WEIRD: Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, Democratic -- an anachronism when you consider the whole of human history.
The latest episode of the Ezra Klein Show, "If You're Reading This, You're Probably WEIRD: The Anthropologist Joseph Henrich parses how culture shapes our psyches", has a lot of interesting stuff to think about for this audience.
From the link:

We discuss Henrich’s theory of how “cultural evolution” leads to psychological — even genetic — changes in humans, the difference between societies that experience shame as a dominant emotion as opposed to guilt, the unique power of religion in driving cultural change, how cultural inventions like reading have literally reshaped human biology, why religious communes tend to outlast secular ones, why Henrich believes there is no static human nature aside from our cultural learning abilities, how differences in moral psychology across the United States could predict Donald Trump’s 2016 and 2020 vote share, why higher levels of immigration tend to lead to far more innovation and more.

There's more than I can go into from this show, but I found it fascinating from a Mormon perspective.
Some random points:

• Joseph Henrich proposes that through centuries of evolving policies, Catholicism gradually encouraged the creation of nuclear, isolated families, with the demise of the wider kinship culture, through the enforcement of "incest taboos", that grew from banning marriages between first cousins, to eventually covering up to 6th cousins, which had a significant impact on society. Finances, inheritance, property--everything changed with this.
• Mormonism gets a shout out for outlasting so many other communities because it had strong rituals, that eventually led to Utah having one of the most pro-social communities in the United States.

Some more thoughts I had after listening...

• The whole discussion of kinship cultures vs. nuclear family culture was very interesting and relevant to today's society, and Mormonism in particular. Polygamy and general inter-marrying of LDS leadership, from the very beginning through to today's power families, play large roles in maintaining a powerful sense of identity and culture. (Mormon polygamy wasn't mentioned in the show, but other cultures' versions of it were.)
• Ironically, the church's shift and laser-like focus on monogamy and the nuclear family in the mid-20th century is sowing the seeds of its own demise. By isolating families into discrete groups with their own goals, there is less need, every passing year, to strengthen the wider community.
• Not all of this is the church's "fault"--there are wider cultural forces at play, of course. But I think the impacts will be more severe and visible in the church just because of the extremes in culture that it has existed in.

I just have no clue what to do, I've tried multiple teams to no avail. Almost all guides I find are outdated, and the pokemon they use have had the main moves pushed behind the current level cap (40) And I cant seem to replicate any results. The Wigglytuff to start already walls most of my teams (perfect coverage and even super effective attacks it laughs off and heals with drain punch, only get passed with lucky paralyze and confuse procs) and then boosted empoleon tanks and kills everyone else. Only ever made it to Altaria once, and my alolan sandslash barely scratched it with a 5 hit icicle spear. Does anyone have any tips on how they got passed this mammoth of a trainer

Hello let me introduce myself before reading this comment.
I am a planetside 2 veteran with thousands of hours and an experienced squad leader on Cobalt. I am a hardcore infantry main and never really liked vehicles except harasser.
I have heard many many voices from the "general" average playerbase disliking the update but i now want to share thoughts about this updates from the point of view of an infantry main and an experienced squad leader whose main focus it is to lead a squad in a strategic way to achieve tactical victory.
I LOVE the update.
As an infantry main I think it provides a good mix of possibilities for combined arms combat in many scenarios. I came from games like Ark: Survival Evolved or Rust and I think the construction update gave us a little of those games in a military universe. The feeling of creating a base, rivalry with other players about resources and also having to actively defend your base against attacks while its growing is what i like here. I know infantry fights against a player base is not always fun but for infantry we still have the normal facilities.
From a squad lead point of view the update is also awesome. After years of being in contact with strategic thinking in the game you will just know how the battlefield will flow based on the current situation of the map. You know where critical areas or bases or points are and you also know where players like to fight and where you should move your squad. It is the same almost every time, most average players will go to TI Alloys so you now know the side lanes are almost clear, one tactical squad will always drop on Indar Com and there will almost certainly be an armor column around Echo Valley or Jaeger's Fist. But bases complicate things a bit more. They create "unnatural" choke points or bottle necks that prevent typical game flow. They can be used strategically and be a powerful tool that can have even more impact than something like a bastion or an Orbital strike. Bases can be a surprising and unpredictable aspect that makes squad leading a lot more interesting. For example you tell your main squad to drop onto Regent Rock Garrison and order a single fire team to quickly take Berjess Overlook but then the intel comes through that there is a fat playerbase guarding the Berjess Point. Bases may not make tactical game easier but that's not the thing we're looking for, we want to challenge ourselves. That's the exact same reason why you don't fight at an 80/20&% Base. As a squad leader you have to develop new tactics and adept to more different possible scenarios than you are used to. I know most players don't think on that level but from my squad leader experience this update is great!

Here’s a small preview:
“In today’s ever-evolving digital landscape, customers are no longer confined to a single platform when making purchasing decisions.
With social media sales projected to skyrocket to a staggering $2600 billion by 2026, businesses are faced with the daunting task of establishing a presence on multiple platforms and engaging with customers across various touchpoints.
The possibilities seem endless, from mobile and desktop platforms to social media, brick-and-mortar stores, direct-to-consumer (DTC) websites, and third-party retailers.
However, the real question is: how can brands effectively engage customers along their journey?
This is where the age-old debate of omnichannel versus multichannel strategies comes into play.
At first glance, these terms may appear interchangeable, but don’t be fooled – there are some differences that can significantly impact the customer experience.
Let’s delve deeper and explore the unique advantages and disadvantages of each approach and how they can work harmoniously to elevate your business.”
Omnichannel vs. Multichannel: Which Strategy Wins in E-commerce?: https://www.sellerapp.com/blog/omnichannel-vs-multichannel/
#AmazonFBA

https://northfortynews.com/category/how-to/how-is-red-bali-kratom-evolving-the-film-industry-this-2023/
This article reports that many actors have started adding Kratom to their routine. Do you think this could be a good sign and they could be the platform Kratom needs to get the right information out?

Holding a conversation with the intention of connecting with others and wanting to understand why they are saying what they're saying is HOW you master person-to-person communication.
Create the desire to recall details from your past conversations as a way to show your audience you are really listening to them—unlike most people who insist to overpower others with their own life stories.

Blockchain, originally created as the underlying technology for Bitcoin, has now emerged as a powerful and disruptive force that possesses the potential to revolutionize the way we conduct business, exchange value, and establish trust in the digital realm. This emerging technology has captured the attention and sparked the imagination of corporate executives, entrepreneurs, and experts alike in the ever-evolving landscape of contemporary business.
In this article, we will delve into the potential impact of blockchain technology on future business operations. We will also explore its fundamental ideas, and look at how it's being used right now in many fields.

Understanding Blockchain Technology

Blockchain is a decentralized framework that securely stores public transactional data, known as "blocks," across multiple databases. It operates through a network of peer-to-peer nodes and is commonly referred to as a "digital ledger." Each transaction within the blockchain is meticulously validated and safeguarded against fraudulent activities through the use of the owner's digital signature.
It also serves to authenticate the transaction and safeguard the data in the digital ledger. In simpler terms, the digital ledger can be compared to a network of computers sharing a Google spreadsheet where transactional records are kept according to actual purchases. The best part of blockchain technology is that while everyone may view the data, it cannot be altered or changed at will.

