Old wives tale about itchy hands

Hello! I am a brand new player to LOTRO. Long-time MMO player though. I created a Beorning and am loving it so far.
I saw the update about the Landscape Difficulty being added and how you can earn a title for leveling under +3 or higher. So first chance I got, I set my difficulty to +3.
I was just wondering if I am shooting myself in the foot here and taking away from the "new player experience" or if the rewards from the difficulty slider are even worth it. When I first saw the news about how it would increase PVE difficulty, I got really excited. Reading more into it and experiencing the eye of sauron effect and the AoE Healing for mobs, it seemed to just turn into a game of "Move mob out of circle". I played for about an hour with +3 on killing spiders in Sprigley's Cellar in Archet Dale and could handle several mobs at once.
I know this is pretty open ended, I was looking to gather the community's input here though. On one hand, I like a bit more challenge and just face-rolling through the entire leveling process might be boring, but on the other hand, playing the "move away from AoE" with every mob will get old really quick. The +20% bonus XP doesn't impact me really, I plan to level slowly anyways and do nearly every quest I can (which I read would out-pace zones anyways). and I don't see any information about bonus drops/loot as a reward, only a title.

I dropped out of college and decided to take a break from everything and pursue a handful of personal projects**. None of which really pertain to the line of work I am wanting to get back into. Now I can't bring myself to get into any job because I'm afraid of having to disclose and explain why I am where I am in life to literally anyone.
Prior to being admitted into university, I worked as a helpdesk technician (IT) with an associates degree under my belt. After about 3 years into my employment, I decided it would be worthwhile to take a stab at a computer science degree. I quickly learned that my math was not up to par with the requirements of the degree - specifically in Algorithms. With the added strain of other personal affairs, financial restraints, and the realization that this line of work was not for me, I decided that it would be best drop out of the program.
I should have immediately found employment upon dropping out but I didn't. It started off with one project and I kept telling myself that I'll just do one more project and then I'll find a job. This cycle went on far longer than I had initially expected and next thing I know, this November would make it my third year out of employment. It was employment procrastination if you will...
As with many other forms of procrastination, there is an underlying reason as to why one would put off a task. I believe that for me it was because I wanted to avoid having to explain that: 1) I dropped out of school because I'm an incompetent loser who has not one ounce of grit and 2) why was I out of work for so long.
This fear of mine is so bad, I have deactivated all of my social media accounts, and actively avoided being outside in fear of encountering old friends or worse, old coworkers then consequently having to explain to them that I am a complete fuck up. The plan was to avoid anyone I know as much as possible.
I can't bring myself to get employed because I feel inadequate. How do I get over this fear? Should I seek therapy?
Thank you.
**many of the projects involved assisting a family carpenter with home improvement projects (2 bathroom remodels, cabinetry, flooring, major paint work, landscaping, etc.) at my parent's home in exchange for free rent. And others nothing really worth mentioning in an interview such as learning how to roller skate which would eventually lead to me breaking my wrist effectively disabling myself for 3+ months.

Hi all,
I'm on day 3 of no weed. I've had 18 years on and off with it. Over 4 years of which were sober. I'm also 3.5 years alcohol free, and apart from an occasional cigar, I haven't smoked tobacco regularly in over 15 years.
Being sober is tricky though. I've had over 20 years with anxiety and depression, 11 years with daily aches and pains which Dr's said are born of stress and low mood. The past year and a half, not being stoned was a "treat" when in reality it should've been the other way around.
The longer I smoked, the less I smoked. Consuming around 3.5g every 6 weeks. So my habit wasn't major, and I also smoked alone. Much like my drinking. Although, unlike alcohol - when I was stoned in social situations my anxiety would usually ramp up, and I'd often have to leave group chat settings when my aches and pains went nuclear.
Seems odd to keep using weed when there was around a 60-70% chance it would make my anxiety and aches/pains worse. But therein describes life as an addict, even when it's taking a lot more from you than it could ever provide, you still struggle to quit, and you continue to maintain a draining and self-destructive habit.
Outside of drugs, other addictions have included people pleasing, comfort eating, gaming, social media, relationships and sex. Thankfully I've reigned in a lot of these too. Diet is improving, I game around 4 or 5 hours a week now instead of 40-50 hours. I dedicate a lot less time to social media, although it's my main form of socialising. But I realised as I got older that less and less people put in as much time and effort into online conversations as I do. And when you have a decades worth of energy bias, going out to friends who rarely reply - it can add to a sense of defeatism.
I've been looking after myself in other ways too. The past year or more I've been getting a regular sleep schedule. I also started 1-to-1 yoga lessons 6 months ago. I've seen 7 therapists since 2012, and I'm currently seeing one at present.
Another big change was cutting off emotionally damaged and draining local friends. Unfortunately this means I no longer have any local friends. Isolation has been a prolonged feeling in my life. It wasn't such an issue in childhood, but it's steadily grown harder as I became an adult.
I'm on the spectrum - so addiction risks, along with mental health co-morbidities are much higher. As is the potential, and reality for social fatigue and struggles.
Ever since a child I struggled to read. Quickly becoming distracted and worn out. In recent years I've been able to finish books, and have built up a good collection of material. I read non-fiction, and since 2012 and experiencing physical symptoms of my mental health struggles, I have sought out knowledge in books, forums, therapy and pursuing various means to improve my quality of life.
Recently, after 19 years stuck in office jobs, I have started a career as a carer. I needed a hands on, and people focused job. Feedback from clients and management in my new job has been outstanding. They all think I'm wonderful, which is nice to hear, but it won't ever convince my inner critic of my self-worth.
Truth is, I feel in life people enjoy my company more than I enjoy theirs. Which sounds conceited, but it just serves to highlight the struggles I encounter with socialising.
I finished all my training for this new job, and now I have nothing to do until Wednesday of next week when I start the job proper. Before that I'd been shadowing other carers, and next week when we do house visits to clients, I will be doubled up with someone until I feel confident enough to go about my rounds on my own.
This lack of things to do has stirred up the old feelings of depression and isolation. Other stresses at present include a van I've been converting into a campervan. But money ran out a while back, and so it just sits outside the house reminding me of this fact. Also, with ADHD - I have a lifetime littered with unfinished projects, and I don't want my future full time home to be one of those things. I'm also 8 months gone since I broke up with my ex, but truthfully, she felt like the one. Since the breakup I'm really struggling, and knowing it was my anxiety and depression that pushed her away is quite a crushing feeling.
Anyway, that's me. I figured I'd share this as perhaps people can relate. Also it's therapeutic for me to write and share.
​
Ed

Witnessing your baby go through a seizure is already terrifying, bundled with negligent hospital staff, it is really traumatizing.
Last night (around midnight), we brought our son (10 months old) to the ER because of the spike in his temp (reached 39.6C). The ER pedia advised we can just return home and monitor our child for 24 hours and continue with our Paracetamol dosage. So, we did just that. A few hours later, our child started having a seizure and temp over 40C. As new parents with no experience at all with this kind of situation, we tried to rub him with a wet towel then rushed him back to the ER. Good thing my MIL is staying with us currently, it really helped my wife and I to calm down.
After our baby got his IV (I felt really bad and started tearing up) and his dose of Paracetamol, we transferred to our room. We thought everything was going well, because our baby started smiling again and being active. But around the 6-hour mark after the previous Paracetamol injection, our baby started convulsing again. The nurses tried to guide us on how to comfort our baby, and gave him a sponge bath. When they tried to look at the IV site on his right hand (it was wrapped with a clean diaper so baby couldn’t play with it), we saw blood everywhere. Apparently, the IV drip was out of the connection. So, the antibiotic and Paracetamol injection they gave earlier did not go through. We were frustrated. We complained with the attending pedia on why this was not noticed, but we were informed that it happens and our baby should still not get a second seizure within 24 hours. We were dumbfounded. They already had our boy’s blood checked, X-ray, Covid test, and urinalysis. But the attending pedia said we should get the lumbar puncture. This is when we started to refuse. Then they asked to do another Covid test (RT PCR), we refused this as well. Because they already swabbed him earlier, but instead of doing the PCR, they went with antigen (negative).
Currently, our boy has been feeling better after his IV drip’s been fixed. We will maintain our position about testing, and we will do our best to comfort our child. Seeing our child go through a seizure, his pain during the IV procedure, seeing him go through a second seizure because of the staff’s negligence, seeing him go through a second IV procedure… its too much. I feel like the past 24 hours has been a long nightmare. I hope we all go out of this better and stronger.
How did y’all deal with these seizures?

