Podcasts about inquisitive

Join four unlikely mouse-heroes named Bob on an epic quest to uncover the secret of the mouse town of Steves. As they hunt for clues across the magical, critter-filled world of the Fairwilds, can the Bobs save the Steves before it's too late? Maybe. The path is perilous and the world can be a dangerous place when you're just a little mouse. System: Mausritter by Losing Games CAST:  ➜GM: Artem Yatsunov (he/they) https://linktr.ee/artemdirectly ➜ Joey Nestra-West (He/Him) https://joeynestra-west.carrd.co/- Bob Hope (He/Him): Mouse, Leatherworker/Aspiring Hero, Just a Little Guy ➜ Cai Kagawa (he/they/she) https://estelofimladris.carrd.co- Bob'in Lure (he/they): Mouse, Raft Crew, Dreams of the Se(wer) ➜ Teri Gamble (they/them) https://linktr.ee/TheTeriGamble- (they/them): Mouse, Fungus Farmer, Wise ➜ Bill Roper (He/Him) https://billfreakinroper.carrd.co - Bob 303 (He/Him): Mouse, Likes pebbles, Inquisitive, Experiment(al) ◇ Visit https://www.happyjacks.org/starscape for a full list of this campaign's videos and podcasts. ◇ Follow Happy Jacks RPG on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or hang out with other tabletop roleplaying fans in our Discord community! ◇ Subscribe to our other podcast feeds! We have a weekly tabletop RPG talk show based on topics sent in from fans around the world, and a great collection of One-Shots if you prefer bite sized adventures. ◇ You can watch us on Youtube or Twitch! ◇ Keep us independent by becoming a Patreon! Our fantastic supporters let us play and say what we want instead of catering to companies for ad or sponsorship money. They are HEROES! https://patreon.com/happyjacksrpg Ⓒ2023 Happy Jacks RPG Network https://www.happyjacks.org

Highup hits the decks on #Seeingred with new music from Tiësto, Laidback Luke, Showtek,R3HAB, WUKONG, RayRay & Haus of Panda, Inquisitive and many more!

Listening may be the most powerful yet underutilized tool in our spiritual arsenal, particularly in a culture that prizes quick responses and winning arguments over deep understanding.Grab Pastor Brian Davies' new book! • Pastor Brian Davies introduces his book "Captivating Conversations: How Christians Can Reclaim the Lost Art of Listening" • Jesus modeled asking questions rather than simply giving answers, demonstrating that transformation happens through invitation, not instruction• The "OCI" approach—being Open, Curious, and Inquisitive—creates space for genuine dialogue and relationship• Leadership should mirror Christ's approach of "leading through" rather than "leading over" people• Asking good questions helps us understand the stories behind people's positions and creates bridges for meaningful conversation• When Christians focus more on ecclesiology than mission, we lose perspective on what matters most• Our posture toward fellow believers should prioritize unity in mission over critiquing differences in practiceSupport the showJoin the Lead Time Newsletter! (Weekly Updates and Upcoming Episodes)https://www.uniteleadership.org/lead-time-podcast#newsletterVisit uniteleadership.org

In this episode of “That Will Nevr Work,” Maurice Chisholm discusses the importance of starting where you are and building a solid foundation for scaling your business

Diplomatic Hell Hole.Book 3 in 18 parts, By FinalStand. Listen to the ► Podcast at Explicit Novels."Are we in the right place?" the stranger worried."I'm afraid so. Anais, you need to leave.""Not until you tell me what is going on here," she sizzled."She's not here to have sex, if that's what you worried about," I retorted. "Wait, are you here to have sex with me?""I barely know you.""That rarely stops me," I muttered."He's a master of bedroom antics," Pamela praised me. "He's pretty much at a loss at doing anything else.""Thanks Grandma," I griped."Your welcome, Grandson.""We, are here to meet someone," the stranger hedged."You came to the right place," Pamela preempted me. "He's definitely someone.""Fine, redo. I'm Cáel Nyilas," (deep breathe), "NOHIO, HCIESI-NDI, U HAUL, Magyarorszag es Erdely Hercege plus a bunch of other honorifics that have yet to be confirmed. I am single-handedly bringing back medievalism to the center of Europe and the Near East. The woman to my left is Pamela Pale, and she really is my bodyguard. The woman to my right is Sgt. Anais Saint-Amour, RCMP, my ex-lover and the person that needs to leave   right now.""I'm not sure I should leave at this moment," Anais shifted possessively. I had to recall earlier this morning, the part where we'd broken up by mutual consent. Yep. That had really happened. I had thought I was whittling down my current list of paramours. Why do the Goddesses hate me so?"Told you, she can't give up that cock," Pamela whispered."As you can see, I have limited control of my life," I told the strange woman. "I know you are here to meet somebody who isn't me. Now you know who I am. Who are you and your companions?""I'm Ms. Quincy.""Sorry; I'm on a first name basis with everyone I meet," I interrupted."What's your rank, Honey?" Pamela added."What makes you think,?""She doesn't think. That's what makes her so dangerous." I explained."Hey now," Pamela faux-complained."Okay. She's a fledgling telepath, or medium," I shrugged."Captain, Zelda Quincy.""In case you are mesmerized by her tits," Pamela tapped me, "she's packing some serious hardware.""One of those personal defense gizmos?" I leaned Pamela's way."Close, but no cigar. She's my kind of girl, big 'bang-bang', back-up at the small of her back and knife in her boot.""What!" Zelda gulped."She's his knife-fighting instructor," Anais answered drolly."Are you Special Forces?" Zelda regarded my mentor."Nah, I got kicked out for a consistent failure to observe even the loosest Rules Of Engagement. I'm a free-spirit.""Oh, you're a sniper," Zelda nodded."I like this one," Pamela smiled."Ah, thank you." Then, over her shoulder, "I think we are in the right place." Zelda entered the room, followed by a Hispanic panther of a man (kind of like a tanned, slightly shorter Chaz without the cool accent) wearing a long coat, and a Subcontinent-cast woman who looked at everyone as if she expected us to sprout fangs, or start quoting the Koran any second now. She obviously was a brain seconded to this mission very much against her will.The fourth person had that cagey 'when my lips move, I'm lying' look while seemingly unhappy with her current assignment. The heavy implication was that the lady was a career diplomat. Considering our current company and who we were talking to, she was State Department. She was in her late 30's or early 40's and giving off the sensation she had devoted so much to her career that she was starting to wonder if that was all that life had to offer.The fifth member was a military man clearly uncomfortable about what he was doing here, thus not a spook. His off-the-rack suit wasn't terrible, so he expected to socialize somewhat while performing his duties. He also looked like a man who expected other people to speak half-truths and obfuscated lies as easily as they breathed. Numbers three, four and five were dressed for the weather and unarmed.All of this meant they were good at what they did, though they probably didn't know the particulars of what was expected of them. They had their marching orders. Those orders were about to be made irrelevant in the company they would be keeping. The latter weren't the 'doing it by rote' kind of people they would normally be dealing with."I bet you she's a doctor," I murmured to Pamela, "she's with State and he's some sort of Foreign Service type.""I bet the first guy is Air Force," she countered."Like one of those Para-rescue guys?""No. More like one of those Battlefield Air Operations guys, I'm guessing," she corrected me."That guy?" I nodded to the final guy. "Pentagon wonk?""More likely he's one of those embassy guys. I'm going to take an educated leap here, Office of Military Cooperation, Mongolia?""That is pretty clever of you. Kazakhstan. Major Justin Colbert.""I bet some people in the White House, Pentagon and Langley are disappointed with you right now," I reasoned. His jaw grew tight."Don't worry, Major," Pamela grinned. "We consider that a good thing. We don't like the people in charge and have a low opinion of their opinion on just about everything, including their habit of blaming the blameless for their government's fuck ups.""Who are these people?" the first man whispered to Quincy."She's a telepath." That was Zelda"She's a psychic-medium." That was Anais."She can see through time." That was me. "Nice to meet you. Who are you?""Chris Diaz. Lieutenant Colonel, USAF.""Dr. Saira Yamin," the second woman introduced herself. "Asia Pacific Center for Security Studies. Are you the man from Johnston Island?""Why yes, yes I am," I beamed."The APCSS is in Waikiki, Hawaii," Pamela educated me. "Your arrival probably cost her some prime surfing time.""I was more interested in the fact that he survived a plane crash in a Category Four Cyclone," she admitted."Mother Nature hates me. No matter how hard I try, she refuses to kill me," I confessed. "My suffering is an endless source of amusement to that bitch.""That, that wasn't the helpful answer I was looking for," she stammered."So, Lt. Colonel Chris Diaz, you must be with JSOC, I have a deep and abiding respect for you guys. If you need something, just ask," I greeted him. "Captain Zelda, you are not with JSOC.""She's with the DCS ~ that is the Defense Clandestine Service," Pamela kept going. "Zelda, you love being in your uniform, you're proud, yet happy with the concept of dying in an unmarked grave for Constitution and Country. You are too old to have been in the first female class at Ranger School, so that means no 'in the field' JSOC for you. You've gotten around that stone wall by joining the US Defense Department's own little pack of killers.""Also, you felt it was necessary to bring a Benelli M4-11707. That's a close-in action shotgun, but a bit over-kill considering the paper-thin walls in this building. That tells me you are used to being in the kinds of places where such a tool is a necessity. Or in other words, since you think you are meeting a band of terrorists, you brought along your favorite toy.""Your personal weapon is a SIG Sauer P229R DAK in .357 which is a new weapon still under trial by the US Army and Air Force. Your boot dagger is ceramic so it will pass a cursory exam, or scan. You hate the idea of being trapped on a public aircraft weaponless. You have also given up killing power for a proper balance for throwing. I like a forward-thinking gal.""Air Force ~ you've recently come back from Asia, most likely Tibet. It shows in your breathing brought about by a close call with Altitude Sickness. The only reason for an Air Force guy to be here is because he's familiar with the Khanate military and you are not US Army, or Marine Corp Special Forces. I know the type.""You went with the MP5K in the standard 9mm, so you are more interested in sending bullets down range than looking into someone's face as you kill them. You may be a 'light' Colonel, which means you are almost somebody. What your higher-ups haven't appreciated is that our guests will respect you because they are like that ~ remembering past friends and comrades in arms. Of greater importance, you have Cáel's gratitude which will count for more than you currently believe."I pledged then and there to be as good as Pamela at determining that kind of stuff before I died. She had assured me it was as much a matter of psychology as eagle-eyed perception. People were often a type that gravitated to various forms of destruction, be they old school, or going for the latest gadget."I told you all that firepower was excessive," State softly chastised her associates (what they really were, not the underlings she saw them as)."So, you appeared to have forgotten to tell us your name," I regarded the State lass."Nisha Desai Biswal. I'm with the government.""Oh, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs, I've examined your website," I told her. It clearly pissed her off somewhat that I so swiftly disregarded her crude attempt at subtle manipulation."Hey. I've got some real enemies at State, so it pays to know who might be the next suit trying to cock me over," I explained. I had to prioritize. It would take some serious effort to convince Zelda to have a MFF three-way straight out the gate and she was definitely the hotter number."Major, you came here unarmed," Pamela noted. "That won't do. They expect you to be armed because you are a warrior, damn it. Cáel get him one of your Glock 22's.""Gotcha," I nodded. I went to my room, tipped away the false back to my closet (that Havenstone had installed recently so Odette wouldn't accidently fire off one of my weapons) and retrieved one of my spare Glocks, but not the one with the laser sight. Such over-the-top fancy gear would be inappropriate. I only gave him one mag. If he