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The Best Remote Work is Delightfully Unglamorous
Ben Halpern on December 17, 2018
This is an amazing post Ben and I need to spend a bit more reading all those posts that you have linked.
When I see remote workers and travelers showing how awesome their setup is I always wonder how real is it.
I know that some travelers just show how amazing their life is but in fact spend a lot of time inside hotels working. I'm going to guess this is the same with remote work devs, also a good thing to point out - working outside in the balcony is amazing for the view but the glare of the sun would kill my eyes haha
I also work from my boring home office 95% of the time. But it's an office with a door and has everything set up just the way I like it. It's comfortable.
Sometimes I'll grab the laptop and work in another part of the house (or outside in the summer). Today my view is not very summer-like:
Here's my post on remote working tips:
Haha yes, that is not ideal today.
I'll soon be moving to a place that's walking distance to nature and also walking distance to the center of town. I'm really excited about the chance for quick escapes into a different environment. (Depending on the weather, of course)
I'll also be commute distance to our office.
As a company that is full-fledged distributed first, it's still useful to maintain an office for different reasons. But I can't see us ever expanding to a bigger office, even if we grow. We'll offer more budget and options for work-from-home and co-working.
Thanks for the shout out, Ben!
I agree my "working from paradise" post isn't a sustainable option...
I'm more productive in my boring home office! :)
At home, I try to standardize as much as possible.
Some things that work for me:
Setting priorities for the day using importance/urgency mapping
Standardize as much as possible with pre-planned lunch and scheduled breaks.
Remove distractions by turning off Slack notifications, phone on silent, etc.
Find a productivity buddy! I recently started using Flora App for this :)
I work remote for 3 months in the winter so I can show horses in FL. During that time I live with my parents and I teased them recently about putting me in the garage. Honestly, though, I have my sit/stand desk, monitor, great wifi, and no distractions. It's not glamorous but it works for me perfectly!
Lol a desk right next to the boiler. At least your hand will always be warm.
We are a distributed team, not "have remote workers".
Yaas 🙌
Despite the fact that I live in one of those scenic locales you see people blogging about (Park City UT), my actual work life is pretty much the same as anyone else's. I work in my kitchen on my iMac for 8 hours a day, five days a week.
I only really leverage my location when I'm not working. I use the flexibility to go snowboarding in the morning so I can feel more relaxed about my work day when it does start.
But yeah, laptops on beaches are a no-no. Better to stay inside, get the work done, then fully enjoy that beach with a surfboard.
Yeah, I think your lifestyle really nails it. Set yourself up for consistency with computers and the right environment for happiness in other things.
For others, this is Theodore's last post, discussing this further:
Remote work "from anywhere" is just hard to get right.
This is 100% true. It is not uncommon for some to get the impression because remote, then being at different latitude and longitude each blessed day would make one productive.
In fact, it can be very unproductive. Having more like a home office with a consistent setup for work is really comforting.
Once in a while work from the coffee shop, or at the beach is fine. However sticking to a fixed workplace (home office, in this case) routine would hugely improve one's productivity
Work from home is super cool but could be tricky if you don't use the essential tools like VPN for establishing connections with work network from anywhere. I use PureVPN for remote work which works fine for me. They are giving discount of 88% on holiday season.
When I first started working from home, I thought that having things just so would be helpful to me. It was, in fact, just the opposite. I was so used to the chaos of working in an understaffed and "hair on fire" situation, that peacefully listening to the Dave Brubeck Pandora station with my server, laptop, and all my amenities at my fingertips totally killed my motivation. I was so comfortable that I couldn't bring myself to want to work. It wasn't until I walked down the street to a local coffee shop to get an iced coffee that I realized I missed the chaos.
While that certainly won't work for everybody, I find that, even in my home, I have to change where I am sitting once every 30 minutes or so. I use the Pomodoro method, meaning that I do about 30 minutes of "deep work" (instrumental music, no distractions, and only the Python docs open in my browser) before taking a break. I find that this allows me for great productivity as long as I change where I am physically sitting for each Pomodoro. I usually do 5/day and actually get a ton more done than I ever did in an 8-hour day at the office, but I must change it up each time or I find myself drifting to slashdot or hacker news. I usually start in my office, migrate to my portable "standing desk" at the kitchen counter, then work on the couch, then a wildcard location, and end at the Rwanda Bean near my house.
My upbringing (in Boston, MA, USA) has taught me the value of total and complete chaos. I find that if things are too peaceful, I simply can't focus. Plus, changing it up throughout the day helps hugely with my tendency to get bored. Especially when I'm on the last 10% of a project where the fun stuff is behind me and now I'm just fixing bugs and adding exception handling.
When I see remote workers in beautiful, usually beachy environments, I don't know how they do it. I struggle to keep focussed working from home in my apartment. Where there is bed, the fridge, TV, youtube, anything else to distract me. I have so much respect for those who can fully focus and switch into 'work mode' when not in the office. I definitely haven't found out how to do it yet.
One thing I've heard/read from remote workers sharing your struggle is to carve out a home office separated from the bedroom. It's not always doable because you might not have such a room in the first place. Another possibility is a shared office with other people. You rent a place with one or two people near your house and you close yourself in there. Lastly, there's the coworking option but I'm not a huge fan (even if in Barcelona last summer I really found a nice one), I only go there when the internet is down at my house :D
As usual, I'm decidedly slacking on being optimized. On my work from home days, I work from my couch. My dogs piled up against me. Spotify or Google music streaming to my lower-power, Home-enabled speakers. I tap away on my 3+ year old HP laptop. Crunching away on service deployment-automation.
And, weeks like the most recent ones, where I've been having to actually go into the office to attend to a high-urgency project, I'm reminded why I prefer working from home - even lacking optimizations. It's noisy at the office. The woman diagonal behind-and-right of me seems to only have one volume (LOUD) and screechy (wife called me at work one day, I held my phone way from my head, and upon returning it to my ear, my wife was saying, "that's who you've been complaining about? OMG: I'm so sorry for you"). The woman across the cube-wall to my left apparently only bathes on Friday nights and I can tell whenever she sits down at her cube or walks away by the intrusiveness of the "natural musk" oozing over the wall. Our standardized desktops seem to be different every time I come in: one day I have Firefox, one day I don't (similarly with Chrome and other applications I need) ...and even when present, all of my settings vanish with regularity - inclusive of bookmarks (bonus, GPOs prevent use of profiles/syncing so can't get shit back or use stuff like LastPass). Oh... And the connectivity: there's a few thousand people on our campus and the campus supposedly has a couple 10Gibps connections to the Internet, but by 09:00, it feels like I'm sharing 9600BAUD MODEM. Given that the environment I'm coding for/in is AWS, that slow-down means that making progress is nearly impossible. But, that's ok, when I'm in the office, fires inevitably come up (today, I came in to find a message from the maintainers of our primary yum repository, sent at 16:47 the day previous, notifying that they were changing the access-URLs for the repositories at 15:50 today ...immediately binning my plans for the day as I rushed out new yum repo-def RPMs for the hundreds of systems that were due to be impacted by the change).
It all makes me long to be back home where I can work without interruption — or even meaningful distraction — and over a nice, reliable, 50Mbps FiOS connection. Yeah, mundane, but at least (most days) I can get the shit done I actually had planned for the day.
Nah! Have you not heard of a "workcation"? A "workaction" is where you put your usual hours but then after hours, you're in the beach, a new country, etc. Being remote allows you to sporadically take workcations more often. It personally works for me because I can get 100% of my work done in a macbook. All I need is good internet access. A typical workcation for me (because we have a toddler) is a three-day weekend getaway to a nearby city. Less frequently, we'll fly out of the country for two weeks at a time. It is AMAZING!
It works for us because a) my work fits on my macbook, b) it's sporadic---the longer the stay, the less frequent the trip
I guess however you work, you can always find something to complain about. But to be complaining for things at home, man, that's the dream.
Going to work as I am writing this, just to sit in front of a computer.
Hate public transportation.
Couldn't agree more! I've described my full-time remote job as "The good kind of boring." And I wouldn't have it any other way!
Great article! Makes me think a lot about my personal setup.
I live about 20 minutes outside Winnipeg and working from home is a game changer. I have invested heavily in my home workspace over the years, which now features a Varidesk on my commercial desk/shelving, two Kinesis Advantage keyboards (one on the desk, one for travel including client sites), a fabulous Humanscale Freedom chair, a top end Dell XPS 15 with 32GB RAM and dock, two large monitors, rack mount servers, storage, and commercial UPS, all of which I think I think are great investments because really, we're talking about nothing less than MY CAREER after all.
This is an exceptionally productive environment. While I have a large screened in deck that overlooks our backyard pool, I rarely work from there because my office setup is just too comfortable and productive.
