American eagle store manager salary

I work in Maryland for a nonprofit food pantry/crisis center that provides financial assistance to low-income families and individuals. I am the sole official paid employee. This is a church sponsored organization under an umbrella church/faith-based organization made up of multiple churches all around the world. In my employment group, there are two other employees: the church secretary and the church maintenance lead (the church is our sponsor and we're on the same campus as them). The three of us don't get the same benefits as the other employees of the larger faith-based organization. The maintenance lead and I are part time, so we don't get benefits other than retirement, and the church secretary gets her paycheck via tithe or something weird like that, so her benefits get tied up in that. She finally got sick leave and vacation time recently as she's been working there for almost ten years. It's complicated. My paycheck comes from grants that fund the community centenonprofit I work for. I believe the maintenance lead gets his paycheck from tithe as well, although I've never met him as I don't attend the church.
The issues began when the pandemic hit. I am one of the receptionists and my schedule was changed such that I no longer interface with clients directly. This was done in part because the center was closed due to lockdown and because I'm immunocompromised. I worked from home for a year and a half and took calls from home. However, the phone system broke and all the calls forwarded to my personal cell phone which it was only supposed to do during the hours I worked, not at all times of the day every day of the week we're open. My supervisor - one of the pastors - refused to fix it and wouldn't pay me for the extra hours I was taking calls. Not taking calls wasn't an option as the food pantry was in serious demand (obviously), and my phone was now the only working phone for the center. Found out they were delinquent on the phone bill. I might have in writing (text on my old phone which I am currently trying to charge) that they needed me to take the calls outside of my scheduled hours but that I cannot report more than my 20 hrs. The office phones were fixed last year after they all but forced all of us to come back to the office and I wouldn't let them leave until they fixed it. It was actually starting to affect my mental health.
In between my supervisor and new site manager (unfortunately a family friend of my husband) not reporting when they got COVID (they got several people sick) and them being ableist towards me and my health concerns (telling me to keep myself safe or quit), they cut my hours down to 10 for "budgeting reasons" but explained it in such a way that it was because I needed days to work from home due to my health concerns. I was starting a new treatment and it was at the request of my doctor that I do hybrid remote until my health stabilized. They were given a proper heads up and documentation. I was also hospitalized as a result of one of my conditions. They saw all of this and cut my hours for an unknown budgeting issue and because my health made me "unreliable", despite my job being performed perfectly 100% remote. Again, I don't interface with clients anymore outside of emails and phone calls. My job right now is the man the desk when no one is in the center and listen to the site manager take zoom calls in his office for his other job. Other than turning the lights on/off none of my actual work duties affect the site or need to be done on site.
Why I'm making this post is because after the church secretary returned from my supervisor giving her COVID (he came into her office hacking up a storm and said nothing about having COVID), she asks me if I got my raise yet. Apparently, the overarching organization approved for us three in the group to get the same raise the other employees under the umbrella organization get every four years. It was going to be applied retroactively. I told her I hadn't heard about that. She then asked if I'd gotten my benefits this year yet. I told her I don't get benefits as I'm part time. She then got quiet. Apparently, my supervisor told her I got sick and vacation time. He also told her I was getting a raise. She then got really angry because he told her all of this after it was exposed in a finance meeting that $13,000 was unaccounted for in the community center budget and her expected yearly income was less than what the treasurer projected it to be. Basically, the umbrella organization had the correct numbers but, on the church and community center level, money was being moved around. I told her my hours had been cut and she got livid. She has alleged that it's likely my hours were cut to make a salary for the site manager (the family friend) and one of my other coworkers who is considered a volunteer. I am the only legal employee on the books of the center. The umbrella organization has no idea what is going on and is likely going to investigate/do an audit soon according to the church secretary.
The last straw was when I gave them a heads up that my new treatment was going to be a rough one and I asked if I could take calls from home because I knew we had no in office events or projects that needed me to be there in person (keep in mind at 10hrs I only work two days a week). They told me I could be home, but not work because I wouldn't be there in person to help them with whatever they might need. I am beyond frustrated. My job can not only be done 100% remotely, the even set me up with a program that allows me to access my work computer from my home computer. I have all the tools to assist them from home. They refuse to use them on the basis that I am not physically present. The only part of my job that would need me to be physically there is filing. Because making the three-foot walk from their desk to the filing cabinet needs to be done by me apparently. I believe my manager's exact words were "When you're home, it's like out of sight, out of mind, you know?" They didn't even include me in the conversation about whether or not I could work from home. I sent them an email a week in advance of needing a decision to be made, they didn't respond, but then my supervisor came in and told me they decided I should stay home but not work or get paid. They do this most of the time I bring up concerns in written form. They won't include me in the decision making, then respond verbally.
I have made plans to quit and find employment elsewhere as I'm deeply hurt by this, and this isn't worth the toll it's taken on my mental and physical health. This also isn't getting into the bullying by one of my coworkers (one of the ones that is allegedly getting paid and the one who pushed for me to return to the office. they also asked me a lot of questions about my position and pay rate a few months before my hours were cut). I am in my twenties and they're well into their 60s.
My question is, if I get proof that some shady dealings are going on, do I have a case for wage theft or do I have some sort of case for advocacy at all? I do have in writing (via email) detailing their comments about how my well documented health concerns and conditions are not their problem and that, though I am performing all parts of my job well and without issue, if I cannot keep myself safe from COVID, I should quit. I have a friend who is good with legal things telling them I could file a complaint on the base of disability discrimination. I'm not entirely sure if I can? I don't fully understand the process and haven't had a lot of time to look it up between job applications.
Also, not sure if this is relevant but we do receive and apply for grants on the basis of our nonprofit status from the state, county, and other faith-based organizations. Additionally, if we do get audited or investigated, like it looks like we will be, is there anything I should hold on to or make sure I have as evidence?
PS: I am getting the raise of 1% going forward but also backpay raise of 5% (calculated from July of last year till the beginning of March of this year) which was the raise they used to give every four years. Why they lowered it to 1% I'm not sure, but I'll be getting around $500 in a lump sum check hopefully in the first week of April. Feels like a participation trophy, but at least the raise is a real thing.

Hey everyone, I'm a 26M Sr Software Engineer currently making $155k/year. When I was in school, my goal was to become a Senior Engineer and make a six-figure salary. I thought it would take me longer, but thankfully, I reached this goal sooner than expected.
However, now I honestly don't know what my next step should be. I feel like I have no goals to work towards. Starting a business and dealing with the stress it comes with isn't my thing, and I dislike managing people, so moving to a management position is out of the question.
I do have some hobbies that keep me busy, but to be honest, I feel lost and unsure of what to do next in terms of my career.
One idea I've been considering is going back to academia. I enjoy the environment and have been thinking about pursuing an MBA, maybe just for fun.
Any advice or suggestions on what I could do next would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

What are the hottest stocks talked about on social media today? Check out the top list of bullish and bearish stocks from the SOL Investor app (on Apple and Google Play stores) below:
Bullish:

1. Tesla Inc. $TSLA
2. Microsoft Corporation $MSFT
3. Jack In The Box Inc. $JACK
4. RPC Inc. $RES
5. Restaurant Brands International Inc. $QSR
6. Caterpillar Inc. $CAT
7. Rio Tinto Plc $RIO
8. Baxter International Inc. $BAX
9. Koss Corporation $KOSS
10. TFI International Inc $TFII

Bearish:

1. Credit Suisse Group American Depositary Shares $CS
2. JP Morgan Chase & Co. $JPM
3. Citigroup Inc. $C
4. HSBC Holdings plc. $HSBC
5. AstraZeneca PLC $AZN
6. Morgan Stanley $MS
7. Wells Fargo & Company $WFC
8. Birks Group Inc. $BGI
9. Charles Schwab Corporation $SCHW
10. Deutsche Bank $DB