couldn't get the job done with 15 rounds, he wouldn't have a chance to reload.Mind you, I took two in a twin-rig shoulder holster and four 22 round magazines, because I tend to shoot two-handed which doesn't exactly give you a bullseye every time. I returned to our crowded living room, handed the Major his weaponry, and then directed the US group to the far side of the room (towards Timothy's bedroom. Saira and Nisha took the couch.Because this tiny space wasn't crowded enough, there was a knock at the door. I checked. It was Juanita, oh yeah, my real bodyguard."Listen up everybody," I announced to the room. "This is my other bodyguard, my official one. Her names is Juanita Leya Antonio Garza, she's from the Dominican Republic via Buenos Aires and she is armed, so don't freak out." I opened the door."What is going on?" Juanita hissed."I'm having a private meeting with a few heavily armed friends. The other side to this party hasn't arrived yet. Why don't you come in?" She came in."Why didn't you warn me?" she whispered her complaint."Long night, worse wake-up, needed to do some soul-searching. Pamela was looking after me, then this came up and I forgot. I apologize," I lowered my head in shame. Juanita was only trying to do the job she'd been entrusted with and by not thinking of her, I was making that so much harder.I made the introductions, first names only."Juanita, Anais, Pamela; please slip into the kitchenette," I suggested.Anais "Why?"Juanita "Where are you going to be?"Pamela "Sure. I'm starving. I'm going to raid the fridge.""Anais, because I need my faction in one place. Juanita, I will be refereeing this meeting, so I will have to remain in the living room, roughly six feet from you." It was really a small apartment. "Pamela, if it is edible, it isn't mine and you'll have to replace it."Great Caesar's Ghost! No wonder Big Wigs had their personal assistants handle this pre-meeting crap. I was on my last two fucking nerves and one of those was already stressed and tender. And the real reason for being here hadn't even arrived yet."Why am I in your faction?" Anais mulled over threateningly."Because you haven't walked out that door. There are going to be three sides to this meeting, not three plus Anais. That is the way it is going to be. Now, are you going to behave, or are Juanita and Pamela going to toss you out?""You are threatening me!""Finally catching on to that, aren't you, Sweetie?" Pamela chimed in."I'm only staying because I believe you are in trouble," Anais grumped."Why is she (Anais) here?" Nisha inquired heatedly. "This is supposed to be a very, very private encounter.""I know Anais. I don't know you. I trust Anais with my well-being despite the fact she has numerous reasons to distrust me. She's staying because she is a straight arrow. That's good enough for me.""But is she going to keep her mouth shut about what happens here today?" Nisha pressed."Anais, this is a clandestine meeting that isn't going to be recorded by anybody so, barring a crime being committed, you can never discuss this with anyone who isn't already in the room. Agreed?"Pause."I agree," she nodded. I really was going to have to fuck her again. Not today. Well, maybe not today; I had to keep my options open. Her investigator mind was going into overdrive. Give it a week and she'd be knocking on my door late one night. Inquisitive, truth-hungry dames are like that, trust me. Then it would be 'bask in my genius' sex. It had been a while since I'd experienced that, with Lady Yum-Yum.There was another knock at the door. I checked before Juanita could do the checking for me, in case someone was going to shoot me through the door. Fuck it. I was going to talk to Timothy about moving. Him, me and Odette. I couldn't give those two up. It was Kazak bookends. I opened up and invited them in. It turned out they had names besides Bookends #1 and #2, Nuro and Roman.Nuro (I think) checked out the rooms while Roman (I was pretty sure) kept an eye on my guests. I made introductions, first names only and specifying who was with who. Technically, they could trust my side because I was the Great Khan's brother and thus my servants were his servants. Technically.Iskender came next followed by OT. A woman I didn't know (sadly, not OT's daughter) came in behind him while the other two quintuplets stayed in the hallway. Iskender and I hugged."Ulı Khaan s yikti ağası," he smiled. That was 'Prince-something'. My Kazak was a bit rusty. He then whispered into my ear. "OT bows to you first. His title is Hongtaiji." What?"Ulı Khaan s yikti ağası," OT bowed."Hongtaiji Oyuun T m rbaatar," I bowed back. I remembered I had to rise first. It was an etiquette thing. In retrospect, Iskender had stretched the bounds of tradition by hugging me, his titular superior. "Welcome to my humble abode.""I thank you for your hospitality," he 'grinned'. His face wasn't made for that gesture so that faint gesture came across as rather unnatural.My mind finally finished translating what Iskender and OT had called me. It wasn't 'prince'. It was 'beloved brother of the Great Khan'. Mother fucker!"Wait," Justin, the military attach  guy muttered, "we are here to meet this guy?" indicating me."What do you mean?" Saira questioned."The title Mr. Nyilas was identified with means 'beloved brother of the Great Khaan'," he explained. "The Kazakhs don't go tossing honorifics like that around. This guy," again pointing at me, "is a really important somebody.""Thanks for dropping this grenade in my lap, OT," I joked. "I'll get you for this, and your little yak too.""Odette is going to be so miffed that she missed this," Pamela chuckled."Mr. Nyilas," Zelda began."Please, call me Cáel. It is how I roll.""Cáel, can I ask you a stupid question?""Go right ahead," Pamela snorted. "Cáel does stupid real well. It is a critical part of his skill set. It makes him adorable instead of annoying. Trust me, you'll learn that soon enough."Too much 'trust me' was flying around in a room where nobody trusted anybody."Thanks for that encouragement, Teach," I grumbled. "Ask away, Captain Zelda.""Why are you playing this game with us?""I wasn't. Until thirty seconds ago I was sure I was here totally as a spectator," I gripped. "My buddy," the word dripped with sarcasm, "Temujin likes dumping these kinds of surprises on me.""Did you mean what Ms. Pale said about you feeling you owed me?" Chris asked."Absolutely.""We need help defusing this Thailand crisis before a shooting war begins.""What do you suggest?""We want the Khanate to back down," Chris stated firmly."I thought we had agreed that I would spearhead this delegation," Nisha reminded Chris."I think the situation had evolved and we need a different approach," Chris insisted."You should listen to the Lieutenant Colonel," I advised. "He knows a whole lot more about what is going on than you do.""Why don't you explain it to us?" she began her weevil-ling."You are engaging in linguistic niceties with men who have bled together, Ms. Biswal," I instructed. "Not that Chris and I have bled on the same battlefield, we have shed blood in the same cause; and that cause has been bringing our two nations, the Khanate and the US, together. The Khanate owes Chris for his efforts on our behalf and we pay our debts.""How so?" Nisha asked."National Security stuff," I evaded. "If you don't know, you shouldn't know and you probably don't want to know. Suffice it to say, the Khanate is willing to listen to Lt. Colonel Diaz's request as a friend.""But he doesn't speak for the United States Government," she corrected."Why not?" I riposted. "He's dealt with the Khanate longer than you have. He has a clue about the mindset of their rank and file.""But does he know their leadership?" she persisted."I don't know. Chris, do you think you have a handle on me?""Are you really capable of talking for the Khanate government?" Nisha preempted Chris. What she left unsaid was 'are you culpable in their atrocities?'"Let's find out," I then looked over my shoulder. "Hongtaiji Oyuun T m rbaatar, will my words and wishes reach my brother's ear?""That is why I am here," he replied."Don't you have the authority to speak for your leader?" she grilled OT. Nisha was relentless trying to stay in the limelight. "Aren't you a diplomat?""There is no need to insult the man," Pamela snidely commented."I am one of many voices that provide information to the Great Khan. I am not his brother. Cáel Nyilas is and has already proved his familial affection by proposing Operation Funhouse and brought whole nations as gifts," OT schooled her. "He is gifted with both tactical and strategic insight as well as sharing the Great Khan's love for his people and his hopes for their eventual freedom.""I didn't think you were a soldier," Zelda looked me over."Oh no," I wove off that insinuation. "I've never been a real soldier and am unworthy of that distinction. I know quite a few who have earned that title and they scare the crap out of me. I mean, they go looking for trouble. In my case, trouble comes looking for me. I'm damn lucky to still be alive and that's the damn truth.""Bullshit," Pamela coughed."What was that, Artemisia?" I winked at her."Bitch," she laughed "My men have become women, and my women men. At least you didn't call me Cassandra.""Well, she's Greek (a deadly insult to all Amazons), but you could be her Evil Twin because everyone believes whatever you say.""Can we get down to business?" Chris inquired."Damn," Pamela shook her head. "They haven't been paying attention.""What does that mean?" Zelda griped."Iskender, you know what I'm talking about, don't you?" I asked."Not a clue, Exalted One," he stood there like a stone statue. Note, the Khanate contingent really were standing there like the Altai Mountains, doing nothing. You had to carefully examine them to see that they did indeed breathe and blink."Use small words," Pamela advised."You really are a rude misanthrope," Anais told Pamela."Do you know what's going on?" Pamela volleyed."No.""Then sit back and watch how the madness works," she snickered. "It is all you, Cáel.""Okay. One; how did Artemisia escape the battle of Salamis?" I began. Nothing."Oh," Justin nodded. "She rammed an allied ship to make the pursuing Athenians think she was an ally. What does that have to do with our current predicament?""Achieve your ends by using violence as a distraction," I sighed. "The Khanate will invade Thailand in," I looked to OT, "tomorrow?" He nodded."How does that help us?" Nisha complained."Second example, Cassandra. She saw the truth through all illusions and falsehoods and no one believed her. Now, reverse that."Pause."We are waiting," Saira finally joined the conversation. I could hear those little microprocessors inside her noggin firing electrons at light speed."We fight a phony war. The Khanate and their buddies invade in a lightning campaign that appears to be successful. Shit like attacking the opposition where they ain't. Things that look epic on CNN where some retired colonel, no offense...""None taken," Chris responded."Where some colonel talks about seizing resources, severed supply lines and encirclement. We, the Khanate, bomb shit like bridges and supply dumps, things with no civilians to get killed. On the downside, to make this work the Khanate needs to put some level of force into Bangkok.""That will get civilians killed," Nisha reminded me, unnecessarily."Civilians are getting killed right now by their own government. This time they will get a chance to strike back," I stated firmly. "The Thai protestors aren't cowards. They are just grossly outgunned. We can change that.""How does that help the United States?" Nisha queried."The US gets to come in and save the day," I sighed. "The US can t get there until the day after, so you don't look bad about letting the first 24 hours of brutality happen.""Oh," Zelda blinked."The US gets to end the fighting that the Khanate has no desire to continue. The US brings peace, while whomever takes over owes the Khanate. Both sides look good. Both sides claim victory. The President gets a second Nobel Peace Prize (psychic, aren't I?). The US gathers some regional allies like Malaysia, the ROC and the Philippines along with our Marines to ensure free and fair elections. The Khanate isn't seen to be backing down against the Titan of Western Civilization. They are working with them to bring about a better world.""Win-win," Saira nodded in agreement."The Khanate is still an autocratic tyranny," Nisha commented."As opposed to the People's Republic's oligarchical tyranny?" Chris countered."Agreed," Saira said. "I now think we should work with the Khanate to bring stability to Central Asia which which was impossible while those member nations were being squeezed between Russia, Europe, China and India.""What are you a doctor of?" I asked."I specialize in 'failed states', among other things," Saira grinned."This could still turn into one bloody cluster-fuck," Zelda mused."My peopled don't have