Podcasts about High Rock

It's Bank Holiday Monday, so let's take it easy and talk about some comics. After promising it early in the show's history, Charlie's finally read the first arc of IDW's Star Trek comic by Lanzig & Kelly. Look, we're Casual Trek, this is the level of service you get from us.The first arc, “Godshock” features that classic Star Trek concept: thumbing your teeth at god, only this time it's a bad thing as someone's killing gigantic cosmic entities! Who did this and how can it be stopped? Well, Ben Sisko's back from his time as a cosmic entity to find out, with an almost all-star cast of people from throughout Star Trek History. There's Data and Dr Crusher from TNG, Paris from Voyager, Scotty from TOS and Jake Sisko is also there. Worf guest stars for long enough to be a bad parent and back door pilot for another series, and there are a couple of new characters who are a lot of fun.Join us on the USS Theseus and prepare for a lot of tangents, as we both love talking comics.References: The Super Stalag of Space, Harry 20 on the High Rock, Dan Dare, Star Trek: The Next Generation/Doctor Who: Assimilation Squared, Quatermass and the Pit, The Legion of Super-Heroes, The Legion Clubhouse, comic collection sizes, YES Charlie has put rolled-up Walking Dead volumes in his back pocket, the Bendis New Avengers approach to team-building, Billy Pilgrim, The Krakoan Age of X-Men, Marvel Swimsuit Specials (which are coming back), release a Star Trek Swimsuit Special you cowards!, Data pages vs data pages, Gilmore Girls spoiled Anna Karenina for me, Charlie's Super Mario Quest 2025, the Summers family tree, the Dark Horse Buffy Series, Marvel's Star Wars, Dr Who comics, the Energon Universe, the CLZ collector's app, Malibu Comics' Star Trek… Oh, and sometimes IDW's Star Trek.

Aunque parezca el título de una tesis doctoral, es todo postureo. Esto es uno de nuestros debates-popurrí, solo que, en esta ocasión, le dedicamos un vistazo a un hecho que, si bien probablemente se ha dado toda la vida, en el último par de décadas no ha hecho más que crecer y hacerse más patente. Y es que, cosas del mundo de las comunicaciones globales, las fronteras entre las tradicionales escuelas americanas, europeas y asiáticas se han ido difuminando y fusionando estilísticamente cada vez más, pero tal vez solo en cuanto a estilo y no en cuanto mercado, formatos… bueno, y puede que ni siquiera en estilo. Sobre todo esto nos vamos a permitir divagar un buen ratito, pero, en la segunda parte, os reservamos un buen puñado de recomendaciones de todos los colores y para todos los gustos. La noche es caliente como el infierno. Todo se te pega. Una asquerosa habitación de un asqueroso barrio de una asquerosa ciudad. El aparato de aire acondicionado es un pedazo de chatarra que no podría enfriar ni una bebida aunque la metieras dentro. Parece el sitio perfecto para escuchar el podcast 371 de ELHDLT Selección musical: 🎶 Frontiers Edge, de The Budos Band 🎶 Conspiracy Theories, de Snash 🎶 High Rock, de Nancy Applebaum

As organizations increasingly integrate Gen AI into their operations, it's crucial to consider the technology's environmental impact. However, only 12% of executives report that their organizations measure Gen AI's footprint, and just 20% prioritize its environmental footprint among the top five factors when choosing or developing models. Despite this, Gen AI's ability to rapidly process large volumes of data helps organizations improve customer experience, optimize operations, drive growth, and foster innovation.This week, Dave, Esmee and Rob talk to Lewis Richards, Microsoft Chief Sustainability Officer, UK about the pivotal shift in global sustainability perspectives, the challenges of fostering meaningful conversations in the digital world and strategies to enhance human understanding of technology and its impacts. TLDR04:10 Rob is confused about shaky user interface design 07:26 Sustainability conversation with Lewis Richards43:15 What would a digital waste constellation look like? 49:50 Training for a High Rock fitness race GuestLewis Richards: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lewisrichardscso/Developing sustainable Gen AI, Report from the Capgemini Research Institute: https://www.capgemini.com/insights/research-library/sustainable-gen-ai/HostsDave Chapman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chapmandr/Esmee van de Giessen: https://www.linkedin.com/in/esmeevandegiessen/Rob Kernahan: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-kernahan/ProductionMarcel van der Burg: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcel-vd-burg/Dave Chapman: https://www.linkedin.com/in/chapmandr/SoundBen Corbett: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-corbett-3b6a11135/Louis Corbett:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/louis-corbett-087250264/'Cloud Realities' is an original podcast from Capgemini

David is confronted by Roxy's ex.Based on a post by dark overlord 6, in 4 parts. Listen to the ► Podcast at Connected.The following week David was back at the plant, and discovering that his body was slowly acclimating itself to the earlier schedule since at least he hadn't fallen back to sleep in the car on the way. Roxy had them doing a file purge of all the old requisition forms that were more than three years in the past, and he was sitting cross-legged in front of a filing cabinet with piles of paper lying around him when she came to check on his progress."How is it that you guys haven't digitized any of this crap?" he asked, waving at the stacks."I've been bitching about that for years, but the company has other priorities I guess. Thanks for raising the parenting bar for me by the way.""Huh?" David looked up with a clueless face."All week long it's been, 'I want stories about dragons and princes,' every time I want that toot to go to bed! You know how much bullshit I've had to make up, off the top of my head?""Maybe I could write down some stories for you," offered David with a laugh."I should make you do that, but we have bigger fish to fry. Just keep purging, Paper Boy!"She left him to his work, and Thomas was kind enough to bring him another box from the storage closet brimming with old forms."Thanks;" moaned David unhappily."Anytime! I like to see a guy earning his keep. Think of it a ‘job security.'" said Thomas, with a grin that David instantly wanted to smack off his face.An hour later, cramps in both his legs forced him to take a break. Getting up off the floor for the first time all morning. He was making his way to the security door to visit the bathroom when a booming sound, loud enough to make his ears ring, broke the relative silence of the building; and seconds later the walls rattled as if a God-like hand was shaking it."Holy Crap! It's a fucking meltdown," thought David, seeing his whole short life pass before his eyes and wishing instantly that he had enjoyed way more sex than he had. His brain locked and he couldn't remember a single thing from the safety video he had been shown in orientation. So he did the only thing he could think of, and dove under a nearby desk. As he sat there, shaking and contemplating just how painful death by radiation exposure must be, Roxy's head suddenly appeared from above."So it's loud noises; and spiders?" she asked."Didn't you hear that? Why aren't we evacuating?" asked David in a rush."We aren't evacuating because that wasn't the reactors, Bozo. They're purging excess steam off the turbines. Didn't you watch the orientation video?""I might have fallen asleep during it," admitted David sheepishly."Oh, for Heaven's sake; Just get out from under there before someone sees you cowering like a whipped dog. You keep this up, and they're going to quit calling you 'Spider-Man,' and start calling you, 'Duck and Cover,'""They call me Spider-Man?" ask David to Roxy's back."Don't worry. I wouldn't let them stencil it on your hard hat," she said over her shoulder.David felt a hand on his arm, and he turned to look at Thomas."Hey! 'Duck and Cover,' want me to bring you another box?""This day just keeps getting better;" muttered David as he shrugged off the hand and went in search of the restroom.Thankfully, the afternoon that followed was free of embarrassing moments, and the approach of the final whistle was a welcome relief. David had placed the last of the file boxes back in the closet, the contents much reduced in size from when he had started, when Roxy came walking up, looking slightly uncomfortable."David; I was wondering if I could ask you another favor?""Uh; Yeah, sure.""Feel free to say 'No,' it isn't a big deal," Roxy started to say, making David wonder what was going on since he had never seen Roxy Doyle beat around the bush ever."Okay," he said, looking suspicious at what was coming next."See; The thing is, Emily has called me three times today because she is doing this play at day camp, and; uh; she keeps asking if you'll come.""Oh," said David in surprise, not expecting this at all."As I said, don't feel obligated or anything I just had to ask;" Roxy said, expecting him to decline."No; I mean, it's fine I'd love to go." David said with casual resolve."Are you sure? We aren't talking a Broadway musical here.""I get it. It's fine. I wouldn't want to let Emily down.""You wouldn't be the first;" she said under her breath."Excuse me?" He inquired."Never mind. It's at 6:30; I'll text you the address."Emily's day camp was actually in an old Methodist church near the apartment complex where she and Roxy resided. David arrived a bit late, having gotten caught in traffic, but he found that Roxy had saved him a seat right alongside a rather rotund, older, gray-haired woman who turned out to be Emily's regular babysitter, Mrs. Foster."Emily speaks very highly of you," whispered Mrs. Foster as she shook his hand."Thanks," David replied taking a seat.The skit was short and sweet, based on a parable that David remembered well from school about a lion with a thorn in its paw. Emily played the part of the girl that removed the thorn and did it with quite a bit of talent as far as David was concerned. He clapped along with the other parents while the kids took their bows like real professionals.Afterward, the adults filed outside to await the release of their children."I think you have a future Academy Award winner on your hands," said David."I should be so lucky. If she makes it big, maybe she will buy me a house, and I can retire," said Roxy.The smile that adorned her face fell a second later, though; when something over David's shoulder drew her gaze."Shit;" she grumbled, moving to the parking lot."What?" asked David, but she was already passed him with a head of steam up."Todd," said Mrs. Foster from where she stood nearby."Her ex-husband? Todd?""The same. Roxy told him about this, and he said he would come, but he is late as usual. At least he showed up at all."David took a few steps closer, not wanting to look like he was trying to eavesdrop, but dying of curiosity at the same time. He got close enough he could make out their conversation."I said 6:30, Todd. Did they not have a clock in the bar?""Hey! I just got stuck at work, that's all. Totally not my fault.""Bullshit! I can smell the beer on you from here.""Okay, so I stopped for one lousy beer to take the edge off a long day. It's not the end of the world, so don't make a Federal case out of it.""One beer, Todd! I think it was a lot more than one, and anyway, you missed the whole damn thing.""What? Huh? I guess it took longer than I thought, but at most, it was two beers okay? Where is Emily? I want to see her.""Not when you've been drinking. I've told you that before!""Give me a break! You don't have to be a bitch every day of your life, you know!"David felt a bolt of anger shoot through him, and before he even realized he was going to do it, he was by Roxy's side facing her ex-husband. Todd was shorter than him by a good four inches, but broader across the chest with tattoos adorning both arms and reeking of cheap malt liquor."Is there a problem?" he asked, glaring at the shorter man."It's fine, David," said Roxy in a tight voice."Who the Hell is this, Roxy?""This is David. We work together."Todd looked him up and down then turned his head to spit a gob of phlegm onto the pavement, "Jesus, Roxy, you dating grade school kids now?"David started to snap a comeback, but Roxy beat him to it."Let me tell you something! This kid is already more of a man than you'll ever be, Todd. At least he was here for your daughter, which is more than I can say for you!""Whatever; Take some advice, Kid. Enjoy the tits and then run. She'll make your life Hell if you stick around too long."It ended up being David that had to hold Roxy back as she tried to kick Todd who beat a hasty retreat, jumping on his motorcycle and roaring off in a cloud of exhaust."Easy there, Tyson. I think your opponent has left the ring," said David as he let her go."Mother Fucker!"She turned a complete circle in place, finally shaking her shoulders and groaning in defeat."Man! I don't know what I ever saw in that prick!""Couldn't have been his winning personality," deadpanned David.Roxy looked at him, still huffing and puffing in anger, then let out a laugh shaking her head."Come on! Let's get some ice cream! I need a sugar fix!"It had been a while since the last time David had been in a booth at Farley's Ice Cream Parlor, and this was nothing like the crowd he usually had with him. On one side of the table sat a seven-year-old girl with more ice cream on her face than in her mouth, while next to her was a large older woman making a massacre of her dessert. Next to him, Roxy was pressed almost uncomfortably close in the tiny booth, close enough he could feel the heat coming off her skin, and it made him more than a little nervous."Something wrong with your ice cream?" asked Roxy noticing that David had only taken a few bites."It's good. I'm just watching my weight. Got to protect this girlish figure," he said which sent Emily into a fit of giggles.Mrs. Foster and Roxy joined in, and soon, the whole table was filled with the sounds of their mirth.David looked around the restaurant, happy that it appeared they had arrived on a night when Heather wasn't working. He wasn't ready to deal with seeing her again at this point. The mall was reasonably quiet for a weeknight. They had the ice cream parlor mostly to themselves, although the food court across from them seemed to still be doing a brisk business. There were quite a few teenagers and college-age kids roaming around the multiple available food options; either standing around talking or sitting at the many open tables, sharing French fries and gossip in equal measure. As David looked on, the crowd parted near the sandwich shop, and his spoon stopped in mid-air."What's wrong," asked Roxy, "you having a brain-freeze?""Heather;" was all he said.The gap in the crowd had revealed a table where it seemed as if every friend David had, was sitting around. Right in the middle of the group sat Heather with Alex by her side, his arm draped around her shoulders."So that's the infamous Heather. I thought she'd be taller," commented Roxy."Whose Heather?" asked Mrs. Foster."His old girlfriend," said Roxy."Why, she's a lovely girl." Was Mrs. Foster's first impression."She cheated on him with another guy.""Dirty hussy;" amended Mrs. Foster."You should go say hello," counseled Roxy between bites of her desert."You're nuts! I don't want to talk to her." David protested."Come on, David. Be the bigger person. You guys were together for three years. Don't you at least want to see if she's pining for you?""How will I be able to tell?""You'll know. Just watch her eyes.""I don't know;" said David waffling, but Roxy elbowed him in the side, forcing him out of the booth."Fine; Fine," he said, fidgeting his hands together and trying to still his racing heart."If this goes badly, I'm blaming you," said David as he moved off toward the food court.The closer he got to his group of friends, the more he thought this had been a horrible idea. But once they spotted him, there was no turning back."Hey Guys!" he said, stepping into their midst.