I’m already 40, turning 41. A single mom, working for full-time again for an MNC as a manager. I realize very late na ko in the game but I am starting over dahil na wipe clean ang savings ko during pandemic I was jobless for 1 full year. Thankfully was able to put away 1.5M in 2 years time but that’s it. I am saving 100k per month from my salary of 222k. Hopefully with discipline, I can put away more.
Each night I worry pa din, at my age & anak ko will enter college soon. Please advise me on my next financial steps like where to put my money to secure my family din.
Thanks in advance sa payo and please don’t judge me dahil napaka late ko na nagstart especially sa mga nababasa ko sa subs dito na sobrang financially literate than me and in their early 20s ay saved away & investing in millions na.

my mom loves complaining about me(19M) eating too much. i’m 120lbs and 6’1… and we aren’t poor AT ALL. she complains about me eating other people’s food, so i told her to buy me a brand of cereals, and she did. i started eating those a lot, but other people in the house started liking it, and complained about me leaving none for them.
i kept eating them because 1. i was hungry 2. i wanna gain weight and already struggle a lot so why wouldn’t i eat something i really enjoy 3. why am i not allowed to eat their food and they feel entitled to mine?
she got fed up with me eating them so she told me to start making sandwiches, so i started making them. then she started complaining about me using too much bread. i asked her if she just wanted me to be hungry, she said i can eat but i just should limit myself(… which means being hungry). i kept eating at my normal rate, and she got furious. this upset me a lot, because a person that weighs 120lbs can’t overeat, it’s just physically impossible. especially being me, extremely self conscious about my weight, being made fun of and treated like a kid (even by peers) for it all my life, my insecurities dismissed, one time a girl said sleeping with me was like sleeping with a woman because of how slim my waist is. besides, if the problem is that i finish the food too quickly, just buy more food, we can definitely afford it.
hell i even went to the doctor, he told me to do a blood check, everything went ok and he said “oh you’re just a skinny boy, keep eating”, my mom keeps saying “you’ll gain weight eventually” and my family says “oh it’s normal”, while everyone in the actual world puts in as much effort as possible to remind me that i’m not normal, that it’s my choice and that i should do something about it. to add to this, the 6 months i went to the gym and bulked, i only managed to reach 130lbs and was feeling like shit physically all the time because of how much i was eating(not even a lot, only 2700kcals).(inb4 gymbros with just do the work and eat bruh, just train harder bruh. i trained hard, so hard that i only stopped because i almost fainted multiple times in the last few weeks, my appetite didn’t really change, i was force feeding all 6 months)
oftentimes i feel as if she doesn’t want me to enjoy food at all. i don’t eat much meat because i don’t enjoy most of it, but when i started eating a lot of ham(one of the meats i like) she said that was unhealthy, and started cooking me chicken. i didn’t like the consistency or taste of it so i experimented with teriyaki which made it taste good to me, and she decided that was unhealthy too and threw it away.
i guess i’ll have to buy my own food, but that means saying goodbye to any hope of gaining weight(as if i had any, lol) since i don’t earn enough to buy that much food every day.
one of the consequences of this situation is me considering moving to america from italy as soon as i’m done with uni, as it isn’t common at all for sons here to move out until 25-30yo, and the salaries aren’t good enough for it anyways. when i was in america for vacation, not once did i get told by the family members hosting me that i was eating too much, quite the opposite. that convinced me that i’m not the problem.
maybe i am, though, and maybe i’m being dismissive of other perspectives, but i kinda dgaf, that’s been my whole attitude for the past few weeks. guess the only way out is waiting until i own my home.

The recent uproar around changes to the UCC seems are the result of a fundamental lack of understanding of commercial law, and we may be shooting ourselves in the foot and hampering bitcoin adoption if we don't change course quickly.
Texas Blockchain Council, Bitcoin Today Coalition and Bitcoin Policy Institute are now coordinating to try to correct misperceptions being advanced by some in the bitcoin space around the impacts of recently proposed UCC amendments being voted on at the state level.
The crux of the UCC issue is very well laid out by Carla Reyes in her recently released paper: Emerging Technology's Unfamiliarity with Commercial Law - "Far from advantaging CBDCs, the 2022 UCC Amendments promote stability and predictability in commercial transactions involving cryptocurrency."
If you read nothing else in the paper, please focus on this paragraph. The bottom line is that these UCC amendments actually enshrine bitcoin's core tenets in state laws around the country, while doing nothing to advance CBDC adoption.
If you are going to reach out to your state legislatures, please read Carla Reyes's paper first and gain an understanding of the issue.
You can view Carla Reyes's paper online in your browser by following this link and I will also include a copy of her paper below.

• ABSTRACT

Over the course of a three-year, collaborative process that was open to the public, the Uniform Law Commission (ULC) and the American Law Institute (ALI) undertook a project to revise the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) to account for the impact of emerging technologies on commercial transactions. The amendments, approved jointly by the ULC and ALI in July 2022, touch on aspects of the entire UCC, but one change has inspired ire and attracted national media attention: a proposed revision to the definition of “money.” The 2022 UCC Amendments alter the definition of “money” to account for the introduction of central bank digital currencies, such as the Bahamian Sand Dollar, and create a separate asset classification category for cryptocurrencies such as bitcoin — controllable electronic record. Opponents of this change state concern that the UCC seeks to “ban” cryptocurrency or otherwise advantage central bank digital currencies and disadvantage cryptocurrencies. This essay examines this dispute over the 2022 UCC Amendments, and argues that it stems from a misunderstanding of core commercial law concepts. Ultimately, it seems, diminishing familiarity with commercial law — a side effect of expanding reliance on emerging financial technology products — stands as a key obstacle to the enactment of a legal changes designed to give the objectors the very legal effects they desire.

• INTRODUCTION

Cryptocurrency stories of woe have dominated the news cycle since May 2022. Some of this news coverage reveals the general public’s lack of familiarity with commercial law concepts. For example, when a ruling in the Celsius bankruptcy determined that certain customer deposits belonged to Celsius, and, relegated customers to unsecured creditor status, the world generally seemed shocked. Well, everyone seemed shocked except commercial lawyers. Those lawyers familiar with the Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) and its interaction with the Bankruptcy Code might have predicted such an outcome, and, indeed, had they been consulted, might have helped prevent it. Unfortunately, as the regular use of checks and other negotiable instruments dwindles in favor of emerging financial technology products, commercial law familiarity also diminishes.
In a somewhat twisted turn of fate, emerging technology’s unfamiliarity with commercial law now threatens the adoption of key commercial law changes designed to improve the use of emerging payment mechanisms in commerce. This essay examines the proposed 2022 UCC Amendments6 and recent claims that the Amendments seek to “ban” bitcoin and facilitate the adoption of a controversial asset called Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). The essay argues that such claims rest in a failure of emerging technology’s advocates to understand commercial law terms of art and the purposes they serve in the UCC. Far from advantaging CBDCs, the 2022 UCC Amendments promote stability and predictability in commercial transactions involving cryptocurrency.

