Hi everyone! I have been researching weigh loss medications for about 3 months now and based on my insurance coverage, and cost, Contrave is the medication I've decided to go with.
A little bit about me: I'm 30 years old, 5'2, female, and my starting weight as of this morning is 225. I have PCOS, Hypothyroid, Hashimotos, and other auto inflammatory issues. The highest I've ever weighed was 240. I lost 40 lbs. during the first half of the pandemic and then gained about 38lbs back. I started CICO about a 2 months ago and have lost about 12lbs. Right now I cannot seem to move the scale past 222lbs and have been fluctuating between 222 and 225 for the last few weeks.
Why weight loss meds: I need the food noise to go away. I need to live life without constantly thinking about what I'm going (or won't) eat next. My first choice would have been WeGovy because a lot of people say the food noise dies with it but my insurance doesn't cover it and I can't justify spending $1.1k a month. I have read people say the same thing about Contrave so I am hoping this helps. I also am just excited to have that extra push. I know that for people who have never experienced obesity or feeling out of control when it comes to eating food will never understand this.
I even hear from some of my thin friends that eating and exercising should be enough. I'm keeping this a secret and not telling anyone because I don't have time or the willpower to explain to them what it's like to carry an extra 100 pounds and to work so hard and see little come off. I know that I can lose the weight with CICO alone. For me though, it's just so slow. I don't want to wait 3 years before I'm at my goal weight. I'm ready for my life to change for the better...today. Its frustrating when I hear people irl and on tiktok talk about how wegovy, contrave, ozempic, are all cheating. Why is it that we allow cheat codes FOR EVERY OTHER ASPECT OF LIFE, except losing weight. Don't want to walk 1.5 miles to your supermarket? Cheat code: get in your car, bus, taxi, etc. Don't want to vacuum your own floors? Cheat code: Pay someone to clean your house for you. The examples go on and on. I'm ranting now, but I hope you get the point.
How I'm mitigating side effects: I was supposed to start this morning but my delivery got delayed. It is in the Amazon fulfilment center that is near where I live and I am hoping it gets delivered tonight for me to start tomorrow. While I am adjusting to the medication I am going to be mindful of 2 things - My water and my caffeine intake. I have heard anecdotally from others that the reason why headaches are so bad on Contrave is because people no longer crave the coffee they normally drink but their bodies are still used that that amount of caffeine and it's a withdrawal from that. I am planning on upping my water intake and sticking to the same amount of caffeine I drink. Luckily, I don't drink too much coffee, most of the time it's one or two espresso shots in a day. One at 10am and one at 2pm after lunch. I'm also going to be more diligent tracking my food and when I eat to see if any of that plays a part with the side effects.
Diet: I'm happy that I've sort of conditioned myself to stay within the 1500 calorie range the last few weeks because I've already noticed that I am unable to eat the amount of food I was consuming before. I eat pretty much the same thing for breakfast and lunch everyday to keep my life simple. I am also going to go on a alcohol cleanse. I don't drink that often and its usually within a social setting but I really want to see how my life is without alcohol. I also read that eating fatty foods is a no-go with Contrave so I will be eliminating those from my diet, as well.
Goal: I am not naïve to think I'm going to wake up in my dream body on Sunday morning. This is going to take work and dedication. My goal would be to lose 30 lbs in the next 12 weeks which is about 2.5 lbs a week. I know the scale isn't going to look exactly like that every week, but that's what I'm hoping to average. After I hit that first goal, I will focus on the next. Ultimately I would be happy in the 120-125 range which is about 100 lbs total lost.
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I will be posting here with my updates regularly and hope I can find a community of people on the same journey who'll keep me accountable.
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Me and my ex had broken up a couple of times in our 9 months together. I was always caring and loving, but we did have bouts of arguing and disagreements which eventually drained her and she called it quits. She lost her son 3 years ago and had been getting counselling lately, suffers from depression, autistic and doesn’t like to go out much because of it.
When she broke up I pushed a bit questioning why as she was so into me a few days before. It got to the point we sent a few long messages back snd forth but could tell she was getting annoyed so I dropped it and apologised.
She replied back but I decided not to. The following morning she sends me this: “Right no! Absolutely not! Why the fuck are you messaging my mum! Fuck off! Leave me alone. I don’t want you anywhere near me! How fucking dare you message my mum and show her conversations of us! Your a fucking psychopath! Keys gone in the bin! Now! Now I don’t want anything to do with you!!”.
Her mother had been helping me understand how she works in difficult times (as my ex didn’t speak much about it) and I’d brought up a conversation of when she was excited for a holiday and house and told her I was confused why she wanted to break it off. Her mother was supportive but I realised I crossed a boundary here.
My ex found out as I forgot I asked her mother to chase up my spare key and then I’d already asked my ex after.
Two hours after she sent that message, she saw me typing then blocked me on whatsapp.
I’ve attempted to apologise on instagram last week but she left it unread, so this week I posted a letter apologising it was wrong for me to cross that boundary, wishing her luck in future.
Our relationship had it’s problems and I was responsible for not being as fun towards the end hence the breakup, but I absolutely hate she sees me as a sociopath now. Was this just her lashing out and do you think one day she could forgive me?
(I planned to message her mother again to see if she got my apology letter, but realised this would go against what I was apologising for. I know the letter got there, but obviously don’t know if she read it or not)
TL;DR - Ex who has previous trauma broke up as I stopped being my fun self and had another disagreement. I reacted to the breakup poorly by wondering why, pleading a bit, etc as I was confused by it. Ex finds out I spoke to her mother about the breakup (who had been supportive of me) and ex has now blocked me on whatsapp. She left my Instagram apology unread so I had sent a letter apologising. I’ve not done anything further than this, am I genuinely a sociopath or was she lashing out?

I'm a contract worker in my company, I actually like the industry and want to be permanent so I applied for an internal job in another city. I know the industry at this point like the back of my hand and I'm good at what I do. My company is super corporate so puts a huge emphasis on cultural fit and ability to be personable. By nature I struggle socially but I've done a lot of work over the years on my social skills and I do pretty well, I think the fact that I do well at something that didn't come naturally to me at first is a good thing.
So I apply for this job and they ask me to do a pymetrics test like an hour after I apply. I did the pymetrics test this morning, but I wish I just refused to do it. I can't believe how ridiculous the experience was.
I think I'll probably be filtered out by AI, based on one or two 5 minute games. Without having spoken to a human, even though they can see on my resume that I already work here. I scored pretty low in ability to learn, which I think is inaccurate, and apparently I basically can't gauge emotion based on someone's face. I don't think I'm going to be in with a chance based on this test, even though I have been told consistently that I am excellent at my job, hit the ground running in every situation and adapt like a duck to water to nearly everything that gets thrown at me.
This is so dehumanizing.