Core principles of blockchain

Understanding the blockchain's underlying fundamental ideas is critical for gaining a deeper understanding of it. The excitement surrounding blockchain technology stems from its fundamental principles, which enable a wide range of business applications. They include;
Decentralization
On the blockchain, communication between the parties is not at all reliant on a centralized authority. Instead, each node equally contributes to the processing and distribution of the data to every other node connected to the network. This inadvertently guarantees a high level of anonymity and security during the information exchange process.
Transparency
The blockchain enables the most transparent processing, exchange, and storage of information. Every user who joins the network has a special key, and each user has the option to divulge or keep their identity a secret at will. Additionally, because every transaction is made on a blockchain address, it is accountable, allowing the end-user to confirm transactions after the user initiates them.
Security and immutability
The blockchain creates a tamper-proof environment that guarantees that the data is stored with the highest level of security. Additionally, the network stores the transactions in an immutable manner that is resistant to reversibility. This minimizes the chance of data theft or tampering. Also, the data that is kept on the network is chronologically organized, and all parties participating in the transaction have access to it.

Current Applications of Blockchain in Business

From consumer production to voting and even supply chain management, the blockchain offers numerous business applications. These applications include:
Financial sector
The financial sector has the most promise for incorporating blockchain. The common applications used in this sector are often for implementing financial regulatory supervision and record keeping. However, there are other possibilities as well. Blockchain technology can also help improve user data protection, speed up transactions (especially those that cross borders), and create a ledger that is more effective at preventing fraud and wrongdoing.
The applications of blockchain in the financial sector are so immense that popular financial organizations like Barclays and Wells Fargo have already made large financial commitments to developing new possibilities.
Supply chain management
Supply chains are complex networks that can cover the entire world. They are the organizational and logistical systems that move products from a manufacturer, extractor, or grower to the consumer. Since the import and export of raw materials and finished commodities have expanded globally, it has become much more difficult to keep a careful eye on supply chains. With blockchain technology, a majority of these systems that are made up of separate databases with centralized record keeping can be decentralized.
For instance, the person responsible for supply chain management can obtain verified information about shipments and process extremely challenging calculations with the blockchain. Since the blockchain is a single, decentralized ledger, all parties involved in a supply chain could enter their data there as long as they had the necessary permissions. This would make it possible to have a solitary, secure system via which every unit in the chain, particularly the overseer, could view the information in real-time.
Identity management and digital credentials
Regardless of your field, identity management and digital credentials likely come into play on some level. Although boards, shareholders, and employees are just three classes that require regular identification, the blockchain can also be used for nationwide identity management, especially during voting or elections.
Since the methods by which democratic tallying is conducted aren't always favorable to getting a meaningful or comprehensive ballot, blockchain technology can change the entire system. With it, votes can be issued safely and linked to an individual's distinctive identity metadata. This will speed up the procedure and ensure that democratic processes are implemented in a way that takes into account the geographical and financial limitations that the majority of people face.

Benefits and Advantages of Blockchain in Business

Blockchain technology offers several advantages and benefits to today's businesses. These benefits include:
It promotes trust and allows for cost-cutting measures
The nature of blockchain technology can enable companies to make financial savings. This will make transactions more swiftly completed and also decrease time-consuming manual processes like data collection and editing, reporting, and auditing. Blockchain can also be used to establish trust between people who have never met before when it is missing or untested. It allows businesses to engage in transactions or data sharing in ways that would have required an intermediary to complete them.
It promotes transparency and traceability
With blockchain, the origin of goods and their travel all the way to the final consumer can be traced using visibility and traceability features. Customers will be able to find out where their food, clothing, or other things are made.
Eliminates middlemen and promotes speed
Since blockchain eliminates middlemen and replaces any remaining manual processes, it can complete operations much more swiftly than traditional techniques. In some circumstances, blockchain can complete a transaction in a couple of milliseconds, enabling businesses and consumers to get swift information about their supply chain and also learn what is happening with their goods at any given moment.
Increased speed and efficiency
The final advantage of blockchain for the industry is its increased speed and efficiency. Blockchain automates labor-intensive processes to improve efficiency, eliminating human-caused errors. Also, the simplification and automation of operations imply that everything becomes incredibly efficient.

Conclusion

Blockchain offers a decentralized and transparent framework for recording and validating transactions, marking a revolutionary shift from centralized systems. It also offers a range of advantages that have the potential to upend conventional business structures, from managing supply chains and improving transparency in financial transactions to reinventing digital identity management. Without question, blockchain is enabling the businesses of the future.

