Kennedy shriver aquatic center
[LFA] Krunqot, the Dracotortle Barbarian (Path of the Deep Blue)
2023.06.01 12:58 SmolOverlord [LFA] Krunqot, the Dracotortle Barbarian (Path of the Deep Blue)
![[LFA] Krunqot, the Dracotortle Barbarian (Path of the Deep Blue)](https://b.thumbs.redditmedia.com/IauccbdNOm6SFVzBaCvQGrZuVGCkC7vg2bgA1kV9BBg.jpg "[LFA] Krunqot, the Dracotortle Barbarian (Path of the Deep Blue)") | https://preview.redd.it/qjmkqlq41e3b1.png?width=1730&format=png&auto=webp&s=7b6d764ed9c1a5db474119a834a1f9bbe9d37706 submitted by SmolOverlord to characterdrawing [link] [comments] Krunqot is a dracotortle, a race of strange hybrids created when a tribe of tortles were warped by the presence of a dragon turtle. Krunqot himself was taken from his home at a young age in a raid; he was brought through many lands until finally finding himself in a colosseum, where he was forced to fight for the people's entertainment. He eventually became a barbarian, fueled by his rage at his captors and those who laughed and cheered for him equally. His hammers were fashioned by his own claws - he has a great deal of downtime between fights - and the chain he wears around his neck was a "gift" from one of his enslavers, forged with real brass dragon scales, that gave him both a measure of control over lightning and storms, but also brought him closer to the ocean. As of yet, he has a perfect record in his fights, and hopes to one day continue that record against those who ruined his life. Physical Description: Sort of sandy-greenish scales and skin; very spiky, especially his shell. Horns, fins, and a fairly long tail are present. He is extremely strong and extremely tough - both scores are above 20 - with an 8'2" stature and a nearly 1000 lb. mass to show for it, even as young as he is (35, which admittedly for tortles and dracotortles is actually almost middle-aged). His eyes are usually completely black, but while raging (or while using his steam breath), they glow a fiery orange with a pinprick of black in the center. Weaponry: Krunqot wields a pair of warhammers(? They're warhammers on the sheet, but these looked cool - I don't know if they'd qualify as mauls instead, though.) The hammers are the equivalent of vorpal swords, but for hammers - on a 20, it smashes in a target's head. The hammers also glow orange while Krunqot rages, just like his eyes. He also fights with his beak, his claws, and his tail, but significantly less; his claws do have the benefit of Bracers of Lightning, though. His other weapon is his breath weapon, a cone of superheated steam; he rarely uses it in actual gladiatorial combat, though. Personality: Krunqot is angry and vengeful. Not much makes him happy except dreaming of crushing his captor's skulls. He is fond of aquatic wildlife, though; the pits he stays in when not fighting or sleeping have an opening to the "sewers" (an underground river) where he can see and sometimes speak to the creatures that live in it. He's not very intelligent, but he's decently wise, and even more charismatic, especially when it comes to being scary. I hope this is enough. Thank you to anyone who decides to fill this one - and thank you to anyone who doesn't, as well, for stopping to read through this wall of text. |
2023.06.01 02:45 Hoovermaxextract60PP Moving to Corvallis - questions
I'm moving here from Texas this summer. I have a job and housing. I also have some general questions about the city.
Do y'all drink tap water?
My place doesn't have air conditioning. I'm no stranger to hot summers. But wondering what it is like on very hot summer days.
Which grocery store in town is the best? Is Winco a good store for produce? Is Trader Joe's reasonably priced? This might be a silly question, but do people just walk to the grocery store?
Which credit union would you recommend?
If I want to buy a new car, is it better to buy it in Corvallis or Eugene?
How safe is this city at night if you're walking or biking alone? What are some parts of the city where I shouldn't walk or bike alone?
I recently found out that U-turns are only legal when explicitly stated on a sign. Any other Oregon-specific driving laws I should know?
What is Osborne Aquatic Center like? Would you recommend it to a middle aged female or is it mostly overrun by children?
How is the Y in Albany? Any other options for gyms with a good weight room and a pool?
Where can I learn to play pickleball?
Where can I learn to paddleboard?
Is there a good gun range in town?
submitted by Hoovermaxextract60PP to corvallis [link] [comments]
Do y'all drink tap water?
My place doesn't have air conditioning. I'm no stranger to hot summers. But wondering what it is like on very hot summer days.
Which grocery store in town is the best? Is Winco a good store for produce? Is Trader Joe's reasonably priced? This might be a silly question, but do people just walk to the grocery store?
Which credit union would you recommend?
If I want to buy a new car, is it better to buy it in Corvallis or Eugene?
How safe is this city at night if you're walking or biking alone? What are some parts of the city where I shouldn't walk or bike alone?
I recently found out that U-turns are only legal when explicitly stated on a sign. Any other Oregon-specific driving laws I should know?
What is Osborne Aquatic Center like? Would you recommend it to a middle aged female or is it mostly overrun by children?
How is the Y in Albany? Any other options for gyms with a good weight room and a pool?
Where can I learn to play pickleball?
Where can I learn to paddleboard?
Is there a good gun range in town?
2023.06.01 02:00 ElongatedMuskrat r/SpaceX Thread Index and General Discussion [June 2023, #105]
Welcome to SpaceX! This community uses megathreads for discussion of various common topics; including Starship development, SpaceX missions and launches, and booster recovery operations.
If you have a short question or spaceflight news...
You are welcome to ask spaceflight-related questions and post news and discussion here, even if it is not about SpaceX. Be sure to check the FAQ and Wiki first to ensure you aren't submitting duplicate questions. Meta discussion about this subreddit itself is also allowed in this thread.Upcoming launches include: Dragon CRS-2 SpX-28 from LC-39A, Kennedy Space Center on Jun 03 (16:35 UTC)
Currently active discussion threads
Discuss/Resources
Starship
Starlink
Customer Payloads
Dragon
Upcoming Launches & Events
| NET UTC | Event Details |
|---|---|
| Jun 03, 16:35 | Dragon CRS-2 SpX-28 Falcon 9, LC-39A |
| Jun 2023 | Starlink G 6-4 Falcon 9, SLC-40 |
| Jun 2023 | Transporter 8 (Dedicated SSO Rideshare) Falcon 9, SLC-4E |
| Jun 2023 | O3b mPower 5 & 6 Falcon 9, SLC-40 |
| Jun 2023 | Satria-1 Falcon 9, SLC-40 |
| Jun 2023 | SARah 2 & 3 Falcon 9, SLC-4E |
| Jun 2023 | SDA Tranche 0B Falcon 9, SLC-4E |
| Jun 2023 | Starlink G 5-11 Falcon 9, SLC-40 |
| Jun 2023 | Starlink G 5-12 Falcon 9, SLC-40 |
| Jun 2023 | Starlink G 5-13 Falcon 9, SLC-4E |
| COMPLETE MANIFEST |
Data from https://thespacedevs.com/
If you have a long question...
If your question is in-depth or an open-ended discussion, you can submit it to the subreddit as a post.If you'd like to discuss slightly less technical SpaceX content in greater detail...
Please post to SpaceXLounge and create a thread there!This thread is not for...
- Questions answered in the FAQ. Browse there or use the search functionality first. Thanks!
- Non-spaceflight related questions or news.
2023.05.31 21:43 AutoNewsAdmin [Space] - NASA Sets Coverage for Next SpaceX Resupply Launch to Space Station
NASA and SpaceX are targeting 12:35 p.m. EDT Saturday, June 3, to launch the company’s 28th commercial resupply services mission to the International Space Station from Launch Complex 39A at the agency’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
from Space Station News http://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-sets-coverage-for-next-spacex-resupply-launch-to-space-station-1
via IFTTT
submitted by AutoNewsAdmin to NASAauto [link] [comments]
from Space Station News http://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-sets-coverage-for-next-spacex-resupply-launch-to-space-station-1
via IFTTT
2023.05.31 20:41 GlobeOpinion Somerville shows how to be civically engaged
Column by Renée Loth:
Former Somerville mayor Joseph Curtatone received plenty of accolades for his innovative management of that small city over his 18 years in office, but he may not have expected to be immortalized in a Harvard case study — or three. Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government has used Curtatone’s data-driven budgeting and planning, and what it calls his “culture of curiosity,” to train hundreds of aspiring city leaders. “There’s a lot of Somerville pride there,” said Curtatone, who left office in 2021. “Success is always the product of many hands.”
Now Harvard’s Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation has published a study of Somerville’s efforts at civic engagement. Written in non-academic, narrative style, the case offers important lessons at a time of increasing distrust in government at all levels. It can also be a guidepost for the future of citizen participation as communities emerge from three-plus years of deeply dissatisfying — albeit more accessible — Zoom meetings compelled by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The level of government people trust most is local,” said Jorrit de Jong, director of the new Bloomberg Center for Cities at Harvard. He believes residents want to rise above “town hell” meetings — town hall meetings gone wrong — which have only been exacerbated by polarization and misinformation. De Jong will chair a program in civic engagement for 60 global city leaders this summer, using the Somerville case studies as prods to innovative thinking. “We’re figuring out ways to create encounters that are more conducive to trust-building,” he said.
Curtatone, now president of the trade association Northeast Clean Energy Council, is a fierce defender of his hometown of 81,000. He loves to tell how his Italian immigrant parents moved the family to suburban North Reading as their fortunes improved — and lasted less than two weeks. “We missed the food, the flavor, the noisy interconnectedness of our lives,” he told me.
But when Curtatone took office in 2004, his city was still derided as “Slummerville” in the leafier precincts nearby. He set about fixing that. One of his first campaigns was against childhood obesity, which caught the eye of then-first lady Michelle Obama, who used it as a model for her national fitness campaign. Curtatone pushed to bring an Orange Line stop to a derelict wasteland at Assembly Square, negotiated with the retail giant Ikea to locate there — and then with residents who didn’t want a hulking big box store on the Mystic River waterfront. He said he learned the importance of “stepping out of the driver’s seat” and giving real power to community leaders, “building trust, not just asking for it.”
Over 18 years, Somerville developed a master plan, SomerVision2040, overhauled its zoning code to allow for a vibrant mix of uses, and finally saw the opening of the Green Line extension, which Curtatone says “at its core is an environmental justice project.” The city created the 100 homes project, which buys properties and makes them permanently affordable, a small hedge against the gentrification that threatens to displace the very residents the Green Line extension was supposed to serve.
This happened over hundreds of live community meetings, many of which Curtatone required be attended by the directors of each city agency. They could get heated, but people were together with their neighbors. They showed up for it all — the cold coffee, the windy speeches — for their city and for each other. It’s hard to build trust when you can’t make eye contact.
...
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/05/31/opinion/renee-loth-somerville-joe-curtatone-civic-engagement/
submitted by GlobeOpinion to Somerville [link] [comments]
Former Somerville mayor Joseph Curtatone received plenty of accolades for his innovative management of that small city over his 18 years in office, but he may not have expected to be immortalized in a Harvard case study — or three. Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government has used Curtatone’s data-driven budgeting and planning, and what it calls his “culture of curiosity,” to train hundreds of aspiring city leaders. “There’s a lot of Somerville pride there,” said Curtatone, who left office in 2021. “Success is always the product of many hands.”