• I. THE BACKDROP: BITCOIN VS. CENTRAL BANK DIGITAL CURRENCIES

Recent concerns that the 2022 UCC Amendments push a pro-CBDC and anti-bitcoin agenda9 stem from a deep cultural and value clash between proponents of bitcoin and proponents of CBDCs. By way of brief background, bitcoin is a cryptocurrency intrinsic to the Bitcoin network. Introduced by Satoshi Nakamoto in 2009, the Bitcoin blockchain protocol provides a mechanism for recording electronic transactions through a distributed adversarial network in which it is computationally impractical for any party or group to retroactively modify transactions. Bitcoin enables the cryptographic demonstrability and relative permanency of each digital transaction, facilitates direct peer-to-peer financial transactions without intervention by a third-party intermediary, and incentivizes network support and security by issuing new bitcoin, subject to a cap, according to pre-determined rules coded into the network. Bitcoin is a medium of exchange laden with a variety of values, including preferences for: deflationary monetary economics, privacy, autonomy, and freedom in financial transactions.
These values stand in stark contrast to many of the technical and cultural elements of proposals to create CBDCs. The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (FRB) defines CBDCs “as a digital liability of the Federal Reserve that is widely available to the general public.” Even while lauding potential benefits of CBDCs, such as convenience, safety, and liquidity, the FRB also expressed concern for potential negative effects. In particular, many worry that CBDCs will increase government financial surveillance, restrict financial autonomy, and potentially disincentivize savings, among other economic implications. Ultimately, as a result of these issues, the face-off between bitcoin and CBDCs acts as a battleground over important value and political differences.
While this value-laden and politically-tense debate over the nature of money and alternative payment mechanisms brewed, a variety of stakeholders began a completely unrelated, deliberative, and open process to amend the UCC considering the last decade’s technological advances. One key issue posed by emerging technology centered on improving the commercial law rules for digital assets such as bitcoin.

• II. THE PROBLEMATIC TREATMENT OF BITCOIN UNDER EXISTING UCC PROVISIONS

A variety of lenders secure loans using cryptocurrency as collateral. As early as 2014, commercial lawyers and scholars pointed out the potential limiting effect of existing UCC provisions for the negotiability of encumbered cryptocurrency. Under the existing UCC provisions, bitcoin (and other cryptocurrency) is a general intangible. When a lender takes general intangibles as collateral for a secured loan, the lender may only perfect its security interest by filing a financing statement in the relevant filing office. As discussed in further depth below, bitcoin’s treatment as a general intangible caused two problems for those lending against bitcoin as collateral: (1) crypto-native lenders lacked an optimal method of perfecting bitcoin collateral, and (2) bitcoin users could only ensure they received unencumbered bitcoin by conducting a search in the Article 9 filing system.
First, crypto-native lenders expressed concern about filing financing statements for fear of reducing the privacy interests of debtors. Lenders worried that third-parties could ascertain when a debtor owned cryptocurrency (including, say, bitcoin) and had perhaps borrowed against it. Debtors sought more privacy than that. As a result, some lenders began taking “control” of the bitcoin collateral by, for example, taking the bitcoin into a wallet the lender controlled. While this was good for gaining access to the collateral upon default, under the existing UCC, that lender, without filing a financing statement with the relevant filing office, remained an unperfected secured creditor. Such status, of course, would pose a problem if the debtor defaulted to another, perfected, secured creditor, or if the debtor became insolvent and filed for bankruptcy. In either case, the crypto-native lender with control of the bitcoin but no filed financing statement would lose in a contest for the value of the bitcoin collateral to a secured party who filed a financing statement or to the bankruptcy trustee. Second, treatment of bitcoin as a general intangible imposed a severe limitation on the negotiability of bitcoin. An onward transferee of bitcoin could never be sure without searching the filing system whether the bitcoin they received was encumbered or not.
Many initially think the answer to the problem of treating bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as general intangibles lies in making bitcoin “money” under the UCC. Under the UCC “money” receives treatment as super-negotiable; a recipient of encumbered money from a debtor takes it free of a security interest granted by the debtor. However, ultimately, this solution remains suboptimal. Making intangible bitcoin “money” for UCC purposes is problematic because a security interest in “money” can only be perfected by possession. Possession in the UCC is a physical, tangible concept. You must be able to hold a thing in your hands in order to possess it. So, if you make bitcoin “money” for UCC purposes, you make it impossible to perfect a security interest in bitcoin, which is worse for lenders than classifying bitcoin as a general intangible — at least as a general intangible, an actual way to perfect a security interest exists.

• III. THE 2022 UCC AMENDMENTS RESPECT BITCOINS NEGOTIABILITY AND DECENTRALIZATION

The 2022 UCC Amendments offer nuanced resolutions to these issues. First, the amendments create a new category of asset for UCC purposes (and for UCC purposes only). That category of assets is called a “controllable electronic record” (CER). A CER “means a record stored in an electronic medium that can be subjected to control under Section 12-105.” In an innovative move, the technology agnostic 2022 UCC Amendments defer to the technical system of the CER to determine what constitutes control as a technical matter, so long the person who has control obtains: (1) the power to enjoy substantially all the benefit of the CER; (2) the exclusive power to prevent others from enjoying “substantially all the benefit” of the CER; and (3) the exclusive power to transfer control of the CER.34 Notably, exclusivity is not lost if it is shared by agreement (or by technology — such as multi-signature arrangements).
This definition of “control” serves two purposes: (1) it serves a definitional purpose — namely, not all electronic records are CERs, just those capable of being subject to the defined term control, and (2) lenders who take cryptocurrency, including bitcoin, as collateral, may now perfect security interests by control.36 Indeed, the amendments make control the preferred method of perfection for CERs over filing. This, of course, is exactly what existing industry players had already been doing — just without the legal benefits they would have wanted under the existing provisions of the UCC. The 2022 UCC Amendments seek to bring the law up to speed with what bitcoin-native secured lenders thought was best all along. Additionally, the 2022 UCC Amendments provide that if a purchaser of a CER (such as bitcoin) is a qualifying purchaser, the purchaser will benefit from a take-free rule; the purchaser gets an unencumbered CER. In this way, treating bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies as CERs resolves the two prominent problems lenders taking bitcoin as collateral face under the existing UCC provisions.
Far from favoring CBDCs, the 2022 UCC Amendments seek to facilitate the negotiability of CERs such as bitcoin. Without such rules as the take-free rules, bitcoin and other CERs would be at a disadvantage to CBDCs in terms of negotiability. Instead, the 2022 UCC Amendments preserve the negotiability of bitcoin and other CERs in a way that should better enable individuals to freely transact in bitcoin without worry that they are taking the bitcoin subject to a secret lien. This represents an extremely important change to commercial law rule for the maintenance of bitcoin and cryptocurrencies as freely transferable bearer-like instruments.
As the 2022 UCC Amendments were being drafted and debated, El Salvador adopted bitcoin as legal tender. Arguably, El Salvador's move made bitcoin “money” under the existing UCC. Of course, this presents a problem because no lender can now perfect a security interest in bitcoin. Recall that “money” must be perfected by possession and possession is a concept for tangible things you can hold in your hands. The existence of intangible bitcoin as “money” does not fit within that model of perfection by physical possession. Further, some countries already developed CBDCs like the Sand Dollar. The Sand Dollar, as e-currency authorized by the Bahamian government, clearly falls under the UCC’s existing definition of “money,” leaving lenders with no way to perfect security interests in Sand Dollars or other CBDCs, because possession, as a physical concept simply does not work.
Further, as a form of legal tender, many expect CBDCs to integrate with the existing banking system, and the existing UCC rules already account for how to perfect in collateral like a deposit account (namely by control, defined in a different way). Notably, even El Salvador’s adoption of bitcoin integrates with the existing banking system similarly to CBDCs. El Salvador implemented its adoption of bitcoin as legal tender through the Chivo wallet, a custodial wallet that does not give users control over their private keys. The 2022 UCC Amendments could have taken its cue from the El Salvador implementation and required that perfection of bitcoin and other cryptocurrency take place via a custodial wallet provider or deposit account. The 2022 UCC Amendments opted for a different approach. Namely, to address the likely integration of CBDCs with the existing banking system while also attempting to honor the decentralized nature of cryptocurrencies and blockchain protocols like that found in bitcoin, the 2022 UCC Amendments kept the CER category for bitcoin and created a separate concept of “electronic money.”
“Electronic money” includes any “medium of exchange that is currently authorized or adopted by a domestic or foreign government,” but excludes “an electronic record that is a medium of exchange recorded and transferable in a system that existed and operated…before the medium of exchange was authorized or adopted by the government” (like El Salvador and bitcoin). Notably, this change does not preference CBDCs, but instead deals with unique issues. Namely, if electronic money is credited to a deposit account (which in UCC-speak means a bank account, and could include an account at a central bank), then the normal deposit account perfection rules will apply. If the electronic money collateral is not credited to a deposit account, then a security interest in electronic money could be perfected by control. As a practical matter, because of the nature of CBDCs, the default method of perfection in electronic money in practice will likely be by perfection of deposit accounts. It should come as no surprise, then, as to why treating bitcoin like “electronic money” and folding it into the definition of “money” would be sub-optimal. Namely, such treatment would likely encourage recentralization of bitcoin holdings through deposit accounts or intermediated securities accounts. Such recentralization would be a step in an incredibly wrong direction. Rather, enabling maximum party autonomy by allowing individualized control over a CER to act as a method of perfection for bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies represents a more beneficial approach, as signaled by the fact that crypto-native secured lenders employed this approach before the 2022 UCC Amendments project began. The separation between “electronic money” and CERs, far from somehow favoring CBDCs, respects existing commercial practice and the decentralized nature of bitcoin and other cryptocurrency.

• CONCLUSION

The worries raised about the UCC including CBDCs in the definition of “money” while excluding bitcoin center on a concern that other laws might copy the definition for other purposes. In this regard, the private law nature of the UCC plays an important role. The UCC is not regulatory in nature, and the definition of “money” in the UCC has no direct impact on the definition of “money” for other legal purposes such as in taxes, anti-money laundering, money transmitter regulations, security regulations, commodities regulations, or even which mediums of exchange serve as U.S. legal tender. The definition of “money” in the UCC serves a narrow commercial law purpose: to provide predictability and stability in commercial transactions relating to a specific type of medium of exchange. The unique and decentralized nature of bitcoin and other cryptocurrency require a different approach to enabling stable and predictable commercial transactions involving those assets.
The 2022 UCC Amendments seek to preserve the decentralized nature of bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, enable secured lenders to enjoy legal benefits of their existing commercial practices, and by protect the negotiability of bitcoin by allowing onward transferees to take bitcoin and cryptocurrencies free of existing encumbrances. Without an understanding of the role that the definition of “money” plays in the UCC, however, bitcoin’s proponents may miss the opportunity to support a law that respects some of bitcoin’s core values. Although unfamiliarity with blockchain-related terminology often motivates sub-optimal legislation and regulatory schemes for cryptocurrency, smart contracts, and other emerging technology, this battle over the 2022 UCC Amendments stems from the opposite: unfamiliarity with commercial law among proponents of emerging technology. Emerging technology’s language wars, it seems, run both ways.
In the case of South Dakota, while the governor’s rhetorical response reflects well on her political judgment, this proposed bill does not, unlike the Governor and others claim, tilt South Dakota toward a CBDC purgatory. Nor does it restrict Bitcoin’s adoption. It’s actually bullish for Bitcoin.
How this misunderstanding has metastasized through political discourse — from state governors to Bitcoin-friendly Congressmen — deserves its own deconstruction, but I’ll leave that to others.
The bill in question — based on an update to the Uniform Commercial Code — not only expands definitions and protections for Bitcoin, but actually creates a legal mechanism for recognizing self-custody and for the protocol’s inclusion in traditional lending, insurance, and commercial transactions.
In a sense, it’s an upgrade to existing commercial law that would allow Bitcoin to be used as collateral for all future financial contracts. It’s “not your keys, not your coins” in commercial law.
Not only would this bill protect your Bitcoin in any commercial transaction, but it would also better define and protect ownership of your Bitcoin in a bankruptcy scenario like FTX, Voyager, or BlockFi.
More at https://www.btcpolicy.org/articles/in-attempt-to-stop-cbdcs-states-are-rejecting-ostensibly-pro-bitcoin-legislation

Here is the first episode in a rather good Russian series of many episodes about the relations between the Russians and the Mongolian Golden Horde in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries.
​
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PcO65BfO1SU
​
It's in Russian, for Russians, and there are no subtitles. I just know a bit of Russian, but that's sufficient to follow the action pretty well. The Russians and the Mongols got along rather well, of course. So well, that some people might argue that the Russian Empire was, and is, simply an extension of the Mongol Empire. What was the basis of this good relationship between these two rival empires? How did they manage to integrate their skills, religions, ambitions and world views so well, and live in a highly productive and peaceful relationship for centuries?
​
This Russian series provides a rather interesting and innovative perspective on this question. Apparently, the primary basis for trade, mutual self-interest and common ground between these distinct, rival cultures was quite simple, and quite specific.
​
They just loved raping each other's women!
​
While there's no nudity or graphic sexuality represented, it's quite clear what's going on. Both the Mongol and Russian women are running in terror from the men in the opposite culture, and the men are having a terrific time running them down, kidnapping them, and having their way with them. Sometimes these are organized actions by the leaders of both cultures, formally trading and exchanging their women, and sometimes it's just a spur of the moment abduction by private individuals, on their own initiative. In either case, these actions help to keep everyone very busy indeed, far too busy to make war. "Make love, not war!" appears to have have been, quite literally, the underlying motto of the relationship between the Russians and the Mongols.
​
Now, it seems to me, that this brings up a rather broader question, of the extent to which this principle has applied throughout human history. King Solomon, of Israel, had 700 wives, and 300 concubines. Presumably, he didn't really need this many simply to do his housekeeping. These were, effectively, female hostages used to seal peace between Israel and the various rival, Arab tribes in the region. In Medieval Europe, it was standard procedure to use arranged marriages of Nobles as a means of establishing strong relationships between rival nation states. Effectively, women throughout history have been used, and have acquiesced to being used, as a means of establishing, through their own submission to broader social interests, better relations between rivals. War and conflicts are eased by the passive kindness of women to all and sundry.
​
And, indeed, when women fail to perform this function, and become active participants in conflicts, the opposite pattern occurs. Joan of Arc and Boadicea show the power and danger socially when women choose to fight. Conflicts become massively escalated. More recently, we see this pattern in the Soviet resistance to the Nazis, and the Vietnamese resistance to the Americans. Because women chose to fight, the invader was destroyed, and integration and conquest failed miserably.
​
So, what if historically, women had not acquiesced to serve the role as captives in exchanges for peace? Thoughts?