Please Support this story on nosleep here.
The common consensus on what a curse even is can be ambiguous, so many cultures and ideas reframe and retool to fit the central tenets of their thematic cores. One thing is common amongst all interpretations however, their aim is to cause harm. One might wonder at what point is a curse conceived, not just the rituals and requirements that are needed to conjure a curse. No, what is it that makes up a curse, what feeds it? Some might answer hate or jealousy, and while those might be true for some. For me, the curse I bore and the curses I will bear are made up of one thing. Resentment.
I first noticed its infection one morning while getting dressed for classes. Running my fingers along the slight depression brought out goosebumps. It was slightly tender and if I pressed on it hard it elicited a painful pinch that caused my insides to tangle in panic. Withdrawing my fingers to inspect them I noted a slickness I couldn’t account for. A slight black tint colored my fingertips and I quickly rinsed them under hot water but it did little to wash away the wave of anxiety that had come over me. I tried to push it aside, I had classes, term papers, and tests to worry about. I held out until the middle of my 3rd class, by then all I could think about was the series of horrible and fatal medical implications of the indentation. I ran all the way home, body wracked with shivers, and slammed myself inside my dorm bathroom, stripped off my shirt, and took a good look at it. It had gotten deeper, at least 2 centimeters into my chest now. It was where my sternum was, dead center between my two pectoral muscles. I pushed my finger in and it actually gave some, causing a shudder of agony to blossom and ride through every nerve in my body. I spent the rest of the day researching what I could, some stuff about dietary insufficiencies causing swelling and easily depressed skin, but this was different. The anxiety attacks started then and continued for the next few hours. My roommate walked in during the midst of one and saw my huddled form, trying to breathe. I heard the audible click of his tongue and he left.
3 am neared and I still hadn’t escaped that sinking feeling, the one that feels like an endless plunge towards death, and all the while your lungs struggle to pull enough air to fuel a scream. Drowning in plain sight. I looked desperately through Jake’s things and found a bottle of Benadryl. I washed a couple of them down and waited until my eyelids grew heavy. I was barely able to crawl into bed before I fell into a deep slumber. The dreams it brought were bizarre and vivid. I was wandering through a landscape of abandoned suburbs, going from door to door, looking for one that was the right color. It was late into the night when I finally found it, a dim street lamp casting down an amber spotlight in front of a dilapidated two-story with a red door.
The door opened as I walked up to it, revealing a barren living room lit by a corner lamp that flickered every few seconds. At its center was a cobblestone well, ancient and unnerving. I recognized it. I had seen it countless times. On my worst days, I had dreamt of standing before it, yearning for hope or absolution. I had been silent instead, letting all I could not say seep into it. This inverted well, one that fed on despair instead of dreams, was now vibrating, shifting. Something was rising from its depths to greet me and I was ready for it, yearned for it. Black fluid erupted from its opening, spraying the ceiling and walls and splattering across my face.
Somewhere, a scream was reaching a fever pitch. I looked down and saw that my chest had split open and the black fluid was streaming down in a cascade of pitch. An eye blossomed from the depths of that gaping ravine in my chest. It stared, focused, and recognition flooded into the empty white. From the hole in my chest, something was rising - a realization. The screaming… it had been me the whole time.
I jolted awake, the pain in my chest the first thing to greet me. I heaved to suck in a breath and my senses came alive. Next was the sweat-slick coat that had pooled around me and I turned over to flip on a lamp. Light flooded my vision, but still, I was surrounded by darkness. No, not darkness, but stains. Black ink had seemingly spurted from my chest and splattered my bedding and floor. I ran my finger through it, all along my sternum, but I could not find the indentation, nor a source for the fluid.
I got up in a panic, looking around the room. I was alone, my roommate never having returned, but there was a trail of black ooze. I followed the most prominent streak to a corner. There was a lump there, a polished shiny black orb where the oily ooze seemingly seeped from. My heart thundered as I approached it, I swore I thought I saw it twitch. I was in the middle of my hands and knees crawling towards it when it jerked, moved, and stood.
I fell back on my ass letting out a half yelp, frozen as my gaze locked with it. It was the size of a rabbit, its tar-black skin reflective and polished. It had these beady eyes that were somehow darker than the rest of its body, and it waddled forward on stubby legs no longer than two inches. It had arms too, stubs too, and they reached for me. I was scooting away from its path when it spoke in a pained and squeaky voice as if its anatomy was ill-fitted for human speech, even its grasp of human words was feeble.
“No harm. I’m an ally.”
“What?” I couldn’t help but respond.
“You fed me, so now I repay you?”
“How? In what way? What are you?”
It blinked as if contemplating how to answer my barrage of questions. It didn’t have a mouth, but it spoke regardless. There was distance to its voice, so I was certain that it didn’t speak directly to my mind, but then again I didn’t even think that was possible until now.
“I am grown, don’t know from where, or why. I think I could be a tool or weapon. I eat bad feelings, but I was left with no one around to feed me. Then you came and fed me, for a long time. Now I’m finally strong enough to repay.”
“Repay me how?”
“I have fed on the dark of your heart. I know what it desires, I can take the shape of a curse,” it said
“You’re going to curse me? As repayment?”
“No, that’s not what was in your hearts. Yes, you hated yourself, but you hate others more. I can be the curse you cast on them.”
Something clicked in place and made its way closer to my mind, but didn’t bridge the distance entirely. It spoke, knew that I’d ask it how.
“Pick the kind of curse. I can be misfortune, blindness, madness… even death, a killing curse,” it said.
I reached towards it, even as its body distorted and elongated and reshaped into a foot-long, skinny, jagged oily centipede. I froze but it skittered forward, crawled across the back of my hand, and wrapped around my wrist. It tickled my skin, slick but warm. Almost uncomfortably so.
“Pick the kind of curse you want me to be, and feed me to whom you want to inflict. It’s easy, but curses burn up in daylight if not attached. You’ll have a few hours past dawn before I turn to ash.”
It fell silent afterward as if slumbering, but I couldn’t sleep. I sat in the corner thinking, watching the black stains left by the living curse dry up and evaporate into nothing. I had to look periodically at the oily centipede wrapped around my wrist to remind myself that I wasn’t dreaming, but all it did was convince me that I had careened off the precipice of sanity into some functional hysteria. I sat there until the sun rose, and like a clockwork mechanism, I got dressed and went to class. I was on autopilot, more depersonalized than I had ever felt before I watched myself go through the motions of my life. It should have been a cry for help, you could see it spelled out clearly as day and no one could have missed it. But they did - or rather, they chose to ignore it, because that was what you were supposed to do with people like me. Dull rage set in and it was what I stewed in as the hours ticked by, a building fury that could have blown but only boiled over and settled into dejected acceptance. I was ready to leave it at that, to let myself fade into a shadow like I had my entire life. To give up and crawl away to some recess, never to be found. But the searing pain of dozens of clawed insect legs digging into my flesh brought back presence of mind “Now. Now! Now! NOW!” a voice chirped. I ran into a storage closet, barred the door, and pulled back the sleeve that hid the living curse.
“What is it, are you about to die?”
“Not die, return. Back to the labyrinth. Pick a curse now, feed me to your enemy, before I disappear and all you’ll be left with is ash.”
“And if I haven’t picked anyone? If I don’t want to hurt anyone?”
“Then let me burn in the light, let me go, never visit my well, never feed me again. Move forward from your life, move away from me, and you’ll be free of me”
It could be that easy to rid myself of this wretched thing. I thought about my day, my life, and the people closest to me. I couldn’t let go, not when they had all walked by ashamed or indifferent, or worst of all, fearful. I had done nothing and they feared me.
“I won’t let it go, I can’t. I don’t know what I’ll do, but I can’t move on from this. I can’t give you up, but I can’t choose someone to suffer you.”
“Then eat me.”
I looked at the wriggling centipede confused, black fluid dripping from its body.
“If you eat me, you inflict the curse upon yourself. Not at full potency, but I’ll live until you’re ready to choose. If you hate enough, if you have the resolve, you can cast a shadow of my curse on all who meet your gaze, but you must hurry, my time… fades.”
“I don’t know what to pick. I don’t want to suffer.”
“Then pick the curse that causes the least pain.”
“Which is? I don’t know, pick for me!”
“I am delirium, now eat me, before it’s too late.”
I didn’t notice any change in the curse, except for the small cracks appearing in its carapace and the fraying of its antenna. I hesitated until a large crack formed across its back; at that moment, I hoisted it up and opened my mouth wide, closing my eyes as I lowered it. It did the rest of the work, jerking free of my grip and slithering down my throat with brute force, trailing that oily substance, I gagged, screamed, tears ran and I choked. But once it was down and settled I was alone in that room, nothing different.
Until I stepped out, and it began. A blurring of the world, where every sound was too sharp and grating, every color too vibrant. My head was swelling with immense pressure as it was filled with hundreds of trivial conversations, all spewing from the mouths of every student and professor in this wing. I couldn’t handle it, so I ran, flinging the doors open to the outside.