David is confronted by Roxy's ex.Based on a post by dark overlord 6, in 4 parts. Listen to the ► Podcast at Connected.The following week David was back at the plant, and discovering that his body was slowly acclimating itself to the earlier schedule since at least he hadn't fallen back to sleep in the car on the way. Roxy had them doing a file purge of all the old requisition forms that were more than three years in the past, and he was sitting cross-legged in front of a filing cabinet with piles of paper lying around him when she came to check on his progress."How is it that you guys haven't digitized any of this crap?" he asked, waving at the stacks."I've been bitching about that for years, but the company has other priorities I guess. Thanks for raising the parenting bar for me by the way.""Huh?" David looked up with a clueless face."All week long it's been, 'I want stories about dragons and princes,' every time I want that toot to go to bed! You know how much bullshit I've had to make up, off the top of my head?""Maybe I could write down some stories for you," offered David with a laugh."I should make you do that, but we have bigger fish to fry. Just keep purging, Paper Boy!"She left him to his work, and Thomas was kind enough to bring him another box from the storage closet brimming with old forms."Thanks;" moaned David unhappily."Anytime! I like to see a guy earning his keep. Think of it a ‘job security.'" said Thomas, with a grin that David instantly wanted to smack off his face.An hour later, cramps in both his legs forced him to take a break. Getting up off the floor for the first time all morning. He was making his way to the security door to visit the bathroom when a booming sound, loud enough to make his ears ring, broke the relative silence of the building; and seconds later the walls rattled as if a God-like hand was shaking it."Holy Crap! It's a fucking meltdown," thought David, seeing his whole short life pass before his eyes and wishing instantly that he had enjoyed way more sex than he had. His brain locked and he couldn't remember a single thing from the safety video he had been shown in orientation. So he did the only thing he could think of, and dove under a nearby desk. As he sat there, shaking and contemplating just how painful death by radiation exposure must be, Roxy's head suddenly appeared from above."So it's loud noises; and spiders?" she asked."Didn't you hear that? Why aren't we evacuating?" asked David in a rush."We aren't evacuating because that wasn't the reactors, Bozo. They're purging excess steam off the turbines. Didn't you watch the orientation video?""I might have fallen asleep during it," admitted David sheepishly."Oh, for Heaven's sake; Just get out from under there before someone sees you cowering like a whipped dog. You keep this up, and they're going to quit calling you 'Spider-Man,' and start calling you, 'Duck and Cover,'""They call me Spider-Man?" ask David to Roxy's back."Don't worry. I wouldn't let them stencil it on your hard hat," she said over her shoulder.David felt a hand on his arm, and he turned to look at Thomas."Hey! 'Duck and Cover,' want me to bring you another box?""This day just keeps getting better;" muttered David as he shrugged off the hand and went in search of the restroom.Thankfully, the afternoon that followed was free of embarrassing moments, and the approach of the final whistle was a welcome relief. David had placed the last of the file boxes back in the closet, the contents much reduced in size from when he had started, when Roxy came walking up, looking slightly uncomfortable."David; I was wondering if I could ask you another favor?""Uh; Yeah, sure.""Feel free to say 'No,' it isn't a big deal," Roxy started to say, making David wonder what was going on since he had never seen Roxy Doyle beat around the bush ever."Okay," he said, looking suspicious at what was coming next."See; The thing is, Emily has called me three times today because she is doing this play at day camp, and; uh; she keeps asking if you'll come.""Oh," said David in surprise, not expecting this at all."As I said, don't feel obligated or anything I just had to ask;" Roxy said, expecting him to decline."No; I mean, it's fine I'd love to go." David said with casual resolve."Are you sure? We aren't talking a Broadway musical here.""I get it. It's fine. I wouldn't want to let Emily down.""You wouldn't be the first;" she said under her breath."Excuse me?" He inquired."Never mind. It's at 6:30; I'll text you the address."Emily's day camp was actually in an old Methodist church near the apartment complex where she and Roxy resided. David arrived a bit late, having gotten caught in traffic, but he found that Roxy had saved him a seat right alongside a rather rotund, older, gray-haired woman who turned out to be Emily's regular babysitter, Mrs. Foster."Emily speaks very highly of you," whispered Mrs. Foster as she shook his hand."Thanks," David replied taking a seat.The skit was short and sweet, based on a parable that David remembered well from school about a lion with a thorn in its paw. Emily played the part of the girl that removed the thorn and did it with quite a bit of talent as far as David was concerned. He clapped along with the other parents while the kids took their bows like real professionals.Afterward, the adults filed outside to await the release of their children."I think you have a future Academy Award winner on your hands," said David."I should be so lucky. If she makes it big, maybe she will buy me a house, and I can retire," said Roxy.The smile that adorned her face fell a second later, though; when something over David's shoulder drew her gaze."Shit;" she grumbled, moving to the parking lot."What?" asked David, but she was already passed him with a head of steam up."Todd," said Mrs. Foster from where she stood nearby."Her ex-husband? Todd?""The same. Roxy told him about this, and he said he would come, but he is late as usual. At least he showed up at all."David took a few steps closer, not wanting to look like he was trying to eavesdrop, but dying of curiosity at the same time. He got close enough he could make out their conversation."I said 6:30, Todd. Did they not have a clock in the bar?""Hey! I just got stuck at work, that's all. Totally not my fault.""Bullshit! I can smell the beer on you from here.""Okay, so I stopped for one lousy beer to take the edge off a long day. It's not the end of the world, so don't make a Federal case out of it.""One beer, Todd! I think it was a lot more than one, and anyway, you missed the whole damn thing.""What? Huh? I guess it took longer than I thought, but at most, it was two beers okay? Where is Emily? I want to see her.""Not when you've been drinking. I've told you that before!""Give me a break! You don't have to be a bitch every day of your life, you know!"David felt a bolt of anger shoot through him, and before he even realized he was going to do it, he was by Roxy's side facing her ex-husband. Todd was shorter than him by a good four inches, but broader across the chest with tattoos adorning both arms and reeking of cheap malt liquor."Is there a problem?" he asked, glaring at the shorter man."It's fine, David," said Roxy in a tight voice."Who the Hell is this, Roxy?""This is David. We work together."Todd looked him up and down then turned his head to spit a gob of phlegm onto the pavement, "Jesus, Roxy, you dating grade school kids now?"David started to snap a comeback, but Roxy beat him to it."Let me tell you something! This kid is already more of a man than you'll ever be, Todd. At least he was here for your daughter, which is more than I can say for you!""Whatever; Take some advice, Kid. Enjoy the tits and then run. She'll make your life Hell if you stick around too long."It ended up being David that had to hold Roxy back as she tried to kick Todd who beat a hasty retreat, jumping on his motorcycle and roaring off in a cloud of exhaust."Easy there, Tyson. I think your opponent has left the ring," said David as he let her go."Mother Fucker!"She turned a complete circle in place, finally shaking her shoulders and groaning in defeat."Man! I don't know what I ever saw in that prick!""Couldn't have been his winning personality," deadpanned David.Roxy looked at him, still huffing and puffing in anger, then let out a laugh shaking her head."Come on! Let's get some ice cream! I need a sugar fix!"It had been a while since the last time David had been in a booth at Farley's Ice Cream Parlor, and this was nothing like the crowd he usually had with him. On one side of the table sat a seven-year-old girl with more ice cream on her face than in her mouth, while next to her was a large older woman making a massacre of her dessert. Next to him, Roxy was pressed almost uncomfortably close in the tiny booth, close enough he could feel the heat coming off her skin, and it made him more than a little nervous."Something wrong with your ice cream?" asked Roxy noticing that David had only taken a few bites."It's good. I'm just watching my weight. Got to protect this girlish figure," he said which sent Emily into a fit of giggles.Mrs. Foster and Roxy joined in, and soon, the whole table was filled with the sounds of their mirth.David looked around the restaurant, happy that it appeared they had arrived on a night when Heather wasn't working. He wasn't ready to deal with seeing her again at this point. The mall was reasonably quiet for a weeknight. They had the ice cream parlor mostly to themselves, although the food court across from them seemed to still be doing a brisk business. There were quite a few teenagers and college-age kids roaming around the multiple available food options; either standing around talking or sitting at the many open tables, sharing French fries and gossip in equal measure. As David looked on, the crowd parted near the sandwich shop, and his spoon stopped in mid-air."What's wrong," asked Roxy, "you having a brain-freeze?""Heather;" was all he said.The gap in the crowd had revealed a table where it seemed as if every friend David had, was sitting around. Right in the middle of the group sat Heather with Alex by her side, his arm draped around her shoulders."So that's the infamous Heather. I thought she'd be taller," commented Roxy."Whose Heather?" asked Mrs. Foster."His old girlfriend," said Roxy."Why, she's a lovely girl." Was Mrs. Foster's first impression."She cheated on him with another guy.""Dirty hussy;" amended Mrs. Foster."You should go say hello," counseled Roxy between bites of her desert."You're nuts! I don't want to talk to her." David protested."Come on, David. Be the bigger person. You guys were together for three years. Don't you at least want to see if she's pining for you?""How will I be able to tell?""You'll know. Just watch her eyes.""I don't know;" said David waffling, but Roxy elbowed him in the side, forcing him out of the booth."Fine; Fine," he said, fidgeting his hands together and trying to still his racing heart."If this goes badly, I'm blaming you," said David as he moved off toward the food court.The closer he got to his group of friends, the more he thought this had been a horrible idea. But once they spotted him, there was no turning back."Hey Guys!" he said, stepping into their midst.