I had always thought, if we came across the one who had irrevocably changed our lives, that I would have been ready to fight, that my hatred would be enough to ensure their death.
The terror that gripped my mind was far more palpable than any malice I could have conjured, it was far more overpowering than any hatred I could muster.
Death had risen within our territory, and the gulf between her power and mine was like comparing a single grain of sand to the desert. I wanted to run, to claw my way into the earth and never surface again, to curl up and never be found again.
"Citizens of Darastrixthurhi!" My Emperor bellowed, his voice cutting through the panicked screams. "The one who would have claimed you as mindless servants stands before you, our brethren have already marched forward, will you abandon them!?"
He grinned, his eyes wide and manic. "We who were born to be servitors to Dragons, we will slay the greatest one of them all." The fear ebbed, replaced by a calmness that allowed me to stand beside him. "To charge forth is to embrace death, ours is the will to defy that fate! Charge!" Fearlessly, we charged forth, our weapons and magic primed to fight against Tiamat.
One of her heads looked in our direction, and there was a blinding light.
When I lowered my hand, it was as the bright light faded. I blinked, I... wasn't outside anymore. I was stood in a crystalline palace. I looked around, confused and disoriented, that's when I noticed my blind eye was no longer blind.
"It takes a nobly foolish soul to charge into an unwinnable battle against a deity." I turned around to see Bahamut, in the form of a Kobold, albeit with shimmering scales of platinum, his eyes shown with a bright azure, a small smile on his lips.
"What happened?" I asked. "Where am I?"
"My palace." He spoke. "You are dead, Ruuk."
I felt numb. "Dead?" I squeaked.
"Kurtulmak was a lesser deity." Bahamut spoke. "His efforts were most certainly noble, in the end, knowing that fleeing was not an option, as Tiamat would simply kill everyone regardless.
"I barely even moved, how can I be dead?" I asked.
"She breathed flames so hot, you and everyone around you were instantly incinerated, my own Paladins fared no better, and Kurtulmak simply lasted the longest. I- arrived too late."
"What happens now?" I asked hollowly.
"Kurtulmak's death on the Material Plane resulted in his divine essence scattering, any Human who wanders into the territory you held will become a Kobold, certainly, but without his guidance, they will not remember who they used to be. Tiamat has already begun using this to her advantage."
"So, that's it?" I asked. "All of that effort, and she just wins, just like that?"
"Who said anything about her winning?" He asked. "I may have arrived too late, I did not leave without scoring my own blow against her. Of seventy thousand Kobolds... ten thousand remain, they are the ones who were simply out of the blast range, who were lucky enough to avoid being killed... Your brother, Tallyn, has taken on your role of Imperator, and he has taken on the duty of ensuring everyone who has died can be resurrected."
"How long will that take?" I asked. "How long has it been?"
"One year." He stated. I felt cold, numb inside. "I have had my agents scouring the planes for your soul, it wasn't where we expected it would end up, and thankfully we did not need to look in the Abyss... No, your soul-"
"WAS IN MY HANDS."
A shimmer in the crystalline walls gradually faded into existence, a pale-scaled Kobold walked toward us, yet his presence was far larger than his body.
"I AM ASGORATH, AND YOU HAVE CAUGHT MY ATTENTION."
I didn't know why I knelt so immediately, a mixture of fear and reverence burned through my entire body, the only thing that kept me from immediately pledging myself to him, was the sense that he was neither interested in, nor cared about such things.
"YOURS IS THE TALE UNWRITTEN, THE FATE UNTOLD."
His voice rattled the very foundations of the earth.
"YOU WHO WOULD HAVE BEEN THE ADJUDICATOR OF BAHAMUT'S WILL, HAD YOU STAYED YOUR PATH."
His voice chilled the very air, which burned away at everything it touched.
"YOU WHO WOULD HAVE BEEN THE HUSBAND OF KURTULMAK, HAD TIME AND FATE BEEN ON YOUR SIDE."
His voice quickened my blood, yet I felt far more calm and at ease than I had ever been.
"YOU WHO QUELLED THE FLAMES OF HATRED, WHO TRICKED A GOD OF TRICKERY, WHOSE DEVOTION ALMOST LED TO REDEMPTION."
His voice stoked the flames of hatred in my heart, yet tended the blaze as tenderly as a child on his first camping trip.
"YOU WHO ARE COMPLETELY AND UTTERLY UNREMARKABLE IN EVERY CONCEIVABLE WAY, LED AND GUIDED WITHOUT EFFORT ON YOUR PART... HAVE EARNED MY PASSING REGARD."
"Great Asgorath, I haven't done anything to be worthy of this." I said.
"YOU HAVE NOT. YET HERE YOU ARE, BROUGHT BEFORE ANOTHER BY MY OWN DISCRETION. YOU ARE FAR TOO UNPREDICTABLE TO SIMPLY ALLOW TO DIE."
I blinked. "What do you mean?" I asked.
Asgorath held his hand out, a pale golden flame danced upon his palm.
"RUUK STINGTAIL, AS HISTORY REPEATS, YET WITH DIFFERENT ACTORS, I OFFER A CHOICE I HAVE GIVEN LONG AGO. YOU CAN EITHER RETURN TO LIFE, WITH THE STRENGTH TO REBUILD YOUR EMPIRE, OR YOU CAN STEP INTO DIVINITY, AND TAKE ON THE MANTLE KURTULMAK ONCE BORE."
I hesitated. "Kurtulmak, is he-? Is he gone for good? Is there no way he can be brought back?"
"MAKE YOUR CHOICE, I WILL NOT ASK A SECOND TIME."
I nodded. "Bring me back." I said. "I won't become a God, if it means I'll be forced to live without him."
Asgorath simply nodded, his hands closing around the flame.
"NOTHING OF YOUR BODY REMAINS, I SHALL SPEAK IT INTO BEING. LIVE, RUUK STINGTAIL."
I felt myself yanked away, pulled an impossibly long distance through planes I could hardly fathom, my soul a falling star spiraling, spiraling, down upon a small planet almost devoid of magic. I streaked through the sky, the throne room of Darastrixthurhi right before me. I saw Tallyn sat upon the throne, addressing his Council, he looked at me, his eyes wide as he threw himself off the throne, upon which I crashed into.
My skeleton grew from nothing, followed by my nervous system, then my circulatory system, my muscles followed soon after, and then my flesh returned. I stared at the infinitely long expanse that connected me to the cosmos, yet it rapidly shortened, flowing into me until it was fully within my body.
I gasped for breath, I looked at my shaking hands, then felt my face, my body, still alive, still breathing, I could still see with both eyes, but the eye that had once been blind burned such that I had to close it.
The Kobolds who were gathered drew their swords, clearly terrified by my arrival. Tallyn stepped around the staircase, his own sword drawn.
I caught my breath, then looked upon my subjects and said, "Is that any way to greet your Imperator?"
Tallyn's sword fell from his hands, the recognition was instantaneous. He scrambled up the stairs, almost falling off again, and he wrapped me in a hug.
"Ruuk?" He asked.
"That's more like it." I said, reciprocating his hug. "I'm home, Tallyn."
​
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My boyfriend's birthday is coming up and I know that he really wants a VR set. I found a pretty cheap PSVR (complete set) second hand, but I know it is pretty old and the reviews online are very mixed. But he already has a PS4 and this seems like a nice cheap option. There's lots of cheap games available too.
Is this a good idea? Or should I be looking or something else? Is a VR set a good birthday gift idea at all? I don't really know much about VR or console gaming in general.