Except outside wasn’t outside, no, the doors opened up to a hallway I had been trying to forget all my life, framed with pictures of me and my family. I turned, hoping I could reach the living room so I could leave through the front door but what faced me was another room, one I had forgotten about until now. A barred door, walls burned black, stained with soot and char. A sound jolted me back around, the sound of a belt being unbuckled and fabric hitting the floor. Panic rose within me and I felt like I was in free fall, plummeting from astral orbit, through the earth's crust, and straight into the pits of hell. Except I wasn’t. No, I was in my middle school nurse's office. The scent of floor polish and cheap perfume tickled my nose.
“If it hurts you can stop it anytime, you know? Just change your habits, it’s not that hard,”
Ms. Rena, my middle school nurse, was talking to me. I stared into her eyes, and the world quieted and came into focus. They were green, as beautiful as emeralds. I couldn’t help but stare at them every chance I got. They brought forth feelings within me I had never felt before, an awakening. I blinked and they were burning now, bright green flames that sloughed the flesh from her face and I turned away and screamed. The scream pitched, bent, and distorted into a siren, ascending and descending endlessly. I don’t know how long I was caught in its loop but I couldn’t cling onto a single coherent thought longer than a second, as if my mind had been partitioned half a dozen times and all were battling for the sphere of influence that was my perception.
Then clarity, or an illusion of such. In reality, it was only a fleeting break from the delirium, long enough for me to gather my faculties so that the second dive into madness would hurt just that much more. But time was relative here, stretching out longer than it had any right to. The curse was there, in the hallway of my dorm, no longer a centipede but a tall humanoid thing, seemingly made of old motor oil.
“What’s happening? What did you do to me?!” I pleaded.
“You are suffering the curse of delirium. You chose this, remember?” it said, its voice no longer airy and whistling, like a bird’s. Its speech was no longer jilted and tenuous. Now when it spoke, its voice was deep and full of power.
“You said it would be weaker, subdued.”
“This is subdued, I’m a powerful curse after all.”
“What are you? Where do you come from, I don’t understand.”
“I don’t know, I’m searching for the answer myself. I was malnourished for so long that my mind splintered, I suffered my own madness, and I just know bits and pieces now. I know that in the city of Cradle, the word they call me means ‘Demon Seed’. That’s all I know of my identity.”
“I-I didn’t want this,”
“You’ll grow accustomed to it, with time. Not fully, if you could ignore the delirium it wouldn’t be much of a curse. If it’s too much for you to handle, if the pain is unbearable, you can always make it go away.”
“How?”
“Expel me from your body, feed me to someone else, or let the sun take me.”
I exhaled long and slow, and felt the prickling at the corner of my mind. The madness was near, but all I could feel was anger. At the curse, at myself, at the world. I turned away and faced a world of static and incomprehensible whispers, deafening and all-consuming. I collapsed into myself, held my hands to my ears, and balled into the fetal position. It did little to shut out all that was happening, but it did dull it for a moment until a quiet, throaty keening cut through and pierced my mind directly. I imagined a small undying animal having an army knife stab them at consistent intervals, the pace changing periodically so it could never get used to the pain. And then the violence was reflected onto me except there was no perpetrator. An invisible force sliced into the flesh of my sides, my back, until I was ridden with countless wounds. The pain spurred me to crawl forward on all fours, hoping to escape it but it was endless. I was bleeding so much, black blood, my blood was black. I laughed, then cried, and then crawled forward as the stabbings continued, except now the pain had dulled into an ache that still caused my breath to hitch.
I crawled for what seemed like hours, never getting used to the barrage of thoughts, images, and sounds, all the while the stabbing refused to stop. Even after my body had been shredded to ribbons and I had been bled of all its blood it continued, lazily now, as if the invisible force had grown tired but not enough to cease. Then I hit a wall, flesh, thin, like an amniotic sac, and on impulse I pushed through into it, harder and harder until it started to rip. Somewhere someone was breathing heavily, no more than one, with a rising rhythm and intensity, like a panic attack reaching its peak. I struggled forward, trying to break the damn thing, but it would not give. I was exhausted and so collapsed into it as if sleeping, but time passed and sleep did not come. But the end of the breathing did, once it reached a fever pitch. I shifted, realizing the stabbing had stopped, trying to move but then of all times the amniotic sac burst and I fell into whatever lay beyond it.
I was in my dorm room, a break in the madness. I was free for a moment, act, I had to act. Dawn was starting to peek through the window blinds. I stood up and froze, seeing what the rays of light were cast onto. My roommate Jake lay in his bed, naked. A woman just as naked was wrapped around him, body slick with sweat, its scent perfuming the room. He had seen me suffering, in the midst of a panic attack, left me to cope with it alone, and when I hadn’t returned he took the chance not to look for me or tell anyone, instead using it for his own benefit. Anger coursed through my veins, a fresh injection of hate kicking me into action. I opened my mouth and with my pointer finger and thumb reached in, the curse met me halfway and slid into position. I gripped it and pulled it, hand over hand now as a seemingly endless centipede being expelled from my stomach. I looked at the black segmented body, it writhed and moved in such a way that it reminded me a bit of an umbilical cord, and in a way, it was. A curse was being birthed, having grown stronger after I had housed and fed it with my own being. It was time to cut the cord then, I walked over to the pair as I pulled the last of the length free.
The curse popped out like a cork, sending a spray of black fluid across the couple. Droplets of varying sizes landed and stained the woman’s breasts, most of it pooling in between them at her sternum. I stifled a laugh as that’s where I had first gestated this curse. I looked at Jake, the black spray had stained his face, beard, and clavicle, and a particularly large globule resting upon his lower lip. I shifted my gaze to the wriggling centipede before me. It was at least four feet long now and twice its original width.
I shuddered, clarity flooded over me, and at that moment I realized that sometimes clarity was just perspective. I thought I knew suffering, thought I knew what it meant to shuffle through every day dreading that the next day would be more of the same. But the inescapable madness brought a new understanding to me. I could have changed. At any point in time, I could have ended my ostracization. Sure, it was socially imposed, but it was not an incurable delirium. Follow the rules, conform, and you’ll be mostly fine, you can make the hurt stop anytime you want. So why didn’t I, why can’t I now at this very moment? I knew now that it was because it would be a rejection of self, the world goes on and on about how you should be yourself. That in itself was a virtue lauded and held up as one of the most important facets of existence. But now I know what they really meant was “Operate within the constantly shifting parameters of acceptability - fail to adhere, evolve or predict, and you are a threat.” The true self that others reveled in evaded people like me, instead we had to construct a facade we passed off as real in order to thrive.
But so many didn’t, couldn’t, wouldn’t. How could they? It was all they knew, how could you discard that which defined them, the filter of their reality? I know what I am now, a worm that slinked through grime and lived in darkness, and when others took me and held me to the light, saying, “See, this is how you should be, and why you should be, it’s for the better of everyone,” it didn’t bring me to enlightenment, but to resentment and hate. I knew what I could do to make them see more than just a freak, a threat, but unconsciously I never took the steps because I knew only what it was to exist within the margins, in a periphery. An exile imposed by all, including myself.
I held the curse higher, feeling grateful that I had survived it, suffered it, and was blessed by its clarity. Light streamed in now as the sun crossed the horizon into a bright morning. The curse was still, despite the lethal light upon it. Let it go and move on, or revel in it? I looked back down at the pair, at Jake. He was an acceptable version of me, softly rebellious. Had thoughts, beliefs, mannerisms, and behaviors that neared the boundaries but never crossed them. Scruffy-faced, soft-eyed, short hair spikey and messy but never disheveled, charming in an irreverent way, unassuming cock but he fucked like a jackhammer obviously. An outsider that wasn’t really an outsider, he never was the great other that haunted dreams and fueled paranoia. I held the curse out in front of them and spoke to it.
“Your choice, Demon Seed. Wither in the sun, or choose one to torment. I don’t care which.”
It was still for a moment before diving into Jake's mouth. Silently, effortlessly, it slipped inside him and was gone. I walked out of the room, legs wobbling a bit, I was riding a high I had never felt before.
Jake was dead by the end of the month, he had been institutionalized until he wasn’t and then he stumbled onto train tracks. Rest is history, no body left to bury. His girlfriend, lover, or whatever the fuck was the one to break the news to me. Thought because I was his roommate I cared or at least should care. It was a few weeks later when I felt that sting and oil-slick fluid in my sternum, Demon Seed, the curse had enjoyed itself.
Twice more I’ve birthed a curse, let it choose its victim, let Demon Seed choose its form. He is the shaky finger of tragedy that strikes without cause or rhyme, deliriously pointed at someone, anyone. And I am the great well of resentment that feeds him. We are the what world needs, a calamity, the great other, something to fear, something to hate. And with each glare and impassioned condemnation, the curse grows stronger within me.
TW