the resources to devastate Thailand," OT finally spoke. "If you, the US, agrees to intervene on our timetable, you will have our thanks, off the record, of course.""How do we know this isn't some ruse to allow the Khanate to overthrow Thailand's existing government?" Justin questioned."You have my word," I replied. No one said anything for several heartbeats."Really?" Nisha balked."Mr. Nyilas, Cáel, do you give me the Great Khan's word?" Chris studied me intently."Without reservation," I answered. "For what you have done for us and more, the Great Khan will honor this deal. We and the Thai's will do the bleeding. You will get your accolades. We avoid a pointless clashing of forces, which is why we are all here today.""I will give you my written recommendation in a few hours," Saira told Nisha.Chris stepped forward to shake my hand. He was an alpha-type alright. I gave as good as I got. His eyes bore into mine, looking for a faltering of will."What did you do in Romania?""I got a lot of good men killed.""Okay.""Okay?" Nisha squawked. "A handshake, a pat on the back and the deals done? Since when did our democratic republic do business this way? He admitted he got men killed in Romania. What is to say this won't be Romania writ large?""Ms. Biswal, he told the truth. He got good men killed and he isn't happy about it. I would be worried if he claimed one bit of glory from that episode. He didn't.""Nisha," I took a deep breathe, "When you unleash men with weapons, nothing is assured. Maybe the Thai government will see the hate coming their way and back down. Maybe the people will resist the intrusion. Maybe the Khanate's forces will get slaughtered at the starting line. It isn't like they have enough time to deploy enough forces to win a protracted war.""What happens if the Khanate decides it won't go?" she continued."Then they get destroyed on the ground in a war of attrition," Chris answered for me. "He's right. They can't bring enough in the time allotted to completely overwhelm the roughly 120,000 members of the Royal Thai Army that have remained loyal to the regime.""In three days they will be out of fuel, shells, rockets and bullets. It is logistics, Ms. Biswal," Zelda piled it on. "The Khanate war-fighting systems are not NATO compatible. That means they can't simply capture more material as they penetrate the frontiers. If they overstay their welcome, we can launch missile strikes against their fuel depots. The combat devolves back to World War I and that's a style of war they can't afford to fight.""What about stopping the Khanate from invading in the first place?" Nisha wouldn't give up."Had the US acknowledged the Khanate, none of this would have happened, Ms. Biswal," I became snappish. "Neither superpower talked to the other until other commitments had been made.""If you think you can come in and start dictating Khanate policy, you are dreadfully mistaken. The US doesn't have the power, or the resolve," I glared at her. "Don't try convincing the Khanate that isn't the case. We know better.""You don't know what the US is capable of," she snapped back."Abandoning Iraq with a fractured pseudo-democratic process? Abandoning Afghanistan without destroying the Taliban? The Syrian Civil War? The Donbass Crisis? The collapse of Libya? Boko Haram? Somalia? Yemen? Exactly how has the US's power and resolve solved any of those issues?" I countered."Ms. Biswal," OT spoke again. "We are willing to create a desert and call it 'Peace'. Our enemies know that. Your unwillingness to do so is neither a strength nor a weakness. It is a hallmark of your society in the same way that 'Total War' is a hallmark of ours. We are more than willing to leave you to manage the Peace. Let us manage the War against the forces opposed to civilized discourse.""As ugly and disagreeable as it is, we are willing to keep creating pyramids of skulls on every street corner until either they learn their lesson, or we kill them all. Let us do that and you will have your global stability and reap the economic benefits and accolades of Pax Americana. We are not your enemy. We are precisely the ally you need to keep the peace and we will do that, if you let us.""To allow barbarism is to become barbarians," Saira mused."That is complete fiction," I scoffed. "The United States didn't become communist because it allied with the Soviet Union in World War II. Truman didn't become Stalin. The enemy of my enemy is my friend is older than recorded history.""It is the Carrot and the Stick on a Global basis," Justin agreed. "Listen to the gentle words of the West, or you will end up feeling the wrath of the East.""As long as the Khanate accepts the limitations of is role," Saira added, "this might work. Please understand there will be factions in the Western Democracies who will not accept that status quo. It is not in the nature of our societies to stifle dissent.""Is it possible to get any political concessions from the Khanate's leadership?" Justin requested. "A pledge to hold some level of democratic elections? A Constitution with some strong provisions to protect individual rights and liberties would be nice.""Justin, in case your bosses missed it, the Khanate is still at a state of war with the PRC," I shook my head. "With their limited experience with democratic government throughout most of the Khanate's territories, that would be madness.""With limited concessions to the Imperial State, we have not interfered with the politics of Albania, Armenia, Georgia and Turkey. We are never going to become a Western-style democracy. We have had limited rule by consensus long before White Men arrived in the Western Hemisphere," OT informed them."Discounting the Irish Monks, Vikings and Knights Templar," Pamela interjected."If you say so," OT gave a minuscule bow to Pamela. "Long before your nation was anything more than the scribbled history of a long-faded Greek city-state, we had meritocracies, oligarchies of senior statesmen & warriors, thinkers and religious leaders, and we had codified judicial moral equality into the political arena. We have a far superior record of religious and minority freedom, of genuine multi-culturalism plus a deeper understanding of the arts and crafts as a means of uniting disparate peoples. We find your claims of cultural superiority to be childish.""Oh, snap," I snickered. "You get'em, OT.""I bet the boys in Foggy Bottom felt that pimp-slap," Pamela agreed."I bet the bronzed skull of some Harvard dean just fell off its pedestal.""They are called 'busts'," Anais groaned. "With a name like that, how could you forget it?""So true," I concurred. "All this responsibility must have clouded my normally hedonistic vocabulary.""That doesn't change the fact that you have employed biological warfare and genocide in this current day and age," Justin pointed out."Tell that to our Native Americans," I snorted. "They are easy to find. They live in trailer parks in whatever blasted Hell Hole we stuck them in, or in their casinos where they are buying back their country, one rube at a time. Ask them if they've gotten over it.""We don't claim to be perfect," Justin insisted."No, we merely claim to have the only correct form of government, economic policy and schools of philosophical, political, scientific and educational thought," I pointed out."We definitely should revive ethical utilitarianism," Pamela slapped a fist into her palm. "Oh, and the guillotine. Work houses for orphans and grist mills for the disabled, and A Modest Proposal for those chronically unemployed and terminally homeless, yes, and,""Pamela, what is it with you today?" I snickered."It is nearly sunset,""Ah, and you haven't killed anyone yet.""You know how cranky I get when I don't get my daily dose of homicide.""Are you two done?" Anais frowned. She did that a lot around me."And you don't hand out Mini-Uzi's to your preschoolers," Pamela glowered. "What is wrong with you people?"Pause, waiting for that punch line that was never coming. See, it was more difficult to sense Pamela was an immediate threat to your health if you thought she was completely off her rocker."Hmm, well, on that note, ladies and gentlemen, I believe we have a deal. Chris and Justin, I will leave you with my loyal Iskender to work out the gory details. Who wants to grab dinner?" I inquired."Are you serious?" Nashi gasped."Oh yeah. I had the Russian invasion of Manchuria figured out in this amount of time and Manchuria is way bigger than Thailand." Was it? I didn't know. Geography was not one of those subjects which gets you laid."What do you have in mind?" Zelda inquired."Whatever you want."{1 am, Sunday, August 31st ~ 8 Days to go}"How did I end up in bed with you?" Zelda sighed happily, her body splayed halfway over mine and her head resting on my chest, listening to my heartbeat."You aren't the first girl to ask me that question."On the other side, Anais moaned in her sleep. Yeah, she was over me. Abso-fucking-lutely. If you recall, she'd try anything once. I convinced her the military babes were totally different than that Goth chick we'd blown the mind of back in Montreal.Zelda was with me because I had caught her in a lie. She claimed to be a lesbian when I first hit on her. She was adamant. I destroyed her with incontrovertible evidence.A) She hadn't scoped out Anais when she came in. A glance didn't count and Anais oozed sexy when she was angry, which was most of the time.B) She hadn't scoped out Juanita's figure when said worthy went to the kitchenette. I look for such things and Juanita has thighs to die for.C) When I told her she had a wicked sense of humor, she blushed. Honestly, lesbians rarely care about strange men complimenting their personalities.D) Then I double-downed by asking her if she preferred a shower, or bath. She said shower (because that's the butch thing to say). When I asked her 'when was the last time she'd had a bubble bath', she blushed again. Lesbians don't like it when a man imagines them naked. Straight chicks, unless you are a creepy, stalker guy, like it when men fantasize about them swathed in bubbles, thus semi-clothed, thus not creepy.E) In a final and fatal act of evasion, she asked a grumpy Anais what she liked about me. Anais was blunt."He can fucking hammer you all night, sneak in a romantic quickie in the shower, cook you a delicious breakfast then give you another round of mind-numbing intercourse up against the wall before you have to go to work. And still find the time and energy to fuck your neighbor."Woot!"So, this happens to you often?" she mused, it was a trap. She really wanted to know if I was an egotistical scumbag who took advantage of every woman I came across. At the same time, she wanted to know if I considered her a 'whoe' ~ a woman who gives up the goodies for free."Do you mean 'am I taking advantage of you'?" I replied."That is not what I asked," she persisted. That meant 'yes'."Let me see," I laid back and looked up at the ceiling. "I have a fiancée, six women I am close enough to to spend quality time with, a fuck-buddy who is a sweet girl and trusts me too much and a passel of ex-girlfriends who have found my infidelity to be reprehensible.""Six women?" she frowned."Four co-workers (Rhada, Oneida, Yasmin and Buffy), the girlfriend of a co-worker who dumped her in a very public fashion (Brooke) and that woman's friend (Libra). She was the wing-chick who was stuck with me on a quadruple-date and was underwhelmed with me when we first met."I didn't count my 'hook-ups' and I wasn't sure how to qualify Nicole."Ex's?""'No' is not a word in common usage in my vocabulary. I've dated a best friend's girl, a mother, sister and aunt of the same girlfriend, basically, I'm either highly immoral, incredibly loose, or a letch.""Don't you take responsibility for any of those, relationships?""Hell yeah," I tilted her chin up so that we could make eye-contact. "I've never blamed a woman for taking out her frustrations on my flesh, ran away from a screaming fit (Big Lie!), or blamed them for any failing in our relationship. It is always my fault because I can't stay loyal.""That's depressing," Zelda moped."Don't get me wrong. I don't find fault in any of the women I have spent time with. That is my problem, I find women fascinating; never boring, or bland. Quite frankly, it is a gift that I don't regret having. I may be a fuck-up, but I'm a fuck-up who will give you the very best attention.""Full of yourself, much?" her attitude shifted. I had short-circuited her fears; I was a cheater, I confessed to it without shame because I was inexorably drawn to her beauty, personality and charm. With Anais around, I couldn't claim to be solely enchanted with Zelda, so I had to think quickly on my feet. After all, Zelda was energetic and had great stamina."I promised you pleasure," I countered. "Did I deliver?""Yes, you are full of yourself," she slapped my stomach. I wasn't full of myself. I was a confident sex machine."Thank you.""Huh?""Wonderful