Could be 70s to 80s. I had this song in my head today, searched it up but can't remember it now. Its somewhat popular, maybe a one hit wonder?
One bit in my head I remembered was lyrics and then something including ba, be, la stuff like that.
Album cover is blue all over. There is a blue man on it facing left (i think). similar to Tattoo You by Rolling Stone but blue.
Artists name starts with S and has 8-10 Letters.
Rock/Pop/Folk

Submit your deck here:
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScC2vNiCKzhBOcPkkCiDaEp4WLBnrtIg7pS5wUD5YrPdQ6fkA/viewform
Deadline: Tuesday, April 4 at 17:00 UTC.
The new bans are:

• Force of Will (R4->R20, R24->R49)
• Laboratory Maniac (R5->R21, R24->R49)
• Ragavan, Nimble Pilferer (R24)
• Magus of the Moon (R24)

The new unbans are:

• Ghost Quarter (R6->R24)
• Meddling Mage (R7->R24)

If you want to see the full banlist, there's a link in the submission form (we can no longer link it here due to a site wide ban on google sites links).
Join us on Discord:
https://discord.gg/UAyKtu9Yg3

Last Round

Congrats to AppleSaws for getting the win with Force of Will. The inclusion of Snapback as the blue card was useful this round for bouncing Marit Lage tokens! Force of Will was particularly well positioned this round because there were so many combo decks. I count 9 decks that do one really powerful thing, which was almost half the field.
There was some discussion after round 23 around how there seems to be a pattern of cards performing poorly the round they are unbanned, since there's target on their backs. It seems this held true for Laboratory Maniac for two rounds, but this time it got there piloted by X Scorpion! Perhaps we'll see Channel and/or Dark Depths get a ban over the next round or two, but IMO Ghost Quarter may get in the way of that.
sloody_chicken came in third place with an interesting deck, using Crack the Earth to take advantage of all the land based combo decks this round.
Finally, Sea-Kay rounded out the top 4 with the classic Magus of the Moon, which also did well against the land based combo decks. I'm excited to delete the Magus of the Moon column from my gauntlet, as I think it may be the oldest one in there.
A few extra things I wanted to note:

• No one submitted Lupine Prototype this round. Loos like it took a big hit with the sol lands being banned.
• No discard this round, unless you count Smallpox or Karn.
• Mandelora brought Ebon Stronghold to cast Smallpox instead of Peat Bog. This was a great choice this round, since it gets around Vampire Hexmage removing the counters from the land. For example, Emrakul, Channel, Havenwood Battleground would score 6 against HexDepths instead of the 4 we saw this round with Hickory Woodlot.
• I really liked how Sneakattackkid and RougeOracle both had fun with the Urborg Borborygmos thing in their submissions.
• Lastly, I wanted to shout out Campbell as a new name on the leaderboard!

Next Round

Ghost Quarter is basically the same as Strip Mine in this format. Strip Mine was pretty good when it was unbanned recently, I'd expect Ghost Quarter to have a similar impact now. In particular, it alone is sufficient to stop the Channel and Dark Depths decks we've seen.
Meddling Mage is interesting. It's pretty similar to Brain Maggot, but you trade off a larger body and a stronger disruptive effect with getting to bring a utility land alongside your threat.
I'm excited to see what everyone brings in the next round!

Happy to provide pics of anything you might be interested in.. Most of this stuff I would like to move ASAP. If you would like to buy see my GameSale post!
If you are local to the Sacramento area I might be willing to do a local meetup. Cash/Paypal also acceptable on either side to help even out a trade.
Thanks for looking! Happy trading!
​
[HAVE]

PLAYSTATION
Playstation	Legacy of Kain Collectors Edition Triple Pack	SEALED Hard to value.. I don't see this very often at all.. There is one other one on eBay right now for $369 in similar condition.. This one does have some minor wear to the corners/seal as seen in the pics.. I would really like a big item from my list for this..
Playstation	DarkStalkers 3	CIB - Minor Staining
Playstation	GranStream Saga	CIB
Playstation 2	Final Fantasy X Brady Games Strategy Guide	Very worn. Has tear in front cover. No poster.
Playstation 2	Final Fantasy X -2 Brady Games Strategy Guide	Moderately worn. Has smaller tear in back cover. Includes Poster.
Playstation 2	Dual Shock 2	Silver - Works - Normal Wear
Playstation 2	Dual Shock 2	Translucent Blue - Works - Normal Wear
Playstation 2	Guitar Hero II	BL - CIB
Playstation 2	Guitar Hero Guitar Hero Encore Rocks the 80's	BL - CIB
Playstation 2	Myst III Exile	BL - CIB
Playstation 2	RPG Maker 3	BL - CIB
Playstation 2	24 The Game	BL - CIB
Playstation 2	Wheel of Fortune	BL - CIB
Playstation 3	Ace Combat Assault Horizon	BL - CIB
Playstation 3	BlazBlue Continuum Shift Extend	Limited Edition Big Box - CIB - Includes Soundtrack, Art Book, and Calendar. Box has heavy wear. Everything else is pretty minty. Game case has some minor shelf wear.
Playstation 3	Dark Souls II	BL - CIB
Playstation 3	Diablo III	BL - CIB
Playstation 3	Yakuza Dead Souls	BL - CIB
Playstation 4	500 Million Dual Shock 4 Controller	Loose - Has crack in center but otherwise pretty minty.
Playstation 4	7 Days to Die	BL - CIB
Playstation 4	Call Of Duty Infinite Warfare	BL - CIB
Playstation 4	Dead Cells [Action Game of the Year]	BL - CIB
Playstation 4	Dragon Quest XI: Echoes of an Elusive Age	BL - CIB
Playstation 4	Evolve	BL - CIB
Playstation 4	Final Fantasy XV Deluxe Steelbook Edition book w/Slipcover	BL - CIB
Playstation 4	Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8	BL - CIB - Spine damage/tear
Playstation 4	Middle Earth Shadow of War	BL - CIB
Playstation 4	Nascar Heat 3	BL - CIB
Playstation 4	Overwatch Origins	BL - CIB
Playstation 4	Resident Evil Village Deluxe Edition	BL - CIB
Playstation 5	Babylon's Fall	Sealed
Playstation 5	Death Stranding	Sealed
PSP	PSP 1001 - Loose. PSP ONLY	Body and screen are pretty scratched up, includes a rubber grip cover and I can include a white replacement shell... Charge port can be touchy sometimes so it also includes a replacement port. No charger. PENDING
PSP	Tekken 6	BL - CIB
PSP	PSP 3000 Box and tray only - No PSP included	Box has moderate to heavy wear with some creasing.
PSVITA	Ninja Gaiden Sigma 2 Plus	Loose
PSVITA	Wipeout 2048	Loose

​

XBOX
Xbox	Blowout	BL - CIB
Xbox	Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban	BL - CIB
Xbox	Indiana Jones and The Emperors Tomb	BL - CIB
Xbox	Pac Man World 2	PH - CIB
Xbox	Return To Castle Wolfenstein Tides of War	PH - CIB
Xbox 360	4GB - 360 Slim Console	Includes OEM power supply and controller. I can probably include an HDMI cable if needed.
Xbox 360	250GB - 360 Slim Console	Includes OEM power supply, controller and Kinect. I can probably include an HDMI cable if needed.
Xbox 360	Dead Space 3	PH - CIB
Xbox 360	Dragonball Z Ultimate Tenkaichi	BL - CIB
Xbox 360	Fable 2 Limited Edition	BL - CIB* (No special features disc)
Xbox 360	Fable 3	BL - CIB
Xbox 360	Forza 4	BL - CIB
Xbox 360	Grand Theft Auto 5	BL - Boxed w/map
Xbox 360	Halo 3 Limited Edition Steel book w/sleeve (minor damage)	BL - CIB - Includes manual, but no book..
Xbox 360	Hitman HD Trilogy - Premium Edition w/ slipcoveartbook	BL - CIB - Moderate wear
Xbox 360	Mortal Kombat	BL - Boxed (No Manual)
Xbox 360	NBA Live 2010	BL - CIB
Xbox 360	NBA 2K18	BL - CIB
Xbox 360	Portal 2	BL - Boxed (No Manual)
Xbox 360	Test Drive Unlimited	BL - CIB
Xbox One	Battlefield 4 Steelbook Edition	CIB
Xbox One	Dark Souls 3	CIB
Xbox One	Madden 22	CIB
Xbox One	Prototype BioHazard Bundle	CIB
Xbox One	Rare Replay	CIB
Xbox One	Skylanders Trap Team	CIB
Xbox One	UFC 3	CIB
Xbox One	Watch Dogs 2	CIB
Xbox One	Wolfenstein The New Order	CIB