Struggling to let go of a failed relationship.Based on a post by dark overlord 6, in 4 parts. Listen to the ► Podcast at Connected.The rest of the day, he spent thankfully inside; taking in and fulfilling requests for everything from paperweights to desk calendars. It was a surprisingly exhausting first day, and he fell asleep in the car on the way home. His dad shook him awake when they arrived, and he walked into the house in a daze, barely mustering the energy to eat dinner before he headed to his bedroom and collapsed on top of the covers. He was half dozing, even though it was scarcely 8:00 pm, when his phone rang."Yeah;" he grumbled into the receiver."David? You sound terrible, are you sick?"David sat up in bed, wiping at his eyes, heart racing at the sound of Heather's voice on the other side of the call, " No; Just tired. My dad got me a summer job at High Rock.""I heard. Chris told me. I guess that must be hard work.""You got that right," he replied, trying to put some life in his voice. He wondered if she was calling to tell him the thing with Alex had been a colossal mistake, and beg him to take her back. Of course, he would be kind about it after a suitable period of groveling, but it turned out that wasn't why she had called."David; I wanted to apologize for how things went down at the graduation party. I meant to tell you beforehand, but it was harder than I thought.""I can't imagine why? We were only together three years," replied David, not able to keep the anger out of his tone."Don't be this way, David. I was hoping we could still be friends.""Friends." David echoed her words in deadpan resolve.David had let the word roll around in his mouth, finding it tasted particularly bitter."Yeah; I'm working at Farley's Ice Cream in the mall, this summer. If you want to come by some time, I might be able to sneak you a free chocolate chip cone." she added, mentioning his favorite ice cream flavor."You trying to bribe me into being your buddy?"Heather grew quiet on the other end, before saying; "I can see you're not ready to be mature about this, so I'll let you go. I hope you can forgive me someday. I do want to be friends.""Doe's Alex want to be my friend too?" David inquired in mock sincerity."He's not as bad as you make him out. Maybe we could all hang out at Wave World sometime? Alex could get us in, free.""Alex is working at Wave World?" asked David, knowing employees could get two friends in free, on off days."Yeah; He's the head lifeguard at the wave pool."David felt a pang of jealous anger well up inside him. He had been the head lifeguard at the wave pool the last two summers. Alex had not only taken his girl but his cushy summer job, as well."Son of a bitch! I can tell you it will be a cold day in Hell before I take charity from Alex fucking Romero!""I'm going to let you go, David. Maybe we can talk later;"Heather broke the connection before he could say anything else, and as soon as her voice vanished, he felt instantly guilty for his outburst.David dropped the phone onto the bed."Just perfect;" he thought, wondering how this summer could get any worse.First Lesson.The following morning was even harder than the previous, and David wondered how anyone got used to waking up this early. He barely managed to make it into the car on time, and his dad gave him a dirty look as they pulled away. A lecture might have followed, something about accepting responsibility, but David was asleep before they hit the first stop sign at the end of the street. His dad roused him from his slumber when they got to the plant gate and dropped him off a short time later.Thankfully, Thomas had a pot of coffee going, and David managed to pull himself together enough to begin his day. The morning was filled with supply requests as well as the thrill of getting to inventory the facilities closet; where he got to take an accounting of every mop, broom, and box of toilet paper."Double check those boxes," threw in Roxy, "the vendor loves to short us a couple of rolls, and we don't need people wiping their asses on the furniture." Roxy had a strategic mastery of crude corollaries to counteract the visual reality that her smoking-hot body was too appealing for the male population to resist flirting with. She ‘cracked the whip' verbally, to keep the men focused on the tasks, not the tits."Right, Boss," said David, thinking this day couldn't end soon enough.Though he had discovered the first day, his cellphone service was mostly non-existent, he had determined he could sometimes get a signal if he went up to the second-floor break room and stood right next to the window. When he had an opportunity later that morning, he went straight there and tried to dial Heather hoping to apologize for the way their last conversation had turned out."Heather? Can you hear me!" he called into the phone.The connection was terrible and kept cutting in and out."David; David, is that you? I can barely hear you," came her distant voice."I just called to say I'm sorry.""What? You're breaking up really; bad.""Heather? I said, I'm sorry! Heather; Jesus," moaned David shaking his phone in frustration."I'm sorry! I still love you, and I'm sorry!" he said louder, leaning closer to the window.There was nothing but static now, and a second later the call dropped entirely. David was looking down at his phone, angry and sad when a shadow fell over him."You were supposed to be back from break five-minutes ago," said Roxy standing with her arms crossed."What? Oh; Sorry.""You say that a lot. It makes me wonder if you really mean it," observed Roxy.David's eyebrows knit together in confusion, not sure if Roxy meant ‘in this particular instance,' or had she been listening to his conversation."Look, I just needed to make a call," he added."I heard. You want to suck up to some piece of ass; do it on your own time, not the companies.""Heather is not a piece of ass," retorted David."Oh; Heather; So the piece of ass has a name? How wonderful; I'm sure you two can kiss and make up when you're not working.""I doubt it. She left me for a guy I hate.""Really? I would love to hear all about it, but if I wanted a teen soap opera, I would have stayed home and watched Nickelodeon, with my kid.""Wow; you could have a little compassion;" mumbled David under his breath as he tried to brush past his boss."Compassion? See how much of that you have when your husband comes home drunk for the umpteenth time, after losing his job; again! You know what; just get back to work!" yelled Roxy.David froze in place suddenly feeling ashamed at his outburst."Roxy; I didn't know about; I mean I know that must be;""Save it. Just get downstairs! We got a field inventory to do in the lay down yard."Roxy turned on her heel and marched out, leaving David red-faced behind.David had no idea what a "lay down" yard was. But he quickly got acquainted with the concept when he found himself facing row upon row of steel desks, stack three high on pallets, and covered with tarps. The massive collection seemed to stretch on for hundreds of yards and would have been impressive if he hadn't been sweating bullets in the burning desert heat."What is it we're doing out here again?" panted David."We have to check the serial numbers on all this crap before it gets removed from company inventory. This is all old shit that will be donated to charity.""Isn't that nice," said David wearily.He stood behind Roxy along with Thomas, and a pair of blue-hatted laborers who were there to help."Go around and untie the tarps on each pallet and check the serial numbers on the desks against what's on your clipboard," instructed Roxy.Not wanting to give her an excuse to get angry with him again, David wiped a good bit of sweat from his brow and moved off to the closest pile. He spent the next hour working his way along in the sweltering heat, thinking no amount of money was worth this misery. The second pallet he came to was a real struggle to uncover with the ropes that held the tarp in place dried from the sun, making undoing the knots a pain. When he flipped back the tarp to expose the first desk, a shadow darted from underneath, and David found himself face to face with the biggest spider he had ever seen.The hairy tarantula reared on its back legs waving its front ones in defiance, and David did what came naturally to a young man with an unnatural fear of spiders.The scream that followed brought everyone else running, and they discovered David crouched on top of the desk looking down at the pissed off arachnid."You're kidding me, right?" asked Roxy looking at her trembling employee."It came out of nowhere;" said David, his wide eyes not leaving the giant creature."You realize you outweigh that tarantula by more than a hundred and eighty pounds?" observed Roxy."It doesn't look intimidated to me," whispered David."She was probably nesting under there. If a giant were crouching on top of my babies, I'd be pissed too.""What do I do?" he said his tone laced with fear.Roxy's expression softened as she realized he was genuinely petrified, and she took a step toward him, drawing his gaze. Her daughter was afraid of spiders, and she was all too familiar with the look of terror on David's face."David; It's okay. I want you to get up and jump to me. It's going to be fine; "He nodded and slowly stood on the desk, his body shaking. It took him three tries, but at last, his feet left the desktop and he leapt over the spider to land on his feet, within in Roxy's arms. She held him, and for a brief instant, he felt her soft hands on his arms."You okay, Tiger?" she said, looking worriedly into his eyes."I'm; I'm fine; " he managed to croak out."Watch out, David! She's coming after you!" called Thomas, making David jump backward and stumble. The group of men burst out laughing, drawing an angry frown from Roxy."Knock it off, idiots! Get back to the inventory!"She guided David to the next row. "I'll take this pallet. You move onto to the next one okay?""Thanks," he said, blushing in embarrassment, "I'm sorry. I have a thing about spiders.""It's alright, David. Everyone is afraid of something," said Roxy patting him on the shoulder.He shook himself and walked off, taking one last look at the tarantula, which had calmed down now that he was moving away.The rest of the day went by without incident, and David was grateful when the final whistle blew, and he could go home and get the sweat cleaned off of himself. Much like the previous night, he fell asleep almost before his head hit the pillow, only to be pulled from his bed seemingly no time later by his dad who signaled to him that another morning was already upon him.Roxy took pity on him after the incident from the previous day, and left him to cover the supply window while she and Thomas went to finish the inventory in the lay down yard. It was a slow day, with just a handful of people coming by; and it seemed like forever before lunch arrived. David retrieved his lunch pail from the employee's locker room and walked over to the cafeteria to find a cool place to eat. As soon as he opened the lid, a big, shadowy looking thing dropped from the top. David leapt backward so quickly he caught his legs under the table, and he fell sprawling half under it as everyone around him broke into laughter."What's a matter? Did the big bad spider try to get you?" laughed one of the same men who had been on the inventory crew the day before, as he lifted the rubber spider from the table."Very funny;" groused David as he got back to his feet.The laughter continued as the massed group watched David jump back when the laborer waved the fake spider in his face. Ashamed of his fear, David grabbed his lunch pail and ran out of the building, where he stood almost hyperventilating on the walkway outside.He was bent over, trying to catch his breath when a truck pulled up right in front of him."You okay?" called Roxy from the cab.David straightened and walked over. "I'm fine.""Thomas tipped me off that the guys were going to pull a prank, so I thought I should drive over and check on you.""It's Okay" David said in his pathetic effort at denial of reality."You don't look okay. You look white as a sheet.""Seriously, I'm fine. Thanks for checking, but I'm just going to go eat in my office where it's safer.""Get in. I have a better idea."David got his lunch pail before piling into the passenger side of the truck."Where are we going?" he asked."Relax. I promise there won't be any spiders," she said.Roxy drove them halfway around the plant and out the rear gate which was usually used for freight deliveries. She followed a dirt road that ran off into the desert before turning off at a fo

