text:
If you can't stand the heat, get out of the alchemy room. Or at least get under a table and let our heroes fight shadows and a magical gun! Johnny feels blue. Tracey plays a matador. Inara makes a disguise.
Find Us Online
- website: jointhepartypod.com
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- music: brandongrugle.bandcamp.com
Cast & Crew
- Dungeon Master: Eric Silver
- TR8c (Tracey): Brandon Grugle
- Inara Harthorn: Amanda McLoughlin
- Johnny B. Goodlight: Michael Fische
- Creative Contributors: Connor McLoughlin, Julia Schifini, Heddy Hunt
- Multitude: multitude.productions
Amanda: Last time on Join the Party
Eric: With some quick thinking and animal friends,
Brandon (as Tracey): Hey, you guys want some food?
Eric: The party is back on solid ground. In the alchemy room with cool teens Tammy and Taylor,
Eric (as Taylor): Tammy! They're coming for the snacks!
Eric (as Tammy): Taylor! Don't let them take the snacks!
Eric: it was chop or be chopped during a potions challenge
Amanda: I sprinkle some parsley on top! God, god, gotta have some textural and colorful elements! Come on!
Eric: They had to put judgement on ice when Inara, Tracey, and Johnny protect the teens and Alonzo from shadows and a magical gun. FIGHT. ITEM. POKEMON. RUN. Let's get the party going!
(Theme music plays)
(Medium-tempo percussion and spooky music starts)
Eric: The gun is trained at Alonzo and the shadows are advancing from both walls they are coming closer and closer. And there are some spooky biz. Let's roll for initiative.
Amanda: 20
Michael: 11
Brandon: 15
Eric: You are all in the alchemy room. As I explained before, you were in the center of the room surrounding some tables and around the cauldron. The shadows are kind of advancing from either side, one all the way on the left and one all the way on the right. The gun is kind of like in the far right corner. And Inara you are facing the gun and the mage hand is over there, closing the door. Some other things just to remind you is that the two potions that you made have been plated. There is the lycanthropy potion. Half of it has berries in it, and the other half does not. And the mind-reading spell with the roots is in the other one. Tammy and Taylor, as soon as they saw the shadows, they hid, kind of like under the tables behind you. And Alonzo is in your general area and he is holding onto his medallion in an aggressive stance. Inara you are first in the initiative, what are you gonna do?
Amanda: I'm going to cast mage hand again and try to push the rifle up toward the ceiling.
Eric: Okay. So we're going to do a strength contest.
Amanda: Okay.
Eric: I'm going to roll for strength for the gun and you're going to roll strength for you representing the mage hand and we're gonna see what happens.
Amanda: It's a 15 minus 1.
Eric: Well I rolled a crit one. So I think you got it.
Amanda: NOICE!
Eric: All right. The Mage Hand comes out and just pushes the gun towards the ceiling.
Amanda: To be clear, the shooting end of the gun is pointing up toward the ceiling, not like the whole gun itself sort of points out?
Eric: The mouth of the gun, You know how guns have body parts?
Amanda: Yeah.
Brandon: I think it's called a barrel.
Eric: Like I said the mouth of a gun, is pointed totally to the sky. And the Mage Hand actually tickles the gun a little bit and it goes: "Hee-Hee"
Amanda: Okay. Great.
Eric: Are you going to move?
Amanda: Yes, I'd like to stand between the shadow and Taylor.
Eric: Okay. You're going to go over to the left which is the, I'm going to call it shadow one. And Taylor is under that table. All right, next is the gun. And you have pushed the mouth of the gun all the way up. It is still going to try to fire at Alonzo but it is having a lot of problems so I am going to give it disadvantage on the shot. (Rolls) Ugh... The gun still, even though it is nowhere near trying to shoot Alonzo, shoots all the way up and Buckshot kind of like lands in the ceiling with a loud bang. No one got hurt. We all good.
Amanda: Woo!
(Woo's and whooping)
Eric: You can hear someone outside go: "Hey are there fireworks?" Coming up next is Alonzo. Alonzo stares at one of the shadows, the one to his right, and he holds out a hand and he says:
Eric (as Alonzo): I'm going to do it. I'm going to do Ice Knife.
Eric: And he holds out his hand and he concentrates really hard and he holds on to the medallion... and nothing happens. And that is his turn. Tracey go ahead.
Brandon: I haven't really sensed any like horrible danger yet, so Tracey is not keen to use his last rage. but it is his first turn so he's going to try to recklessly attack this shadow closer to him, which is the shadow on the right.
Eric: Sure.
Brandon: So he's going to pull out a javelin from his pack and try to hurl it at the shadow. So my attack role is a 17.
Eric: Oh yeah that hits that thing! Roll for damage.
Brandon: So I rolled a six plus one, so seven points of damage.
Eric: Cool. All right. The javelin kind of hits the shadow right in the center of it, it's a very good throw. But you notice it like, it kind of does like, that the shadowed flesh kind of like moves out of the way a little bit? And like it dodges it? And it is resistant to, I guess this is piercing damage. So it only takes three points of damage
Brandon: and just a heads up, so I've got advantage on that with my reckless attack. So attack rules against me until my next turn have advantage.
Eric: Ok cool. Next up is Johnny.
Michael: I'm going to cast Sacred Flame. It's an at-will cantrip, it's instant, It's great. You have to succeed on the dex saving throw.
Eric: Which one are you doing it at?
Michael: I'm going to do it at the one that Tracey fired at.
Eric: Okay. It rolled 13.
Michael: 14. So you take one d8 radiant damage plus a charisma thing that's going to happen.
Eric: Oh no.
(Everyone laughs at bad rolling by Michael's Part)
Michael: Ahhh gooood... Well, I rolled a 1 on damage but that's fine. I get the plus 4 for 5 damage.
Eric: All right.
Michael: Radiant Damage
Eric: Radiant Damage. You hurl a very beautiful flame at this thing and it takes five damage, but this thing does not like your holiness. So the light kind of like, it's like you are shining a film projector at like really bad film and then it kind of like crackles through and that thing takes 10 damage and it is looking bad news for that thing.
Michael: Nice, nice nice nice.
Eric: All right, next up is Tammy and Taylor. They poke their heads out and they run over to the card cabinets and they each grab a component from either one and then they go back under their respective tables and they're both kind of like looking at the thing that they're holding. It is the shadow's turn. So the shadow that is having a bad time is going to go over and attack Tracey. So it's going to do a melee weapon attack against you. It has advantage. I just rolled a 22. So that hits you right?
Brandon: (Facetiously) Let me check my AC real fast...
Brandon: Yeah I think it does yeah.
Eric: All right. So the one that's like still kind of like speckling from the light wraps its arms around you and you're going to take... 10 points of damage. your strength score is also reduced by 1. That reduction is going to stay until you finish your rest. Your strength is sapped from you. Also, the other one is going to jump out at Alonzo and it rolled a critical failure. (Laughing)
Michael: Yeahhhh!
Amanda: Wassup, shadow?!?!
Michael (as Johnny): You, shadow can't handle the light.
Amanda (as Inara): Yea man you can't handle it, man, what!
Brandon: Tracey is over kind of like, rubbing his wounds a little bit. He's not he's not super happy about it.
Eric: He also feels a little tired?
Brandon: He does feel a little tired.
Eric: He's a little sleepy boy.
Brandon: Yeah he's a little fatigued.
Eric: The other shadow actually trips over itself somehow. And then it looks down, and you can literally see him thinking:
Eric (as shadow): "I don't have feet."
Eric: And you see him shrug. And we are back to the top of the order. Inara, remember you have the two shadows, one that is looking real bad, one that has just tripped over itself, and the gun. I'm going to say now the mage hand is no longer pushing it, its barrel up to the sky.
Amanda: So Inara dives under the table that Taylor is under and says,
Amanda (as Inara): I saw you guys grab something from the card catalog. What did you guys grab? Can I help you?
Eric (as Taylor): Yeah I wasn't really paying attention but I think I got the thing that I needed.
Eric: And Taylor holds out his hand and there are these like orange colored leaves. They're crackly and look a little bit brittle. And he says,
Eric (as Taylor): Yeah, these are uh. These are rusted leaves. I think this turns into a rust spell. It will just turn metal and just really really mess up that gun. But I mean I don't want to go out there and mix up the, mix the bowl. all the components
Amanda (as Inara): I'll do it man, don't worry. What do I have to do? Do I just like throw it at it? Like, like you know powder it and blow it?
Eric (as Taylor): Yeah. Okay. So you need to take a bowl and powder it in there and then use the other component and then you have to put some sort of fire under it. That's that's how we make all the potions usually.
Amanda: All right so Inara is going to grab a mortar and pestle from on top of the table that they're under. And yoink it back under the table so she can quickly crack up those leaves. Taylor can blow on the bottom of it his fire breath and then I'll fricken throw that Molotov cocktail into the gun.
Eric: Okay. Two things.
Amanda: Yes.
Eric: One remember you need both components, you need the actual component they need the modifier to make the potion which Tammy has. And I'm going to make you do a slight of hand check to see if the gun notices what you just did.
Amanda: Gladly. That's a 12 + 3 for 15
Eric: Yeah. Okay you just kind of like, you very stealthily like reach your hand up and like look around
Amanda: Looney Toons style.
Eric: You look around for all of the Mortar and Pestles and you grab it and you start to crush the leaves in there.
Amanda (as Inara): Tammy. Tammy throw your ingredient over here.
Eric: And Tammy looks up and will do that on her turn.
Amanda: Cool.
Eric: Tight. So it's now the gun's turn. The gun is now trained on Johnny because it is not happy about what he did to the shadow. And the gun... does a six.
Michael: Hey guess what? Thirteen.
Eric: Yeah. All right the gun loads itself up and you feel the ballast kind of like fly over to the side. It also hits a bunch of beakers and bowls and stuff and just kind of shatters all of them on one of the tables. It's Alonzo's turn so Alonzo has actually gone under the table and is over with Tammy and he like calls for the bowl. And Inara why don't you make it a dexterity throw. See if you can like throw it over.
Amanda: I've got a five plus five for ten.
Michael: It's bad isn't it. oh dear.
Eric: Well definitely you like try to skitter the bowl over there but it goes out from under the table. Alonzo has to go out and grab it. And one of the shadows notices that he's under there. And he actually combines the other modifier into it and he grinds it up.
Amanda: Cool.
Michael: Which shadow noticed? Was it the one that was radiant damaged or the other?
Eric: It was the other one.
Michael: Hrmmm ok.
Eric: Yeah. And Tracey it's your turn again.
Brandon: Tracey wants to go across the room and try to grapple with the gun and try to take control of it and try to become its new owner.
Eric: Oh hell yeah I'll get let's do a strength contest.
Brandon: I rolled a 9.
Eric: Uhhh, a 9 in total?
Brandon: Yeah.
Eric: Well that gun really messed up, it rolled like a five.
All: OOOOOOOO!!!!!
Amanda: Wassup!
Eric: So you (chuckles), what are you doing with this gun?
Brandon: So Tracey is going to run over to the gun and he's going to put his left hand on the barrel and his right hand on the butt of it and he's going to try to like wrestle it out of its current position and definitely aiming away from everyone and then try to like put it under his kind of like the wing of his arm and hold it straight to his body. And then he's going to try to like unload any shells that are still in the gun.
Eric: Okay you definitely have control of it. Why don't you roll arcana to see if you're able to even do it?
Brandon: I rolled a 17.
Eric: Oh YEAH you pop these magical shells out and this gun is unhappy. You can even feel it like kind of frown under your arm.
Brandon: I kind of like, pet it, like,
Brandon (as Tracey): It's going to be fine.
Eric: All right, Jonathan. Go ahead.
Michael: Johnny casts burning hands. It's a sheet of flames that come out from my fingertips presumably towards both shadows. They have to make a dexterity save.
Eric: Both of them?
Michael: Yes.
Eric: Tight. One of them got a 10 and one of them got a 9.
Michael: So they both have been hit by the flames. And they take... 18 damage.
Eric: Oh my god.
Brandon: Each?!
Michael: And any flammable object not worn or carried are ignited.
Eric: The flames come off your hands and it envelops both of the shadows. The one that was really bad off, it just kind of like pops and just disappears from existence. The other one.. how much... it was 18?
Michael: 18. Yes.
Eric: It only takes nine damage. For something that is such like a crazy wall of fire, it actually kind of shakes it off and it is doing okay. It definitely took some damage but it is not like the smoldering burst of shadow. I'm also going to say that you are in an alchemy lab and you just lit a bunch of stuff on fire.
Michael: Good with me.
Eric: Three potions explode. But you only get hit with one of them and you take… (Rolls) You take seven points of damage and you glow a little bit blue. Your whole body goes blue.
Michael: Hey, as long as I'm glowing and it's light, I'm good with that!
Eric: You're glowing a little bit blue.
Brandon: That's great!
Eric: All right. it is Tammy and Taylor's turn and using the poultice that Alonzo has made up and it is now Tammy, lights it up underneath there. And Tammy kind of jumps out and has the bowl like locked and loaded to throw. She says
Eric (as Tammy): Tracey heads up!
Eric: and she tosses the potion in your direction, like at the gun.
Brandon: Okay. So what Tracey does is kind of flips the gun out a little bit right in the path of the potion.
Eric: Cool. I'm going to give her advantage because that was really cool... The rust potion hits it right in the side and you see immediately rust is spreading all through the gun and it is very quickly corroding, and it is actually kind of like falling apart in your hands.
Brandon: Uh, Tracey takes like three big steps back because he is like 70 percent iron.
Eric: Oh yeah that's probably a good idea.
Michael: You did toss it so that's good.
Eric: Yeah you... it was like skeet shoot, you threw it in the air.
Brandon: Yeah, exactly, yeah.
Eric: And you walk away and that gun, that gun is done.
Amanda: Woo!
Eric: And so now you have one shadow left and that one shadow is very unhappy with one Jonathan B. Good. And it is going to do a strength drain on 'cha boy.
Eric: Yeah. That's a seven... He tries to get its spoopy hands around you and it does not. Inara it's back to you.
Amanda: Well I got nothing except my rapier and my daggers, so I am going to thrust my rapier into what I think to be the heart of the shadow.
Eric: Sure. Do it.
Amanda: So I got a 16, what do I add to it?
Eric: So here's what you do. You add your Dexterity and then you add your proficiency because you are proficient with a rapier.
Amanda: So I rolled a 16 plus 5 dexterity. And then what else?
Eric: Plus 2.
Brandon: That's a plus seven?!
Amanda: Twenty-three.
Eric: Yeah. Oh yeah. You slice this bad boy up.
Amanda: So for damage, I rolled an 8 plus 3. My dex modifier 4 and 11.
Eric: You know what this thing is really messed up and that was a really good roll. You want to do something cool when you kill this thing?
Amanda: Hell yeah.
Eric: What you want to do? What do you do to it as you slash your rapier through it?
Amanda: Well, A: I want to have done a like a curly Q rapier motion, like twist the blade around a bunch before poking into the shadow. And then as it explodes or dissolves or whatever I want to yell,
Amanda (as Inara): Take that, shadow! Try to come back here again. No, you can't!
Brandon: If I heard that I would never come back again.
Eric: If I was a shadow I'd be like, I don't want to go back in there again
Amanda (as Inara): That's right, goodbye! Inara Harthorn, remember this name, bye, double bye, goodbye forever. Back to the pits of hell you go!
Eric: And Tammy and Taylor while they are down there, they poke their heads up and they go:
Eric (as Tammy and Taylor): Brap Brap, Get it! Brap! This is lit!
Amanda (as Inara): They are the young cousins I never had
Michael: This is Undyingly Lit.
Amanda: Oooooh!
Brandon: Oh I like that a lot.
Eric: Hey hey hey. Party. You. You just did your first encounter! You did it!!!
All: Yay!!!!
Michael (as Johnny): It is done. We, friends, have vanquished these enemies of the light. Friends, you have done well. The Undying light smiles on all of us today. Praise the undying light.
Amanda (as Inara): Are you trying to, like, recruit me for something man? Because we're already kind of like in the shit together.
Michael (as Johnny): You've been recruited since the day you were born.
Amanda (as Inara): That's kind of creepy dude. I'm like 20. And you're like 4400.
Michael (as Johnny): You did well. I'm proud of you.
Brandon (as Tracey): Hey Johnny can you read that verse again for me.
Eric: (Muttering) Oh man...
Michael (as Johnny): Chapter Three. Book seven of the book of light. Yea the shadows they be upon us. Tho we fight ever after, they will be destroyed by my hand and yours. All praise the undying light.
Brandon: Tracey's wonder sensors are just off the charts.
Michael: It's also obvious that as he was doing this verse from the book of light a lot of magical light and color spray and lights were just coming out of his fingertips
Brandon: Of course, and Tracey...
Michael: And he's glowing blue!
Brandon: and Tracey is almost levitating at this point.
Amanda: Inara is running over to the mortar and pestle which are on the floor I assume kind of maybe broken or overturned or something? And I want to try to save what I can of this rust spell cause it's pretty dope.
Eric: Sure, okay. Why don't you grab a vial? And why don't you roll just roll a d20 to see how much you get.
Amanda: 13.
Eric: Yeah there's enough to fill up half a vial of the rust potion.
Brandon: So Tracey wants to take his bedroll out of his pack and roll up whatever's left of the gun, I think it's probably just like the wood and the butt at this point. But he wants to roll that up into his bedroll and put it into his pack for safe keeping.
Eric: Nice
Amanda: And Inara runs over to Alonzo and says
Amanda (as Inara): Are you okay dude? It seems like everyone really wants to kill you in every part of this castle, man.
Eric (as Alonzo): Yeah, yeah I don't like that a lot.
Eric: Alonzo actually looks down at his hands again and he's kind of like been clenching and unclenching them like ever since the battle kind of wound down and then he looks down at the necklace and he looks at all of you and he says,
Eric (as Alonzo): Did I hit any anything? Did I just, I missed it? Did I hit one?
Brandon (as Tracey): Yeah, you did real good.
Amanda (as Inara): Nah, man, you did not.
Michael (as Johnny): My friend. You certainly tried. And that's definitely the first step. We've seen power in you. What's the deal with that necklace? What's the deal with you? We… how… I'm an accomplished spellcaster. How can we help you?
Eric (as Alonzo): Uh, this… Johnny, I appreciate it but this really isn't about you.
Michael (as Johnny): Whether or not it's about me is beside the point. I want to help you. You wanted to help us in that battle. What happened?
Eric: He kind of like grumbles to himself a little bit and he says,
Eric (as Alonzo): Yeah, that's what I thought. You know, I have to go see Kohl. Have any of you ever seen a devil before? Well, you will today.
(Ominous music leads into midroll break)
Eric: Hey, it's Eric! Sometimes, you're running around all day, you have errands, phone calls, coffee dates, work, school, whatever. And it is summer in the northern hemisphere so we're all hot and sweaty all over. And you realize, in the middle of everything, you have ten minutes to spare, so you walk around a big box store just for the industrial AC. This is the AC unit. We're on power save mode.
For this midroll, I want to shout out all the different communities we have going. Our first is our Patreon community. We have more new patrons since our last episode: Tim, Evan, TiredHorse, Sonya, and Hans! Tim and Horse are $20 Party Legends, we will tell tales of them in bbqs, luaus, and themed get-togethers for years to come. They get every single episode two days early and we will make them a customized gift, just like Seth and Alex will get as well.
We also have a new feature for our patrons: we've added a Discord channel! For anyone who doesn't know, Discord is a chat service where we all get together on the Internet and just hang out. And it is amazing. We've talked about homebrewed D&D, game tales, when the new episodes are coming out, X Files trash-posting, everything. It is my favorite. So if you want to join, all you have to do is donate! What are you waiting for? Join us at patreon.com/jointhepartypod.
And then there's our twitter @JoinThePartyPod. We have a vibrant community and growing fast, and we would love to hear from you. It makes my heart grow like 10 sizes every time someone shouts us out or gives us a new follow or just tweets the dumb stuff they do in their party. Someone told us about like a soap cactus today? I don't even understand, but it's amazing. If you already follow, recommend us to a friend on Twitter. And if you don't, just come on over and try it! The water is fine.
Finally I just want to shout out our community of fan artists. Thistle Raven, Stjep, and Irrel. You have brought our imaginary creations to life and it is awe-inspiring. Really awe-inspiring. Like, we can't get over it. Thank you so much for your skill, your dedication, and your enthusiasm. We love fanart! Please keep it coming. If you have a doodle, or a headcanon, or a question to share, find @jointhepartypod on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram. We've got a handy dandy email form on our website, jointhpartypod.com, or you can skip all that and e-mail us at firstname.lastname@example.com. Drop us a note! Say hi!
Finally, this is the part of the show where we shout out a family member of ours to get them to listen to podcasts. This is for my mom, Rita May. Mom. You listened to episode 1, I know you have it in you. If you make it to this episode and tell me that you hear this note, I will buy a plane ticket to Nashville to see you. Promise. Just listen to the show. Pleaaase. You've read the Hobbit! I know you like fantasy! Just do it. Like, your son is involved. Come on. This is pretty close.
All right, let's get back to the party.
(Music leading back to show)
Amanda (as Inara): What does that mean, maaaan?!
Eric: Hahahaha.
Amanda (as Inara): Alonzo, what do you mean? Like, what were you doing outside today on the quad?
Eric (as Alonzo): Yeah, you all saw before. I have no idea how the medallion works. No idea. I thought that… I… everyone keeps telling me that I'm a sorcerer now? Like I try to explain this stuff to Greg, like, to my dad, to Max, and they all keep telling me that I'm like the sorcerer that like my family foretold? It all has something to do with my medallion, like the lore surrounding… Like, I mean, there's a reason why we're the most powerful family in Fidapolis. I don't know, it's something to do with that. I need to find out which is why I need to see Kohl.
Eric: All right, why don't you make a history check because this time he said lore.
Michael: Perfect I can do that, 16 plus 2.
Eric: All right. You have never heard any mention of a medallion in your studies of the Concentric States but you do know that the Kikos have gone back a millennium. In fact, they were one of the first families that settled the Concentric States, that like actually established them. And a millennium ago, like everyone in this entire continent knows that like something big happened. And then after that happened, the Concentric States were formed and the Kikos have been around since then.
Michael: So it doesn't surprise me that this is part of the Kikos and it also makes sense that this is something that probably existed before the bulk of modern history.
Eric: Yes.
Eric (as Alonzo): So I need to figure out what it is. I don't even in the giant library in this castle there is not enough to tell me, no one will tell me what this thing does. I think people know, and I don't know if you saw, like… everyone I'm actually close to is totally wrapped up in this big meeting. And I need to get out.
Michael (as Johnny): I promise to do whatever I can to help you find out what that is and help you unlock your true potential.
Amanda (as Inara): And I know what it's like to leave your family and try to make an identity on your own. So if you want to strike out and try something or go talk to someone who might know what you have in your power, we're here for you.
Brandon: Tracey goes,
Brandon (as Tracey): Wha?
Brandon: and he is rifling through the books on the bookshelf.
(Sound effects of fire crackling and potions bubbling play softly under dialogue)
Eric: (Laughs)
Eric (as Alonzo): Thank you. Thank. Thanks guys. All right well I guess you're with me right? You're with me?
Michael (as Johnny): Of course.
Amanda (as Inara): I guess.
Brandon (as Tracey): What?
Eric: All right. So
Brandon (as Tracey): I mean yeah!
Eric (as Alonzo): you're going to break me, All right we're breaking me out of here. I need to go to the market. Kohl is this devil thing, he is this guy. I've met him a bunch of times. Sometimes I sneak out like off of the compound. So I go on the market and I know it's like a whole thing of like a rich guy like going out like hanging out with the paupers. But like I really like the market and everything that's happening there. And I need to go see him. He works down there and he's the smartest guy? He's not a guy. I guess... I don't know. He has the most books of anyone I know. And I got to get down there.
Brandon: and Tracey who turns around and goes,
Brandon (as Tracey): Books?
Eric (as Alonzo): Yeah, yeah yeah Tracey, books.
Brandon (as Tracey): Sold!
Amanda: Sounds like he's down to party, man.
(Upbeat percussion and groovy guitar starts playing)
Eric (as Alonzo): All right. Here's the plan. So I need all of you to seek me out somehow. The market. I mean, I just got married. Everyone knows I just got married and I need you to help disguise me and protect me when we're out there. I know how to get out of here. There is a back staircase that leads me out of the castle. Its kind of like a back way, like it is out towards the stables. like it's an easier way to access the animals and stuff. The only problem is...
Eric: He clenches his jaw for a second.
Eric (as Alonzo): I have to go past Nessie. Nessie doesn't like me at all.
Brandon (as Tracey): Nessie likes everyone!
Eric (as Alonzo): Tracey...
Brandon (as Tracey): N… Nessie... likes everyone?
Eric (as Alonzo): Nessie does not like everyone. He does not like me at all. And hers is like the big... she has like a whole floor down there. It's like her loft, and she is like beanbag chairs and stuff down there.
Amanda: (Snort of laughter)
Eric (as Alonzo): The easy part is going to be sneaking, but getting past Nessie that's the hard part. Once we get past her we will be out of there. And it seems like everyone is concentrated in that meeting, of everybody. But once you do that I think we can do it.
(Music fades; fire and potion noises return)
Amanda (as Inara): So does Nessie hate you or werewolves more?
Eric: Alonzo is is dumbstruck by this question.
Amanda (as Inara): Because like I have a lycanthropy potion man. I just made it. Who knows what it does. I don't know!
Eric (as Alonzo): I am not. Becoming. A werewolf.
Amanda (as Inara): Just throwing it out there man. Just checking. Okay.
Amanda: And then Inara goes over to the table to pour the lycanthropy potions, one with berries, one without, into two jars or vials that she finds.
Eric: Okay. Yeah.
Michael (as Johnny): I believe that we can take care of the Nessie problem and you'll walk by her without a problem.
Eric (as Alonzo): Don't kill her.
Michael (as Johnny): No!
Eric (as Alonzo): Don't kill Nessie!
Michael (as Johnny): No!
Eric (as Alonzo): You know like everyone else loves Nessie!
Michael (as Johnny): No!
Eric (as Alonzo): You're weird dude. You're weird.
Michael (as Johnny): We would never kill her we would only kill you. And by kill you, I mean make you--the you that she knows--disappear, and introduce a new you.
Amanda (as Inara): It's like sublimation of the id, man. It's a metaphor.
Michael (as Johnny): Yeah. I think the common parlance is disguise. I don't know. Uh...
Brandon (as Tracey): Hey Johnny, that was the worst way you could have said that.
Michael (as Johnny): You're right. I'm a little distracted. Those shadows really messed me up.
Brandon (as Tracey): But you do have a point.
Michael (as Johnny): With some magic, I believe we can make you passable.
Eric: Cool. All right. Yeah let's do it. Okay.
Amanda: All right, so Inara busts out her disguise kit and we're going to make Alonzo look like James.
Eric: What do you do.
Amanda: So we're going to put some like pigment on his face to make him look more like James. We're going to add some fake hair to his chin to make you know beard that we can stick some roses into, and put some like darkish pigment in his hair because James' hair is darker than Alonzo's.
Michael: Johnny casts prestidigitation to create wind. It's a harmless sensory effect. Wind and odor combined. He is now expelling an odor that is as similar to James as possible.
Eric: Cool. Yeah. Alonzo goes over to the locker and opens it up and he pulls out a vase with flowers in it and a robe that is resembling one of the nice linen robes that James was wearing before, and he kind of wraps himself around in it a stick some flowers in the fake beard that you all have made. And he's like,
Eric (as Alonzo): All right, I'm going to try this
Eric (as Alonzo pretending to be James, badly): Hey I'm James. Nice to meet you.
Brandon (as Tracey): Nailed it.
Amanda (as Inara): Hey James, do you like to party?
Eric (as Alonzo pretending to be James, still badly, in a robotic voice): I do like to party. I am a party monster.
Amanda (as Inara): Good good. Good try. Good try. Let's try it again. Hey James do you like to party?
Eric (as Alonzo pretending to be James, wow... worse than before): The party monster man I am party.
Eric (as Alonzo in regular voice): Oh no, I forgot how to speak!
Amanda (as Inara): Okay, one last time let's let's just try saying like, "Yeah, dude." Okay. All right. Try again.
Eric (as Alonzo): Okay. Uh... Line? Line!
Amanda (as Inara): Let's do it once. Let's do it once more to practice. "Yeah dude."
Eric (as Alonzo pretending to be James, better but still not great): Yeah. Yeah dude.
Amanda: James, do you like to party?
Eric (as Alonzo pretending to be James, PERFECT!): Yeah dude I fucking love to party.
Eric (as Alonzo): Hey, I got it that time.
Amanda (as Inara): Oh man!
Eric (as Alonzo): All right. yeah I think we can do it. it sounds good. All right. I know where to go. Yeah I feel good. I think I think I got it.
Brandon (as Tracey): Let's do it.
Eric (as Alonzo): All right.
Amanda: So before we go out Inara is just going to grab the lycanthropy potion both the with and without berries version, and the potion on Tammy's/Tracey's table.
Eric: Yeah the mind reading potion.
Amanda: Yep, just in the whatever, you know, clay jars or glass vials that they can put in.
Eric: Sure. Okay so that means you have all three. You have both Lycanthropy potions, the rust potion and the mind reading potion.
Amanda: I do.
Michael (as Johnny): Taylor, Tammy: May the underlying light protect you.
Eric (as Tammy): You're still super weird. Yeah. Okay bye.
Michael (as Johnny): You were the closest friends I've ever had. other than everyone else I've said is my closest friend.
Eric (as Tammy): That's super lame, old old guy. OKay bye. I mean I still have to clean up. You made so much explode. You glow blue.
Michael (as Johnny): You're welcome.
Amanda (as Inara): Stay cool, kids.
Eric: Both of them do finger guns at Inara
Amanda: Yeah! I'm cool with the teens.
Eric: Nice.
Brandon: So as everyone is walking out and they kind of have their back turned to Tracey because he's in the back of the room. He's going to very deftly as he's trying to walk forward put his hand behind his back and grab the draconic book that he couldn't read earlier and throw it in his pack.
Eric: Okay. Why don't you make a sleight of hand.
Brandon: I rolled a 19.
Eric: Yeah. It's very heavy. But you still managed to like palm it and you drop in your bag.
Brandon: And I walk out the door.
Eric: Nice. You all walk out into the hallway and you take a right, away from the rooms that you saw in the first place. You walk by the rookery and you see a big door that actually leads down a bunch of stairs. You are walking down the stairs and like you predicted, some people do see Alonzo being James. Bunch of people of the court, people you recognize from the wedding, some of those guests. There's even the half elf with the biphasal sleep and the half elf is like, "All right!" and just keeps walking. And it's actually it's going pretty well. They don't even look at Johnny, who's still glowing blue. And you actually you walk downstairs, and you are actually kind of on the same level where you all started in the basement dungeon area like where the prisons are. But like when you were going to take a right where the prison is, you actually hang a left, and you go into a very large room. It smells like animals but you don't see any horses or livestock or anything. You just see in the big room in the middle is Nessie, who is pawing at a very large tire on a rope swing. And is just kind of like batting it, and then it goes away and comes back, and bats it and it goes away and comes back.
Eric (as Alonzo, voice echoing slightly): (Sigh) Yeah. Okay let's do it. What do we. What do we do?
Michael: Before he says anything, Johnny casts dancing lights on the other side of the tire that Nessie is playing with to create another version of the mini Nessie he had created before. So it looks like Nessie is playing with another thing.
Eric: (Laughs) Sure. Okay. Nessie looks up and sees Nessita again--
Michael: Yay!
Eric: --and does wander over to Nessita and actually tries to like bring the tire along like play with Nessita a little bit.
Michael: Awww.
Eric: I want to give you a lay of the room. on the total other side of the room like you need to cross Nessie to get there. There are these big stable double doors, kind of like in the great hall, like those big double doors before? And that is the only door opening.
Michael: Johnny begins to walk forward confidently, feeling confident that his light has illuminated the room in the form of Nessita has sufficiently done enough.
Eric: Are you… just… you're just walking?
Amanda: The three of us are in a triangle with Alonzo in the middle of us trying to make sure that we minimize his impact to the outside world. And Inara's rapier is drawn a little bit
Brandon: And we're kind of scuttling along.
Amanda: Oh yeah.
Michael: Perhaps… perhaps Johnny isn't taking point.
Brandon: Yeah. Tracey is at the top of the triangle.
Eric: I want all of you to roll stealth checks and Alonzo will do the same. Uh, Jonathan…
Michael: I know, I know…
Eric: I want you to roll a disadvantage because you are a blue light man.
Michael: Don't worry I rolled both a 3 and a 2. So let's see what that stealth does.
(Laughter at Michael's misfortune)
Michael: That's four and five.
Amanda: I got to 16 plus 5 for a 21. So Inara is stealthy AF.
Eric: You're like doing ninja rolls and stuff.
Amanda: Inara is just your stealthy little rogue girl.
Eric: I like how Tracey is taking point and you are the one to roll a 21 out here.
Brandon: (Sassily) Let's see my roll and then we'll see because I got to 19 so maybe I'm just stealthy too.
Eric: Hey listen 21 is still more than a 19.
Brandon: I--
Michael: Hey listen I'm behind all of them even though I was not stealthy with a solid... four.
Eric: Alonzo rolled an 18. All of you are sneaking as well as possible. And then, Johnny, you feel a tickling in your nose.
Michael (as Johnny): Hee Hee! Hee hee hee! (Devolves into mouse-like squeaking noises)
Amanda: Oh no.
Eric: I don't know. It's like the bear dander or the owl dander.
Michael (as Johnny, voice echoing slightly): I thought i took my Flonase today! (LOUD SNEEZE)
Eric: And Nessie looks up and looks at all four of you opens their mouth and goes: RAWWWR.
Brandon: Tracey looks at them all in the eye and goes,
Brandon (as Tracey): All right... (sighs)
(Groovy percussion music begins again)
Brandon: And pulls out his help horn, runs across the room while blowing it and then pulls his maroon cape in front of him as if he's egging Nessie on.
Eric: Like a matador? You're an owl bear matador.
Brandon: I am an owl bear matador.
Eric: Why don't you do a performance check.
Brandon: Uh, 13.
Eric: Yeah. Nessie charges you. She looks up she sees your cape flapping and she goes, "BRAAHHW!" She charges you. Let's make a dex saving throw to jump out of the way.
Brandon: I rolled a 14.
Eric: Oh yeah. You hop out of the way man.
Brandon: Oh Yeah!
Eric: There you go. And your cape whooshes as as Nessie goes by.
Brandon (as Tracey): Uh, run! Go for the door!
Michael: Johnny breaks into a dead sprint.
Michael: Just getting away from everyone. And in fact as he does, he starts moving Nessita closer towards where Nessie is with a swish of his hand, so that Nessita is between him and Nessie.
Amanda: And Inara is right after you, ushering Alonzo as quickly as he can run in the heavy James robes toward the door.
Eric: Yeah, you're huffing it and all three of you make it to the door. All right. Nessie is primed to run into you again.
Brandon: Okay.
Eric: She is, she is literally even like scratching her paw at the ground.
Brandon: So when Nessie missed the first time I kind of did a semicircle, and now I am positioned between the tire and Nessie. I want to shake my cape again and trying to get her to charge, and I'm holding my cape right in front of the tire.
Eric: Alright why don't you do another performance check
Brandon: Ugh... eight.
Eric: Okay. Yeah. Nessie, Nessie charges again, but she is not going for the cape like she did last time. She is just straight up charging at you. And I'm going to say she's going to make a tackle.
Brandon: Okay. Then Tracey as a reaction is going to put a shield in front of him.
Eric: All right. What is your AC?
Brandon: 16.
Eric: And she full on wallops you and she gets you for… (rolls) she gets you for only five. And I would say that, like, you knew this was coming. You brace yourself against her.
Brandon: So am I kind of like locked in a stalemate with her at this point?
Eric: Mmhm.
Brandon: Cool yeah.
Michael: Nearly in the reach of safety,
Eric: (Chuckles)
Michael: Johnny hears Tracey's predicament. Sighs, turns,
Michael (as Johnny): Light! Show me your brilliance!
Michael: and casts color spray in the direction of both Nessie and Tracey, creating a dazzling array of flashing colored lights.
Amanda: Meanwhile Inara is ushering Alonzo through the doors to safety, so the two of us are going to just hunker down outside the door like immediately to the right behind the stone wall and just waiting for Tracey and Johnny to join.
Eric: All right. You guys are in safety.
Michael: 39, if I add all my bonuses together
Eric: Okay, yeah, you got it. Okay, it's going to hit Tracey first.
Brandon: So Tracey hears Johnny yell out in the room, and that triggers his danger sense, which means I get advantage on a dex save against spells that I know about.
Eric: All right. So you've seen color spray before and usually colors spray doesn't give you a dec save, but I'm just going to give you one instead of giving you an advantage.
Brandon: Cool. So Tracey definitely like shifts the weight of Nessie off to his right while he rolls left.
Eric: All right let me take a number.
Brandon: All right I got a 10 in total.
Eric: You get color sprayed in the face and there is, like, orange paints over your eyes and you are totally blinded. However the same thing did happen to Nessie, and both of you are blinded, and she shrieks out. She's separated from you, you can feel that she moved back and she's running.
Michael: Johnny grabs Tracey and pulls him towards the door using the prestidigitation to try to clean it even though he knows it's not going to work.
Eric: All right. All four of you are back together.
Michael: Johnny pushes Tracey out of the door, closes the door. Is there some sort of mechanism to kind of make sure that it closes?
Eric: Oh yeah it's like a barn door so like you have that slide-y thing that barn doors do.
Michael: Johnny… I close the door to ensure that Nessie can't get out and dispel color spray.
Brandon (as Tracey): Thanks Johnny.
Michael (as Johnny): You're welcome.
Michael: Casts light on your nose.
Brandon (as Tracey): Oh that's great thank you. Thank you
Amanda: And the Inara and Alonzo stand up and look at each other and say,
Amanda (as Inara): We good to go?
Brandon (as Tracey): Let's do this thing.
Eric: And as you're moving to go you hear a loud WOMP against the door and a last "Caw" as Nessie is caught inside the barn door.
Brandon (as Tracey): Bye Nessie, I love you!
Eric: More just, more banging. All right, you are making your way outside of the compound and the lush grass of the lawns outside are becoming more and more sparse as you walk away. And you follow kind of this winding path, like a very very long driveway that goes down out from the castle. Alonzo kind of like takes you through like some side paths and like, it's like he just knows, he just remembers this like the back of his hand. And you are finally back at the market where all of your stories began. And it is just as bustling if not more bustling than you remembered. People are hawking all of this wedding gear.
(Crowd, insects and other ambient noises)
Amanda: Like wedding memorial plates and stuff?
Eric: Yeah. It's like, the like, the royal wedding. You see it's like Greg and Alonzo have their hands together like...
Amanda: Like commemorative scarves.
Eric: Yeah!
Amanda: And tea sets.
Eric: And you actually hear like the vendors are saying like
Eric (as A Vendor): Get the love of the millennium sets! You won't be able to remember this wedding without the love of the millennium sets! I've got plates, I've got cups, I've got napkins, I've got smaller napkins, I got larger napkins, whatever napkins you want!
Eric: And Alonzo is like, even though he still looks like James, pulls his hood over. His like big beard with all the flowers are still showing he's not doing a very good job of hiding his shame. You're all kind of just walking through the market. You're on this main stretch. There are people all over the place just going about their day and Alonzo's just kind of looking around and he's just like excited to be out. There is a weight that was on him that has been lifted. You, you literally see him that way. He looks okay for the first time since the wedding.
Michael: Johnny gives him a reassuring pat once he sees that transformation.
Amanda: Inara sees Alonzo looking at the plates of him and Greg with like heart emoji in his eyes and finds herself begrudgingly finding it really adorable.
Eric: He, yeah, he looks over and he looks at you and he says,
Eric (as Alonzo): Hey, c'mon, don't don't look at me like that. Look at… Where am I? I'm in the market on the day after my wedding. Some kind of honeymoon this is, you know.
Amanda (as Inara): Uh, yeah man, like... What about that? Why. Why are you running away?
Eric (as Alonzo): I'm not. I'm not running away. I got some of the greatest news of my entire life yesterday and Greg got the worst and we're trying to be there for each other like none of us can decide who's going to be there for who, like... Which is more important? Like, almighty magical lore, or like, you your family just tried to murder you? Like which is better or worse, I guess? I don't know.
Michael (as Johnny): Alonzo, listen. Right now you can't talk to Greg. So let's try to get him something in this market, after or before we deal with what we need to deal with Kohl. Just a nice little present, a show of affection. If you see something here, my treat. We get it to him.
Eric (as Alonzo): I mean you know I'm like the richest person here in this city.
Michael (as Johnny): I'm sorry I'm trying to be polite and show a sign of niceness. That's your fault, literally, that was your one. Johnny literally, literally gives people one. That's fine if you're going to give me guff.
Eric: Alonzo laughs at you and he's like,
Eric (as Alonzo): Okay, you know what, fine. Buy me a thing.
Eric: And he goes over to one of the vendors and he picks up a scarf and it's like stitched into it is like "A + G 4 EVER" with the number 4 and he's like a little ways away from you and he holds it up, and he says,
Eric (as Alonzo): Hey Johnny how do you like that? Is it good?
Michael (as Johnny): I think it's great.
Michael: Casts light on the "A + G 4 EVER" so that it glows.
Amanda: It glows?
Eric: (Laughing) You're still glowing blue, by the way.
Michael: That's totally fine with me.
Amanda: Everything glows.
Michael: And then I ask the merchant to send it to Greg, care of Johnny B. Goodlight, and send it to my tab.
Eric: The shopkeeper looks up and says,
Eric (as Shopkeeper): Oh no, not you, not this guy. No way. No no no way.
Michael (as Johnny): I'll cast light on all of your items. If you don't send that to Greg. who is just married to Alonzo I believe he'll pay for it.
Eric (as Shopkeeper): Oh.
Eric: I want you all. To make. Dexterity saving throws.
(Slow ominous music starts playing)
Michael: 13.
Amanda: 14 plus 3, 17.
Brandon: I don't wanna talk about it.
Amanda: Inara is a dexterous little elf.
Brandon: I got a four.
Eric: Aww Tracey...
Amanda: Aww.
Michael: (Sighs) Tracey.
Eric: As Alonzo is holding the scarf up in the air, you all hear the sound of hooves clattering at full speed against the road. You all look up and you see there are two halflings with red bandanas over their faces,
Amanda: (Gasp)
Eric: riding on the back of a centaur who also has a red bandana over his face. And you are only close enough for you two to get out of the way. And Tracey, you get knocked the frik over. The centaur and the two halflings run over to where Alonzo is, pick him up, throw him on the back of the centaur, and start to ride away.
(Ominous music fades out and theme music fades up)
Eric: Join the Party is brought to you by Brandon Grugle, Amanda McLoughlin, Michael Fische, and me, Eric Silver. I'm your host and game master; Brandon edits, mixes, and scores the show; Amanda manages our community and our digital life; and Michael archives, manual-checks, and cartographs our world. Special thanks to our creative consultants Connor McLoughlin, Julia Schifini and Heddy Hunt.
Michael: The party doesn't stop here! The day after every episode comes out we publish the Afterparty, where we sit down to discuss what just happened and learn what could have happened. Send us your questions anytime.
Brandon: Join our community online by following @jointhepartypod on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. We've also got every episode up on our website, jointhepartypod.com; and you can email us questions or stories anytime at firstname.lastname@example.com.
Amanda: If you're enjoying this ride as much as we are, help the show out by subscribing to us in iTunes and leaving a quick rating. For even more Join the Party goodness, check out our Patreon. Just a few dollars will get you access to drawings, character backstories, bloopers, and so much more at patreon.com/jointhepartypod.
Eric: We'll see you in two weeks. You don't have to go home, but you can't stay here.


text:
On January 20th, the United States of America will swear in the 45th president. VIU's northern Virginia location, only 30 minutes outside of Washington DC, provides students the opportunity to witness the event first hand. The official Oaths of Office for the President and Vice-President will take place around noon on Jan. 20th at the West Lawn of the U.S. Capitol. While tickets are needed to attend the ceremony, students can view the proceedings via giant video screens with audio along the National Mall. Spectators can also watch the inaugural parade on Pennsylvania Ave along the sidewalks, which are standing room only; the parade starts around 3 pm.
The best way for students to get to the National Mall or Pennsylvania Avenue is via the Metro. Students can pick up the Metro at the Vienna/GMU Station on the Orange Line and travel to the Smithsonian or Federal Triangle Metro stops without having to transfer trains. The popular ride-sharing apps, Uber and Lyft, will be operating; but due to street closings, students will be picked up and dropped off beyond the closures, forcing students to walk long distances.
Here are some tips to make your trip memorable:
- Bring a friend. Events are always more enjoyable (and safer) with a friend.
- Be prepared for travel delays– even on the metro. There will be thousands of people in attendance, there will be train delays.
- Food vendors are available, but students can bring their own snacks and water. Save money and bring a picnic!
- Get there early. The Oath of Office will be around 12 pm, but opening remarks start at 11:30 am. The National Mall will not have seating available, think about bringing a blanket or chair.
- Dress warm and appropriately. The projected weather forecast is 90% chance of rain in the early afternoon around 3 pm with a high of 49 degrees Fahrenheit.
The Inauguration of the President of the United States has been observed on January 20th for the last 80 years (unless the 20th falls on a Sunday) with the adoption of the Twentieth Amendment to the US Constitution. Prior to this amendment, the inauguration was held on March 4th, which is the day the federal government began in 1789 with the adoption of the US Constitution. The US Constitution mandates the Oath of Office for the President and Vice President stating:
"I, <full name>, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect, and defend the Constitution of the United States. So help me God."
It is believed that President George Washington added "So help me God," during the first inauguration, and was not actually a part of the Oath of Office1.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Many of us spend an inordinate amount of time at the office. So it only makes sense to make our workspace as inviting, inspiring, and comfortable as possible… and there are so many easy, quick ways to accomplish this! While a head-to-toe cubicle makeover might not be practical (I've seen some rather amazing transformations on Pinterest but some of them seem a little too labor intensive), there are a few quick 'fixes' to personalize your office/cube/desk, with little or no effort.
1) Add real or fake flowers for a pop of color.
2) Use trays or clear containers to organize your office supplies.
3) Put up some fun or personal photos – of places, people, and things that inspire you – in pretty frames.
4) Use fun or quirky folders to organize your files.
5) A book or two, scented candles (don't light these though!), and other little knick-knacks that might make you feel more at home.
Want to see other ways to transform your cubicle or office space? Check out Run To Radiance's Cubicle Makeover.


text:
Philip Smith
This week saw travel south to the capital for an interview for a Churchill Fellowship. It was nerve-wracking, to say the least. This luthier is more comfortable in a workshop behind a plane than making public presentations, but did his best and took the double bass along for moral support. The applicants had to make a ten minute presentation to a panel of 9 people around a boardroom table, after which they are peppered with questions. The reception by the panel was quite warm and most of the questions they fired had been anticipated but who knows? Great references and the double bass hopefully gave me an edge.
This week's musical selection in the workshop is featuring
. Check variation 11 for 'shredding' bass solo.
Leave a comment. Any feedback you have on the blog, the work or the official web site will be gratefully received.


text:
Visitors Must Wait as Florida Keys Hurricane Relief Efforts Continue
Wednesday, September 13, 2017
On Tuesday, Florida Keys officials reported that damage assessment and repair is underway in the wake of Hurricane Irma. However, while Keys residents and business owners may reenter the upper keys, vacationers and other visitors are not permitted. [Read more…]


text:
Director & Writer
The Greatest Act follows a middle-aged understudy who has never had the chance to live his dream of becoming the leading man. One night after a Broadway show, we see him exploring the theater as he reflects on his experiences, and strangely, the star of the show seems quite interested in the washed-up understudy.
Written & Directed by: Michael Deigh
Produced By: Mallory Schwartz
Mark Epperson
Ricky Butler


text:
Panama Travel Information, Tips and More
Panama lies at the center of the world, it's the last part of a natural land-bridge between the North and South American continents. The Panama Canal is just the start of this singles adventure vacation. Explore dense rainforestswith abundant wildlife, raft pristine rivers, zip among the mountains, enjoy fabulous duty-free shopping and relax onbeautiful beaches.
Panama City bustles as a thriving commercial hub where modern skyscrapers and architect Frank Gehry's BiodiversityMuseum share sightlines with 18th-century architecture. It is a very multicultural place, with large populations frommany different parts of the world. Spanish is spoken by most, and many speak some form of English. On the streets Panamanians are for the most part extremely friendly and helpful and would love to give you some advice. There's great shopping, from high-end stores in the malls around Paitilla and in the banking district around Via Espana, to
veritable bargains around La Central (Central Avenue, now turned into a pedestrian walkway) and the Los Pueblos outdoor mall.
The jungles of Panama's lowland rainforests harbor a sweltering tropical ecosystem. East of the canal, the Darien covers an untouched expanse of pristine forest, pure rivers, and intricate ecosystems. The Chiriqui Highlands and the Valle de Anton nurture dense cloud forests. Along the Pacific Coast where the mouths of rivers meet the ocean, extensive mangrove forests and swamps provide rich breeding grounds for marine wildlife. Throughout Panama, ATMs are readily available except in the most isolated places – look for the red 'sistema clave' sign. Generally speaking, ATMs accept cards on most networks (Plus, Cirrus, MasterCard, Visa, Amex), though a charge is usually levied depending on your issuing bank. The amount that can be withdrawn at one time varies from bank to bank, though it is usually around US$500. Tap water in Panama City is safe to drink, as is the water in most other parts of the country. However, you're better off buying bottled water or purifying your own water in the provinces of Bocas del Toro and Kuna Yala. Electricity in Panama is 110 Volts, alternating at 60 cycles per second. If you travel to Panama with a device that does not accept 110 Volts at 60 Hertz, you will need a voltage converter. As far as Internet Access, we recommend you leave your computers home! Most of the hotels have computers with internet access (for a fee) in the lobby. Wifi is very limited.
What to Bring
Remember to pack all your liquids in your suitcase or you must follow the TSA rules for carry-ons -3-1-1 = 3.4 ounce (100ml) bottle or less ; 1 quart-sized, clear, plastic, zip-top bag; 1 bag per passenger One easily managed medium suitcase (bus to boat...) and 1 carry on bag. Some days you will be out all day so bring a small bag or knapsack that you can carry all day. Leave your wallet at home - they make easy targets for pickpockets.
Bag Clothes If you are planning on washing clothes as you go, be aware that launder mats can be tricky to find, but you can hand wash a
few items (things like jeans can take forever to dry). Some of the hotels have laundry services—expect to pay a buck or two per item.
Water is another consideration when planning your wardrobe. Cloud and rainforests have little regard for phrases like "dry season." It may not rain during your visit, but the saturating humidity dripping from the leaves and the spray from the inevitable waterfall will make you glad for quick-drying garments.
- 3-5 T-shirts, one or two long sleeved and to protect you from sunburn
- 1-2 dress shirts or blouses
- 3-4 pairs of shorts. One or two pairs of quick drying nylon and one or two pairs of dressy cotton shorts or tropical weight/length skirts.
- Active/sports swimsuit and a tanning suit You may also want a casual beach cover-up.1-2 pairs of long pants. Something casual that will work for cool nights.
- If you can find a pair you like, convertible pants (zip-off legs) can serve as shorts and long pants.
- 5-8 pairs of underwear
- 2-8 pairs of socks.
- Pajamas
- Jacket- Light, water-resistant jacket that will keep you warm on a cool evening or during a sudden downpour, yet can be stuffed away or worn loosely on a warm day
- Baseball cap or brimmed hat for the sun
- Sturdy shoes, tennis shoes with plenty of tread or hiking boots comfortable for walking
- Sandals or shoes you don't mind being wet in. (Have shoes to change into when these get wet)
- Razor
- toothbrush with cover, and toothpaste - Travel-size
- shampoo and conditioner - Travel-size
- brush or comb
- antiperspirant
- tampons
- toilet paper
- Passport and a copy kept in a different location
- Money, credit/debit card – don't forget to call the banks and let them know you are traveling
- Insurance card and contact information
- Insect repellant with DEET (diethyl-metatoluamide).
- Contact lenses and/or extra pair of sunglasses
- Sun block of at least 15 SPF - the tropical sun is strong
- Water bottle
- Camera – and charger – batteries – lots of film or extra memory cards
- Binoculars
- Flashlight with extra batteries
- Earplugs (for light sleepers)
- Plastic bags – for wet clothes
- Travel alarm clock
- Notebook for traveling thoughts and addresses
Personal Medications (Carry all your daily medications on the plane with you, just in case...)
- Pepto-bismol for diarrhea
- Throat lozenges
- Motion sickness medication
- Aspirin or other pain killer
- Antacid tablets
- Sunburn salve such as aloe vera gel
Otherwise get ready for the adventure to begin, for great memories and amazing new single travel friends!
Don't Leave Home without your Passport!
South America Travel and Vaction Information
South America Vacations for 18 - 35 Year Old
South America Singles Vacations for 40s+
South America Destination Information


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The text message arrived last week from a number I did not recognize, "Please call important." The next day I was sitting across from a man I had never met. "There's been two times I had my gun to my mouth," he said to me with tears in his eyes. "That's me being very truthful to you."
It has been nearly two years since Harmony Township patrolman Alan Loskoch was shot in the line of duty. The officer's life was spared when his ballistic vest caught a bullet that struck his chest, but the shots which rang out that fateful day still continue ringing in his ears. Now suffering from permanent hearing loss, haunting memories that replay endlessly in his head, and experiencing financial difficulties from entering into a disability retirement earlier this year, the man says he feels broken in every way.
Alan Loskoch told me the last thing he ever thought he would find himself doing was contacting a reporter.
"I'm really shy and hate causing disruption," he said. "It took everything I had to come in here; I actually threw up before I came in, I got sick. I'm not this type of person (…) I needed to get ahold of someone. I feel so ashamed about all of this."
Officer Alan Loskoch was on patrol in Harmony Township at about 3:45 a.m. the morning of October 28th, 2015, when he noticed a man who appeared to be trying to break into some parked vehicles. The officer approached, a shot smashed through his car, just missing his head. The officer returned fire from inside of his car, another bullet smashed through the vehicle, this time finding its target — the officer's chest. Officer Loskoch lost consciousness and was found by his brother officers minutes later laying in his unmarked cruiser which had driven itself off the side of the road.
His assailant had fled into the early morning darkness.
Officer Loskoch was discharged from the hospital that same day and met with investigators at the Beaver County Emergency Services Building to aid in their efforts tracking down his attacker. The officer released a statement telling everyone he was OK and thanking the community for their concern; law enforcement chalked up another life saved by a Kevlar vest.
Loskoch said he was sore with bruised ribs but took just a short period of time off before returning back to duty. He attended a counseling session provided to him by the Pennsylvania State Police, not initially seeking additional therapy for the ordeal.
"I had people who I had arrested sending me get well cards," he said of the support he received from the community. "That was crazy."
Although his bruises quickly healed, Officer Loskoch turned out not to be as OK as he had originally thought.
"I have tinnitus (a ringing in the ears) and hearing loss which occurred from the shooting," Loskoch told me. "I shot several times from the interior of my vehicle, shooting from inside of the cabin intensified that sound. If you have ever been swimming you know that muffled sound in your ears — that just never went away. About a month and a half after the shooting I reached out to the township and said I needed to get a medical opinion on my ears, this ringing isn't changing, it's still there, and I can't hear as well."
Officer Loskoch was eventually referred to a specialist at UPMC Pittsburgh, and a few months after the shooting, was fitted with high tech hearing aids designed to help enhance his auditory range and diminish the incessant ringing. He said he felt well and settled out his workers' comp claim, ending future benefits which could have been available under Pennsylvania's Heart & Lung Act (providing law enforcement officers with their full salary for temporary disability due to a work related illness or injury).
Loskoch continued working on the job for over a year after his shooting, believing he had a good handle on his physical condition but admittedly suffering from the psychological effects of what he had been through. He said at one point another officer in his own department called him "weak" for talking about the feelings he was experiencing, and that his Chief openly ridiculed him about the physical disabilities he had been trying to overcome.
"(Chief Sivewright) made fun of me," Loskoch said. "He had an app he put on his phone that had this real piercing noise, and he would put it up behind my ear and laugh and giggle (…) I was made a spectacle of in a sense."
Loskoch said one night he was working as a field training officer getting a recruit up to speed when his Chief offered the new hire a word of advice, "He goes to him, 'don't be like this idiot and be out there at 4 o'clock in the morning and get yourself shot' (…) This guy I was training was in the army infantry just like I am, and when (the Chief) left, he was like, 'I can't believe he said that to you.'"
What may have been thought of as harmless acts of departmental camaraderie were having a profound impact on the struggling officer.
Loskoch said he eventually became too weary to ask for help, or even admit to the difficulties he was experiencing from an event he could not stop reliving, "I was more afraid to bring it up towards the end because I thought, man, if I say I have any sort of PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) issue I'm really going to be screwed (…) I'd have to get another evaluation from another doctor and I'm already under the microscope."
While he said he felt little support from his own small 5-man department, there were others who tried reaching out to him. Among them, Monaca Officer (now Chief) David Piuri, then-President of the Beaver Valley Lodge of the Fraternal Order of Police (FOP).
"Dave Piuri did an amazing job from the moment I got shot," said Loskoch. "I had breakfast with him. He has been there for me and my family. That man to me, I have nothing but respect for him, he is an awesome individual and he went to battle with me."
Loskoch said he began feeling so isolated that even calls from strangers were treasured encounters, "A really great person who I have spoken to a couple of times is Hopewell (Township's) Chief, he's a squared away guy. He called me out of the blue and I had only ever met him one time. He called me and said, 'Hey Alan, I'm here for you.' I can't tell you how important that call was for me."
It was last November when Loskoch's doctor recommended a course of tinnitus retraining therapy that could help him to better cope on a long-term basis with the symptoms of the ringing in his ears.
"By no means when I left was it because my hearing was affecting my job," insisted Loskoch. "My doctor suggested I go out of work for a couple of months, just to put me through (the therapy) so I had no distractions. I went to the township and they were like ya, we can do that (…) I signed a form and was under the impression I was going to be gone for two months. I came back about three days prior to the day I was suppose to start back and (the township) said I couldn't come back until the doctor cleared me (…) He didn't clear me. He said I was medically unfit to come back to work."
Not long after, Loskoch said he got another phone call from FOP President Piuri.
"He's the one who contacted me and said (…) 'we want to make sure you get everything you're entitled to,'" said Loskoch.
It was through his discussions with Piuri and the FOP that Loskoch said it began to really sink in for him that his career as a police officer was coming to an end, "Having my job taken away from me, I can't even describe to you, nothing will ever replace me being a police officer (…) I never in a million years thought I would go out on a disability pension."
Officer Alan Loskoch's last official day with the Harmony Township Police Department was March 15th.
The man again became emotional during our discussion, tears dripping from his face, "I think my family would be better off without me."
He told me the psychological issues he was struggling with have gotten worse since losing his job. Adding to his anxiety is an upcoming criminal trial scheduled next month for Earl Louis Hollins, a.k.a. "Nitty," the man who is alleged to have shot him.
"I don't drink, I don't do drugs, my way of self-medicating was keeping busy, going to work," he said. "In a sense after everything, if it wasn't for the military, my identity was completely taken away from me. I loved my job, and financially my family is suffering."
The former officer said he feels the ground has been pulled out from beneath his feet.
"I'm having my electric shut off, my truck was repossessed, I am to the point where I was going to go to the food pantry," he said.
Loskoch has a 4-year-old stepson who is autistic.
Officers say he was known as a hard worker on the job, taking all of the overtime he could get, participating in a DUI Taskforce and the county's Drug Taskforce to bring in extra income. In May of 2015, just months before the shooting, then-District Attorney Anthony Berosh recognized Officer Loskoch's efforts during an awards ceremony at the courthouse. He was similarly honored with the 2015 DUI Top Gun Award by the Pennsylvania DUI Association.
"When you go from making that much money to being on disability, it just doesn't really go far," he told me. "Hopefully I'll be able to get another job and just go forward."
While his separation agreement with Harmony Township calls for Loskoch to be given healthcare benefits for the next ten years, the former officer said he is now without insurance — although there is an apparent disagreement on where the fault lies. Whether it was the municipality that failed to notify their insurance carrier about a disability retirement, or a troubled officer who repeatedly failed to complete required paperwork, the end result remains the same, Loskoch is currently uninsured.
"All I am asking for is what I am entitled to," Loskoch said.
People in the law enforcement community now say they are redoubling their efforts. The Pennsylvania State Police is once again making arrangements to get Loskoch into the counseling needed for the psychological trauma he has suffered; the Fraternal Order of Police — now under the leadership of Center Township Police Captain Jon Hall — is working with Harmony Township to get the officer insured; the District Attorney's Office is helping to make sure nothing else falls through the cracks; his peers are reassuring him there is no shame in needing help.
Officers who know Alan Loskoch are hoping public recognition and community support can assist in helping him to regain his footing.
"I just was out doing my job," Loskoch told me. "If October 28th never happened, if I had made a right instead of a left turn, what would I be doing today? I would be patrolling Harmony Township."
Harmony Township Solicitor Richard Start's office returned a call from the Beaver Countian saying he is unable to comment on personnel matters. A voicemail message left for Harmony Police Chief Robert Sivewright was not returned.
Author's Note: I did not feel comfortable leaving the parking lot from my interview of Alan Loskoch that day before first making several phone calls to people in law enforcement who I trust. Not long after Loskoch left our meeting, his fellow officers began grasping the arms of a man who had reach out for help.
Listen to emergency personnel respond to the call of an officer down as dispatched by Beaver County 911


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August 2015.
We found out today that our embryologist wasn't willing to call it at 2 blastocysts, so he gave a slow one an extra to day to catch up and see if it would form into a blastocyst and IT DID! They sampled it, it responded beautifully (as in, it survived) and was frozen.
We have an extra blastocyst, which brings us up to five! Five little frozen embryos. Oh embryos! We've worked so hard for you and the odds are so phenomenally against us. I'm scared to hope, but can't do anything but.


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- Description
Details(Euphorbia) DIAMOND FROST® Euphorbia will quickly become one of your favorite plants. It may look dainty and petite, but it is tough as nails. DIAMOND FROST® has sprays of airy white flowers that grow in a mound that is 12-18" high and can trail up to 24". This low maintenance beauty is drought and heat tolerant, does not require deadheading and is even deer resistant. DIAMOND FROST® is great in mixed containers, hanging baskets or planted alone, but will also perform well in the landscape. DIAMOND FROST® Euphorbia does best in full sun to part shade, but has been known to do surprisingly well in shade conditions. Feed your plants every one to two weeks with PROVEN WINNERS®® water soluble fertilizer.
- More Info
DIAMOND FROST® Euphorbia hybrid 'Inneuphdia' PP17,567
Common Name Euphorbia USDA Hardiness Zone 10, 11 Plant Type Annual Brand PROVEN WINNERS® Sun Exposure Full Sun (+6 hrs.), Part Shade (4-6 hrs.) Soil Moisture Needs Dry, Moderate Critter Resistance Deer Flower Color White Shades Attributes Drought Tolerant Design Use Combination Containers, Container, Hanging Baskets Container Design Filler Season of Interest (Flowering) Fall, Late Spring or Early Summer, Late Summer, Summer
- Reviews
Rod's Pick
Write Your Own Review
Customer Reviews
- Fantastic Review by Ron B | Zone: 6a
- One Tough Cookie Review by Julie W | Zone: 8a
- Airy and Easy Review by Patty O | Zone: 6b
- Proven Winner Review by Anthony | Zone: 8a
- Love It Review by Joy F | Zone: 5
- Homeowner Tips
For general growing tips and how to care for your annuals. View Garden Crossings How to care for Annuals page.
Interested in growing tips for other plants we sell. Browse our Plant Care Tips.


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Like all single ladies with a smartphone, I recently heard of an app called Tinder. Essentially, the idea is "hot or not" but taking it a step further. If you decide you like someone and think they are attractive, they now have the ability to message you. If they like you back then you are past the first hurdle of wondering if that person is interested or not! There's just one problem with this app so far…
Repeat after me… Jailbait.
Tinder is the bare bones. It connects to Facebook so you can see if you have friends in common or similar interests but really all you get is pictures, name, and age. That, my friends, is very dangerous. As you breeze through at a mile a minute you are judging purely on looks. Every so often a hottie catches your eye and you stop to view details. BAM. You find out the handsome man is actually a man-boy that is only 19. NOT OKAY PEOPLE.
Then we have another problem… Instead of looking at looks you only look at age until you find someone acceptable and can then check if they are good looking. You come across a 27 year old. He's handsome. YAY! You click on his info… BAM. His info says "I'm actually 17 but Tinder wouldn't let me join unless I was older ha ha." NOT OKAY PEOPLE.
Why is this app populated by itty bitty nugget men? And even worse, why do I find them attractive?! To be fair, kids these days look a lot older than when I was in high school. When you're in a tux, I assume you are at your friend's wedding… not at your PROM.
In conclusion, Tinder needs age ranges. Oh, and don't judge me…
Do you use Tinder? What do you think?!


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Dermot Kennedy Continues The Streak Of Hit Singles With Recent Release "Moments Passed"
Not new to our site is Dermot Kennedy. Previously, we published Kennedy's last single "Glory", which was a display of soulful and pain induced vocals that made the track really stand out. He's now back with a new single titled "Moments Passed" and it doesn't stray far from the same style and sound we heard on "Glory".
The single features an unorthodox vocal sample that gets better the more you listen to it, and of course, Kennedy's bone shaking vocals. We open up with the first lines of the song talking about Kennedy's experiences of loss and gain in life. Kennedy lost someone very close to him and his family but had also fallen deep in love with someone at the same time. The song currently sits at almost 90k plays on Soundcloud, which is about 57k plays better than his last release, "Glory". Progression. Listen to the full track below.


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Rides of Silence WednesdayPosted on
Wednesday May 18th
Rides begin at 7:00pm
~10 miles total
Ride to:
HONOR those who have been injured or killed
RAISE AWARENESS that we are here
ask that we all SHARE THE ROAD
On May 18, 2016 at 7:00 PM, the Ride of Silence will unite people around the globe in silent procession rides to honor those who have been killed or injured while cycling on public roadways. Although bicycles have a legal right to the road, when many people get behind the wheel, they forget the fatal consequences distracted and careless driving can have. You can find locations for all Wisconsin Rides of Silence here, or go to any Wheel & Sprocket store, as they are all hosting the rides.
In 2003, Chris Phelan organized the first Ride of Silence in Dallas after endurance cyclist Larry Schwartz was hit by the mirror of a passing bus and was killed. (Read the full history here…) Since that inaugural ride, the movement has grown to 357 rides in 49 states, and 20 Countries on seven continents
The Ride of Silence is a free ride that asks its cyclists to ride no faster than 12 mph, wear helmets, follow the rules of the road and remain silent during the ride. There are no national sponsors and no registration fees. The ride, which is held during National Bike Month, aims to raise the awareness of people driving motor vehicles, police and city officials about the dangers driving and about our responsibility to safely share the road we drive a motor vehicle. The ride is also a chance to show respect for and honor the lives of those who have been killed or injured.
There are many resources on the Ride of Silence site. If there is a Ride of Silence in your area, we encourage you to join them. If there is not a ride planned in your area, please consider adding your city to the ever-growing list of sites. To get information on how to organize and host a Ride of Silence, please click here; you might also want to look at our FAQ.
Find a Ride of Silence near you»


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We are Daihatsu Towbar Specialists
Find the perfect towbar for your Daihatsu
Daihatsu which is a wholly subsidiary of Toyota Japan established in March 1907 and the Daihatsu Motor Co. Ltd. They have been devoted in its efforts to the mission of creating small cars that are loved by people the world over.
We supply and fit tow bars for the Daihatsu Terios from the 2006 to the 2010 models. We have all types of tow bars available from the fixed Flange towbars to the Fixed Swan neck towbars. We also have the detachable option in case your vehicle has reverse parking sensors.
All of the tow bars that we fit are mounted to the fixing points as specified by the car manufacturer and are Type Approved where appropriate. The easiest way to find the correct towbar for your car is to use our registration search above. All towbar prices shown on our website include fitting at your home or work.


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One of the first actions you'll take as you begin fundraising is to create a list of contacts. As you write down names, it's important to also compile all the contact info you have for each person in one place.
The important task of gathering contact information is something you can do long before you begin the work of fundraising or even work with a coach. Each piece of information (home address, phone number, email address) is remarkably important in the fundraising process. Primarily because it allows you to make a personal connection in multiple ways, making it easier to get a response and communicate in a way that's best for your potential partner.
You may want to email a new contact in order to send a touch of thanks or clarification. You may want to send a handwritten thank you note, which you can't do without that person's mailing address. One day real soon, you'll want to call someone to schedule a meeting and having their phone number will be critical to following up.
At Tailored, our coaches have a number of tools to help you keep all your contact information organized. Clients have expressed how these tools have relieved anxiety for them because it allows you to communicate so clearly.
Another great option is Simple Sam, this is paid service that not only organizes your contacts, it also reminds you to keep up with newsletters and phone calls.
Jenny Karr, Director of Training and Coaching Services
My mission is to train, equip, and support people in ministry and as the Director of Training and Coaching Services, I get to do all of those things in one role! When I'm not coaching, training, or writing blogs, I'm enjoying time at home or in the city with my husband, daughter, and friends here in Nashville, TN.


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NYIAX, this week announced it has successfully closed another $5.65 million in its latest seed funding round led by WestPark Capital. This brings the company's total funding to $16 Million.
Developed in partnership with Nasdaq, NYIAX combines a patented Financial Matching Engine℗ with blockchain technology for the advertising industry. NYIAX provides advertisers and publishers a platform to buy, sell, and re-trade premium advertising contracts in a forward/futures methodology.
"With the NYIAX platform live with first trades on the schedule for next month, agency holding company partnerships in play, the integration of Rebel AI's passport into our marketplace and other media companies now beginning to adopt our patent-pending trading method into their own platforms, it's a very busy and exciting time," said Carolina Abenante, founder, executive vice chairperson, chief strategy officer and general counsel for NYIAX. "We are delivering on our promise to put power back into the hands of buyers and sellers and we are grateful for this latest seed investment."


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It's time to end the zombie apocalypse.
In both Television and Films, there's a topic that has executed positively during the past couple of years: Zombies. This idea has created for several extremely captivating, majorly excellent, and award-winning programs and also films. Though it's only fiction, right?
Well, perhaps not. Given that It is my opinion that zombies have existed for some time. Furthermore I feel that you've spotted them with your own personal eyes. You've spotted them in your office in the break room preparing their third pot of coffee for the day. You've seen them out during the nighttime with their small kids. They were the father that could scarcely hold their head up from a tedious day of work. You've perceived them in the classroom and also on college or university campuses, asleep with their noggin on the desk. You've observed them on the bus, and walking down the street, slightly conscious as they go to and also from work. We could argue that you've identified a zombie. And worse yet, you might be a zombie. Casper Mattress Reviews Consumer Reports
We need sleep, right?
If you have lived for virtually any length of time, it's no doubt that you have heard someone inform you of exactly how crucial sleeping is. It's very likely that you've learned this lesson for your self, and it's also possible that you've found out from numerous others that definitely have discovered it as well. Without shut-eye, we truly feel like… well, zombies.
As if feeling tired isn't already more than enough of a problem, there's even more to the tale. When we have been lacking sleep, our human brain truly malfunctions. That simply just signifies that our human brain fails to operate well. The reality is, our human brain in reality begins shutting down specified areas and operations that are not essential for your survival. Because of this staying lacking sleep is not just feelings, it is truly a physically impaired state of daily life.
Lots of things happen as a consequence of this. Now we have trouble committing things that we have witnessed and learned that day into long term memory. Drowsiness activity diminishes our response time and also attentiveness. We come to be a lot less coordinated as well as awake, creating additional incidents and also mishaps. Our mood alternates to a greater degree and more drastically than it ought to. Because a severe lack of sleep keeps on over a long period of time, even our hormone production is entirely thrown out of harmony. Casper Mattress Reviews Consumer Reports
Making things more frustrating, extended lack of sleep will cause over production of cortisol. Cortisol in it's suitable amount supports us to feel a bit of pressure and urgency to get things executed. However when it's overproduced, it causes us to feel stressed, anxious, as well as uneasy all of the time. This might bring about even deeper clinical challenges of anxiety and depression. Of course, a serious lack of sleep is very bad for any individuals.
You are not alone.
We've all been there. Sometimes, our lives require a great deal from us. We dedicate a huge amount of of our time and energy to our work and also vocations, our close friends and family, as well as our spare-time activities as well as activities. Oftentimes, it feels like there is certainly little left, and it often is difficult to be at ease as well as revitalize.
And yeah, maybe we might be able to all use much more rest. But, imagine if we can easily do even more than slumber longer. What if you can easliy rest better?
Enter NECTAR.
NECTAR is here to help. And they help out with a simple quest. NECTAR claims to be the most comfortable mattress, and that you will get the best sleep of your life, guaranteed. For a company which makes mattresses, it's quite difficult to possess a more clear vision than that.
In the event that you're certainly one of the individuals that I defined before, it's quite likely that you are currently living with no good of sleep. There are various elements that come into play with this. But luckily, NECTAR has dealt with them with wonderful innovation. Casper Mattress Reviews Consumer Reports
Maybe you|Perhaps you} hurt after you get out of bed each morning. NECTAR addresses this on a number of levels. It starts out with employing the latest breakthroughs in mattress and fabric technologies, as well as bringing those together in a singular product. And don't fret about needing to decide which level of firmness to purchase and hope that you decided correctly. NECTAR has engineered their mattress to a degree of firmness that stabilize the give and take of your body weight whenever you lay down in different positions in the course of the night, providing you the right level of comfort as well as support. Allowing you to rest assured (no pun intended) that regardless of what position you are resting in, it's the right one.
Still there's a great deal more to it than that. Maybe you don't merely feel aching or uncomfortable any time you awaken. Perhaps your neck, spine, shoulders, hips, and/or hind legs hurt. Not any longer. Whenever you lay on your back, NECTAR mattress gives the right amount of firmness to support the natural curvature of your spine. Any time you lie on your side, you want your spine to maintain a straight line. Other mattresses are often too firm, and they press against that natural curvature, or too soft and also make it possible for your spine sink too much. Either way, both are incorrect, because your spine is pressured in either case out of position. NECTAR resolves this matter, and the benefits are just as much of a breakthrough as the design of the mattress itself. NECTAR has completely polished the level of firmness as well as support to a breakthrough amount.
Speaking of breakthrough, NECTAR has built breathing and coolness which are unparalleled. Much of this is due to the breakthrough materials as well as design that the mattress consists of. Any time mattresses don't breathe effectively, you will discover two concerns that happen. The 1st is temperature. As you sleep, the mattress gets hot and is not able to cool-down. As a result, at some point you will get very hot, sweaty, and also uncomfortable. Most times, you will eventually awaken and have to reposition and also readjust. That is a notable disruption which could pull you away from a deep sleep, and it takes your body quite a while to go back there. This distraction has contributed a lot to not having an outstanding nights sleep, while you might possibly be sleeping the amount of time that you need to. This is exactly a major reason NECTAR mattresses help you to sleep better. Casper Mattress Reviews Consumer Reports
There exists one other issue that goes wrong whenever mattresses don't breathe well as well: moisture. When air doesn't circulate in a mattress, it collects moisture from the air that comes in however just cannot let it out. This tremendously diminishes the life duration of a mattress, considering the fact that the accumulated moisture starts to make the materials in the mattress deteriorate. Additionally it extensively will reduce the comfort, given that the broken down elements in the mattress no longer perform as they should. The mattress results in being uncomfortable, and also stays uncomfortable over its reduced life span. What a waste!
Comfort AND quality.
NECTAR hasn't merely engineered a breakthrough mattress that offers incredible comfort. They've equally built a prime mattress that is made up of solely the finest substances. You can find absolutely no ozone depleters, PDDEs, TDCPP, mercury, or even lead. But not only are they better for you, but for the world too. They are already effortlessly recycled, and earth friendly!
One can find 2 layers of Gel Memory Foam that really help to circulate the air, in addition to competently distribute your weight and also sustain the natural contour of your body. These two layers are considerable aiding components to the factors mentioned prior. As you sleep, your quality of sleep will be supported by the best materials in the industry. I suppose this is what happens in the event that your vision is to create the best mattress. Period.
Comfort, quality AND value?
It is common for comfort and also quality to go hand in hand. But they have a cost. Well, usually. Though not right now.
NECTAR offers you comfort and also support in line with mattresses that charge $3,000-5,000+. With that standard, you might be seriously wishing that they might be half that the price tag, at around $2,000. Or possibly you might have your fingers crossed simply anticipating that they are only $1,500. But nevertheless do not quit reading now. Simply because you will not even be having to pay that.
hey don't cost $1 ,500 . They don't cost $1 ,000 . All NECTAR mattresses start out in the $300's . Additionally they are all under $1 ,000 , even for a California King ! At that amount , absolutely everyone at your house may sleep far better for the price of 1 traditional mattress .
So what is the difference between NECTAR and Traditional Mattresses?
We inhabit a world that is continually changing. NECTAR is a paradigm shift in the way a mattress is built. The truth is, mattresses have been around a long time. And just like autos as well as residences, the manner in which one is engineered in modern times is different than it was decades previously. Across just about all industries, people are continually exploring and also making brand new discoveries. From working on and additionally employing new and innovative components, to improving on a model and also producing a brand new one, the process where we accomplish things transforms with time.
Traditional mattresses are made from a set of box spring together with a mattress. The box springs go underneath the mattress, supplying an extra layer of support to the mattress. The mattress is produced with columns of coils all throughout to grant support. Then on top the coils is some sort of "topper". Several years ago, this topper was made up of assorted forms of stuffing or padding, and in more recent days different layers of foam. There are a number of companies that have been manufacturing mattresses for years such as Serta, Sealy, Jamison, Sleep Number, and also Amerisleep.
What changed?
The design of traditional mattresses were significantly improved upon across years. On the other hand, with a mattress like NECTAR, instead of being an improvement to producing a traditional mattress, it truly is a completely new style of mattress altogether. With modern tools, the advance of top quality foams and gel layers has totally changed almost everything. These mattresses are the latest concept made on innovative discoveries over the past several years. Foam started making its way into traditional mattresses in the "topper" layer. Remember all of the the craze when ever Memory Foam initially came around? At the time, new technologies was starting to trickle into traditional mattresses. Nowadays, NECTAR has released a totally new mattress, produced more advanced than traditional mattresses. There are no coils. The mattress is produced with foam which is sturdy, long lasting, comfortable, and also breathable, coupled with gel layers that provide amazing support for the latest generation of mattress. And despite the fact that there are other manufacturers like Casper, Purple, Leesa, Tempurpedic, and even Puffy who are producing foam mattresses additionally, all you have to do is try a NECTAR mattress to truly feel the significant difference (So keep reading to discover the incredible way that NECTAR allows you try this). Casper Mattress Reviews Consumer Reports
They make pillows, too?
They produce pillows, as well?
Certainly. And they are just as ground-breaking. Nonetheless I'll spare you the facts. I won't inform you that they are a pillow which is just as brand new as their mattresses. I will not let you know about the quilted memory foam outer shell. As well as I definitely will not tell you about the Tencel cooling fabric as well as active ventillation which means that you are continuously slumbering on the cool side of the pillow. I'll simply just say that they are superb, as well as every much a breakthrough in pillows as their mattresses are.
The only option to experience that you love anything would be to try it out on your own.
Totally. It's one thing when a product appears to be useful on paper or in a commercial, nonetheless it's a different to absolutely experience something for you. And with NECTAR, you can. Not only does NECTAR offer an exceptional value, additionally they back it with an unbelievable guarantee.
How often would you really get to try out a mattress for even one night before you get it? You don't get to experience it for your self until you've actually invested in it and also carried it home. Lets hope you made the best decision! Casper Mattress Reviews Consumer Reports
However with NECTAR, the game has completely changed. Because they will deliver it 100 % free to your home, giving you the ability to try it for a night. And you can check it out for a week. And you can try it out for a month. And even 2 months. And even three months. Where am I going with this? With NECTAR, you can test it risk free for a year! You get a 365 night home trial. They deliver it to you for free. If you feel that you are not 100% happy, they will come and pick it up for free. Nonetheless I doubt you will need them to.
Okay, what's the catch?
There is absolutely no catch. There's simply just NECTAR. Well, there's more than that. There is a better mattress with outstanding value. There's a completely new paradigm in making a mattress, with advancement at each and every turn. There is the ease and comfort as well as support that you deserve. There's pillows that stretches the comfort and ease from head to toe. There is extraordinary quality and value. There's an impressive product, supported by an incredible guarantee. There's an end to the zombie apocalypse.
So you wanna give NECTAR a try? Go ahead. Do it for a year. And do it worry free.
Try NECTAR today. Don't just sleep more. Sleep better. In fact, get the best sleep of your life. Guaranteed.


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The Flutter Tulip Dress.Regular price $ 262.50 $ 375
Notes From Emily & Meritt
The Flutter Tulip Dress. hits below the knee and has super feminine flattering sleeves. It is just as perfect paired with flat boots as it is sandals.
74% Cotton 26% Linen
Model is 5'8" wearing size 1
Size 1 - Length 45"
Machine Wash Cold Tumble Dry Low


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We are really excited to share some news! Together with SKETCH, we are one of 15 recipients of the Inspirit Foundation's Pluralism Grant. We have been awarded $25,000 for a new initiative called Young Spirit Circles to help young organizers and innovators from diverse communities build inclusive relationships.
We will bring together place-based organizations in four localities across Ontario to create mutual understanding of ancestral heritage, inclusion and pluralism. Experienced practitioners and Indigenous elders from our community-based partners will work with local stakeholders to develop and host these youth-led gatherings. We are excited to announce so far that we will be deepening our work with some of our lovely community members at Thinking Rock Community Arts, The New Mentality and Children's Peace Theatre.
There's lots of work ahead to make this project a reality in the New Year. In the meantime, do you want to get an inside track on how you can host a gathering in your community? Please join us at Collaboration Camp from Nov. 28-30, where you can take part in some of our initial strategizing -- not to mention in-depth relationship building with inspiring leaders in youth-led change and hands-on sessions that will refuel your change efforts.
The registration deadline is next Thursday, Nov. 13th. Join us!
We appreciate the support of the Inspirit Foundation to do this much needed work to 'scale deep' so we can 'scale out' together. You can read more about their granting program that makes this possible here.


text: November 10, 2014 Three chairs from one sheet of plywood November 10, 2014/ Geoffrey Hoffman We needed some more chairs in our office. We made some. The parts are nested tight so we can get three chairs from one 4x8 sheet of plywood. It's comfortable too. The seat is contoured with four different parts.


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New ideas, perspectives, and approaches are the most powerful tools you can use to move your work forward.
From stale to fresher. From good to better.
What are your usual, go-to tools? Might you be leaning on them too much?
If the only tool you have is a hammer, every problem looks like a nail.
You have a unique, creative DNA that makes you partial to a certain approaches of creating. Some examples:
- Conceptual (e.g. Picasso, Bob Dylan)
- Experimental (e.g. Cezanne, Leonard Cohen)
- Big picture (Ansel Adams, Michelangelo)
- Under-the-microscope (Proust, William Faulkner)
- Coloring inside the lines (sticking close to the brief, or iterating closely on a rich body of established work)
- Coloring outside the lines (Buckminster Fuller, Steve Jobs)
- Coloring just inside the lines
- Coloring just outside the lines
And on it goes. See what I mean?
So: how long has it been since you got a new tool? Took a rusty one for a spin?
If you're always polishing your work to a high gleam, try working in short bursts and calling it done after an hour. If you're trigger-happy to ship, sleep on it for a night before you press "Send".
If you're always making photos of nature, try making photos of e-waste. And vice versa.
Practice getting out of your comfort zone. Comfortable does not equal safe.