To the point
Helvetic village. Switzerland: a small state with a big identity. But there is a fine line between state sovereignty and provincial isolationism.
Parallels. Switzerland and the EU are not as different as they are often portrayed - neither structurally nor in terms of their internal complexity.
EU scepticism. Anti-EU attitudes have a long tradition in Switzerland, despite close economic ties and acceptance of large parts of the EU regulatory framework.
Risk. In a world in geopolitical upheaval, Switzerland is in danger of losing an opportunity with its vague positioning on the EU.
The similarities are striking: both Switzerland and the European Union did not come into being by chance, but as a result of political will - in each case in opposition to the prevailing mainstream at the time. Here Switzerland, the neutral, federalist, prosperous small state in the heart of Europe. On the other hand, there is the European Union, the continental integration experiment based on peace, prosperity and values.
On the one hand, 26 cantons, on the other 27 states, all equally independent and stubborn political entities. They are held together by a sophisticated structure of common rules and institutions. Each canton, each member state is power-conscious, economically successful, in competition with others, internationally networked.
All special cases with their own unmistakable history and tradition. And all 53 eye with suspicion what comes from the centre, once from Bern, once from Brussels. Neither are real capitals, but they are centres of impulse and control in the finely tuned balance of power and the redistribution of solidarity-based benefits. Nine million inhabitants here, about 50 times as many there. Each with a common currency, but a colourful mix of languages and religions. Four official languages in Switzerland, 24 in the EU. And twice a motto in Latin: "Unus pro omnibus, omnes pro uno" (one for all, all for one) and "In varietate concordia" (united in diversity). Which belongs to which?
Difficult relationship
Despite all the similarities, Switzerland and the EU find it difficult to build a lasting constructive relationship with each other. This has a lot to do with their respective self-images, but also with the interests of influential individual actors and groups. Yet there is no alternative to close economic networking for both: half of all Swiss exports go to the EU's internal market. Goods and services worth almost one billion francs are exchanged every day. Almost 1.5 million EU citizens work in Switzerland at attractive wages; conversely, almost half a million Swiss citizens are on the EU labour market.
The EU has so far shown a lot of understanding for its difficult neighbour. More than 120 individual bilateral treaties regulate relations between Switzerland and the EU, especially access to the internal market. However, passive membership of third parties in the internal market, the centrepiece of European unification, was never a future model from Brussels' point of view.
Thus, in the 1990s, the European Economic Area (EEA) was created for those Europeans who did not want to join the Community in the foreseeable future. It offered access to the internal market with a common institutional component for settling disputes. Liechtenstein, Norway and Iceland joined, the Swiss refused in 1992. Then, as now, the pronounced anti-EU attitude had a name and a face: Christoph Blocher, billionaire, industrialist, media owner, short-term Federal Councillor.
New attempt at a relationship
After the failure of Switzerland's EEA accession, it gradually became clear to both partners how incompatible their ideas for the common future were. 24 years after the application, Switzerland also formally withdrew its membership application in 2016. Switzerland would probably never become an EU member. Or only when it was doing badly economically, according to Christoph Blocher.
In the EU, too, enthusiasm for Switzerland as an extra-complicated partner declined in proportion to the internal pressure from right-wing Eurosceptic parties in its own ranks. Everyone would like to have a tailor-made membership, why should only the Swiss get one?
From then on, the "internal market without nothing" was no longer part of the EU's offer. Instead of further individual treaties, a kind of "umbrella treaty" was needed. At the head of the Commission, a convinced representative of the small states, the Luxembourger Jean-Claude Juncker, took up the mantle. He knew the interests and deep-seated fears of the successful small states better than anyone else.
But this attempt was also a failure. At the end of May 2021, the Swiss government declared the negotiations over. Just like that. Without involving parliament or the people. Remarkable in the model country of direct democracy. In 1992, the EEA issue had been put to the vote of the people and the cantons. Thirty years later, apparently no one was prepared to go to the polls for an agreement that was actually tailor-made, complete with dynamic adoption of law, emergency brake and arbitration court. This would have made Switzerland the only country in the world to adopt EU legislation à la carte.
Where there is (no) will, there is (no) way
Foreign policy is a direct function of domestic policy. The Swiss government got caught up in tactics. The Federal Council made no attempt to explain to its citizens the benefits of a longer-term stabilisation agreement with the EU. No convincing personality in the government unreservedly supported the finalised agreement. Many groups found reasons not to like the agreement. The trade unions in particular successfully climbed the barricades on the issue of wage protection. Their alliance with the right-wing nationalist SVP and its fetishism for sovereignty prevented a majority for the framework agreement.
In addition, there was a lack of willingness to reform in certain business circles and a general unwillingness to let the EU show its cards. In the end, a critical mass of positive arguments was lacking. The status quo seemed preferable to the manageable risk of a pragmatic consolidation.
Blocher's narrative of the indomitable Helvetic village had taken possession of public opinion. "We find ourselves back on field 1 after thirty years of European policy muck," says Peter Ziegler, former editor-in-chief of the newspaper "Der Bund" and remorseful EEA opponent, in view of the fruitless wear and tear on diplomatic and political energies.
What is striking is that the now almost universal practice of "autonomous implementation" - i.e. the direct adoption of EU law - does not seem to bother anyone. Why does sovereignty-conscious Switzerland not want to sit at the table in Brussels? Co-decide? Co-responsible? Has the "special case of Switzerland" even become strategically incapable in the end? In a networked world, sovereignty has long since ceased to be understood as medieval autarky. Especially for small states, whose security is ultimately guaranteed from the outside, it is a matter of optimising possibilities of influence. And about the wise use of multilateral mergers as "sovereignty enhancers" - see the EU and Ireland.
Numbers & Facts
Fortress in the Alps
As a neutral country, Switzerland must be able to defend itself. The Confederation is therefore well equipped, and defence is considered a civic duty in society.
Army people
One often hears: Switzerland does not have an army, it is an army. The army is largely recruited from militia soldiers. All male citizens must enlist at the age of 18. As long as they are physically and mentally fit and are not doing civilian service, recruits regularly take part in exercises after initial training. As a result, Switzerland has around 150,000 active and trained soldiers. Those who do not perform military service must pay three per cent of their annual income as military substitute tax.
High striking power
In a comparison of military capabilities, Switzerland ranks 44th worldwide (Global Firepower Index). But all the countries listed higher - with the exception of Norway - have a larger population than the Swiss; Austria, which is the same size, only comes in 84th in the same ranking. No wonder, Switzerland invests around five billion francs a year in armament. In addition to a well-developed network of defence installations, the army has 148 aircraft, including the F-35, the most modern fighter jets in the world. Despite its many mountains, Switzerland has 380 tanks.
Weapon in the wardrobe
Many a tourist is amazed to see armed citizens in public. Soldiers take their service weapon, the assault rifle 90, home with them. About 100 weapons are lost every year. But they are often found again, as an army spokesman affirmed, for example by the next tenant.
What does Switzerland want?
The Swiss model of "one foot in, one foot out" seems comfortable. As if there really is "the nickel and the dime" (a Helvetic metaphor for a barter deal in which one gets everything and the other nothing) in the long run. It is not for nothing that a Bertelsmann study from 2019 attests that Switzerland benefits the most from the EU's internal market. But the current state of affairs is no good as a model for the future. From the EU's point of view, there will be no new market access agreements without agreement on the institutional dimension.
The erosion of the bilateral treaties will only become noticeable creepingly for the time being - for example, when less or no investment is made in research projects or university start-ups and spin-offs; when energy security in the supply of electricity becomes fragile and help is needed; when locations of the medtech industry are relocated to the EU. But the train keeps moving, and those who do not act in time will be left sitting at the station.
In 2023, elections will be held in Switzerland. Normally, this is not a good time to rely on reason and an overarching perspective. But there is no holiday from history. The brutal Russian attack on neighbour Ukraine is turning old certainties upside down. European security policy is reshaping itself. The migration wave is rolling again. The EU needs every ounce of political energy for itself. Brexit, the Ukraine invasion and increasing geopolitical tensions are causing more unity in the EU and less willingness for special arrangements.
What does Switzerland actually want? Who immediately knows the Swiss line, not only in European policy? In times of forming geopolitical blocs, this lack of legibility can quickly become a serious disadvantage. Even among well-meaning neighbours, perplexity, even resentment, is spreading. Bern bought US fighter planes, not German or French ones. Paris and Berlin are pawing at them. Solidarity with Ukraine is not enough to deliver ammunition produced in Switzerland to Germany. Is Switzerland losing reliability in its dealings with partners?
Putting our money where our mouth is
While Bern dreams of a new framework agreement (Bilaterals III) without even being able to agree internally on a negotiating mandate, the President of the EU Commission leaves the Swiss President out in the cold in Davos in January 2023. No time for a meeting - indignation in the Swiss media. A snub? Or just a thoughtful hint that the indecisive neighbour is slipping in the ranking of EU priorities?
It is time to put our money where our mouth is. The Swiss cross and the European stars do not stand for irreconcilable opposites. Nothing in Switzerland's political genetics makes it an enemy of Europe. And conversely, no neighbour wants to bully Switzerland. Perhaps after thirty years of pause for reflection, Switzerland could throw some mirages overboard and show the world what it really is: European through and through, always has been.
Conclusion:
The relationship between Switzerland and the European Union has always been complicated. Admittedly, there are many similarities; both Switzerland and the EU, for example, are characterised by complex institutions that balance a multitude of individual interests. Nevertheless, both sides find it difficult to permanently regulate their relationship. Bern broke off negotiations on a framework treaty with the EU in 2021 without consulting the people. For pragmatic reasons, Switzerland has to adopt large parts of the EU regulations, but is reluctant to have a say in Brussels. Meanwhile, the EU's motivation to deal with the small state is sinking. In a world where geopolitical blocs are forming, a vague Swiss position could be increasingly disadvantageous.
https://www.derpragmaticus.com/schweiz-eu/

As much as MOST will hate this solution, you probably know what is coming and nothing beats it. I started porn at a very young age. (Yes quit porn it’s horrible) Im talking about 12YO. Now in my 20s.
I trained MMA when I was about 14 and this was 2-3 hours a day as I wanted to fight professionally.
My stamina was through the clouds, mostly because of !JOGGING & SPRINTING! And muscle mass from mma. Thats it…
When you Run, the compulsion of wanting to break is incomparable to the level of joy of intercourse as sensation. Theres a trick to it though. (I am writing this as I just got a dejavu of my old self in training) I hated running so my TRICK was to focus on on my breath pattern and not on the cardio vascular stress. In sex it’s difficult to do this right? But if you push yourself to run and train your mind to dismiss the stress from a serious jogging session.. you have triumphed.
When you get to near breaking point (failure) in your next running session, picture yourself as a victim of P.E. You wont be able to imagine it, peculiar right?
Just like how the structure of certain fruits correlate to the organs in our body it best nourishes, or how your hands and feet are linked to the lymph that wires throughout your body, so does a particular exercise help with our body correspondingly. Strength? Lifting. Stamina Longevity? Running. I noticed that I didn’t even do kegels back then. When I was 15yo I lasted 30-50mins with a girl. Now after years of smoking pot and barely doing anything I can quit it in minutes. Back in to running after gym now and it helps already. I am single and suddenly my fear of P.E is obliterated after my sprinting technique. 1min Fast Sprint 2min Rest. 3 sets and extend gradually per workout sesh. (I am Christian and I’ve stopped all bad detrimental habits).
MEN AND KINGS stop thinking about how nice “it” is and focus on your life, death and Jesus :). “it” will become less of a quench of thirst and suddenly intercourse will be a beautiful thing with a solitary partner where both parties are giving and finding so much gratification in restructuring the idea of your outlook toward confidence in your sentient existence.
(tip. Performance anxiety is a trigger as well, running helps once again)

OMG!!!! I just had an INCREDIBLE lucid dream!! It started off as a regular dream and in this dream it felt like I had woke up and was on the phone with a friend and I was talking to him about the dream I just woke up from. after the phone call I fell asleep and started dreaming. When I was dreaming I felt like I was still on the phone with my friend and it felt like I was still awake so somehow I had realized I was lucid dreaming. It started off as this weird cottage core dream and a bunch of my friends were there and my friend had noticed he had a gun and could actually fire it and I told him make sure to not fire it at me bc I could feel the bullets touch my fingers. I flew over the whole cottage town watching everyone play and it was so interesting, but then I had the idea of trying to spawn places bc I knew I wanted to try this. I flew into this corner where there were books and I wanted to know what words looked like in the dream world so I opened the book and it was so weird everything was blank and blurry, and I saw this poster with words and the words were backwards so I couldn’t really read it. In this corner is where I decided to spawn somewhere so I closed my eyes and said “I want to go to Japan” and blinked really hard and Lo and behold I WAS IN JAPAN!!!!!! The way everything instantly switched was incredible. It looked so beautiful. I flew around Japan taking in the beautiful scenery, flew around the houses looking inside seeing the way the houses were built and it was so cool. Flew over this baseball field where there was a game about to start. I even saw my old friend there who is part Japanese so I thought that was cool. I also saw my gf in my dream walking up to one of the houses and told her “hey baby you look so good!” And she said thank you lol. After this I closed my eyes again and said “I want to see the cherry blossoms” and blinked really hard and there I was!!! I flew over the field and decided to grab one of the flowers and I could literally feel it in my hands and even smelled it but it didn’t smell like anything. For some reason I had met this lady who wanted to fly with me so I grabbed her and told her to jump up with me and she would be able to fly with me and she did! She seemed so amazed by this so we flew around the cherry blossoms for a little and I saw this kid who was watching us and he looked like he wanted to fly too, and the lady had told him to just stare at the crystal around my neck and that would help him fly which I thought was weird bc I always wear this same crystal around my neck. After this I woke up. Wow. That was incredible !!!!

Hi all, i need some help. I have a 3 year old GSD. He’s a very good boy but suddenly for the last 3-4 days he’s become very unpredictable and aggressive. He bit my brother’s hand when he was walking him and he snapped at my roommate for just putting his leg beside when casually having dinner. What could be the reason? Please help, any solutions are appreciated! He is not neutered, do you think neutering would help? I’m literally clueless about why this is happening, please help me fix it! Thank you in advance!
EDIT - This might sound strange, but could help. He humps the bed every once in a while and weirdly finishes and is calm for months after that. My brother arrived a week ago and he tried to hump him and then tried to hump the bed, but he couldn’t finish. Could this mean that he has some pent up sexual frustration?

Toxic Rats: DJ, Scott, Trent, Sammy, Sierra
Mutant Maggots: Anne Maria, Molly, Scarlett, Dave, Geoff
Episode 07: A Mine is a Terrible Thing to Waste
"Last time, on Total Drama Revenge of the Island!" the unseen host opened on a stock shot of the island before the recap montage began. "We saw how clueless our players are when it comes to fashion," he said over a clip of the Maggots' disastrous attempt to bring a self-dressed Sasquatchanakwa out on to the runway. "And how useless they are when it comes to rescues!" he added over the Maggots getting knocked off the scaffolding by barrels thrown by Sasquatchanakwa and Sammy's ultimately failed attempt to seduce him.
"In the end, Katie got the toss-a-roo," Katie got tossed away by Sasquatchanakwa, and then was escorted away by Chef, "and DJ and Geoff got tossed onto opposite teams," Chris added over clips of the two boys volunteering, then high fiving each other as they walked over to their new teams.
The footage was cut to Chris sitting in a deck chair on the Dock of Shame as his toenails were being filed. "You call that buffing?" Chris asked, who was angry at the overweight intern filing his toenails. "I want to see my ruggedly handsome face in every toenail." The intern filed faster. "Who will thrive, and who won't survive?" Chris asked the camera, but a sudden strong wind and the sound of a rotor signaled the arrival of a helicopter.
"This is the Department of Environmental Protection!" a voice called out, the camera zooming out to show a RCMP helicopter hovering a few feet away from the host. "You're busted, McLean!"
"Aww, man!" Chris griped. "Meddling tree-huggers..." With a scowl on his face, he reached into his pocket, and pulled out a walkie-talkie. "Launch Operation Doomsday!" he ordered. "Repeat, Operation Doomsday! Over!" A short hiss of static ended the message, and he turned a smile to the camera. "What is Operation Doomsday, you ask? Find out right here, right now, on Total! Drama! Revenge, of the Island!" As the shot cut outward as usual, another pair of RCMP helicopters swooped down to join the first over the dock.
XXXXX
The scene opened up to show the Maggot cabin, where Dave was inside cleaning. He was currently setting up his bed and had just positioned his pillow.
"And with that, the cabin is clean and free of filth," Dave sighed happily.
Geoff then came running and breathing inside, unknowingly getting streaks on the floor.
"I just cleaned that!" Dave said with a bit of anger in his voice.
Geoff noticed his frustration. "Sorry 'bout that, man. I did just swap over to this team, so I don't know how much of a neat freak you are."
"It's okay," Dave forgave his new teammate. "Most of the jocks in my school come out messy after a football game, and I hate seeing muddy footprints and dirt all over the ground."
"You would not want to meet my team then," Geoff looked back. "We come off looking sweaty and we have to shower for ten minutes just to get the stink off."
Dave shuddered at the thought. "Let's stop talking about it. The thought of a muddy floor makes me nervous."
Confessional: DJ
"Being on a new team ain't gonna be a problem for me," DJ expressed his thoughts in the confessional. "I'm still lingering on from Katie's elimination. She tells me that she likes me, and I never get to tell her that I like her back." He let out a sigh of sadness. "I hope we get to meet after the show's all over."
Confessional Ends
The scene cut outside the Rats' cabin as a helicopter flew by overhead. The shot panned down to Geoff as he passed by the helicopter, then the camera showed Molly listening to another indie song on her mp3 player.
"You seemed to really like your mp3 player," Geoff chuckled a bit.
"I can't help it," Molly paused her song. "Indie songs don't normally play on the radio. Mostly pop and rock."
"I can see where you're coming from," Geoff sensed. "You like to drift away from the mainstream and focus on your own interests."
"I like other kinds of things like fashion trends and partying, but what I like is less out there," Molly answered. "I like to do things by myself. Being indie doesn't blend in well with other people."
Geoff sat down next to her. "Maybe no one will get invested by what you like to do, but there's someone who I know will."
"Who could that be?" Molly asked the party guy, not getting what she's saying.
Geoff picked up an earbud and put it in his ear. "They're right next to you."
Molly realized what was happening and put on the other earbud. "In that case, let me start the next song. It's really beachy."
This got a laugh out of both of them.
\
"Alright, let's just get our so-called breakfast over with!" Molly said as she and Geoff walked into the hall, the cast standing around looking confused.
"We can't," Dave replied. "Chef's not here, and neither is breakfast!"
"I suppose we will just have to hunt for our food, in a figure of speech," Scarlett requested before everyone began searching.
The perspective changed to show the inside of a refrigerator as Trent opened the door and looked inside. "There's no food in the fridge," he called out after looking over the bare shelves.
"Nothing in the cupboards, either!" Sammy added after opening a cupboard door.
"We should check in the walk-in freezer!" Chef suggested through a small open window, quickly hurrying away as the camera zoomed out to reveal Dave standing nearby.
"The freezer could work!" Dave thought out. He hurried across the room and threw open the freezer door, stepping inside as a cold mist poured out. "I can see meat inside," he called out and ran inside.
The others promptly ran in to join him...and a shutter door slid down behind them. They gasped, and the camera cut outside to show a truck driven by Chef starting up and moving away from a hole in the side of the mess hall.
"Challenge time, suckas!" Chef cackled, sliding open a small view slot and grinning at the camera and campers inside the cargo hold.
"This is so not cool!" Geoff complained, grabbing hold of a swinging piece of meat as most of the others tried to keep their balance in the moving vehicle.
"Where are you taking us?" Sierra asked Chef.
"You'll see," Chef answered with a devilish smile and snicker, sliding the viewing slot shut...and jamming his finger in the process, causing him to yelp in pain.
\
A flash took the scene to what appeared to be the entrance of a mineshaft. On a ledge to the right was a bulldozer and some other pieces of machinery, while to the left was not only a pile of toxic waste barrels, but also a widescreen television showing what seemed like a live feed of the host. The Chef-driven truck backed up to the entrance and with a grin the driver pushed a button that caused the hold to lift, dumping the campers out onto the dirt.
"Good. You're here. Finally," Chris said, giving them a quick look of annoyance before shifting into his typical smile. "Today's challenge is to find a Golden Chris statue in your team color," he raised his left hand and a statuette with a green base appeared with a flash and a chime, then did the same with a red-based statuette on his right, "hidden somewhere in this old abandoned mine." He motioned to the mine entrance, and the two statuettes disappeared with another flash. "First team back, wins!"
"That seems easy enough," Molly told her team confidently. "We got this, team."
"Before we go," Scarlett said, "we will need some supplies-"
She was cut off when a heavy orange backpack was tossed on her, forcefully knocking her to the ground. Everybody looked towards the truck with the others, the shot cutting over to show Chef – now in his hazmat suit – tossing the backpacks out of the back of the truck.
"Don't worry," Chris told them. "There are enough packs for everyone."
The shot cut outward just as Scott was tossed his, revealing that all the others had received packs as well. Most were lifting them with little trouble, though Dave was struggling and Scarlett was still lying on the ground.
"What'd you put in them? Rocks?" Geoff griped, reaching to open the pack's main flap.
"Up-up-up-up-up, no peeking!" Chris admonished. "Those 50 lb bags are purely for your torment," he explained, "and my amusement. Enjoy."
Scarlett was shown rooting through a side pocket and pulled out a small metal armband with a bright green triangular patch on front. "Chemical badges?" the quiet brainiac asked in concern. "Why do we need to measure our exposure to toxic waste?"
"No reason," Chris said with an impish shrug. "Except that I rented the mine out to store hazardous material." The campers all gasped.
"What?!" Trent asked in utter shock. "That is really dangerous and a hazard to our lives!"
Chris continued to be smug. "Which is why I'm in a studio right now!" Both teams immediately protested. "Relax," the devilish host told them, "it's perfectly safe. For thirty minutes," he clarified as an inset of a timer reading 30:00 appeared on the screen next to him. "When your badge turns orange," he pointed at the inset as it showed the green triangle that was on the armbands turning orange, "you have fifteen minutes left. Red is your five minute warning," the triangle turned red, "and, if you see a skull and crossbones," the entire triangle was replaced by a flashing skull and crossbones, "we'll dedicate this episode to you! But no way is it gonna come to that. A mysterious person has been down there for more than forty minutes," he said as the entire on-screen inset disappeared, "and I think they're gonna be fine!...ish..."
\
The shot went to the inside of the cave. It was pitch dark at first, but soon someone lit a candle to brighten the room. Their arm was silhouetted and dark, hiding the true identity of the one holding the candle.
All that could be heard was a villainous, but over exaggerated laugh.
\
"Now move it, peeps!" Chris told the cast, the camera cutting back outward to show them all standing with their packs.
"Can you at least give us a hint about where to find the statues?" Sammy asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Funny story," Chris said with an impish smile and sideways glance. "The statues have gone missing! Someone, or something down there must've taken them."
"Is it well lit down there?" DJ asked nervously.
"It’s a mine, bro" Chris answered, his smile almost mocking. "Pitch black all the way. There are flashlights and fireflies inside," he added, "first come, first serve. Anywho, time's a-wasting, and so are your healthy blood cells. So go!"
\
The scene cut inside the mine entrance as the Rats ran in with Sierra in the lead.
"We're in the lead!" she cheered, stopping right before a small elevator with an open front. "EEEHHH!" Her words echoed as her team joined her, and the five sent worried looks up just as the mine began to rumble and rocks fell down from the ceiling, burying them under.
The Maggots ran past them. "Thank you for allowing us to have the lead!" Scarlett said as Sierra and her teammates poked their heads out of the rubble.
"Nice going, Uber-Girl," Scott sneered at her.
The Maggot team entered the elevator, Scarlett closing the short gate as soon as she could.
"We've got the flashlights!" Dave said, picking up a pair of the devices from the elevator floor. An ominous creaking cut off any possible celebration, however, and moments later a cable snapped, dropping the elevator down its shaft. All five of the Maggots screamed.
They landed with a resounding crash, and the scene cut down to the total darkness at the bottom of the shaft. A few pained groans rose up, followed by Geoff saying "Is everyone okay?"
"I think so," Dave replied first.
"I'm fine," Anne Maria said next.
"The flashlights!" Scarlett exclaimed, Molky turning one on and revealing the broken elevator and scores of waste barrels scattered around the five fallen teens.
"Looks like a tunnel there," Molly said, the camera panning left to show both a normal mineshaft and a more natural-looking tunnel next to it. "Do we take it?"
She was answered by a high-pitched squealing that echoed through the tunnels and caves, lasting long enough for all five Maggots to look around in terror.
"Looks good to me!" Geoff answered, getting up and making a dash towards the more natural-looking tunnel. His teammates followed shortly after him.
\
The squeal faded away as the scene cut back to the top of the elevator shaft, where the five Rats had managed to get themselves free of the rubble.
"That elevator is not coming back up," Trent commented, looking down the shaft.
"We could just call it a day here," Scott impishly said.
"Or we could just shimmy down the line," DJ suggested.
"Are you sure that would work?" Sammy asked.
Trent bent down and picked up the firefly jar. "I'll go ahead and light the way," he told his team. "Then all of you can follow after me."
"That's a good idea," Sierra gave a thumbs-up.
"Here I go," Trent said in a confident tone, holding the cable with his left hand and the firefly jar under his right arm. He cried as he jumped into the shaft and slid down that cable, his declaration quickly turned into a pained shout.
The rest of the Rats shared a nervous look. "Hopefully he didn't burn his nuts," Scott said before the sound of a crash made the four of them wince.
"You can think again," Trent echoed up weakly through the shaft, causing his teammates to share another wary look.
\
A flash took the scene back down to the bottom of the shaft, Trent now lying on top of the broken elevator with his hands covering his groin. The rest of the Rats slid down above him, then hopped off to Trent's side.
"Are you alright?" Sammy asked, bending over her friend and offering him a hand.
"I'll get better," Trent said pitifully, taking her hand and allowing himself to be pulled to his feet.
"Where did the fireflies go?" Scott followed up.
"Over there," Sierra answered. The camera panned down and zoomed in on the upturned jar, then zoomed out as DJ picked it up.
"Looks like we all made it here in one piece," DJ said.
"We sure did," Sierra said as the shot quick-panned over to her standing near one of the tunnels. "We need to get going so the other team doesn't win."
"You, Sammy, and DJ can go on ahead. I'll stay back to help Trent on his feet," Scott said.
\
The Maggots were huffing and panting as the scene cut back to them entering a slightly wider portion of the tunnels. Scarlett and Molly were in front with the flashlights, Dave and Anne Maria were right behind them, and Geoff brought up the rear.
The camera zoomed in on Scarlett and Molly, who were inspecting another pair of tunnels – a normal-looking mineshaft on the left, and a jagged-edged hole on the right.
"Why are we stopping?" Dave protested.
"We hit a fork in the road," Scarlett said.
"So we have to choose between two death traps," Molly deadpanned.
"The tunnels are different," Scarlett explained. "The left one has minecart tracks and looks to be another shaft, and the right one looks like it was carved by a humongous object."
"So this mine's home to a lot of mutants?" Anne Maria finished.
"Why did we stop if we simply could've gone left?" Geoff asked.
"I don't trust rollercoasters," Molly answered. "You never know if they will fall apart."
"This path is better than the other one, so let's just roll with it," Dave concluded before they went to the shaft.
\
"Get back into this jar, fireflies!" Sierra ordered from the group of fireflies flying away while she was holding the jar of fireflies.
"DJ, chase the fireflies back to us so Sierra can catch them," Sammy told the gentle giant.
DJ nodded and dashed ahead. He immediately howled as the fireflies swarmed around his head, and when he returned back to the girls, Sierra slammed the jar on his head, trapping the fireflies but having them fly around the top of his head.
"This should be a good light source," Sammy smiled, much to DJ's indifference.
\
A flash took the focus to a pair of minecarts linked together on a downward slope as the beam of a flashlight approached.
"Yes! These carts will speed us up!" Geoff said excitedly as he led the rest of the Rats to the carts. "This'll be like riding a rollercoaster."
"This seems a lot like a death trap," Molly responded.
"This whole place is a death trap," Dave countered. "What we need is speed, so we can find our statue, get out of here, and not worry about being intoxicated."
Just then Anne Maria's badge turned from green to orange, earning a gasp from her and the others. "Anne Maria's badge is orange!" Scarlett exclaimed.
"Oh my gosh. I only have like fifteen seconds to live or somethin'!" Anne Maria cried out.
"We all have fifteen minutes. We'll be alright, Anne," Geoff comforted her.
"Oh well, that ain't so bad," Anne Maria said before filing her nails.
The shot focused in on Scarlett as her badge suddenly turned orange as well. "Everyone get in," she said before running over and diving headfirst into the back cart.
"Shotgun!" Dave called out as he hopped in the front cart with Molly.
"Looks like we're in the back," Anne Maria said happily to Geoff.
"Then let's move out!" Geoff said, grabbing her arms and pulling her to the carts. The shot cut to a close-up of the front wheel as Molly reached down and pulled away a rock that was holding them in place.
"My first time riding the rails, and I'm always unenthusiastic," Molly said.
The camera pulled back out to show all five Rats in their chosen cart, and Dave pulled a lever that made the carts start moving downhill. The Rats cheered as they rolled off-screen, but Dave quickly added "Wrong lever!" with a hint of terror in his voice.
\
"Thanks for staying back for me," Trent said as the scene moved to him and Scott in complete darkness, only their eyes visible. "Also, could you get your knee off my back?"
"Leaving someone to die is something I'm not into," Scott replied. "And my knee isn't on your back."
"Then...what is-? Oh! It's a flashlight," Trent clicked the device, and suddenly the two teens were visible... as well as a group of giant hairless - and presumably mutated - gophers standing on their hindlegs and screeching menacingly at them.
Scott and Trent clung to each other and screamed.
\
"It's great to be on this team with you guys, but if we lose, I don't mind if you vote me off," DJ told Sammy and Sierra. "We all have to go sometime."
Sammy looked taken aback by the statement. "I won't vote you off. That'd be unfair to you since you swapped teams last episode."
"And besides, we need someone that can lift a truck, and you fill the role already," Sierra said with a smile, and the three continued on with a decent amount of comfort for a few seconds more...before the badge on Sammy's arm beeped and turned orange.
DJ gasped. "Your badge! It's orange!" the brickhouse said. "You've only got fifteen minutes to live!"
Two more beeps drew their attention to DJ and Sierra's badges as they changed as well. "You do too!" Sammy cried out in panic.
"This can't be happening!" Sierra declared, dropping to her knees with an anguished look on her face. "I've never visited Paris, or gotten married legally!"
Sammy and DJ both blinked. "Uhh, what was that?" the former asked.
"I became an ordained minister on the internet, and I thought someone was into me as much as I was into them," Sierra giggled.
"We have to hurry!" Sammy said, and the three took off.
\
"Okay guys," Molly told her teammates as the scene cut back to them rolling down the slope and the camera zooming in on the pair in the front cart, "just keep your eyes open for that statue. It has to be around here somewhere."
"I think we have a problem," Dave tapped the indie chick on the shoulder and she perked up and looked back. The shot cut outward to show that the two carts were now on different tracks, with her and Dave in the foreground and Geoff, Scarlett, and Anne Maria in the back.
"How did that even happen?!" Scarlett exclaimed in disbelief.
The two carts exited from the tunnel into a much more open cave, with the former front cart's track curving downward while the other track sloped upward. Dave and Molly screamed as their cart dipped off-screen and promptly crashed, kicking up a bit of dust and causing the camera to shake.
The shot cut to Anne Maria, Scarlett, and Geoff as horror dawned on their faces as they looked ahead. "The track is broken!" Anne Maria cried out, the perspective moving to the front of the cart to reveal the mangled piece of track they were approaching.
"Everybody brace yourselves!" Geoff screamed, the camera moving back to a distant side-view as the second cart launched off the track, and fell straight down with its passengers screaming all the way. They quickly passed the rocky ledge where Molly and Dave lay seemingly unconscious, and landed with a splash far below.
The scene receded into a set of monitors, the leftmost one showing only static while the middle showed Sammy, Sierra, and DJ walking through the mine and the rightmost one showed an underground lake.
"Looks like our players are doomed," Chris said, the camera zooming out to reveal him and Chef standing in a control room of sorts. "Will any of them survive? I have my doubts," the host laughed. "But find out for sure when we return with more, Total! Drama! Revenge of the Island!"
\
(Commercial Break)
\

This is my first post here, and as far as I can tell, I'm not infringing any of the rules, but let me know if that's not the case. So I have quite a lot of experience as a DM, but I want to hear other people's ideas as to where I could take this campaign next. I like to have very little prep and improv things on the fly, as I find that is less work for me and also more fun as I don't fully know what's going to happen, and most of the best ttrpg moments I've had in the past came from improvisation. I also like to keep my stories character focused. PLAYER CHARACTERS & BACKSTORIES: A quick summary of all the PCs and their backstories. 1 - Wood Elf Rogue accidentally made a powerful wizard lose his treasure and got cursed by him with a bracelet that keeps tightening in his arm. The wizard told him it will stop shrinking once he paid his debt, and that's why he became a rogue. 2 - Wood Elf Druid that comes from a secret town in the woods. Legend says the town was built because the founders came into contact with another secret town in the woods that had a powerful spell protecting it from being found. They did their own town but it has no spell to protect it, so there's a risk of it being found by another growing town nearby, which is getting closer. The Druid wants to find this other town, learn how to make the spell to protect her own town and also find her brother who went missing years ago. 3 - Half-orc Monk orphan girl who grew up in a monastery. Her hometown got destroyed in a Drow invasion, and her family might have died there, but she does not know for sure. She met her best friend, a giant, in the monastery, but he left for an adventure and was never seen again. 20 years after this, she was expelled from the monastery for bad behaviour and now lives as an adventurer looking for her best friend. 4 - Human Paladin. He fought a battle against draugrs but got his army wiped out by a large shadowy and mysterious creature. After that, realized that power alone achieves nothing and he needed faith, so he became a paladin. 5 - High Elf Bard. Wants fame and glory. He got a black lyre in the shape of a moon handed to him by a mysterious man he never saw again. The man told him he would be rich and famous as long as he adhered to the pseudonym "Pablo". The next morning, a mark appeared on his cheek that was in the shape of a flower but the shape keeps changing every night. THE STORY SO FAR: So we've only played two sessions up to this point. They had a fight in a tavern, a halfling involved in it was saved by them and gave them a stone with the drawing of an eye on it. They went to an old wizard, which hit one player's hand with some kind of meat tenderiser to get a teardrop into the stone (the blood in the meat tenderizer might serve as some foreshadowing). After the tear drop hit the stone, the drawing became an arrow and started pointing towards the woods. They found a dungeon there and found an Owlbear inside with two cubs. The Owlbear attacked them, and they decided to kill it despite the cubs, which ran off. The half-orc monk died in the fight, but I decided to revive her because this was her first time playing. But that came with a cost, as a dark entity in a plague doctor mask came to her. They asked her to give them her arms and legs, and when she agreed, she lost all movement in her limbs. They asked her to give them her eyes, and she became blind. They asked her to give them her ears and she became deaf. After that, she came back to life as if nothing happened. Eventually, they found a big black egg on a pedestal. They took the egg, the dungeon started crumbling, and they ran back to the entrance. When they were about to get out, they were stopped by two goblins, a bugbear and an ettin holding an orange flask with a fetus inside. My plan was to make that egg hatch into a dragon eventually, which the BBEG would need to get for his ultimate plan. My plan was to make the dragon and the BBEG connected somehow and they would grow up faster than normal. The fetus in the flask is the BBEG which communicates to the ettin via telepathy. This can all still happen or change, I'm not sure. What I know is I want to incorporate the PCs backstories into this whole thing. Some very interesting things already happened like the blood in the possession of the old wizard and the half-orc coming back from the dead. I believe a collaborative creative process is much more powerful than a solo one so I want to hear which kinds of ideas you guys have on how to take this forward. Keep in mind this is supposed to be a short campaign which should probably end in 10 sessions at most (preferably less).

I see I'm not the only newb here. I just started the game and I'm excited so I want to write about it. Otherwise nothing to see here. If you're busy please disregard. I just happen to be long-winded and detail orientated.
I'm hard pressed to find an interesting game because my scope has narrowed over the years. I don't want to play yet-another-clone-of... and be disappointed again. It's not the money, it's the investment of my time. I'm praying that I can put my faith into this game, and I think it's looking very bright at the moment.
Someone recently shared a wishlist on a sub and said "tell me which of these to play next", and Dragon's Dogma was on that list. All the other games were great games and classics, and so I said "Why haven't I heard of this Dragon's Dogma before...?" And thus, I looked it up.
I immediately liked everything I saw about it, I can see through the BS these days. This game seemed like a game which A TEAM OF HUMANS ACTUALLY PUT CAREFUL THOUGHT INTO. As apposed to appealing to the end game "graphics + fighting = money". No. This one looks original and I can see it.
I wishlisted. Game goes on sale. Here I am. Nice to meet you :)
At first I was a little disappointed because the opening scenes were bugged and I think I missed some story. There is an intro tutorial fight path... that part kinda goes TOO quick and too many pop-up messages - and I could already see the buttons on the screen (literally), but I'm new, the game is a little old, so I'll grin and bare it.
First action scene? VERY INTERESTING. I immediately fell in love with the GRAB feature. That ogre didn't stand a chance! I liked how my accompaniment worked with me too. Very cool.
But then it moves on, something about a dragon, and the cut scene didn't work and suddenly I'm naked and creating a character... so that sucked (Windows 11, Steam).
Now there's more tutorials, and more tutorials... So I'm thinking 2 thoughts.
A - This could be an extensive game, so this tutorial will pay off.
B - This could be annoying if it goes on like this.
I'm still banking on A and I do believe I've gotten through the last of the tutorials... maybe? But pop-up hints don't seem to stop. (the game is a bit old, I know, I get it).
Anyway, the tutorial was fun and I did learn things, so that's good.
I like the multi-character aspect. I like the open world feeling, surprises along the road. I like the tough challenge, it has a grind to it, but my team is backing me up, and I have their back too.
So far this is lining up with everything I hoped for. I highly suspected that this is a lesser heard of cult classic ... and/or have I just been out of the loop? I'm expecting the world to open up and to find and adventure with tons of interesting missions and new territories to explore.
But I'm a little nervous about those early bugs I had, and I'm hoping these pop up windows eventually stop. I'm forgiving that much because the date of the game calls for that type of training.
I like to compare game design in terms of "Dark Souls" release, because I think DS changed the world of RPG gaming. DS broke all the rules and taught us that we are smart, and we can go without hand-holding. Dark Souls was released in 2011, Dragon's Dogma was 2012. So they didn't have the opportunity to learn from DS when they made the opening to the game. That's totally fine. I don't mean to be judgemental, and I am NOT comparing DD to DS, I'm just trying to put things into perspective in terms of general gaming evolution.
It makes sense to me that way. It's a long tutorial but immersive and well done, and probably good for these reasons. I think it's looking good.
I can see it's going to be quite a few hours before I can see whether the game opens up as much as I hope it does. If so then this was all worth it. Just a slightly bumpy start to things. But I do love it already.
I went the wrong way and got taken down by a team of enemies who totally overpowered my team. So I'm taking a break and will get back to that later. I'm looking forward to powering up and meeting them again :)
The action and surprises are all very engaging so far.
I can't wait to see what happens next!
If you read this far you are very patient. Thank you!
Do you find the game expansive and engaging? Have you put a lot of hours into it? Multiple play throughs?

throwaway for obvious reasons as he uses reddit
ive been friends with this male for a while dating back to when i was underage and he was well over 20 years old. i was dumb and thought id never find anyone else and he was the one of me blah blah all those shennanigans. He's always had mental issues (bpd diagnosed, others) and is really manipulative. whenever he meets my friends he'd harrass them, seeth with hatred whenever they talk, and try to convince me to drop them. He'd always say that if i left he'd kill himself and i know he has plans on doing it later on in life which is maybe why ive put up with so much as ive felt his life is in my hands. things have been getting bad recently so ive been wanting to cut contact with him as i've grown and realized how horrible he is to me and everyone around me/or him. ive told him alot of things about me and my secrets, and other embarrasing / meant to be kept private stuff. he's been my closest friend for a while and i really dont know how ive been putting up with this for so long. As i said before we've been fighting for a while with things getting really hostile, and now he's threatning to tell my boyfriend that i "cheated" with him if i try to leave. I would never do this to my lover as he means the world to me and its really fucking scary because im stuck with this psycho and i dont know what lengths he'd go to in order to fuck me over. Im scaried that he'll forge screenshots between me and him or other stuff because i know he's like that. im really lost and its taking a big toll on my mental health i cant handle this anymore, he is such a burden to my life and my friends dont deserve to deal with his shit.
im not much older then i was originally as im still under 20, but i have come to the realization that he is a genuine horrible person and i've been groomed and manipulated, but how do i get out of this situation?
if you've read all of this and are able to respond, thank you so much it means the world to me.

I've brought my daughter to this dentist since she was very young and always felt extremely uncomfortable with her, but I couldn't say why. Nothing happened until our last visit, which came on the heels of us (my wife and I) telling her "No" to crowns for our 6 year old daughter - a very expensive procedure that could leave her with severe problems as her face and jaw are still growing, something that the dentist could profit from. We opted, under the recommendation of other dentists, to go with ceramic filling for now - a far cheaper and safer alternative.
On our last visit, the dentist unexpectedly stabbed my daughter in the gums with a numbing needle and showed zero sympathy or concern for the sudden, painful stab. I don't know about you, but I've never had a doctor, or dentist, ever put a needle in me without a thorough heads up - especially those doing it to my child. She then tried to hold her head still and do it again, but got frustrated and left the room because my daughter wouldn't sit still and stop crying.
Instead of showing any sympathy or acknowledging her mistake when she got back, she told my daughter to "stop crying so I can concentrate...you're numb, there's no way you're feeling anything". Then she tried to use the pokescrapper tool to poke her further and saying, "let me show you, you won't feel anything", to which my daughter pushed her hand away, shrieking in terror.
My daughter told me she wanted to leave, so we shut it down. The dentists response was to snap at me and say, "Well then don't reschedule because she will just do the same thing again, don't come back here".
Our daughter is terrified to go to any dentist and we are struggling to convince her to fix her teeth at all now.
We have filed a complaint with the state, but also wonder about further legal action.

Hello all, in February I had a UTI, on March I got a BV and on the mid-May I got yeast infection. I got a 3 day treatment with Canesten and then with Nystalocal Cream for 7 additional days. After that I immediately got my period. Since that, I got itchiness and burning that comes and goes. I went to the gyno and she examined me again and told me that the Candida infection seems to be gone and took a swab for Vaginitis and the results came back negative. I insisted om the itchiness and burning and she recommended to me a hydrating cream which kinda burns when I used it!
I need to mention that I have a lot of anxiety and honestly, obsessive thoughts on my vaginal health as I have struggled a lot since February and I am afraid that there is still sth wrong. Therapist says that the Gyno can't be wrong and that I am putting a lot of attention on this issue, and because of that I might be experiencing phantom pain. She also referred to pain memory as I have experienced a lot of vaginal issues the past months. All these confuse me because on the one hand I am feeling itchiness and burning but I don't know if it is real or maybe a hyperfixation-.. on the other hand, there seems to be truth on the therapist's words because I tend to be anxious about health issues but at the same time I feel that my pain is dismissed or overlooked by the gyno and the therapist?

New addition…
So I already have a 12yr old male cat, Jacobi. He is extremely bonded to me. I acquired him from my parents 8 yrs ago because they were moving out of state and only wanted to bring one cat. They choose Jacobi’s brother (litter mate), Micah and I got Jacobi. Part of the reason they only wanted to bring one cat is because they were tired of the fights for dominance.
My 12 yr old child has been begging for a cat or dog of their own since Jacobi doesn’t like anyone but me. However, I definitely don’t want a dog and was hesitant about getting another cat because I don’t know how my cat will tolerate another cat and don’t want to stress him out as he is prone to crystals/urinary issues.
Well then I saw Peck who is a younger carbon copy of Jacobi. He is desperate for a home as his current family is moving across country with two kids under 5. So they definitely can’t take Peck as they already have their hands full and don’t think he would do well on such a long journey as he gets car sick.
So I agreed to take him.
I’m a bit worried because he has been an outdoor cat and that won’t be possible here with me (basement apartment in a complex with no direct access to outside). Also how will the two boys get along? I know to keep them separate at first and introduce very slowly. I also know about Feliway. But I’m still worried. My back up plan if it doesn’t work out is to rehome him (possibly with my coworker who just lost her outdoor cat 😞). However I’m hoping it works out. Maybe because of the age difference it will be easier. Less likely to fight for dominance? And hopefully because Peck is still young he can learn to be happy inside?
Any advice or encouragement from my fellow void lovers is welcome.

Good day everyone!
I go by the name Guardian Angel here. You can nickname me however you want!
I am a 23 year old boy who is looking for some creative roleplay partners! I try my best to be as open as I can and generally like to just have some good fun with a fellow friend.
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What I offer and expect:

• My best effort for creative posts
• Some flexibility on characters and personalities
• Friendly conversation
• Making arrangements, when being spontaneous does not work out
• 6+ sentences per post (but this is just a guideline minimum. If there really is not much you can do in a turn, then obviously it is okay to have even less)

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My playstyle goes along more of traditional tropes you'd see in animes, but don't let that scare you! I am very willing to twist ways for very interesting ideas!
I can play both canon and OC. You might want to elaborate if you wish for something.
I generally enjoy the themes of romance, slice of life, some action and really creative ideas you want to bring too! The worst I can do is just give you a polite decline, if we really do not fit, so no worries!
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Idea section:
Awakening of a Shikigami
An old legend says, that shrine maidens had their own Shikigamis. Those shrines have been long abandoned and people have respect to not frequently visit these sacred places. Though, perhaps through some circumstance, you might find yourself coming close to one of these shrines to explore it. And eventually, you might find some weird artifact, that binds you to a new entity: a spirit fox boy! It all happens so fast, that you have no idea what just happened.. and then, he appears in front of you.
He is a mute, but boasts some powers that you might not even have imagined ever to exist in this world! The catch? He is only as strong as you are.
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Meeting your guardian angel in person
Heaven surely is strict about what angels have to follow and what not. The interesting part of it though is, unlike contracts in the real world, heaven does not set up rules for every little loop hole angels have to follow. The guardian angel that is assigned to you might be more curious about what you do and who you are, so he might try to make some sort of first contact with you. Whether it be anonymous or even blatantly telling you is all up to the situation and flexibility!
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Android relationship
You are a living machine! An android to be exact. You might not understand life at its fullest and have some trouble running away from some sort of corporation that built you, but luckily you can meet an engineer, who can keep your mechanical body clean and fixed! He might be a bit of a dork though, since the workshop he has is just some old shack at a beach. But he always has the right tool at hand to help you out!

I’m 18+ and all characters and participants must be 18+
Even backstage, the roaring sound of the audience is almost deafening. With the shouting and jeering, it's hard not to feel the adrenaline pumping through my body while i await the fate of the contestant ahead of you. Collectively, they start counting down the clock, the dramatic music rising in intensity as they approach the end of the clock. In a dramatic twist, however, the clock stops, the crowd starting to boo and jeer loudly, clearly disappointed. She failed. A production assistant walks up to me, adding a bit of final make-up. She smiles, almost reassuringly. "You're up after the break. Just relax, don't let the audience intimidate you, just do your best."
As the crowd settles down, the commercial break currently airing, i see the previous contestant walk down the corridor. She's naked, her face and body covered in cum, shivering, make-up running down her cheeks. I met her briefly in the green room, earlier. Ashley, 21 years old, running the gauntlet to pay off her student debt. She had a pretty face, long straight copper hair brushing her shoulders, wider hips and a bigger rack than you imagined when the two of you shook hands earlier. Now, you see she avoids you entirely, still sobbing, while she's ushered away to another room. I knew this wasn't going to be easy, but seeing her in that state made you even more nervous. With a deep sigh, i look up at the countdown clock, while the assistant counts down with it.
3,2,1. Go.
Down the catwalk i go, lights flashing in my face, while i hear the "Next Contestant!" announcement ring through the studio. A busty woman in a suit is standing center stage, inviting me to stand next to her, while the audience claps politely upon my entry. The music ends, the lights focused on me and the presenter of this wicked show. She smiles, before turning to camera 4. "Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to the Gauntlet. Ashley didn't make the cut, but don't worry, we've got a fresh contestant lined up for you." She turns towards me. points towards camera 3. "Please, tell the audience who you are and why you're running the Gauntlet today?"
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Thanks for reading this far! Reality TV is taking on a new frontier, with girls doing depraved things for money. It might be an attempt to pay off their student debt, save up to purchase a house or just responding to a deep rooted desire to be used. Running the gauntlet seems easy; it can be quite lighthearted and quirky if you want, or dark if that's what you prefer. The idea of the gauntlet is that my character will be pushed to her limits.
Kinks: cum, cum eating, cum food, cum play,bukkake,cream pie,bdsm, bondage, forced, body writing, spanking, cuddling, degradation, rough partners, sizeplay, dominant partners, toys, multiple partners, spit roasting, mating press, full Nelson,frenching,rimming,body oil,bestiality,water sports,wax play,sex machines,being filmed,cosplay,NTR,petplay,exhibitionism,biting and pretty much anything that isn’t my limits
Limits:
Scat,gore,vore,hyper sizes,necro and vomit
If that's of interest to you, please get in touch at Demondork on Kik and come with any questions you have, clarifications you need and ideas you'd like to share. Just please do more than just tell me you're interested. Don't worry about responding slowly/late, I still want to hear from you. Finally, please no chat requests, I will simply ignore them.