Struggling to let go of a failed relationship.Based on a post by dark overlord 6, in 4 parts. Listen to the ► Podcast at Connected.The rest of the day, he spent thankfully inside; taking in and fulfilling requests for everything from paperweights to desk calendars. It was a surprisingly exhausting first day, and he fell asleep in the car on the way home. His dad shook him awake when they arrived, and he walked into the house in a daze, barely mustering the energy to eat dinner before he headed to his bedroom and collapsed on top of the covers. He was half dozing, even though it was scarcely 8:00 pm, when his phone rang."Yeah;" he grumbled into the receiver."David? You sound terrible, are you sick?"David sat up in bed, wiping at his eyes, heart racing at the sound of Heather's voice on the other side of the call, " No; Just tired. My dad got me a summer job at High Rock.""I heard. Chris told me. I guess that must be hard work.""You got that right," he replied, trying to put some life in his voice. He wondered if she was calling to tell him the thing with Alex had been a colossal mistake, and beg him to take her back. Of course, he would be kind about it after a suitable period of groveling, but it turned out that wasn't why she had called."David; I wanted to apologize for how things went down at the graduation party. I meant to tell you beforehand, but it was harder than I thought.""I can't imagine why? We were only together three years," replied David, not able to keep the anger out of his tone."Don't be this way, David. I was hoping we could still be friends.""Friends." David echoed her words in deadpan resolve.David had let the word roll around in his mouth, finding it tasted particularly bitter."Yeah; I'm working at Farley's Ice Cream in the mall, this summer. If you want to come by some time, I might be able to sneak you a free chocolate chip cone." she added, mentioning his favorite ice cream flavor."You trying to bribe me into being your buddy?"Heather grew quiet on the other end, before saying; "I can see you're not ready to be mature about this, so I'll let you go. I hope you can forgive me someday. I do want to be friends.""Doe's Alex want to be my friend too?" David inquired in mock sincerity."He's not as bad as you make him out. Maybe we could all hang out at Wave World sometime? Alex could get us in, free.""Alex is working at Wave World?" asked David, knowing employees could get two friends in free, on off days."Yeah; He's the head lifeguard at the wave pool."David felt a pang of jealous anger well up inside him. He had been the head lifeguard at the wave pool the last two summers. Alex had not only taken his girl but his cushy summer job, as well."Son of a bitch! I can tell you it will be a cold day in Hell before I take charity from Alex fucking Romero!""I'm going to let you go, David. Maybe we can talk later;"Heather broke the connection before he could say anything else, and as soon as her voice vanished, he felt instantly guilty for his outburst.David dropped the phone onto the bed."Just perfect;" he thought, wondering how this summer could get any worse.First Lesson.The following morning was even harder than the previous, and David wondered how anyone got used to waking up this early. He barely managed to make it into the car on time, and his dad gave him a dirty look as they pulled away. A lecture might have followed, something about accepting responsibility, but David was asleep before they hit the first stop sign at the end of the street. His dad roused him from his slumber when they got to the plant gate and dropped him off a short time later.Thankfully, Thomas had a pot of coffee going, and David managed to pull himself together enough to begin his day. The morning was filled with supply requests as well as the thrill of getting to inventory the facilities closet; where he got to take an accounting of every mop, broom, and box of toilet paper."Double check those boxes," threw in Roxy, "the vendor loves to short us a couple of rolls, and we don't need people wiping their asses on the furniture." Roxy had a strategic mastery of crude corollaries to counteract the visual reality that her smoking-hot body was too appealing for the male population to resist flirting with. She ‘cracked the whip' verbally, to keep the men focused on the tasks, not the tits."Right, Boss," said David, thinking this day couldn't end soon enough.Though he had discovered the first day, his cellphone service was mostly non-existent, he had determined he could sometimes get a signal if he went up to the second-floor break room and stood right next to the window. When he had an opportunity later that morning, he went straight there and tried to dial Heather hoping to apologize for the way their last conversation had turned out."Heather? Can you hear me!" he called into the phone.The connection was terrible and kept cutting in and out."David; David, is that you? I can barely hear you," came her distant voice."I just called to say I'm sorry.""What? You're breaking up really; bad.""Heather? I said, I'm sorry! Heather; Jesus," moaned David shaking his phone in frustration."I'm sorry! I still love you, and I'm sorry!" he said louder, leaning closer to the window.There was nothing but static now, and a second later the call dropped entirely. David was looking down at his phone, angry and sad when a shadow fell over him."You were supposed to be back from break five-minutes ago," said Roxy standing with her arms crossed."What? Oh; Sorry.""You say that a lot. It makes me wonder if you really mean it," observed Roxy.David's eyebrows knit together in confusion, not sure if Roxy meant ‘in this particular instance,' or had she been listening to his conversation."Look, I just needed to make a call," he added."I heard. You want to suck up to some piece of ass; do it on your own time, not the companies.""Heather is not a piece of ass," retorted David."Oh; Heather; So the piece of ass has a name? How wonderful; I'm sure you two can kiss and make up when you're not working.""I doubt it. She left me for a guy I hate.""Really? I would love to hear all about it, but if I wanted a teen soap opera, I would have stayed home and watched Nickelodeon, with my kid.""Wow; you could have a little compassion;" mumbled David under his breath as he tried to brush past his boss."Compassion? See how much of that you have when your husband comes home drunk for the umpteenth time, after losing his job; again! You know what; just get back to work!" yelled Roxy.David froze in place suddenly feeling ashamed at his outburst."Roxy; I didn't know about; I mean I know that must be;""Save it. Just get downstairs! We got a field inventory to do in the lay down yard."Roxy turned on her heel and marched out, leaving David red-faced behind.David had no idea what a "lay down" yard was. But he quickly got acquainted with the concept when he found himself facing row upon row of steel desks, stack three high on pallets, and covered with tarps. The massive collection seemed to stretch on for hundreds of yards and would have been impressive if he hadn't been sweating bullets in the burning desert heat."What is it we're doing out here again?" panted David."We have to check the serial numbers on all this crap before it gets removed from company inventory. This is all old shit that will be donated to charity.""Isn't that nice," said David wearily.He stood behind Roxy along with Thomas, and a pair of blue-hatted laborers who were there to help."Go around and untie the tarps on each pallet and check the serial numbers on the desks against what's on your clipboard," instructed Roxy.Not wanting to give her an excuse to get angry with him again, David wiped a good bit of sweat from his brow and moved off to the closest pile. He spent the next hour working his way along in the sweltering heat, thinking no amount of money was worth this misery. The second pallet he came to was a real struggle to uncover with the ropes that held the tarp in place dried from the sun, making undoing the knots a pain. When he flipped back the tarp to expose the first desk, a shadow darted from underneath, and David found himself face to face with the biggest spider he had ever seen.The hairy tarantula reared on its back legs waving its front ones in defiance, and David did what came naturally to a young man with an unnatural fear of spiders.The scream that followed brought everyone else running, and they discovered David crouched on top of the desk looking down at the pissed off arachnid."You're kidding me, right?" asked Roxy looking at her trembling employee."It came out of nowhere;" said David, his wide eyes not leaving the giant creature."You realize you outweigh that tarantula by more than a hundred and eighty pounds?" observed Roxy."It doesn't look intimidated to me," whispered David."She was probably nesting under there. If a giant were crouching on top of my babies, I'd be pissed too.""What do I do?" he said his tone laced with fear.Roxy's expression softened as she realized he was genuinely petrified, and she took a step toward him, drawing his gaze. Her daughter was afraid of spiders, and she was all too familiar with the look of terror on David's face."David; It's okay. I want you to get up and jump to me. It's going to be fine; "He nodded and slowly stood on the desk, his body shaking. It took him three tries, but at last, his feet left the desktop and he leapt over the spider to land on his feet, within in Roxy's arms. She held him, and for a brief instant, he felt her soft hands on his arms."You okay, Tiger?" she said, looking worriedly into his eyes."I'm; I'm fine; " he managed to croak out."Watch out, David! She's coming after you!" called Thomas, making David jump backward and stumble. The group of men burst out laughing, drawing an angry frown from Roxy."Knock it off, idiots! Get back to the inventory!"She guided David to the next row. "I'll take this pallet. You move onto to the next one okay?""Thanks," he said, blushing in embarrassment, "I'm sorry. I have a thing about spiders.""It's alright, David. Everyone is afraid of something," said Roxy patting him on the shoulder.He shook himself and walked off, taking one last look at the tarantula, which had calmed down now that he was moving away.The rest of the day went by without incident, and David was grateful when the final whistle blew, and he could go home and get the sweat cleaned off of himself. Much like the previous night, he fell asleep almost before his head hit the pillow, only to be pulled from his bed seemingly no time later by his dad who signaled to him that another morning was already upon him.Roxy took pity on him after the incident from the previous day, and left him to cover the supply window while she and Thomas went to finish the inventory in the lay down yard. It was a slow day, with just a handful of people coming by; and it seemed like forever before lunch arrived. David retrieved his lunch pail from the employee's locker room and walked over to the cafeteria to find a cool place to eat. As soon as he opened the lid, a big, shadowy looking thing dropped from the top. David leapt backward so quickly he caught his legs under the table, and he fell sprawling half under it as everyone around him broke into laughter."What's a matter? Did the big bad spider try to get you?" laughed one of the same men who had been on the inventory crew the day before, as he lifted the rubber spider from the table."Very funny;" groused David as he got back to his feet.The laughter continued as the massed group watched David jump back when the laborer waved the fake spider in his face. Ashamed of his fear, David grabbed his lunch pail and ran out of the building, where he stood almost hyperventilating on the walkway outside.He was bent over, trying to catch his breath when a truck pulled up right in front of him."You okay?" called Roxy from the cab.David straightened and walked over. "I'm fine.""Thomas tipped me off that the guys were going to pull a prank, so I thought I should drive over and check on you.""It's Okay" David said in his pathetic effort at denial of reality."You don't look okay. You look white as a sheet.""Seriously, I'm fine. Thanks for checking, but I'm just going to go eat in my office where it's safer.""Get in. I have a better idea."David got his lunch pail before piling into the passenger side of the truck."Where are we going?" he asked."Relax. I promise there won't be any spiders," she said.Roxy drove them halfway around the plant and out the rear gate which was usually used for freight deliveries. She followed a dirt road that ran off into the desert before turning off at a fo