Now Harvard’s Ash Center for Democratic Governance and Innovation has published a study of Somerville’s efforts at civic engagement. Written in non-academic, narrative style, the case offers important lessons at a time of increasing distrust in government at all levels. It can also be a guidepost for the future of citizen participation as communities emerge from three-plus years of deeply dissatisfying — albeit more accessible — Zoom meetings compelled by the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The level of government people trust most is local,” said Jorrit de Jong, director of the new Bloomberg Center for Cities at Harvard. He believes residents want to rise above “town hell” meetings — town hall meetings gone wrong — which have only been exacerbated by polarization and misinformation. De Jong will chair a program in civic engagement for 60 global city leaders this summer, using the Somerville case studies as prods to innovative thinking. “We’re figuring out ways to create encounters that are more conducive to trust-building,” he said.
Curtatone, now president of the trade association Northeast Clean Energy Council, is a fierce defender of his hometown of 81,000. He loves to tell how his Italian immigrant parents moved the family to suburban North Reading as their fortunes improved — and lasted less than two weeks. “We missed the food, the flavor, the noisy interconnectedness of our lives,” he told me.
But when Curtatone took office in 2004, his city was still derided as “Slummerville” in the leafier precincts nearby. He set about fixing that. One of his first campaigns was against childhood obesity, which caught the eye of then-first lady Michelle Obama, who used it as a model for her national fitness campaign. Curtatone pushed to bring an Orange Line stop to a derelict wasteland at Assembly Square, negotiated with the retail giant Ikea to locate there — and then with residents who didn’t want a hulking big box store on the Mystic River waterfront. He said he learned the importance of “stepping out of the driver’s seat” and giving real power to community leaders, “building trust, not just asking for it.”
Over 18 years, Somerville developed a master plan, SomerVision2040, overhauled its zoning code to allow for a vibrant mix of uses, and finally saw the opening of the Green Line extension, which Curtatone says “at its core is an environmental justice project.” The city created the 100 homes project, which buys properties and makes them permanently affordable, a small hedge against the gentrification that threatens to displace the very residents the Green Line extension was supposed to serve.
This happened over hundreds of live community meetings, many of which Curtatone required be attended by the directors of each city agency. They could get heated, but people were together with their neighbors. They showed up for it all — the cold coffee, the windy speeches — for their city and for each other. It’s hard to build trust when you can’t make eye contact.
...
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2023/05/31/opinion/renee-loth-somerville-joe-curtatone-civic-engagement/
2023.05.31 13:51 Loud_Industry_2044 At Marshall, Center Director von Braun, left, describes the Saturn I rocket to President Kennedy and Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson
 | submitted by Loud_Industry_2044 to coldwar [link] [comments] |
2023.05.31 11:36 Loud_Industry_2044 At Marshall, Center Director von Braun, left, describes the Saturn I rocket to President Kennedy and Vice President Lyndon B. Johnson
 | submitted by Loud_Industry_2044 to Presidents [link] [comments] |
2023.05.31 10:46 Gist_it SpaceX mission returns from space station with ex-NASA astronaut, 3 paying customers
A SpaceX capsule with four astronauts, including an ex-NASA astronaut and three paying customers, returned from the International Space Station, splashing down in the Gulf of Mexico.
The mission: The nine-day mission launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida and docked at the International Space Station. * The crew conducted medical research, public outreach, and more than 20 experiments.
Notable crew member: Former NASA veteran Peggy Whitson extended her record-setting time in space, totaling 674 days in orbit, the most of any American or woman. * Whitson also moved into ninth overall for total duration, passing Russia's Fyodor Yurchikin.
Axiom Space's role: This was Axiom Space's second privately funded human mission to dock at the International Space Station. * Axiom flew the first all-civilian mission to the ISS in April 2022, which lasted 17 days. * The company aims to eventually build and operate the world's first commercial space station, Axiom Station.
View original article on NPR
This summary was created by an AI system. The use of this summary is subject to our Terms of Service.
submitted by Gist_it to SummarizeNow [link] [comments]
The mission: The nine-day mission launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida and docked at the International Space Station. * The crew conducted medical research, public outreach, and more than 20 experiments.
Notable crew member: Former NASA veteran Peggy Whitson extended her record-setting time in space, totaling 674 days in orbit, the most of any American or woman. * Whitson also moved into ninth overall for total duration, passing Russia's Fyodor Yurchikin.
Axiom Space's role: This was Axiom Space's second privately funded human mission to dock at the International Space Station. * Axiom flew the first all-civilian mission to the ISS in April 2022, which lasted 17 days. * The company aims to eventually build and operate the world's first commercial space station, Axiom Station.
View original article on NPR
This summary was created by an AI system. The use of this summary is subject to our Terms of Service.
2023.05.31 09:12 NottinghamApe VUDU
VUDU is Owned by Fandango which was bought by Comcast, the CEO of Comcast is Brian L Roberts who is one of the Vice Chairs of the Corporate Fund Board with none other than Kenneth C Griffin.
The Corporate Fund Board Kennedy Center (kennedy-center.org)
submitted by NottinghamApe to AMCSTOCKS [link] [comments]
The Corporate Fund Board Kennedy Center (kennedy-center.org)
2023.05.31 08:36 CloudStrife339 You're going to try to regulate ESAs? Bet
Housing provider won't let me get a puppy so I can have an ESA? Try me
So a bit of background, my wife and I used to live in on-campus married student housing while we were going through college, it was literally the cheapest housing in the area and was also conveniently close to basically everything we needed. About 6 months before the pandemic, we found out that a traumatic brain injury I had suffered impaired my brain's ability to process dopamine, and I was diagnosed with depression. After a while of going to therapists and doctors to get prescribed with meds that did help somewhat, it was eventually decided that I would benefit from having an Emotional Support Animal (ESA), specifically an active breed dog, preferably one that we could get as a puppy. My wife already had her own ESA to help with her anxiety, which ended up being the exact opposite for what I needed.
Quick side note: the official pet rules for the housing we lived in limited any pets to those that had gills, fins, were fully aquatic, and contained to a maximum of 20 gallon tanks... When my wife got her ESA, her anxiety caused her to go a little overboard with research to see what we would be allowed to get with the guidelines set down by federal law as well as our housing rules, and found out that our housing had a couple of weird things set up in the first place, and by the time we were in the process for my ESA, several things had been changed in the housing providers rules. First off, we had to fill out an application to be considered able to obtain an ESA before we were supposed to purchase one, which included information about our "proposed" ESA. This approval process was handled by a separate entity from the housing provider altogether, through the college's disability resource center (DRC), which is responsible for providing resources for anyone on campus requesting disability accomodations. For those that don't know ESA law, that's very unusual, at least based on the wording in the laws and the vast majority of cases.
Secondly, we found out that the DRC had put in place new restrictions on the ESAs they would approve, and these changes went through about a year after my wife got her ESA and a year before I ended up needing an ESA. The most important change for our story had to do with a dog's age. In their updated policy, they stated that any ESA under the age of 8 months old is highly unlikely to be approved based on the high demand of attention a young puppy would demand of a student and the amount of damage a puppy could potentially incur in an apartment setting. This is kind of stipulation or rule is in direct violation of the federal laws concerning the grounds a housing provider can deny/demand the removal of an ESA. (The law basically states that the only reasons an ESA can be denied or demanded be removed is if a housing provider can PROOVE that the specific animal is causing significant damage either physically or financially to the property or other tenants or if there is some sign of neglect, basically anything really concerning after they have the evidence and have had the animal in the first place). Blanket statement restrictions based on age, size, weight, or even breed have been outrightly stated as unlawful reasons for denying or removing an ESA from a property. We saw this rule, and we knew the laws supporting our rights for obtaining an ESA, and we decided to go ahead and get a puppy.
And so we ended up getting an 8 week old poodle mix puppy to minimize allergies and have something with enough energy to get me working again. We explained all of our reasoning for getting a puppy in my application for approval to the DRC (this application also had questions that were either nearly breaching doctopatient confidentiality, or were blatantly asking extremely personal questions to health care providers along the lines of "what about your patients' disability makes you believe they would benefit from an ESA" or "what is the nature of your patients' disability that would necessitate an ESA"... Really scummy, painful questions). The way they had their approval process set up, it made it seem like these questions were absolutely necessary in order to receive approval to obtain an ESA, although they claimed it was not necessary despite always pushing applicants to submit it along with a doctor's note/recommendation.
A bit more than 2 weeks later, I get their response asking why my wife's ESA can't serve as my ESA, to which I have to send them documentation explaining that he had been trained in calming my wife, and my needs are quite different, to which we waited another week before they then decided I was approved for getting an ESA and that I would need to submit more info on what kind of dog I was planning on getting. At this point, it had taken long enough for them to get back to us that we had already gotten our puppy, and life was starting to get better for me. So we sent in the final bit of the application: the info on our puppy and how we were going to be housing her (crate info, training regiment, vaccine record, etc). It took a further 2 more weeks for them to finally get back to us.
Your request has been denied due to the age of the dog you have submitted. Those words hurt me more than I care to admit. We didn't think that they would be stupid enough to actually deny her based off of age, especially with all of the training plans and other information we gave them to show them we knew what we were doing with a puppy. So after we took a day to calm our outage, we emailed them back (we made sure to get everything in writing) sharing with them a link to the page that contained the exact law they were in danger of breaking, I even included a screenshot of the highlighted paragraph to show them we had done our research. Interestingly enough, their response to that came back the same day. The heat of the department was the one who responded to our email then, haughtily starting that he knew more about ESA law than we did, and that there wasn't anything we could do to change their decision to deny my ESA. Remember how I said we already had my ESA? That was also allowed according to the law, an ESA is technically allowed in the housing during the decision process, although it's not really recommended.
Well, we decided to give them one more chance, asking the director to really go and read the law, since it was obvious he had not even read half the email we had sent him previously, stating that we were ready to start submitting a claim with the Housing and Urban Development agency, which was the department of the federal government that handles a number of things, including enforcing the ESA laws I've been referencing this entire time. We also said that we were ready to also obtain legal representation for this whole process, as we knew that retaliation may happen (some people were acting a bit power hungry and would potentially ignore any anti-retaliation clauses that might trigger as soon as we submitted the claim to the HUD). The email we got back was almost word for word the same as the previous one, stating he knew more than us and that we could be evicted if we didn't remove our new puppy from the property, either through re-homing her or moving out.
Now, my wife has the mama bear trigger, as soon as she read the threat that the head of the DRC sent us, she immediately submitted the claim to the HUD that we were experiencing illegal harassment and being unlawfully denied my ESA based on housing rules that were in violation of the ESA laws. We knew as soon as this was sent in, that any retaliation against us from that moment on would end up landing the entire college in really hot water, so we felt very protected, and very powerful in moving forward from there. We then reached out to our local Disability Law Center, since they provided free legal advice and potentially pro Bono legal representation. They were extremely kind, and we were soon put in touch with an expert with the kind of cases that we had on our hands, and they were more than happy to have us begin having any of the correspondence from the college concerning the case and our ESA go through them.