​

NINTENDO
NES	Vintage Nintendo of America Letter	w/ Official Nintendo Envelope, Cover Letter, Nintendo Power order form, service center list, Game Pak Directory, Replacement parts list, Nintendo history. Great little piece. Definitely shows some wear and a few markings but the order forms are blank. Not sure how to value this
NES	Bart vs The Space Mutants	Manual Only
NES	Gradius	Manual Only
NES	Mega Man 1	Manual Only
NES	Mission Impossible	Manual Only
NES	NES Advantage controller	Manual Only
NES	Zodas Revenge	Manual Only
NES	Kung Fu	Loose
NES	Ninja Gaiden II	Loose
NES	Skate or Die	Loose - Worn/snagged top label
NES	Wizards and Warriors III	Loose - Worn/torn top label
NES	GAME GENIE	Loose
SNES	DOOM	CIB** - Might be willing to trade box/contents separately.
SNES	Rockos Modern Life	CIB - Box is worn, includes insert, manual and warning slip.. both have some wear, Cart is in great shape! Might be willing to trade box/contents separately.
SNES	Yoshi's Safari	CIB** - Might be willing to trade box/contents separately.
SNES	Buster Busts Loose	Manual Only
SNES	Hey Punk! Are You Tuff E Nuff?	Manual Only
SNES	Lawnmower Man	Manual Only
SNES	Mega Man X	Manual Only
SNES	World Heroes	Manual Only
SNES	GAME GENIE	Loose
N64	Standard N64 Console	Includes OEM expansion pack.
Wii	Red Steel	BL - Boxed (No Manual)
Wii	Trauma Center Second Opinion	BL - CIB
Wii U	The Legend of Zelda Windwaker HD Edition Wii U	Complete in box** - Super Hard trade - Probably the item I'm least likely to trade right now.
Wii U	The Legend of Zelda Twilight Princess HD	SEALED - I am considering having this one graded.
Wii U	Super Mario 3D World	NS - CIB
Switch	Red and Blue V2 Switch Console	Includes everything but the box. Decent condition with a few blemishes. Everything works. PENDING
Switch	Pokemon Scarlet and Violet Edition OLED Switch	NEW
Switch	BloodRayne Fresh Bites	Sealed - w/card
Switch	Fire Emblem Three Houses	CIB
Switch	Great Ace Attorney Chronicles	CIB
Gameboy	Ren and Stimpy Veediots	Manual Only
NDS	Red Super Mario Bros 25th Anniversary Edition DSi XL	Loose - With charger. Does have some minor wear and teascuffs on corners PENDING
NDS	Mario Party DS	Sealed - (Has some knicks/tear in seal.)
NDS	Pokémon Heartgold	CIB - NFR case, no big box or Pokewalker - Only considering trading this so I can upgrade.. Would also trade FOR the big box..
NDS	Spiderman Shattered Dimensions	Loose
NDS	Spyro The Eternal Night	Loose
3DS	Animal Crossing New Leaf	CIB
3DS	Bravely Second End Layer	CIB - Minor damage to case/art
3DS	Legend of Legacy	Sealed
3DS	Super Smash Bros. 3DS	Loose

​

SEGA
Saturn	Model 2 Console	Loose - Includes power cord + OEM controller
Saturn	Street Fighter Alpha 2	CIB
Dreamcast	Crazy Taxi	Loose

​
[WANT]
SOME specific items I'm after:

• Attack On Titan 2 or Final Battle PS4
• Baten Kaitos - Eternal Wings and the Lost Ocean
• Castlevania Curse of Darkness - PS2
• Castlevania Lament of Innocence - PS2
• Castlevania Dracula X
• Conkers Bad Fur Day
• Chocobos Dungeon
• Clock Tower (all)
• Drakengard 2
• Earthbound
• Evil Dead Games (PS1-PS2)
• Geist - Gamecube
• Grandia Xtreme
• The Legend of Zelda Four Swords - Gamecube
• Majoras Mask N64
• Mario Party 6 - Complete only
• Mario Party 7 - Manual only
• Marvel vs Capcom 1 and 2 PS1/PS2 or Dreamcast
• Misadventures of Tron Bonne
• Mega Man 64 - Cart or CIB
• Paper Mario TTYD - Complete and NON Players Choice/Best Seller
• Parasite Eve II - Manual only
• Pokemon Crystal, Emerald, Ruby, and Silver
• Pokemon White, Black, HGSS (Big Box), Alpha Sapphire, Moon, Y, Ultra Sun/Moon
• Resident Evil - Saturn
• Resident Evil - PS1 Long Box
• Resident Evil Code Veronica - Gamecube
• Resident Evil Dead Aim (Also looking for other light Gun games like Point Blank, Time Crisis, House of the Dead..)
• Resident Evil Survivor
• Resident Evil Darkside Chronicles - Highly Prefer the Gun Bundle Version.
• Saga Frontier 2 PS1, Unlimited Saga PS2
• Shadow Hearts - PS2
• Shadow Hearts From the New World - Disc only
• Silent Hill Origins and Shattered Memories - PS2
• Suikoden, Suikoden II and Suikoden Tactics
• Tekken Long Box
• Twisted Metal Long Box
• Valkyrie Profile PS1
• Wario Ware/World - Gamecube
• Xenosaga Episode III - PS2 - Complete only. Lenticular preferred.
• PS2 Multi Out (

[General Wants]

• I'd like to bulk up my Gamecube and Sega collections; Dreamcast, CD/Saturn and Genesis.. I don't really need any hardware at the moment. But a CDX or Nomad would be cool though!
• PlayStation 5 games. Official Sony dual controller charger - CIB or New
• PS1 - PS4 Heavies
• PS Vita Games and maybe certain Vitas.
• PSP Games
• PSVR Games
• PS1 Long Box games
• PSX Console
• Special Edition Sony/PlayStation stuff.
• Switch games, SE Pro controllers
• Gameboys
• DS/3DS games

** Your lists/offers. I am not interested in loose discs or any sort of Greatest Hits, Platinum Hits, Players Choice, etc. Black Label/first print only. Most Carts are ok loose with the exception of games that came in plastic cases such as DS/Vita. If it had a cardboard box I can do without.

Hello guys,
What you think about this real estate tech company? I do not post a long description since there is a very good video series what it is about. Currently trading 1x sales (150m revenue) due to extremely poor macro environment.
They have put out (possibly) industry revolutional products such as AOL (attorney opinion letter) with patented process. This is approved by Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac for example.
Another interesting product they have is Anow Real Estate Appraisal Software that is used by for example United Wholesale Mortgage (perhaps part of the reason for their recent success?)
And the most recent aquisition Blue Water Financial Technologies (bluewater-fintech.com) that has build a unique marketplace for MSR's. Chief Manager interview can be found from here: Interview with Al Qureshi of Voxtur (VXTR, VXTRF) - YouTube , and btw he just bought Voxtur shares ~$5M.
Voxtur is followed only by two analysts and recommendations are Buy/Hold and concensus target price 0.83 (+275% from current price)
In Q3/22 Voxtur had break even and some revenue was moved to Q4 which should be slightly positive. Anyway if they perform better than any other competitor in this macro environment I think this is worth exproring further. Any thougts? Good time for entry?
Voxtur Analytics - Redefining Real Estate Technology
Voxtur Introduction Video 1 of 11 - YouTube

Remember when we were together and I took singing lessons, I never told you how my teacher always said I sang better after we fought. She said it brought out my passion and emotion. For so many years, I had given up on singing. I felt numb. I lost my passion. I lost you. Since last year, when thoughts of you began to stir again, my love of singing returned. All of that which has been unfolding has reignited my love of music and how listening to lyrics soothes me but helps me deal with my deeply buried emotions. When I wrote you the letter, I was almost dead. The weight of missing you, of lying to myself for almost a decade, it all got too much. It was my last ditch effort before I pull back on on the stick and nose dive this thing into the deep blue sea. I can’t pretend anymore. I told you that.
Always with love,
Baby Blue

Everything in my inventory is up for trade. The most valuable items are listed here, the rest you can find in My Inventory

Feel free to Add Me or even better send a Trade Offer. Open for any suggestions: upgrades, downgrades / knives, gloves, skins / stickers, patterns, floats.

All Buyouts are listed in cash value.

KNIVES

★ Butterfly Knife Freehand FN #1, B/O: $1867

★ Butterfly Knife Bright Water MW, B/O: $1098

★ Butterfly Knife Blue Steel BS, B/O: $907

★ Butterfly Knife Ultraviolet FT, B/O: $789

★ Butterfly Knife Stained FT, B/O: $695

⎯

★ Bayonet Tiger Tooth MW #1, B/O: $888

★ Bayonet Gamma Doppler (Phase 4) FN, B/O: $727

★ Bayonet Doppler (Phase 2) FN, B/O: $608

★ Bayonet Doppler (Phase 1) FN, B/O: $521

★ Bayonet Rust Coat BS, B/O: $253

★ Bayonet Night FT, B/O: $251

★ StatTrak™ Bayonet Lore MW, B/O: $751

⎯

★ Karambit Gamma Doppler (Phase 4) FN, B/O: $1343

★ Karambit Damascus Steel FT, B/O: $774

★ Karambit Rust Coat BS, B/O: $537

★ Karambit Boreal Forest FT, B/O: $488

⎯

★ M9 Bayonet Fade FN, B/O: $1523

★ M9 Bayonet Fade FN, B/O: $1523

★ M9 Bayonet Doppler (Phase 4) FN, B/O: $1008

★ M9 Bayonet Blue Steel FT, B/O: $534

★ M9 Bayonet Rust Coat BS, B/O: $449

⎯

★ Flip Knife Fade FN, B/O: $703

★ Flip Knife Gamma Doppler (Phase 1) MW, B/O: $509

★ Flip Knife Doppler (Phase 1) FN, B/O: $406

★ Flip Knife Freehand FT, B/O: $228

★ StatTrak™ Flip Knife Bright Water FN, B/O: $332

⎯

★ Falchion Knife Doppler (Phase 2) FN, B/O: $292

★ Falchion Knife Doppler (Phase 3) FN, B/O: $264

★ Falchion Knife Marble Fade FN, B/O: $258

★ Falchion Knife Bright Water MW, B/O: $133

⎯

★ Stiletto Knife Fade FN, B/O: $822

★ Stiletto Knife Slaughter FN, B/O: $569

★ Stiletto Knife Doppler (Phase 1) FN, B/O: $530

★ Stiletto Knife Crimson Web FT, B/O: $396

★ StatTrak™ Stiletto Knife Scorched FT, B/O: $172

⎯

★ Gut Knife Doppler (Sapphire) MW #1, B/O: $830

★ Gut Knife Fade FN, B/O: $204

★ Gut Knife Tiger Tooth FN, B/O: $138

★ Gut Knife Bright Water MW, B/O: $104

★ Gut Knife Freehand FT, B/O: $92

★ Gut Knife Urban Masked FT, B/O: $82

★ StatTrak™ Gut Knife Rust Coat BS, B/O: $93

⎯

★ Shadow Daggers Fade FN, B/O: $258

★ Shadow Daggers Doppler (Phase 3) FN, B/O: $165

★ Shadow Daggers Blue Steel FT, B/O: $82

★ Shadow Daggers Bright Water FT, B/O: $82

★ Shadow Daggers Blue Steel WW, B/O: $80

★ Shadow Daggers Rust Coat BS, B/O: $74

★ StatTrak™ Shadow Daggers Marble Fade FN, B/O: $186

⎯

★ Classic Knife Slaughter MW, B/O: $311

★ StatTrak™ Classic Knife Stained BS, B/O: $163

⎯

★ Talon Knife Slaughter MW, B/O: $605

★ Talon Knife Scorched MW, B/O: $290

⎯

★ Ursus Knife Marble Fade FN, B/O: $405

★ Ursus Knife Night Stripe MW, B/O: $162

⎯

★ Paracord Knife Stained WW, B/O: $125

★ Paracord Knife Forest DDPAT FT, B/O: $97

★ Paracord Knife Safari Mesh FT, B/O: $96

⎯

★ Navaja Knife Safari Mesh FT, B/O: $71

★ Navaja Knife Scorched WW, B/O: $71

⎯

★ Nomad Knife Fade FN, B/O: $1015

★ Skeleton Knife, B/O: $909

★ Bowie Knife Boreal Forest MW, B/O: $106

★ Survival Knife Forest DDPAT FT, B/O: $97

GLOVES

★ Driver Gloves Crimson Weave FT, B/O: $335

★ Driver Gloves King Snake BS, B/O: $270

★ Driver Gloves Lunar Weave WW, B/O: $113

★ Driver Gloves Overtake WW, B/O: $88

★ Driver Gloves Overtake BS, B/O: $67

⎯

★ Moto Gloves Transport MW, B/O: $171

★ Moto Gloves Polygon BS, B/O: $137

★ Moto Gloves Transport WW, B/O: $71

★ Moto Gloves 3rd Commando Company BS, B/O: $62

⎯

★ Specialist Gloves Crimson Kimono WW, B/O: $1027

★ Specialist Gloves Tiger Strike FT, B/O: $654

★ Specialist Gloves Mogul FT, B/O: $295

★ Specialist Gloves Lt. Commander FT, B/O: $277

★ Specialist Gloves Crimson Web FT, B/O: $275

⎯

★ Sport Gloves Slingshot FT, B/O: $796

★ Sport Gloves Amphibious BS #2, B/O: $699

★ Sport Gloves Omega FT, B/O: $656

⎯

★ Broken Fang Gloves Unhinged BS, B/O: $60

WEAPONS

AK-47 Case Hardened BS, B/O: $130

AK-47 Bloodsport MW, B/O: $79

AK-47 Fuel Injector BS, B/O: $76

AK-47 Fuel Injector BS, B/O: $76

AK-47 Bloodsport FT, B/O: $70

AK-47 Neon Rider MW, B/O: $60

⎯

AWP Fade FN, B/O: $864

AWP BOOM MW, B/O: $84

AWP Containment Breach FT, B/O: $69

AWP Containment Breach FT, B/O: $69

AWP Wildfire FT, B/O: $59

AWP Chromatic Aberration FN, B/O: $59

StatTrak™ AWP Hyper Beast FT, B/O: $65

StatTrak™ AWP Hyper Beast FT, B/O: $65

⎯

Desert Eagle Blaze FN, B/O: $565

Desert Eagle Blaze FN, B/O: $565

Desert Eagle Printstream FN, B/O: $155

Desert Eagle Cobalt Disruption FN, B/O: $58

⎯

M4A1-S Icarus Fell FN, B/O: $414

M4A1-S Printstream MW, B/O: $204

M4A1-S Printstream MW, B/O: $204

⎯

M4A4 Poseidon FN, B/O: $1402

M4A4 The Emperor FN, B/O: $152

M4A4 Asiimov WW, B/O: $97

⎯

USP-S Kill Confirmed MW, B/O: $65

USP-S Printstream FT, B/O: $69

StatTrak™ USP-S Kill Confirmed FT, B/O: $123

StatTrak™ USP-S Neo-Noir FN, B/O: $106

⎯

AUG Flame Jörmungandr FN, B/O: $218

P2000 Ocean Foam FN, B/O: $139

Souvenir SSG 08 Death Strike MW, B/O: $81

CZ75-Auto Emerald Quartz MW, B/O: $61

Trade Offer Link - Steam Profile Link - My Inventory

Knives - Bowie Knife, Butterfly Knife, Falchion Knife, Flip Knife, Gut Knife, Huntsman Knife, M9 Bayonet, Bayonet, Karambit, Shadow Daggers, Stiletto Knife, Ursus Knife, Navaja Knife, Talon Knife, Classic Knife, Paracord Knife, Survival Knife, Nomad Knife, Skeleton Knife, Patterns - Gamma Doppler, Doppler (Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, Phase 4, Black Pearl, Sapphire, Ruby, Emerald), Crimson Web, Lore, Fade, Ultraviolet, Night, Marble Fade (Fire & Ice, Fake FI), Case Hardened (Blue Gem), Autotronic, Slaughter, Black Laminate, Tiger Tooth, Boreal Forest, Scorched, Blue Steel, Vanilla, Damascus Steel, Forest DDPAT, Urban Masked, Freehand, Stained, Bright Water, Safari Mesh, Rust Coat, Gloves - Bloodhound Gloves (Charred, Snakebite, Guerrilla, Bronzed), Driver Gloves (Snow Leopard, King Snake, Crimson Weave, Imperial Plaid, Black Tie, Lunar Weave, Diamondback, Rezan the Red, Overtake, Queen Jaguar, Convoy, Racing Green), Hand Wraps (Cobalt Skulls, CAUTION!, Overprint, Slaughter, Leather, Giraffe, Badlands, Spruce DDPAT, Arboreal, Constrictor, Desert Shamagh, Duct Tape), Moto Gloves (Spearmint, POW!, Cool Mint, Smoke Out, Finish Line, Polygon, Blood Pressure, Turtle, Boom!, Eclipse, 3rd Commando Company, Transport), Specialist Gloves (Crimson Kimono, Tiger Strike, Emerald Web, Field Agent, Marble Fade, Fade, Foundation, Lt. 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• Context: Psalm 49 Blue Letter Bible
• Article: How should a Christian view wealth? Got Questions
• Commentary: The Treasury of David: Psalm 49 The Spurgeon Archive