Is there any way to evolve Pokemon that usually require a trade without trading them (pokemon newbie here)

In today's digital age, where the demand for faster and more reliable data transmission is ever-increasing, optical modules have emerged as the unsung heroes behind the scenes. These tiny devices, also known as optic transceivers, play a crucial role in facilitating high-speed communication over long distances. In this article, we will delve into the world of optical modules, exploring their significance, working principles, applications, and future prospects.

What are Optical Modules?

Optical modules, also referred to as optic transceiver, are electronic devices that enable the transmission and reception of data using optical fibers. They act as the interface between optical fibers and networking equipment, such as switches, routers, and servers. These modules convert electrical signals into optical signals for transmission over the fiber optic cables, and vice versa.

How Do Optical Modules Work?

Optical modules employ a combination of optical and electronic components to facilitate data transmission. They consist of a transmitter, a receiver, and various other components such as laser diodes, photodiodes, and integrated circuits.

1. Transmitter: The transmitter section of an optical module is responsible for converting electrical signals into optical signals. It typically consists of a laser diode or a light-emitting diode (LED) that emits light signals corresponding to the transmitted data.
2. Receiver: The receiver section of an optical module performs the reverse process by converting received optical signals back into electrical signals. It incorporates a photodiode, which converts the received light signals into electrical signals that can be further processed by the networking equipment.
3. Optical and Electronic Components: Optical modules also contain various other components, such as wavelength division multiplexers (WDMs), multiplexers, demultiplexers, and integrated circuits, which ensure efficient transmission and reception of data.