The head of the DRC of course tried to not communicate with us through our friendly lawyer, who very quickly realized that the DRC was not going to back down, even with the investigation from the HUD ongoing. We were informed that nothing else could happen until the HUD could finish their investigation and could then turn over their findings to our lawyer and the lead for the investigation/mediation. During that time, with the non-retaliation clause in place, I was able to enjoy raising and training my puppy in the relative safety of our apartment.
Once the investigation was completed, we received word that yes, they did find several items in which the college/housing provider was in violation of, to which our lawyer then began meeting with the college's legal team and the mediator to work out a quick settlement. A mediation date was set, and since it was during the social distancing time, everything was to be done virtually, which should have made it easy for everyone to attend. Nope. No one from the college showed up for that first mediation, and both the mediator and our lawyer were fuming. Our lawyer later found out that the legal team had claimed that there was nothing illegal or nothing wrong with anything in the policy concerning ESAs. Come to find out later that they were taking the word of the DRC director at face value, and he was lying his ass off to everyone. A second mediation was scheduled, and this time, a member of the college legal team attended., And we were finally able to come to an agreement without having to escalate the issue tk the court system.
The aftermath: turns out the HUD was seriously not happy with the college, and the reparations they were requiring consisted of paying damages to us, paying our lawyer his fees, a 6 months deadline to change the policies, all of the employees that deal with housing and all of the DRC had to take extensive ada training, and we were required to not try to sue the college for the same issue again.
So in the end, I got to keep my dog, got paid to keep her, and we seriously spat "bet" in the DRCs face when they said they knew more than an anxiety ridden wife lol
submitted by CloudStrife339 to RegularRevenge [link] [comments]
So a bit of background, my wife and I used to live in on-campus married student housing while we were going through college, it was literally the cheapest housing in the area and was also conveniently close to basically everything we needed. About 6 months before the pandemic, we found out that a traumatic brain injury I had suffered impaired my brain's ability to process dopamine, and I was diagnosed with depression. After a while of going to therapists and doctors to get prescribed with meds that did help somewhat, it was eventually decided that I would benefit from having an Emotional Support Animal (ESA), specifically an active breed dog, preferably one that we could get as a puppy. My wife already had her own ESA to help with her anxiety, which ended up being the exact opposite for what I needed.
Quick side note: the official pet rules for the housing we lived in limited any pets to those that had gills, fins, were fully aquatic, and contained to a maximum of 20 gallon tanks... When my wife got her ESA, her anxiety caused her to go a little overboard with research to see what we would be allowed to get with the guidelines set down by federal law as well as our housing rules, and found out that our housing had a couple of weird things set up in the first place, and by the time we were in the process for my ESA, several things had been changed in the housing providers rules. First off, we had to fill out an application to be considered able to obtain an ESA before we were supposed to purchase one, which included information about our "proposed" ESA. This approval process was handled by a separate entity from the housing provider altogether, through the college's disability resource center (DRC), which is responsible for providing resources for anyone on campus requesting disability accomodations. For those that don't know ESA law, that's very unusual, at least based on the wording in the laws and the vast majority of cases.
Secondly, we found out that the DRC had put in place new restrictions on the ESAs they would approve, and these changes went through about a year after my wife got her ESA and a year before I ended up needing an ESA. The most important change for our story had to do with a dog's age. In their updated policy, they stated that any ESA under the age of 8 months old is highly unlikely to be approved based on the high demand of attention a young puppy would demand of a student and the amount of damage a puppy could potentially incur in an apartment setting. This is kind of stipulation or rule is in direct violation of the federal laws concerning the grounds a housing provider can deny/demand the removal of an ESA. (The law basically states that the only reasons an ESA can be denied or demanded be removed is if a housing provider can PROOVE that the specific animal is causing significant damage either physically or financially to the property or other tenants or if there is some sign of neglect, basically anything really concerning after they have the evidence and have had the animal in the first place). Blanket statement restrictions based on age, size, weight, or even breed have been outrightly stated as unlawful reasons for denying or removing an ESA from a property. We saw this rule, and we knew the laws supporting our rights for obtaining an ESA, and we decided to go ahead and get a puppy.
And so we ended up getting an 8 week old poodle mix puppy to minimize allergies and have something with enough energy to get me working again. We explained all of our reasoning for getting a puppy in my application for approval to the DRC (this application also had questions that were either nearly breaching doctopatient confidentiality, or were blatantly asking extremely personal questions to health care providers along the lines of "what about your patients' disability makes you believe they would benefit from an ESA" or "what is the nature of your patients' disability that would necessitate an ESA"... Really scummy, painful questions). The way they had their approval process set up, it made it seem like these questions were absolutely necessary in order to receive approval to obtain an ESA, although they claimed it was not necessary despite always pushing applicants to submit it along with a doctor's note/recommendation.
A bit more than 2 weeks later, I get their response asking why my wife's ESA can't serve as my ESA, to which I have to send them documentation explaining that he had been trained in calming my wife, and my needs are quite different, to which we waited another week before they then decided I was approved for getting an ESA and that I would need to submit more info on what kind of dog I was planning on getting. At this point, it had taken long enough for them to get back to us that we had already gotten our puppy, and life was starting to get better for me. So we sent in the final bit of the application: the info on our puppy and how we were going to be housing her (crate info, training regiment, vaccine record, etc). It took a further 2 more weeks for them to finally get back to us.
Your request has been denied due to the age of the dog you have submitted. Those words hurt me more than I care to admit. We didn't think that they would be stupid enough to actually deny her based off of age, especially with all of the training plans and other information we gave them to show them we knew what we were doing with a puppy. So after we took a day to calm our outage, we emailed them back (we made sure to get everything in writing) sharing with them a link to the page that contained the exact law they were in danger of breaking, I even included a screenshot of the highlighted paragraph to show them we had done our research. Interestingly enough, their response to that came back the same day. The heat of the department was the one who responded to our email then, haughtily starting that he knew more about ESA law than we did, and that there wasn't anything we could do to change their decision to deny my ESA. Remember how I said we already had my ESA? That was also allowed according to the law, an ESA is technically allowed in the housing during the decision process, although it's not really recommended.
Well, we decided to give them one more chance, asking the director to really go and read the law, since it was obvious he had not even read half the email we had sent him previously, stating that we were ready to start submitting a claim with the Housing and Urban Development agency, which was the department of the federal government that handles a number of things, including enforcing the ESA laws I've been referencing this entire time. We also said that we were ready to also obtain legal representation for this whole process, as we knew that retaliation may happen (some people were acting a bit power hungry and would potentially ignore any anti-retaliation clauses that might trigger as soon as we submitted the claim to the HUD). The email we got back was almost word for word the same as the previous one, stating he knew more than us and that we could be evicted if we didn't remove our new puppy from the property, either through re-homing her or moving out.
Now, my wife has the mama bear trigger, as soon as she read the threat that the head of the DRC sent us, she immediately submitted the claim to the HUD that we were experiencing illegal harassment and being unlawfully denied my ESA based on housing rules that were in violation of the ESA laws. We knew as soon as this was sent in, that any retaliation against us from that moment on would end up landing the entire college in really hot water, so we felt very protected, and very powerful in moving forward from there. We then reached out to our local Disability Law Center, since they provided free legal advice and potentially pro Bono legal representation. They were extremely kind, and we were soon put in touch with an expert with the kind of cases that we had on our hands, and they were more than happy to have us begin having any of the correspondence from the college concerning the case and our ESA go through them.
The head of the DRC of course tried to not communicate with us through our friendly lawyer, who very quickly realized that the DRC was not going to back down, even with the investigation from the HUD ongoing. We were informed that nothing else could happen until the HUD could finish their investigation and could then turn over their findings to our lawyer and the lead for the investigation/mediation. During that time, with the non-retaliation clause in place, I was able to enjoy raising and training my puppy in the relative safety of our apartment.
Once the investigation was completed, we received word that yes, they did find several items in which the college/housing provider was in violation of, to which our lawyer then began meeting with the college's legal team and the mediator to work out a quick settlement. A mediation date was set, and since it was during the social distancing time, everything was to be done virtually, which should have made it easy for everyone to attend. Nope. No one from the college showed up for that first mediation, and both the mediator and our lawyer were fuming. Our lawyer later found out that the legal team had claimed that there was nothing illegal or nothing wrong with anything in the policy concerning ESAs. Come to find out later that they were taking the word of the DRC director at face value, and he was lying his ass off to everyone. A second mediation was scheduled, and this time, a member of the college legal team attended., And we were finally able to come to an agreement without having to escalate the issue tk the court system.
The aftermath: turns out the HUD was seriously not happy with the college, and the reparations they were requiring consisted of paying damages to us, paying our lawyer his fees, a 6 months deadline to change the policies, all of the employees that deal with housing and all of the DRC had to take extensive ada training, and we were required to not try to sue the college for the same issue again.
So in the end, I got to keep my dog, got paid to keep her, and we seriously spat "bet" in the DRCs face when they said they knew more than an anxiety ridden wife lol
2023.05.31 07:19 SuccessfulTicket9767 is it good to go ?