sex, taking a chance with me, agreeing to a three-way, being awake after," I looked at the bed-table clock, "six hours.""I run five miles a day," she bragged."I try to have ten hours of sex a day," I teased. Zelda slapped my stomach again. Anais stirred."Do any women like you, for any reason beyond your cock?""I'm considered loyal where sex is not concerned, reliable and brave," I offered."What happened in Romania?""Have you ever been in combat?""I've been in violent confrontations, but not a true firefight," she admitted."Hmm,""Is it something that you can't relate?" she asked."No. You are a soldier so you probably know more about combat than I do. It was, not chaotic at all. I never lost perspective of what was going on despite the bullets flying around. The Romanian Captain in charge knew his stuff, directed his company well and all I had to do was figure out where the terrorist leader was.""What happened?" she perked up."I am here talking with you and he's in a morgue in Bucharest.""Oh," She wanted more."I have to live with the knowledge that I set all of that in motion, Zelda. I convinced the Romanians that they had to confront that terror group before they moved on to their next target, me.""I knew they would come after me and my friends, no matter where we were. Which would have ended up as a blood bath in some urban center. So I felt compelled to strike first. Based on information I provided, the Romanian Army sent two battalions, the 22nd and 24th, of the 6th Mountain Troops Brigade into battle.""It was a massacre," I remembered sadly."But you won," she tried to comfort me."Of the four companies involved in the battle, the Romanians suffered nearly two hundred dead and wounded. I hardly consider it anything other than a massacre. Yes, we won. Only three of the terrorists escaped. Their leader died. I don't think I've ever felt so hollow in my life," I finished."Forty percent losses, that is horrific," she crawled on top of me."The kicker is the Romanians sent some men of the 24th to hunt me down when I was kidnapped. A squad was in the group that rescued me and my companion from Johnston Island. I thought they would never want to deal with me ever again.""Don't be so hard on yourself. If they thought well enough of you to send their men out to rescue you, then you must have done right by them.""Chaz said something like that too," I felt sheepish and sleepy."Chaz? Who is she?"Honest to God, one day I want to find a girl who thinks I'm talking about another girl and asks if we can have a three-way, instead of trying to compare herself to this unknown person. Wait... I already had someone like that. Her name was Odette."Chaz is Color Sergeant Charles 'Chaz' Tomorrow of Her Majesty's SSR," I corrected her assumption."SSR? Those are some tough people. How do you know him?""Black Bag directives from the National Security Council, sworn to secrecy upon penalty of death, pinky-promise kind of stuff," I grinned. Maybe I wasn't all that sleepy after all."You really are a Man of Mystery," Zelda purred. She had truly exceptional stamina. "Maybe I can convince you to talk.""Maybe I can find another use for my tongue," I countered and off we went. Somewhere along the process, Anais woke up and joined in.It wasn't all fun and games. Anais' parting words were "You are a pig," then she sauntered out of my room and out of my life. Had she remembered to take her Serge with her, I would have bought the act. As it was,"Is she always so volatile?" Zelda remarked."Volatile? That's not her being volatile. That's Anais being affectionate. Volatile usually is accompanied by thrown objects and bodily harm," I sighed happily. Meeting her one more time couldn't be all that bad, could it? Zelda looked hungry so I shoved that thought to the back of my mind and got to work.That was the highlight of my Sunday. Zelda had to fly back to Washington D.C. and I had to go to work with JIKIT. It seemed that the Khanate and the US military were heading for a showdown. I unloaded all my Saturday's activities to the team and we got to work, no recriminations. I was the Khan's spiritual brother and sometimes that meant I had to do him favors.I asked Addison when she thought he would return the favor. She laughed, then smiled and told me that wasn't how it worked. He was a world leader now and I was merely his kooky kinsman that he would keep throwing problems at until one day I broke. Then it would be some other poor saps turn.Then she told me she was kidding and clearly the Great Khan thought the world of me. I chose to believe the second lie because it made me feel better, and it was promising to be a long weekend/start of the week.Note: Geopolitical DevelopmentsWhat follows are snippets of the Battle for Thailand that takes place late in the night of September 1stand continued into the early morning of September 3rd. If this does not interest you, you can rejoin Cáel's exploits in four pages)On the eve of battle, the Royal Thai High Command had decided to strip all but one armored unit from the 2nd Army in order to give the First Army's offensive against the rebels more of a punch. It's decision to strip the tank battalions from both their infantry divisions as well as the armored and one of the two mechanized regiments would prove to be disastrous. It was as if the leadership of the Royal Thai military were idiots.The least economically valuable part of the country was the northeast which the 2nd Army warded. They had severely underestimated the airlift capacity of the Khanate as well as the willingness of Laos and Cambodia to both use their armed forces in an invasion as well as their willingness to let Vietnamese troops cross their countries.That thinking had led the Thai military to adopt a 'forward defense' strategy, the desire to fight the enemy at the borders, as opposed to having stronger formations deeper within the country. Considering the relative weakness of the Cambodian and Laotian militaries, that policy had made sense:- The baseline Laotian and Cambodian tank was the T-54/55, a 1950's Soviet relic. The normal anti-tank capabilities in all Thai infantry formations was more than equal to such a threat.-Neither country had an air force worth worrying about.In contrast, the Khanate's primary tanks, the T-90SM and T-95 were resistant to most of what the Thai Army could throw at them, at least from the front. The seven hundred combat aircraft the Khanate and the Vietnamese were able to field was an equal catastrophe for the Thais. It greatly compensated for the relative small numbers of invaders.Finally, there was a fundamental misunderstanding of what the Alliance's goals were. Military logic dictated the destruction of Thailand's mobile force followed by the capture of Bangkok. As long as the Thai regime held the capital, it would remain the legitimate power in the country.Due to the altering political landscape, the Alliance's only option was to make the government 'look bad'. The loss of peripheral provinces, while of negligible immediate strategic value, looked great on the maps the world-wide media would be showing to their audiences. It would appear that the Thai army had failed to defend their country. That would (hopefully) make the Thai Third Army look like the legitimate authority in Thailand.That was the plan anyway, and you know what they say about battle plans and the enemy, right? H-hour was 4 am, September 1st.The commander of the Zuun stood up and waited to be recognized. The staff officer from the Yunnan Command pointed at him."Sir, why are we doing this? I am not afraid to fight for the Great Khan, but this action seems to be suicidal. We will be far behind enemy's lines while our offensive force will be grossly under-equipped.""You will have to rely on our ability to supply you by air.""We only have supplies for two days of operations. What happens then?""We rely on the Americans to come and save us," the senior officer responded bitterly."Allah save us from allies," the young commander muttered. What else could he do?He was part of the 2nd Mountain Sultan Mehmet Tumen which had just arrived in Yunnan to replace the exhausted 1st Mountain Abu al-Ghazi Bahadur Tumen. His men were from Turkey, inexperienced in combat and using new equipment they were not familiar with. They would be working with a unit he had never worked with before, the 1st Airmobile Tauekel Khan Tumen, Kazaks, who would be seizing the small airport his men needed to land in.From there, they were to 'run amok'. That was the technical term for racing south down a highway in Central Thailand, attacking the headquarters of the 3rd Cavalry Division, an armored unit. Once that was accomplished, they were to attack the local police precinct. Provided they were still alive after that, they were to return to the air strip to resupply then they were to 'spread chaos' until they were finally hunted down by the vastly larger Thai division his 100 men would be fighting.Of course, there was the plan for the rebel Royal Thai Third Army to force their way through the larger frontline forces of the loyalist Royal Thai First Army and come to his rescue. How would the Thai troops respond when ordered to fight their fellow Thais? No one was sure. If there was any hope in this mission, it was the knowledge that several other Zuuns had the exact same mission in other areas of Thailand.  It was H-hour minus twenty-two.It was 11 o'clock in the evening when the general in charge of the Royal Thai 9th Infantry Division was woken up. The Marines were leaving. That was correct; the three Royal Thai regiments were heading west to Sattahip Naval Base, because they had been ordered to by the Commander-in-Chief of the Royal Thai Navy. It didn't take a rocket scientist to realize why this was going on.Seven hours earlier, the Royal Thai Army had seized all the Air Force bases in the 1st and 2nd Army districts as well as ordering the 4th Army to do the same thing (The Royal Thai Air Force had been trying to remain neutral in the upcoming civil war).Undoubtedly the navy had decided to make their assets less 'hijack-able'. A few phone calls later confirmed that most of the Navy had set sail for parts unknown and the naval air units at Ban Sattahip Air Base (U-Tapao International Airport) had also departed either out to sea, or to ports and bases in the South.He made a personal appeal to the commander of Marine Forces to no avail. They wanted no part of the upcoming struggle and advised the general to do the same. The general had other problems. The Royal Thai Marines were the frontline forces facing the southern border with Cambodia. He quickly reorganized his regiments, sending them to take the old Marine strongpoints to await further orders. Stopping the Marines never entered his mind.That was a bloodletting he wanted no part of. The last thing he did was inform his superiors, thus avoiding any stupid orders to the contrary. Suddenly the nebulous movements along the Cambodian border developed a haunting significance. He wondered how much longer he had before something happened.  It was H-hour minus five.At midnight a loyalist commander of a company of mechanized infantry in the 2nd Cavalry's 11th Battle Group (named after their axis of advance, Highway 11) decided to send a motorized section of his command forward to the advance position his battalion was to occupy come sunrise. Either later in the day, or tomorrow morning, the forces loyal to the regime would launch a coordinated assault against the rebels main supply center at Phitsanulok.He had a cot set up in his communications hut and had just nodded off when the radio squawked to life. His lieutenant in charge of the advance made a hurried report. They had encountered serious opposition in a confusing night action, then he went silent. The captain immediately swung into action. He put the rest of his men on alert, then contacted the neighboring Tank Battalion. He needed some armored support. He made a similar call to the attached artillery component.The Tank Battalions night officer quickly put a platoon of light tanks at his disposal. The artillery were ready for any fire mission he sent their way. Before the armor could arrive, the company commander found himself being called to the carpet by the Duty Officer at the 3rd Cavalry (two regiments of the 2nd Cav. had been attached to the 3rd's command) over his 'offensive' action and the relief mission was called off. What had happened to the patrol of 20 Royal Thai soldiers? He was ordered to wait until sunrise to find out.Little did anyone know, these were the first combat casualties of the upcoming rebel offensive. His patrol had stumbled across a battalion of mechanized troops arriving at their jump off point for the attack that was less than six hours from beginning. Neither the commander of the 11th Battle Group, the 3rd Cavalry Division, or First Army was informed that the enemy had already advanced twenty kilometers south of where they were supposed to be.  