Types of Optical Modules

There are various types of optical modules available in the market, catering to different network requirements. Some commonly used optical modules include:

1. SFP (Small Form-Factor Pluggable): SFP modules are compact and hot-swappable modules widely used in Ethernet applications. They support data rates up to 10 Gbps and offer flexibility in terms of fiber types and transmission distances.
2. QSFP (Quad Small Form-Factor Pluggable): QSFP modules are high-density modules that support data rates up to 100 Gbps. They are commonly used in data centers and high-performance computing environments.
3. CFP (C Form-Factor Pluggable): CFP modules are larger form-factor modules that support higher data rates, typically up to 400 Gbps. They are utilized in advanced networking applications that require ultra-high-speed data transmission.
4. XFP (10 Gigabit Small Form-Factor Pluggable): XFP modules are widely used in 10 Gigabit Ethernet applications. They support data rates up to 10 Gbps and offer flexibility in terms of fiber types and transmission distances.

Applications of Optical Modules

Optical modules find extensive applications across various industries and sectors. Some notable applications include:

1. Telecommunications: Optical modules are the backbone of telecommunications networks, enabling high-speed data transmission over long distances. They are used in the construction of fiber optic backbone networks, connecting different parts of the world.
2. Data Centers: Data centers rely heavily on optical modules for efficient and reliable communication between servers, switches, and routers. These modules facilitate high-speed data transfers, enabling smooth operation of cloud computing, big data analytics, and other resource-intensive tasks.
3. Broadcasting and Media: Optical modules play a crucial role in broadcasting and media industries, ensuring the seamless transmission of high-definition video signals over long distances. They enable the distribution of live events, television programs, and video-on-demand services.
4. Healthcare: Optical modules are utilized in medical imaging systems, allowing high-speed transmission of medical data and images. They enable remote consultations, telemedicine, and the sharing of medical information between healthcare professionals.

Advantages of Optical Modules

Optical modules offer numerous advantages over traditional copper-based communication systems. Some key benefits include:

1. High Speed and Bandwidth: Optical modules provide exceptionally high data transfer rates, ranging from 10 Gbps to several hundred Gbps. This makes them ideal for applications that demand rapid and reliable data transmission.
2. Long Transmission Distances: Unlike copper cables, which suffer from signal degradation over long distances, optical modules can transmit data over tens of kilometers without significant loss. This makes them suitable for long-haul communication networks.
3. Immunity to Electromagnetic Interference: Optical modules are immune to electromagnetic interference, making them highly reliable in environments with high electromagnetic noise, such as data centers or industrial settings.
4. Secure and Immune to Tapping: Fiber optic cables used with optical modules are extremely difficult to tap, ensuring the security and privacy of transmitted data. This makes them ideal for sensitive applications that require secure communication.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

1. What is the lifespan of optical modules? Optical modules generally have a lifespan of several years, depending on factors such as usage, environmental conditions, and technological advancements. It is recommended to follow manufacturer guidelines and periodically replace modules to ensure optimal performance.
2. Can optical modules be used with existing networking equipment? Yes, optical modules are designed to be compatible with standard networking equipment. They typically use industry-standard interfaces, such as SFP, QSFP, or XFP, allowing seamless integration with existing infrastructure.
3. Are optical modules expensive? The cost of optical modules can vary depending on factors such as data rate, transmission distance, and module type. While they may have a higher upfront cost compared to copper-based solutions, the long-term benefits and performance make them a worthwhile investment.
4. Can optical modules support multiple data protocols? Yes, optical modules are capable of supporting multiple data protocols, such as Ethernet, Fibre Channel, InfiniBand, and SONET/SDH. This versatility makes them suitable for a wide range of applications across different industries.
5. Are optical modules future-proof? Optical modules continue to evolve with advancements in technology. Newer modules with higher data rates and increased capabilities are regularly introduced to meet the ever-growing demands of the digital landscape. Upgrading to newer modules ensures compatibility with future networking requirements.
6. How do I choose the right optical module for my network? Selecting the right optical module involves considering factors such as data rate, transmission distance, fiber type, compatibility with networking equipment, and future scalability requirements. It is advisable to consult with experts or refer to manufacturer specifications to make an informed decision.

In Conclusion

Optical modules, or Optical Transceiver, are integral components that drive the modern data communication infrastructure. With their ability to transmit data at high speeds over long distances, they have revolutionized industries such as telecommunications, data centers, broadcasting, and healthcare. The advantages they offer, including high speed, long transmission distances, and immunity to electromagnetic interference, make them indispensable in today's digital world. As technology continues to advance, optical modules will play an increasingly vital role in shaping the future of data communication.
So, the next time you stream your favorite show, make a video call with a loved one, or access cloud services seamlessly, remember that optical modules are working tirelessly behind the scenes, ensuring smooth and reliable data transmission.

Video Review: https://youtu.be/SbvZK2E5LBk

Players: 1-2 Local (Drop in/Drop out shared screen)

Explanation

You are transported to an unknown world where monsters roam around. Your goal is to explore this new world in hopes of finding a way home. This will have you collecting monsters for you to battle with, defeating captains (Gym Leaders) and defeating archangels.

Gameplay

You freely explore an average sized world fighting in turn based battles where you always have 2 monsters on the field. Quests will push your adventures throughout certain sections of the world to defeat captains and archangels. Monsters come equipped with move sets that can be changed at any point without penalty. Monsters can fuse together to create a whole new monster that has access to both monsters move sets. Overall is a lot like Pokemon but has some great quality of life features and innovation to make this a blast to play.
Accessibly options are available to make the game easier or more difficult.
​

Co-Op

Co op is everything you could hope for. Player 2 gets the exact same experience as player 1. Co-Op is unlocked 15 minutes into the game once you complete the elevator puzzle and unlock the companion, Kayleigh. Player 2 will always play as a companion but that doesn't change anything other than having to look like that character. There are a few companions so player 2 has some options. Player 1 and Player 2 can freely explore together and interact with everything. In battle player 1 takes their turn then player 2 takes their turn.

Progression

Defeat captains and archangels to find a way home. There are quests available that will reward you with new moves, xp and other items. Monsters take on the level of the player rather than having their own level. Monsters do still "level up" but its very simple. Every 5 levels, the monster evolves if it can. This system makes it so you can catch and use any monster you want without the worry of it being weak and having to grind levels with it.

Game Modes

• Story Mode

Important Info

• Accessibly options are available to make the game easier or more difficult.
• Performance issues currently. Devs are working on a fix

Thoughts

This is a great game for local Co-Op and I highly recommend this game if you love Pokemon.

Game Info

Steam: https://store.steampowered.com/app/1321440/Cassette_Beasts/
Platforms: PC, Xbox and Switch
Price: $20

The transition from the linear production-consumption model of "take-make-use-dispose" to a "circular economy" is gaining global traction and acceptance. This is an example of An economy that is designed to adhere more closely to a production and consumption model that attempts to eliminate waste and pollution, retain the greatest economic worth of materials, cycle items around the value chain, and develop regenerative systems. Although the concept is not new, interest in circularity has increased dramatically in recent years. This circularity, if realised on a broad scale, will alter how people interact with one another and with their surroundings.
​
The circular economy has evolved from its initial focus on reducing waste to a broader plan to increase resource utilisation in order to reduce energy and resource costs. A circular economy has the potential for increased commerce and economic diversity, as well as opportunities for resource savings, social well-being, human health, and environmental implications. In a globally interconnected world and amid increased business interest in expanding the economy, it will be more important than ever for policies to be created and implemented with a circular economy in mind.