 | submitted by SuccessfulTicket9767 to DMTlab [link] [comments] |
2023.05.31 05:29 threelonmusketeers Ha-ha, Falcon 9 launch manifest go brrr
 | submitted by threelonmusketeers to SpaceXMasterrace [link] [comments] |
2023.05.31 04:13 ShortAIStory Wings Unveiled: The Cryptic Axolotl's Quest
 | https://preview.redd.it/jm95edqka43b1.jpg?width=512&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=d32c1bb6d72d981944d1ccfe44f5cfc4293fc4da submitted by ShortAIStory to ShortAIStory [link] [comments] The Mysterious HatchlingIn the heart of the enchanted Axolotl Kingdom, nestled amidst shimmering waters and vibrant aquatic flora, a momentous event was about to unfold. A solitary axolotl egg lay hidden among the reeds, its delicate shell pulsating with an otherworldly glow. It was whispered among the inhabitants that this hatchling would be destined for greatness.As the first rays of the sun kissed the surface of the tranquil pond, a hairline crack appeared on the surface of the egg, signaling the imminent arrival of a new life. Slowly but surely, the crack expanded, revealing a small, damp creature wriggling within. The hatchling emerged, blinking its large, curious eyes and instinctively wiggling its tiny limbs. To the astonishment of all, two shimmering wings, adorned with iridescent patterns, unfurled from its sides. It was Axie, the cryptic axolotl, the one chosen by destiny to embark on a transformative journey. Axie's unique wings set him apart from his fellow axolotls. They shimmered in shades of azure and emerald, captivating anyone who laid eyes upon them. The young hatchling's heart swelled with both wonder and uncertainty. What did these wings signify? Why was he different? As Axie ventured beyond the familiar borders of his pond, he encountered a wise old turtle named Tiberius, who had witnessed many generations of axolotls come and go. With a voice weathered by time, Tiberius shared stories of a legendary prophecy that foretold the emergence of a winged axolotl—a symbol of hope and change for their kingdom. Eager to uncover the truth about his wings and his purpose, Axie implored Tiberius to reveal more. The old turtle spoke of an ancient temple hidden deep within the depths of the enchanted forest. It was said that within its hallowed walls lay the answers Axie sought. Driven by an insatiable curiosity and a burning desire to understand himself, Axie embarked on a perilous journey through the sprawling forest, guided by the whispered tales of the creatures he encountered along the way. As Axie ventured further into the unknown, he encountered mischievous sprites who tried to divert him from his path and sly foxes who tested his resolve. Yet, through every trial and tribulation, Axie's determination remained unyielding. With each step, Axie discovered new wonders and faced unforeseen challenges, but it was his kind heart and unwavering spirit that earned him loyal companions. He formed an unlikely bond with Luna, a graceful firefly who illuminated his path, and Ollie, a spirited tadpole with dreams of his own. Together, the trio pressed on, overcoming treacherous terrain and unraveling the ancient riddles that guarded the secrets of the temple. As they ventured deeper into the heart of the forest, the air grew heavy with anticipation. And so, as the sun began its descent, casting an amber glow upon the forest floor, Axie and his newfound friends stood before the towering gates of the fabled temple—a testament to their resilience and unwavering determination. Little did they know that beyond those ornate doors lay a realm of knowledge, challenges, and self-discovery that would forever change their lives. The journey of Wings Unveiled had only just begun. Chapter 2: Trials of the TempleAs the massive doors of the ancient temple creaked open, Axie, Luna, and Ollie stepped into a world brimming with mystery and ancient wisdom. The air inside was thick with an aura of ancient power, and the walls were adorned with intricate carvings depicting legendary creatures and forgotten tales.Guided by a faint ethereal light, the trio ventured deeper into the temple's labyrinthine corridors. Each step echoed with anticipation, and the distant sound of trickling water added to the ambiance. They soon reached the first trial chamber, where a massive stone statue stood guard. Its stone eyes gleamed with an enigmatic intensity as if testing the courage and resolve of those who sought the temple's secrets. Carved on the statue's pedestal were words inscribed in a long-forgotten language. Axie's heart raced as he deciphered the message with the help of Luna's gentle glow. It spoke of a challenge—a test of strength, agility, and unwavering determination. To proceed, they had to navigate a treacherous obstacle course within a given time limit. With a shared determination, Axie, Luna, and Ollie braved the obstacles. Axie's shimmering wings provided an advantage, allowing him to glide over gaps and evade hazards. Luna's radiant light illuminated hidden paths, while Ollie's energetic leaps propelled them forward. They faced swinging vines, crumbling platforms, and rushing waterfalls. Each obstacle tested their abilities and forced them to push beyond their limits. Through teamwork and unwavering support, they overcame the challenges one by one. Finally, as the sand in the hourglass ran low, they reached the end of the trial just in time. The stone statue's eyes glowed briefly before revealing a hidden passage leading to the heart of the temple. Beyond the secret passage, they entered a vast chamber adorned with intricate tapestries and an ethereal pool at its center. The pool shimmered with a mesmerizing glow, as if holding profound secrets within its depths. A mysterious figure emerged from the shadows—a wise and ancient axolotl named Aurelia. She had spent centuries guarding the temple and possessed knowledge of the world's deepest truths. Aurelia's eyes glimmered with a mixture of kindness and wisdom as she addressed the young adventurers. "You have proven yourselves worthy of the temple's guidance," Aurelia spoke in a voice that carried the weight of countless generations. "But the trials are not over. To unlock the wisdom you seek, you must confront the essence of who you are, face your fears, and embrace the path that lies ahead." Axie, Luna, and Ollie exchanged determined glances, ready to embark on the next stage of their journey. They understood that the trials within the temple were not merely physical tests but profound lessons that would shape their destinies. With the guidance of Aurelia, they would delve into their innermost selves, confronting doubts, fears, and insecurities. Only by unraveling their own truths could they hope to unlock the full potential of Axie's wings and uncover the secrets that lay ahead. And so, within the depths of the temple, a transformational journey began—a journey of self-discovery, courage, and the unwavering pursuit of truth. Chapter 3: Wings AwakenedIn the presence of the wise axolotl, Aurelia, Axie, Luna, and Ollie embarked on a journey of introspection and self-discovery. They gathered around the ethereal pool, its shimmering surface reflecting their determined gazes.Aurelia's voice resonated with ancient knowledge as she spoke, "To unlock the true power of your wings, you must first understand the essence of who you are and embrace your inner strength. Look into the depths of the pool and confront the reflections of your true selves." One by one, they approached the pool, peering into its magical depths. As their reflections stared back at them, the trio experienced a profound connection with their innermost thoughts and emotions. Axie saw himself as more than just a unique axolotl with wings. He glimpsed his boundless potential and the strength that resided within him. Luna, the radiant firefly, discovered her ability to guide others and bring light to even the darkest corners. Ollie, the spirited tadpole, recognized his unwavering determination and infectious energy that lifted the spirits of those around him. With newfound clarity, they turned to Aurelia, their hearts filled with hope and anticipation. "We are ready," Axie declared, his voice brimming with conviction. Aurelia nodded, her eyes filled with pride. "Then, embrace your true selves and let the power within you soar." As if in response to her words, the air around them shimmered with a mysterious energy. Axie's wings began to radiate with an intensified glow, pulsating in harmony with his newfound self-awareness. Luna's light grew brighter, illuminating the chamber with an ethereal brilliance. Ollie's boundless energy surged, infusing the atmosphere with a contagious enthusiasm. United by their individual strengths, the trio discovered the power of their collective spirit. Together, they possessed the ability to overcome any obstacle and fulfill their destinies. With their transformed selves, Axie, Luna, and Ollie ventured further into the temple, guided by the wisdom of Aurelia. Each chamber they encountered held its own trials and revelations, challenging their beliefs and pushing the boundaries of their understanding. Through hardships and moments of triumph, their bond grew stronger, forging an unbreakable friendship. Axie's wings enabled them to traverse otherwise impassable obstacles, Luna's light dispelled the darkness that threatened to engulf them, and Ollie's spirit lifted their spirits when doubts threatened to hold them back. As they delved deeper into the temple's enigmatic depths, they uncovered the answers they sought. They unraveled the secrets of the kingdom, the meaning behind Axie's wings, and the true purpose of their journey. But their adventure was far from over. The final trial awaited them—a test that would determine not only their individual fates but the fate of the entire Axolotl Kingdom. With wings aglow and hearts united, Axie, Luna, and Ollie braced themselves for the ultimate challenge. The fate of their world hung in the balance as they prepared to confront the greatest test of all. Chapter 4: Destiny's TriumphIn the depths of the temple, Axie, Luna, and Ollie stood at the threshold of the final trial. Before them loomed a colossal door, adorned with intricate symbols that seemed to pulse with a powerful energy. The trio exchanged determined glances, their hearts brimming with courage and resolve.As they pushed open the monumental door, a blinding light enveloped them, transporting them to a realm beyond the physical world—a realm where destiny intertwined with the threads of their existence. They found themselves in an ethereal amphitheater, surrounded by ancient stone pillars that reached toward the heavens. At the center of the amphitheater stood a figure cloaked in luminous robes—the manifestation of their collective journey and the embodiment of the temple's wisdom. "Welcome, brave travelers," the figure intoned, their voice resonating with both gentleness and authority. "You have traversed the trials, delved into the depths of your souls, and emerged with a profound understanding of your true selves." Axie, Luna, and Ollie listened intently, their eyes fixed on the enigmatic figure, ready to receive the final revelation that awaited them. "The destiny of the Axolotl Kingdom lies in your hands," the figure continued. "Within each of you, there resides a unique gift—a gift that, when united, possesses the power to restore balance and harmony to our realm." The figure extended their hand, and from its palm, a brilliant light emerged, morphing into three distinct symbols—one representing Axie's wings, another symbolizing Luna's radiant light, and the third embodying Ollie's indomitable spirit. "These symbols are but fragments of a greater whole," the figure explained. "When combined, they form the key to unlocking the ancient magic that can heal our kingdom." Axie, Luna, and Ollie exchanged knowing glances, their bond as steadfast as ever. With unwavering determination, they stepped forward and merged their symbols, their essence converging into a radiant orb of unity. As the orb pulsed with luminosity, the amphitheater trembled, and the very fabric of reality seemed to shift. The trio could sense the surge of transformative energy coursing through their veins, connecting them to the very heartbeat of the Axolotl Kingdom. With their combined powers awakened, Axie, Luna, and Ollie set forth to restore harmony to their beloved realm. Guided by the figure's wisdom and the strength of their unity, they ventured out into the kingdom, mending broken bonds, healing wounded hearts, and awakening the dormant magic that lay within every axolotl. Their journey was not without challenges. They faced formidable adversaries, formidable adversaries, and tests of their newfound abilities. Yet, with each triumph, their collective light shone brighter, rekindling hope in the hearts of all who witnessed their heroic deeds. In the end, their unwavering spirit and unbreakable bond prevailed. The Axolotl Kingdom blossomed once more, vibrant and alive, bathed in the harmonious energy of unity and renewal. As the tale of Axie, Luna, and Ollie spread throughout the kingdom, they became legends—symbols of courage, friendship, and the transformative power that lies within every individual. And so, the enigmatic axolotl, the radiant firefly, and the spirited tadpole continued their adventures, spreading their light and inspiring others to embrace their true selves and forge their own destinies. The End? |
2023.05.31 04:02 Political-Theme The Alliance 72’ party based on u/Mc_what ‘s Wallace presidency
 | submitted by Political-Theme to imaginaryelections [link] [comments] |
2023.05.31 03:21 CaptainChristopher02 My Floridian Arxur Daughter (Part 16)