Passions flare between an older woman and her summer hire.Based on a post by dark overlord 6, in 4 parts. Listen to the ► Podcast at Connected. David's Disrupted LifeBeing awoken by his alarm clock was usually bad enough. When his mother got in on the act it was often decidedly worse. On this particular morning, David Cross enjoyed the distinct displeasure of both things happening. The first, because even though he had graduated the night prior, he had forgotten to switch the alarm off and it did its duty by trying to wake him for a non-existent school day. The latter, because he had left his cell phone sitting on the kitchen counter after staggering in from a graduation party at four a.m."David! This silly thing has rung at least four times in the last hour. Why don't you try answering it!" snapped his annoyed mother after she burst into his room unannounced."Jesus, Mom! What time is it?" he grumbled from beneath the covers."11:00 A.M., and high time you got up," she replied, tossing the phone onto his bed and going over to raise his blinds."Holy crap!" moaned David, who caught a burst of sunlight even through the sheet covering his eyes."David! Language!""Sorry; "His mother moved off, muttering to herself what sounded like a list of grocery items.David stayed in his bed and slowly lowered the covers. He drew in a breath as his eyes adjusted to the light feeling the urge to continue sleeping drain away. The phone on the bed seemed heavier than usual, as he lifted it in one hand just in time for it to ring loudly, nearly startling him into dropping it. The name flashing on the display said "Christopher Michaels," and David answered the call with a sigh."Good news travels fast," said David in a voice still tinged with exhaustion."So it's true," came the voice from the other side of the call.The voice belonged to one of his best friends, and the only one not to attend the party the previous night."How are you taking it?" Chris asked."How am I taking my girlfriend of almost three years, dumping me on graduation night, for the guy I hate the most on the planet? Gosh, I don't know, Chris, how do you think?""I know, that was seriously cold. She could have at least waited until after the party."David's heart, already seeming like a led weight in his chest, gained a few more ounces, sinking toward his feet."Yeah, I had to stand there and pretend like it wasn't bothering me while she and Alex hung all over each other."His mind drifted back to the festivities he had attended after graduation. Everything had started wonderfully. The party had been thrown at his friend Stacie's house. Her parents had a gigantic, multi-story dwelling just outside the city, and after the usual dull high school graduation ceremony at Randolph High, seemingly everyone he knew had gathered there to celebrate. It should have been the pinnacle of his young life, but within a short time of his arrival, the whole thing had gone down the tubes in a big way.He had been standing in Stacie's large backyard, talking to her about her plans for the summer, when his girlfriend, Heather Andrews, arrived. She was looking beautiful as always, her curly blond hair falling around a small, round face highlighted by a cute upturned nose, and brilliant blue eyes. They had been dating ever since hooking up for the first time the summer before their sophomore year."Excuse me, Stacie." he had said, politely stepping away from her and going over to join Heather on the back porch. Stacie's parents had set up several tables covered with snacks, and Heather stood by the bean dip, looking at him nervously as he approached."Hey, Gorgeous. Where have you been all my life?"This ridiculous come on would ordinarily have rated at least a small giggle from his usually gregarious girlfriend, but tonight she only frowned."David; I wanted to talk to you before the party, but you left the graduation so fast.""Sorry about that. Kevin needed a ride and wanted to stop by his parents so he could change before we came over here," he explained while moving closer, trying to get his arms around his girlfriend's waist even as she slipped back a step, avoiding his move."Is there something wrong?" he asked, not understanding her sudden skittishness around him."David, I wanted to tell you this in private, before the party. You know; I care a lot about you.""You love me. That's what you've always said," cut in David."I do love you, but.""But?" said David raising an eyebrow while a feeling of dread started to spread through his body."I; We; didn't mean for it to happen, but we got put on this project for Economics, and we started to spend so much time together. One thing led to another.""Wait! Who are we talking about? Did you meet someone else? What's going on here?""David; I."Before Heather could explain further, a third person joined them on the porch. He was taller than David by a couple of inches, which was saying something because David himself was six-foot-one. The other boy had tight, curly black hair with a dark complexion, consistent with his Italian heritage; and an arrogant smile that David had considered knocking off his face more than once."I hope I'm not interrupting anything?""This is a private conversation, Alex," snapped David before Heather could answer.Alex Romero had been a teammate of David's on the Randolph High School swim team, but the two had never become friends. They had been rivals for years, competing for team captain, and for medals at events around the state. David had gotten the upper hand more often than not; much to Alex's displeasure. It didn't help matters that Alex came from a wealthy family and wasn't above flaunting his privilege. For his eighteenth birthday, his parents had bought him a Porsche. It was used, but still, it annoyed David that he had been forced to work to afford his clunker of a car, while Alex had his handed to him on a platter."Alex, would you give us a minute," said Heather in a placating tone."Sure, I'll be over here," he said with a grin.David's eyes grew wider as the other boy moved off."No! Please, for the love of God, Heather, tell me it's not Alex!""I'm sorry, David, like I said it just happened. You know, you've been so busy lately with your job and clubs and stuff. We've hardly seen each other for the past four months.""So this is all my fault? I told you I wasn't going to work this summer so we could spend more time together, but I needed to save money before then. Jesus, Heather! How come you didn't come to me before this and tell me you weren't happy?""I tried, but you always brushed me off with some excuse about how you would make more time for us, but then you never did.""So you jump into Alex's arms? We've been together for almost three years!""I know. I'm sorry, David. I don't know what to say. The heart wants what it wants.""Are you fucking kidding me! I can't believe you're falling back on the most cliché line in the book!"Alex was suddenly back at Heather's side, glaring at David."You need to stay cool, Cross. I don't want to see you yelling at Heather," he said menacingly."Oh! This is so classic. You can't beat me in the pool, so you snake my girlfriend behind my back," shouted David.The two boys glowered at each other while Heather looked around uncomfortably not sure how to diffuse the situation she had sparked."If you had been treating her right, she would still be your girlfriend," growled Alex."Fuck you, Romero.""I may not have beaten you in the pool, but I'm about to beat your ass on this porch!" said Alex tightly."Guys! Can't we discuss this inside." said Heather quietly with fear in her eyes.It looked as if the two young men were going to come to blows, but the crisis was averted when Stacie's father appeared on the porch alerted by some of the other kids that trouble was brewing."Everything okay out here?" asked the older man looking down at the two boys. Stacie's dad was a former Marine and very intimidating. David looked away, barely concealing his anger."Fine; just fine; " he grumbled."Heather and I were just going inside to try some of that delicious-looking cake your wife made," answered Alex slipping his arm around Heather's waist and guiding her toward the back door. All David could do was watch them go feeling helpless his fun graduation night sinking like the Titanic."It's a good thing Stacie's dad showed up. I can only imagine the carnage that was about to ensue," came Chris's voice jerking David back to the present."Yeah, I was so ready to knock that moron on his ass.""Well; Look at it this way you guys were probably going to break up by the end of the summer anyway. Heather is going out of state to college, and you're still planning on attending city college, right?""We could have made a long-distance thing work," offered David."Said every jilted college freshman ever; " replied Chris."Thanks for trying to make me feel better. I hope you don't plan to become a therapist because you suck at it.""I hear you, Man. I know you're hurting right now, but think about how much fun it could be to be a free agent this summer. We could hit Wave World and check out the babes!"David grimaced at the name. Wave World was about the only attraction worth attending in their small town, a local run water park that featured numerous slides and a lazy river as well as the wave pool that gave the park its name. David had worked there two previous summers. It was also the place he and Heather had hooked up for the first time, so it now held a bittersweet spot in his heart."You do know Wave World is where Heather and I met, right?""I was there, of course I know that, but it's also the best place to meet someone new.""I don't know, Chris. Let's see how the summer goes, and we'll fall off that bridge when we get there.""Don't let this thing with Heather taint things for you, David," cautioned his friend."I hear ya.""I have to go. Chin up, Buddy!""Right; " said David cutting the connection.He sighed tossing the phone aside, staring up at the ceiling."What a shitty way to start the summer," he grumbled under his breath.He got out of bed a short time later conscious of the fact that if he didn't, his mom was going to come looking for him again. A quick shower chased out some of the cobwebs, and he managed to force a smile onto his face as he joined his family for lunch.David's mom and dad were already at the table. His father, William Cross, Bill to his friends, was an accountant who worked at the High Rock nuclear plant outside of town. A tall man with thinning hair and a face that always seemed to be on the verge of a frown, David's dad watched his son pull up a chair while stirring the steaming bowl of stew in front of him."Got in kind of late last night," noted Bill Cross as his son settled himself."It was graduation night," replied David as if that summed up everything."Yeah; How was the party at Stacie's?""Fine," said David shoveling a large bite of stew into his mouth to preclude any follow-up questions about it."I thought you looked so handsome in your cap and gown last night. I can't wait to post the pictures," said David's mom, Joyce, as she joined them at the table.David winced at the thought. He had felt he looked particularly dorky in the outfit himself."Are you off today?" asked David not used to his dad home on a Friday."Doctors appointment this morning, but I'll probably take the rest of the day off and get the oil changed in the car. It's too far to drive into work this late."David nodded, knowing that the plant lay forty miles outside of town for safety reasons. It made for a long commute for his Dad, who usually left for work at the crack of dawn."Who was calling you all morning?" asked his mom."Chris; He didn't make the party last night, but wanted to hang out this weekend.""Best get some fun in this weekend before work starts up for you on Monday," said his dad as he lifted a glass of water to his lips."Right; I thought next week I might hit Wave World; Wait; What did you say? What work?""I have good news for you, Son. I got you a summer job, working as a paid intern in the Office Services department at the plant."David slowly lowered his spoon, "You did what? This is my last summer to hang out with my friends! How am I going to do that if I'm working forty miles out in the middle of nowhere?""It's time to grow up, David. You're eighteen and graduated from school. It's high time you got a taste of working a real job; not lounging in a chair watching girls in bikini's stroll by," said Bill Cross referring to David's usual summer employment as a lifeguard at Wave World."Dad! Come on! This isn't fair. You could have at least asked me what I wanted to do!""Like you would have said, 'Yes,' to working ten hours shifts from six a.m. to five p.m. all week for the summer? Not to mention you

Passions flare between an older woman and her summer hire.Based on a post by dark overlord 6, in 4 parts. Listen to the ► Podcast at Connected. David's Disrupted LifeBeing awoken by his alarm clock was usually bad enough. When his mother got in on the act it was often decidedly worse. On this particular morning, David Cross enjoyed the distinct displeasure of both things happening. The first, because even though he had graduated the night prior, he had forgotten to switch the alarm off and it did its duty by trying to wake him for a non-existent school day. The latter, because he had left his cell phone sitting on the kitchen counter after staggering in from a graduation party at four a.m."David! This silly thing has rung at least four times in the last hour. Why don't you try answering it!" snapped his annoyed mother after she burst into his room unannounced."Jesus, Mom! What time is it?" he grumbled from beneath the covers."11:00 A.M., and high time you got up," she replied, tossing the phone onto his bed and going over to raise his blinds."Holy crap!" moaned David, who caught a burst of sunlight even through the sheet covering his eyes."David! Language!""Sorry; "His mother moved off, muttering to herself what sounded like a list of grocery items.David stayed in his bed and slowly lowered the covers. He drew in a breath as his eyes adjusted to the light feeling the urge to continue sleeping drain away. The phone on the bed seemed heavier than usual, as he lifted it in one hand just in time for it to ring loudly, nearly startling him into dropping it. The name flashing on the display said "Christopher Michaels," and David answered the call with a sigh."Good news travels fast," said David in a voice still tinged with exhaustion."So it's true," came the voice from the other side of the call.The voice belonged to one of his best friends, and the only one not to attend the party the previous night."How are you taking it?" Chris asked."How am I taking my girlfriend of almost three years, dumping me on graduation night, for the guy I hate the most on the planet? Gosh, I don't know, Chris, how do you think?""I know, that was seriously cold. She could have at least waited until after the party."David's heart, already seeming like a led weight in his chest, gained a few more ounces, sinking toward his feet."Yeah, I had to stand there and pretend like it wasn't bothering me while she and Alex hung all over each other."His mind drifted back to the festivities he had attended after graduation. Everything had started wonderfully. The party had been thrown at his friend Stacie's house. Her parents had a gigantic, multi-story dwelling just outside the city, and after the usual dull high school graduation ceremony at Randolph High, seemingly everyone he knew had gathered there to celebrate. It should have been the pinnacle of his young life, but within a short time of his arrival, the whole thing had gone down the tubes in a big way.He had been standing in Stacie's large backyard, talking to her about her plans for the summer, when his girlfriend, Heather Andrews, arrived. She was looking beautiful as always, her curly blond hair falling around a small, round face highlighted by a cute upturned nose, and brilliant blue eyes. They had been dating ever since hooking up for the first time the summer before their sophomore year."Excuse me, Stacie." he had said, politely stepping away from her and going over to join Heather on the back porch. Stacie's parents had set up several tables covered with snacks, and Heather stood by the bean dip, looking at him nervously as he approached."Hey, Gorgeous. Where have you been all my life?"This ridiculous come on would ordinarily have rated at least a small giggle from his usually gregarious girlfriend, but tonight she only frowned."David; I wanted to talk to you before the party, but you left the graduation so fast.""Sorry about that. Kevin needed a ride and wanted to stop by his parents so he could change before we came over here," he explained while moving closer, trying to get his arms around his girlfriend's waist even as she slipped back a step, avoiding his move."Is there something wrong?" he asked, not understanding her sudden skittishness around him."David, I wanted to tell you this in private, before the party. You know; I care a lot about you.""You love me. That's what you've always said," cut in David."I do love you, but.""But?" said David raising an eyebrow while a feeling of dread started to spread through his body."I; We; didn't mean for it to happen, but we got put on this project for Economics, and we started to spend so much time together. One thing led to another.""Wait! Who are we talking about? Did you meet someone else? What's going on here?""David; I."Before Heather could explain further, a third person joined them on the porch. He was taller than David by a couple of inches, which was saying something because David himself was six-foot-one. The other boy had tight, curly black hair with a dark complexion, consistent with his Italian heritage; and an arrogant smile that David had considered knocking off his face more than once."I hope I'm not interrupting anything?""This is a private conversation, Alex," snapped David before Heather could answer.Alex Romero had been a teammate of David's on the Randolph High School swim team, but the two had never become friends. They had been rivals for years, competing for team captain, and for medals at events around the state. David had gotten the upper hand more often than not; much to Alex's displeasure. It didn't help matters that Alex came from a wealthy family and wasn't above flaunting his privilege. For his eighteenth birthday, his parents had bought him a Porsche. It was used, but still, it annoyed David that he had been forced to work to afford his clunker of a car, while Alex had his handed to him on a platter."Alex, would you give us a minute," said Heather in a placating tone."Sure, I'll be over here," he said with a grin.David's eyes grew wider as the other boy moved off."No! Please, for the love of God, Heather, tell me it's not Alex!""I'm sorry, David, like I said it just happened. You know, you've been so busy lately with your job and clubs and stuff. We've hardly seen each other for the past four months.""So this is all my fault? I told you I wasn't going to work this summer so we could spend more time together, but I needed to save money before then. Jesus, Heather! How come you didn't come to me before this and tell me you weren't happy?""I tried, but you always brushed me off with some excuse about how you would make more time for us, but then you never did.""So you jump into Alex's arms? We've been together for almost three years!""I know. I'm sorry, David. I don't know what to say. The heart wants what it wants.""Are you fucking kidding me! I can't believe you're falling back on the most cliché line in the book!"Alex was suddenly back at Heather's side, glaring at David."You need to stay cool, Cross. I don't want to see you yelling at Heather," he said menacingly."Oh! This is so classic. You can't beat me in the pool, so you snake my girlfriend behind my back," shouted David.The two boys glowered at each other while Heather looked around uncomfortably not sure how to diffuse the situation she had sparked."If you had been treating her right, she would still be your girlfriend," growled Alex."Fuck you, Romero.""I may not have beaten you in the pool, but I'm about to beat your ass on this porch!" said Alex tightly."Guys! Can't we discuss this inside." said Heather quietly with fear in her eyes.It looked as if the two young men were going to come to blows, but the crisis was averted when Stacie's father appeared on the porch alerted by some of the other kids that trouble was brewing."Everything okay out here?" asked the older man looking down at the two boys. Stacie's dad was a former Marine and very intimidating. David looked away, barely concealing his anger."Fine; just fine; " he grumbled."Heather and I were just going inside to try some of that delicious-looking cake your wife made," answered Alex slipping his arm around Heather's waist and guiding her toward the back door. All David could do was watch them go feeling helpless his fun graduation night sinking like the Titanic."It's a good thing Stacie's dad showed up. I can only imagine the carnage that was about to ensue," came Chris's voice jerking David back to the present."Yeah, I was so ready to knock that moron on his ass.""Well; Look at it this way you guys were probably going to break up by the end of the summer anyway. Heather is going out of state to college, and you're still planning on attending city college, right?""We could have made a long-distance thing work," offered David."Said every jilted college freshman ever; " replied Chris."Thanks for trying to make me feel better. I hope you don't plan to become a therapist because you suck at it.""I hear you, Man. I know you're hurting right now, but think about how much fun it could be to be a free agent this summer. We could hit Wave World and check out the babes!"David grimaced at the name. Wave World was about the only attraction worth attending in their small town, a local run water park that featured numerous slides and a lazy river as well as the wave pool that gave the park its name. David had worked there two previous summers. It was also the place he and Heather had hooked up for the first time, so it now held a bittersweet spot in his heart."You do know Wave World is where Heather and I met, right?""I was there, of course I know that, but it's also the best place to meet someone new.""I don't know, Chris. Let's see how the summer goes, and we'll fall off that bridge when we get there.""Don't let this thing with Heather taint things for you, David," cautioned his friend."I hear ya.""I have to go. Chin up, Buddy!""Right; " said David cutting the connection.He sighed tossing the phone aside, staring up at the ceiling."What a shitty way to start the summer," he grumbled under his breath.He got out of bed a short time later conscious of the fact that if he didn't, his mom was going to come looking for him again. A quick shower chased out some of the cobwebs, and he managed to force a smile onto his face as he joined his family for lunch.David's mom and dad were already at the table. His father, William Cross, Bill to his friends, was an accountant who worked at the High Rock nuclear plant outside of town. A tall man with thinning hair and a face that always seemed to be on the verge of a frown, David's dad watched his son pull up a chair while stirring the steaming bowl of stew in front of him."Got in kind of late last night," noted Bill Cross as his son settled himself."It was graduation night," replied David as if that summed up everything."Yeah; How was the party at Stacie's?""Fine," said David shoveling a large bite of stew into his mouth to preclude any follow-up questions about it."I thought you looked so handsome in your cap and gown last night. I can't wait to post the pictures," said David's mom, Joyce, as she joined them at the table.David winced at the thought. He had felt he looked particularly dorky in the outfit himself."Are you off today?" asked David not used to his dad home on a Friday."Doctors appointment this morning, but I'll probably take the rest of the day off and get the oil changed in the car. It's too far to drive into work this late."David nodded, knowing that the plant lay forty miles outside of town for safety reasons. It made for a long commute for his Dad, who usually left for work at the crack of dawn."Who was calling you all morning?" asked his mom."Chris; He didn't make the party last night, but wanted to hang out this weekend.""Best get some fun in this weekend before work starts up for you on Monday," said his dad as he lifted a glass of water to his lips."Right; I thought next week I might hit Wave World; Wait; What did you say? What work?""I have good news for you, Son. I got you a summer job, working as a paid intern in the Office Services department at the plant."David slowly lowered his spoon, "You did what? This is my last summer to hang out with my friends! How am I going to do that if I'm working forty miles out in the middle of nowhere?""It's time to grow up, David. You're eighteen and graduated from school. It's high time you got a taste of working a real job; not lounging in a chair watching girls in bikini's stroll by," said Bill Cross referring to David's usual summer employment as a lifeguard at Wave World."Dad! Come on! This isn't fair. You could have at least asked me what I wanted to do!""Like you would have said, 'Yes,' to working ten hours shifts from six a.m. to five p.m. all week for the summer? Not to mention you