The common consensus on what a curse even is can be ambiguous, so many cultures and ideas reframe and retool to fit the central tenets of their thematic cores. One thing is common amongst all interpretations however, their aim is to cause harm. One might wonder at what point is a curse conceived, not just the rituals and requirements that are needed to conjure a curse. No, what is it that makes up a curse, what feeds it? Some might answer hate or jealousy, and while those might be true for some. For me, the curse I bore and the curses I will bear are made up of one thing. Resentment.
I first noticed its infection one morning while getting dressed for classes. Running my fingers along the slight depression brought out goosebumps. It was slightly tender and if I pressed on it hard it elicited a painful pinch that caused my insides to tangle in panic. Withdrawing my fingers to inspect them I noted a slickness I couldn’t account for. A slight black tint colored my fingertips and I quickly rinsed them under hot water but it did little to wash away the wave of anxiety that had come over me. I tried to push it aside, I had classes, term papers, and tests to worry about. I held out until the middle of my 3rd class, by then all I could think about was the series of horrible and fatal medical implications of the indentation. I ran all the way home, body wracked with shivers, and slammed myself inside my dorm bathroom, stripped off my shirt, and took a good look at it. It had gotten deeper, at least 2 centimeters into my chest now. It was where my sternum was, dead center between my two pectoral muscles. I pushed my finger in and it actually gave some, causing a shudder of agony to blossom and ride through every nerve in my body. I spent the rest of the day researching what I could, some stuff about dietary insufficiencies causing swelling and easily depressed skin, but this was different. The anxiety attacks started then and continued for the next few hours. My roommate walked in during the midst of one and saw my huddled form, trying to breathe. I heard the audible click of his tongue and he left.
3 am neared and I still hadn’t escaped that sinking feeling, the one that feels like an endless plunge towards death, and all the while your lungs struggle to pull enough air to fuel a scream. Drowning in plain sight. I looked desperately through Jake’s things and found a bottle of Benadryl. I washed a couple of them down and waited until my eyelids grew heavy. I was barely able to crawl into bed before I fell into a deep slumber. The dreams it brought were bizarre and vivid. I was wandering through a landscape of abandoned suburbs, going from door to door, looking for one that was the right color. It was late into the night when I finally found it, a dim street lamp casting down an amber spotlight in front of a dilapidated two-story with a red door.
The door opened as I walked up to it, revealing a barren living room lit by a corner lamp that flickered every few seconds. At its center was a cobblestone well, ancient and unnerving. I recognized it. I had seen it countless times. On my worst days, I had dreamt of standing before it, yearning for hope or absolution. I had been silent instead, letting all I could not say seep into it. This inverted well, one that fed on despair instead of dreams, was now vibrating, shifting. Something was rising from its depths to greet me and I was ready for it, yearned for it. Black fluid erupted from its opening, spraying the ceiling and walls and splattering across my face.
Somewhere, a scream was reaching a fever pitch. I looked down and saw that my chest had split open and the black fluid was streaming down in a cascade of pitch. An eye blossomed from the depths of that gaping ravine in my chest. It stared, focused, and recognition flooded into the empty white. From the hole in my chest, something was rising - a realization. The screaming… it had been me the whole time.
I jolted awake, the pain in my chest the first thing to greet me. I heaved to suck in a breath and my senses came alive. Next was the sweat-slick coat that had pooled around me and I turned over to flip on a lamp. Light flooded my vision, but still, I was surrounded by darkness. No, not darkness, but stains. Black ink had seemingly spurted from my chest and splattered my bedding and floor. I ran my finger through it, all along my sternum, but I could not find the indentation, nor a source for the fluid.
I got up in a panic, looking around the room. I was alone, my roommate never having returned, but there was a trail of black ooze. I followed the most prominent streak to a corner. There was a lump there, a polished shiny black orb where the oily ooze seemingly seeped from. My heart thundered as I approached it, I swore I thought I saw it twitch. I was in the middle of my hands and knees crawling towards it when it jerked, moved, and stood.
I fell back on my ass letting out a half yelp, frozen as my gaze locked with it. It was the size of a rabbit, its tar-black skin reflective and polished. It had these beady eyes that were somehow darker than the rest of its body, and it waddled forward on stubby legs no longer than two inches. It had arms too, stubs too, and they reached for me. I was scooting away from its path when it spoke in a pained and squeaky voice as if its anatomy was ill-fitted for human speech, even its grasp of human words was feeble.
“No harm. I’m an ally.”
“What?” I couldn’t help but respond.
“You fed me, so now I repay you?”
“How? In what way? What are you?”
It blinked as if contemplating how to answer my barrage of questions. It didn’t have a mouth, but it spoke regardless. There was distance to its voice, so I was certain that it didn’t speak directly to my mind, but then again I didn’t even think that was possible until now.
“I am grown, don’t know from where, or why. I think I could be a tool or weapon. I eat bad feelings, but I was left with no one around to feed me. Then you came and fed me, for a long time. Now I’m finally strong enough to repay.”
“Repay me how?”
“I have fed on the dark of your heart. I know what it desires, I can take the shape of a curse,” it said
“You’re going to curse me? As repayment?”
“No, that’s not what was in your hearts. Yes, you hated yourself, but you hate others more. I can be the curse you cast on them.”
Something clicked in place and made its way closer to my mind, but didn’t bridge the distance entirely. It spoke, knew that I’d ask it how.
“Pick the kind of curse. I can be misfortune, blindness, madness… even death, a killing curse,” it said.
I reached towards it, even as its body distorted and elongated and reshaped into a foot-long, skinny, jagged oily centipede. I froze but it skittered forward, crawled across the back of my hand, and wrapped around my wrist. It tickled my skin, slick but warm. Almost uncomfortably so.
“Pick the kind of curse you want me to be, and feed me to whom you want to inflict. It’s easy, but curses burn up in daylight if not attached. You’ll have a few hours past dawn before I turn to ash.”
It fell silent afterward as if slumbering, but I couldn’t sleep. I sat in the corner thinking, watching the black stains left by the living curse dry up and evaporate into nothing. I had to look periodically at the oily centipede wrapped around my wrist to remind myself that I wasn’t dreaming, but all it did was convince me that I had careened off the precipice of sanity into some functional hysteria. I sat there until the sun rose, and like a clockwork mechanism, I got dressed and went to class. I was on autopilot, more depersonalized than I had ever felt before I watched myself go through the motions of my life. It should have been a cry for help, you could see it spelled out clearly as day and no one could have missed it. But they did - or rather, they chose to ignore it, because that was what you were supposed to do with people like me. Dull rage set in and it was what I stewed in as the hours ticked by, a building fury that could have blown but only boiled over and settled into dejected acceptance. I was ready to leave it at that, to let myself fade into a shadow like I had my entire life. To give up and crawl away to some recess, never to be found. But the searing pain of dozens of clawed insect legs digging into my flesh brought back presence of mind “Now. Now! Now! NOW!” a voice chirped. I ran into a storage closet, barred the door, and pulled back the sleeve that hid the living curse.
“What is it, are you about to die?”
“Not die, return. Back to the labyrinth. Pick a curse now, feed me to your enemy, before I disappear and all you’ll be left with is ash.”
“And if I haven’t picked anyone? If I don’t want to hurt anyone?”
“Then let me burn in the light, let me go, never visit my well, never feed me again. Move forward from your life, move away from me, and you’ll be free of me”
It could be that easy to rid myself of this wretched thing. I thought about my day, my life, and the people closest to me. I couldn’t let go, not when they had all walked by ashamed or indifferent, or worst of all, fearful. I had done nothing and they feared me.
“I won’t let it go, I can’t. I don’t know what I’ll do, but I can’t move on from this. I can’t give you up, but I can’t choose someone to suffer you.”
“Then eat me.”
I looked at the wriggling centipede confused, black fluid dripping from its body.
“If you eat me, you inflict the curse upon yourself. Not at full potency, but I’ll live until you’re ready to choose. If you hate enough, if you have the resolve, you can cast a shadow of my curse on all who meet your gaze, but you must hurry, my time… fades.”
“I don’t know what to pick. I don’t want to suffer.”
“Then pick the curse that causes the least pain.”
“Which is? I don’t know, pick for me!”
“I am delirium, now eat me, before it’s too late.”
I didn’t notice any change in the curse, except for the small cracks appearing in its carapace and the fraying of its antenna. I hesitated until a large crack formed across its back; at that moment, I hoisted it up and opened my mouth wide, closing my eyes as I lowered it. It did the rest of the work, jerking free of my grip and slithering down my throat with brute force, trailing that oily substance, I gagged, screamed, tears ran and I choked. But once it was down and settled I was alone in that room, nothing different.
Until I stepped out, and it began. A blurring of the world, where every sound was too sharp and grating, every color too vibrant. My head was swelling with immense pressure as it was filled with hundreds of trivial conversations, all spewing from the mouths of every student and professor in this wing. I couldn’t handle it, so I ran, flinging the doors open to the outside.
Except outside wasn’t outside, no, the doors opened up to a hallway I had been trying to forget all my life, framed with pictures of me and my family. I turned, hoping I could reach the living room so I could leave through the front door but what faced me was another room, one I had forgotten about until now. A barred door, walls burned black, stained with soot and char. A sound jolted me back around, the sound of a belt being unbuckled and fabric hitting the floor. Panic rose within me and I felt like I was in free fall, plummeting from astral orbit, through the earth's crust, and straight into the pits of hell. Except I wasn’t. No, I was in my middle school nurse's office. The scent of floor polish and cheap perfume tickled my nose.
“If it hurts you can stop it anytime, you know? Just change your habits, it’s not that hard,”
Ms. Rena, my middle school nurse, was talking to me. I stared into her eyes, and the world quieted and came into focus. They were green, as beautiful as emeralds. I couldn’t help but stare at them every chance I got. They brought forth feelings within me I had never felt before, an awakening. I blinked and they were burning now, bright green flames that sloughed the flesh from her face and I turned away and screamed. The scream pitched, bent, and distorted into a siren, ascending and descending endlessly. I don’t know how long I was caught in its loop but I couldn’t cling onto a single coherent thought longer than a second, as if my mind had been partitioned half a dozen times and all were battling for the sphere of influence that was my perception.
Then clarity, or an illusion of such. In reality, it was only a fleeting break from the delirium, long enough for me to gather my faculties so that the second dive into madness would hurt just that much more. But time was relative here, stretching out longer than it had any right to. The curse was there, in the hallway of my dorm, no longer a centipede but a tall humanoid thing, seemingly made of old motor oil.
“What’s happening? What did you do to me?!” I pleaded.
“You are suffering the curse of delirium. You chose this, remember?” it said, its voice no longer airy and whistling, like a bird’s. Its speech was no longer jilted and tenuous. Now when it spoke, its voice was deep and full of power.
“You said it would be weaker, subdued.”
“This is subdued, I’m a powerful curse after all.”
“What are you? Where do you come from, I don’t understand.”
“I don’t know, I’m searching for the answer myself. I was malnourished for so long that my mind splintered, I suffered my own madness, and I just know bits and pieces now. I know that in the city of Cradle, the word they call me means ‘Demon Seed’. That’s all I know of my identity.”
“I-I didn’t want this,”
“You’ll grow accustomed to it, with time. Not fully, if you could ignore the delirium it wouldn’t be much of a curse. If it’s too much for you to handle, if the pain is unbearable, you can always make it go away.”
“How?”
“Expel me from your body, feed me to someone else, or let the sun take me.”
I exhaled long and slow, and felt the prickling at the corner of my mind. The madness was near, but all I could feel was anger. At the curse, at myself, at the world. I turned away and faced a world of static and incomprehensible whispers, deafening and all-consuming. I collapsed into myself, held my hands to my ears, and balled into the fetal position. It did little to shut out all that was happening, but it did dull it for a moment until a quiet, throaty keening cut through and pierced my mind directly. I imagined a small undying animal having an army knife stab them at consistent intervals, the pace changing periodically so it could never get used to the pain. And then the violence was reflected onto me except there was no perpetrator. An invisible force sliced into the flesh of my sides, my back, until I was ridden with countless wounds. The pain spurred me to crawl forward on all fours, hoping to escape it but it was endless. I was bleeding so much, black blood, my blood was black. I laughed, then cried, and then crawled forward as the stabbings continued, except now the pain had dulled into an ache that still caused my breath to hitch.
I crawled for what seemed like hours, never getting used to the barrage of thoughts, images, and sounds, all the while the stabbing refused to stop. Even after my body had been shredded to ribbons and I had been bled of all its blood it continued, lazily now, as if the invisible force had grown tired but not enough to cease. Then I hit a wall, flesh, thin, like an amniotic sac, and on impulse I pushed through into it, harder and harder until it started to rip. Somewhere someone was breathing heavily, no more than one, with a rising rhythm and intensity, like a panic attack reaching its peak. I struggled forward, trying to break the damn thing, but it would not give. I was exhausted and so collapsed into it as if sleeping, but time passed and sleep did not come. But the end of the breathing did, once it reached a fever pitch. I shifted, realizing the stabbing had stopped, trying to move but then of all times the amniotic sac burst and I fell into whatever lay beyond it.
I was in my dorm room, a break in the madness. I was free for a moment, act, I had to act. Dawn was starting to peek through the window blinds. I stood up and froze, seeing what the rays of light were cast onto. My roommate Jake lay in his bed, naked. A woman just as naked was wrapped around him, body slick with sweat, its scent perfuming the room. He had seen me suffering, in the midst of a panic attack, left me to cope with it alone, and when I hadn’t returned he took the chance not to look for me or tell anyone, instead using it for his own benefit. Anger coursed through my veins, a fresh injection of hate kicking me into action. I opened my mouth and with my pointer finger and thumb reached in, the curse met me halfway and slid into position. I gripped it and pulled it, hand over hand now as a seemingly endless centipede being expelled from my stomach. I looked at the black segmented body, it writhed and moved in such a way that it reminded me a bit of an umbilical cord, and in a way, it was. A curse was being birthed, having grown stronger after I had housed and fed it with my own being. It was time to cut the cord then, I walked over to the pair as I pulled the last of the length free.
The curse popped out like a cork, sending a spray of black fluid across the couple. Droplets of varying sizes landed and stained the woman’s breasts, most of it pooling in between them at her sternum. I stifled a laugh as that’s where I had first gestated this curse. I looked at Jake, the black spray had stained his face, beard, and clavicle, and a particularly large globule resting upon his lower lip. I shifted my gaze to the wriggling centipede before me. It was at least four feet long now and twice its original width.
I shuddered, clarity flooded over me, and at that moment I realized that sometimes clarity was just perspective. I thought I knew suffering, thought I knew what it meant to shuffle through every day dreading that the next day would be more of the same. But the inescapable madness brought a new understanding to me. I could have changed. At any point in time, I could have ended my ostracization. Sure, it was socially imposed, but it was not an incurable delirium. Follow the rules, conform, and you’ll be mostly fine, you can make the hurt stop anytime you want. So why didn’t I, why can’t I now at this very moment? I knew now that it was because it would be a rejection of self, the world goes on and on about how you should be yourself. That in itself was a virtue lauded and held up as one of the most important facets of existence. But now I know what they really meant was “Operate within the constantly shifting parameters of acceptability - fail to adhere, evolve or predict, and you are a threat.” The true self that others reveled in evaded people like me, instead we had to construct a facade we passed off as real in order to thrive.
But so many didn’t, couldn’t, wouldn’t. How could they? It was all they knew, how could you discard that which defined them, the filter of their reality? I know what I am now, a worm that slinked through grime and lived in darkness, and when others took me and held me to the light, saying, “See, this is how you should be, and why you should be, it’s for the better of everyone,” it didn’t bring me to enlightenment, but to resentment and hate. I knew what I could do to make them see more than just a freak, a threat, but unconsciously I never took the steps because I knew only what it was to exist within the margins, in a periphery. An exile imposed by all, including myself.
I held the curse higher, feeling grateful that I had survived it, suffered it, and was blessed by its clarity. Light streamed in now as the sun crossed the horizon into a bright morning. The curse was still, despite the lethal light upon it. Let it go and move on, or revel in it? I looked back down at the pair, at Jake. He was an acceptable version of me, softly rebellious. Had thoughts, beliefs, mannerisms, and behaviors that neared the boundaries but never crossed them. Scruffy-faced, soft-eyed, short hair spikey and messy but never disheveled, charming in an irreverent way, unassuming cock but he fucked like a jackhammer obviously. An outsider that wasn’t really an outsider, he never was the great other that haunted dreams and fueled paranoia. I held the curse out in front of them and spoke to it.
“Your choice, Demon Seed. Wither in the sun, or choose one to torment. I don’t care which.”
It was still for a moment before diving into Jake's mouth. Silently, effortlessly, it slipped inside him and was gone. I walked out of the room, legs wobbling a bit, I was riding a high I had never felt before.
Jake was dead by the end of the month, he had been institutionalized until he wasn’t and then he stumbled onto train tracks. Rest is history, no body left to bury. His girlfriend, lover, or whatever the fuck was the one to break the news to me. Thought because I was his roommate I cared or at least should care. It was a few weeks later when I felt that sting and oil-slick fluid in my sternum, Demon Seed, the curse had enjoyed itself.
Twice more I’ve birthed a curse, let it choose its victim, let Demon Seed choose its form. He is the shaky finger of tragedy that strikes without cause or rhyme, deliriously pointed at someone, anyone. And I am the great well of resentment that feeds him. We are the what world needs, a calamity, the great other, something to fear, something to hate. And with each glare and impassioned condemnation, the curse grows stronger within me.
TW