KULR Technology Group, Inc. (NYSE American: KULR) (the "Company" or "KULR"), a leading energy management platform company accelerating the global transition to a sustainable electrification economy, will hold a conference call on Thursday, March 23rd at 4:30 p.m. Eastern time (1:30 p.m. Pacific time) to discuss its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2022. Financial results will be issued in a press release prior to the call.
KULR management will host the conference call, followed by a question-and-answer period. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/kulr-technology-group-sets-fourth-120000865.html

The world of supply chain management is changing rapidly, and the two most popular approaches today are decentralized and centralized supply chains. Two companies that exemplify these approaches are Unilever and Amazon. Unilever, a multinational consumer goods company, has a decentralized supply chain, while Amazon, the e-commerce giant, has a centralized supply chain. Here, we will explore the differences between these two approaches and compare Unilever's supply chain with Amazon's.
✳ Decentralized Supply Chain - Unilever
Unilever's supply chain is decentralized, which means that it has multiple facilities and suppliers across the world. These facilities and suppliers work independently and have a certain degree of autonomy. They are responsible for their own production, inventory management, and distribution. Unilever's decentralized supply chain allows for better control over the entire process, as it can respond to local market demands, reduce lead times, and reduce transportation costs.
✅ Benefits is that it allows for a high level of customization. The company can adapt its products to meet the specific needs and preferences of different markets, which is important in the consumer goods industry. Unilever's decentralized supply chain also promotes innovation, as different facilities can experiment with new products and processes.
✴ Centralized Supply Chain - Amazon
In contrast, Amazon's supply chain is centralized. The company has a few large fulfillment centers that handle all aspects of the supply chain, from receiving goods to storing, packaging, and shipping them. Amazon's centralized supply chain is highly automated and efficient, which allows the company to offer fast and reliable delivery to customers.
☑ Benefits is that it allows for economies of scale. The company can buy large quantities of products at a lower cost and store them in its fulfillment centers, which reduces transportation costs and lead times. Amazon's centralized supply chain also allows for better control over quality and consistency, as all products are handled by the same facilities and processes.
🔄 Comparing Unilever and Amazon's Supply Chain
Both have their respective strengths and weaknesses. Unilever's decentralized approach allows for a high level of customization and innovation, but it may be less efficient and more costly due to the need for multiple facilities and suppliers. While, Amazon's centralized approach allows for economies of scale and better control over quality and consistency, but it may be less adaptable to local market demands and less innovative.
#supplychainmanagement #logistics #decentralizedsupplychain #centralizedsupplychain #Unilever #Amazon #supplychaincomparison #efficiency #automation #inventorymanagement #distribution #marketdemand #supplychain #supplychains #shipping #transportation #innovation #work #management #packaging #markets #commerce #quality #leadtimes #transportationcosts #businessstrategy.

I feel like getting a Nexus letter is a Catch-22. I have read in forums here and Facebook that the VA doesn’t like the Nexus producing companies, but what choice do Veterans have?
I approached my long time ENT who is an Air Force Veteran. He wouldn’t even consider doing a Nexus. He doesn’t want to be bothered. He had his office manager tell me to go to the VA for one.
I had an annual appointment with my sleep doctor and even though I am not ready for their Nexus, I casually asked if they do them. They said no, it’s my primary care doctor’s job. Both my sleep doctor (Pulmonologist) and my primary care doctor belong to the same very large health system. I sent my primary doctor a message about what the sleep doctor had said and she said that she didn’t do them either. So I asked her if anyone in their system did them or if it was a system policy. Her Chief Medical Officer said no one did them and said that my disability lawyer would have someone. I don’t have an attorney, nor should I need one at this point.
My dermatologist was receptive but was told by her supervisor to have their lawyer approve her doing one which leads me to believe they will say no. At least, she was willing to try. She’s a PA
It’s not like so didn’t offer to pay any of them for their time.
So if I have to find an IMO doctor and pay them to write one, I’d want to find someone who knows how to do Nexus letters rather than someone who does it for workman’s comp. This leads me back to how the VA supposedly hates these companies. Catch-22.
I’ve seen posts positive and negative about Prestige Veteran Medical Consulting. I just saw one for American Medical Experts. I’ve even seen a supposed VA IMO blacklist from 2018(?). I have an email out to my VSO who works for my county for recommendations.
I think in theory that the VA heavily preferring a letter from the treating doctor sounds great. I’d prefer that as well as my doctors know me. Conversely, even if they were willing, they would have to spend time learning how to do the Nexus letter and the process to feel comfortable even after I provide Nexus letter samples and information.
Any recommendations for a good reputable Nexus provider? Any to avoid? I don’t think I saw a list in the group files. Sometimes the provider is great on some issues but not on others. I’ve done some searches multiple groups. I’d like to stick with the good and avoid the bad and the ugly. Obtaining a Nexus appears to be an issue that a majority of Veterans encounter.

I work as a marketing editor at the largest asset management firm in Washington state, which was acquired last year by a major US bank. This morning I wake up to a LinkedIn connection request from someone I've never met, also in Seattle and, according to her, in "the same space."
I click on her profile. She's a general manager at American Income Life.
SWEETIE. You're in the same space with me the way beef jerky is in the same space as beef Wellington. If you think my SEC-regulated employer would ever allow me to touch anything you've touched, you don't know this space at all. JOG ON.