But despite all this, what I find even more important about remote work is the ability to work when you're productive as opposed to adhering to rigid hours. Clearly not every assignment is amenable to this, but I've found that there's nothing more wasteful than being forced to work certain hours just because that's when everyone else works.
What works far better for me is to work when I'm motivated and focused. Some days this means I work from 7am to well past midnight, other days I don't work at all. The best days are when I get up when I'm good and rested, spend some time exercising, or running errands, or spending time with friends/family, and then finally I settle down to work when I know there's nothing else to interrupt me. This might mean that I don't start working until late afternoon or early evening, but when I do this, I quickly settle into a groove and am tremendously productive. But there are just as many days where I wake up and can't wait to get coding again. I love those days!
From a client's value perspective, I feel much better working when I'm motivated than when it's a struggle. When I was doing contract work at client sites, I always felt guilty when office distractions affected my work. Headphones can help, but inevitably people want to talk and it just feels wrong. This just isn't an issue when working remotely.
Same thing happens when we pack up and spend a month in Phoenix. It's easy to become distracted with the beautiful mountains, climate, etc, so why not take advantage of periods when you don't feel productive, and instead spend time outdoors and code when the sun goes down. Again, your project needs to be compatible with this arrangement but I just find it to be a great work-life balance.
An important caveat to all this is deadlines. Without question, there are times when I don't feel especially motivated to work, but simply have to because of a project's schedule. I suppose it's just a different type of motivation! Regardless, practically in many cases must trump personal preferences.
I've been reading more and more lately about others who tend to follow similar patterns.
We are a distributed team, as opposed to having remote workers.
A thousand times this. If one of you is remote, all of you are remote.
Thanks for the inspiration @briannekimmel . Your current situation does look absolutely beautiful.


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Payments Evolution
At the World Economic Forum's Davos meeting in January 2015, Bank of England Governor Mark Carney noted that the financial services industry was at greater risk than ever before of being disintermediated, or cut out of its own markets, by new internet-based payments players. Since the turn of the millennium, many industries including restaurants, media, music and even the taxi business have been revolutionized by the internet: now the same revolution is happening in payments and financial services.
Continue reading here.


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In the middle of the arena
January 22, 2017
There are two ways you can experience the arena, one as a spectator and one as a participator. The perspectives are totally different. As you know by now, God talks to me with pictures, this morning in church I had a picture of an arena and felt and saw each perspective. If ...
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What is Wisdom?
Maybe it is most helpful in starting with what Wisdom is not. Wisdom is not a philosophy, a teaching of beliefs and ideologies, or an esoteric metaphysical system to be studied. And it is not a New Age fad. Metaphorically, Wisdom can be portrayed as an underground stream that flows through all of the great religious/spiritual traditions. While this stream is not exclusively identified with any one of them, it can express itself at the deepest levels of all.
Wisdom describes a "way of knowing"—a higher level of human consciousness--which is capable of directly engaging reality without judgment. It is characterized by an alert, present-moment awareness moving throughout the world with a compassionate intelligence. In this way, Wisdom is more about experience than it is about belief. It is not about knowing or believing more; it is about experiencing life more deeply and doing so with more of us.
The access point of Wisdom is essentially through spiritual practice.
What is unique about a Wisdom School?
At their core, Wisdom Schools are a lineage of spiritual knowledge focused on cultivating open hearts and open minds. In order to break through to new levels of awareness, this Wisdom work isbest accomplished in a residential retreat setting apart from a person's usual routines.
Within this supportive environment, a balanced movement between contemplative silence, cognitive input/dialogue, and simple work with conscious attention is offered. In this way, Wisdom Schools provide a container in which the rich spiritual heritage of the Christian contemplative tradition can be explored.
The particularities of a Wisdom School maintain (and contribute to) the foundational understanding that Wisdom cannot be accessed through our minds alone. To more fully engage in lives of compassionate social action, the transformation of the entire human being is required.
Why are Wisdom Schools re-emerging now?
We are currently living in an age of breathtaking change—culturally, technologically, ecologically, globally, and spiritually. Wisdom Schools seek to bring ancient spiritual practices to this context of rapid social change in order that new levels of human consciousness and spiritual insight might be made manifest in these times of transition.
In this work, Wisdom seekers find more than personal growth and inner change; they find themselves becoming active conduits in this emergence. It becomes both gift and calling.
Is this Wisdom School "Christian?"
Firmly grounded in the Christian mystical tradition, the trajectory of this Wisdom School is unmistakably Christian. Whereas Wisdom is deeper and greater than any one spiritual tradition, it seems to express itself most authentically within the distinctiveness of a specific tradition. Therefore, one can best access the deep roots of Wisdom by taking one's spiritual tradition down to where its depth opens up to the kind of spaciousness and inclusivity that characterizes Wisdom.
While we will be informed by the wisdom of other sacred traditions, this Wisdom School follows the path forged by the classic Christian contemplative tradition. This tradition has bequeathed to us the practices of contemplative prayer, lectio divina (sacred reading), and chanted psalmody. The Benedictine rhythm of ora et labora (prayer and work) provides the basic model for this work.
How is a Wisdom School different from a retreat or a seminar?
Wisdom Schools seek to strike a balance between the mind, heart, and body. Beginning with the primary features of retreats (silence) and seminars (intellectual input), Wisdom Schools then add in specific spiritual practices along with bodywork, and ground them all in a balanced daily rhythm.
The intentional movement each day between mind, heart, and body offers a container for conversion. Because Wisdom is not about knowing more-- but knowing with all dimensions of the mind, heart, and body—this balanced rhythm between three modes of learning facilitates the possibility of transformation.
What will the core texts be?
Part A
The Wisdom Way of Knowing, by Cynthia Bourgeault
The Roots of Christian Mysticism, by Olivier Clement
Suggested Reading: The Wisdom Jesus, by Cynthia Bourgeault
Part B
The Wisdom Way of Knowing, by Cynthia Bourgeault
The Roots of Christian Mysticism, by Olivier Clement
The Wisdom Jesus, by Cynthia Bourgeault
Putting on the Mind of Christ, by Jim Marion
Wisdom School: Mary Magdalene as Unitive Wisdom
The Meaning of Mary Magdalene, by Cynthia Bourgeault
The Luminous Gospels, by Lynn C. Bauman, Ward J. Bauman, and Cynthia Bourgeault
Wisdom School: Arising From Sleep, Awakening to Love
The Rule of Saint Benedict
The Love of Learning and the Desire for God: A Study of Monastic Culture, by Jean Leclercq
Wisdom Distilled From the Daily, by Joan Chittister
Suggested Reading:
Sacred Reading: The Ancient Art of Lectio Divina, by Michael Casey
The Taste of Hidden Things, by Sara Sviri
Wisdom School: Surrendering Into Presence
Centering Prayer and Inner Awakening, by Cynthia Bourgeault
The Heart of Centering Prayer: Nondual Christianity in Theory and Practice, by Cynthia Bourgeault
The Cloud of Unknowing, edited by Ira Progoff
Spirituality, Contemplation, and Transformation: Writings on Centering Prayer by Thomas Keating and Others (New York: Lantern Books, 2008)
Wisdom School Christogenesis: The Evolutionary Enfolding of Love
The Human Phenomenon, by Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
Making All Things New, by Ilia Delio
Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, by Annie Dillard
Additional reading you may find helpful:
The Divine Milieu, by Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
The Heart of Matter, by Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
The Universal Christ, by Richard Rohr


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← Back to Teaching
Fiction Workshop: The Short Story
Again and again something in one's own life, or in the life around one,
will seem so important that one cannot bear to let it pass into oblivion.
There must never come a time, the writer feels, that people do not know about this.
—Shikibu Murasaki, The Tale of Genji
Courage utterly opposes the bold hope that this [writing] is such fine stuff the work needs it, or the world. Courage, exhausted, stands on bare reality: this writing weakens the work.
You must demolish the work and start over. You can save some of the sentences, like bricks. . . .
You can waste a year worrying about it, or you can get it over with now.
—Annie Dillard, The Writing Life
This class is designed to teach beginning and intermediate fiction writers the fundamentals of craft and give them an opportunity to get incisive feedback on their work. To these ends, the class talks every day about some vital aspect of writing fiction based on both reading and students' individual writing, including: first sentences; the donnée ("that which is given"); setting; structure—including rising action and climax and denouement; scenes; exposition vs. dramatization; description; character—especially honesty ("who we are in the dark"); point-of-view; the narrator-character; the ogues (dialogue, indirect dialogue, and interior monologue); tone and style; theme-mongering; and, of greatest importance, the stout stake of emotion (a la Henry James). Students respond to each other's work, out loud, at every workshop session, and since no writer can produce a publishable piece the first time around, they revise their stories, honing skills.