Will need a way to communicate to makes this as effective as possible

Hi I'm 28 years old and living in Europe. I'm a foreigner in this country because my parents moved here with me literally 20 years ago. I've been struggling with depression for the past 15-18 years. The start in this country wasn't that easy because some people are literally done with you when they know that you're from Germany. I'm a introvert and was just a bit "different" then the other kids. My dad was abusive to the whole family and in this time I discovered video games. Shortly after my grades dropped and I started isolating myself from everyone and everything. My whole personality was just my character in world of warcraft and that was all I cared about.
Right now I know that grinding 16-18 hours a Day or staying awake for 3 days to play is very addictive behavior. I haven't felt that way, it was my safe haven. I haven't quit a single day of work for playing beside my holidays.
I feel like I have stopped "evolving" my emotional part and just faced away from it. As I grow older I was only playing video games or consuming gaming content on twitch or YouTube when I had to eat or was shopping.
Right now I live in a healthy relationship and get the support I need and video games aren't fulfilling me like when I was younger. This fact is literally crushing my whole personality because I haven't done anything else for the past 15 years. I can play video games out of boredom for 15 hours but I can't get the motivation to learn playing the guitar or start painting because I get frustrated so damn quickly.
As a teenager I thought I would be gaming forever but as I grow older I fear that I don't live the life I want or be the person I want to be myself. I really want to be more adventurous but I don't see a problem to game on a weekend for 30 hours and that's the behavior I want to get rid off.
Does anyone has an advice how to get started? I know that's very little information about my situation but it is very difficult for me to describe how I'm feeling when I ignored that part of being human for more then a decade.
If you've made it to this part, thank your very much for reading. English isn't my first language and I hope you could readed it without having a stroke.

Hey fellow Redditors,
I wanted to share my excitement about the Polygon NFT Marketplace, a groundbreaking platform that has truly revolutionized the world of digital collectibles. Whether you're an avid collector or simply intrigued by the NFT space, this marketplace is definitely worth checking out!
For those unfamiliar, Polygon (formerly known as Matic) is a scaling solution for Ethereum, offering faster transactions and lower fees. This makes it an ideal blockchain for NFTs, as it addresses some of the major pain points faced by collectors on other platforms.
So, what sets the Polygon NFT Marketplace apart? Let me break it down:

1. Lightning-fast transactions: With Polygon's layer 2 solution, transactions on the marketplace are incredibly quick. This means you can buy, sell, and trade your favorite NFTs without the frustratingly slow confirmation times.
2. Affordable fees: Gas fees have been a major hurdle for many NFT enthusiasts. However, thanks to Polygon's scalability, the fees on their marketplace are significantly lower compared to other platforms. This makes it more accessible for both collectors and creators to participate in the NFT ecosystem.
3. Diverse range of NFTs: The Polygon NFT Marketplace hosts a wide variety of digital collectibles, ranging from art, gaming assets, virtual real estate, and much more. No matter what your interest or niche, you're bound to find something that catches your eye.
4. Thriving community: The marketplace has fostered a vibrant and engaged community of collectors, artists, and enthusiasts. It's a great place to connect with like-minded individuals, discover new artists, and participate in discussions about the ever-evolving NFT space.
5. Creator-friendly environment: Polygon NFT Marketplace offers an empowering environment for creators, providing them with the tools and resources to showcase their work, monetize their talent, and connect directly with their audience. This emphasis on supporting creators sets it apart from other platforms.

If you're curious to explore the Polygon NFT Marketplace, here's how you can get started:

1. Set up a wallet: Ensure you have a Polygon-compatible wallet such as MetaMask or Trust Wallet.
2. Fund your wallet: Add funds to your wallet on the Polygon network. This will allow you to make purchases and pay for transaction fees.
3. Browse and discover: Dive into the marketplace and explore the vast array of NFTs available. Filter by category, artist, or price to find something that resonates with you.
4. Make a purchase: Once you've found the perfect NFT, go ahead and make a purchase. Enjoy the seamless experience of fast transactions and affordable fees.

Remember, the world of NFTs is constantly evolving, and the Polygon NFT Marketplace is at the forefront of this exciting movement. Whether you're an experienced collector or new to the scene, I highly recommend giving it a go and immersing yourself in this innovative platform.
Feel free to share your thoughts, experiences, or any amazing finds you've come across in the comments below. Let's discuss and celebrate the creativity that NFTs bring to our digital world!
Happy collecting!

The JW interpretation of the scripture in Matthew that talks about ‘the generation to pass away triggering the great tribulation’ could likely change again. The overlapping concept makes no sense and is clearly a holdover thought up to buy time for better, more convincing, bullshit.
Imagine a time where JW’s eventually draw the conclusion that JW’s as an entity are in fact ‘the generation’ and determine that the majority of JW’s will have died before the end will come….you see where I’m going with this?
I could see a doctrine formulate where JW’s are told that they must die to bring about the end, and that having more kids to baptize is only going to prolong the delay of the great tribulation. Also, waiting for 99% of all JW’s to grow old without having any babies is impossible…’therefore you should kindly consider drinking the Koolaide if you truly have faith in the ransom and if you truly support gods organization.’
I know it’s dark, but honestly this is how many death cults evolve. Delayed expectations and with death being the only logical answer because ‘hell we’ve tried everything else.’

Hello. I can't seem to find a reputable source, especially now that the Silph Road website is down. If I have 4 Mewtwo that are levels 35, 40, 45, and 50, does it matter which one I walk if I want to optimize getting the most Candy XL?
Some people say at Pokemon level 31, they all give the same chance. However, TCGPlayer.com - I'm not familiar with this website - states, "At Level 31, you'll get a Candy XL about 70% of the time. The bonus likely maxes out at Level 40, where the rate is somewhere above 80%."
Thank you.