Send us a textWhat if you could use your medical expertise differently?Today I sit down with Dr Amy Fogelman, Board-Certified and Harvard-trained Internist and the CEO and Founder of High Rock Experts. Dr Fogelman shares her journey through burnout and how it led her to recognise how she could use her medical expertise in more sustainable ways as a Medical Expert Witness and a business owner creating a unique practice matching medical experts with attorneys in need. As a bonus, we talk about common misconceptions around malpractice, and what we can do not only to reframe our thoughts about being sued, but also how we can bring our skills to provide unbiased medical expertise that helps patients and physicians both.During our conversation, Amy references “The Expert Witness Newsletter” on substack, find it here: https://expertwitness.substack.comMore about Amy:Amy G. Fogelman, MD is Board Certified in Internal Medicine with 20 years of experience seeing outpatients at Harvard-affiliated practices in the Boston area. She is a leading expert in primary care opioid policies and has been recognized for her clinical excellence and leadership at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH). She founded High Rock Experts, formerly MED LAW Consulting in 2018. High Rock's core mission is to provide ethical and credible expert reviews and they have matched over 500 and counting medical experts to attorneys across the United States. She took this one step further to also founded High Rock Academy for newer experts or those who want to hone their skills. She offers one-on-one coaching and convenient courses using her CBA framework where she shows you how to unlock the secrets to securing high-paying expert cases. Amy is also incredibly proud to be a dance mom!To connect with Dr Amy Fogelman, find her here:Website: https://highrockexperts.comInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/amyfogelmanmdFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/amyfogelmanmdLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/amyfogelmanmd Support the showTo learn more about my coaching practice and group offerings, head over to www.healthierforgood.com. I help Physicians and Allied Health Professional women to let go of toxic perfectionist and people-pleasing habits that leave them frustrated and exhausted. If you are ready to learn skills that help you set boundaries and prioritize yourself, without becoming a cynical a-hole, come work with me.

BEST SHOW BESTS! In this classic clip, Tom talks to DAVEY FROM NEWBRIDGE HIGH about the controversial ROCK & POP CONCERT! (Originally aired March 1st, 2017) New to the Best Show? Check out Best Show Bests, the greatest hits of The Best Show! Available every Friday on your podcast app. SUPPORT THE BEST SHOW ON PATREON! WEEKLY BONUS EPISODES & VIDEO EPISODES! https://www.patreon.com/TheBestShow WATCH THE BEST SHOW LIVE EVERY TUESDAY NIGHT 6PM PT ON TWITCH https://www.twitch.tv/bestshow4life FOLLOW THE BEST SHOW: https://twitter.com/bestshow4life https://instagram.com/bestshow4life https://tiktok.com/@bestshow4life https://www.youtube.com/bestshow4life THE BEST SHOW IS A FOREVER DOG PODCAST https://thebestshow.net https://foreverdogpodcasts.com/podcasts/the-best-show HEARD IT ON THE BEST SHOW PLAYLIST https://open.spotify.com/playlist/2XIpICdeecaBIC2kBLUpKL?si=07ccc339d9d84267 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In Episode 6, co-hosts Thomas Boomhower and Mark Gustavson are in the Village of Catskill for a conversation with Michael Moy and Joe Snaido – the co-owners of High Rock Home at Joe's Garage on Main Street. They discuss how Joe and Michael found their way from high-profile careers in Manhattan to gaining work-life balance and following their dreams in Greene County. From building their forever home in the hamlet of East Durham, to renovating a legacy garage into an event space, they have pivoted to become essential members of the specialty retail community in Catskill. Have a listen, share with your friends, and don't forget to leave a thumbs up! For more information on who we are and what we do check us out on: Our Website https://www.investingreene.com/ Our Facebook https://www.facebook.com/GreeneCountyEDC Our Instagram https://www.instagram.com/greeneedc/ Extra Special Thank You to Michael & Joe! Visit their website at https://highrockhome.com/ Virtual Main Street Tours: https://www.buyingreene.com/virtual

Rick Mazur, President and CEO of Forum Energy Metals (TSX.V:FMC – OTCQB:FDCFF), joins us to provide an update on the Global Uranium option to earn-in to the Northwest Athabasca Joint Venture; partnered with NexGen, Cameco, and Orano in the Athabasca Basin of Saskatchewan.   We also dig into the value proposition at the Company's 8 other uranium exploration projects around the Athabasca Basin.    The Company currently holds a 62.2% beneficial interest in the Forum NexGen JV, which in turns holds a 69.95% beneficial interest in the Northwest Athabasca Joint Venture. Accordingly, the Company holds a 43.32% beneficial interest in the Northwest Athabasca Joint Venture.   Global has an initial right to acquire 51% of the Company's Interest by:   making staged payments to the Company totalling $225,000 by December 31, 2027; making staged issuances to the Company of a total of 1,000,000 shares of Global by December 31, 2027; and making staged payments to the Company equal to the amounts the Company would be entitled to contribute for exploration under the Northwest Athabasca Joint Venture on account of the 2025-2028 operating years totalling a minimum of $3,900,000 and up to a maximum of $9,000,000 to be applied to the corresponding cash calls, depending on the participation of the minority partners in the Northwest Athabasca Joint Venture in any approved exploration program. Forum will remain Operator of the Northwest Athabasca Joint Venture during the Initial Option period.   In addition to the work that will be going on at this project, we zoom out and give Rick the opportunity to unpack the opportunities and other JVs going on with a number of their other 8 projects around the Athabasca Basin. He highlights their 100% owned Wollaston Project, Costigan, and Maurice projects, and also a number of their JV projects like the Grease River, Fir Island Project, Highrock, Clearwater, and Henday Projects.   If you have questions for Rick on Forum Energy Metals, then please email them into us at either Fleck@kereport.com or Shad@kereport.com.   Click here to follow along with the recent news from Forum Energy Metals.

On this episode of Fishing the DMV, we get a Kerr Reservoir, High Rock Lake and Lake Norman fishing report with Travis Donaldson. Travis the past couple of years has won the North Carolina BFL on Kerr and followed and has gotten a 2nd place finish at High Rock!    Please support Fishing the DMV on Patreon!!!          Patreon: https://patreon.com/FishingtheDMVPodcastooPoll contest link down below: https://app.oopoll.com/zgpM/q7keug0a If you are interested in being on the show or a sponsorship opportunity, please reach out to me at fishingtheDMV@gmail.comHere are the links to Travis sponsors.  www.temperaturedesignhvac.comwww.trane.com www.mitsubishicomfort.comwww.customtacklesupply.com (Muffin Top Jigs)www.honeysucklehomesteadnc.com  Please checkout our Patreon Sponsors Jake's bait & Tackle website:                         http://www.jakesbaitandtackle.com/ Catoctin Creek Custom Rods: https://www.facebook.com/CatoctinCreekCustomRods Shallow Water Fishing Adventures: https://swfabaittackle.com/shop Tiger Crankbaits on Facebook!! https://www.facebook.com/tigercrankbaits Fishing the DMV Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/Arensbassin/?ref=pages_you_manage Fishing the DMV Instagram page: https://www.instagram.com/fishingthedmv/?utm_medium=copy_link   #bassfishing #fishingtheDMV #fishingtipsSupport the Show.