This particular workshop is focused on the form of the short story: a unique vehicle for storytelling and memory-making. The short story has affinities with the one-act play, the lyric poem, the essay, and the TV show—genres that are meant to move, to arrest, to enrapture, and/or to provoke their audiences in a single reading or viewing. As Edgar Allan Poe wrote in his "Philosophy of Composition": "If any literary work is too long to be read at one sitting, we must be content to dispense with the immensely important effect derivable from unity of impression—for, if two sittings be required, the affairs of the world interfere, and everything like totality is at once destroyed." A short story, then, is a totality. It is a whole world, distilled.
Moreover, the short story is a flexible genre—able to contain multitudes. In this course, students study traditional short stories of the Ernest Hemingway and Flannery O'Connor type, but they also delve into that oxymoron the long short story as well as the microfiction, proems, foodie fictions, and po-mo approaches to storytelling. Inspiration comes from master storytellers: oldies but goodies such as Poe and Hemingway, yes, but also modern maestros including Melanie Rae Thon, Ursula K. LeGuin, Joyce Carol Oates, Lee K. Abbott, Toni Morrison, and Stephen King.
Note, however, that this course isn't a literature seminar; it is a workshop, a craftspace where students will smith words. Thus, in addition to studying models, students also respond to each other's work, out loud, at almost every workshop session. And since no writer can produce a publishable piece the first time around, every writer will revise three of his or her five stories for a final portfolio. What I expect most of all from the workshop is hard work on the part of the writer, careful reading and discussion on the part of the class—lively, appropriate, forthright, and indefatigable.
Download a sample assignment from Fiction Workshop: The Short Story (PDF):


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A lot has been said against Doordarshan televising Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat's Dussehra speech on October 3. The usual critics have questioned this perceived promotion of the Sangh's ideology. Since every government in the past has permitted its ideologues to use the state-owned channel for broadcasts, there is no reason to oppose it now without being hypocritical. It is the sub-text of his speech, however, that shows how difficult it is for political Hinduism to appropriate Indian history to its ends.
Bhagwat's speech was mainly a pious rehash of India's role as guru to a fractured world, that the models followed by the West and the rest were inadequate guides for mankind (as seen, he said, in how the ISIS was created by the venality of the West). This is not a new concept: indeed, the re-moulding of India's self-image is based on an assumption that Hinduism has the answers to the various crises that face civilizations today. To give him due credit, Bhagwat acknowledged that India has much to learn from the West, but these lessons, predictably, will be along materialistic lines. In cultural, ideological and what passes for spiritual matters, we have, we are told, to only give to other nations.
Now, it is apparent that Bhagwat is more politically astute than the Sangh leadership in the recent past, and he has very little patience for any dabbling in religious matters. We are witnessing a clear iteration of political Hinduism here, an ideology based on re-imagined and revised Indian history.
It is no coincidence that he chose to begin by invoking the spirit of the Chola emperor Rajendra (we assume the First, and not the Third, who presided over the empire's disintegration). "The Dussehra celebrations this year are special because they mark a thousand years of the reign of Rajendra Chola, who spread Indian culture overseas, particularly in South-east Asia," he said. Considering that Indian school history textbooks have criminally neglected South Indian history, and empire-builders from the north have been given a larger share of the national consciousness, it is refreshing to hear an eulogic mention of the Cholas.
A part of this, certainly, has to do with the Sangh's renewed assault on the Tamil regionalist bastion. But it also has to do with political Hinduism's search for a legitimate international empire.
Appropriation and revision of Indian history is as venerable a Sangh tradition as the Sarsanghchalak's annual speech. Till recently, it was limited to Hindu figures seen as opponents of Islamic expansion: Shivaji, the Ranas Sangram Singh and Pratap, the Vijaynagar Empire, the Sikhs.
This has lately expanded to more obscure and reimagined ones: Gaidinliu, the 20th century Naga cult leader who the Sangh claims was a Hindu revivalist, and Emperor Hemchandra or Hemu as he is better known, who very briefly ruled from Delhi between the Sur Dynasty and the return of the Mughals in the mid-16th century. Rajendra Chola is now officially part of this second, newer narrative: culture as empire and not just as defensive action in the face of reverses. In short, let's talk expansion now. The problem here is, historically, cultural influence has not always walked down the aisle with political supremacy, and certainly not Indian culture.
Consider, then, the Cholas. There is much to be learnt from them, because they oversaw India's only overseas expansion. Between the 9th and the 11th centuries, Chola naval might extended to the Maldives, northern Sri Lanka, Indonesia and the Strait of Molucca.
However, this expansion cannot be seen merely through the conventional prism of political control. Most Chola campaigns in South-east Asia involved the capture and control of seaports and harbours, and not of imperial rule further inland. Successful medieval monarchs, regardless of which part of the world you might look at, were more pragmatic than we might give them credit for, and the Cholas were extraordinarily prescient in understanding the nature of the Indian Ocean trade routes, such as the choke-point at Molucca for all China-bound shipping. Controlling the Strait of Molucca, between south-western Malaysia and north-eastern Sumatra was the key to gaining from the sea trade to China.
Bhagwat's reference to the Cholas was as prologue to what he sees as India's natural role as guiding light to the world. This conflation of political dominance with cultural influence, impressive as it sounds, is clearly not the case with the Cholas. For Indic civilization had already been internalized in South-East Asia by then.
Here's an instance: in 1025, the Khmer Empire in today's Cambodia asked the Cholas for help against the Tambralinga kingdom in Malaysia, and their allies the Srivijaya city-state of today's Sumatra. These are not merely Indic-sounding names: the Khmers were Shaivites, as were the Cholas, while their enemies were Mahayana Buddhists, although this was an incidental cause to a mainly economic conflict. Southeast Asia had thoroughly internalized Indian culture, language and religious systems for nearly seven hundred years by then. The extent of cultural and diplomatic relationships these kingdoms and empires inherited is impressive by any standard: the Srivijayans had even financed a monastery or two at Nalanda, which was under the Palas.
A lot of India's overseas influence in these maritime civilizations was because of Tamil seamanship and mercantile influence in the centuries preceding the rise of the Cholas. For their part, Rajendra Chola's dynasty encouraged the increased sophistication of Tamil merchant guilds like the Ayyavole. One wishes these achievements were mentioned more in our school textbooks.
In short, the Cholas did not market Indian culture to South-East Asia, nor did they bring a form of pax Indica on the back of their impressive blue-water navies. To conflate political expansion with cultural influence is, for one, to ignore South India's role in the preceding centuries in spreading Indian culture overseas through non-military means.
Equally important, this re-imagined correlation between "soft" and "hard" power is more applicable to Western colonial interventions or, even more accurately, to Islamic expansion. In the colonial period, naval or land-based supremacy went in conjunction with culture, political systems and commerce. Islamic expansion, meanwhile, was predicated on the nature of the religion itself, where political supremacy was – and is – intimately connected with faith and all the cultural values of peninsular Arabia.
India's cultural legacy, or what little of it remains in South-east Asia, does not work that way. Nor should it. Chola campaigns had only marginal long-term impact even next door, in Sri Lanka, where Sinhalese Buddhism became a rallying point and a political force afterwards, or in the Maldives, whose Buddhist traditions would soon be subsumed to Islam. It was only in places where Indic culture was most strongly internalized before the Cholas that Hinduism or Buddhism survived against Islam, such as in Thailand or Cambodia, while Srivijayan Buddhist Sumatra is just a trace of memory.
By attempting to connect Indian culture with the subcontinent's only successful naval expansion project, of course, Bhagwat was trying to add to the discourse emerging today, trying to add a patina of conquest to the traditional received wisdom of Indian cultural superiority. After all, cultural lessons are great as heritage; they must certainly be better if they are seen to be accompanied by real might, real navies, exciting stories of conquest. The reduction of Indian culture's presence in the region by seven hundred years seems a trivial trade-off.
So, why be concerned about a nifty bit of historical revisionism? Indian ideologues from the Left and the Right do it all the time, after all. But it is of importance. The idea of culture-as-empire is a heady narcotic, particularly today when Indians seek to define their country's role in terms and analogies borrowed from other systems and structures. It is no coincidence that political Hinduism's attempt at homogenizing the multiple strands of Indian culture or religious texts into a single acceptable narrative mirrors the limited horizons of Islamic polity. The difference is, Islamic polity has always been constrained by its religious limitations and predatory instincts. Indic cultural traditions have not.
A lot of talk has been expended on India's soft power today and Bollywood's dubious increased reach in the West. Leaving apart the few takers for the exotic and the unusual, or the intrepid seekers of a romantic transcendence in mysterious India, the question of this country's relevance to the rest of the world needs to be answered by meeting the world on mutually understandable terms, through universal languages like commerce, science and literature.