Bumping “Angeles” by Elliott Smith rn. We’re in the Los after all.
​
FBE World Tag Team Champion Capital STEEZ vs FBE Junior Heavyweight Champion Misery
Getting the block hot in the Grand Olympic Auditorium was a true Clash of the Champions, Capital STEEZ and Misery channelling their inner Ricky Steamboat vs Ric Flair as the greatest FBE World Tag Team Champion in history put on an intense fight with the woman rapidly approaching the longest reign as FBE Junior Heavyweight Champion! As seesaw of a battle as you’d ever see, King Capital and the Mis lived up to the hype and more, displaying exactly why they’ve held their respective titles for as long as they have whilst showing off that they can do just as much of a jam-up job under Pure Rules too, two Shining Light League favourites from B and D Block respectively tearing the house down. With the last such potential Semi Final preview seeing Misery’s Death to Juniors stablemate Joshua Epps pick up the win, she was determined to make that 2 for 2. Tangling with an all-time great was no easy feat, but in the end it was indeed Misery picking up her career’s biggest win yet!
Misery (8) def. Capital STEEZ (7)
​
A Block: Mr. Calcote Miller [2] vs Paddy Murphy [0]
Despite carrying the burdens of heartbreak on his back after Michael Kalamity lived up to his surname, cruelly ending the fan-favourite Sham-Rock N’ Scot Connection, a determined Paddy Murphy headed into Blitz tonight looking to complete the Journey To The Centre Of The First Win all the same to kick off a different tournament campaign the right way. Mr. Calcote Miller with the strongest standing of A Block currently, sitting on top with an uncontested 2 points, he had everything to lose here, the pressure on him immense to maintain his standing above the rest. And yet, he appeared to handle it rather well, not cracking despite the climbing temperatures. Unfortunately for him, Murphy’s been starved for too long of his moment, firing on all cylinders here to show he’s not as 2nd Rate as it may have originally been thought, producing an unstoppable performance to lead him to his first win in FBE!
Paddy Murphy [2] (10) def. Mr. Calcote Miller [2] (4)
​
C Block: Ripley [2] vs Travis Broski [0]
Since the final night of the Carnage Tour, the world’s been frothing at the mouth for a chance to see the Ripple in Time and the Undercity Underdog get in there with each other again, their tantalising draw leaving more to be wanted. Lucky for everyone, fate did its job, pairing them up here in the Shining Light League’s C Block for another certified banger no matter how you spin it. Ripley boasting the upper hand with two points to his name thus far, Travis Broski was left fighting from underneath for a chance to redeem his own first night performance, which worked perfectly in his favour, at his best in circumstances like these. That being said, he still had a mountain of a fight to summit, a landslide headed his way courtesy of The RISE member, though Travis managed to pull Ripley in its way instead to kickstart his own comeback in this tournament!
Travis Broski [2] (9) def. Ripley [2] (5)
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PROVINCE (FBE Television Champion T.M Imran & Erick Koeman) vs The Ark (Cactus Mike & FBE World Tag Team Champion Code Blue)
With a nostalgic episode of Wide World Of Sports preceding tonight’s show, featuring The Ark man himself Code Blue, the excitement for this one was only further launched through the roof, the Pasadena Paralyser set to stand across the ring from his former PRIMETIME partner for the first time since Mayflower Mayhem 2021! At very different points in their respective careers now, T.M Imran running ship with PROVINCE, deep in his second FBE Television Championship reign, Flying Dutchman by his side, and Code Blue… running boat with The Ark, amid the greatest FBE World Tag Team Championship reign in company history, Cactus “Ark Ark Ark” Mike by his side, there wasn’t a shadow of a doubt in anyone’s mind that these lot were at their very best when they tangled under Pure Rules.
Mike soon set to challenge Imran for his title, a big focus was placed on those two as they got familiar with each other’s body of work in order to strategise effectively for the pay day, whilst incorporating sound tag team wrestling on both ends, Blue brandishing his obvious unparalleled experience, and Koeman yet again proving himself to be a valuable glue like he was back in WarGames. Whilst the champion end definitely brought it, it wasn’t to be their night, The Ark gaining the New Hardcore Legend some key momentum!
The Ark (Cactus Mike & Code Blue) (11) def. PROVINCE (T.M Imran & Erick Koeman) (4)
​
C Block: EED [0] vs Mark Steel [0]
Neither of these two men strangers to high-profile tournaments, EED involved in the crowning of the very-first FBE World Heavyweight Champion and the Shining Light League’s own predecessor, the E1 Climax, and Mark Steel a member of last year’s stacked Punish & Crush and Heyman Classic line-ups, they channelled the many lessons they’d picked up along the way here, wrestling efficiently so as to not burn themselves out yet still slamming down on their respective gas pedals enough to drive to victory. EED on the lighter schedule, he was the fresher of the two here, though found himself less conditioned to take shots the way Peak Performance was, steeling his way through the Notorious’s offence to give the OG a surprise. Nevertheless, the most accomplished man in his Block by miles, EED didn’t let it get to him, continuing to push on, though he’d have another thing coming when Mark scored one of the biggest upsets of his career, knocking off the legend to secure two points!
Mark Steel [2] def. EED [0] (NS)
​
A Block: FBE Pure Champion Dr. Logan Wright [1] vs Arslan Malik [0]
With the A Block leader stunned earlier in the night, Dr. Logan Wright was presented with the perfect opportunity to capitalise and launch himself into first place after a gruelling opening match, though Arslan Malik would not make that easy, knowing what beating the FBE Pure Champion would mean for his career, delivering in prime “Ass-Kicker” form. The Doctor got stabby like it were an XPW show, wanting to inject Malik with the right dose to knock him out for the 3-count, whilst Arslan did his best to avoid the needle and score the winning shot of his own, Malik’s blows just as sharp as Logan’s. In a war of two very different forms of sedation, it was the man with the medical license that eventually won out, the FBE Pure Champion remaining afloat as the tides rose him to 3 points and block leader!
Dr. Logan Wright [3] (12) def. Arslan Malik [0] (3)
​
Non-Title/British Rounds: FBE World Heavyweight Champion Inferno vs Joshua Epps
The long-awaited third instalment to the budding saga between Inferno and Joshua Epps came to a head right here in what’s been dubbed “The Wager in the Aether”, FBE World Heavyweight Champion and God’s Greatest Athlete out to prove who the undisputed better man is between them. A traditional 15-minutes on the clock, though split into three 5-minute rounds with a 20 second break between each, Blitz witnessed its first-ever and hopefully far from last British Rounds match in the holy grounds of Rocky Balboa vs Apollo Creed, its two competitors primed to show what pure wrestling is all about.
Epps one of the biggest success stories on Season 2 of Blitz thus far, it was clear just why with him putting on another masterclass on his end, wowing the onlooking judges with a perfect hybrid of catch wrestling and powerhouse bidness that wouldn’t look out of place at all on an episode of World of Sport 6 decades ago. Inferno answered with Marty Jones and Billy Robinson inspired techniques, paying homage to some of the men that’ve influenced his very British style of working, whilst remaining every bit of a cocky bastard as he could be in between, the Gatekeeper of Pure Rules working that mission statement to bring down any new blood that tries to size him up on his domain. Ultimately, three closely-fought, superb rounds resulted in the judges leaning their scorecards in Baba Blitz’s favour, Inferno staying on top of his home turf!
Round One: Inferno (9) def. Joshua Epps (4)
Round Two: Inferno (9) def. Joshua Epps (4)
Round Three: Inferno (8) def. Joshua Epps (5)
​
​
A Block Standings:

Place	Competitor	Points	Record
1	Dr. Logan Wright (c)	3	1-1-0
2	Paddy Murphy	2	1-0-0
2	Mr. Calcote Miller	2	1-0-1
4	Jay Castle	1	0-1-0
5	Arslan Malik	0	0-0-2

​
C Block Standings:

Place	Competitor	Points	Record
1	John LaGuardia	2	1-0-0
1	Travis Broski	2	1-0-1
1	Ripley	2	1-0-1
1	Mark Steel	2	1-0-1
5	EED	0	0-0-1

​
Three fabulous nights down, but still many more to go. Interesting results are starting to break through here in the tournament as the last of the competitors begin to assume their spots in their respective Blocks, so stay tuned for next week as we see all 20 wrestlers officially be brought into play! Until then, keep wrestling the good wrestling, and pure rules.

This is my second year of bingo, so naturally I had to extra challenge myself and do a themed card this time. I set out to do strictly re-tellings, but I ended up broadening the category to include strongly inspired by or incorporating folk tales or mythology. It’s a category I read a lot in anyway, and I love that the genre is exploding to include cultures world-wide. And yet somehow I only ended up with 13 authors of color (out of 40 - counting all the short stories). But this year was about 90% women (with 3 non-binary and one man), so huzzah for feminist re-tellings! And all but four of the authors were new to me. I didn’t quite hit all hard mode, but the theme was my hard mode, really.
I tried to cover a variety of inspiration texts (myths, folk tales, “classic literature,” film) as well as stories from around the world, but I’m missing any representation from Australia and the Pacific Islands as well as South America. The origins of a lot of the stories are Western European, but some have been re-told in settings elsewhere in the world. East Asia also ended up well represented.
I did end up substituting a square this year. Instead of “weird ecology,” I opted for 2018’s “a god is a character” square. There were a couple books that had some weird landscaping in them, but none of them quite fit the spirit of the square. Things like a magical forest in an otherwise standard-issue earthly landscape rather than a fundamentally different ecosystem overall. If anyone has any recs for re-tellings set on far-flung planets, let me know! I tend not to do deep researching – mostly I read somewhat mindfully, hoping for the best, and panic in January.
Here’s the visual card: https://imgur.com/4XRW9W9
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Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller (LGBTQIA list)
The Iliad from Patroclus’ perspective, but starting with his childhood and teenage years in which he and Achilles grow up together and fall in love.
If you remember the Iliad or just the general arc of the story of the Trojan war, then you will go into this knowing it’s going to be a tragedy. That doesn’t make the pain any less exquisite. The time we spend growing up with Patroclus moves from lonely and neglected to beautiful, golden, idyllic. The voice of Patroclus – pacifist and healer – is expertly written and his relationship with god-like Achilles is full of moments that make the heart ache. This is still on the best-seller list for a reason.
​
Lore Olympus: Volume One by Rachel Smythe (Substitute square: god character, HM)
Olympus is a contemporary city, albeit still only inhabited by gods, and Hades and Persephone might be falling for each other.
Graphic novel. The limited color palettes in this volume are excellent, emphasizing mood and character. It’s beautiful to read. The Greek gods are notorious for having very human flaws, and this telling feels very rooted in human emotions. Olympus feels a bit like a college campus in this telling. There’s a lot of loneliness, and trying to figure out how to fit in. It also gets a big content warning for rape.
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Hag: Forgotten Folk Tales Retold by Imogen Hermes Gowar, Naomi Booth, Emma Glass, Irenosen Okojie, Daisy Johnson, Natasha Carthew, Eimear McBride, Liv Little, Mahsuda Snaith, Kirsty Logan (2+ authors, HM)
Strange folk tales from every corner of the U.K. are re-imagined – often in contemporary settings – giving women voices they may have been denied in the originals.
It took me a long time to read all these short stories because almost every one deals with death or brutality towards women. That’s not to say they all have unhappy endings – indeed, some have joyously vengeful endings – but there’s quiet tragedy and outright violence woven throughout. Powerful stories, strong narrator voices, and often poetic prose, but read when in a strong mental state.
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A Clash of Steel: A Treasure Island Remix by C.B. Lee (Historical, HM)
Treasure Island set in 1826 in the South China Sea with a pirate crew of queer misfits sailing for treasure and a better life – plus actual historical Pirate Queen Zheng Yi Sao as Captain Flint.
With contemporary prose and an updated cast, this still feels true to the source material with the adventurous quest deciphering maps and clues. Long John Silver doesn’t have an exact analogue, but his surprisingly complex parental feelings come through with found-family bonds as well as a wild ride of birth-family feelings, and a fraught lesbian love interest.
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Once & Future by Cory McCarthy, A.R. Capetta (Set in Space, HM)
This time, King Arthur is a queer teenage girl on the run from the big bad capitalist Mercer Corporation – in space!
In this re-telling, the characters are aware of the King Arthur story as a myth from Old Earth, but when they find themselves re-incarnating the well-worn pattern, they don’t seem to recognize it beyond the magic sword and Ari’s renewed determination to be a hero. Merlin has lived through every iteration, and has his own interests at play. Our heroes spend a fair bit of time in their space ship or on planet-sized space-stations, though it may be pushing the rule to say it’s 50% actually in space. This is a YA book and it definitely reads that way, but it’s fun. I thought the “Renaissance Faire Planet” was a bit of a stretch and the big bad was almost a caricature of every evil empire, but if you can look past a bit of cheesiness, there’s plenty of sci-fi action, a quick pace, and some intrigue under the surface.
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The Wolf and the Woodsman by Ava Reid (Standalone, HM)
Hungarian and Jewish folklore plus the early spread of Christianity weave together to create a world where magic manifests differently depending on your religious tradition, the Christians are ardent new converts in charge of a poor besieged country, and persecution abounds.
The first person perspective came with a lot of (justified) rage and some pretty violent moments, but I found Évike’s voice to be frustratingly naïve at times. The pacing was uneven, and with a lot of elements in play the story was lacking cohesion. I felt okay on the enemies-to-lovers trope in this one. Overall, this book was redeemed for me by the imagined folk stories woven in, and the heart-warming moments spent in the Jewish community. (I forget the actual names of the religions in the book, but they’re pretty obvious stand-ins.)
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These Violent Delights by Chloe Gong (Anti-hero, HM)
This time, Romeo and Juliet are in rival gangs in 1926 Shanghai, but their teenage romance is already dead from betrayal at the start of the book and a strange madness is devastating the city they struggle to rule.
I usually read-read, but this one I listened to and I loved the narrator! I had a few hang-ups on Juliet as a character (though perfect anti-hero material). Which was tough since she got of lot of screen time, but thankfully we also got Roma and some absolutely wonderful side characters, including a trans woman and a refuses-to-admit-it gay couple. There were some moments of lovely prose, plenty of action, and all the jostling factions in the city were well-balanced in the narrative. First of a series, I definitely want to pick up the second one soon.
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All the Murmuring Bones by A.G. Slatter (Book Club, HM)
Drawing primarily on Irish folklore, this is the story of a girl who wants to escape her family obligations - ones that come with generational trauma and greed.
It’s a little hard to talk about this one without spoilers since there are basically three distinct sections and each could almost stand as a story on its own, but each depends on the earlier one. Another angry woman in this one, taking matters into her own hands and trying to break spells, break open dark family secrets, and get free of men who are trying very hard to be in charge. I liked the gothic atmosphere, the prose, and probably the middle journey section with fairy-tale creature encounters was my favorite. The family history is also told in mini fairy-tales throughout. The ending fell a bit flat, and I didn’t really connect to the main character, but neither of those were deal-breakers for me.
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Spear by Nicola Griffith (Cool Weapon, HM)
From the King Arthur mythos, the story of Percival and the quest for the holy grail, but Percival is a supernatural queer woman who lives in sixth century Wales when the pagan gods still have power.
Novella. The story opens slowly and with some very poetic prose to start Peretur’s early life in the wilderness with her mother – a mythic feeling that I fell hard for right off the bat. And yet it also felt very much a story from history – the details of the setting showed the research Griffith put in. I wish it were just a touch longer to give some more room to the relationship developments that get packed into the back half of the book. But the interweaving of historical details, tidbits from myth and story, and imagination was so flawless that this re-telling feels like it could be the "true" history of the story-figure. Even including the gender flip - a skillfully handled "woman dresses as a man to be a knight" trope that works even better when the woman is queer.
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Lord of Light by Roger Zelazny (Revolution/Rebellion, HM)
On a distant planet in the far future, the original colonizing crew have set themselves up as gods, specifically taking on the roles of the Hindu pantheon. One member heartily disagrees with how the rest are running things.
The prose in this one was a little tough and I’m pretty sure the style is a deliberate choice to make this book feel more akin to reading a religious text. And as a play off of Hesse’s 1922 Siddhartha, since they share the same main character. But some of it may also simply be because it was written in 1967. Still, the content is intriguing. The struggle is between the immortal gods who like being the ones with all the advanced tech (including re-incarnation to transfer themselves into new bodies), and the one who thinks this is some kinda bullshit, why make the inhabitants here go through the dark ages when they could have medicine and electricity now. The premise and watching it play out is the interest here, not so much any emotional investment in the characters.
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The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Kiersten White (Name in the Title, HM)
Still asking, “who is the monster?” and giving the same answer even more definitively than the original, this is a re-telling of Frankenstein from Elizabeth’s POV with some distinctive twists.
In 2022 I did the Dracula read-along and then promptly decided it was finally time to do Frankenstein as well. Which meant I could now read re-tellings of these classics. Elizabeth, when you get to hear her side, turns out not only to be independent-minded, but also a remarkable anti-hero character trying desperately to maintain the only stability she’s ever known. Though there are a lot of grim happenings and emotional abuse, this version has more hope for humanity than the original (which, imo, has almost none). Also, unlike narrator Viktor, Elizabeth doesn’t make you hate her guts regularly; she’s just trying to survive. The prose was the weak point in this one, especially coming off Mary Shelley, but not detrimentally so.
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What Moves the Dead by T. Kingfisher (Author Uses Initials, HM)
Poe’s short story “The Fall of the House of Usher” leaves plenty of room for embellishing and this novella does so perfectly with nightmare fungus, more rounded-out characters (including a non-binary protagonist), and horrifyingly possessed creatures.
Alex is a rational narrator, the best kind for encountering increasingly creepy phenomena. Even with the addition of a no-nonsense mycologist and a competent American doctor, the atmosphere of oppressive, inevitable horror from the original short story suffuses this novella. There certainly are rational lines of thoughts to follow to unravel the mystery of the Ushers’ illnesses, but that doesn’t stop each revelation from setting everyone on edge and fearing madness of themselves. Gothic. Horror. Perfection.
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Daughter of the Moon Goddess by Sue Lynn Tan (Published in 2022, HM)
The Chinese story of Chang’e is the basis for this re-telling, but this focuses on her daughter and starts after the original stories end. Xingyin’s quest is to obtain freedom and forgiveness for her mother’s actions that gained her goddess status, but exiled her to the moon.
The world building of the Celestial Kingdom was a highlight of this one for me since I’m not super familiar with the Chinese pantheon. The story itself relied on some classic YA tropes (including a love triangle, one of my least favorites) and I found the narrator’s voice somewhat simplistic. She’s also a very emotional character, which at times was endearing and at others frustrating. Wise, peaceful dragons do make an appearance, though, and there’s some good political intrigue and a few unforeseen twists. An entertaining read overall, and there’s set-up for the second book, but this one wrapped up nicely enough and I’m not feeling pressed to read the second one right away.
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The Chosen and the Beautiful by Nghi Vo (Urban Fantasy, HM)
The Great Gatsby, but from Jordan Baker’s perspective and she’s a bi Vietnamese adoptee in a New York where magic makes all the parties more dazzling.
It’s hard to like any of the characters in the Gatsby story, but Jordan Baker as narrator certainly gets more sympathy from me in this go-round. Raised in a rich white family, she carries internalized racism with her, and yet struggles against it every day in a country that is trying to enact a law that will force her to leave. Where the original story condemns classism and unbridled ambition, this story expands its criticism to America’s long history of excluding people of color and the LGBTQ+ community. The prose is gorgeous, and where it overlaps with original scenes it dovetails perfectly. The magic adds an extra shimmer to this story, but doesn’t outshine the character work. I hope this one gets added to curriculums to pair with the original.
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Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen (Set in Africa, HM)
Inspired by West African mythology with the Little Mermaid for some plot points. Simi was a human who became a Mami Wata and is struggling to fit into her role bringing home the souls of those who died at sea. One decision endangers all the Mami Wata and sends her on a quest with a boy that will entangle her with the gods and other legendary creatures.
This story is chock full of magical beings, young adults attempting to navigate dangerous situations as well as their relationships, and quests of mythic proportions. The dark underbelly of the story is the destruction of West African communities as colonizers take their people into slave ships. Though tragedy runs alongside the story, our heroes mostly manage to stay one step ahead of the worst outcomes. The quest did some meandering, and characterizations were a bit uneven, but I think it really came together in the latter half. The main plot wraps up well, but makes set-up for the next book clear and I do intend to get to it eventually.
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A Snake Falls to Earth by Darcie Little Badger (Non-human protagonist, HM)
With roots in Lipan Apache storytelling traditions, this is the story of a cottonmouth snake and a human girl whose worlds run in parallel, but become entangled as they try to save friends and family from existential threats.
This technically has two protagonists, but the snake is the one whose chapters are in first person and the human’s are in third person. This also would have been great for the hard mode BIPOC author square since the author is Lipan Apache. I absolutely loved everyone in this story. Nina is an intrepid modern girl and a loner, but with strong family ties; and Ollie is a homebody snake setting out to make his way in the wide world. The friends Ollie makes help him to discover his own bravery, and they are a delightfully colorful bunch of creatures! Nina is trying to help her grandmother and unravel the mysteries of their family’s past and possible connections to the animal people. Read this story to be filled with the love of friendship and family, and hope in the face of climate change and social media ills.
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Fractured Fables: A Spindle Splintered & A Mirror Mended by Alix E. Harrow (Timey Wimey, HM)
Zinnia Gray’s illness means she likely won’t live past 21, but when she falls into a Sleeping Beauty parallel universe, she might be able to at least save someone else from that fate. In book two, she’s dealing poorly with life in the “real” world, but busting out into a new fairy tale multi-verse (Snow White’s), and finding even more complications in the re-tellings there.
I read both novellas currently out in this series, and our hero does a fair bit of jumping around the fairy tale multiverse which makes it clear that time doesn’t run evenly across it all. It’s not really the focus, but it’s there, and it does affect a couple plot points. I think Alix Harrow read the same book I did about disability in fairy tales (Disfigured by Amanda Leduc) and took it to heart to create her hero in this contemporary fairy tale take. Zinnia’s chronic illness is both from an industrial accident and an embodiment of a fairy tale curse. These books don’t take themselves too seriously, but do handle disability and the emotional impacts that come with it pretty well, I think. Disney’s re-telling style features in book one, and book two gets some darker, more horror-esque takes.
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Wintersong by S. Jae-Jones (Mental Health)
The re-telling of Jim Henson’s Labyrinth you didn’t know you needed with extra depth from Germanic folk roots and a little Hades-Persephone flavor. Set in early 19th century Bavaria, protagonist Liesl is a composer stuck helping run her family’s inn; in the woods, Der Erlkönig (the Goblin King), may be a relic of a pagan past, but that doesn’t stop him from meddling with her heart and her family members.
Liesl is bipolar and her brother (prodigy violinist) has anxiety and (in book 2) severe depression. Her father is an alcoholic. The family member who gets stolen and must be retrieved is her beautiful sister, the life of the family. Liesl’s wild up and down swings are on full display when she enters the realm of the Goblin King and is trying to navigate her relationship with him, her relationship with her music, and her love for her family. This is an emotional book and you will be angry at almost every character at some point. But it’s also heartbreakingly beautiful. The romance sizzles; it’s unhealthy and you want them to fix it. It’s probably not a book for everyone, but I spent a fevered day and a half devouring it. For extra doses of struggling with mental health, sobbing, and musical composing, read book two – Shadowsong.
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In the Shadows of Giants by Lazette Gifford (Self-published, HM)
In the far future, the Norse pantheon ends up pitted against the Chinese pantheon and an elder god in a potential new Ragnarok with Loki trying to avoid the mishaps of the last one – in space!
Loki gets some good character work in this book, but other characters are a little light on depth. Though Loki is the main focus, I liked that we got some chapters in the Chinese pantheon as well, getting some insight into the politics of the situation from their perspective – and not everyone in their pantheon is on board with the way things are going. Loki is also not really convinced of teaming up with the rest of his own pantheon again either, but he still has a few good ties there and room to mends some relationships. This wasn’t a stand-out novel for me, but neither do I have any strong complaints. It’s a solid sci-fi-fantasy mix, good prose, and well-paced plotting.
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Reluctant Immortals by Gwendolyn Kiste (Runner-up, HM)
It’s 1967 in San Francisco and Lucy (from Dracula) and Bertha (from Jane Eyre) are the titular reluctant immortals trying to keep their tormentors from destroying more lives.
This seems like it could be an action-packed super-powered immortal battle, but instead it’s the mundanity of simply surviving as an undead being, escalating slowly into a horrifying body count. Obviously I had to read this after finishing the Dracula read-along. The tone is such a contrast! Where Dracula’s heroes struggle nobly against the darkness, this version is full of quiet desperation and bleakness more fitting as the successor to Jane Eyre. As the action ramps up in the last third, it plays out more like a contemporary horror film, including a strange liminal space in the afterlife and scenes of a modern mansion filled with the decay that the undead bring. The drug haze of California in the 60’s suffuses the story. I’m not entirely convinced this was a re-telling we needed, but I’m also not mad about it.
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Kaikeyi by Vaishnavi Patel (BIPOC author)
Kaikeyi is only briefly in the Hindu epic The Ramayana, but her “wicked stepmother” action sets the plot of it in motion. In this novel, she is given a voice and a backstory and a complex world she must navigate as a woman who wants more independence not only for herself, but for all the women of her country.
The relationship building in the latter half is one of the highlights of this book. It’s helped by some magic, but Kaikeyi puts in the work to build bonds of love and mutual respect in the royal household where she is youngest of three wives. Rama (her step-son) is the main character in the original epic (a god incarnated to vanquish evil forces), and so the reader is clued in early that disaster will befall the family because of a conflict between Kaikeyi and her husband and Rama; the threat of that tragedy seeps into even the happy parts of the story. Kaikeyi is a champion of early feminism in this telling, but she’s still human with plenty of flaws and struggles and imperfect vision. I found this book to be a bit of a slow build to connect with characters, but by the end I was absolutely tearing up. A powerful telling.
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Malice by Heather Walter (Shapeshifters, HM)
In this Sleeping Beauty re-telling (perhaps prequel), the villain is not yet the villain – though society certainly treats her as an outcast – and a forbidden love is blooming.
This is a coming of age story for an already young adult character. Alice wants to be accepted (and loved), proving she’s not the evil pariah society thinks she is, but she also wants to escape the role she’s forced into. The build-up of tension between her warring desires is well done. As she discovers her true powers (spoilers since I used it for the shapeshifting square!) she’s put even more at odds with the establishment, and yet her growing love for Princess Aurora gives her hope for a more idyllic outcome than the escape she’s trying to plan. This was another enjoyable but not necessarily a stand-out read for me. Excellent character work for the protagonist and a slower pacing, but never felt like it was dragging. I will definitely read book 2 since this one ends with a bang.
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Girl, Serpent, Thorn by Melissa Bashardoust (No Ifs, Ands, or Buts, HM)
This book mushes up elements from Sleeping Beauty, Rapunzel, Beauty and the Beast, and probably others, and spins a whole new story with Persian flair. A poisonous princess is kept hidden away, but when knowledge of her curse comes from a demon, her decisions will have far-reaching consequences for her whole family and the question of who to trust becomes thorny.
This was another one where the protagonist is striving to be a good person, caring for her family, and yet she understandably wants to escape her curse and is maybe willing to do some questionable things to make it happen. It’s hard to keep being good when, even though you are loved, you can’t touch anyone and have to live in a gilded cage. This story took a lot of twists and turns, including betrayals of all kinds. The romance elements were laced with emotional tension, but kept sexual feelings to a bare minimum. I felt this could have used a bit of plot streamlining, but I liked the Persian-inspired world, the overall arc of the story, and I felt it wrapped up well for a complex stand-alone.
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For the Wolf by Hannah Whitten (Family Matters)
I thought this would be primarily Little Red Riding Hood, but it’s got a huge helping of Beauty and the Beast and a dose of fairy tale sisters tropes as well. Red is the sister that will be sacrificed to the Wolf in the Wilderwood in hopes of the gods’ return. Turns out, that whole Wolf and Wilderwood thing is really complicated.
This has a lot of elements that I tend to look favorably on – a broody love interest, a magical forest, sibling bonds – but it didn’t quite pull together for me in this book. Both characters in the romance got good development and their choices did make sense for who they were, but it was a very frustrating one to read and caused a lot of drag in the middle. The sibling relationship was much better and the sister who gets to become queen has a wonderfully tragic arc in the name of saving her lost sister. The forest itself and the religion/magic that goes with it don’t get a ton of satisfying explanation, but that’s partly due to everyone actually struggling to figure out how it works. It gets an A+ for creepy atmosphere, though! Imagery from Grimm’s more grim tales abounds and I appreciated the slight edge of horror that creeps in. Not super likely to pick up book 2.
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I’ve done a terrible job being concise here, so I’ll try to do a really quick run-down on the short stories. I just listed the first collection on my official bingo turn-in to make it easy, but I like being able to fill in all the slots in my spreadsheet, so there are five things here. Hopefully someone has made it this far down – if so, thank you for reading!
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The Bloody Chamber & Other Stories by Angela Carter (collection)
The titular story is one of the better ones – a re-telling of Bluebeard. Covering the classics of western European fairy tales, this collection features a lot of liberated sex with a 70s feminist lean (publication date: 1979). Girls and beasts are the big theme. There were a few excellent ones and several that left me going “but why?”
The Bride of the Blue Wind by Victoria Goddard
Closer to a novelette, but that gave this story room to get some solid world-building in. Bluebeard again, but with Bluebeard being a djinn sort of character. I loved the trader communities and desert setting and the family dynamic with the wife’s sisters.
Tales of Old Gods & New by Kate MacLeod (collection)
This collection had two specific re-tellings: another “Norse gods in the far future” re-telling which was also a sci-fi survival story, and an African inspired goddess trying to escape the cycle of her story. These were two solid ones, some of the other in the collection I felt were unfinished scribbling thoughts for novel-sized stories.
Hunting Monsters series by S.L. Huang (2 short stories, one novella)
This collection mashed up eastern and western settings and stories, including Red Riding Hood, Beauty & the Beast, the Legend of the White Snake, and Hou Yi the Archer. The main characters of the novella are middle-aged women long past the prime in which their original stories took place and I liked that take a lot. The short stories focus on a daughter and deal with culture clashes and parent-child tensions.
A Cathedral of Myth & Bone by Kat Howard (collection)
The feature in this collection is a novelette of the King Arthur story set on a college campus with grad students who are themselves studying the mythos of King Arthur. Most of the other stories in the collection take inspiration from saints’ lives or myth and folk tale tropes (or the concept of storytelling itself) and play with them in new settings. I found a lot more hits than misses in this collection.

I've been rocking some $90 amazon "gaming chair" for many years now. Think DX Racer, but cheaper, and about 30% smaller. Considering I'm 6'1 and weight around 280lbs I think it'd kind of a miracle it's still in one piece, but it's dreadfully uncomfortable and I want to replace it. I've seen a handful of options thrown around, so I'll list some, talk about my reservations on them and see what you guys thinks.
Ikea Markus: Seems like a classic pick, but I don't like that style off armrest and it seems to have a somewhat low weight limit for me. Also just doesn't seem like a lot of chair for getting right up close to the $300 limit.
Staples Hyken/Dexley: At this point I'm honestly not sure what to think of these. Some places I see these recommended as the go-to budget office chairs, some places I see people say they'd rather sit on a barstool all day. Since I'm not sure how much I'd like a mesh seat it makes me a little more hesitant.
Clatina Mellet: At first I thought for sure this is what I'd go with, then I started seeing more reviews of people saying the housing around the cylinder would break and leave the cylinder pushing against the floor. Being on the heavier side, I fear that fate for this chair. Also saw some people say it's no good for people above about 5'10
Ticova Ergo Chair: I'm leaning most towards this one now, I just haven't found much on how it fits tallelarger people. I'm also confused because most places link this Amazon page which has more reviews, but it's more expensive by quite a lot vs the one I linked earlier. Only difference I notice is the cheaper one is shipped by Amazon, is there anything I'm missing?
Sidiz T50: Editing to add this because it looks nice, a bit on the expensive side but if you guys think this is clearly a couple steps ahead of anything else here I could go for it
Of course if you have other suggestions I'm open to hear them. And yes I've looked for used Steelcase or HM chairs, I live in somewhat rural Indiana I cannot find any.

Stella is in basically every single Angry Birds piece of media these days, and I don't like it. Maybe it's because she was garbage in Seasons and Classic, and got top billing in the first movie despite her extremely minor role, but she was always one of my least favorite birds. Obviously she's behind the main trio of Red, Chuck, and Bomb, but she gets more exposure than poor Bubbles and Hal, who are barely in anything these days, and surprisingly even the Blues have gone the way of Hal and Bubbles. I'd argue Stella has even surpassed Matilda and Terrence. Silver is also in Dream Blast and Journey, but she has the excuse of being new, so why does Stella get all of this love too in addition to being in the Summer Madness Netflix show?

Here is where all things ‘the record’ can be discussed! Please no flooding with posts that can just be discussed under this thread!
Release date: March 31, 2023
Length: 42:13
Track list:
1.Without You Without Them
2.$20
3.Emily I’m Sorry
4.True Blue
5.Cool About It
6.Not Strong Enough
7.Revolution 0
8.Leonard Cohen
9.Satanist
10.We’re in Love
11.Anti-Curse
12.Letter to an Old Poet

These shrooms were fairly potent. I think they were apes, but whatever they were they were blue all over. the first "half" of the trip was fairly standard and the second part was very weird and I havent heard anyone else ever talk about things like this.
I took 5.4 grams with some oat meal and waited for them to kick in. It took a fair bit for them to kick in, and they didn't come on strong at first at all. minor visuals, then a purple light came into my peripherals, And I felt and saw a wave of more intense visuals and body high propagate out in a wave. I saw veins pulsate across my ceiling, and laid on my bed watching this unfold for about half an hour.
I saw another purple light appear in my vison, and a second wave of intensity hit me. I saw the ceiling shift around and drop to a blurry 5 frames a second. This is on top of all the normal visuals you might get. Then, a close buddy of mine stops by and we have a fire.
when I walked out on to the street, the road had an overlay of repeating bands of words that just said "I know you" over and over. the whole road was covered in these things. we get to the fire pit and once the fire is going the coals and flames look like structures and hands reaching out. then I look out across the grass and see the more bands of random numbers and letters. I couldn't read anything from them. We talk and laugh for a while and then I look to the grass again. this time instead of a dim overlay, the grass blades contorted to make randomly scattered numbers and letters. My friend walks me back to my door and he points to the night sky, the moment I look, the ground drops away and I am left floating in space for just a few seconds before I look back at my buddy. It takes me a moment to realize that I am back on earth, I was super confused for a little.
once my buddy leaves, I lay on the couch for a little and wait out the come down. nothing interesting happens.
then, when I go to bed, my head is just filled with all these buzzings, wubba wubba wubbas, beeping and wavy noises, its blaring in my head. It occurred to me that I was listening to my own brain waves. then, A hissing/oil frying noise drowned out the rest, and then stopped. my subconscious brain waves boiled away and I heard it happen. I tried to go to sleep but awoke with a deep pain in my chest, once I breathed in it stopped. I did this a few times before I realized my automatic breathing turned off. It was manual or nothing to the point where I almost passed out because I forgot to breathe. I could feel the air all the way into my lungs.
my head was completlet quiet. no talking in my head, no noises, no thoughts. pure existance. another interesting thing was that I still had visuals, but no "magic effect" to them. My arm hairs looked different and my face and hands were warping. I looked in the mirror and my face and me de-synced for just a moment.
then I went out to start another fire in the pit. It was the dead of night and the fire was the only thing in my mind soundwise. never felt so clear in my whole life.
that's basically all. I have heard many stories about the magic visuals. but I have never experienced or heard about a trip basically getting rid of the subconscious, all the way down to the breathing level. I have also never heard about the weird second stage non magical visuals. curious to see If anyone else has experienced something like this. this is not my first trip but by far this was the most ive ever taken.

The president of the community council, Ann Bruno, opened the meeting with what seems to be her usual rituals. She asked us all to stand and say the Pledge of Allegiance, said it was nice to see people in person and not in Zoom windows, and said Deputy Inspector Kenneth Gorman (commander of the 114th precinct) was “the best.” Last time she opened the meeting in almost exactly the same way. Next up was the recognition of the “Cops of the Month” (yes, this is really the title of the award) for February: two partners who got the award, not for any one incident, but for a “plethora” of “police work” (Gorman’s words, which I think means nobody did anything exceptionally heroic this month).
Gorman gave his rundown of crime: crime is down 6% overall, according to him, and down in every crime category, except rape (up by 1 rape) and grand larcenies (up by 8). He said the grand larcenies were mostly scams (same as last month).
And….that was it! Almost. Gorman apparently asked if there were questions at this point, but people either didn’t hear or assumed that Gorman was only asking for questions about the grand larcenies, because no one raised their hand. Ann Bruno was about to wrap up the meeting when u/Miser realized what was going on and immediately jumped up with a question. Gorman trudged back to the podium after he’d believed he was home free.
u/Miser asked what Gorman thought the 114th Precinct had done over the past month to be a better “Vision Zero” partner. Gorman appeared unsure of what u/Miser meant. u/Miser sought to clarify that Gorman knew what he meant by “Vision Zero partner”, and Gorman said he absolutely did. u/Miser then rephrased and asked what specific things the precinct had done in the last month to keep pedestrians and others on the street safe. Gorman said that overall traffic injuries were down since last month by ten incidents, but that there was a slight increase in pedestrian injuries specifically. He also talked about enforcement and said that in the last month, the precinct had issued 450 parking summonses, almost 600 moving violations, and done an “operation” on illegal parking on 21st St yielding 50 parking tickets issued to commercial vehicles.
Once u/Miser asked that question, several other people took the ball and ran with it. The conversation was almost entirely dominated with pro-pedestrian safe-streets advocates. Some highlights:
· A woman in a blue shirt asked where she could report it if there was a particular intersection where drivers were constantly running red lights/stop signs, and asked for specific email addresses/portals. An officer provided an email address to report intersections: [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]).
· A man in a burgundy shirt said he feels safe in Astoria except when crossing the street. He has 2 kids and almost gets hit once a week. He said focusing on specific hot spot intersections wasn’t enough and we had to change overall attitudes of drivers, perhaps through more enforcement. Gorman gave his usual spiel about how cops can’t be everywhere.
· u/Miser said that the whole point of deterrence was so that cops didn’t *have* to be everywhere, because drivers would fear consequences if they drove dangerously. Gorman had a pretty good rhetorical jiu-jitsu at this point: he said, correctly, that it wasn’t his job to instill fear. He also pointed to the number of summonses issued as proof of enforcement. u/Miser said he understood that but deterrence was part of the job, and it seemed obvious that drivers in Astoria feel they can drive as fast as they want, run red lights, and park wherever they want, with no consequences.
· A woman in a leather jacket spoke up to say she almost got killed recently while crossing the street with her dog. She asked the NYPD to point out problem intersections so we could all email DOT to ask for improvements. Gorman agreed, said we could start at the intersection of Hoyt and 31st, and said he would provide numbers.
· An elderly man, who later was revealed to be the president of the Italian-American Federation, declared that pedestrian injuries aren’t always the driver’s fault, because the other day a young kid jumped right in front of his car, and the kid’s mom just laughed. He said all this in THE most classic New York Italian-American accent—it was the best thing about his comment.
· A man in a Tommy Hilfiger jacket noted that he could find crime statistics online through the NYPD website, but moving violations seemed to disappear from month to month. He asked if there was a place he could look for previous months’ violations. He also noted that a large percentage of all the moving violations in February were for tinted windows, and asked why that was a priority. Gorman said he would have to “look into” providing this “historical” data. Gorman also claimed that the tinted windows were a pedestrian safety issue as well as an officer safety issue: he said it’s hard for the driver to see out of tinted windows and therefore won’t see pedestrians. Hilfiger also asked further pointed questions about data.
· A man in a gray jacket said he was a stay-at-home dad, echoed the concerns of Burgundy Shirt, and said the Hoyt/31st intersection was especially dangerous. He said he sees cars running the light there once a day, not just once a week. He asked the precinct to instill respect, if not fear, with enforcement, because this is a serious danger to kids. Gorman said he put officers near that intersection and could get a speed camera but only through DOT, and NYPD could ask for that, but so could citizens.
· A woman asked about enforcing the busway on 21st St. Gorman essentially blamed the redesign of 21st St because it took away a lane and added a busway. He claimed this increased traffic and was bad for cars and (somehow) for pedestrians (it’s not, I cross that street every day and the redesign makes it infinitely better).
· Finally, an elderly man asked where he could look up how many pedestrians got summonses for jaywalking. I think he thought this was a stinging rebuttal to everything everyone else had said.
Unlike last month, the tone of almost all the comments was pro-safe streets. Already, the collective advocacy and voice of everyone involved is having an impact on the culture of these meetings.

This cool, single Dad is divorced since 2019, and separated since 2013. I've dated and had several long-ish relationships with some fascinating, beautiful and exciting women. (And some space cadets). Lately, there hasn't been much good luck, but I keep pressing forward and do manage to keep getting dates here and there. I say this to establish that I'm on Reddit to find a LTR, as it nearly happened twice from from someone I met here! I am also realistic and experienced enough in Reddit-land to know that this is homebase for anime, Cosplay, gore, dubstep, gaming and a menagerie of TikTokers, Snapchatters and Instagrammers........and I get involved with exactly ZERO of those things.
One of my favorite hobbies is collecting seaglass. I am a pretty good cook, crazy good cleaner, organizer, baker, and laundry folder. "That's what she said" is a line I love, and employ frequently. (Along with ridiculous Empathic, supportive, mostly positive on love yet pessimistic on the world and people, (that's the Aquarius in me!),charming, witty, intellectually curious, funny and a conversation starter as well as good listener. I keep a journal and love good grammar and cool vocabulary words.
My college degree stands out in my blue-collar job, and I avidly follow politics and Yankee baseball. My film loves veer towards documentaries, thinking dramas and dark stuff, with my favorite movie of all time being "Silence Of The Lambs." On the flip side, I adore goofy classics like "Caddyshack," and "Anchorman."
I'm an avid reader, 70's/90's music fan, and a dedicated Father who grew up Catholic but rarely attends church anymore.
Hoping we may have a stimulating chat. Reach out!
https://imgur.io/cIcfrl4

• 1 word title, starts with "M".
• Grey letters, all uppercase.
• Navy blue plain cardboard sleeve/box.
• No other printing on external surfaces.
• Approx 2 x 7 x 12 cm when not in use.
• Plastic bottom of package slides out of cardboard sleeve; doubled as a platform to attach pieces.

Contents include:

• H pieces, blue. 1 x 2 cm
• H pieces, grey.
• Axle, round, white. 0.5 x 2 cm
• Axle, square, white.
• Wheels, red tread with white hub. d1.5 cm
• Fold out leaflet with example builds. No English. Probably German.
• Putting pieces back into box required care to get them all to fit.

Purchased at Rideau Centre, Ottawa, Canada circa 1985. Have not seen this toy before or since.

Little back story, a few weeks ago my dad send me an email with a link to the Proclaimers book. The section was Advertise the King and the Kingdom! (1919-1941). We had talked about Beth Sarim a few days before and he admitted he never heard of it. Apparently he was doing research and found it. He asked me to confirm this was the home I was talking about. I did confirm in the letter below and added some information. I want to know if I put too much information, should I cut some out, add some and I want to make sure the information provided is 100% accurate. Sorry for the long read:
Dad,
Sorry for the delay in my reply, I finally had a chance to sit down and research this which I haven’t done in several years. Yes, that is the home I was talking about. I have attached some photos I took of the home when I was in San Diego last year. I had to see it for myself. I must say it’s a beautiful home and a very nice area of San Diego, Rutherford does have good taste.
I am very familiar with this part of the Proclaimers book you sent me. In fact, it was these few pages that made me aware of Beth Sarim as well as many other things. I found it interesting that Rutherford thought it was a good idea to build a mansion in southern California in 1929. Think of what some of the witnesses must have been going through during this same time. The great depression was starting, nearly 25% of the work force in the US lost their jobs. People that had jobs were making up to 50% less than they were the year before. Still, Rutherford moved forward with his mansion. This was all just 10 years we are to believe that Jesus hand picked this organization. Think about what would happen today if a religious leader builds a mansion while the nation went into a depression like the one in 1929, there would be an uproar. I wanted more information on this Rutherford project and fortunately the Proclaimers book provided clues on where to find it. The deed, which was published in the March 19, 1930, Golden Age had some additional information. Also, the book Salvation produced by Rutherford in 1932 had some information as well.
To understand why Rutherford wanted to build this home you have to go back a few years to the beginning of 1918. He was delivering a talk called "The World Has Ended-Millions Now Living May Never
Die.” He became more confident in his prophecy because a month later he gave a talk called "The World Has Ended-Millions Now Living Will Never Die." Shortly after in 1920 the book “Millions Now Living Will Never Die” was released. In 1921 the book “The Harp of God-Proof Conclusive that Millions Now Living Will Never Die” was released. I have both books and read much of them. More information about Rutherford’s 1925 prophecy can be found in the book “The Way to Paradise” published in 1925. The following quotes are from these two books.
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• "What, then, should we expect to take place? The chief thing to be restored is the human race to life; and since other Scriptures definitely fix the fact that there will be a resurrection of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and other faithful ones of old, and that these will have the first favour, we may expect 1925 to witness the return of these faithful men of Israel from the condition of death , being resurrected and fully restored to perfect humanity and made the visible, legal representatives of the new order of things on earth." Millions Now Living Will Never Die! p.88

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• "As we have heretofore stated, the great jubilee cycle is due to begin in 1925. At that time, the earthly phase of the kingdom shall be recognized." Millions Now Living Will Never Die! p.89

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• "Hence these faithful men may be expected on earth within the next few years." The Harp of God p.340

Even though the Rutherford’s prophecy failed, he still believed that the ancient worthies mentioned in Hebrews 11. He had their names included in the deed of the home which can be seen in the March 19,1930 I mentioned above. Here is a portion of this deed:
Both the grantor and the grantee, the said JOSEPH F. RUTHERFORD are fully persuaded from the Bible testimony, which is the Word of Jehovah God, and from extraneous evidence that God's kingdom is now in course of establishment and that it will result beneficially to the peoples of earth; that the governing power and authority will be invisible to men but that kingdom of God will have visible representatives on the earth who will have charge of the affairs of the nations under the supervision of the invisible ruler Christ; that among those who will thus be the faithful representatives and visible governors of the world will be David, who was once king over Israel; and Gideon, and Barak, and Samson, and Jephthae, and Joseph, formerly the ruler of Egypt, and Samuel the prophet and other faithful men who were named with approval in the Bible at Hebrews the eleventh chapter.
I can provide the entire deed if you care to read it. The reason Beth Sarim was built was because he felt that the ancient worthies were soon going to be resurrected even though his 1925 prophecy failed. He also lost a lung because he caught pneumonia while he was in prison and a doctor told him he needed to spend winters in San Diego. Evidently the Brooklyn Bethel home was not heated back then.
After researching all this (and many other things) I had to ask myself, is all of this something I would expect from an organization that was hand picked by Jesus just 10 years before? Or is this the behavior of an organization with human leaders much the same that we find among many religions from the past and today?