Psalm 61 Worksheet This is a simple Psalm of ________________________ and prayer A sweet opening ________________________ V. 1-2 Synonymous parallelism like that in verse 1 is a frequent device in Hebrew _______________. What do you think of when you think of God as a High Rock? Verse 2 led William O. Cushing to pen the hymn “Hiding in Thee.” O safe to the Rock that is Higher than I, My soul in its conflicts and sorrows would fly. The Lord is my Rock and my Fortress and my Deliverer. -Psalm 18:2 Faith in Jesus and living according to His words will be a rock-like _______________________ in the believer's life, getting us through the storms of life intact (Matthew 7:24-29). A precious ___________________________ V. 3-5 What 4 kinds of refuge does David compare God to in verses 3-4? Note the reflections of verse 3 lead to the ________________________ of verse 4! God is everywhere, but these words mean even more to those who intentionally ________________ near to God and sense Him raising His “wing” to let us underneath! Draw near to God, and He will draw near to you.” -James 4:8a David continues his testimony in the first person in verse 5, which is why I put it with verses 3-4 as testimony. Vows are serious commitments made to the Lord that we want to carry out by faith in Him and through the _____________________________ of the indwelling Holy Spirit. The Hebrew word for heritage is the word yerussa (H3425), and occurs 14 times in the Old Testament. It is translated as possession, inheritance, and heritage. It is used primarily of the Promised Land as _______________________'s possession. According to Ephesians 1:3, how has God blessed believers in Jesus Christ? With ________________________ spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ. A sweet ___________________________ V. 6-8 David led a hard life and then died when he was 70 years old (2 Sam. 5:4-5). That was a long life by their standards, but I think David has in mind __________________________ life, as in Psalm 23 – I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever! David asks for God's Hesed (mercy, steadfast love) and God's Emets (Truth, faithfulness) to be given him and ______________________ him. AHA! Here we see that one of David's vows was to daily ________________________ the Lord! May we make that one of ours as well!

Original Air Date: September 19, 1952Host: Andrew RhynesShow: Adventures of Wild Bill HickokPhone: (707) 98 OTRDW (6-8739) Stars:• Guy Madison (Hickok)• Andy Devine (Jingles) Special Guests:• Ed Max• Fred Shields• Harry Bartell• Howard McNear Producer:• Paul Pierce Writer:• Larry Hayes Music:• Dick Aurandt Exit music from: Roundup on the Prairie by Aaron Kenny https://bit.ly/3kTj0kK

In Highrock Cairn Park's serene domain,Halfway up where pathways wane,I roam, until the track I find,A hilly journey for heart and mind.Among the Garry oak, I tread,Where Esquimalt's rocks have stories spread.Lampson's tales echo through the air,As rail and trail guide me with care.Within this haven, Zone 2's embrace,Amidst daffodils, a gentle grace.The wind, a silent neighbor's call,In Highrock Cairn Park, I find my all.

Set in the fictional province of High Rock and parts of Hammerfell on the continent of Tamriel. The game's world is noted for its immense size, reputed to be one of the largest in any video game. The player is sent by Emperor Uriel Septim VII to the kingdom of Daggerfall to accomplish two main objectives: to free the ghost of the late King Lysandus from its earthly shackles and to recover an ancient artifact known as the Totem of Tiber Septim. Daggerfall features a massive open world to explore, with towns, dungeons, and a wilderness filled with various creatures and characters. Players can engage in quests, interact with NPCs, join guilds, and explore at their own pace. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Set in the fictional province of High Rock and parts of Hammerfell on the continent of Tamriel. The game's world is noted for its immense size, reputed to be one of the largest in any video game. The player is sent by Emperor Uriel Septim VII to the kingdom of Daggerfall to accomplish two main objectives: to free the ghost of the late King Lysandus from its earthly shackles and to recover an ancient artifact known as the Totem of Tiber Septim. Daggerfall features a massive open world to explore, with towns, dungeons, and a wilderness filled with various creatures and characters. Players can engage in quests, interact with NPCs, join guilds, and explore at their own pace. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fresh off the Bye Week, the Green Bay Packers laid an egg -- again -- as they fell to the lowly Denver Broncos 19-17 at Mile High Stadium. Six games into the season, the Packers look like one of the worst teams in the NFL. Simple as that. Marques recaps another ugly Packer Sunday with Andy Herman of the Pack-a-Day Podcast, plus some input from a frustrated fan base!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Passage: Psalm 61:1-4 WATCH THE VIDEO HERE: To learn more about Adelphi, visit us at: adelphibaptist.com

On this episode of Fishing the DMV, I have the opportunity to talk to Travis Donaldson. Travis has only been fishing for bass for a couple of years and only a couple of weeks ago won the North Carolina BFL on Kerr and followed it up with a 2nd place finish at High Rock! If you are interested in being on the show or a sponsorship opportunity, please reach out to me at fishingtheDMV@gmail.com Link Below is for the DMV Bronzeback Yak Challenge: https://www.facebook.com/groups/DMVBronzeback Here are the links to Travis sponsors.  www.temperaturedesignhvac.comwww.trane.com www.mitsubishicomfort.comwww.customtacklesupply.com (Muffin Top Jigs)www.honeysucklehomesteadnc.comPlaces you can listen to Fishing the DMV audio version:           https://www.buzzsprout.com/1893009 Fishing the DMV YouTube Channel:          https://youtu.be/n3c-CFvmpFg            Jake's bait & Tackle website:            http://www.jakesbaitandtackle.com/           Jake's bait & Tackle Facebook:          https://www.facebook.com/JakesBaitAndTackle/?ref=pages_you_manage                Fishing the DMV Facebook page:          https://www.facebook.com/Arensbassin/?ref=pages_you_manage                Fishing the DMV Instagram page:          https://www.instagram.com/fishingthedmv/?utm_medium=copy_link                      #fishing #FishingtheDMV #bassfishing 

On today's episode, DeQuiency and Anthony discuss: The best fast food menu options Texans can't play a full 60-minute game The AFC South is crap yet again Nathaniel Hackett is in the lead for "First Coach Fired" in his first year Is Lamar Jackson on the move? And more! Follow Anthony on Twitter at @anthony_elric and on Instagram at notelric Follow the show on Twitter at @288Pod Email the show at twoeightyeightpod@gmail.com --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/twoeightyeight/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/twoeightyeight/support

Accounting High (aka Sons of CPAs Podcast) Season 3 Episode 7 | Recorded March 7, 2022 Guest: Rachel Fisch Hosts: Jason Ackerman, CPA & Scott Scarano, EA Sponsor: Dark Horse CPAs - visit abetterway.cpa to learn more Welcome! Our guest today is the one, only and always Rachel Fisch. Rachel has over 20 years of experience in bookkeeping and accounting, with a number of those years running her own practice. She previously served as National Bookkeeping Lead for Deloitte and most recently was the Accountants Group Leader for Sage. She is also a dynamic speaker, and accounting vanguard, and presents at prestigious international conferences. 3 How Rachel got into accounting? Not intentionally ...? Shout out to Liz Mason and High Rock Accounting 5 The accounting trajectory Shout out to Winnipeg, Fisch Financial and FischBooks, AND FreshBooks 8 On NOT being lazy Shout out to John Garrett and Green Apple Slices 11 Best part of connecting with other accountants? Shout out to Accounting Salon 12 Mother Stories – Raising Adolescents 14 Rachel knows EV-ER-Y-BOD-Y! Shout out to Sage, QB, and Xero 16 The role at High Rock and in accounting – moving people forward 17 What challenges? 19 The Holy Grails of accounting Shout out to Hubdoc and Relay 21 Tax accounting in Canada Shout out to TaxCycle, Canada Revenue Agency 24 The implosion of a firm Shout out to the QuickBooks Training, QuickBooks Desktop, Peachtree, and Sage 50, Deloitte 30 Big Four bookkeeping foibles and mindset adjustments Shout out to MNP 34 Some woulda-coulda-shouldas when you're being bought out 37 Spiraling up (and down) at Sage and landing at High Rock Shout out to Jay Kimmelman and Digital CPA, and Megan Tarnow, and Mobius 42 From both sides now ... balancing user feedback and product dev 45 Build, buy or partner? 46 High points of High Rocking 49 Scott Unchaperoned – What Sesame Street character would you be? Shout out to Grover, Big Bird, and The Count 51 What chess piece are you? (Rachel = Knight) 54 On being remembered ... Shout out to Liz Mason, Megan Tarnow, Chris Geno, and anyone who doesn't know #TaxTwitter 62 Hackathon Talk Shout out to Earmark Accounting Podcast, Blake Oliver, David Leary, Peter Wen 64 Visions of a successful year Shout out to Rebel Rock Accounting Connect with Rachel: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachelfisch/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/Fischbooks --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/sonsofcpas/message

Small Group Questions 1) Who was in charge of your household when you were growing up? What happened when that person was challenged to do things differently? 2) Have you been a part of an organization that was resistant to change? Why was it so stubborn? Have you been a part of an organization that welcomed change and new ideas? What made that happen? 3) We often think it is those people who are resistant to change by new ideas from new people around us. But do you see that resistance in you sometimes? What do you think that stems from? 4) Pastor Ryan's sermon is similar to many sermons preached at Highrock over the last year. What is the common theme? Why is this message important? If outsiders and newcomers who are "different" from current Highrockers became a part of our churches and participated in leading our teams, would that make us different? How so? 5) One could say if you draw the Christian circle too big we lose our identity, and if we draw it too tight we exclude those Jesus would have included. How would you draw it?

Small-Group Questions 1) When you were a kid, how were disagreements settled in your group of friends? 2) When you are around political disagreements, in person or online (e.g. social media), what is normally the tenor of the conversation and the ability of people to hear each other? 3) What communication skills have you practiced -- or would like to practice -- to create understanding with people you disagree with? Is this easy or hard for you? 4) Highrock church allows for the expression of opposing views by committed Christians and values the humility needed to listen to each other. Does this frustrate you? 5) Sex is such a charged issue. Why do you think it is so hard to talk about sexual issues in church?

BONUS - Rebroadcast of Episode 65 of The Unique CPA ...and it is “pure vaporware” Randy and Scott have a great time talking about everything under the sun, from beer and other methods of “relaxation,” to one of the key tenets of The Unique CPA: The changing face of public accounting, which also happens to be a heavy focus of this show. Check out The Unique CPA Podcast at https://tri-merit.com/podcasts/ About the Guest Scott Scarano is the Owner and President of Padgett Business Services of Raleigh-Durham. He founded the Sons of CPAs podcast in 2021. Scott's “Why” is empowering all growth-minded entrepreneurs in his reach to thrive and prosper by approaching problems from a different perspective and analyzing solutions. Scott earned his B.B.A. in Accounting from Campbell University, graduating Summa Cum Laude. Upon graduation, he spent several years working as a staff accountant at local CPA firms in Durham, NC, when Scott discovered his passion for working with small businesses. He is a licensed Enrolled Agent and a certified QuickBooks ProAdvisor. Meet the Host Randy Crabtree, CPA co-founder and partner of Tri-Merit Specialty Tax Professionals, is a widely followed author, lecturer and podcast host for the accounting profession. Schaumberg, Illinois-based Tri-Merit is a niche professional services firm that specializes in helping CPAs and their clients benefit from R&D tax credits, cost segregation, the energy efficient commercial buildings deduction (179D), the energy efficient home credit (45L) and the employee retention credit (ERC). Prior to joining Tri-Merit, Crabtree was managing partner of a CPA firm in the greater Chicago area. He has more than 30 years of public accounting and tax consulting experience in a wide variety of industries, and has worked closely with top executives to help them optimize their tax planning strategies. all the shout outs Randy Crabtree, Nikole Mackenzie, John Garrett, Josh Lance, Kristen Keats, Terrell Turner, Blake Oliver, Jason Ackerman, Xero, Liz Mason, High Rock, Lil Wayne, GKUA, Byron Patrick, Botkeeper, Padgett, Jeff Phillips, Amanda Aguillard, Ignition, GoProposal, James Ashford, Ron Baker, Mike Michalowicz, Jody Grunden, Acuity, Matthew May, Kenji Kuramoto, Scott Scharf, Patti Scharf Important Links Sons of CPAs on Apple and Spotify Scott Scarano on Twitter Scott Scarano on LinkedIn --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/sonsofcpas/message

Liz Mason founder of High Rock Accounting joins the Podcast to discuss family life, business, career, accounting and the future for CPA's.

Discussion on the region High Rock. Hosted by Benjamin Jernigan.