Part 53
TW: Intense, masochistic sexuality.
Caliope, Clever Little Shit
Caliope sat in the back of the transport, still parked in front of the fancy house somewhere in south LA. Finally, she had her hands cuffed in front of her body, and she could reach her crotch. She dug fingers in her panties and inside of herself, reaching deep, into her posterior fornix. The thrill of stimulation there barely registered, even though it was her favorite spot for a cock or dildo to hit. She was too angry.
She pushed hard, twisting at the cuffs until she fit her entire hand inside of herself, and she could finally reach the scar. It had been there for years, waiting for this exact opportunity.
She dug her fingernails in, the sensitive tissue sending howling signals of pain to her brain, where her own psychology twisted them into signals of pleasure. Blood flowed as she scratched and clawed at herself, but she eventually found what she was looking for. Flesh parted, revealing a small, artificial lump.
She seized in in slippery fingers and pulled it out. It was a tiny handcuff key, with a tiny bit of her own brand of magic stored inside of it, wrapped in layers of cling-wrap. She quickly unwrapped it as blood soaked through her panties and smeared the seat.
She finally got it unwrapped and wasted no time unlocking her handcuffs. The bleeding did not concern her, she knew she would heal rapidly once she was done. She touched the key to the collar around her throat and felt the relief as its magic failed. She quickly used the sharpened tooth on the key to saw through the strap of the collar.
Her own magic filled her, and she let some of it turn to healing. She turned some more into physical strength. Then she checked the doors.
Locked, of course. The DCM was not known for ignoring non-magical security measures. She saw the two officers moving towards her vehicle, and decided that violence was the way to go. She placed her hands in her lap and waited.
They climbed in and started the vehicle.
"Listen," the driver said. "Here's how this works. You don't give us any problems, we don't give you any problems, okay?"
She nodded. "I understand," she said. "No problems."
"Good. We're probably gonna hit a drive-thru on the way. You can get something if you're hungry," the passenger said. Caliope nodded. "Thank you," she said, demurely. A drive-thru would be the perfect time to strike.
She sat in the back quietly as they drove her north. Around Anaheim, they pulled into a Jack in the Box, stopping in front of the menu. "Figure out what you want," the passenger said, turning to face her. "It's my treat."
Caliope smiled at him. He smiled back, then turned to face forward, and that's when Caliope struck.
She felt like she'd gotten a raw deal, the last time. She had never really gotten the chance to fight, except when she faced off with that psycho lunatic who'd surprised her and beaten her to within an inch of her life before she even understood what was happening. She had been training to fight for years and years, and yet when the time came, she managed to catch the guy who was, according to everything she understood, out standing shoulder-to-shoulder with the gods themselves.
But these two, they were former soldiers or cops. Not demigods, not magical beings of immense power.
She surged forward and grabbed the driver by the head, digging fingers into his eye sockets. The man let loose a howl that brought a smile to her face as she blinded him and slammed his head against the seat rest. She brought her feet up and wedged them against the back of his seat even as the passenger spun, a can of paper spray coming up. She ignored him, even as the magical shield triggered by the can popped into place on the man's face and tried -unsuccessfully, thanks to her fingers- to form over the driver's face.
The man let loose and the liquid splattered her face, immediately causing an intense burning sensation. She shuddered as the pain made her cum and redoubled her efforts. With magically enhanced strength, it didn't take long to bend the headrest back, hyperextending the man's neck. His struggles abruptly stopped as she felt something pop in his body and he slumped against her.
The passenger had apparently realized that the pepper spray was just this side of worthless and drawn his sidearm. He thrust it towards he, and she had just enough time to duck her head and seize his wrist before it went off.
The sound was deafening in the enclosed space. Caliope's ears rang as she squeezed the man's wrist and slammed it into his own headrest. He reached back with his free hand and grabbed a handful of her hair, yanking forward and slamming her face into the back of his seat. She felt her nose break and another orgasm swept through her as she grabbed the hand holding her head.
She slammed his wrist again and again, and finally he dropped the gun. She tried to catch it, but missed and it clattered to the floor. She reached down for it, but the man's grip on her hair kept her from it. She strained against him, reaching for the gun.
His right hand vanished, then she felt a heavy impact in her side. She glanced down to see the man drawing the four-inch blade of a combat knife out of her ribs. The impact began to throb and burn as she whipped her head around and warded his knife off with one hand, still straining for the gun with the other.
The knife darted and slashed, opening her arm in two places. She brushed the gun with her fingertips, shifting it. Caliope sucked in a deep breath, ignoring the burning in her side and her arm that made her want to touch herself, and yanked down hard on the hand holding her hair. Her scalp erupted into more burning as he yanked a large clump of hair out by the roots, but she could now reach the gun.
She picked it up and pressed it to the back of the seat, squeezing the trigger until the slide locked back. The cracks of the shots were loud, but her still-ringing ears muted them. The guard slumped, his hands going limp. He dropped the knife into the foot well.
Caliope leaned back and gave in to the urge that had been with her ever since the pepper spray struck her. She wiped her face, wetting her hands and then stuck them both in her panties, coming immediately as her vulva began to burn. She played with herself for several minutes, until she couldn't afford to remain here any longer. Someone in the restaurant or the buildings nearby would have heard the gunshots and the local police might be on the way already.
She grabbed the driver and hauled him into the back, then climbed up to the driver's seat. She put the vehicle, still idling, back into drive and spun it around, pulling back out of the parking lot.
She glanced at the body next to her. "You don't give me any trouble, I won't give you any trouble," she said with a grin.
----
A few miles later, she pulled into a mostly empty parking lot in front of a strip mall. She turned onto the road as she reached over and patted the pockets of the dead guard. She found his cellphone in his pants pocket and pulled it out. She used his phone to unlock it and opened the web browser, typing in a URL that she knew by heart. It took a second to load, and when it did, it immediately loaded a chat room.
U there? she typed and hit send. She waited.
Less than ten seconds passed before the indicator that someone was typing flashed on. A few seconds after that, a new message appeared.
Waiting on u, it said. Caliope grinned.
I no where theres guns an shit, Caliope typed, pausing to check the history of the vehicle's on-board GPS. in san clemente. im in anaheim rn
The typing icon appeared, cycled through its animation and vanished.
Coming there where r u? the chat read. Caliope's grin widened. She hit back on the GPS until it showed her current location, giving the intersection at the top.
Euclid st n katelia ave, in a car w dcm stickers by the arbys
A second later, the icon appeared and then vanished before it could animate.
Omw, the chat read.
Caliope turned and wrestled the other guard's body into the back, then got out and opened the rear hatch. She found raincoats, rifles, a shotgun and assorted gear, mostly tools that would be useful in a rescue situation. She grabbed a raincoat and a blanket and then closed it up.
She threw the blanket over the bodies in the back, then stripped out of her bloody clothes and threw the raincoat on. It was translucent, but she didn't care. She checked their pockets and then the center console of the vehicle, finding a few bills in their wallets and a mass of change in the center console. She took it and walked into a laundromat that was part of the strip mall.
She washed her clothes, smiling at the men who kept sneaking peeks at her body through the raincoat. After they came out of the dryer, she stripped right there and pulled them on. Two of the younger men cheered for her when she pulled the raincoat off.
She left and went to sit in the driver's seat of the DCM vehicle. She waited for another thirty minutes, until a beat-up old Toyota pulled into the spot next to her, and her sister and two men climbed out.
She rolled down the window. "Hulks or ninjas?" she asked the two men. Both sneered at her. "Hulks," one of them said, sounding offended. She smiled. "Good. There's only four guards left to watch the place until the cops come. If we hurry, this should be easy."
----
"Griselda, are you done?" Caliope asked, sticking her head into the kitchen. Griselda sat there, in front of the last survivor of their assault on Garcia's home. He was slumped over, insensate, the hand she had duct-taped to the table by the wrist flayed open to expose muscle and tendons.
Griselda pouted at her sister. "He fainted," she said.
"We're all geared up," Caliope told her. "We're ready to decide what to do."
Griselda stood. She picked up a sewing needle from the table and jammed it into the man's shoulder as she passed him by, but he didn't react. He really was out cold.
The two hulks, Johnny and Bob, stood in the living room, next to the shimmering portal.
"So where we going? We splitting up, or sticking together?" Bob asked.
"Well," Griselda said. "We don't really have any money. Just a couple hundred bucks. And we're on the run, so we need money."
"These guns are worth a pretty penny," Johnny said, hefting a shotgun. Caliope shook her head. "They're not worth enough for us to split up and vanish, the way we need to."
"Duke told us what to do," Bob pointed out.
"He goes by 'Dylan' now," Griselda told him, glancing at Caliope for confirmation. She nodded.
"He did, but the question is whether we want to work for him again," Caliope said.
"I don't give a shit who I work for, as long as I get paid," Johnny said.
"Duke was always good about making sure we got paid," Bob agreed.
Caliope was less sure. She looked at her sister, who shrugged. "Why not?" Griselda asked. "I mean, it's right there. The dead world. We don't even have to look for it, it's right in front of us."
Caliope nodded. Finding the dead world had always been the 'tricky part' of Duke-er, Dylan's emergency plan. But there it was, right through that portal. With that problem solved, the idea of teaming back up with their old boss was a bit more appealing.
"Fuck it," Caliope said. Griselda grinned at her. "Let's go."
They all walked through the portal, checking behind them to make sure the way back was still there as they emerged onto a concrete road, surrounded by concrete buildings and dried-out corpses. It was, the dark ritual room a shocking contrast to the midday sun around them.