"... you take people outdoors. They get into a resourceful state, you're able to explore more. You can use nature. I call it wayfinding, just like you use a compass and things like that. You can use the path you're on as a metaphor. And because you're outdoors, you can stay inquisitive longer." Murph    Murph and I explore the incredible benefits of movement, nature and human connection in leadership and decision-making. We discuss how walking and movement help unlock creativity, enhance decision-making and act as a natural "reset" for the brain​. Being outdoors helps people escape fixed thinking patterns and fosters deeper, more meaningful conversations​ during their shared experience. Murph also shares insights into the power of flow states and why human intelligence remains our greatest asset in a world increasingly dominated by artificial intelligence.    Murph is a philosophical adventurer and seasoned coach with a mission to regenerate our approach to community, learning, and personal growth through nature and adventure. With deep roots in outdoor pursuits and wilderness survival, Martin designs and leads bespoke adventure-based learning experiences that enhance wellbeing, resilience, and team performance. Drawing inspiration from philosophers like Aristotle, Martin offers Wild Coaching and Wisdom Walks, integrating ancient wisdom with modern strategies for personal and professional development. These immersive "walkshops" guide leaders and teams into the wild to unlock creativity, strengthen bonds, and foster a regenerative mindset. With a background in military training, environmental science, and outdoor leadership, Martin's life has been shaped by a deep connection to the outdoors. From early Himalayan explorations to jungle survival training, Martin now channels this wealth of experience into empowering others to harness the transformative power of adventure for mental health and wellbeing.   Connect with Murph: Through LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/martinmurphy-coach/    Through his website https://martinmurphy.coach/ And on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/stoicPILGRIMCOACH/   Resources Mentioned: Episode 42, Metamorphosis, with John Shinnick McKinsey Study on Flow States – Research showing executives in flow states are five times more effective​. Ian McGilchrist – Referenced for his work on the asymmetry of the brain Wayfinding by Michael Bond – Discussed in relation to how over-reliance on GPS is diminishing our natural navigational abilities and intelligence. The book explores the psychology of being lost and how it parallels problem-solving in the workplace​. Forest Bathing (Shinrin-Yoku, Japan) – Mentioned in relation to how walking in nature, particularly around trees, increases oxygen intake and contributes to mental well-being​ Stoicism – Murph discusses Stoicism as a philosophy that influenced his approach to resilience, mindset, and coaching. His Instagram handle, Stoic Pilgrim, reflects this blend of Stoic thought and the continuous journey of learning and self-improvement​.

Join four unlikely mouse-heroes named Bob on an epic quest to uncover the secret of the mouse town of Steves. As they hunt for clues across the magical, critter-filled world of the Fairwilds, can the Bobs save the Steves before it's too late? Maybe. The path is perilous and the world can be a dangerous place when you're just a little mouse. System: Mausritter by Losing Games CAST:  ➜GM: Artem Yatsunov (he/they) https://linktr.ee/artemdirectly ➜ Joey Nestra-West (He/Him) https://joeynestra-west.carrd.co/- Bob Hope (He/Him): Mouse, Leatherworker/Aspiring Hero, Just a Little Guy ➜ Cai Kagawa (he/they/she) https://estelofimladris.carrd.co- Bob'in Lure (he/they): Mouse, Raft Crew, Dreams of the Se(wer) ➜ Teri Gamble (they/them) https://linktr.ee/TheTeriGamble- (they/them): Mouse, Fungus Farmer, Wise ➜ Bill Roper (He/Him) https://billfreakinroper.carrd.co - Bob 303 (He/Him): Mouse, Likes pebbles, Inquisitive, Experiment(al) ◇ Visit https://www.happyjacks.org/starscape for a full list of this campaign's videos and podcasts. ◇ Follow Happy Jacks RPG on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or hang out with other tabletop roleplaying fans in our Discord community! ◇ Subscribe to our other podcast feeds! We have a weekly tabletop RPG talk show based on topics sent in from fans around the world, and a great collection of One-Shots if you prefer bite sized adventures. ◇ You can watch us on Youtube or Twitch! ◇ Keep us independent by becoming a Patreon! Our fantastic supporters let us play and say what we want instead of catering to companies for ad or sponsorship money. They are HEROES! https://patreon.com/happyjacksrpg Ⓒ2023 Happy Jacks RPG Network https://www.happyjacks.org

Join four unlikely mouse-heroes named Bob on an epic quest to uncover the secret of the mouse town of Steves. As they hunt for clues across the magical, critter-filled world of the Fairwilds, can the Bobs save the Steves before it's too late? Maybe. The path is perilous and the world can be a dangerous place when you're just a little mouse. System: Mausritter by Losing Games CAST:  ➜GM: Artem Yatsunov (he/they) https://linktr.ee/artemdirectly ➜ Joey Nestra-West (He/Him) https://joeynestra-west.carrd.co/- Bob Hope (He/Him): Mouse, Leatherworker/Aspiring Hero, Just a Little Guy ➜ Cai Kagawa (he/they/she) https://estelofimladris.carrd.co- Bob'in Lure (he/they): Mouse, Raft Crew, Dreams of the Se(wer) ➜ Teri Gamble (they/them) https://linktr.ee/TheTeriGamble- (they/them): Mouse, Fungus Farmer, Wise ➜ Bill Roper (He/Him) https://billfreakinroper.carrd.co - Bob 303 (He/Him): Mouse, Likes pebbles, Inquisitive, Experiment(al) ◇ Visit https://www.happyjacks.org/starscape for a full list of this campaign's videos and podcasts. ◇ Follow Happy Jacks RPG on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or hang out with other tabletop roleplaying fans in our Discord community! ◇ Subscribe to our other podcast feeds! We have a weekly tabletop RPG talk show based on topics sent in from fans around the world, and a great collection of One-Shots if you prefer bite sized adventures. ◇ You can watch us on Youtube or Twitch! ◇ Keep us independent by becoming a Patreon! Our fantastic supporters let us play and say what we want instead of catering to companies for ad or sponsorship money. They are HEROES! https://patreon.com/happyjacksrpg Ⓒ2023 Happy Jacks RPG Network https://www.happyjacks.org

Join four unlikely mouse-heroes named Bob on an epic quest to uncover the secret of the mouse town of Steves. As they hunt for clues across the magical, critter-filled world of the Fairwilds, can the Bobs save the Steves before it's too late? Maybe. The path is perilous and the world can be a dangerous place when you're just a little mouse. System: Mausritter by Losing Games CAST:  ➜GM: Artem Yatsunov (he/they) https://linktr.ee/artemdirectly ➜ Joey Nestra-West (He/Him) https://joeynestra-west.carrd.co/- Bob Hope (He/Him): Mouse, Leatherworker/Aspiring Hero, Just a Little Guy ➜ Cai Kagawa (he/they/she) https://estelofimladris.carrd.co- Bob'in Lure (he/they): Mouse, Raft Crew, Dreams of the Se(wer) ➜ Teri Gamble (they/them) https://linktr.ee/TheTeriGamble- (they/them): Mouse, Fungus Farmer, Wise ➜ Bill Roper (He/Him) https://billfreakinroper.carrd.co - Bob 303 (He/Him): Mouse, Likes pebbles, Inquisitive, Experiment(al) ◇ Visit https://www.happyjacks.org/starscape for a full list of this campaign's videos and podcasts. ◇ Follow Happy Jacks RPG on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or hang out with other tabletop roleplaying fans in our Discord community! ◇ Subscribe to our other podcast feeds! We have a weekly tabletop RPG talk show based on topics sent in from fans around the world, and a great collection of One-Shots if you prefer bite sized adventures. ◇ You can watch us on Youtube or Twitch! ◇ Keep us independent by becoming a Patreon! Our fantastic supporters let us play and say what we want instead of catering to companies for ad or sponsorship money. They are HEROES! https://patreon.com/happyjacksrpg Ⓒ2023 Happy Jacks RPG Network https://www.happyjacks.org

Join four unlikely mouse-heroes named Bob on an epic quest to uncover the secret of the mouse town of Steves. As they hunt for clues across the magical, critter-filled world of the Fairwilds, can the Bobs save the Steves before it's too late? Maybe. The path is perilous and the world can be a dangerous place when you're just a little mouse. System: Mausritter by Losing Games CAST:  ➜GM: Artem Yatsunov (he/they) https://linktr.ee/artemdirectly ➜ Joey Nestra-West (He/Him) https://joeynestra-west.carrd.co/- Bob Hope (He/Him): Mouse, Leatherworker/Aspiring Hero, Just a Little Guy ➜ Cai Kagawa (he/they/she) https://estelofimladris.carrd.co- Bob'in Lure (he/they): Mouse, Raft Crew, Dreams of the Se(wer) ➜ Teri Gamble (they/them) https://linktr.ee/TheTeriGamble- (they/them): Mouse, Fungus Farmer, Wise ➜ Bill Roper (He/Him) https://billfreakinroper.carrd.co - Bob 303 (He/Him): Mouse, Likes pebbles, Inquisitive, Experiment(al) ◇ Visit https://www.happyjacks.org/starscape for a full list of this campaign's videos and podcasts. ◇ Follow Happy Jacks RPG on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or hang out with other tabletop roleplaying fans in our Discord community! ◇ Subscribe to our other podcast feeds! We have a weekly tabletop RPG talk show based on topics sent in from fans around the world, and a great collection of One-Shots if you prefer bite sized adventures. ◇ You can watch us on Youtube or Twitch! ◇ Keep us independent by becoming a Patreon! Our fantastic supporters let us play and say what we want instead of catering to companies for ad or sponsorship money. They are HEROES! https://patreon.com/happyjacksrpg Ⓒ2023 Happy Jacks RPG Network https://www.happyjacks.org

Join four unlikely mouse-heroes named Bob on an epic quest to uncover the secret of the mouse town of Steves. As they hunt for clues across the magical, critter-filled world of the Fairwilds, can the Bobs save the Steves before it's too late? Maybe. The path is perilous and the world can be a dangerous place when you're just a little mouse. System: Mausritter by Losing Games CAST:  ➜GM: Artem Yatsunov (he/they) https://linktr.ee/artemdirectly ➜ Joey Nestra-West (He/Him) https://joeynestra-west.carrd.co/- Bob Hope (He/Him): Mouse, Leatherworker/Aspiring Hero, Just a Little Guy ➜ Cai Kagawa (he/they/she) https://estelofimladris.carrd.co- Bob'in Lure (he/they): Mouse, Raft Crew, Dreams of the Se(wer) ➜ Teri Gamble (they/them) https://linktr.ee/TheTeriGamble- (they/them): Mouse, Fungus Farmer, Wise ➜ Bill Roper (He/Him) https://billfreakinroper.carrd.co - Bob 303 (He/Him): Mouse, Likes pebbles, Inquisitive, Experiment(al) ◇ Visit https://www.happyjacks.org/starscape for a full list of this campaign's videos and podcasts. ◇ Follow Happy Jacks RPG on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or hang out with other tabletop roleplaying fans in our Discord community! ◇ Subscribe to our other podcast feeds! We have a weekly tabletop RPG talk show based on topics sent in from fans around the world, and a great collection of One-Shots if you prefer bite sized adventures. ◇ You can watch us on Youtube or Twitch! ◇ Keep us independent by becoming a Patreon! Our fantastic supporters let us play and say what we want instead of catering to companies for ad or sponsorship money. They are HEROES! https://patreon.com/happyjacksrpg Ⓒ2023 Happy Jacks RPG Network https://www.happyjacks.org

I found true love while participating in one of my hometown's little known, but deeply cherished local traditions.Based on a post by SquattingEagle. Listen to the ► Podcast at Explicit Novels. Island folklore.Hi, I'm Jethro, I'm nineteen years old and I live with my parents and two younger sisters on one of the small islands off the east coast of Ireland. Although, to be truthful, that's where I used to live, as I'm currently spending most of my days on the mainland, attending university. But the island will always be home to me and once I've graduated, I'll surely go back. There's just something special about life on a small, isolated island like ours that simply can't be found anywhere else.Until the day I'll return to the island for good, I can only try to visit home as often as I could, which is nowhere near as often as I wanted. You see, merely driving from the campus to the harbor would take at least four hours. If traffic was heavy, five or six hours was more likely. And that was just the first part of the journey. From there on, the only way to the island was by a three-hour boat trip. Weather permitting, this boat shuttled back and forth three times a day. Bad weather, however, was liable to keep the ferry moored at the harbor for days at a time, especially during the stormy autumn and winter months.While this remoteness was a bit of a pain to me now, the isolation was also what made our island unique, and is therefore essential to the story I am about to tell you.As you can imagine, our community is largely self-reliant and very much independent of the mainland. It's been like that for centuries, and even modern technology had not been able to change that. According to the tourist board, our 'picturesque island' houses about 19,000 people, and over 50,000 sheep that roam the fields and forests. Apparently, we are ‘known for our own unique and age-old traditions', most of which are in some way connected to our ‘long lineage of brave fishermen' and dedicated to ‘the men who sailed stormy seas to bring home nothing but the finest fresh fish'.While most of our local festivities do indeed involve the sea and its bounties in one way or another, one was quite unlike all the others. That particular day is known as Linus Day, and it is probably the most cherished of all our traditions. Linus Day is celebrated each year on the day of the first new moon in spring and got its name after a nobleman that featured in one of the local legends. It was because of this holiday that I had decided to skip my classes and visit home for a couple of days.The Legend of Linus.A long time ago, there lived on the island a man named Linus. As the story goes, he was a wealthy nobleman who had everything his heart could desire. Good looks, lots of money, a luxurious home and scores of friends. His good fortune seemed complete when he met a beautiful girl with a smile that brought sunlight to a rainy day. He quickly fell in love with her and within weeks of their first meeting, he asked her to be his wife. She gladly accepted his proposal and a huge wedding feast was announced. Everyone on the island was invited.Unknown to Linus, his fair young fiancée wasn't the only one who had fallen for his handsome looks and charming personality. There was another woman, one who was deeply scorned when she learned of his betrothal. On the evening before the wedding, this other woman paid the nobleman an unannounced visit. She warned him that his fiancée was not his true love, and that he should marry her instead. When Linus replied that she was mistaken and that there was nothing she could do to change his mind, the woman burst out in anger. In a fit of rage, she summoned the ancient spirits and put a curse on the bride-to-be.Before storming out the door, the enraged woman swore that if Linus did not call off the wedding, his bride would be turned into a sheep and be cursed to roam the island among the other animals for the remainder of her life. Only if Linus could prove his love for the girl was true, would he be able to lift the curse.Linus was a judicious man and in too good a mood to let the woman's angry ravings ruin his day, and quickly forgot the entire incident. However, the next morning, on the day of the wedding, the young bride was reported missing. The townsfolk searched the whole island and left no stone unturned, but the girl was nowhere to be found. It was then that Linus recalled the woman's angry words, and fear struck his heart. He ran into the fields and scrutinized every herd on the island, desperately looking for his lost fiancée among the sheep. He searched all day, but the animals all looked and sounded the same. Devastated, he returned home.Before long, people started talking about the nobleman's increasingly eccentric behavior. He hired a dozen huntsmen and ordered them to shoot all the wolves and wild cats on the island. Once that was done, he had all his lands converted into pastures and bought many acres more, only to let them lay unoccupied, except for a few flocks of sheep. He subsequently declared that no-one on the island was to ever lay a finger on the animals and assured the people he would repay all damages caused by them.Even his friends and family believed he had lost his mind when Linus then sold his wealthy home and became a shepherd, living in a wooden shed. The years went by and the nobleman spent a fortune doing everything he could to protect the island's ever-growing population of sheep. His resources were diminishing fast, but still he managed to feed and shelter the animals throughout one of the longest and harshest winters the people on the island had ever witnessed. At last springtime arrived, and on the night of the first new moon he lay in his shack, alone, cold and hungry. He had lost absolutely everything, every penny he owned, his mansion and his scores of friends. Everything but his looks and the thousands of animals he cared so deeply for.On that first moonless night in spring, though he himself was starving, he gave his last piece of bread to one of the sheep that took refuge with him in the shack. Then, as he watched the animal devour the dry morsel of bread, it suddenly shed its thick coat and from under the layer of wool emerged a beautiful young woman. It was none other than his long-lost fiancée, his one true love. By sacrificing absolutely everything he had, Linus had finally managed to lift the curse.Reunited at last, Linus and his fiancée were married the very next day. The news quickly spread throughout island and the townsfolk now arranged to host a feast for the impoverished nobleman and his beautiful bride. Together they built them a new house in the fields, where the couple lived happily ever after. Linus and his wife had six children, all beautiful girls with blonde, curly hair like that of a newborn lamb, a trait that was still prevalent on our island to this day.As the story goes, it was this legendary wedding feast that the people hosted for the nobleman and his wife that evolved into the local holiday now known as Linus Day, and it is still dedicated to that ancient couple's true love.Although you won't find it mentioned in any of the tourist board's leaflets, the legend of Linus was also linked to another, more obscure, but equally cherished tradition. This tradition was commonly referred to as Sheep-shaggin'.On the evening before Linus Day, all the young and unmarried women would dress up as sheep and hide in the woods or fields. Then, as soon as the sun had set, the men would go out as well. If they were in a relationship, it was their task to find their girlfriends and if they did, their love was supposedly destined to be true.The festival of sheep-shaggin' was arguably even better for those who were not in a committed relationship. If you were a single guy, tradition allowed you to go into the forest and have sex with as many dressed-up girls as you could find. All night long, all single and willing females were considered fair game. And better still, the complete darkness of the new moon and absence of electric lights practically ensured complete anonymity, if that's what you desired. It was understood that even a total loser could get lucky on sheep-shaggin'.Me, I was not a total loser and furthermore, I was in a serious, albeit waning, relationship. This night, like every other sheep-shaggin' for the last three years, my girlfriend Amanda was somewhere out there waiting for me, but tonight I had not been able to find her. I had been searching the dark woods and desolate fields for ages and looked for her in all the places that used to mean something to us, yet I was still wandering alone. I had run into several dressed-up girls in various locations, but none of the lambs proved to be my true love.In a way, it was indicative of our relationship; I just did not know what Mandy was thinking anymore. After we finished high school almost a year ago, I left the island to attend college while she chose to stay behind and find a job. Although we telephoned almost every day and I did my best to be with my girlfriend as much as possible, our relationship had been going downhill ever since. Especially over the last few months she had changed, becoming more and more detached from me. Whatever remained between us now was purely physical. I mean, the sex we had was still great, but at times it felt more like she was an escort than a girlfriend.A month ago, my friend Dave told me that he had heard that Mandy was making new friends and seeing other guys. A few days later I had confronted her, and we had a big fight, during which she vehemently denied the accusation. The subsequent make-up sex was spectacular, and maybe I was a bit too eager to believe her after that. But it didn't seem so far-fetched to me now. In fact, it would explain a lot.It was pitch dark. The only light around was from the few ships far away on the ocean and the millions of tiny stars above me. A gentle breeze rolled in from the sea, dragging thin, ghostly shards of fog into the valleys. I was shivering. Although the vast stretches of water surrounding the island provided us with moderate temperatures all year round, it was quite chilly tonight. It was unlikely anyone would be hiding here on these inhospitable beaches, least of all Mandy, who absolutely despised the cold. I left the dewy shores behind me and directed my search more inland. As I moved on to higher grounds, the climate improved greatly, but still I couldn't seem to shake off the cold.It wasn't the weather though, that caused my discomfort. The duffle coat I was wearing was thick enough to keep me warm, but no amount of wool could keep the chill from my heart. What I really needed to fend off the cold were a loving pair of arms around me, and a supple, warm body to cuddle and caress. Unfortunately, apart from those few twinkling lights far away on the ocean, there wasn't a single sign of human life around.As I strode on, the dead silence of the night was broken by the sound of church bells tolling in the distance. It was twelve o'clock, which meant I had fruitlessly traversed the fields and forests for some two hours now. Who knows what would happen tonight. Spending this much time searching the island was proof of my love for Mandy, right? And maybe when I finally kissed her lips, she'd turn back into the girl I used to know and forever be my true love.On the other hand, if it didn't happen tonight, we might as well break up. Part of me was already willing to accept that I wasn't going to find her and take it as a sign that Mandy was not my true love after all. Though the idea of going home surely was tempting, it wasn't in my nature to quit this easily. I could not give up the search until I had examined every place that had some kind of special meaning or memory to us, no matter how insignificant. I pushed my hands deeper into my pockets and walked on, feeling more and more morose and pessimistic with every step I took.Another hour later, I was just about to throw in the towel. I had checked every site I could think of that had some memory attached to it, and for the last twenty minutes I had been wandering around aimlessly. I knew it was time give up, go home and seriously rethink our relationship. But which way was home? Looking around, I had to admit that I was lost. All I knew was that I was in the middle of a large hayfield, surrounded by a vast, empty darkness. With no recognizable landmarks anywhere in sight, the only thing I could do was to keep walking and hope to eventually stumble across some point of reference to point me home.As I cut across the field, my path was blocked by one of the old rock wall borders that haphazardly divided up the fields. With no particular direction to go, I walked along the border to wherever it was leading. A couple of hundred yards further on, I saw something moving in the darkness, something grey or white. By now, most of the girls would have been taken home by their lovers, whether old or new, and only a girl who was truly dedicated to her love would still be around. The figure seemed to be a little too big to be a stray sheep, it could be a dressed-up girl. Who knew, maybe this time I was lucky.As I closed in on the creature, the sound of my footsteps alerted it to my presence. The way it moved was like a girl, not like a sheep. With new hope, I walked toward the girl. A soft, hesitating bleat soon confirmed my suspicion as she greeted the stranger approaching her from the dark. I was still a couple of feet away, but I already knew this girl wasn't Mandy. She had the right kind of curly blond hair, but her girlish figure was too small, too lithe and her voice too soft and kind. I bend over and kissed her anyway. Her lips were soft and warm. Her scent and the touch of her lips made me thirst for more. Sadly, our kiss ended all too soon.I held the girl in my arms, delaying the moment I had to let go of this little lamb and head back into the cold and lonely darkness. I really wished this lamb was the girl I was looking for. Though I had no idea who she was, I felt a strange connection with her. If I wasn't supposed to be looking for someone else, I would have loved to stay. The girl must have thought the same thing, because as I was hesitating to let her go, the blonde pressed her lips once more against mine and gave me another kiss. A little shy she opened her mouth and licked my lips. Knowing I shouldn't, I opened my mouth anyway.Had that first kiss merely been a traditional and rather impersonal greeting, this second kiss was something completely different. Tender. Intense. Playful. Inquisitive. Sensual.It is hard to describe how much I enjoyed kissing this girl. But, although our second kiss lasted a whole lot longer than the first, it too had to end sometime, whether I wanted it to or not. When our lips disconnected, my head was spinning and my search for Amanda suddenly seemed a lot less important than before. Before she released me from her embrace, the girl gave me one last peck on the lips. Then she got down on all fours again, and went back to her role as a sheep, like she was supposed to.“Little lamb, could you be my true love?” I asked the customary question.I was unsure of how she would react. I didn't even know how I wanted her to react. Had she been my true love, she would now get on her feet and take off her costume, then whisper “yes” and kiss me once more. If she was waiting for someone else, then she'd look away and bleat again. Secretly, I was hoping for option number three. If this girl was single and willing, she would now present me her rear for some more anonymous, casual fun.The girl remained silent. Still on all fours, she hesitated for a few moments and then, finally, she moved. My heart rejoiced as she turned around; not only was the girl still single, she was single and willing. Even though I couldn't accept what she had to offer, it was a relief to know that somewhere on this island there was a sweet girl that wanted me. She brushed impatiently against my leg, like a playful lamb. As if her intentions weren't clear enough, she then grabbed my hand and placed it under her skirt, between her legs.I wavered. The smooth skin of her inner thigh was soft and warm, and it felt dangerously good. The only thing that kept me from ravishing this lovely little lamb on the spot was a deep-rooted moral obligation to my girlfriend. For a guy in a relationship, kissing other girls was permissible during sheep-shaggin', but anything beyond that was still considered cheating. But what if I wasn't in a relationship anymore? It would be a shame if I passed up this lovely lamb because of a misplaced sense of loyalty to a girlfriend who was nowhere to be found tonight. A girlfriend who I was just about finished with anyway, and who in all likelihood had been cheating on me for weeks, if not months.I was fighting a losing battle with myself. The frustrations of this long, lonesome night and the doubt that had grown over the last months got the better of me. I knew the right thing was to stay faithful to Mandy and leave before I did something I'd regret later, but no matter how hard my conscience was ordering me to stop, I simply couldn't. There was something about this sexy little lamb that held me captivated. It was like the spirit of Linus was whispering to me, telling me that this girl and I belonged together.While my conscience was still battling my carnal desire for this girl, my hand had begun moving on its own, drawn like a magnet towards that wonderful place high up between her legs. I was so close to her pussy now, I could feel the heat radiating from it. The lamb bleated impatiently and spread her legs even more, granting me full access to her fiery sex. As she was moving, I felt something tickle my wrist. I knew it was something other than her skirt, but didn't have the time to find out what it was, because an instant later my fingers encountered a downy patch of hair and then a very, very aroused pussy. She gasped as my thumb slid between the slick and delicate female petals and traced her little treasure from the tiny bead of her clit to the tight hole beneath her puckered ass.She pushed back against my hand and gently rocked her hips as I played with her pussy. While my hand moved up, her ass moved down and the tip of my thumb lodged itself into her opening. While I was still hesitating, she immediately pushed back, and her vagina hungrily accepted the intruding digit. She was tight but wet, and I entered her smoothly. My thumb was enveloped by her moist heat. I pulled it out a little and then pushed back in, gently squeezing her juicy peach between my fingers.The girl groaned sexily as I explored and played with her pussy. Getting her this horny was in itself very gratifying, but I knew it was only a prelude to what the night held for us. By now, there was only one thing on my mind, and that was bringing this nightly encounter to a mutually satisfying end. I was determined to give us a good start by making her cum first. Guided by her reactions, I quickly learned what excited her most. When I slowly pushed my thumb in and out of her pussy and rapidly rubbed her swollen clit with my finger at the same time, I knew I had struck gold. Her moaning quickened and then she bucked her hips as her orgasm took control of her body.The way her tight pussy had been squeezing my thumb when she came was unreal. I could only imagine how incredible it would feel to have those muscles work on my cock. I could take her right now if I wanted, while she was still in the throes of her climax. All I had to do was drop my pants, aim for penetration, and we'd be fucking. As much as I looked forward to doing exactly that, something was holding me back. It wasn't my girlfriend. It was the notion that this girl was special, someone who deserved much more than a rushed, anonymous shag in the dark. While I couldn't do much about the anonymous part, there was nothing that could stop me from taking my time with this girl.Knowing I was going to have sex with the lamb in due course, I first sought to taste her kiss again. I kneeled down next to her and pulled her into my arms. She was still panting when our lips met, but as my tongue slipped between her lips, it was eagerly greeted by her own. She truly was a great kisser. She displayed a tenderness and enthusiasm that I just couldn't get enough of, and despite us being complete strangers, her kisses had the distinct taste of something I had been missing for a long time; genuine desire and sincere affection.After another lengthy and passionate kiss, I was starved for air and feeling drunk on the little lamb's lips. I opened my eyes, half expecting to be greeted by the most beautiful girl with the sweetest smiling face, but all I could see was the faint silhouette of a girl with blonde curls and wearing what most likely was a pair of sheep's ears. She still had her arms draped around my neck and her face was mere inches from mine, yet almost invisible in the moonless night. I was staring deeply into her eyes, trying to establish what color they might be. She was gazing back into mine, possibly wondering the same thing.She leaned forward again and tenderly placed another one of those soft pecks on my lips. Though still passionate and intense, the message behind this kiss was again completely different than before. With this kiss the girl told me that she was ready to move on.“I want you” she whispered, in case her kiss had failed to deliver its message.Despite the obviousness of her statement, my heart skipped a beat when I heard her say those words. I grabbed her ass and lifted her in my lap. Without wasting another second, she moved her hands down my chest and began to work on my pants. Regardless of the rather awkward position and the lack of visual guidance, she managed to undo my belt buckle and open my fly. She reached into my boxers and pulled my penis out of my pants.She closed her fingers around my engorged cock and ran her hand up and down the shaft. An appreciative moan escaped her lips as she felt up my manhood. My cock was as big and hard as it had ever been, and I was glad I lived up to her expectations. I lifted my ass off the ground and she worked my pants a little further down my legs. She then re-straddled my lap and sat down with her hot, naked buns on my bare legs. With her arms wrapped around my back she scooted forward until her firm breasts were pressed against my chest. We kissed again.While the girl was seated in my lap, she unzipped her pleated skirt and took it off. She hugged me even tighter and pressed her pussy against the underside of my cock. My hands were holding her naked ass, cradling and fondling the firm round buttocks. I was fully aware that if I lifted her just an inch or two into the air, my cock would be poised for penetration, and that I would only have to lower her again to be inside her. From the impatient way she was dry-humping me, I knew she must be thinking something similar. The downy fur on her cushiony mound tickled my shaft as she rubbed against my throbbing erection. Every now and then she would tilt her hips a little and her pussy would give my cock and balls a hot, wet kiss.It was around that time that I discovered what had been tickling the back of my hand earlier¬. Tied around the girl's slim waist was a small ribbon, and attached to it was a woolen tail, a sheep's tail to complement the ears on the headband in her hair and the black make-up on the the tip of her nose and upper lip. I let the soft, furry tail run tail through my fingers. It was only a little detail, but I liked it. While I was wondering what other surprises this girl had in store for me, she grabbed my hand and slipped something in it. It was a square wrapper with jagged edges and a flexible, ring-shaped object inside. I easily recognized what it was; a condom.Thinking straight had become an impossibility, it was like my body had already chosen for me. The blood had drained from my brain and inflated my cock, which by now was so hard, it felt like it was going to explode if I didn't get inside this