He can’t support me because he’s almost always in some kind of episode of his own. Over the years he’s been diagnosed with complex PTSD, dissociative identity disorder, major depressive disorder, and now autism spectrum disorder. We grew so much in couples counseling for 3 years until our therapist retired. I’m exhausted thinking about starting up with a new one, but I’ll probably do it anyway. I dedicate so much time and energy to him and his therapy (right now I’m driving him an hour away to do intensive ketamine sessions at his therapist’s house every Saturday) meanwhile I’m white knuckling through my own episodes and doing nearly all the household work because he can’t. We might have to rehome one of our dogs because he can’t deal with her constant high-pitched barking. I woke up today feeling so sad and hopeless, nevermind neglected. We haven’t had sex in months, and it was barely monthly before that for years. I’m only 41 and I have no social life since we moved to a new state. I had to give up my one close friend here because my hyper sexuality was making me think I was in love with him. I’ll be financially ruined if we split, and I’m honestly concerned he might kill himself. I just don’t know what to do anymore. 😭

Hello!
My cat had a surgery on the 6th of June to remove an object from his intestine that was causing blockage
My cat is usually active and playful and seeks my attention to play, however he has not tried to initiate play yet
I know he had surgery 3 days ago but I was doing some research and I found that cats return to their normal activity within 24 hours
He is eating, he is using the litter box, he is sleeping and he purrs when he's feeling cuddly. But his lack of activity and playfulness got me worried
He has a cone on which took him a lot of time to adjust to, and he HATES the thing, so I'm not sure if it's also making him anxious and unable to play (he has to keep it on for 10 days to 2 weeks)
He is taking 3 meds, one is protection for the stomach (for 2 weeks) and matronidazole and an antibiotic (for 10 days)
I don't want him to grow bored or worse, depressed ):
This is the first time I take care of a cat after a surgery (not counting neutering) so I have no idea what is normal and what is not
So please tell me if I'm overthinking or if this normal, and what else should I be expecting in the near future?
Thank you

Hi sorry if this is quite awkward but my (15M) boyfriend (15M) and I have been going out for nearly 2 months now. We were best friends for close to a year and it was quite obvious we liked each other. We had our first kiss a while ago, and while i was expecting a slow closed mouth kiss, he went AT it with tongue and everything. I didn't say anything but it definitely took me by surprise. Mind you, we have HAD closed mouth kisses, but only when we're saying goodbye or hello. Other than that, he feels very aggressive with his kissing and tongue. I know that his past kisses were at discos where its normal to basically attack people with tongue (look up shifting in ireland). I want to bring it up, but I don't think theres any way I can naturally. I love him so much, he is the first person I have truly been in love with, and this is only a small hurdle i need to overcome. Any help would be appreciated!

Got my IUD removed today. Here is the story time:
I weighed 138 at the appointment to get my IUD put in. I had previously been on the pill for roughly a year and struggled with it. But didn't gain weight on hormonal BC. My periods got way heavier. And I gained 22 pounds. I eat relatively healthy but started working out thinking my hormones were messed up from getting off of the hormonal stuff. Didn't lose a pound. (This was 4 times a week with a trainer plus meal planning- I went all in and was dedicated. I did get stronger but I didn't see any changes in how my body looked) I bled everytime I was intimate and had bad cramps after. Periods became more regular but very heavy. Even though the copper isn't hormonal it definitely effects your hormones. I experienced severe bloating and weight gain around my stomach. I looked 7 months pregnant nearly all the time. So I got it out today.
I've read about copper toxicity and estrogen dominance that can be caused by copper. So here is the list of supplements I'll be taking to help get my estrogen back and hopefully start losing this weight.
Zinc Magnesium DIM B6 Probiotics Calcium D-glucarate D3
If anyone has experience balancing hormones after coming off of copper toxicity and estrogen dominance please let me know. I am desperate to reclaim my health. I'd like to have another baby next year but I really need to get back to around 140 pounds before that happens.
Thank you 😊

Stephen Smith Grand Jury Calling Witnesses, Reviewing Evidence - Cold case heats up …