Seeking Indian cultural glory through empire, or re-imagining Indian history through modern notions is, therefore, a contradictory task. On the one hand, ideologues run the risk of politicizing a way of life that has been resolutely apolitical for most of its history. For another, as seen in the Chola example, we might end up ignoring the far deeper roots of India in the neighbourhood, roots that were spread long before empires contested over them.
Siddhartha Sarma is a journalist, writer and medieval military historian.


text: International Facility Management Association (IFMA) "Your team is fantastic. I could not ask for better partners. Jennifer did an amazing job. Nelson is a genius and great at helping solve all of our unique requirements."- Aaron Clark, IFMA iMISAlex QuinnApril 12, 2018International Facility Management AssociationTrade Association, Membership, Business Facebook0 Twitter LinkedIn0 0 Likes


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Gold Balance
iOS iPhone Games
Gold is what we are running behind, but it becomes difficult when you have lots of it in front of you.
Play Gold Balance and check if you can balance the gold you get! Gold blocks of different sizes fall on one of the balance bars and you have to balance it accurately.
- Increasingly difficult levels.
- Local and online score.
- Addictive and face paced.
So, start your gold rush!
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2016: The Year Selling Out Became Cool and a Republic Became a Democracy
2016. Oh what a year it has been. The Democratic Party nominated a brain dead criminal. The Republican Party nominated a crony capitalist protectionist. The Libertarian Party nominated an authoritarian, with a CFR member and lifelong friend of Hillary Clinton as his running mate. And the Green Party nominated a candidate that thinks Wi-Fi kills, with a running mate who thinks Bernie Sanders is a white supremacist.
Despite this, people who once stood firmly on principles are eagerly supporting these candidates for the sake of their respective parties. Bernie supporters who viciously oppose corporatism will cast a vote for Hillary Clinton, the queen of corporatism. Conservatives who value the Constitution will cast a vote for Donald Trump, who seems to believe all power is vested in the executive branch. Libertarians who value property rights and self-defense will cast a vote for Gary Johnson, who holds many views antithetical to the theory of private property rights and has a running mate who is pro gun control. And leftists who despise bailouts will cast a vote for Jill Stein, who wants the Federal Reserve to print more money in order to bail out student loan debt.
The word sellout is defined by the Oxford Dictionary as "a betrayal of one's principles for reasons of expedience." To vote for a candidate whose views are vastly contrary to yours for the sake of political expedience is by definition selling out.
As for the Libertarian and Green Parties, many plan on voting for Gary Johnson or Jill Stein for no other reason than to grow these parties. This too is by definition selling out. Why bother growing a party if it's not going to stand on principle?
This leads me to my next point, that the 2016 election has brought about an utter annihilation of our republic. While it is true that the republic was lost long ago, what has beat the dead horse into the ground is that so many are now embracing national democracy, and this seems to be their main reason for supporting third party candidates this election cycle. They want to end the two-party system more than they want to stand on principle. They want to give the voters more options rather than more liberty.
But how is this working out for Europe? The voters have dozens of political parties to choose from, and yet their problems are far worse than ours. As Hans-Hermann Hoppe has illustriously pointed out, "political democracy is often incompatible with human liberty. True democracy is instead found in the marketplace, with voluntary actors free of the threat of government force."
It is for this reason that our goal should not be to expand political democracy, but rather grow what Hoppe refers to as the true democracy found in the marketplace, where people can vote with their dollars. The idea that a decentralization of power will best represent the interests of the people and protect their liberties is precisely what once made the American republic great, and ought to be restored.
Growing a third party for the sake of having a seat at the cool kids table will only extinguish our resources and lead us down a black hole to nowhere. Our goal ought to be to decentralize matters to the states, and furthermore to their localities, and then to the individuals.
There is no need for us to sellout on our principles and embrace an expanded political democracy at the national stage. The federal government is never going to abolish itself and has one incentive; to grow. We can fight tooth and nail to obtain seats in the federal government, but it will all be to no avail. A monopoly as large as the state has no interest in letting someone who threatens to shrink their power join their ranks. The only thing that will bring about a monopoly's demise is competition.
As Tom Woods stated in a speech given to the Mises Circle in Houston, Texas a year ago, "The more territorial units you have, the more pressure there is on the political leaders of these places not to oppress the public, because the power of exit is very easy when there's another political unit right next door. It's easy to go there, and these leaders will lose their tax – well, suckers – if they impose too many unjust burdens on the people. So they are restrained by the presence of competition." He continued, "It is impossible, as it's been said, to imagine the horrors of the Soviet Union being inflicted by the mayor of a small village."
Secession is then the only way we can achieve liberty. All other efforts have been, and will continue to be futile.


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Here's a lovely card I made. I started this card at midnight and here it is 1:41 a.m. But my dear friend Monica Reeck invited me to play along with the challenge at Card Maniac this week because she is a guest designer. So Monika, this one's for you!
The theme for the challenge is FLOWERS! So I colored with Copics on this lovely Lily Elf from AuroraWings.com. Mitzi has some really beautiful images and they are digitals you can purchase and color ASAP! I love that. I'm sort of an instant gratification gal.
Any hoo, I sure hope you like my flower entry.
T%dles Peeps!
Betty J Schaub


text:
I was thrilled when the album Natural History was released with this song, Little Victories on it. You see, when I first heard the song, in 2011 at a venue in San Francisco, the song had not yet been recorded. In those days Rosie and I had become somewhat of a fixture at JD's concerts and I was quite flattered when he would acknowledge us from the stage. One night he told the audience, "Rosie is the only one who gets to sleep through my performances."
On this particular night, JD dedicated this song to me. I was unfamiliar with it; but the words cut into me. I remember feeling rather than hearing the song. It was surreal. Not only did I feel seen, I was left feeling exposed and naked. As if I had been undressed.
After the show, still shaken, I approached JD to try and say thank you. "I don't know how you could know how perfect that song was …"
He took my hand, looked me in the eye and quiet yet emphatic said, "I know."
He has no idea the extent of the gift he gave me that night. Celebrating the little victories has become something of a practice for me … just as one practices gratitude, I practice celebrating the little victories in my life. It's an important antidote to the depression I struggle with.
I know only to well those days when a simple shower feels like an assault on Everest. The simple act of imagining some small acknowledgement or victory celebration on the other side is that little extra something that propels me from inaction to action.
Thank you, JD
When I look up the sky is falling
The signs of warning clearly drawn
So many of us here are drifting out to sea
Keep my head down to go on
Little victories
I know you need one
Little victories
In my hometown the family circles
They seem unsure and un-empowered
Oh, they don't understand and you can't help that
Though you can love so hard, that never comes back
Till you just can't take it for one more hour
Little victories
I know you need one
Little victories
I know it hurts sometimes to look around
The sameness of it beats you down
And the best seems all behind
Before you start
Little victories
Oh, I know you need one
Little victories of the heart
Now as we face our uncertain future
Looking on uncharted seas
We see the tear that runs along the curtain
You step right through, you stand with me
Little victories
Everybody needs some
Little victories
Though it hurts sometimes to look around
Blindness only keeps you down
The best may lie beyond this present part
The sky opens, the waters part
Little victories
I know you need one
Little victories of the heart


text:
Executive EducationInnovative Marketing
Innovative Marketing
Always Marketing Differently
Best practices in marketing are constantly evolving with new theories, methods and channels that must be orchestrated around customers' needs, expectations, and behaviours. We provide executive education that disseminates the latest developments in branding, strategy, marketing management, retail, digital and B2B marketing only through leading marketing professionals.
This workshop aims to offer its participants an overview of the issues of family run businesses and introduce strategies and options for corporate transformation. It will elaborate ways to redefine corporate development priorities and how the organization structure and resources can be re-aligned to support future growth. Real-life case studies will be shared as references to assist participants to apply the different business transformational and managerial approaches in the current business environment.


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canek's priorities
Canek brings people together to amplify the voices that aren't always heard by local decision makers. As your champion on City Council, Canek will work to increase housing opportunities, invest in our public schools, and to improve health outcomes.
Alexandria has lost over 90% of our affordable housing units since the year 2000. Canek is committed to increasing housing opportunities for all Alexandrians.
investing in our public schools
As the son of a retired public school teacher, Canek believes every child deserves access to an excellent public school education. To achieve that, he knows Alexandria must invest in our school infrastructure and address teacher retention.
building a healthier community
Canek is dedicated to improving health outcomes for all Alexandrians. He believes it is our shared responsibility to support efforts that eliminate health inequities that exist within our community.


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Jeweled Seas: New Wave
A Unique AU One Piece RP
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Welcome to Jeweled Seas! Don't Forget to check out the
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Jeweled Seas: New Wave
The World
North Blue
Harvest Island
Harvest Island Slave Trade
Azure Snow
The Owner
Marine Captain
Skill Sheet
Skill 1
Heaven's Nodachi
Skill 2
Gun Blade Style
Skill 3
Subject: Harvest Island Slave Trade
Mon Oct 16, 2017 10:37 pm
Task Information:
Task Title:
Harvest Island Slave Trade
Class Task:
C Class
Task Requirements:
Leo & Azure; 300 Words per post, Per Person.
Task Location:
Harvest Island
Task Description:
There have been rumors going around that the Southern part of Harvest Island has been taken over by Slave traders. Heaven's Winter has been tasked with the special mission of gathering information and doing recon so that more reputable Marines can abolish the Slave Trade going on. To Complete the Task Azure, Leo, and the crew must find out where the slaves are being taken and why.
Azure Snow
The Owner
Marine Captain
Skill Sheet
Skill 1
Heaven's Nodachi
Skill 2
Gun Blade Style
Skill 3
Subject: Re: Harvest Island Slave Trade
Mon Oct 16, 2017 10:58 pm
Azure and her crew had arrived on the Island Days ago on the western side of the medium sized land mass. It was her mission to do recon on the Southern end of the Isle to figure out what was going on with the Slave trade that was happening. However, To do this, she couldn't be seen as a marine and both her and Leo had to be very careful.
"Leo, is your disguise ready?"
Azure Knocked on the door to Leo's Inn room. They had rested at an Inn Located in the Very city to the South that the Slave Trade was said to be going on. Azure had made sure to get separate rooms; She knew how Leo liked to spend his free time and so she let him do his thing over night. Azure soon opened the door and walked right in, at first with her eyes shut to avoid anything she didn't want to see.
Azure was wearing an all white outfit with gold trimmed clothing, matching boots, and her two Nodachi strapped to her back in such a way that it looked like she was a big shot Pirate. Her long Midnight blue hair moved around freely as she walked around and like a river during the dead of night it shined when light hit the strands of hair. Azure figured it would be wise to play a Pirate Captain and Leo, of course- Would be her first mate. Azure was given word that today in about an hour countless pirate captains would meet at the 'Dusty Muffin' Tavern where they would all meet a man in charge of the Slave trade in this area.
Azure was curious about who would be there and what kind of things would go down- One thing was for sure.. She had to play the part of a ruthless pirate or else the plan would go to shit and they may end up getting killed. Azure's Bright blue eyes blinked at Leo as she stood in his doorway with a curious look on her face. The sun's light had arrived in Leo's Windows and the horizon blazed with a tri colored fire; it was most definitely time to make their way over to the Infamous Inn..
Leo D Morgan
Subject: Re: Harvest Island Slave Trade
Sat Oct 21, 2017 12:35 am
Leo rolled over to see the clock ticking away. It was almost time for him to leave. However, he was so warm.... and so was she. He reached over and grabbed her behind and whispered into her ear. They could have spent all morning just rolling around. Sadly, it was interrupted by a knock on the door. It was Snow and she said,
"Leo, is your disguise ready?"
Leo moved slow out of bed however the woman had thought it was Leo's wife.
"Who is that? Oh my god is that your wife? What disguise?"
The girl said as she threw on her clothes. Leo moved slow in the light of the morning his naked body just hanging out.
Snow then entered eyes shut though Leo was sure she had seen worse. In a mad dash, the woman Leo was with booked it for the door. Leo took a look at Snow as he threw his pants on. She looked very good. Strong, and confident, she looked almost natural. Leo smiled he threw on his pink coat. But kept his marine coat in the closet. He pulled his flask out took a swig then slipped it back in his coat pocket. Snow looked at Leo. He looked pretty much the same as he always did big grin on his face.
"Oh, I almost forgot the piece to resistance."
Leo reached into the closet an pulled out an eye patch. He threw it on covering his right eye.
"What do you think, Snow? Can't be a true pirate without an eye patch right?
Leo felt warm as the sun hit him.
Leo looked to Snow and then began walking out of the tavern towards the 'Dusty Muffin'. The name made him laugh. Leo hoped Snow was next to him.
"We don't look to bad do we?
Leo smiled and followed keeping an eye on the crowd.
Azure Snow
The Owner
Marine Captain
Skill Sheet
Skill 1
Heaven's Nodachi
Skill 2
Gun Blade Style
Skill 3
Subject: Re: Harvest Island Slave Trade
Sat Oct 21, 2017 1:58 am
Azure noticed the hot babe run out of the room.. How could she not notice? Yet another naked woman thinking that Azure was Leo's wife.. It happened all too often for Azure to even be phased by it.
"You look.. The same, Except you are not wearing a marine uniform.. Soooo. That's a plus!"
Azure looked at his pink coat, The excellent craftsman ship on the coat made her smile. It was her that gifted Leo with that pink Coat of his and he had worn it or had it on his person ever since.
Leo pulled out a black eye patch and placed it over his right eye.
"Actually.. You really do look like a pirate-"
Azure smiled and she walked out the tavern with Leo.
"I think we will pull this off really well! It feels natural to wear my gear this way.. Kinda weird, If i'm being honest."
Azure walked through the crowd with Leo noticing slaves being auctioned off in the middle of the City Square.
"..This is very wrong.."
Azure frowned at Leo as they passed the damaged men and women being sold off to the highest bidders.
Azure looked ahead and saw a few familiar faces, In a bad sort of way but in this current situation it was a good thing. Peter 'Pecker Picker' Pickles, Bounty: 12,000,000 Berries and his First mate, Sasha 'Sausage Slasher' Savoriez, Bounty: 8,000,000 Berries- The reason they had bounties was because they were both involved in the murder of four mayors throughout the North Blue as well as they kidnapped and brutally filmed killings of ten different marine Lieutenants.
"Remember Leo- Be very careful, We are suppose to be hardcore, Badass, Killing, thieving, Pirates."
Azure turned to look at Leo, hoping he was still next to her but half expecting him to run off to flirt with Sasha.
The two wanted pirates had suddenly taken a right turn into the Inn called
'The Dusty Muffin'
"Alright Leo- Lets do this!"
Azure spoke in a whisper all the while making sure to straighten out her back a bit more and roll her shoulders back to make it look like she was one tough son of a bitch. A few Pirates sitting on barrels outside the Inn smirked ear to ear as Azure got closer.
"Hey Sweet thin--"
As soon as he spoke Azure slipped out one of her Nodachi from her back strap; And While it was still sheathed Azure made a strike with the Sword into the bald pirates face, making the poor soul fly across the street.
The other two got up from their barrels and stood at attention, more or less- Anyways.
"I Apologize for my friend-- Uhmm.. What was your name, miss?"
Azure let off a death stare at the two who both made a deep gulping noises.
"..I'm sure you both have heard of me.."
Azure's eye twitched. What was she going to call herself?! What was a good epithet that folks would remember?!
"If you haven't Then Listen up and listen closely, because I won't say it again.. Crimson Snow."
Azure strapped her Nodachi to her back once more and smirked as soon as she turned her back to them.
'Hm.. Crimson Snow.. That is pretty catchy!'
She thought to herself.
Leo D Morgan
Subject: Re: Harvest Island Slave Trade
Sun Nov 05, 2017 4:41 pm
Seeing people being sold made Leo sick to his stomach but It also made him angry on so many levels. It was something that cut him and Snow deep, The Idea of not being free Hurt Leo's soul to its core. Leo tried to shake the feeling that was hurting him but couldn't. He had heard Snow say this was wrong under her breath and Leo could not agree more.
In the distance, Snow notice two of there targets; A Captain and his first mate. They both had alright bounties but definitely nothing to take lightly. Leo took out his flask and began to chug when he heard a Snow say,
"Remember Leo- Be very careful, We are suppose to be hardcore, Badass, Killing, thieving, Pirates."
This made Leo choke on his drink and laugh.
"No problem, Snow."
Leo said with a grin. Leo watched the two pirates make there way into the dusty muffin; As Snow and Leo, made there way to the inn Snow was stopped by some assholes outside the bar. Leo was going to stay to back her up when he saw The first mate Sasha in the bar pulling a few chains; Leo walked right inside the inn. The main area was huge and filled with low-level pirates and slaves. People were arguing, playing poker, trading with both slaves and money. Leo even spotted a few marines partaking in the gambling. Leo looked to see Sasha sitting in the corner sitting on a man with chain around his neck while two more massaged her feet. Sasha was a beauty but had a black hole for a heart.
It seemed as though her captain was away from her at the moment which Leo took as a good time to introduce himself. As Leo made his way over as a fourth slave that fanned Sasha decided to make a run for it. The slave pushed past Leo and ran for the exit but just before getting to the door he was shot in the back by Sasha. Leo looked to her and felt a bit of hatred. Leo couldn't resist most women but something about a woman who treats people like cargo or just numbers made him angry. Sasha yelled to a man selling slaves,
"Hey, Rosco, You owe me a new slave. One of your last ones was a runner. Well, not a very good one."
all the men in the tavern laughed except for her captain. Leo walked up to her and introduced himself,
"Hello, Miss you look like you run things around here. The name's Leo, first mate to Azure Snow. We want to get into the Slave trade, I want to pay some respects."
Sasha looked Leo up and down and ignored him; Leo took a little offense. He then put a a bag of gold on a table.
"May I?"
Leo said as he walked behind her and began massaging her shoulders. Sasha seemed to enjoy his company a little more.
"Hey, Whats your name again cyclops?"
Sasha said. Leo grinned, he knew he was in.
Azure Snow
The Owner
Marine Captain
Skill Sheet
Skill 1
Heaven's Nodachi
Skill 2
Gun Blade Style
Skill 3
Subject: Re: Harvest Island Slave Trade
Mon Nov 06, 2017 1:44 am
Laughter, Music, Whimpering slaves, and the smell of alcohol penetrated Azure's being as she walked through the entrance to the Dusty Muffin. Pirates, Gangsters, and even leaders of some recognized guilds were here.
"..Now, Now! We have all awaited the man in charge- Haven't we?
" a bald man said with a clean smirk on his otherwise twisted face. The music stopped playing and Azure glanced over to the stage while making her way over as quickly as she could to get an even closer look.
Smoke came out of both left and right stages, filling the room with a fog. Lights came down hitting the center stage and as this happened trumpets began to play.
"The one, The only!--"
A man's silhouette with a mohawk suddenly appeared on the back center of the stage with two drop dead gorgeous women. They danced side to side, rolling their arms in a groovy routine.
"Our Host! The Infamous man who works directly for the one in charge of the North Blue's Trade!"
The man came out of the shadows and into the light which reflected brightly upon his shades.
"The Red Mohawk! D---"
The announcer got hit square in the face. Peter 'Pecker Picker' Pickles Glared at Mohawk with a gun pointed at his head.
"You will pay for what you did!!!!"
He shouted, making quite the scene.
Red Mohawk walked slowly closer to this fellow with a smirk on his face.
"..Tskkk.. Ruining my entrance-"
He stood with his hands in the pockets of his nice, green trench coat.
"You sold my mother into slavery!"
He gripped the pistol tightly and shook with intensity.
"..And your father- sisters too.. I guess this is news to you though. Maybe you shouldn't have Crossed me.. Peter. Maybe you should have avoided pissing off the wrong person."
Mohawk looked directly behind Peter at his First mate, Sasha- Who then got up from her human chair. She walked closer and closer to her captain, Peter.
Before peter or anyone else could say anything she put a gun to Peters head and blew his brains out. Mohawk nodded at Sasha, who then went back to her human Chair next to Leo to continue doing whatever she was doing without a second thought about what she just did. Azure stared at Mohawk for a little bit and then looked at a Wanted Poster on the wall next to her..
"Holy shit. Its Him!"
"Red Mohawk" Zabron:
The man who's bounty had been rising as of late; 'Red Mohawk' Zabron.. Of course, Zabron was his last name- His first name was unknown, But Azure was curious to find it out.
"..We have all come here to take apart in the Trade but Id like to make a few things clear.. One- Never Cross me or Pretty. Two- Follow my instructions, And Three- LETS PARTY!"
Mohawk pulled out a big bottle of Sake from his coat and shouted loudly for the party to begin.
"Wait.. He said Pretty- I wonder who that is."
Azure walked towards countless pirates and Gangsters who all yelled with glee. Apparently Mohawk knew how to throw a party and this Tavern was just the place to do it. One thing was for sure.. Azure had to get close to this guy.
Leo D Morgan
Subject: Re: Harvest Island Slave Trade
Fri Nov 10, 2017 11:21 am
"The name is Leo, I am a pirate like you."
"Let me stop you right there. Me and you are nothing a like. I am a first mate of a prestigious crew and you are nothing, Now keep massaging me."
Leo massaged Sasha and the games continued. He did not like this woman one bit; She stood for slavery and pain. It ate Leo up not to throw her to the ground and arrest her right there. If he weren't a marine he might have ended her right there. Then without further ado the lights went low and smoke entered the large stage. Quiet, the event for one man. The announcer shouted,
"Our Host! The Infamous man who works directly for the one in charge of the North Blue's Trade! The Red Mohawk!"
The man was interrupted by Captain Peter who said many things that Leo confirmed in a report that he had read awhile back about his family being sold. However, while Leo was thinking Sasha took action. She stood and killed her former captain; Then she returned to her seat and Leo continued. It pissed him off to just sit there and stay silent. Leo was a loud mouth and he had a lot to say.
The man running the show then shouted.
"..We have all come here to take apart in the Trade but Id like to make a few things clear.. One- Never Cross me or Pretty. Two- Follow my instructions, And Three- LETS PARTY!"
Leo looked the man over and couldn't help but laugh. Leo thought to himself,
"Red Mohawk, huh? He looks like a dog got an erection and stuck it on his head.
Leo wanted a closer look at this man and this organization he ran. Leo Spoke to Sasha,
"So, Sasha that's your true captain, huh? He looks powerful, Do you think you could introduce me? I think I might want to join."
Sasha heard the Leo and snapped back,
"Introduce yourself! Do I look like a slave, cyclops? If you don't watch yourself you could end up being my next toy."
Leo could feel the strength she had but it was all in the force she commanded. Leo was certain that in one on one he could take this woman.
"Actually, You have an amazing talent for massage; I think I might keep you."
Leo knew this wasn't good. In order to maintain his weak outlook He let Sasha manhandle him over to the man named Red Mohawk.
Red Mohawk had been drinking his cares away and having many conversations. When Leo and Sasha walked up to him.
"Sasha, Who the hell is this? Don't you have enough slaves? they aren't free you know. Who does he belong to?"
Mohawk said.
"Well, It's not my fault Rosco sold me a runner. Plus, Look at the passion in his eyes."
Mohawk tilled his glasses and met Leo's gaze. In that moment Mohawk felt something he couldn't explain. Mohawk broke the gaze as soon as he could and said,
"Umm, do you even know where he comes from or who might own him? I don't want to be messing with Slaves that Pretty has already bargained for."
Sasha took a moment to think while Leo took this chance to speak.
"The names Leo. Me and my captain hoped to meet you and work with you. We heard how strong you were in the trade business."
Sasha pushed his head down and Leo awaited for his response.
Azure Snow
The Owner
Marine Captain
Skill Sheet
Skill 1
Heaven's Nodachi
Skill 2
Gun Blade Style
Skill 3
Subject: Re: Harvest Island Slave Trade
Fri Nov 10, 2017 1:50 pm
The Red Mohawk tilted his shades down to glance over at Leo.
"..So you are not a slave? Good- I would be glad to speak to you and your Captain."
Mohawk looked around to see if he could point Azure out in the crowd, He wanted to guess which Captain it was and how much strength. Azure knew she had to make a strong, Lasting impression with not only Mohawk, but all those here at the Tavern. She figured the only way to do that was to fight someone on the stage in front of everyone; But how would she get someone to face off against her?
She began to walk towards Mohawk and Leo, making sure to be aware of the strong looking fellows around her. However, even though she was doing a fine job at paying attention to those around her, she was not paying attention
her. Almost instantly she slipped on a banana peel which came out of no where! She stumbled into a table and knocked it over and with it all the ale, Cash, and weapons upon it. A large fellow with green, dead looking skin got up from his seat and yelled at Azure with all his might. The crowd dimmed down to a low murmur to see what went down.
He directed his double sided war axe at Azure.
Now was Azure's chance, It was set up too perfectly for it to just be by chance.
"..Your table was in my way big fella!"
Azure swiftly drew her Nodachi, Silver Light.
"So you flip the table!? I should cut you in two right now!"
The angry gangster walked slowly towards Azure but was stopped by Mohawk.
"..Looks like we have a Sparring match!.. If you are going to settle this then get up on that stage and do it right!"
Mohawk pushed the big fella and pointed at the Stage. He followed Instructions and followed the path to the stage, Meanwhile Azure gave a smirk and wink to Mohawk, Giving off a look of confidence.
"I am going to cut you into a million pieces!"
he shouted with madness from center stage. Azure entered on the left, gripping her Nodachi tightly; It was the moment of truth- Heaven's Nodachi Style V.S. This mad man's Axe techniques. The Axe man rushed Azure Instantly as she entered with a furious dash of power and strength. He swung overhead, doing his best to cut her head clean off. Azure had a different Idea though, She charged as well, sliding across the stage and under the giant of a man. Her nodachi cut through the inner, Left leg and into his knee. Azure Recovered with a roll on the other side and then flipped her body around to look at the damage done.
Blood drizzled down his leg but it didn't effect his movement as much as Azure thought it would. At most the strike gave the man a limp.
"Kick her ass Forest Killer!"
A man from the crowd shouted to boost his morale. The Killer forced his step down and pressed off hard to get a jumping motion which flung him forwards towards Azure. His next swing was now from head to toe. The strike came down quick and if Azure didn't do anything to dodge or block the heated technique she would probably be chopped in half. She Rolled out of the way as the Axe hit the stage, going through it violently and blasting away pieces at all sides.
The Axe not only destroyed half the stage but cracked the remaining wood around it within a 4 meter radius causing the stage to become unstable. Azure took a deep breath and gave her pirate persona a little more flavor.
"You're pretty good with that Axe! That is certain.."
Azure looked at the crowd who anxiously awaited one of them dead.
"..You are all Lucky to witness in these moments why I am named Crimson Snow!!"
She gave a slight glare at her target and just as he locked eyes with her, it was over. Azure zoomed passed the unsteady stage, Sliding her Legendary Nodachi across the belly, Bringing it Up and through the arm to the other side of the large fellow. The Stage lit up with a burst of blinding light and when It was over and dimmed she was seen standing behind him sheathing her Nodachi. Right before the Hilt clicked a rain of blood squirted out of the poor soul. He dropped to his knees and as his head hit the floor boards below him, forcing him to drop through to the under carriage of the Stage. As soon as his body hit the base his arm unattached, squirting even more blood than before.
Whispers blanketed the crowd,
Who was this.. Snow? Where did she come from?
Azure walked off the stage just as Forest Killer's crew went to help him the best they could.
"..What Crew are you from!?"
a man with a small teacup hat attempted to gain an audience with Azure.
"I am , 'Crimson' Snow, Captain of Heaven's Winter! All of you, remember it well!"
Azure shouted fiercely, calmly, and steadily to all those within the tavern. She could feel the eyes of stronger pirates and gangsters observe her and gain a sudden interest in her, however, Mohawk was the first to talk with her.
"..You have some pretty flashy skills with the Nodachi.. My question is.. How did you come across Silver Light..?"
Mohawk noticed that She had a hold of a legendary Sword.
"It has been passed down in my family for generations."
Azure spoke straightforwardly.
"OH! There you are Leo- I didn't know where you had went!"
It was at this moment that Red Mohawk realized that Leo belonged to Azure as her First mate.
Leo D Morgan
Subject: Re: Harvest Island Slave Trade
Tue Nov 14, 2017 9:08 pm
From what seemed out of no where Snow slammed right into a table and a very large man. Leo wasn't sure what Snow was up to and decide to keep his mouth shut. As Snow and this large man argued. Red Mowhawk stepped in,
"..Looks like we have a Sparring match!.. If you are going to settle this then get up on that stage and do it right!"
Everyone cheered. It was quiet a spectacle to see the lights went low again as everyone cheered for the large man. A few men cheered for Snow. Leo shouted,
"Come on Snow!"
Red Mohawk looked at Leo then the match began. It was a long and brutal fight. However, Leo took this chance to talk Snow up.
Hey, Mowhawk guy. Do you know who that woman is? She is a legend where I come from. It would be an honor to have her work with you!"
Red Mowhawk kept watching,
"Legend you say. I have never heard of her. What makes her so special. She has skills that's for sure. Does she have anything special to offer?"
Snow was just about to finish the big man off. Leo looked to Red Mowhawk again. Leo said,
"What does she have to offer?Well, right now nothing but a strong partner; But with time she could be your ticket to the top. That's just how powerful she is. Now, about the legendary part have you ever seen a sword like that. Its one of a kind buddy."
With that the bout was over. Snow stood victorious over the man. Leo had no real worry's, Snow never loses.
Snow made her way over to Leo and Mowhawk,
"I am , 'Crimson' Snow, Captain of Heaven's Winter! All of you, remember it well!"
She stopped right infront of Red Mowhawk. Strong and fierce intensity in her eyes. Snow had Red Mowhawks attention,
"..You have some pretty flashy skills with the Nodachi.. My question is.. How did you come across Silver Light..?"
She was direct,
"It has been passed down in my family for generations."
Then for a moement broke her strong exterior,
"OH! There you are Leo- I didn't know where you had went!"
It was then Red Mowhawk knew why Leo was talking her up. Leo laughed pulled out his flask and began to drink.
"Leo was it. Why didn't you tell me you belonged to this beauty? Well, Miss Snow I have to say you have peaked my interest. I would like to invite you to a private show. If you would please follow me."
With that Red Mowhawk turned and began to head towards a side door near the stage. Just before he had completely turned around. Sasha shouted,
"What the Hell, Red? What about my slave. I want him right now!"
Red Mowhawk turned his head tilted his glasses,
"Calm down baby. We will find you a different one. This one is clearly Spoken for."
Sasha was speechless for only a moment but then like a spoiled brat. Pulled a gun out and pointed it at one of her slaves out of anger. Leo was sick of this bitch. The moment she was about to pull the trigger. Leo grabbed the gun pointed it down. A shot was fired. Then, he grabbed the back of her head and slammed it in to the bar counter breaking the wood and splinters flying everywhere. Leo immediately let go as she dropped to the floor. Red Mowhawk looked back to see what happened. Leo threw his hands in the air and said,
"Hey, Slaves are expensive sometimes. Just trying to save you a pretty penny boss. It wont happen again."
"It better not. Now come on she is going to be pissed when she comes too."
He turned and kept walking to the door. Leo looked at Snow and grinned. He then bowed and held his arm toward Red Mowhawk.
"After you Miss Snow."
Leo said with a wink.
Azure Snow
The Owner
Marine Captain
Skill Sheet
Skill 1
Heaven's Nodachi
Skill 2
Gun Blade Style
Skill 3
Subject: Re: Harvest Island Slave Trade
Sat Nov 18, 2017 11:30 am
Azure gave a brilliant smile; Seeing Leo Knock out that woman was pleasing and when Azure turned around to look at Mohawk he even had a small smirk. She followed Leo's suggestion and took the lead behind Mohawk. They walked into a room which had a staircase going downwards.
"Please, Follow me- We are about to begin."
Mohawk nodded and slowly descended on the steps going downwards. Azure wondered what was going to happen at the end of the staircase but she knew one thing was for sure.. Whatever was down there, They had to find out!
It was quite the journey down the stairs but as soon as they reached the bottom they were greeted by a butler.. Or rather- A slave with fancy drinks for them. Azure shoved her hand towards the slave declining the drinks. It wasn't her style to drink those kind anyways and didn't want to stray too far away from who she was.
"Hmm.. You are interesting, Captain Snow- Don't like the drinks provided."
Mohawk opened the door in front of them and There stood steadily a brilliant Oak Table. Well known Pirates, Gangsters, and Even Marines all had claimed seats at the sixty two spot table; all here to discuss things about the Slave trade.
"Take a Seat.."
Mohawk offered two empty seats at the long Oak table. Azure looked around at all the eyes that were now on them. From the looks of the table, there was only two more empty seats which were apart from each other. Azure nodded and grabbed the seat furthest from them to save Leo a walk.. Plus, There was chicks on both sides of the empty seat that was right in front of them; She thought Leo might enjoy that. As Azure walked to the other side of the table she noticed a large fellow with a cigar that was larger than life. His shadowed figure sat securely on the seat next to hers.
To the other side of her seat sat a man she vaguely recognized from a wanted poster; But she couldn't put her finger on who it was exactly.
"You look like an interesting Pirate.."
The man with the cigar revealed his face from the shadows to give a Sharp pearly white smile. Azure gulped and then regained her composure,
"Java 'TIKI'.. Bounty of 56,000,000 Berries.. What could you be doing in a place like this?"
Azure gave a slight smirk while staring into his cold, forest eyes.
"It appears my face is all over the North Blue, I am Infamous! JAJAJAJAJAJAJAJA!"
His laugh echoed through the entire room. If he was here then there was something a lot bigger in play for sure.
"Now that everyone is all here, Pretty Panther is not happy.. quite a lot of you have crossed her and now she is out for blood. You will know in a few seconds if you have crossed her!"
Mohawk guy sat at the head of the table overlooking nearly 60 people. One by one bodies began to drop to the ground dead all around the Oak table.
"..But lets not let that spoil the fun!"
Mohawk smiled and put his feet onto the table. Each of the bodies began to disappear. Azure's eye twitched as she followed the movements of a slug figure. It was none other than 'People Eater' Vicky and faster than most people realized the 40 bodies which had dropped dead were swallowed whole by the Slug Human..
"Its all cleaned up!.. SO YUMMY."
Vicky shouted in a crackly voice. Only 20 of the 60 now remained.
Leo D Morgan
Subject: Re: Harvest Island Slave Trade
Mon May 28, 2018 8:17 pm
The walk down the staircase seemingly took forever. However, with this newly acquired time Leo took the moment and surveyed the dark and disgusting world he was in. Leo looked to Mohawk guy and said,
"Hey, Mohawk. Be real, this place could be cleaner right I mean just because we are trading slaves doesn't mean were chopping them up and eating them down here."
A sentence Leo would later regret saying. Mohawk smirked,
"True, and personally I don't get the whole slave trade thing in the first place. I mean there is so many better things in life like money. Although, who knows if Pretty Panther's plan comes through we might be doing this stuff in locations anywhere we want."
Leo twitched. What does he mean by that, he wondered.
Finally, the reached the meeting room it was filled with smoke and the scent of cheap perfume and alcohol. Leo took note of the 60 or so men and women around the room. He had an uneasy feeling about this whole thing. Mohawk told them to take a seat at a long oak table. Leo saw two seats one across the room and one with too beautiful women on either side of the seat. Leo's darted to Snow who was already making her way across the room. Leo bowed and mouthed the words thank you. Leo sat down and took a long drink from his flask. The woman on Leo's left was beautiful short brown hair. She looked almost feisty but looked as though she would get around. Leo was attracted to these kinds of women. The women took note of Leo instantly. Right when Leo had finished her drink the woman. Introduced herself,
Hey, tiger my name is Lida. What you got there some private stock? Here, take a drink from my cup. Its delicious, everyone here that is of importance is drinking this stuff.
Leo grinned and reached for the cup. When suddenly a hand was placed over the top by the woman on Leos right. This woman was tall had magnificently long black hair and a seductive low toned voice. She said,
"Sorry, Mr....hmm gentleman. I don't think men of your looks should drink something so feminine. My name in Olivia. Olivia Silverwhich."
It was only then did it click that the woman on his right was a powerful woman of a bounty of 49,000,000. Who clawed her way up the ladder in this world underground world. Lida took great offence and shouted,
"Hey bitchwhich, cant you see I am trying to get laid here. Plus, I don't see you with one of these drinks. You must be some low level trash. So big guy how about...."
Then mid sentence Lida began to choke on her words. dropping her glass to the floor and grabbing her chest within the next moment she was dead. It was then Leo heard mohawk guy say,
"Now that everyone is all here, Pretty Panther is not happy.. quite a lot of you have crossed her and now she is out for blood. You will know in a few seconds if you have crossed her!"
Leo looked to Olivia who gave him a warm look. She had saved his life. He was not one to deny a drink. If, she hadn't stepped in Leo began to say something but was cut off.
"Don't Mr. Gentleman I was being serious strong men like you should only drink hard drinks. I see something in you. So pay attention and keep your eyes on the prize."
Olivia said as she motioned to her tight black dress.
A few moments, later a old disgusting women came around and began devouring the bodies Lidas body was the last she consumed.
"All cleaned up so yummy."
She then looked at Leo and said,
"Might I sit next to you sexy."
Leo shivered then nodded. So much was happening. Only 20 people were left including Leo and Snow. Mohawk guy stood saying,
" Thank you, for your loyalty. Now, this meeting was not just to weed out those people who weren't loyal. Pretty Panther believe the next step in his plan is on its way to success. So, he wishes to include you all on the next step. He is in talks about legalizing slavery. To the point of being able to buy and sell anywhere, anytime. As if you were buying dinner."
Leo was stunned the navy would never allow this to pass. He looked around the room and saw several very different reactions some good, some bad. However, Leo pulled out his flask took a drink and waited for Snow's response to see how to react to this new development.
Azure Snow
The Owner
Marine Captain
Skill Sheet
Skill 1
Heaven's Nodachi
Skill 2
Gun Blade Style
Skill 3
Subject: Re: Harvest Island Slave Trade
Tue May 29, 2018 4:52 pm
Azure felt like both Leo and herself were out of their league on this one.. Many familiar faces that she had seen on the Wanted posters continued to pop up left and right. Even though she almost felt helpless, Azure kept her composure and as soon as the Slug lady took a seat next to Leo, Mohawk went ahead and foretold the rest of the plan-
"The Twenty of us are simply a small part of the cog that will soon run the slave trade, arm deals and other sorts of things.. In other words.. The North Blue is about to be under the control of Pretty Panther."
Mohawk Guy seemed to sigh under his breath. Did he like this Idea? or maybe there was something more.. somethings that were hidden about Mohawk guy.
"What's the plan for us Specifically?"
Azure glared with her sea blue eyes. Mohawk slowly stood from his comfortable seat.
"..Do you mean Yourself and Leo?.. Ah, I have something very important planned for you both. As for everyone else- Instructions will be brought to you very soon to the table. these are from Pretty panther, Personally."
Mohawk nodded to a good looking man in a tux, who then brought out large folders, sealed with the magickal crest of Pretty Panther.
"Now that all of you have this folders, You may leave.. Make sure you follow the instructions to the 'P' Because if you don't.. Pretty Panther will do the exact same thing to you as She has done here.."
He pointed to the Slug lady who gave a triple chinned smirk. They began to rise from the table, holding the folder close to them as if it were a piece of grand treasure.
As everyone moved out of the room Azure and Leo were signaled to stay behind.
"The two of you have an important task at hand that I would like you to take care of."
Mohawk fixed his shades and made sure everyone within the room was away before continuing.
"I need you both to Steal a particular object from the Bishop in this town. It is a Pistol with gold engravings on it that say
'Mohawk's Gun'
If you do this I will make sure you get the finest Sake when you return here as well as a reward, of course."
Azure looked at Leo to see what he would say before she said anything. She was sure that they had successfully gained a decent amount of information but they had to keep it going in order to feed the info to the higher ups.
Leo D Morgan
Subject: Re: Harvest Island Slave Trade
Tue Jul 03, 2018 9:44 pm
Leo, listened close to the conversations, taking note of every little expression from Mohawk guy and the others in the room. Leo wasn't sure what Miss Silverwich meant by keep his eye on the prize. This wasn't your average innuendo, she meant something. It was then Leo's eyes drifted to the slug women who was snuggling up to Leo's arm. At first Leo was going to flip but then something caught his eye. In one of the many fat rolls of the woman Leo spotted a note. He couldn't look at it for long the fat slug had only closed her eyes for a few minutes. However, Leo read,
"Keep an eye on the Mohawk fellow. -
Was Mohawk guy a good person? Was he here by choice. Leo's mind flooded with questions.
Suddenly, Leo snapped back into the conversation. Mohawk said,
"Now that all of you have this folders, You may leave.. Make sure you follow the instructions to the 'P' Because if you don't.. Pretty Panther will do the exact same thing to you as She has done here.."
The old Slug smirked. Leo's spine shivered. Then as Everyone began to leave the room Olivia turned to Leo and asked,
"So Mr. Gentlemen did you pay attention? Our meeting was brief but I do hope to see you breathing again don't do anything stupid."
Leo nodded his head and with that she stood up with her folder and made her way to the exit. It was only then Leo saw it. On the back of Olivia's Leg was a brand it was a P. The only reason Leo's saw it was because the slit in her dress slid sideways when She stood up. Then, it clicked. Leo quickly looked at a few others that left the room. A brand on at least 3 others. These people did just work for Pretty They were owned by Pretty!
Leo needed to talk to Snow immediately.
. "The two of you have an important task at hand that I would like you to take care of."
Leo's snapped back to the conversation at hand. Mohawk guy continued,
"I need you both to Steal a particular object from the Bishop in this town. It is a Pistol with gold engravings on it that say 'Mohawk's Gun' If you do this I will make sure you get the finest Sake when you return here as well as a reward, of course."
Leo, felt like the job was easy enough but what did that have to do with them coming here. Leo asked,
"Alright, Mohawk guy was it. But, why have us come here only to do this little side mission?"
Mohawk guy threw his hand in Leo's face with a pointed finger and said,
Leo saw it a branded P on the inside of his wrist. Leo looked to Snow. Once Mohawk guy finished his conversation with Snow. He left the room.
Snow, I have so much to tell you. I have a few theories on what is going on in the Pretty organization. I will tell you everything on the way to our mission. What do you think we need to do and How should we act?"
Azure Snow
The Owner
Marine Captain
Skill Sheet
Skill 1
Heaven's Nodachi
Skill 2
Gun Blade Style
Skill 3
Subject: Re: Harvest Island Slave Trade
Sat Jul 07, 2018 10:55 am
Azure glanced over at Leo and spoke in a whisper.
"We will go along with everything for now- I feel like we can infiltrate the organization.. But to do that we need to act like Pirates. So.. Let's go find this gun."
Azure Smiled slightly as she lifted her foot onto the first set of stairs. Making her way upwards she began to read the information that Mohawk guy gave her about where the Gun was being kept. It was in the next town over in some sort of old castle.
"The next town over is called Grain Villa. That's where we need to go!"
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Subject: Re: Harvest Island Slave Trade
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