 | submitted by CaptainChristopher02 to NatureofPredators [link] [comments] Art by u/HaajaHenrik Memory Transcription Subject: Dennis Ramos Rodriguez, Floridan Factory Meat Distributor Date [Standardized Human Time]: November 25, 2136 I woke up to my wonderful wife by my side. She was still asleep. I gave her back rubs, earning a delightful coo from her. “Psst, my love. Pancakes?” Elena was still tired from last night. She spoke in a tired voice. “Mhmm, in bed please. I don’t think I can walk for now.” I gave myself a pat on the back. “Your husbands still got it right?” I said smugly, earning a smile and blush from Elena. I gave my wife a couple good kisses before heading downstairs. On my way to the kitchen, I noticed everyone else was up and already had breakfast. Did I sleep in that much? We got home at 9:00pm… me and Elena started at 10:30pm… finished around 1:30… nope it’s only 9:30. Everyone at the table looked like they didn’t get any sleep. Except for Chalta, who had a picture book next to her about aquatic animals, but why was she wearing headphones around her neck. “Hey gang, how did everyone sleep?” “Great daddy! Big brother gave me his special headphones, their so comfy and helped make everything quiet!” “That’s great. Why did he give them to you though?” Every adult looked at me like I said the worst dad joke in my life. Carlos put the headphones over Chalta’s ears while she continued eating. My son looked right at me. “We heard it dad, all of it.” Wait he doesn’t mean… oh sh- Salisek interrupted my train of thought. “Where you even trying to be quiet?! We started hearing moans and had to cover Chalta’s ears! Also, three hours?! How?!” “W-why didn’t you just go back to sleep?” “Go back to sleep? With the last thought that my boyfriends’ parents were doing it in the other room?” Salisek looked at her parents. “You’re no better either! My ears work fine, and I know you two were having your own moment!” That’s why the Venlil couple looked tired? Carlos pointed at the princess. “Seriously! Did none of you think about Chalta! She’s like six! I wanna protect her innocence as much as possible, but it’s pretty hard when we have a grown women screaming in the next room ‘Oh yes, mi amor! Show me the nature of predators’! Like, what the hell is that even supposed to mean?!” My face was red with embarrassment. I could have sworn she whispered it! Tarvik and Talice also looked embarrassed. Salisek continued from where Carlos left off. “That’s nothing compared to my dad who bleats like crazy! Yes, I know you do that, you were terrible at hiding it when I was growing up! I know you weren’t just giving mom a message! Then MOM was moaning ‘my dearest, show me the savagery humans have taught you’! That alone is not only wrong, just wrong, it’s also like… what does that even mean?!” Talice spit out her orange juice! “Y-you heard that?!” “Seriously dad, WHAT IN THE ACTUAL SEPH!” my son said calmly. Wait, isn’t that a Venlil swear? “I gotta wait till marriage, but you couldn’t wait util we were all out of the house! GAWD DAYUM!” We all looked over at Chalta who was still calmly eating her food. Smiling at the delicious bacon and eggs while looking at the pictures of fish. Those noise cancelling headphones where a really good investment. “I’m… gonna make pancakes. Sorry.” Everyone returned to their respective breakfast. As I walked past Tarvik I gave him a high five. Which earned a distasteful look from my son. I finished the pancakes and reached for the orange juice… I decided to go for the Gatorade instead. My son noticed, “Why are you getting an energy drink?” “Well since everyone knows I thought I might as well get ready for round too while you and Salisek take Chalta to the park or something. She hasn’t seen her Arxur playmate in a while.” “Don’t you da- Arxur playmate?” “Call Samuel, your old friend. I met him, he’s living with an Arxur and her sister. The sister is close to Chalta’s age, and they became friends. Call them and set up a play date.” “Now?” “Yup. Now if you excuse me, I’m going back upstairs to make intense love with your mother.” Tarvik and Talice looked at each other prompting a horrified look from the young couple. “What? We might as well get it out of our systems?” Tarvik said, pulling his wife up and carrying her to the guest room. Memory Transcript Subject: Carlos Jose Rodriguez, Mechanical Engineer, Florida Man Date [Standardized Human Time]: November 25, 2136 I cannot believe that I had to grab my girl and sister because the “adults” got an itch from the Devils Tango! I decided to shake it off and enjoy the opportunity to spend more time with my sister. I decided to call Samuel another day. I’ll take Chalta to her old friend, but I wanted ‘us’ time. I drove my car, my baby, of my own design and make. Mom said she’d keep it in good shape and boy did she! Electric and smooth, self-driving but I love having control. It also looked futuristic, as in glowing LED’s and a spoiler that moves on its own to adjust for aerodynamics. The girls were sitting comfortably in the back. Salisek was reading to Chalta about blue whales. “Wow! They’re so big!” said our wonderful princess. “Yes, they are, apparently they weigh at most 330,000 pounds. Do you know how heavy that is?” said my adorable Venbig. “No, is it a lot?” “Your brother weighs about 200 pounds. It would take…” Salisek used the Calculator on her holopad. “1,650 of him to be the same as one of them!” “That’s a lot of big brothers. What do they eat?” “They eat very tiny fish called ‘krill’. They swim in very big groups. When a whale finds them, they open their mouths really big and filter the water out.” It impressed me that Salisek was at the point where reading about predators didn’t bother her. I was proud at how far her family had come. They were once a timid bunch, now they’re riding death rides and cuddling with predators. It’s a good day to be a Floridian! After some more driving we finally got to the area I wanted to spend the day. The Florida Mall had gone under some renovations in the past decades. The center of the mall had a small play area, perfect for kids. It also had some interesting places I wanted to check out with my, hopefully, future wife and little sister. Chalta walked with us through the front doors, and she was in awe. She looked around at all the sights and smells the mall had to offer before tugging at my shirt. “Big brother, this place is so big! What is it?” “It’s a mall Chalta. It’s a big store with a bunch of smaller stores in it. With some other places to play and eat. We have so much to explore!” Salisek wrapped her tail around my waist. “So, where do we go first?” “What are you in the mood for? Clothes, games, food, toys, cosmetics, technology, the list goes on.” Chalta let out an audible gasp. “I KNOW! Let’s go look at dresses!” “Like all dresses… or princess dresses. The Disney store has-” “CINDERELLA!” Chalta’s scream turned about a dozen heads in the mall. Salisek walked over to give Chalta uppies. “Well Carlos, I guess we’re going to the Disney store.” “YAAAAAAY!” I looked on my phone for the Florida Mall app so I could perfectly Navigate the store. The Disney store was more in the center since it was popular with tourists and would bring people further into the store. This wasn’t a big deal as it allowed the girls to take in more of the sights. Despite being only stores, the designs and aesthetics were there to wow and impress. “We have nothing like this on Venlil prime. Most of the stores we have are outside, but because these are all indoors it gives them more options for comfort and decorations since they don’t have to worry about weather and can put a plug anywhere.” “I love the pretty lights! The ladies in the windows are pretty. I wish I was as pretty like them.” I stopped in my tracks and scooped up my sister from Salisek’s arms. I held her close and looked her dead in the eyes. “What did you just say? You are the prettiest of the pretty! You know that right?” Chalta looked unconfident in her appearance. Time to be a big brother. “I want you to repeat after me, I am the prettiest of the pretty. Say it!” “I am the prettiest of the pretty?” “Louder!” “I am the prettiest of the pretty.” “Louder, give it all you got!” “I AM THE PRETTIEST OF THE PRETTY!” Some random group of young women where walking past us and heard our conversation and decided to join in. “Yes, you are gator girl!” “The prettiest of the pretty!” “You are so cute!” “I wish I had your claws!” “*squeal*AWW, BABY!” At moments like these I realized, I am such an awesome brother. Salisek seemed to think so. The way she moved her tail and ears indicated attraction. Can’t say I blame her; responsibility is one of the hottest traits a man can possess. Chalta giggled in my arms and gave me a forehead kiss. “I love you, big brother.” “I would die for you.” After some more walking we finally arrived at the Disney store. I let Chalta down and she raced to the Princess section. There were a variety of styles of new and old characters. Snow White, Belle, Merida, Ariel, Mulan, Tiana… but we all knew what she wanted. “Cinderella! Big brother look it’s Cinderella!” “I can see.” I looked around for one of the employees. An older Hispanic women caught my attention, and I flagged her down. She seemed to know the drill and wasn’t even surprised that Chalta was an Arxur. I didn’t know why until she spoke. “Hello niña, what can I help you with?” “I wanna Cinderella dress!” The women whose name was Camila, indicated by her name tag, looked Chalta up and down. I had a feeling she was getting her measurements. Grandma would do the same thing when fixing our clothes. Some women just had a knack for knowing your size after getting a good look at you. “Give me a moment.” She went to the back and pulled out an extra small in… Arxur?! “I always keep spares just in case. This should fit your body type nicely. Would you like to try it out?” Chalta looked at the dress, mouth agape and eyes wide. “Yes. A thousand times yes.” She ran into the changing room and Salisek followed to help her with any zippers and fittings. I took the time to ask Camila some much needed questions. “Camila… how often do Arxur shop for princess dresses?” “A lot of Arxur. Most of the refugees from Wriss love getting pretty. They just don’t show it in public.” While I was trying to process the information, I noticed a tall figure approaching us. It was an Arxur, a very big female Arxur. The gator women paid no attention to us as she confronted Camila. “Hello Camila, I’m here to pick up my order. Under the name, Vraka.” “Of course, you said it’s for work, right?” “Yup, boss said I could get it here. They really want to make young Arxur feel more comfortable at Disney.” Vraka turned her gaze towards me and took on a defensive tone. “What? Got a problem with an Arxur making little Arxur girls dreams come true?” “N-no ma’am. In fact, I think it’s rather beautiful.” Vraka smirked and pulled a picture from her wallet that was in the greenish blue dress I just realized she was wearing. Arxur usually don’t wear clothes, but since coming to Earth they’ve started adhering to a lot of our customs. Whether it was for integration purposes, or they just liked it was anyone’s guess. “Sorry sir, but I already have a human in my life.” The human in question must be the man in the picture next to her and the smaller Arxur. Wait a minute, is that Samuel? “Does this human know a man by the name of Dennis… and an Arxur named Chalta.” Vraka’s eyes shot wide open and pulled the photo back. “How do you know that?” “Big brother! How do I look in my dress!” I turned around to see… oh my god. The most beautiful princess in all the land had somehow waltzed into the real world with grace unlike any other. Salisek followed behind and both the girls were frozen at the sight of the huge Arxur. “C-Carlos… who is this?” I quickly answered to calm her down. “Chalta, you had an Arxur friend on the ship, right? What was her name?” “A-Akara.” Chalta stuttered. Vraka’s eyes lit up and a smile cracked beneath those huge teeth. “Akara! I got someone you might like to see!”A small Arxur appeared from the direction of the toy section. Not as small as Chalta, but definitely a child. “Chalta!?” “Akara!” The two girls ran toward each other and embraced in a beautiful display of affection. It’s good we came today, otherwise we might have missed them. I gently grabbed Salisek’s hand, she seemed to be feeling better. Seeing that the small Arxur was clearly friendly and familiar with Chalta, it only seemed natural that it would help calm her senses. Still, I could tell she was overwhelmed with fear, mainly from Vraka. A smaller Arxur was one thing, but Vraka was anything but small. “Vraka this is my girlfriend Salisek. I’m Carlos, Dennis’s son. I used to know Samuel from our old jobs. The little princess you see is Chalta, I’m sure Akara has told you something.” “Yes, she has, thank you. I don’t think you have any comprehension of just how happy Akara is. Finding friends and adjusting to Earth’s customs was hard enough for a young Arxur. Everything we’ve seen seems like a paradox from what were used to. Even you, Salisek. It’s nice to know some Venlil aren’t measly cowards.” Salisek swallowed. “I-it’s n-nice to know n-not all Arxur are vicious k-killers, b-but Ch-Chalta already p-proved that t-to m-me.” Vraka gave a hardy chuckle. Arxur voices are surprisingly deep, it’s hard to imagine that might be Chalta one day. “You do have some moxxy, I’ll give you that. Not even some humans would call us killers to our faces without trying to get on our bad side. Yet here you are fighting fear, and not letting it control you from some decent banter. I’m impressed.” The girls continued playing and I noticed that Akara had a purple dress. I assumed that dresses where popular with Arxur women since they didn’t have to worry about their tails being constrained and it would help humans better identify their sex. “Vraka, is Samuel here today?” “No, but I’ll tell him about you. He’s