Stephen Smith Grand Jury Calling Witnesses, Reviewing Evidence FITSNews - Will Folks - Staff
TLDR: SLED is considering two persons of interest in connection with Smith’s death – 25-year-old Patrick Wilson and 25-year-old Shawn Connelly. “The location of Smith’s body in the middle of the road was totally inconsistent with a vehicular strike – but the massive blood loss observed on the asphalt seemed inconsistent with him being murdered at another location,” I noted in a recent report.
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A statewide grand jury in Columbia, South Carolina is actively investigating the 2015 homicide of Stephen Smith, multiple sources familiar with its deliberations have confirmed to this news outlet. In fact, the grand jury is scheduled to reconvene next week to review evidence and hear testimony related to the murder of the 19-year-old from Hampton, S.C.
In other words, it’s increasingly likely arrest warrants will eventually be issued in connection with this eight-year-old cold case – which gained international attention via its purported proximity to the ‘Murdaugh Murders’ crime and corruption saga. Interest in the Smith case escalated even further after it was prominently featured in the hit Netflix documentary, ‘Murdaugh Murders: A Southern Scandal.’
Confirmation of the grand jury’s empaneling should come as no surprise to those following the case.
Two weeks ago, Lexington, S.C. attorney Eric Bland – one of the attorneys representing Smith’s mother, Sandy Smith – said he believed a grand jury had been empaneled based on his conversations with chief Mark Keel of the S.C. State Law Enforcement Division (SLED).
“(Keel) told me subpoenas are being issued – as well as warrants – and I believe there is a grand jury empaneled,” Bland said during a May 25, 2023 panel discussion on CourtTV.
Bland was right …
According to our sources, the grand jury has been meeting for several weeks and has already heard critical evidence related to this unsolved murder – including evidence which “conclusively proves” Smith was killed at the site where his body was found.
Forensic expert Kenneth Kinsey has reportedly confirmed this assessment based on a review of the graphic crime scene photos of Smith’s murder. Kinsey was hired to review the evidence in this case as part of an independent investigation launched by Bland’s law firm.
To recap: Smith’s body was discovered by a passing motorist (a tow truck driver) at approximately 4:00 a.m. EDT on July 8, 2015 in the middle of Sandy Run Road near Crocketville, S.C. Initially deemed gunshot wound – and later a vehicular hit-and-run – the investigation was originally handled by the S.C. Highway Patrol (SCHP) “Multi-Disciplinary Accident Investigation Team” (MAIT). It wasn’t until nearly six years later that it became an active murder case handled by SLED.
SLED opened a homicide investigation into Smith’s death shortly after the savage slayings of 52-year-old Maggie Murdaugh and 22-year-old Paul Murdaugh on June 7, 2021 at Moselle – a 1,700-acre hunting property straddling the Salkehatchie River which until recently belonged to the Murdaugh family.
Disbarred attorney Alex Murdaugh – a scion of this once-dominant legal dynasty – was convicted of those killings and sentenced to life in prison in March of this year.
What was the Murdaugh family’s connection to Smith’s death? It’s not immediately clear. According to 26-year-old Buster Murdaugh – who has been accused by many on social media of being involved in the crime – there is no connection.
“These baseless rumors of my involvement with Stephen and his death are false,” Murdaugh said in a statement released back in March. “I unequivocally deny any involvement in his death.”
Others close to this story – including Sandy Smith – believe otherwise. In fact, Smith wrote a letter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the fall of 2016 detailing the Murdaugh family’s alleged involvement.
“Stephen had on more than one occasion mentioned to friends and his twin sister that he was involved romantically with someone from a prominent family in the county who was hiding his sexuality,” Smith wrote in her letter. “He said it would shock people to know this person was gay. We suspect this could be the young man Stephen was referring to, though he never named him.”
As this news outlet reported earlier this year, SLED is considering two persons of interest in connection with Smith’s death – 25-year-old Patrick Wilson and 25-year-old Shawn Connelly, both of Brunson, S.C.
Both Wilson and Connelly lived in the area near where Stephen Smith’s body was found … and there is information obtained by SLED investigators which has reportedly drawn a sharper focus on them as potential suspects. Several of these same leads were followed by producers and investigators associated with the Netflix documentary – as well as the initial legal team retained by Sandy Smith. In November of 2021, Charleston, S.C. attorney Andy Savage – who at the time was representing Smith’s family – gave an interview to WCIV TV-4 in which he indicated the Murdaughs were “unconnected” to Smith’s murder and any speculation related to their involvement was “unfounded.”
“There are suspects we have in sight that are unconnected to Murdaugh,” Savage told reporters Anne Emerson and Drew Tripp. “The focus any in the media have on Murdaugh may be unfounded.”
Sandy Smith recoiled at that revelation – and parted ways with Savage as her attorney shortly thereafter.
As previously reported by this news outlet, on December 18, 2015 – five months after Smith’s murder – SCHP investigators received a tip from Wilson’s self-described step-father, Darrell Williams of Varnville, S.C. According to Williams, Wilson informed him that Connelly – another Hampton County teenager – was driving a vehicle which “struck and killed Stephen Smith.”
Who told him to share this information? Randy Murdaugh – Alex Murdaugh’s older brother.
According to case notes contained in the MAIT report, Williams “stated that the reason he was passing this information on was because Randy Murdaugh told him to call.”
As I have often noted, the crime scene in this case is “a study in contradictions.”
“The location of Smith’s body in the middle of the road was totally inconsistent with a vehicular strike – but the massive blood loss observed on the asphalt seemed inconsistent with him being murdered at another location,” I noted in a recent report.

Sorry in advance if this is a little unstructured, it's difficult to piece together everything in an order that makes sense, and it's still emotionally touchy for me. TL:DR at the bottom.
Background is that I dated this girl a while ago. We met at university on the same (law) course, and English wasn't her first language (somewhat important). She was an extremely ambitious, very fashionable woman, which I adored - but this meant that she became overstretched in the additional things she had signed up for for extra credits to boost her CV lines etc. (Think of working on student society boards, taking additional courses, etc). She would be very stressed for months by doing so much.
Long story short, I fell head-over-heels for this person, and would do everything I could to help her in her career. Also perhaps important to mention is that she comes from a relatively poor family, half of which were immigrants to our country (in Europe) (in fact, I do too, we bonded over our shared experiences). For one particular additional course, she was really struggling with some philosophy and ethics (of law) writing. Important to know is that this course was part of what is known as a 'Pre-PhD' course; basically training and courses to prepare you for a PhD. Philosophy and ethics of law is something I know a lot on, so I offered to help her with it. Because this particular course was in English (In fact her third language), I ended up writing the entire thing for her (about 5 essays total I think). I'm a people pleaser, and loved to see her a little happier. But in my mind, it wasn't really cheating in a sense, because we would always discuss the topic together when writing, making sure she actually understood it, and she would then edit the structure etc to remember it. It was primarily the writing she needed help with. By this point, we were together for about 2 years.
Anyway, we were almost finished with our studies, and I went abroad for a couple of months for a traineeship. In the meantime, she finished the aforementioned course, and successfully applied for a PhD/researcher position (her dream job) in a city the other side of our country. I was ecstatic for her, and also very excited that we would finally have a proper relationship together; we had both been very stressed and preoccupied with work for the last year or so together (though I was far better at handling it than her, who would largely isolate herself from me in periods a bit too tough.) Previously, she had not done anything for my birthday, Christmas, our anniversary or valentines day due to stress - which I accepted as reasonable under the circumstances. (I'm a hopeless romantic, and not very good at identifying red flags.)
When I got back from the traineeship however, she was very different; like an entirely different person. Very cold, outwardly resentful of her last 2 with me, and made absolutely no effort in the relationship at all. After a couple of months, a few weeks of ghosting me and giving me cryptic responses, she essentially forced me to break up with her, because she wouldn't do it herself.
Turns out, she never actually loved me (her words), never missed me at all, and thought that I was useful to keep around both as moral support (there were many nights with her overwhelmed, and me consoling her over those 2 years), someone to fuck, and for helping her with work. I'm not certain if she cheated on me, but I was suspicious of some of her antics and the way she spoke about a couple of her friends. There are a lot of things I have missed out partly out of being unable to remember details, and partly because I don't want to dwell on it too much. But suffice to say that she said a lot of things were said that were made to hurt me - and I was, badly.
The Revenge
I'm not proud of this, but I was furious, hurt, and decided to try and retaliate.
At this point, she was just about to finish her thesis, and be entirely done and graduate (I had a few months earlier). But remember when I help her with this Pre-PhD assignment? Well I kept those files. Although she edited them a bit before handing them in, it wasn't substantially different. I knew this, so sent my copies of those files (with their metadata intact, so dated before the assignment was handed in) to the faculty confessing that I had helped another student and violated academic integrity, with the recommendation that they check their plagiarism software for evidence of a near perfect match. They did, and they discovered that the work for her Pre-PhD course was not her own; and she was disqualified from it. Turns out, her prospective completion of that course was a very important part of her PhD application - so she lost that too, and just after she had moved into her new place in the city with the PhD.
After that, and with that kind of stain on your academic record, there's no PhD for you - and she was very specialized in our country's national law, so couldn't really move anywhere else or switch jurisdictions, though she did end up graduating a few months later. As far as I last know, she ended up in a low-middle-sized law firm - something I know that she vehemently did not want to end up at. So it basically destroyed her life.
I do feel bad about it, it was a disproportionate response in terms of consequence. I didn't think through all the consequences when I sent that email, and probably wouldn't have if I had. I'm sort of glad for standing up for myself - something that I got a lot better at after this - but I don't think it was worth hurting her that badly. I've never done anything like this to anyone else, thankfully.
TL:DR - Relationship with girlfriend was totally false from the beginning, and she never loved me, and used me out of convenience - so I reported her for plagiarism at her uni, she lost her job, delayed her studies by months, and probably now hates her life.

honestly, i liked season 7 i know people didn’t like it. but it wasn’t nearly as bad as season 8 to me. i don’t get the plot season 8 at all it drags to me. i liked the heretics and the plot for that. especially nora she was my fav heretic.

I’m a recent arrival from B.C. Walking around Kingston for the last month or so, I’ve had multiple near misses with drivers advancing through intersections when I’m in a marked crosswalk. Yesterday I was crossing Palace Rd. At Brock St., with one driver stopped on each side of Palace at stop signs. I proceeded through a marked crosswalk (two solid lines on either side) and one driver suddenly advanced through and came within six inches of hitting me. Initially I just thought he was just a dangerous and aggressive driver, but now that I’m reviewing Ontario’s road laws, it makes it look like drivers are not required to yield to pedestrians in a crosswalk unless there is a crossing guard or a pedestrian operated light. This can’t possibly be true? If it is, I don’t know how anyone is supposed to walk in that part of town, since the nearest pedestrian operated light I could find was at Churchill Park, which creates a half mile detour just to avoid jaywalking.

When I was about 8 years old, we had a gardener who came by regularly to look after our garden, as well as other people’s gardens in the neighborhood. He was a good man, nothing weird about him, but he had an apprentice, let’s call him “K”. He about 30 I guess, and was a bit “weird looking”, but nothing more.
One day I was playing with a friend of mine (around the same age), and we went outside the house (I think to get a ball that had fallen or something, I don’t really remember). That’s when we saw K across the street. I knew him, I told my friend he was our gardener, and he also went to other houses, so I didn’t see anything wrong with him being there. But then he started calling my name with an unusual voice (like when you talk to a little baby or a cute animal). After that he called us over with the same voice, saying “little kids come over here”.
We approached him, and he started talking to us. He said that he had some cute little puppies in his home (he lived nearby, about a block away), and asked if we wanted to come over and see them. We said we weren’t allowed, he insisted a bit but not very much. And it got even creepier. He asked us if we had penises. We said “yes”. Then he asked us if he could see them, but we said that our mothers don’t let us show them. “Have you seen mine?”, he asked, and proceeded to pull it out… we hadn’t seen an adult penis before, and this situation was really creepy, so we ran away.
I didn’t tell my parents anything, but luckily my friend did tell his mother, and she told mine. Of course my parents banned him from coming near us again, even though in the beginning he kind of tried to deny everything, and of course the gardener fired him. I think my parents went to the police, but I am not sure what happened, because I was little and didn’t know how these things work.
I didn’t know what a pedophile was back then, I don’t know anything like that existed, I didn’t even know how sex was done.
Two years ago, when I was 18 years old, I was walking down the street, and saw K in a yard, since he went to other houses. He also saw me, looked at me with a creepy but also stupid smile and tried to wave at me. I wasn’t a kid anymore so I shouted “mind your own business or I’ll beat the living crap out of you!”. He stopped (I am tall and strong whereas he is a small guy, so he was scared now).
I haven’t see him again, I hope he is in prison or dead.

I (40s M) have been dating my GF (40s F) for almost 2 years now. For context, she has 2 teenagers at home every other week, I have zero kids. When we met there was an instant connection and we just clicked on many levels. She was everything I wanted, she was always saying nice things like how she couldn't wait to spend the rest of our lives together, she was very affectionate, and even when she was busy she would make me feel wanted.
These days it's like the total opposite. Not much affection or sex, and never really says anything nice or mentions the future like she used to. We still exchange I love yous almost daily and when she doesn't have the kids we usually spend the nights together. But instead of cuddling on the couch, she just wants to play with her phone.
I've spent holidays and vacations with her and the kids, some sporting events, things like that. But usually when she has the kids I don't get invited over because she's too busy or just values her alone time with them. She doesn't even seem to really miss me when we don't see each other for a whole week. And that's fine, I'm in no rush to get married again, it's just weird that she was all about planning a future together but now there's zero indication of that.
So I get that the honeymoon phase never lasts forever, but this total 180 is really messing with me. I can't tell if I got "love bombed", she's just not that into me anymore, or she's finally showing me her true colors. Maybe I'm guilty of pulling back a bit too, but not nearly as much. It really just sucks because I know how great things could be, but now it's nothing like that.