Sign up to get free CPE for listening to this podcasthttps://earmarkcpe.comDownload the Earmark CPE App Apple: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/earmark-cpe/id1562599728Android: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.earmarkcpe.appConnect with Our Guests, Jay, and RachelJay KimelmanLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jkimelman The Digital CPA Website: https://thedigitalcpa.com/about-us/Rachel FischLinkedIn: https://ca.linkedin.com/in/rachelfischHigh Rock Accounting: https://highrock.co/Connect with Blake Oliver, CPALinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/blaketoliverTwitter: https://twitter.com/blaketoliver/

He's a racing champion, but until 2021, few knew of 24-year-old racing phenom Ernie Francis, Jr. This piqued the curiosity of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and co-host Mike Davis who welcome him to the table to learn about a racer that industry insiders can't talk enough about.Francis broke through with a big win in Tony Stewart and Ray Evernham's SRX Series (Superstar Racing Experience) at Indianapolis Raceway Park last summer. The win came against some of the best racers in motorsports and sent shockwaves across much of the sport. Who was this kid? Well, first off he's a seven-time Champion on the Trans-Am circuit. His recent success brought a call from motorsports legend Roger Penske, who tabbed him to be one of his up-and-coming stars. Francis details the call that changed his life and unexpectedly shifted his career path from stock cars to open-wheel racecars where he'll compete full-time for Force Indy in the 2022 Indy Lights Series. The goal? Building experience and a team capable of stepping up in a few years to compete in the Indianapolis 500.Francis' first opportunities in racing came with a lot less fanfare. As a child, he hung around and worked at his father's speed shop on the coast of Southern Florida. The family connection to speed took him from go-karts to his first racecar at the age of 13. From there, he honed his skills racing Mazda Miatas until the big decision to enter the Trans-Am Series. There, young Ernie blossomed, racing a beast of a racecar against some of the best road racers in America. He dipped his toes into the Stock Car oval-track world racing Late Models and K&N East races in NASCAR's diversity program too. But, it was the shot in SRX that put kid-Francis on the map.Where else would he race in 2022? Francis spilled the beans about his future with SRX.Before the show started, Dale and Mike chat about their recent trip to Daytona to watch racecars and promote vodka. From the High Rock party at the historic Streamline Hotel, to the ups and downs of the NASCAR Xfinity race, it was a trip full of surprises. None more surprising than the fun times had by family inside the racetrack. Dale reveals Amy and Isla's newfound love of the infield track experience. They also dive into the Great American race, its massive crowd, and the big-bad tangles that "Bad" Brad Keselowski was a part of.Sadly, it's Leah Vaughn's last show, which has all in DJD-land sad, but she brings it one last time for a wildly entertaining AskJr segment. From racecars losing wheels, to drive-shafts going through Dale Earnhardt's windshield, it's full of great moments. We also learn about the level of interest from Dale about space travel and, of all things, Chinchillas. Or was it a rabbit? To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

He's a racing champion, but until 2021, few knew of 24-year-old racing phenom Ernie Francis, Jr. This piqued the curiosity of Dale Earnhardt Jr. and co-host Mike Davis who welcome him to the table to learn about a racer that industry insiders can't talk enough about. Francis broke through with a big win in Tony Stewart and Ray Evernham's SRX Series (Superstar Racing Experience) at Indianapolis Raceway Park last summer. The win came against some of the best racers in motorsports and sent shockwaves across much of the sport. Who was this kid? Well, first off he's a seven-time Champion on the Trans-Am circuit. His recent success brought a call from motorsports legend Roger Penske, who tabbed him to be one of his up-and-coming stars. Francis details the call that changed his life and unexpectedly shifted his career path from stock cars to open-wheel racecars where he'll compete full-time for Force Indy in the 2022 Indy Lights Series. The goal? Building experience and a team capable of stepping up in a few years to compete in the Indianapolis 500. Francis' first opportunities in racing came with a lot less fanfare. As a child, he hung around and worked at his father's speed shop on the coast of Southern Florida. The family connection to speed took him from go-karts to his first racecar at the age of 13. From there, he honed his skills racing Mazda Miatas until the big decision to enter the Trans-Am Series. There, young Ernie blossomed, racing a beast of a racecar against some of the best road racers in America. He dipped his toes into the Stock Car oval-track world racing Late Models and K&N East races in NASCAR's diversity program too. But, it was the shot in SRX that put kid-Francis on the map. Where else would he race in 2022? Francis spilled the beans about his future with SRX. Before the show started, Dale and Mike chat about their recent trip to Daytona to watch racecars and promote vodka. From the High Rock party at the historic Streamline Hotel, to the ups and downs of the NASCAR Xfinity race, it was a trip full of surprises. None more surprising than the fun times had by family inside the racetrack. Dale reveals Amy and Isla's newfound love of the infield track experience. They also dive into the Great American race, its massive crowd, and the big-bad tangles that "Bad" Brad Keselowski was a part of. Sadly, it's Leah Vaughn's last show, which has all in DJD-land sad, but she brings it one last time for a wildly entertaining AskJr segment. From racecars losing wheels, to drive-shafts going through Dale Earnhardt's windshield, it's full of great moments. We also learn about the level of interest from Dale about space travel and, of all things, Chinchillas. Or was it a rabbit? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Rob and Rory are joined by Rachel Fisch, former National Bookkeeping lead at Deloitte and now Chief Global Development Officer for High Rock Accounting as they discuss the latest developments in the accounting profession. Learn why Rachel believes in the power of social media and how to utilize it to network and form deeper connections. Find out reasons why High Rock Accounting has been able to achieve, on average a 60% growth rate year over year for the last 8 years. Rachel also provides insight into company culture and the importance of humans, not technology, in providing a great customer experience. Lastly, get Rachel's thoughts on M&A activity, Private Equity's Involvement in accounting, and High Rock's plans for CPA World Domination! Don't forget to subscribe and rate our podcast! For accounting firms looking to grow their practice by adding Wealth Management Services, you can schedule a free consultation here! Connect on LinkedIn: Connect with Rachel Fisch: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rachelfisch/ Connect with Rob Santos: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rob-santos-afo/ Connect with Rory Henry: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rory-henry-0920b7150/ Learn more about Highrock Accounting: https://highrock.co/ Learn more about Arrowroot Family Office: https://www.arrowrootfamilyoffice.com/

My friend Mason and I sit down to talk about his rifle trip to Maryland's eastern shore and our plans for late season duck hunting. Hope you all enjoy!

Blueprint 2: The Amalgamation (feat. Brian Clare, CPA) recorded 8/2/2021 Brian Clare, CPA, CMA | Blueprint Accounting Entrepreneur | Cloud Technologist | Automation Specialist ***shout out to Chrisio at Liscio*** ***shout out to Ian at Karbon*** ***shout out to Ackerman at BNA*** ***shout out to Oracle, SAP, NetSuite, QBO, Xero, and Freshbooks*** 3 there's gotta be another cloud accounting GL platform to compete w/ Xero and QB… ***I guess…shout out to Sage*** ***shout out to Michael LySki*** 7 Partnership breakups, makeups, mergers, acquisitions, and amalgamations! 8 CA = Chartered Accountant, similar to CPA in the US 8 CMA = Certified Management Accountant 8 CGA = Certified General Accountant ***shout out to Scott Armstrong*** ***shout out to Richard Aprio Kopelman, CPA/CEO*** ***shout out to Jay-Z*** 10 What's in a name? 11 What's your firm's primary focus? 12 What's your philosophy on time? 16 How many employees do you have? ***shout out to Scott Scharf, CTO*** 17 What are your revenue goals? ***shout out to Christopher Leon, EA*** 19 Do you still do sales at your firm? 23 What happens when pricing services come up with your bookkeepers or accountants? 23 Why do we accept that a client will get mad about the price? 26 What's your current philosophy on Change Management? ***shout out to Accounting Salon*** ***shout out to Amanda Aguillard, CPA*** ***shout out to Kenji Kuramoto, CEO at Acuity*** ***shout out to Liz Mason, CPA at High Rock*** 28 A world buried by email 29 Time Blocking 30 How do we find time to do the things we used to before firms and families? 32 What did we do before iPhones and Social Media? 34 How do you do your SOPs or Standard Operating Procedures? ***shout out to Loom and Scribe*** ***shout out to Microsoft Teams*** 36 How do you guys handle digital security? ***shout out to Webroot*** 39 Do you have an email philosophy? ***shout out to Liscio*** ***shout out to Nayo Carter-Gray, EA, and takingyourfirmvirtual.heysummit.com*** 46 Let's talk about the Accounting Automations Workflows podcast! ***shout out to Heather Satterley, CPA*** ***shout out to Jay-Z*** --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/sonsofcpas/message

In this episode of Sneakers!, Amalia and Ellen discuss episodes thirteen and fourteen of Sneak Attack!: "Vince and the Zombies" and "A Clerical Error." Links:  Sneak Attack! Discord SA! Patreon Content (including notes and character sheets referenced in this episode)

Rachel Fisch, Chief Global Development Officer at High Rock Accounting, reached her role through a fearless approach to building partnerships, and nurturing her network.Rachel is the Chief Global Development Officer at High Rock Accounting, a rapidly growing firm with big aspirations. The way Rachel reached this role is the interesting part. A bookkeeper by trade, Rachel ran her own business early in her career but opportunity led her into a series of interesting roles. One common thread ties the opportunities together: her knack for networking, building relationships and asking questions.

On this episode, Chronicle Associate Editor Aaron VanTuyl, Editor-in-Chief Eric Schwartz and special guest Luke Kilgore draft their own NIMBY letter, help the county decide how to spend $15 million, and the High Rock fire lookout.

Big Mouth Evangelical Watching The Firm Adopting 11 Kids Today on The Pursuit: Dave Swaim   Dave is the Senior Pastor of Highrock Church in Arlington, Massachusetts and leads the Highrock network of churches, which is 10 churches all around the Boston area. He was born and raised in Boston and he now lives and pastors in Boston, but those two bookends of his life look and feel very different from each other. Dave's heart to live for God led him away from Boston, away from law school and away from the conventional family.      Show notes: Highrock Online website: highrockonline.org Highrock Online on Facebook: @highrockonline   Social for The Pursuit with Richard Lee: Featured on the Missio Alliance Podcast Network and at the SOLA Network Twitter - @thepursuitcast Instagram - @thepursuitcast Facebook - thepursuitcast Rate and Review on iTunes!  

"We are a following people and we have learned to follow you." Those who always follow learn only the shape of another's back

Born in the 80s, Jeffrey Dallet draws deep energy & inspiration from the folk music of earlier generations, and faithfully harnesses the folk movement, embellishing, transmuting, & evolving it in symbiosis with the genres of the past 50 years, all from the heights of Denver, Colorado. Jeffrey channels genuine passion & compassion through his songs, viewing the light & the dark with equal honesty.

This episode we are joined by Craig Borgland - CEO & Chairman of Eagle Pass Heliskiing & Highrock Resources.Craig graduated from the University of Calgary with a degree in applied energy economics and has built and sold numerous energy companies, including Market Energy, Landex Petroleum, Highrock Energy and Highrock Resources. A few of Craig's previous board positions include director of Shelter Bay Energy (Purchased by Crescent Point in 2010 for $1.1 billion), Catapult Environmental, Canadian Energy Insurance Reciprocal and Totem Drilling Ltd. He is also currently the Chairman of the Fresh Start Recovery Centre and a Director, Triland Energy.Expanding on his business interests in 2011, he also became Co-Owner of Eagle Pass Heliskiing located just outside of Revelstoke, British Columbia.His family is also active in the ski racing community and he is an avid cyclist.We sat down for a smooth cup of rose bros coffee and talked about building Eagle Pass & Highrock, demand side economics and what makes a great entrepreneur.Enjoy!Support the show

Sarah and Kendall get personal, Alex's therapist takes the stand, and a stranger testifies about finding Alex on her doorstep one week before High Rock.   Thank you to our sponsor BetterHelp! Get 10% off your first month by going to betterhelp.com/mysteria Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

If you like this episode, check out https://otrpodcasts.com for even more classic radio shows! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Sarah and I visit High Rock for ourselves, where a new realization makes the case even more baffling. The trial begins with testimony from Steven Moon and the EMT who first arrived on the scene. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices