on their own which terrifies burnt vamp and makes Marius weep uncontrollably. Just to see what happens, Marius convinces burnt vamp to try and drink from Enkil, who responds by throwing him across the room. Marius feels bad so lets burnt vamp drink from him, and then tells him to get the eff out and not let anyone in to the crypt. Marius steals two mummy cases, puts Akasha and Enkil in them and temporarily buries them outside his house while he makes plans to flee Egypt. The Elder appears and it’s revealed that he was the keeper who put the Mother and Father out in the sun. Marius is like, “Don’t worry, bro. I got it from here,” but the Elder won’t let them go without a fight. The Elder is much stronger and a more experienced fighter, but Marius goes for the old eye sockets and gets some surprise back up from Akasha who crushes the Elder like a bug and lights him on fire. Sealing his fate as their guardian, Akasha allows Marius to drink from her.

86F, 5ft 3" / 161cm, 5 stone 1lb / 51kg, United Kingdom.
Unfortunately my Google-Fu has failed me as the symptoms listed below appear to partially follow certain research i've attempted to follow but the end result is that they are inconclusive.
After sustaining an unexplainable fall at the start of the year and never fully regaining her independence in and around the house, my Gran has had three or four visible instances of a weird situation whereby she can be standing or walking perfectly fine but suddenly ends up in a trance/state where she's clinging onto anything for dear life like she's about to fall over. We're now suspecting this may have been the cause of the initial fall.
The trance like state she falls into is her being perfectly fine walking between the living room and kitchen but within a split second she can be hanging onto the door handle and door, or the kitchen worktop and as a result appears to be hanging on for dear life. When prompted during these episodes, the stock answer to anything is "I don't know" whilst visibly looking upset/scared/fearful.
In two of the instances, she has only had this trance momentarily before reverting back to her usual self however on two instances (a fortnight ago and this morning) she's gone to step towards a chair or another location and started to stumble. In both instances it has been lucky that i've physically been there to grab hold of her to avoid any potential fall, but as the other trances she's suddenly back to her usual self.
She is on a wide array of tablets, some taken in the morning and some in the evening, none of which the dosages have changed with the exception of warfarin tablets due to the fall having an influence on these. She also takes insulin for her diabetes and this has remained consistent prior to her fall. She's also visited the doctor multiple times and they've not reported anything abnormal with her blood tests.
Nutrition wise, she eats a varied diet prepared by myself and parents (who live with her) and we're actively tracking this as well as her blood sugar levels and the amount of insulin she takes twice a day (both relating to her diabetes). She possibly doesn't drink enough which is evidenced by fewer trips to the bathroom but on a few occasions she hasn't made it to the bathroom at all. We're not certain if this is because she isn't quick enough to make it to the bathroom or if she doesn't realise she's wetting herself.
She isn't nearly as active as she was before but is encouraged and prompted to take a walk every hour or so, which sometimes may extend to 2-3 hours depending on who is in the house at the time. One contribution to her inactiveness would be the fall, as she still says her back is sore which was badly bruised but fails to mention the three ribs she fractured which is a positive. Her memory also wavers, with long term memory being pretty much spot on but short term memory struggling most of the time.