at work right now. Funny thing, when he came back, he talked about some fond memories of you and your family. I assume you too go way back?” “Yeah, but I changed jobs and after keeping in touch for a while he just… stopped. I was always worried and tried to contact him, but nothing happened. I just assumed he moved on and that was that.” “Really, just like that?” Vraka’s voice indicated sympathy. That seemed to take Salisek off guard slightly. I guess she assumed that most Arxur couldn’t feel much empathy. Chalta seemed to be an exception due to her age. “Yeah, could you talk to him about it for me? I don’t know if he’ll open up to you and it might be wrong, but I just want to know if he’s okay.” “I’ll get your contact information, and I think Samuel already has your fathers, but as of now you don’t need to worry. Samuel is doing fine.” “Thanks. Say, how did you and Samuel meet?” “We met while I was stationed on Earth with Chief Hunter Isif to help with survivors.” “Really, why did you decide to stay?” Vraka’s face seemed to turn red almost instantly. Did I say something wrong? Wait, what did dad say about them. “…Um. W-well you see. I-It’s actually a reaaaaaaly funny story.” Dear God, they totally did it. “Um, HEY LOOK AT THE KIDS!” Not wanting to make the situation more awkward I diverted my attention to Chalta and Akara. The little Arxurs continued playing and I could only laugh at seeing something so precious. Salisek’s tail motion showed she agreed. Even Vraka’s cheeks blushed a little seeing her sister so happy. Akara grabbed a red lightsaber from her dress pocket while Chalta grabbed a nearby magic wand bubble dispenser. While they were “battling” I looked at the price of the dress. A decent price but I was worried Chalta would wear it so often she would break it. Like us and our Spider-Man costume. Vraka seemed to sense my concern. “Don’t worry about it, I get discounts. We got a buy one, get one free sale right now.” Freakin’ score! I went and purchased two dresses of the same size. I also managed to find an extra secret surprise for Chalta when we get to Disney World this weekend. Salisek was still anxious around Vraka but attempted to make small talk anyways. “S-so Vraka, h-how’s Earth? Do you l-like it more than W-Wriss?” “Oh, much better. I’m always fed, and humans are also surprisingly warm to be around. If the socialization gets to be too much I can just politely leave and they’re okay with it. Their lives and cultures are all so interesting; I’ve been spending a lot of time studying them.” “Oh, t-that’s very nice to know… um, I k-know I shouldn’t ask but h-have you ever… p-participated in a r-raid?” Woah! Okay, even Vraka was shocked about that question! “W-why would you ask if I participated in a raid?!” “I DON’T KNOW!” Vraka and I were stunned. Somehow the girls ignored the yelling, but Camila was watching from a distance. She was definitely listening to our conversation like a soap opera. Vraka took a moment to think and took a deep breath. “I was part of Chief Hunter Isif’s fleet. I haven’t been on many raids, but I’ve still participated in some. Many of them on Venlil Prime.” Salisek started to tremble. I gave her soothing scratches behind her ear to calm her down. I gestured that she could stop if it was too much, but she insisted. I couldn’t imagine why she’d do that, but she made her choice, so Vraka continued. “When Earth was attacked, I was one of the many Arxur sent to help in the aftermath. That’s where I met Samuel. I eventually left the fleet, not because we were still eating… you know, but because I didn’t want to leave Earth. After me and Samuel had gotten… acquainted, I had gotten a taste of the love humans offered. I realized for the first time in my life that I was missing something, genuine love. Not obligatory or fake love many of us would emulate for benefits, but real love.” Vraka’s voice started to tremble ever so slightly. She didn’t look like she was about to cry, but she sounded like she was fighting a tear. “Little by little everything that I believed about strength and usefulness, about sentience and betterment, was broken down into nothingness. Salisek, know I have been to Venlil prime. I have killed and eaten many Venlil. At the time, I enjoyed it. Now I hate myself for that. I realized what I’ve done. Since I’ve worked at those ‘theme parks’ the humans have, I’ve had to work with other prey species. I call them friends now.” Salisek’s tail wrapped around my waist. I could feel her calming slightly as Vraka started showing more signs of emotion. “Nothing I do can erase my past, but I am trying to do better. Still, I understand if you hate me. I won’t judge, but please don’t blame Akara. She’s never been outside of home. Any sapient thing she’s eaten, it’s because that’s all we-” “I know.” Salisek had finally worked up the courage to talk to the Arxur without stuttering. “I don’t know everything about the Arxur, but I’ve been talking with Carlos and Dennis. I know you didn’t have much of a choice.” Tears formed in Vraka’s eyes, and she spoke humbly. “I… I’m sorry. For everything we’ve done, I’m sorry.” Salisek let go of my waist, and with minor hesitation, embraced Vraka. Vraka looked like she wanted to return the favor, but she looked as though she was debating her worthiness of it. “I can’t forgive every Arxur, and I don’t know if the thought of what you’ve done will ever leave my mind, but I know Arxur can show love. They can show regret, sadness, fear, and empathy. I don’t even know if I should, but I want Chalta to grow up in a world where she doesn’t need to hate who she is. If I want that, then maybe I need to break some barriers and accept some people can change.” A small, singular tear found its way down Vraka’s cheek and onto Salisek’s fur. “W-what?” “I… forgive you.” Vraka finally accepted the hug and pulled Salisek in for a strong embrace. “Th-thank you. You have no idea how long I’ve been battling my own demons ever since I came to Florida. Thank you.” Watching them embrace warmed my heart. I would have joined but I felt a little princess tug at my shirt. “Big brother, why are the sisters hugging?” “Because they love each other my little princess.” “…okay.” Memory Transcription Subject: Vraka, Arxur Defector, Disney Cast Member Date [Standardized Human Time]: November 25, 2136 While Carlos was playing with Akara and Chalta I sat on a bench with Salisek. We agreed that the human had enough energy to spare for two active kids. I’ll admit that while I felt guilty hugging a, rather large, Venlil, her touch was much appreciated. We chatted a bit about our lives. “Vraka, where do you work? I know you said at Disney, but doing what?” I let out a heavy sign. “Tell no one.” “Lips are sealed.” “I work as… a princess. Disney likes representation so giving Arxur girls their own princess before their own proper movie made sense.” And it worked too, the kids love it. Human, Arxur, hell even a Yotul. “Sorry what?” “A princess! The outfit was for Snow White, or a guess Snow Grey now.” Salisek looked like she was trying hard not to laugh. *pftt*“I’m sorry, ha. But that’s adorable!” “Adorable huh! Well guess what, I bought a second dress because my human like a little role play!” “…I beg your pardon.” Salisek’s face showed signs of disgust and had an light orange color to it. Heh, I’ll show her adorable! “Oh yeah, sometimes I’ll send Akara out with his grandparents and we get busy after his big lonely Arxur princess craves some release. Think about that when you picture me in a dress! Wait… actually don’t I got way to ahead of myself. Oh, Prophet please forget!” That was so stupid of me. Prophet this is so embarrassing! I covered my face with my clawed hands. After a moment I looked up at Salisek, who’s look went from disgust to… curiosity? “Vraka, Carlos and I have an agreement. We’re doing the whole, ‘wait till marriage thing’, while I don’t mind, I am concerned that we won’t be… compatible. Is there any advice you can give me?” Is she serious? This is what she wants to ask? “Well… I don’t know much about Venlil anatomy, but it can’t be much different than Humans and Arxur. If you want my advice, let him lead. If he’s lost, help him find his way. Take your time and enjoy each other’s presence. But most of all, when in doubt remember this, humans are endurance predators. Do with that what you will.” Her face was completely orange now, and she used her paws to bury her tail in her face. “Oh Seph, I shouldn’t have asked.” “Heh, you innocent Venlil!” First Previous |
2023.05.31 00:24 A_A_Ironwood Theomort: Domain of Maddening Fathoms (Part 4)
SETTLEMENTS AND SITES
Theomort's damp and uneven landscape is far from pleasant to most, including the people who live there. That doesn't stop it from having uniquely and unnerving locales to explore, however, from civilized communities to mysterious monoliths.
Theoburg
The would-be capital of Theomort, situated at the base of Mount Lunace, is riddled by distrust of any and all outsiders, and political mismanagement. Built mostly of cobblestone and lumber, this city is little more than a glorified town, barely fortified by wooden palisades. It is sustained by local crops of wheat and potatos, and imports of seafood, giving it just enough to secure its position as the most powerful community on the island, though that isn't saying much.
Wegglrot
This small fishing village on the north coast of the island is infamous for the secretive and often unpredictable nature of its people. Suspicious to a fault, the citizens have been known to attack anyone who breaks their laws. Laws that are kept secret from outsiders, and that seem to change from day to day. This borderline demented culture was influenced, at least in part, by the worrying frequency of disappearances along the north coast, steadily driving the population to fanatical paranoia.
Waveheart
The most conventionally normal settlement on Theomort, this town on the island's "chest" is where visitors are most welcome, even if they are still met with wariness from the locals. The streets are patrolled by undertrained volunteers acting as guards, and is governed by an elected mayor who must maintain order, even as citizens go missing and fishing vessels are sunk by unseen attackers.
The Monoliths
Scattered throughout the island's wilderness, these tall, black obelisks are a source of mental distress in all those who see them. The people who have witnessed The Deep Ones' activities, or even returned after disappearing, find themselves compelled to approach the Monoliths, where they will stand and thoughtlessly stare at them. This obsession can even become lethal, as these disturbed individuals forget to eat, drink, or even sleep, in favor of simply watching the mysterious monuments as they slowly wither away.
The Temple in the Depths
Carved into the sea floor just a mile north of Theomort is an immense, eroding city far older than any settlement on the island. At the center of these labyrinthine ruins is a temple, featuring depictions of stories no mortal mind could decipher. Within the temple itself, The Pale Preacher screams and sobs about its horrid visions, while its aquatic disciples follow The Preacher's every command without question.
submitted by A_A_Ironwood to ravenloft [link] [comments]
Theomort's damp and uneven landscape is far from pleasant to most, including the people who live there. That doesn't stop it from having uniquely and unnerving locales to explore, however, from civilized communities to mysterious monoliths.
Theoburg
The would-be capital of Theomort, situated at the base of Mount Lunace, is riddled by distrust of any and all outsiders, and political mismanagement. Built mostly of cobblestone and lumber, this city is little more than a glorified town, barely fortified by wooden palisades. It is sustained by local crops of wheat and potatos, and imports of seafood, giving it just enough to secure its position as the most powerful community on the island, though that isn't saying much.
Wegglrot
This small fishing village on the north coast of the island is infamous for the secretive and often unpredictable nature of its people. Suspicious to a fault, the citizens have been known to attack anyone who breaks their laws. Laws that are kept secret from outsiders, and that seem to change from day to day. This borderline demented culture was influenced, at least in part, by the worrying frequency of disappearances along the north coast, steadily driving the population to fanatical paranoia.
Waveheart
The most conventionally normal settlement on Theomort, this town on the island's "chest" is where visitors are most welcome, even if they are still met with wariness from the locals. The streets are patrolled by undertrained volunteers acting as guards, and is governed by an elected mayor who must maintain order, even as citizens go missing and fishing vessels are sunk by unseen attackers.
The Monoliths
Scattered throughout the island's wilderness, these tall, black obelisks are a source of mental distress in all those who see them. The people who have witnessed The Deep Ones' activities, or even returned after disappearing, find themselves compelled to approach the Monoliths, where they will stand and thoughtlessly stare at them. This obsession can even become lethal, as these disturbed individuals forget to eat, drink, or even sleep, in favor of simply watching the mysterious monuments as they slowly wither away.
The Temple in the Depths
Carved into the sea floor just a mile north of Theomort is an immense, eroding city far older than any settlement on the island. At the center of these labyrinthine ruins is a temple, featuring depictions of stories no mortal mind could decipher. Within the temple itself, The Pale Preacher screams and sobs about its horrid visions, while its aquatic disciples follow The Preacher's every command without question.