For example a property near me sold for $300M a few years ago, but in the latest appraisal, the county said it was worth only $100M, which represents a 2/3 savings on what they will pay in taxes.
This is a consistent problem around the country. One of the main factors is that wealthier households and businesses will usually appeal or sue to get their taxes lowered, so the appraisors, wanting to avoid the hassle of going to court, will pre-emptively undervalue the property so that it doesn't happen.
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On the other hand the houses of lower income folks, which have lower values, tend to be appraised more in line with their sale price or even higher. For example "58% of the lowest-value homes are overassessed while 36% of the highest-value homes are overassessed"
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This has nothing to do with the tax rate - but rather the basic data that the tax rate is then applied to. This also has nothing to do with tax rebates or other programs to encourage development which build on the assessed value (discussed in the 11alive article)
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https://www.strongtowns.org/journal/2023/4/24/wealthy-homeowners-are-getting-a-45-discount-on-property-taxes
https://www.11alive.com/article/news/local/hundreds-commercial-properties-undervalued-homeowners-high-taxes/85-e861dd4b-64f8-4337-ab26-3a2d5d26f501
https://www.strongtowns.org/journal/jafh-should-i-protest-my-property-taxes

Searching for the love of my life. Can I find her here? Possibly so let's try! I'd also like to meet irl at some point but until then let's get to know each other here first.
So who am I? A student studying ICT, an artist (a printmaker to be specific), cat dad, a Jack of all trades if you will!
I enjoy quite a variety of things such as, riding my bike, getting into better shape, learning new things, gaming, playing the piano, trying out new activities among all other things. I am also a pretty good cook of basic foods plus I think I can be pretty funny too (I hear people like that 😁)
I am trying to live a healthy and balanced life so I am hoping you do too.. I don't smoke or do drugs and don't really enjoy that near me either. I do have a drink occasionally though.
I am quite open so you can ask me anything and I'll try to answer the best I can. I am also quite curious about you and want to learn more.
I would describe myself as kind, compassionate, honest, caring and respectful. I am equipped with blue eyes, a short hair and a varying beard style. I don't mind exchanging pics as I feel that mutual attraction is important too. I am also a whopping 5'7" (170cm) tall but I don't care about your height, I care about your personality 😎
People of all races are free to approach me~
I am excited to see what kind of a person you are!
Take care beautiful people all over the world

Galatians   Chapter Five  
-1. The Anointed frees [שחרר, SheeHRayR] us unto freedom [חרות, HayROoTh], therefore stand, and do not submit [תכנעו, TheeKhahN`Oo] again [שוב, ShOoB] to yoke [לעל, Le'oL] the slavery.  

“The expression for freedom [επ ελευθερια - ep eleutheria] (in slightly different Greek form) appears in the certificates of sacral manumission which were given to slaves who purchased their freedom. The slave would deposit the money in the temple of his god for the priest to transfer to his master “for freedom.” He then became the slave of his god, free from his human master.” (Stamm, 1953, TIB vol. X pp. 545-546)  
“Among the Jews, the Messiah’s reign was to be a reign of liberty, and hence the Targum [ancient Jewish commentary] on Lamen. [Lamentations] ii. 22. says, “Liberty shall be publicly proclaimed to the people of the house of Israel, על יד משיחא âl yad Mashicha, by the hand of the Messiah, such as was granted to them by Moses and Aaron, at the time of the Passover.” (Clarke, 1831, vol. II p. 393)  

...
-5. And we, in spirit upon foundation [of] belief, waiting [מיחלים, MeYahHahLeeYM] to hope [for] fruit, the our righteousness [δικαιοσυνης - dikaiosunes, justification, righteousness].  

“The language is so compact that Paul’s meaning has to be inferred from 3:14; 5:22-23; and Rom. [Romans] 8:23-26.” (Stamm, 1953, TIB vol. X pp. 548-549)  
“The full measure of human righteousness is still a thing of the eschatological future (cf. [compare with] Rom 5:19).” (Joseph A. Fitzmyer, 1990, TNJBC p. 789)
“That they could not have the Holy Spirit, without faith, was a doctrine also of the Jews; hence it is said, Mechilta, fol. [folio] 52. ‘That faith was of great consequence, with which the Israelites believed in Him, who, with one word, created the universe; and because the Israelites believed in God, the Holy Spirit dwelt in them; so that being filled with God, they sung praises to him.’” (Clarke, 1831, vol. II pp. 393-394)  

-6. That yes, in Anointed YayShOo'ah ["Savior", Jesus] there is no thought [חשיבות, HahSheeYBOoTh], not to circumcision [למילה, LahMeeYLaH] and not to foreskin [לערלה, Lah`ahRLaH], rather to belief, the laborer in way [of] love.  

“No passage in Paul’s letters is of greater importance for integral understanding of his religion and the relation of his faith to his ethics. The mutuality of faith, hope, and love – a theme repeated with many variations – runs through everything he has written and forms the substance of his theology. … Paul’s religion is distorted whenever his ethics and his ‘good works’ are made to appear as an incidental by-product of his faith rather than as one of its essential ingredients.” (Stamm, 1953, TIB vol. X pp. 550-551)  
“This humble, holy, operative, obedient LOVE, is the grand touchstone of all human creeds, and confessions of faith. Faith, without this, has neither soul nor operation: in the language of the apostle James, it is dead, and can perform no function of the spiritual life, no more than a dead man can perform the duties of animal or civil life.” (Clarke, 1831, vol. II p. 394)  

...
-12. Would that [מי יתן, MeeY YeeThayN] and be cut [ויכרתו, VeYeeKahRThOo] the misleaders [המתעים, HahMahTh`eeYM] [of] you!  

“‘I wish that those who are upsetting you would even emasculate themselves!’ This is what Paul said and meant. … for a similar outburst see Phil. [Philippians] 3:2-3, where the advocates of circumcision are ‘dogs,’ and by a play on words – περιτομη [peritome’], κατατομην [katatmen] - ‘circumcision’ becomes ‘mutilation.’ Paul may have been thinking of the mad spectacle of the Cybele-Attis cult, whose priests in frenzied devotion used to emasculate themselves as a sacrifice to their deity. … The shock of Paul’s statement to the Judaizers can be measured in the light of the prohibition in Deut. [Deuteronomy] 23:1. To a devout Jew his blunt language would be as sacrilegious as a Christian would find the wish of a disbeliever in sacraments that all advocates of baptism would drown themselves. Never happy after making such denunciations (II Cor. [Corinthians]1:23-2:11; Phil. 3:18-19), Paul quickly changes his tone…” (Stamm, 1953, TIB vol. X pp. 554-555)  

-13. My brethren, to freedom you have been called,
only that not be, the freedom, means [אמצעי, ’ehMTsah`eeY] in hands of the flesh,
rather that minister, [each] man [את, ’ehTh (indicator of direct object; no English equivalent)] his neighbor in love.  