"Okay, now which way?" Johnny asked after they'd all walked through. As if in response, a thunderous roar sounded from off in the distance.
"Towards the monster," Caliope said. Griselda took her hand, digging her nails in, making Caliope whimper. She slipped a hand down the back of her sister's pants and slipped a finger into her ass, wiggling it. They smiled at each and turned to share a deep kiss for a moment before they took off, following the two men.
They trudged through the city for over an hour, not seeing any sign of whatever had done the roaring. Caliope noted the bodies and made a game of trying to guess what they'd been doing when they died. She soon roped Griselda into it, and they began guessing out loud. Before too long, Johnny and Bob joined in.
"Those two were fucking, for sure," Johnny said, pointing to a pair of corpses, one piled on the other.
"With their pants on?" Caliope asked skeptically.
"Fine, but those two were definitely fucking," Bob said, stopping and pointing down an alley. Caliope looked, and sure enough, another pair of corpses were piled there. The one on top had pants around its ankles, and the one on the bottom had a skirt that was hiked up.
They all stopped to laugh at that pair, killed in the middle of their tryst.
Johnny walked over and began messing with the corpses before throwing his head back and laughing. Griselda crouched down next to him, then began to giggle and raised the man's hand to slap her palm against it.
"What?" Caliope asked?
"She's got a toy in her asshole, and the dude is still inside her," Johnny explained, wiping tears from his eyes. Caliope grinned. "Adventurous," she quipped.
"Jesus," Bob said, checking it out for himself. "How fucking jaded do you gotta be to have to get your rocks off by getting DPed in public?"
Griselda jabbed him in the ribs, hard. "Don't mock people's kinks," she said.
Bob turned a look on her. "Oh, you like getting DPed in public? Maybe Johnny and I could help you out a bit," he said. Caliope noted a certain gleam in his eyes and decided to speak up.
"How could you do that, Bob, after my sister cuts your dick off?"
"Heh," Bob chuffed, straightening up. "I know you two have your tricks, but I wouldn't need to get big to toss you both around like rag dolls. Trust me, if I decide to fuck you, I'm gonna fuck you."
"Jesus fuck," Johnny objected. "Shut the fuck up, Bob. If you try to rape one of them, I'll help them beat the shit out of you. We've got more important shit to worry about, right now."
Caliope nodded in agreement. She was beginning to like Johnny. He had that big, blonde gringo thing going for him, and he seemed to have a good head on his shoulders.
"Johnny's right, Bob," she said. "And we can target our silence, you know. We could stop you from getting big, while letting him."
Bob laughed, though she detected a tinge of nerve in his tone. "You guys are way too uptight. Can't even tell when you're being fucked with."
"Well, let's stop fucking around," Caliope said. "In fact, we should stop talking, so we can hear if anything's approaching. I'd hate for whatever made that roar to catch us flat footed, talking about whose dick is going in whose asshole."
"My dick," Griselda said, "Goes in everyone's asshole." She stood and brushed sand off her pants, walking away from the fateful lovers.
Johnny joined her, leaving Bob to trail behind as they set off again.
They walked the rest of the afternoon in silence. As the sun set, they stopped to confer about what to do, deciding to stop in an intact building. They had Bob go out and gather grass and leaves and crumbling sticks to make a fire with, and then they heated up some of the camp food they'd found.
After eating, they cleared spaces on the floor and set up their sleeping bags, then went to sleep.
Caliope waited until she could hear three voices snoring before she climbed out of her bag. She stripped down to nothing and walked out of the building. The night sky looked different, she thought. The stars were different and the milky way was thicker and less bright.
She found the bench she'd spotted on their way in. It had small, sharp looking fins protruding from the arms which had caught her eye. She placed a leg on the seat and lowered herself, grinding her hips back and forth. The fins tore at the skin of her vulva, the tugging, burning pain making her body tingle. Blood dripped onto the rusty metal, and she wondered idly if she'd get tetanus from it.
The idea excited her. It was suppose to be a painful condition.
She didn't hear the footsteps approaching over her own whimpers and gasps. She didn't know anyone was behind her until she felt a pair of large hands grab her hips.
She spun, expecting to see Bob there, but it was Johnny. She smiled, seeing him.
"You want to help?" she asked.
"I'm not sure I can, now... You're all torn up," he said. She looked down to see the blood in her pubic hair and on the bench's arm.
"I heal," she said. "Like Dylan used to. It's part of the magic."
"Wish they'd given us that part," Johnny said. He leaned forward and brushed his lips against hers. She nipped at his upper lip, making him pull back. "Don't bite," he said.
"How else do I get you to bite back?" she asked playfully. She ground herself against the bench again, feeling the slight pop as each fin caught and then came loose of her flesh.
"Ask nicely," Johnny said.
Caliope grinned, then contorted her face into a parody of pleading. "Please bite me," she whispered. Johnny eyed her skeptically for a moment, then suddenly dipped his head and sank his teeth into her neck. She gasped as he did and moaned.
"Harder," she whispered. His teeth clamped down more.
"Harder," she murmured. She felt the sudden release of tension as he broke the skin.
"Harder," she said. He let go, and she could see blood on his lips. He lifted her up and bit down on one of her nipples, and the heat of an orgasm swept her mind away for a moment. When she regained her senses, she cried "Harder!"
He flipped her around and dropped her onto the arm of the bench. It jabbed painfully into her stomach and ripped skin at the tips of each fin. She came again, shuddering as Johnny pressed one hand down on her back. She felt him roughly shove a finger into her ass, followed by a second, making her moan.
As she felt his knuckles slip inside of her, another pair of hands, smaller and softer, grabbed her head and pushed it down, smacking her cheek against the backrest. Caliope caught a glimpse of her sister between the metal bars and grinned. Nobody could hurt her quite like Griselda.
"Here," Griselda said. "Let me show you what she likes."
Caliope melted away in an ocean of delicious agony.
----
Bob seemed oblivious to what he had missed out on the next morning. Caliope moved slowly, not because any injuries lingered, but because a slight ache remained low in her stomach, and she wanted to savor it.
Johnny managed to avoid getting clingy, which Caliope appreciated. Too many men thought that fucking her meant they were now a couple of some sort, and that she needed catering to. Johnny didn't care. He packed his own bag quickly and then started the fire up again and began cooking, never so much as offering to help either of the sisters with their stuff.
They got packed up, then got some food, and then set off. Caliope was beginning to worry that they might be moving in the wrong direction, but they had no other clues to tell them where to go.
It was shortly after noon, and they had left the city, moved through a small suburb and out into the dead countryside when she heard voices. She brought a hand up, then turned and pressed a finger to her lips. Everybody crouched down, Johnny and Bob readying their guns.
The voices were getting closer, coming from the left side of the road. Caliope crept into the dead trees as quietly as she could, until she could see a break and the shine of another concrete road.
Eventually, they clarified, and Caliope could hear what they were saying.
"It's not that," one voice said, a woman's voice. "All things considered, especially with how fucking promiscuous he is, I don't really care about you two fucking. I care about him. He's been my friend for a while, and he's in a bad place."
"I did not initiate it," a second woman's voice said. "I know what he's going through. I don't want to do anything that would hurt him worse than he's already hurting."
"See, that's the thing," the first voice said. "I don't know that's true. Let me be clear, okay? I don't trust you. I know where you come from, and while I believe that you are your own person, with your own goals and whatever, I know that all of... You, comes from her. And the reason I came here is because I want her dead. I want her to die in agony, and you're a part of her."
"I am not her."
"I believe you. My concern is how much like her you are."
"Are we just going to talk about how little you trust me the whole day?"
"Nope!" the first voice said brightly. "I was just wrapping up. So if you do anything, and I mean anything, that I could possibly see as a betrayal, I'll cut your arms and legs off, stop you from healing, and feed you to Shadow."
"I understand," the second voice said coldly.
"I knew you would," said the first voice as two figured came around a bend on the other road. Both were young women, maybe in their mid twenties. One had jet-black hair with blonde roots pulled back into a ponytail, and was dressed in black tactical gear with goth makeup on. The other also had black hair, but it was longer and let free to fall down her back. She wore body armor over a t-shirt and gray cargo pants. The goth one carried a rifle, and the way her arm was casually draped over the stock suggested that she was very familiar with it.
Caliope froze, knowing that the slightest sound might draw their attention. She crossed her fingers, hoping the others wouldn't give away their presence, either. The two women walked, silent now, down the road, heading in the same direction they were moving in.
She watched them pass. When they vanished, she waited a minute or two to be sure before she returned to find the others gone.
She didn't have long to wonder where they'd gone, though. A moment after she got there, while she was still deciding which way they must have gone, the dead bushes rustled and began to shed leaves. Griselda and the two hulks appeared.
"Why'd you hide?" Caliope asked.
"There was a dude flying around," Johnny said.
"It was him," Griselda hissed, her face a mask of anger.
"The guy from the TV show," Bob added, though Caliope already knew who her sister was referring to. "The one that led the attack on the compound."
"Shit," Caliope cursed.
"What are we going to do?" Griselda demanded. Caliope held up a hand, demanding time to think.
After a moment, she gave voice to her thoughts.
"He has to be with the two I saw. At some point, he's got to land. If we follow them, we could get the jump on them."
Griselda's angry look turned into an eager grin. "I want him, after we kill the other two."
"Shit," Bob said. "If the other two are hot, I want one of them."
"So we'll kill one and capture two," Johnny said. "You recognize these fuckers, what do we have to deal with?"
"Nothing important," Caliope said. "Nothing dangerous, at least not once my sister and I take away their magic."
They all shared in Griselda's eager look, then.