2023.05.30 22:59 alittledizzy irl backpack stream ideas (hint, george/dream team)
Look. I have way too much time on my hands. But my girlfriend and I definitely spent like half an hour earlier scouting out really cool locations for irl streams that would limit them being in public, fan accessible-spaces. Some of these are a bit outside of Orlando, some can be done in small private groups, some are just paywalled enough to avoid being mobbed.
So for their lurking consideration:
submitted by alittledizzy to DreamWasTaken2 [link] [comments]
So for their lurking consideration:
- Rage Room Orlando: https://rageroomorlando.org/
- Breaking Bad-esque escape room: https://www.escapology.com/en/orlando-i-drive-fl/escape-games/narco
- Small group NASA tours:
- https://www.viator.com/tours/Orlando/Kennedy-Space-Center-Small-Group-VIP-Experience/d663-3170P78 (in Orlando)
- https://spacecenter.org/exhibits-and-experiences/nasa-vip-tou (if you go to Houston any time)
- Dream Branding warehouses. We got to see a tour through the snapchats but an IRL stream tour would be really cool.
- Aquarium
- https://www.cmaquarium.org/ - this is a rescue/rehab/release aquarium so you avoid the ethical backlash of most aquariums.
- https://www.cmaquarium.org/experience/boat-rides-guided-tours/ - eco-boat tours of the above
- WonderWorks has a few different things:
- Extreme Weather Zone: https://www.wonderworksonline.com/orlando/the-experience/the-wonderzones/disaster-zone/
- Physical Challenge Zone: https://www.wonderworksonline.com/orlando/the-experience/the-wonderzones/physical-challenge-zone/v
- after hours tickets: https://wonderworksorlando.centeredgeonline.com/retail/item/2927?\_ga=2.122878536.291594955.1685458839-49563717.1685458839
- Orlando Tree Trek Adventure Course https://graylineorlando.com/tours/orlando-tree-trek-adventure-park/
- Blue Springs State Park: https://www.floridastateparks.org/parks-and-trails/blue-spring-state-park. Can walk around and take a boat ride to see Manatees, pretty north of Orlando and rural so hard for fans to appear
- Gatorland Trainer for a Day (two hour program, max five people) https://www.gatorland.com/experiences/trainer-for-a-day/
2023.05.30 22:31 goodgreat123 Is my listing agent bad?
My husband and I are selling our first house, and I’m losing confidence in our relator. He is a friend of my husband’s and lives in Houston, we live in Austin. We called him for advice about buying/selling and he said he was starting to do business in Austin and has a team in Austin, so he could represent us.
He sent us some good options for homes to buy, but we ultimately decided to go with a new build before he had a chance to travel over to go to showings with us. No problem, all good. He’s been helpful with going over contracts and helping us set things up with a phase inspection.
Now in the selling process, I’m beginning to lose confidence. I had to rewrite the listing description because it said nothing about our home, and waxed poetic about a rec center, golf course and aquatic park that don’t even exist in our neighborhood. We listed on Thursday and the house has been getting a lot of attention. We had two open houses over the weekend with a steady stream of visitors. We had a bit of a communication issue with the agent staffing the open houses and our realtor was totally unreachable for the first hour and a half of our open house, nor did he provide us with the other agents contact info. AGAIN we had to take matters into our own hands and stop by the open house to tell the agent the information our realtor failed to convey to him in the first place.
This morning we reached out to see what the next steps are, and he just said he’d reach out to realtors from the weekend to see if there are any planned offers. We have no upcoming showings scheduled. Meanwhile, the house has absolutely blown up on Zillow, I guess I’m kind of surprised that we haven’t garnered more concrete interest or follow up. Since I’m new to selling a house I’m wondering if this is common practice, or if our realtor is acting normal.
submitted by goodgreat123 to RealEstate [link] [comments]
He sent us some good options for homes to buy, but we ultimately decided to go with a new build before he had a chance to travel over to go to showings with us. No problem, all good. He’s been helpful with going over contracts and helping us set things up with a phase inspection.
Now in the selling process, I’m beginning to lose confidence. I had to rewrite the listing description because it said nothing about our home, and waxed poetic about a rec center, golf course and aquatic park that don’t even exist in our neighborhood. We listed on Thursday and the house has been getting a lot of attention. We had two open houses over the weekend with a steady stream of visitors. We had a bit of a communication issue with the agent staffing the open houses and our realtor was totally unreachable for the first hour and a half of our open house, nor did he provide us with the other agents contact info. AGAIN we had to take matters into our own hands and stop by the open house to tell the agent the information our realtor failed to convey to him in the first place.
This morning we reached out to see what the next steps are, and he just said he’d reach out to realtors from the weekend to see if there are any planned offers. We have no upcoming showings scheduled. Meanwhile, the house has absolutely blown up on Zillow, I guess I’m kind of surprised that we haven’t garnered more concrete interest or follow up. Since I’m new to selling a house I’m wondering if this is common practice, or if our realtor is acting normal.
2023.05.30 21:39 Nomeerkat781 Channel 781 News Week of 5-22-2023
Headlines: https://youtu.be/IH5MFOmmZPI
Deadly Shooting / Moody St. Hyrbid Closing / New Candidates / Waltham Pride / Housing Notification Ordinance / Energy-Efficient Building Codes / Proposed Sober House / Lexington Power Plant
Debrief: https://youtu.be/IH5MFOmmZPI
1:00 What to expect from Waltham Pride? (Nick Hammond) 3:10 Speakers at Pride 4:40 Where’s the money come from for Waltham Pride? 6:46 Volunteer at Waltham Pride! 9:25 Waltham Reproductive Justice Paint Event @ Pride! (Amanda Kennedy) 10:45 Sneak Peak at Portrait 13:45 Waltham City Council Passed Pride Resolution - Not Everyone Signed On 16:30 Shoulda Been A Roll Call 21:06 Tenants Rights Ordinance 26:20 Difference Between a Citizen Input Hearing and a Public Hearing 30:00 Sober House Application Goes Awry 33:20 Clips From the Meeting 38:20 Councilor Bradley-MacArthur's Climate Resolution Shot Down 43:00 If The Whole World Doesn’t Agree To Do Something, It’s Not Worth Doing (Councilor Lafauci) 46:25 This Puts Anthony Lafauci To The Right of Oil Industry 50:30 Waltham Should Be Leading, like We Used To
Headlines transcript:
Waltham resident Shelson Jules passed away on Monday 5/22, apparently from a gunshot that occurred about 1:30am near Lyman St. and Faneuil St. According to a gofundme set up to support his family, Shelson was also known as JJ and was a 22 year-old alum of Waltham High School. Waltham Police and the district attorney are investigating the shooting and so far no additional details have been made public.
This weekend is the first weekend a portion of Moody St. is closed to cars this year under the new "hybrid" plan that allows for outdoor dining but with more restrictions than in past years. Moody St. from High St. to Pine St. will be closed to cars Thursday evening through Sunday, as well as some holiday Mondays , from now through September 25. According to a WCAC article, business owners have mixed feelings about the new arrangement but 12 restaurants as well as the Game Underground have applied to use outdoor space.
A few more prospective candidates have pulled papers for this year's Waltham election. They include one more person who's been part of our Channel 781 News team-- Chris Hammer, who has helped us with video production, plans to challenge Councilor Harris in Ward 8. In addition Tammy Wong-Bigelow is the first challenger to pull papers for the School Committee race, Waltham Police Officer Paul Tracey has pulled papers for Ward 3, and elementary principal Stephen Duffy plans to run at-large.
Waltham Pride is happening next Saturday, June 3 on the Waltham Common. This is the third time in Waltham's history that we've had our own Pride event, and the second year on the Common. Some of last year's popular performers will be returning including Missy Steak, Evan Greer, Toast, Katie Gullotti, Rose Bello, and Zumba with Jen, along with a new drag performer Iris Laveau. Speakers will include community members from the middle school, high school, Brandeis, a local Church, and Waltham's recently formed Trans Alliance. That's 11-4 on Saturday and if you'd like to help out, there's still time to sign up as a volunteer. We'll have Nick Hammond and Amanda Kennedy on our debrief show to talk more about th event.
In this week's city council meeting, Councilors Bradley-MacArthur, Paz, and Darcy introduces a resolution recognizing Pride month and calling for a Pride flag to fly on the Common. The council voted to approve that without committee reference.
Also in this week's meeting Councilor Paz re-submitted the housing rights notification ordinance, and the council set a date for a citizen input hearing to take place Wednesday 6/21 at 6:30pm at Government Center. That ordinance was originally proposed by Watch CDC and would require landlords to give tenants in danger of eviction information about their rights. The new version Paz submitted includes language that also protects homeowners in danger of foreclosure.
Also in recent meetings, the city council shot down a proposal to make Waltham's building codes more energy efficient. The state sets standard that require new buildings or renovations to meet a certain level of energy efficiency, but municipalities can choose to adopt "stretch codes" that require a higher standard, which Waltham has done in the past. Councilor Bradley-MacArthur submitted a resolution to adopt the latest stretch codes, which was discussed at the Public Works & Public Safety Committee on 5/15. At that meeting Councilor LaFauci argued that the standards were too difficult to meet and would cost the city money by deterring people from renovating their homes. He said that "fossil fuels are not going away" and argued that it doesn't make sense for Waltham to take steps to address climate change if not all states and countries are doing it. The committee recommended the council file the resolution with prejudice, meaning they will not take action on it and no one can submit a similar resolution for at least a year. In the following meeting the council voted to do just that despite an effort by Councilor Bradley-MacArthur to send it back to committee.
Also at this meeting neighbors showed up to oppose a proposed lodging house on Robbins street that would provide shared bedrooms for about 20 people in recovery from addictions. That was sent to committee and we'll talk about that more on our debrief show.
A proposed solar plant in Lexington near the Cambridge Reservoir and the Waltham line was approved by the Lexington Planning Board on 5/17. The City of Waltham previously went to court to prevent developers from building an access road to the plant through a Waltham neighborhood, but lost. More recently Waltham neighbors organized to pressure the Lexington government not to approve the project. At the recent council meeting Councilor Darcy requested certain city department heads come to the next meeting to discuss.
There's no city council meeting this week but committee meetings will return June 5.
submitted by Nomeerkat781 to u/Nomeerkat781 [link] [comments]
Deadly Shooting / Moody St. Hyrbid Closing / New Candidates / Waltham Pride / Housing Notification Ordinance / Energy-Efficient Building Codes / Proposed Sober House / Lexington Power Plant
Debrief: https://youtu.be/IH5MFOmmZPI
1:00 What to expect from Waltham Pride? (Nick Hammond) 3:10 Speakers at Pride 4:40 Where’s the money come from for Waltham Pride? 6:46 Volunteer at Waltham Pride! 9:25 Waltham Reproductive Justice Paint Event @ Pride! (Amanda Kennedy) 10:45 Sneak Peak at Portrait 13:45 Waltham City Council Passed Pride Resolution - Not Everyone Signed On 16:30 Shoulda Been A Roll Call 21:06 Tenants Rights Ordinance 26:20 Difference Between a Citizen Input Hearing and a Public Hearing 30:00 Sober House Application Goes Awry 33:20 Clips From the Meeting 38:20 Councilor Bradley-MacArthur's Climate Resolution Shot Down 43:00 If The Whole World Doesn’t Agree To Do Something, It’s Not Worth Doing (Councilor Lafauci) 46:25 This Puts Anthony Lafauci To The Right of Oil Industry 50:30 Waltham Should Be Leading, like We Used To
Headlines transcript:
Waltham resident Shelson Jules passed away on Monday 5/22, apparently from a gunshot that occurred about 1:30am near Lyman St. and Faneuil St. According to a gofundme set up to support his family, Shelson was also known as JJ and was a 22 year-old alum of Waltham High School. Waltham Police and the district attorney are investigating the shooting and so far no additional details have been made public.
This weekend is the first weekend a portion of Moody St. is closed to cars this year under the new "hybrid" plan that allows for outdoor dining but with more restrictions than in past years. Moody St. from High St. to Pine St. will be closed to cars Thursday evening through Sunday, as well as some holiday Mondays , from now through September 25. According to a WCAC article, business owners have mixed feelings about the new arrangement but 12 restaurants as well as the Game Underground have applied to use outdoor space.
A few more prospective candidates have pulled papers for this year's Waltham election. They include one more person who's been part of our Channel 781 News team-- Chris Hammer, who has helped us with video production, plans to challenge Councilor Harris in Ward 8. In addition Tammy Wong-Bigelow is the first challenger to pull papers for the School Committee race, Waltham Police Officer Paul Tracey has pulled papers for Ward 3, and elementary principal Stephen Duffy plans to run at-large.
Waltham Pride is happening next Saturday, June 3 on the Waltham Common. This is the third time in Waltham's history that we've had our own Pride event, and the second year on the Common. Some of last year's popular performers will be returning including Missy Steak, Evan Greer, Toast, Katie Gullotti, Rose Bello, and Zumba with Jen, along with a new drag performer Iris Laveau. Speakers will include community members from the middle school, high school, Brandeis, a local Church, and Waltham's recently formed Trans Alliance. That's 11-4 on Saturday and if you'd like to help out, there's still time to sign up as a volunteer. We'll have Nick Hammond and Amanda Kennedy on our debrief show to talk more about th event.
In this week's city council meeting, Councilors Bradley-MacArthur, Paz, and Darcy introduces a resolution recognizing Pride month and calling for a Pride flag to fly on the Common. The council voted to approve that without committee reference.
Also in this week's meeting Councilor Paz re-submitted the housing rights notification ordinance, and the council set a date for a citizen input hearing to take place Wednesday 6/21 at 6:30pm at Government Center. That ordinance was originally proposed by Watch CDC and would require landlords to give tenants in danger of eviction information about their rights. The new version Paz submitted includes language that also protects homeowners in danger of foreclosure.
Also in recent meetings, the city council shot down a proposal to make Waltham's building codes more energy efficient. The state sets standard that require new buildings or renovations to meet a certain level of energy efficiency, but municipalities can choose to adopt "stretch codes" that require a higher standard, which Waltham has done in the past. Councilor Bradley-MacArthur submitted a resolution to adopt the latest stretch codes, which was discussed at the Public Works & Public Safety Committee on 5/15. At that meeting Councilor LaFauci argued that the standards were too difficult to meet and would cost the city money by deterring people from renovating their homes. He said that "fossil fuels are not going away" and argued that it doesn't make sense for Waltham to take steps to address climate change if not all states and countries are doing it. The committee recommended the council file the resolution with prejudice, meaning they will not take action on it and no one can submit a similar resolution for at least a year. In the following meeting the council voted to do just that despite an effort by Councilor Bradley-MacArthur to send it back to committee.
Also at this meeting neighbors showed up to oppose a proposed lodging house on Robbins street that would provide shared bedrooms for about 20 people in recovery from addictions. That was sent to committee and we'll talk about that more on our debrief show.
A proposed solar plant in Lexington near the Cambridge Reservoir and the Waltham line was approved by the Lexington Planning Board on 5/17. The City of Waltham previously went to court to prevent developers from building an access road to the plant through a Waltham neighborhood, but lost. More recently Waltham neighbors organized to pressure the Lexington government not to approve the project. At the recent council meeting Councilor Darcy requested certain city department heads come to the next meeting to discuss.
There's no city council meeting this week but committee meetings will return June 5.
2023.05.30 20:39 AutoNewspaperAdmin [Op-Ed] - What's playing at the Kennedy Center? Our sick culture Washington Times
![[Op-Ed] - What's playing at the Kennedy Center? Our sick culture Washington Times](https://external-preview.redd.it/i8dmzuODnpKlAKljgNZ2MQweY6cQsnHfSNw5FqFqfps.jpg?width=640&crop=smart&auto=webp&s=782c7f5be4c2e838ca21ea3a88536a5406d1b9a6 "[Op-Ed] - What's playing at the Kennedy Center? Our sick culture Washington Times") | submitted by AutoNewspaperAdmin to AutoNewspaper [link] [comments] |
2023.05.30 20:36 Glideer Russia’s Use of Uncrewed Systems in Ukraine
Russia’s Use of Uncrewed Systems in Ukraine
by Jeffrey A. Edmonds, Samuel Bendett
Jeffrey Edmonds is an expert on US national security, especially as it relates to Russia. He works full time for CNA's Russia Studies Program. His research focuses on the Russian military, foreign policy, Russian threat perceptions, and Russian information operations. Most recently, Jeff served as the Director for Russia on the National Security Council and acting Senior Director for Russia during the 2017 presidential transition. While on the NSC, he advised the president and his senior staff on Russia-related national security topics. Prior to the NSC, Jeff served as a senior military analyst with the Central Intelligence Agency, covering Eurasian militaries. He has served in the U.S. Army on both active duty and the reserves for 22 years, with tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Edmonds holds an M.P.A. from Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, an M.A. from Boston University in Religious Studies, and a B.S. from the United States Military Academy at West Point.
Samuel Bendett*’s research focuses on Russian defense and technology developments; uncrewed, robotic and autonomous military systems; artificial intelligence; and Russian military capabilities. Bendett’s analyses, views and commentary on Russia’s military robotics, autonomous systems and artificial intelligence capabilities have appeared in numerous global publications and news outlets.*
Prior to joining CNA, Bendett worked at the National Defense University on emerging and disruptive technologies to aid the Department of Defense (DOD) in responding to domestic and international crisis situations. His previous experience includes working for the U.S. Congress, the private sector and nonprofit organizations on foreign policy, international conflict resolution, and defense and security issues.
Bendett is also an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, an honorary “mad scientist” with the Mad Scientist Initiative of the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, and a Russian military autonomy and artificial intelligence subject matter expert for the DOD’s Defense Systems Information Analysis Center.
Bendett received a Master of Arts in law and diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University as well as a Bachelor of Arts in politics and English from Brandeis University. He has native fluency in Russian.
submitted by Glideer to CredibleDefense [link] [comments]
by Jeffrey A. Edmonds, Samuel Bendett
- Consistent with Russian military doctrine, the Russian military has used uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs) extensively in intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance (ISR) operations in Ukraine. This has enabled them to play prominent roles in artillery, counter-battery, and precision strikes missions.
- While ISR drones play a central role in much of the Russian military’s targeting process, it appears that the rate of response is slow, making it challenging to engage targets that are mobile.
- The lag in detection and targeting time highlights the lack of military-grade uncrewed combat aerial vehicles (UCAVs) in Russia’s arsenal. These systems would enable a faster detection to kill time. While the Russian military is clearly investing in these systems as evidenced by military announcements before the war, they are not likely to appear on the battlefield anytime soon.
- Commercial drones have come to the fore in the Russia-Ukraine war to address pressing ISR needs and to serve as rudimentary loitering ammunitions. The Russian military and leadership were slow to accept the roles of the drones but are now encouraging their use by Russian forces.
- Despite the acknowledged importance of these drones, the Russian military industrial complex has been slow to produce them in the significant numbers required by Russian forces. Some of the lack of production likely comes from a lack of domestic capabilities, inter-organizational competition and lack of communication, and a lack of central Russian government leadership on this issue.
- One emergent solution to the commercial drone shortage is the rise of groups within Russia that are funding drones and drone parts for Russian units and acting as thought leaders in how to integrate and use commercial drones in military operations.
- Tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs) for using drones have been developed through experience on the battlefield. Observations of Russian and Ukrainian use of drones by domestic groups in Russia have prompted initiatives to provide Russian soldiers with standardized training and TTPs for drone use.
- Inexpensive commercial drones that are rigged with munitions are, in many ways, becoming more like munitions in their employment and loss rate; many are seen as expendable, single-use platforms for inflicting damage on military sites and platforms. This use has the added effect of making them expensive targets to counter for air-defense systems, producing potential Ukrainian air-defense employment compromises between protecting military units and critical infrastructure.
- To address their military UAV challenges, the Russians are using Iranian-produced military drones extensively. With ranges in the hundreds of kilometers and antijamming systems, these drones have proved effective at targeting Ukrainian military platforms and critical infrastructure.
Jeffrey Edmonds is an expert on US national security, especially as it relates to Russia. He works full time for CNA's Russia Studies Program. His research focuses on the Russian military, foreign policy, Russian threat perceptions, and Russian information operations. Most recently, Jeff served as the Director for Russia on the National Security Council and acting Senior Director for Russia during the 2017 presidential transition. While on the NSC, he advised the president and his senior staff on Russia-related national security topics. Prior to the NSC, Jeff served as a senior military analyst with the Central Intelligence Agency, covering Eurasian militaries. He has served in the U.S. Army on both active duty and the reserves for 22 years, with tours in Iraq and Afghanistan. Edmonds holds an M.P.A. from Harvard's Kennedy School of Government, an M.A. from Boston University in Religious Studies, and a B.S. from the United States Military Academy at West Point.
Samuel Bendett*’s research focuses on Russian defense and technology developments; uncrewed, robotic and autonomous military systems; artificial intelligence; and Russian military capabilities. Bendett’s analyses, views and commentary on Russia’s military robotics, autonomous systems and artificial intelligence capabilities have appeared in numerous global publications and news outlets.*
Prior to joining CNA, Bendett worked at the National Defense University on emerging and disruptive technologies to aid the Department of Defense (DOD) in responding to domestic and international crisis situations. His previous experience includes working for the U.S. Congress, the private sector and nonprofit organizations on foreign policy, international conflict resolution, and defense and security issues.
Bendett is also an adjunct senior fellow at the Center for a New American Security, an honorary “mad scientist” with the Mad Scientist Initiative of the U.S. Army Training and Doctrine Command, and a Russian military autonomy and artificial intelligence subject matter expert for the DOD’s Defense Systems Information Analysis Center.
Bendett received a Master of Arts in law and diplomacy from the Fletcher School at Tufts University as well as a Bachelor of Arts in politics and English from Brandeis University. He has native fluency in Russian.
2023.05.30 20:27 AutoNewsAdmin [Op-Ed] - What's playing at the Kennedy Center? Our sick culture
| | submitted by AutoNewsAdmin to TWTauto [link] [comments] |