“To be freed from the ceremonial law, is the Gospel liberty; to pretend freedom from the moral law, is antinomianism.” (Clarke, 1831, vol. II p. 395)  

-14. See, all the Instruction included [כלולה, KLOoLaH] in saying [במאמר, BeMah’ahMahR] one – “and love to your neighbor like you.”  

“The quotation is from Lev. [Leviticus] 19:18; cf. Rom. 13:8-10 [and Matt. [Matthew] 7:11 (Joseph A. Fitzmyer, 1990, TNJBC p. 789)]. The tense of the verb ‘fulfilled’ is perfect; thus Paul says that the whole law is fulfilled, in the sense of ‘has been fulfilled’ whenever one man loves another as himself…. Paul the Christian loved his neighbor not because a commandment disobeyed would bring punishment, or fulfilled would merit reward, but because it was his new nature to do to.  
But who was Paul’s neighbor? He was, first of all, ‘the one who was near,’ the fellow member of the society of Christ who needed help to bear life’s burdens (6:2). Then, with continuously lengthening radius, Paul drew a series of concentric circles to embrace all men (6:10; I Thess. [Thessalonians] 5:15; I Cor. 9:22). Even his enemies were included, for Christ received sinners, and personal vengeance was no fruit of the Spirit (6:1; Rom. 12:20; 15:1-3). … He bore the burden of his neighbor’s sins, and although he sometimes had to threaten them, he was never without hope for their repentance (I Cor. 4; II Cor. 12:19-13:10; II Thess. 3:14-15). He could hurl anathemas, and his friends did not always find him easy to get on with … but the love of Christ would never permit him to contract the circle of his neighbors (Rom. 9:1-3; 10:1; II Cor. 7:5-16; 1:23-2:11). (Stamm, 1953, TIB vol. X p. 557)  

...  

…………………………………………  
Fruit of the Spirit and usurpations of [ומעללי, OoMah`ahLahLaY] the flesh
[verses 16 to end of chapter]  

-16. Say I to you, walk in way the spirit and do not fill [את, ’ehTh] desires [תאוות, Thah`ahVOTh] [of] the flesh,
-17. for the flesh desires [מתאוה, MeeTh’ahVeH] to what that is in opposition [שבנגוד, ShehBeNeeGOoD] to spirit, and the spirit is opposed [מתנגדת, MeeThNeGehDehTh] to the flesh. [The] two [of] them oppose to this to this, and to that [ולכן, OoLeKhayN] you are not able to do [את, ’ehTh] what that is in your want.  

“This is Paul’s way of stating the Jewish doctrine of the ‘two impulses’ which are at war within the heart of man. The rabbis declared that God created Adam with two inclinations, one good, the other evil, and required him to choose which to obey. He was free to follow his good impulse, but he chose the evil, and so did all his descendants. Consequently every man became the Adam of his own soul. Some maintained that the evil impulse awakened at the age of nine, others at twelve. Study with practice of the Torah was the sovereign remedy to wear it away …” (Stamm, 1953, TIB vol. X pp. 561)  

…
-19. Deeds of the flesh are revealed [גלויים, GLOoYeeYM], and these are they:
adultery [נאוף, Nee’OoPh] and fornication, impurity [טמאה, TooM’aH], licentiousness [זמה, ZeeMaH], 20. slavery of idols, magic [כשוף KeeShOoPh in my Hebrew New Testamentⁱ ; the Greek here is “φαρμακεια pharmakeia - the use of drugs of any kind, whether wholesome or poisonous...” (Stamm, 1953, TIB vol. X p. 562] hatred, contention [מדון, MahDON], stinginess [צרות עין, TsahROoTh 'ahYeeN, “squint eyed”, Ζηλος Zelos jealousy], anger [כעס, Kah'ahÇ], strife [מריבה, MeReeYBaH], divisions [מחלקות, MahHLahQOTh], factions [כתות, KeeThOTh], 21. envy, drunkenness, profligacy [הוללות,HOLeLOoTh], and as similar.  
Say I to what that I already said: doers of deeds like these will not inherit [את, ’ehTh] kingdom of the Gods.  

“Πορνεια [Porneia] ... fornication ... means ‘prostitution’, but includes sexual vice and unfaithfulness to the marriage vow. The task of the church in creating a conscience on this matter was made doubly difficult by the practice of prostitution in the name of religion. Long before Paul, the prophets had denounced the fertility cults and made prostitution a synonym for idolatry.  
Φαρμακεια [pharmakeia] ... Since witches and sorcerers used drugs, the word came to designate witchcraft, enchantment, sorcery, and magic. The law of Moses prescribed the death penalty for it, and the prophets denounced the Egyptians, Babylonians and Canaanites for practicing it; but this did not prevent the Jews from producing some famous practitioners (Acts 13:6-12; 19:1-20). Next to state-worship, magic was the most dangerous competitor of true religion... claiming to specialize in the impossible, it prostituted faith to superstition, and divorced religion from ethics. ... In Paul’s spiritual arithmetic, faith plus miracles minus love amounted exactly to zero....  
Ερις [Eris] is ... strife ... The spirit of Eris is perfectly described in the words of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland – ‘ambition, distraction, uglification, and derision.’  
The fact that he expected the near return of Christ to end this present age must not be permitted to obscure the equally important fact that he regarded his own life and witness for Christ as an essential element in hastening that event.” (Stamm, 1953, TIB vol. X pp. 561-565)  

-22. In opposition to [לעמת, Le`ooMahTh] this, fruit of spirit:
he is love, happiness, peace, patience, [ארך רוח, ’oRehKh Roo-ahH, “length [of] spirit”] generosity, good heart, faithfulness, 23. modesty [עננה, `ahNahNaH], restraint [רסון, ReeÇOoN] [of] self– upon such [מדות, MeeDOTh] as these there is no instruction further [חלה, HahLaH, sic ["so in cite"] for חלאה, HahL’aH!].  

“Since love is a personal relation it is not a matter of law, and cannot be commanded; and since it is God’s own love growing as his ‘fruit’ in the hearts of men, no one can claim it as a merit for self-salvation. ...  
... in every age ... men have found it hard to see how God could have anything in common with humanity, and Christians have been tempted to make a distinction in kind between God’s love and man’s love. Paul’s authority has been claimed for this dualistic view. Αγαπη [agape’] is set against ερος [eros]. God’s love is said to be αγαπη reaching down to save man by his grace, and ερος man’s self-love aspiring upward to save himself. Paul’s αγαπη is associated with justification by faith, the Greek ερος with salvation by works.... Jerusalem and the Christian faith are made to oppose Athens and human reason, and the conclusion is drawn from the history of Christianity that ερος, man’s self love, has always been a source of corruption of αγαπη, love inspired by God’s grace.  
This interpretation of Christian love is intended as a defense of the doctrine of justification by faith and as a means of securing scriptural support for a dualistic philosophy which aims to protect the transcendence of God against humanism. But to draw such sweeping conclusions from a word study of two Greek nouns, without adequate consideration of other related Greek words and ideas, is to oversimplify. The LXX [The Septuagint, the ancient Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible] is full of evidence that this distinction between αγαπη and ερος cannot be maintained on the basis of lexicography. The Greek O.T. [Old Testament] uses both the noun αγαπη and the verb αγαπαω [agapao] to express not only God’s love for men, but man’s love for God and for his fellow man. Although there is no certain evidence that the noun αγαπη was used by nonbiblical writers prior to Christianity, the argument from silence may be invalidated by future discoveries, and it would be precarious to conclude that αγαπη was a specifically Christian word.  
One-sided emphasis on God’s love as ‘unmotivated’ by anything in his creatures tempts men to regard him in the light of an egotistical philanthropist who expects gratitude and praise but neither needs nor desires the mutuality that is inherent in the very nature of love... Without a faith that dares humbly to believe that God needs man’s love ... the Christian’s conception of his high calling to be a kingdom builder is liable to reduce itself to blind obedience to commands given arbitrarily for man’s good while awaiting God’s eschatological fiat. Such a misconception is bound to give aid and comfort to the inclination of human nature – ‘the flesh’ – to divorce religion from ethics.  
Grave moral consequences result from such a view of Christian love. It is associated with a doctrine of predestination that makes God’s choice of the objects of his salvation utterly arbitrary.” (Stamm, 1953, TIB vol. X pp. 565-566)  
“The peace which was the fruit of the Spirit ... could be trusted to keep men's hearts and minds (Phil. 4:7), so that they need have not anxiety about anything. This explains the sublime recklessness of the Christian peacemakers. Being colaborers with God (Rom. 8:28), they were aggressors for peace. They aimed to live at peace with all men (Rom. 12:18), but fear of making enemies did not turn them from their task of producing soundness, wholeness, and harmony in a world of chaos. Their reasonable service was to ... substitute the righteousness and peace and joy of his [God's] kingdom (Rom. 14:17) for the low aims of 'the flesh,' thereby creating the conditions for peace. Their ideal was to live so that quarrels could never get started.  
Christian peace was therefore neither the calm of inactivity nor the mere passive enjoyment of freedom from strife. It was not the imperturbability of the Epicurean, or the apathy of the Stoic, or the contemplation of the mystic. The man who possessed it was not exempt from storm and shipwreck, but by faith he knew that he would arrive in port (Acts 27:21-25), and that all was well for him and his fellow men of faith ... And so, where all else was panic, he played the man.” (Stamm, 1953, TIB vol. X pp. 567)  
“... just as God’s patience was not to be presumed upon, so the Christian’s patience was not a spiritless good nature that would put up with things which it could not escape, or would not prevent. It was patience with a purpose, as in Paul’s pleas to Philemon, which contrasts so sharply with the Stoic motive for self control... Those who bore this fruit ‘turned the world upside down’ (Acts 17:6), and the enemy did not know how to deal with such unheard of patience and persistence.” (Stamm, 1953, TIB vol. X pp. 568)  
“Negatively defined, gentleness is everything that the ‘insolent, haughty, boastful’ men of Rom. 1:30 are not. It is the opposite of υβρις [hubris], the worst of sins in the eyes of the Greeks – deliberate, arrogant defiance of the gods by overstepping the limits set for human beings. In the O.T. such men are called ‘sons of Belial,’ the turbulent, highhanded wicked, who rage against God, kill, rob and enslave the righteous ‘meek’ and take possession of the earth for themselves. The psalms are full of moans and complaints against this rich and powerful majority, who used religion as a means of gain and kept their consciences in flexible subservience to the exigencies of power.” (Stamm, 1953, TIB vol. X pp. 569)  
“’Εγκρατεια [Egkrateia] is temperance (KJV [King James Version]), self-control (RSV [Revised Standard Version]) ....  
The Stoics had helped to prepare the soil out of which this fruit of the Spirit was to grow. They insisted that the sovereign reason could and should control the passions. They believed in a law of nature to which they must conform, and they endeavored to maintain their inner freedom under all circumstances. But their motive was very different from Paul’s, the one being devoted to the glory of the God of grace, the other to the preservation of the sovereign self-will. When the Stoic collided with things beyond his control, his inner independence turned into apathy, practicing the motto ‘When we can’t do what we want, we want to do what we can.’ He took orders from his commander in chief, an impersonal God who had the power of life or death; but he did it in such a way as to make it clear to God and men that he, the Stoic, was after all the captain of his soul. He controlled his anger because he found it a nuisance to be under the power of any passion and in his sight meekness was contemptible weakness...  
Paul exalted humility: ‘It is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me’ (2:20). ... His self-discipline was the result of his spiritual experiences, rather than an undertaking to induce them; and his self-control was sane compared with the ascetic excesses of later Christian groups such as the ‘Encratites,’ who forbade marriage and followed fantastic dietary rules.” (Stamm, 1953, TIB vol. X pp. 569-570)  
“Unrepentant sinners have no appetite for the fruit of the Spirit, and when its production and distribution require changes in the political and economic status quo, men ... pass laws against it ... Especially in time of war these traits of Christian character have been forbidden fruit, though given for the healing of the nations. Occasionally the world, exhausted with fighting, and sick of its cynical Epicureanism, has professed a desire for the fruits of the Spirit, but on its own terms without the cross required to produce them.” (Stamm, 1953, TIB X p. 570)  

... 26. Do not, please [נא, Nah’] be panters of [שואפי, ShO’ahPhaY] honor vain [שוא, ShahVe’], the provokers [המתגרים, HahMeeThGahReeYM] and enviers [ומקנאים, OoMQahN’eeYM] a man in his neighbor.  

“The right stood in terror of the iconoclasm of the left, and the radicals labeled all other men reactionaries ... Both sides professed to love liberty and defend it, but neither was willing to grant it to the other.” (Stamm, 1953, TIB vol. X p. 572)   END NOTE  
ⁱ ספר הבריתות, תורה נביאים כתובים והברית החדשה [The Book of the Covenants: Instruction, Prophets, Writings; and The New Covenant] The Bible Society in Israel, Jerusalem, Israel, 1991.  

  An Amateur's Journey Through the Bible

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Me and my ex had broken up a couple of times in our 9 months together. I was always caring and loving, but we did have bouts of arguing and disagreements which eventually drained her and she called it quits. She lost her son 3 years ago and had been getting counselling lately, suffers from depression, autistic and doesn’t like to go out much because of it.
When she broke up I pushed a bit questioning why as she was so into me a few days before. It got to the point we sent a few long messages back snd forth but could tell she was getting annoyed so I dropped it and apologised.
She replied back but I decided not to. The following morning she sends me this: “Right no! Absolutely not! Why the fuck are you messaging my mum! Fuck off! Leave me alone. I don’t want you anywhere near me! How fucking dare you message my mum and show her conversations of us! Your a fucking psychopath! Keys gone in the bin! Now! Now I don’t want anything to do with you!!”.
Her mother had been helping me understand how she works in difficult times (as my ex didn’t speak much about it) and I’d brought up a conversation of when she was excited for a holiday and house and told her I was confused why she wanted to break it off. Her mother was supportive but I realised I crossed a boundary here.
My ex found out as I forgot I asked her mother to chase up my spare key and then I’d already asked my ex after.
Two hours after she sent that message, she saw me typing then blocked me on whatsapp.
I’ve attempted to apologise on instagram last week but she left it unread, so this week I posted a letter apologising it was wrong for me to cross that boundary, wishing her luck in future.
Our relationship had it’s problems and I was responsible for not being as fun towards the end hence the breakup, but I absolutely hate she sees me as a sociopath now. Was this just her lashing out and do you think one day she could forgive me?
(I planned to message her mother again to see if she got my apology letter, but realised this would go against what I was apologising for. I know the letter got there, but obviously don’t know if she read it or not)

Almost a year ago I would work out in the afternoons. Once in awhile I would run into this really cute guy at the gym. At that time I was 30lbs heavier. I am attractive, so the face card was looking good but the body wasnt matching. I would catch him staring once in a while but never say anything to me.
I ended up switching to working in the afternoons, so had to start hitting the gym in the mornings. Fast forward a few months, I had a week off of work and went back to working out in the mornings. By this time I lost 30lbs so my face is still attractive and now I dont have a protruding gut. Of course I see my crush during this time, and he went back to staring. Usually I am good with eye contact because I can hold it. But with him he holds his stare even if I look back at him and I get nervous cuz hes cute lol. He wouldnt say anything ever to me even with all the staring he did. Two times he was staring and i gave him head nod, he ignored me. With that I was like ok maybe he stares because he doesnt like me.
Another day when I was done with my workout I went to wash my hands in the bathroom. He was in there and we gave each other some awkward eye contact and just gave each other a head nod. When I left the bathroom, he was at the front desk and we were looking at each other my whole time because I had to walk past him. When I got near him we gave each other another head nod and thats it.
So he stares at me a lot, sometimes says whats up and other times ignores my nods. Does he like me or am I looking too much into it? He looks like he could be straight and I am masc and straight passing. If he doesnt like me, does he have a problem with me?

Hi, I just bought an used 2017 Honda Accord with 62k miles on it. The owner mentioned that he never replaced the brake pads or routers on the car. So obviously getting anxious, I called the service centers near me and they are quoting around 1.3k for Pads, routers and Blake fluid flush. I need to wait around 2 weeks before my paycheck. So, Is it safe to drive the car for time being? Was I given a reasonable estimate for replacement of all three things?

Hello fellow Nashvillains,
We know you rely on this subreddit for your daily Altima updates. Many of you owe your job or even your life to this subreddit. For most of you, browsing in this subreddit isn't just part of your daily routine but actively makes up a majority of your personal identity.
On June 12th, this is all changing.
On account of all the bad technology and business decisions Reddit is making, we are stomping our feet and saying, "NO!" And we're saying it loud, too, really really loud. We're gonna stomp so loud and say NO so loud that it's going to be really, really, really, really, really, really, really important.
I know this is a sacrifice, but it's one I'm willing to make on your behalf. I kind of know better than you what's good for you, and this is what it is. You're welcome
If you want to help, there are a few things you can do:

1. Don't come here. We will be closed, so there really won't be much going on anyway.
2. Encourage other people not to come here. We're full, dammit. I mean, even outside of this protest, we were full. Over 300 million subscribers, and you think I want to accommodate a bunch of rich Californians and New Yorkers who show up buying up all the best posts and stealing our karma? NO
3. Take a shower and brush your teeth. You've earned it. Or, rather, I've earned it, so please do it. You stink and when you come back I expect you not to smell like a used diaper that's been baking in the hot sun.
4. Vote in the upcoming mayoral election. This is the biggest way you can have an impact on absolutely anything the world. We're the center of the world, folks, and we need to act like it. Let's choose a mayor that will help usher in a new era of peace, prosperity, and free parking near downtown like it used to be back when I was a kid, coming up to Nashville from way out in the boonies just to hang out and see what was around, before we got "big" and before all the bars on Broadway got replaced with tourist trash, when you could actually find a gem of a guitarist hanging out on Printer's alley playing his heart out for a nickel, when country music was still good and you could grab a plate at a meat-and-three without some stupid copper cup, cloth napkin, seltzer-bar garbage bringing your bill up to $40 effing dollars when the mac-and-cheese isn't even good, they just used a powder mix and I could see it, I actually saw them open up a Kraft box and pour it into a pot with their "homemade" pasta, and the cook had the gall to tell me that I was just confused like I didn't really see it when I know I did, I know for damn sure what I saw and I'm not going to have some hipster cook with bees living in his hair gaslight me like I'm some kind of doofus. I am NOT a doofus.

Thanks for reading.