Copics and a House full of ghosts

I'd be curious to hear what those in the Plains would think of a story of a dragon blocking all semblance of light.

Damn if that ain't the truth.

This isn't too surprising to be honest. The Shadowscythe and forces of doom like to operate from the shadows, pun-intended, so it only makes sense if a good portion of the Plains rarely ever hear about them, save perhaps those from the Darkness Plains. As it stands now, I imagine they're still in the coalescing phase of their schemes. While they amass power and forces, they'll actively operate covertly against their enemies.

Ashen? As in the Fire Plains? Or as in someplace that's a mix between fire and earth? My gut says the former and yet...

On a different note, is the Ashen Kingdom using the Kinnaran as hired muscle or are they being hired by another party to take the water crystals? Either way, it's a shame that this seems to be what Kinnar's people have been reduced to on a grand scale when the peace their accord achieved cease to last.

Bet you ten gold pieces she tries to imprison us thinking we kidnapped Mihyun and are manipulating her to our own benefit.

Not a single word spoken and you can already tell how they introduced themselves

Notha: "Hi"

Uaanta: "Well met"

Myalos: "Greetings"

I'm loving Notha's giddiness over all this new information. It's weirdly infectious.

Ah so I was wrong about the incursion having come from the Plane of Water previously controlled by Neso. Rather interesting to hear that Hyonix quarreled with Neso but not all that surprising. While the Great Dragons were all forged to uphold the balance and protect their respective planes in the wake of the twin's absence, it's clear they possess their own autonomy to go against the wishes and whims of their creators as we can assume with Akriloth and as we know to be the case with Draco.

Though it does beg the question, as to why Neso and Hyonix were feuding to begin with. If this was around the same time Kathool broke free, then perhaps they were fighting over what to do about the water elves that had been enthralled by the Primordial but if not I'm not sure what they could have been fighting over.

-Don’t use “buy now pay later.” The fine print isn’t what it seems.

-The fine print on medical financing, store credit cards, and contactless payment is also not what it seems.

-Payday loans are still predatory, even when offered by your employer

-Rewards programs are an income stream for the companies that run them. The points systems are manipulated so that the house always wins. They depend on people leaving money in rewards accounts and not in interest-bearing traditional bank accounts.

-Electronic payment apps like VenMo are not banks. You don’t earn interest. Your money is not protected.

-Your financial information is not private if your money is not kept in a regulated bank.

-None of this is regulated by the FDIC. Your money is not protected if it is held by a non-bank doing banking business. Our economy is not protected from the collapse of financial institutions that are not banks.

 A third of younger Americans hold their savings on nonbank tech platforms like Venmo

PEOPLE! DO NOT LEAVE YOUR MONEY IN VENMO OR APPLE PAY OR ANY OF THIS SHIT. FOR THE LOVE OF GOD GO FIND A REAL BANK OR A CREDIT UNION.

If Venmo were to close tomorrow all your money would vanish. There's no insurance or guarantee on any of these things. I know banks aren't great but legit banks will have the "FDIC insured" logo on their doors and websites, which means if my bank goes under tomorrow I still get my money back. Also I guarantee you there is a credit union somewhere in your town, go find it.

your funds are insured up to $250,000 by the FDIC in the event Green Dot Bank fails

In the event Green Dot Bank fails. Meaning the only time your money is protected is if Green Dot goes under. Not if Apple goes under (unlikely, granted). Or if Apple changes its terms (entirely possible). Or if you got scammed. Or if Apple freezes your account because they think you're the one scamming. Or any of the other countless mishaps your money could suffer. Green Dot is insured, but Apple Cash is not.

This is the disclaimer (highlighted) you see before you set up Apple Cash:

For the love of god get an account at a federally insured institution. Look for FDIC (banks) or NCUA (credit unions) insured and regulated financial institution. They are legally required to have this status publicly available and accessible so it's not hard to find.

The FDIC and/or NCUA will insure your accounts up to $250,000 PER AUTHORIZED SIGNER and per account type. These are factors to max your coverage to even higher than $250k but the key point is that if something happens to your bank or accounts there, that first $250k of your money is secured anyway.

Banks are for profit. Credit Unions are exactly what it sounds like: unions. They are not for profit and member owned.

Bigger institutions have more money and resources at their disposal; they have the fancier apps, 24/7 phone banking and more locations. But watch out! They are no different than any other large corporation you've heard of when it comes to ethics. Smaller institutions have more limitations, and lesser size is not an indicator of morality, but it's something to consider when choosing where to keep your money.

These institutions, regardless of what kind you choose, will offer interest bearing accounts. Money Market Savings and Time Accounts (also called Certificates of Deposit,) are popular choices to put the money you already have to work for you. You can earn money just for having your money in an interest bearing account type.

All financial institutions charge fees of one sort or another. They are offering products and services, after all. Nothing is free! They will also disclose options to avoid paying those fees, usually based around meeting specific criteria such as minimum balances or direct deposits.

"Us? Oh, of *course* our Dachshund sleeps inside- we just let him out in the morning and make sure he comes back for dinner. He just does his own thing, no worries."

"Um, you know it's not humane to keep a chihuahua confined to an apartment? They're dogs, they're natural predators. They need to experience hunting behaviors or they get depressed. No we don't leash ours, he absolutely hates it, we just let him come and go whenever."

Yall get how fucking stupid that sounds, right? So stop letting your goddamn cats get eaten and attacked and infected and hit by cars

A toddler would probably love full unattended access to the neighborhood too, but we don't do that either, do we

multiple times just this week, let alone in the past recent months and years, I've had different friends reporting all sorts of apps either insidious new "features" designed to stunt and funnel your attention even further, or being straight up broken. The problem is not going to go away. it's only going to get worse.

Youtube, tumblr and bsky in specific are so much more functional in browser, especially if you pair with sponsor block for youtube. Facebook and twitter, if you use those, are perfectly serviceable, even if they try to prompt you to switch to the apps every so often. insta idk I've never tried, but it's gotta be better than wtf ever is going on in the app.

All the episodes of Galavant are on the Internet Archive!

This is how Project Hail Mary went, right?

He varies intensely but he’s still the same ol Eridian!!