I accepted a job to manage a business (cafe) late last year. The posting said the store was wanting to open in 45 days; I’ve ran a similar business for 6 years, so I interviewed and they hired me.
It’s been 5 months, and the store still since open.
I’ve been put in charge of making menus, running construction, putting together furniture, etc. There’s been very little guidance, and they’ve started yelling at me for not getting enough done. Several times I’ve explained this isn’t my wheelhouse - which they were fine with. I desperately want to quit - I have a chronic health condition that the current ‘duties’ of my job are exasperating, and I’m only just not getting insurance so I can get med refills. If I quit I’m worried I will run out and who knows when I can get another job with insurance.
I’m in so much pain, and I can’t get any help until I get insurance. One of my monthly meds cost $300, and even with GoodRx it’s around $100, and I have 3 others I need to manage pain.
Sorry for the little sense this makes, I honestly don’t know what how to get help

I am looking around for classroom and building notification devices with color video displays. There are two major companies in this area that I am aware of currently, and they both have some really annoying downsides.

• Advanced Network Devices - tiny LCD video display about 6 inches tall by 10 inches wide, with speaker and flasher.
  • But it costs .... US $1200 each .... waaat, this is nuts pricing for such a simple device.
  • When the LCD panel eventually wears out, you may need to toss the whole thing and buy another.
• American Time / Ever Alert - 21 inch LCD video display with integrated network controller, or US $800 separate controller with HDMI out that works with any monitor.
  • But this is entirely and solely cloud controlled with no option for an in-house server. So if your Internet is down during an emergency, you can't send out pages or emergency alerts. Terrible design, and no option to bring the cloud server software onsite.
  • Also due to vendor lock-in, when American Time decides to retire the cloud management, all your classroom and building notification devices will suddenly stop working and you will be forced to replace them all on their schedule.

Really is it all that complicated to build such a thing using Raspberry Pi nanocomputers?
I would love to find something like this for free or for a low purchase/support cost, similar to Blue Iris that only costs US $70 to set up your own 64 IP camera Video Management Server.
A Raspberry Pi can be POE powered and has HDMI video out for about $30 each, and could easily do what these commercial devices are offering, at about 1/100th the cost.
The classroom Pi's could do paging via the TV monitors, and be entirely managed from an in-house Raspberry Pi server or Ubuntu VM server.

I went into my local Best Buy recently, just to see for my self what the physical media section looked like. I have not been in that store for a couple years now.
They had a nice sized, 2 sided aisle, filled with movies, about a 60/40 split between bluray/4K. They also had near the registers 2 stand alone, new release stands.
When I went to the aisle, 1 whole side of it was taped off, but the movies were visible on the shelfs. I just couldn't browse that side. I kept checking my Amazon wish list for price comparisons. Amazon beat them on about 95% of the movies I had. It ranged from $2-$5 on single discs. I noticed a worker in the aisle moving the discs around as I was browsing.
I asked him if they are getting rid of the physical media section. He said they are moving it to another area and will not be this big of an aisle anymore. He said they are making the current area available to sell bicycles. I said what?!? He laughed and said yea. I noticed on my way in they were selling BBQ's as well.
I talked with him a while. He was also an avid movie collector. We discussed a lot about 4K and the like. He knew his stuff. That was surprising and refreshing to hear.
I asked him about the Rocky collection, as I didn't see it. He said they pulled it from shelves due to audio issues. He even finished my line as I was saying like Mad Max. Again, he knew his stuff. He than asked if Amazon is still selling it and I said yes. We both laughed. We finished our convo with him saying it wouldn't surprise him one bit if that this time next year, there will be NO physical media for sale in the store.
I walked out of there with American Werewolf in London 4K at $23, Alita: Battle Angel 4K for $8(just too cheap not to) and 1408 reg old bluray for $6(liked the movie)
The store was in the NYC area.
Just wanted to share that info/experience with ya's.

Total War: WARHAMMER III

Title	Discount	USD	GBP	EUR	Store & Rating	Modes	HLTB	Card	Steam Deck	ProtonDB
Total War: WARHAMMER III	48%	$31.19	£25.99	€31.19	Steam	Single-playeOnline PvP & Co-op	33½ hours	Yes	Unsupported	Native

The coming conflict will engulf all. Will you conquer your daemons? Or command them? It's time to find out with your Total War: WARHAMMER III Steam PC key. In this action strategy from renowned developer Creative Assembly, you'll lead one of four initial races in a gripping war for survival.
Ghostwire: Tokyo

Title	Discount	USD	GBP	EUR	Store & Rating	Modes	HLTB	Card	Steam Deck	ProtonDB
Ghostwire: Tokyo	66%	$20.39	£16.99	€20.39	Steam	Single-player	11 hours	No	Playable	Gold

Tokyo is in the midst of catastrophe, as all of the residents have vanished into thin air. Take control of Akito Izuki, a 22-year-old student who was on the brink of death when the supernatural occurrence happened, and experience as he finds out that a mysterious shadow, who goes by the name of KK, saved him... as long as he can protect Tokyo from this supernatural threat.
Thymesia

Title	Discount	USD	GBP	EUR	Store & Rating	Modes	HLTB	Card	Steam Deck	ProtonDB
Thymesia	34%	$16.61	£13.29	€16.61	Steam	Single-player	6½ hours	No	Playable	Platinum

A kingdom once thriving on the power of alchemy enters an age of calamity. After discovering the price behind alchemy, an attempt to stop the use of it backfired. Within a few days, the kingdom was in chaos and the streets infested with monsters.
WRC Generations

Title	Discount	USD	GBP	EUR	Store & Rating	Modes	HLTB	Card	Steam Deck	ProtonDB
WRC Generations	45%	$21.99	£19.24	€21.99	Steam	Single-playeOnline PvP & Co-op/Shared and Split Screen PvP	17½ hours	No	Unsupported	Borked

2022 will see the WRC transition to the hybrid era. This is a revolution for the rally world, significantly affecting performance, changing strategies and making drivers and teams adapt.
In terms of gameplay, new mechanics have been integrated to represent the demands of the hybrid engines. In order to win, you have to carefully manage your battery by adapting your engine mapping throughout the special stages you take part in.

Toronto Recruitment and Staffing Agency seeking full-time Jr Recruiter and Events assistant.
This opportunity requires...

• computer software and social media literacy and savvy
• communicative and interpersonal nature that lends to assist or spearhead marketing, writing job description copy and developing client relationships
• a highly organized and responsive nature, sensitivity and adherence to deadlines
• a positive and professional approach with both clients and fellow staff
• weekend coverage and in-office presence requirement of role

A successful candidate will have...

• experience in events management, recruitment and experience in the hospitality industry considered an asset
• a passion for cuisine, guest experience and a keen eye on emerging trends
• the ability to wear multiple hats and thrive in a fast-paced environment (the duty requires some payroll data entry, administration, light HR duties (staff relations), marketing and client interaction
• intuition and keen ability to read people in interview process.

Additional details:

• training will be Monday-Friday in office, then will move to a Tuesday - Saturday schedule
• pay structure to reflect the challenges of the role. Starting salary is $40,000 with optional bonus program to enter effect after 3-month probationary period has lapsed.
• this opportunity is ideal for someone who is in management roles in hospitality who is looking to branch out, or recent Event Planner program grads.

If interested, please send your CV to [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]) with "Jr Recruiter" in the subject line!
Looking forward to speaking with you! (: