I am so disturbed by the insulation situation in our just-purchased 1950s home (in Northern California). Nothing in the walls, but the attic has heaps (and is reminiscent of a trash heap). https://imgur.com/a/12ZJx4x
I've seen so many proud posts by people who have just blown in new insulation and it's done wonders for their energy efficiency. But every time I look in the attic, my gut reaction is "I ***HATE*** loose insulation!" It looks like new stuff was blown in recently*, but it's just a giant mess, and I don't know what lies beneath. I see evidence of chaos -- broken boards, chunks of metal, nails, wires, etc., layers of the previous insulation (yellow and pink fiberglass? and loose cellulose?) .
I need to figure out the locations and state of the water and gas lines, electrical, and ducts (planning on some upgrades), but I'm afraid to sift through the mess. When we purchased the house, our inspector said the attic looked good and there were no signs of any infestations, but how on earth could he tell?! There could be a sea of rat traps under that fluff!
Is this normal? Does it seem wasteful or foolish to completely clean out the attic, even though there appears to be no signs of mold/infestations?
(modified x-post from my original in r/Remodel)
*I have since learned the top layer of insulation is 10 years old, so not as new as I thought.
https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/comments/pc49ru/wp_please_hold_the_villains_secretary_sets_the/hahhw0f/
"No. Please don't look at the camera. Look at me please."
Logan coughed. After taking a second to compose himself, he looked back at the interviewer. "Why did I pick him? I'm not sure. It just... I don't know. You know we know a lot about our resident super hero. But we never knew anything about him. And when I see him on TV, he's always angry. I just... I want to ask him why he is bad."
"And you think he'll show up."
"I don't know. Maybe he does. Maybe he doesn't. But like, I'm dying anyways. If I can talk to him, make him see that we're not all bad. Ask him what he really wants, maybe I can change. You know, that way, everyone in the city will remember me." Logan wiped away a tear. "I mean, I'm an orphan. I have no one who will cry for me if... when I die, maybe this way people will remember me. Can I have a minute please."
Logan turned his head away, trying to hide the tears.
"Take your time, Logan. No worries." The interviewer signaled the cameraman to keep rolling. This was good stuff. Oh, this could be a career maker for him.
The interviewer then went a bit into Logan's history. How he had never seen his parents and had been left on the orphanage steps. How he had been diagnosed with a rare form of cancer with no treatment. He had about a month left.
The interviewer was in the process of asking Logan another question when they were abruptly cut off by screams coming from outside. Jackson Wriker, the interviewer, looked at his cameraman. He was here. Holy shit, he was here. Jackson could almost smell an Emmy. All he had to do was stay with them.
Matterman was an imposing figure, standing over 6 ft and wearing a black costume. He looked at the boy and at the 2 man crew with him.
"You Logan?"
"Matterman. You came." Logan got up, from his bed, stumbling a little.
Matterman moved forward swiftly, breaking the kid's fall. "You Ok?"
"Yeah, sorry. I'm weak and dizzy. I need to sit. I'm sorry about that."
"Nonsense. Don't be sorry. Sit." Matterman looked at Jackson and his cameraman. "You two. Scram. Out of here, now."
Jackson presented his press pass. "I'm a journalist. I came here to interview Logan and his unusual request. We just want to..."
"Out." Matterman thundered.
Jackson and his cameraman exited swiftly but hung around. The cameraman kept the camera rolling as Matterman helped the boy back to bed.
They talk
... keep reading on reddit ➡In my urban fantasy there exists many haunting figures in the world. One of them exists as a collective pantheon known as the consternation. Any suggestions or questions are appreciated.
In life many witches grow to be powerful. This is true for those who have gained monikers in light of those achievements such as a witch who conjures life is called the witch of growth. When female witches get pregnant they gain an increase of power due to growing another witch inside of them. For those who have become very powerful on top of the motherhood boost leaves them in danger of being pulled into the consternation.
The consternation is a group of witch mothers that transcended the mortal plane and became apart of a hive of witches. While it sounds nice in truth is is a horror of tragic proportions. The consternation forces powerful witch mothers to leave behind their lives and children to add to its collective power. This works by either luring a mother to them willingly or forcing them by threatening their children. At the head of this hive exists the mothers three who started it called the crones. These 3 women gathered a coven of people who reached a similar state and upon death became able to affect the mortal world as a pantheon like figure. They used this hold to create cults around the world that worship them. They use these cults to pull in people for various use such as sacrifice or using their bodies as vessels for the 3 crones.
Currently the crones use this power to achieve immortality possessing the bodies of young witches while the others in the collective grow their power through spreading themselves as a myth. Some covens worship them with varying levels of belief in them. Many places are under their watchful eye allowing them to see who speaks of them. Similar to Bloody Mary they can be summoned using a ritual of their name. This is specifically for summoning a specific mother not the entire consternation.
When a mother joins them They exist on a dream like plane lacking bodies and watching the world as an otherworldly presence. Apart of joining them is casting out your flesh body to join this collective. This lets them exist as figures to be summoned and be immune to limits such as conventional death. While it is possible to restore ones body and escape nobody has achieved it
My main character (also a witch) is a young boy who’s mother was forced to join in order to protect him. Her power was so strong she could control fate by weaving string
... keep reading on reddit ➡
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Any religion that denies a woman’s right to an abortion is fucking stupid
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Any religion that encourages a woman to cover her head because men might get aroused is fucking stupid
Mostly because it seems to be so prevalent in the non-aro families. I just don't care for that spicy character. I was reminded again today when I accidentally grabbed some Luxury Navy Flake instead of Luxury Twist Flake. Bah.
I'm just beginning my exploration of English blends, and it seems the field has been reduced by half. Do I need to watch out for oriental varieties too? At this point I'm tempted to just buy some Latakia and experiment with blending it with something neutral until I find a combination I like.
I looked up to Eva, breaking my focus from the board I was soldering some wires onto.
“I think I misheard you. Make-A-Wish?” I picked at my ear with my free hand as I put the solder down with the other.
“Yeah, you heard right. They said he’s a big fan,” she answered.
“Obviously he’s a big fan,” I chuckled, presenting the massive army of droids behind me. “I’m just wondering how they got our contact.”
“I believe you left your business card at one of the charity dinners, with a note on the back reading I will soon rule you all, but Make-A-Wish will be able to still operate normally while the rest of the world is under my tyrannical rule,” Eva answered.
“That does sound like me… but I don’t remember that. Why was I at their charity dinner?” I spun around in my chair.
“You thought it would be a good time to declare yourself ruler of the world in the form of droids delivering the message, but they malfunctioned and instead delivered a comedy special,” she reminded me. “It was hilarious.”
“I don’t remember them being very funny.”
“I meant your humiliation.”
“Ah…” I nodded. “Hey, wait a mi—”
“They asked whether you would be available next Friday to give him a tour of your facility,” she asked, tapping the phone.
“Hmm…” I skimmed the calendar on my wall, which was and always had been empty. “I suppose I could fit him in.”
“Great, because I already agreed to it. Next Friday should give you time to clean up.”
“Clean up?” I asked, looking at the solder as it continued to heat up while it was still plugged in, followed by the wires wheezing occasional sparks from the ceiling, the unfinished gold statue of myself with a plaque engraved ‘EvilBoiSeeYaL8rBoi,’ and the bots on the far side of the lab that constantly malfunctioned and threw desks on the floor whenever they deemed it necessary. “I don’t see what needs to be cleaned.”
“Of course, sir,” Eva sighed.
“Plus, if he’s going to die soon, it’s not like I have to worry about too many people hearing about the state of my lab,” I added.
“You’re always thinking three steps ahead sir,” she replied.
I turned back to my workstation and saw that my soldering iron had fallen off its stand and fused the entire motherboard I was working on together, giving off a ghastly metallic smell. I wondered if the boy knew anything about soldering.
“Does the boy have a name?” I asked.
“Leon,” she replied.
“And did they mention what Leon was a fan of, specifically?” I asked, trying to mask my interest as I
... keep reading on reddit ➡I am so disturbed by the insulation situation in our just-purchased 1950s home. Nothing in the walls, but the attic has heaps (and is reminiscent of a trash heap).
I've seen so many proud posts by people who have just blown in new insulation and it's done wonders for their energy efficiency. But every time I look in the attic, my gut reaction is "I ***HATE*** loose insulation!" It looks like new stuff was blown in recently, but it's just a giant mess, and I don't know what lies beneath. I see evidence of chaos -- broken boards, chunks of metal, nails, wires, etc., layers of the previous insulation (yellow and pink fiberglass? and loose cellulose?) .
I need to figure out the locations and state of the water and gas lines, electrical, and ducts (planning on some upgrades), but I'm afraid to sift through the mess. When we purchased the house, our inspector said the attic looked good and there were no signs of any infestations, but how on earth could he tell?! There could be a sea of rat traps under that fluff!
Is this normal? Does it seem wasteful or foolish to completely clean out the attic, even though there appears to be newer insulation and no obvious signs of mold/infestations?
In my urban fantasy there exists a collective pseudo pantheon known as the consternation.
In life many witches grow to be powerful. This is true for those who have gained monikers in light of those achievements such as a witch who conjures life is called the witch of growth. When female witches get pregnant they gain an increase of power due to growing another witch inside of them. For those who have become very powerful on top of the motherhood boost leaves them in danger of being pulled into the consternation.
The consternation is a group of witch mothers that transcended the mortal plane and became apart of a hive of witches. While it sounds nice in truth is is a horror of tragic proportions. The consternation forces powerful witch mothers to leave behind their lives and children to add to its collective power. This works by either luring a mother to them willingly or forcing them by threatening their children. At the head of this hive exists the mothers three who started it called the crones. These 3 women gathered a coven of people who reached a similar state and upon death became able to affect the mortal world as a pantheon like figure.
Currently the crones use this power to achieve immortality possessing the bodies of young witches while the others in the collective grow their power through spreading themselves as a myth. Some covens worship them with varying levels of belief in them. Many places are under their watchful eye allowing them to see who speaks of them. Similar to Bloody Mary they can be summoned using a ritual of their name. This is specifically for summoning a specific mother not the entire consternation.
When a mother joins them They exist on a dream like plane lacking bodies and watching the world as an otherworldly presence. Apart of joining them is casting out your flesh body to join this collective. This lets them exist as figures to be summoned and be immune to limits such as conventional death. While it is possible to restore ones body and escape nobody has achieved it
My main character (also a witch) is a young boy who’s mother was forced to join in order to protect him. Her power was so strong she could control fate by weaving strings of magic. This earned her the title mother of threads. To the consternation’s dismay much of their power is currently spent keeping this single woman from destroying them from The inside out. They take in members slowly now as even a second spent not entrapping the mother of threads gives
... keep reading on reddit ➡