I’m reaching out with some thoughts as I was just fired from one of NYC’s most exclusive private members clubs and the whole situation just seems very unfair. I’ll start off by saying that I’ve never received any type of warning or write-up during my last year of working for the company. I take my job very seriously and have been an asset to the team.
I am 32(f) and I’ve been in this industry my whole life. I’ve worked with some of the best in Manhattan restaurants and cocktail bars over the last decade. I am always early. I show up 30-45 minutes before my shift to make sure I have time to change after my commute, so I can be professional and ready on the floor. I have only been late maybe 2-3 times and I always over-communicate with management if I’m in that situation.
I’m a team player. Ask any of the staff there and they will tell you I am always ready to lend a hand. If I have a free moment, you can find me tidying up service areas, running drinks or asking other servers if they need assistance. I get great scores on all of my food and beverage tests. I don’t look at my phone during service and I’m always at attention. Our members love me. I am personable, always smiling and I remember their names and drink orders.
Getting to this past Friday night. I was sectioned in a particularly large lounge without a dedicated busser. (Every other section has a server and their own busser) It was slow back there until close to 830/9 when the whole club and restaurant were full. I got 6 tables at one time and it was a bit of a scramble to get to everyone but I was trying my hardest to make it happen. A party of 2 gentlemen ordered food immediately upon sitting down, before I was able to get their drinks. I took the order quickly and Gentleman 1 asked me if what he had ordered (Minestrone soup/ Wagyu steak) was gluten free. I was moving too fast and made a mistake in telling him yes. (I didn’t think about the macaroni in the soup.) This is admittedly my error. However, he did not in fact, mention an allergy. I had many tables all at once and I had no support. The rest of the club was grooving and they couldn’t lend a hand. So im attempting to get waters, drink orders and setups for all these tables on my own. Multi-tasking as best as I could manage alone.
Gentleman 1 received the minestrone and took a bite before realizing there was pasta. He told me then, that gluten would make him sick the next day. I acknowledged my mistake and profusely apologized. I bussed the still-full soup back to dish and went straight to the manager, and told her what happened. She advised me to apologize, split the soup off of the check and send a complimentary appetizer. So that is exactly what I did.
I’m also a decent human being and felt really bad about the mistake I had made. I apologized again and spent time at the table, talking to the 2 Gentlemen. He still didn’t mention anything about an allergy, he had taken a bite and then he mentioned it might “upset his stomach.” But he was laughing and making jokes about it with me, it seemed we had good rapport and he enjoyed the rest of his meal. He stayed late, until closing at the bar with his friends.
The following day, Saturday 4/1. They allowed me to pick up a shift from another server. They allowed me work the entire shift until after 12am before sitting me down and firing me on site. The manager never gave me a chance to tell my side of what happened. I never got a word in. The GM talked over me the whole time and said it was an immediate termination. Even though I have a squeaky clean record with the company. I fully expected to be written up for my mistake. The manager who had told me to send the app was written up for the same incident.
( I know that the guest didn’t get sick because my managers didn’t even know who it was, they had to ask me which member it was the next day and I told them his name. If he had gotten sick and complained…they would’ve known his name.)
Herein lies the major issue of injustice. I know, for a fact, that 2 other servers have made an allergy mistake in the past. 2 male servers. Both who nearly killed someone because of a SEVERE nut allergy that they didn’t communicate to the kitchen. (On one incident the guest left on a stretcher) And those male servers? They got write ups. They didn’t get fired. The troll of a woman who is the Director of Operations has even joked about it at a pre-shift meeting before. Making fun of the server who “nearly killed someone” and using him as an example in the meeting. One of them actually still works for there and he is one of the Captains. A few of the other captains, all male of course, get drunk every shift. And I mean every shift. They ring in extra cocktails and they “bus” them to dish to chug. I also know there’s a couple snorting coke during their shifts. I’ve witnessed that in the locker room. It’s messy.
The boys get a pass because they’re indoctrinated with the Troll from a different private club. She brought them all with her to open this place a couple years ago. She has her boy’s club and she lets them do whatever they want. They make more money than the rest of us and they’re supposed to be “leaders” among the servers. But they don’t pull their weight. The double standard is wildly obvious and gross.
I don’t want my job back. The culture behind the scenes here is incredibly toxic, so I’m all set. It’s a blessing in disguise for me. Truly happy to be done with the torture and anxiety of working there. I just wanted to shed a little light on how even some of the “BEST” places actually being run.
I know that the Troll has texted with another server and is spreading a false narrative that I suggested that soup to Gentleman 1. This could not be further from the truth and is extremely unprofessional to be texting about with a tipped employee. (She doesn’t think we talk?)
As I explained, I was juggling about 3 orders, 4 setups and 2 people flagging me down.. and I sure as heck didn’t have time to suggest things from the menu at that time. I could hardly get all 30 of my guests water in a timely fashion. I was not given support on the floor and I was set up for failure. So to be spreading lies that I recommended that dish, really doesn’t sit well with me. It is not what happened.
The thing that really makes that membership club excellent, is the staff. The Troll is a bully and she’s going to run any good people out of there eventually, employees are looking for other opportunities, because the money we make isn’t nearly enough to make up for the way they are treated and talked down to.
Did I get to see and talk to celebrities all the time? Yes.
Did it make up for having to take our breaks in a dirty back stairwell because there’s no employee bathroom or break room? No.
Update: I’m getting my state insurance license and getting tf out of this hellish industry. Yeehaw.

The List.
See the bottom of this post for trade information.
TLDR:

1. I take care of my books. Most are good to mint.
   
2. You pay for shipping except in trades.
   
3. Bolded books don't normally get split up
   
4. We can make deals, but I'm not in a rush.
   

All books are bagged (some doubled up) and many are boarded. Most are in fantastic shape. MOST prices and listings are current and correct, but mistakes do happen. If I find a mistake, we can work something out.
Buyer pays for all shipping (except in trades). I tend to use flat rate shipping to provide simple pricing and insurance (maybe 3-5 books in a flat rate envelope, medium flat box can hold a bunch of books). See current flat rate shipping prices here (go by the retail/online pricing). Graphic novels are shipped via media mail. If you want to take a chance on shipping floppies via media mail, that's ok, but you're responsible if they get returned to me. We can also do local pickup if you live anywhere near the Philadelphia area.
We can make deals if you're reasonable. I like to keep full runs intact (comics in bold probably won’t be broken up), but the right price can make the right sale. I really want to give them a good home as I need the space and money, but I’ve had them for a long time, so it’s hard to let them go.
I've tried to go through the list and make sure everything is correct, but with so many books, some may be missing, sold, or priced incorrectly. If there are any discrepancies, we'll work it out. I periodically go through eBay “sold” listings and update prices accordingly.
Feel free to ask any questions. I can take reasonable photographs if you want them (no way am I going to photograph every single issue of Uncanny X-Men, for example).
Trade Stuff:
Eurorack and synthesizers
Batman vol 1: 400, 417, 419, 420, 426-429, 488, 504, 552, 556.
Most issues pre-399. Other older Batman (Detective, Shadow, etc.) issues
Eurorack and synthesizers