girl soon. With trembling hands, I tore open the package and pulled out the condom. I could hardly see my own hands, but I managed to put it on. Nothing was gonna stop us now.The girl rose onto her knees and wrapped her arms around my neck to steady herself as she lowered herself down onto my lap. My cock needed no guidance to find its goal. Like a heat-seeking missile, it homed in on its target and pierced her smoldering pussy. She inhaled sharply as the tip of my cock parted her lips and penetrated her inner sanctum.She held still for a moment with my cock an inch or so inside her pussy. I could feel her struggle to take me in. I know I'm no porn star, but I have nothing to complain about when it comes to size, particularly in circumference. The girl discovered this when she reached inside my boxers earlier and now she knew what it was like to feel it inside her. She was very tight, but I don't think I was hurting her too much, and if I did, it didn't stop her.Finally, the girl was sitting in my lap, having accepted every inch I had to offer. She sat still for a moment as she needed a little time to get used to having her intimate tissues stretched by my cock. Her pussy was deliciously hot and wet, and incredibly tight. I could feel the muscles of her vagina ripple and twitch, trying to contract around my cock. Even without moving, being inside her was nothing short of sensational. Finally, she sighed contently and kissed me again. It was only a quick kiss, merely a nonverbal way of conveying her appreciation. I wanted to kiss her back and return the compliment, but she was gone again.The girl rose onto her knees, taking nearly all of her weight off my lap and started to move. At first she was only rocking her hips, but it wasn't long before she progressed to moving her entire body up and down along the length of my cock. Each time she went up, the muscles in her already tight vagina grabbed my shaft, as if her body was reluctant to let me go. Then she'd come down again, and the silky tissues eagerly yielded and sucked me back in, making soft squishy noises as she dropped in my lap. I renewed my grip on her butt and thrust up into the delightful depths of the horny little lamb on each downward movement. Our bodies instinctively found the right tempo and soon we were truly fucking. The memories of my missing girlfriend were fading fast, hopefully to be replaced with new memories the girl and I would make tonight.Having sex with this stranger filled a need inside me I didn't even know I had. It is difficult to describe, but it was beyond mere animal lust, it somehow transcended my physical needs. I know it sounds cliché, but it was like our souls were meant to be together, like she was a part of me, and I was part of her. Until tonight I would never have guessed I was incomplete, but now I suddenly was whole, and it felt good.After riding my cock for some time, it became evident the girl began to tire. She tried to continue at the same pace, but inevitably had to slow down and ultimately stopped moving altogether. She draped her arms around my neck and moved in for another hot kiss. I could hear and feel her rapid breathing as her lips sought mine. Then, as our lips met, she leaned back and pulled me along with her until she was lying on her back on the ground, and I was on top of her.Now that we were lying in a missionary position, it was up to me to do most of the work, but she wasn't just lying there. She had her ankles locked behind my back and pushed her pussy up at me with every thrust. I was penetrating her much deeper now. My cock regularly bumped into the end of her pussy, but she didn't show any signs of discomfort. All she did was beg me to go harder, faster and deeper as she raced towards another orgasm.I gladly complied. Spurred on by her whimpered pleas I fucked her as hard as I dared. A minute later her supple body stiffened, and with a loud gasp, she came. She tightened her arms and legs around me, clutching me with all her might. Her hips bucked as a series of powerful tremors chased through her body. It was a good thing she had made me wear the condom, or else I would have blown my load that instant. It was only because of the slightly reduced sensitivity that I was able to keep fucking her throughout her entire orgasm, stretching and intensifying it until she couldn't handle any more and fell on the ground, begging me to stop.I held the girl in my arms while she kept cumming. She had both her arms around my back and was holding me tightly. Even without me fucking her, her orgasm seemed to go on, as ever diminishing series of contractions continued to milk my cock for over a long time after that first powerful wave of contractions. All this time I lay on top of her, cuddling and caressing her while she slowly regained her senses. The girl's lithe body was so much smaller than mine that I was afraid I'd crush her underneath my body, but every time I tried to move, she clung onto me and pulled me back.Finally, her eyes opened, and she giggled apologetically, as if she was embarrassed for letting herself go like that. She nuzzled my face and sought my lips wit hers. Our mouths met, and she slipped her tongue slipped between my lips. Once again, I was struck by how great a kisser this girl was. Her tongue led the dance in our mouths in a way that was unlike any girl‘s I had ever met. Compared to her I was sluggish, slow and inept, but if I in any way failed to meet her expectations, she didn't show. Her kiss and the taste of her lips were like a drug, and I was becoming hopelessly addicted.With our lips pressed together and locked in intimate embrace, we rolled around on the ground. I hardly noticed the painfully sharp little rocks and sticks that littered the cold, hard soil, absorbed as I was by her smell and taste and the feel of her body. When we finally had to break off our kiss, I was lying on my back and she was on top again.The girl sat upright and held me pinned down with one hand on my chest as she slowly moved her hips back and forth. After about a dozen of those movements, she moved back a little too far and I slipped out of her pussy. The night air felt cold on my cock as it swung free and slapped wetly against my belly. The girl didn't put me back in, but moved even further down on my legs, reached for my cock and wrapped her hand around the shaft. She grabbed it rather firmly, almost painfully. Despite being an incredible kisser and a wonderful sex partner, the girl wasn't great at giving a handjob. As a matter of fact, it was almost like she didn't know how to jack a guy off at all; she just kind of dug her fingers into the skin and pulled. I was just about to take her hand and guide her movements, when I felt the condom slip. She renewed her grip and then pulled the rubber all the way off.Now that the girl had gotten rid of the thin layer of protective latex that had separated us before, she moved over my lap again and guided my cock back between her silky lips. Her already deliciously hot and tight pussy felt a thousand times hotter and tighter without the protective condom. Its velvety tissues now kissed and cherished every inch of my cock and I could feel the muscles in her tight canal work on my shaft.The girl gave me another quick peck on the lips and whispered, “Better?”I had lost the power to talk. All I could do was grunt. She giggled again and then started to move. Although it was her who was fucking me now, I was in no way just an instrument she used for her own gratification. As she gracefully moved her body up and down, she seemed to intuitively know exactly what gave us both the most pleasure. She alternated long slow strokes with short, quick rocking motions of her hips, steadily building up the pressure, but always slowing down again whenever she sensed I was getting too close to ejaculating.Before long, I could feel she was going to orgasm again. Her breathing quickened, and the graceful movements became more erratic until she stopped bouncing up and down altogether and sat down in my lap, rapidly rocking her hips back and forth. Wet noises sounded as she ground her clit into my pubic bone. Then she froze and with another loud groan she came. She shook and bumped her pussy against my pubis a couple of times and then she fell into my arms, limp and lifeless like a rag doll.Her lips sought mine as she recovered from another exhaustive climax. She was shivering, and I could feel the goosebumps on her damp skin of her back as the tips of my fingers traced the series of bumps of her spine, wandering upwards under her thick sweater. By the time I reached her neck, I realized this lamb wasn't wearing a bra. I retraced my steps and felt her sides, from her arms to her waist, confirming my suspicions. Moving back up via the front, my wandering hands were treated to a delicious pair of firm, naked breasts. I cupped my hands around the two perfectly shaped little orbs. Like everything on her, her breasts were quite petite, barely a handful, but they were delightfully firm and soft and smooth. I could only dream of what these beauties would look like. Were they pale or tanned, did she have small areolas or large? One thing was sure; whatever her breasts looked like, I bet they were spectacular.It was like she was reading my mind, because as I was caressing and exploring her hidden feminine treasures, she grabbed the hem of her sweater and casually pulled it over her head. She flung the thick woolen garment in the air where it disappeared in the darkness. Although I still couldn't see much of her, I now had a naked girl in my lap. I silently cursed the darkness, as I knew I was missing out on a spectacular view. This girl had to have a pair of magnificent tits, perhaps the most beautiful pair ever created, but all I could see was a faint silhouette swaying in my lap.Even though I couldn't see her breasts, fondling them was just as thrilling and there were many more things I could do without sight. My mouth was watering as I envisioned sucking on them. I leaned forward and closed my lips around one of her nipples. I flicked my tongue across the sensitive nub and was rewarded with a sexy groan. Biting softly, I pulled back until the nipple slipped from my mouth and then I latched onto the other one. I spent a lot of time thoroughly teasing and tasting each nipple, the sensitive areolas and the smooth skin surrounding them.All this time my anonymous lover was steadily rocking her hips, and even though her movements were small and subtle, the constant stimulation of my cock pushed me increasingly towards an inevitable orgasm. The feel of her body, the taste of her lips and nipples was simply too intense, too good. My balls drew tight and I whispered I was going to cum. She just whispered ‘yes' and grabbed my shoulder. Like before, she pulled me on top of her and folded her legs around my waist. I thrust into her with all my might as we both raced towards orgasm. The moment I felt the first blast of semen race up my shaft, my mystery lover came too. For an instant, time ceased to exist, and the girl and I were one being, one single body in our own universe made of pure pleasure.We remained together until long after out orgasms ended, locked in a passionate embrace while we were coming down from our sexual high. For what seemed like an eternity I could feel her pussy twitch and clench around my cock, still trying to draw every last drop of semen from my balls. Finally, she relaxed her grasp and opened her eyes. Her lips found my mouth and we exchanged another sweet, tender kiss. I was falling in love with this girl, and I could not stop it. Suddenly, I felt a pressing need to know who she was.There was one big rule at sheep-shaggin'; anonymous sex was anonymous. Until the break of dawn, you did not reveal your identity. It was the one rule you simply were not allowed to break. Telling the girl my name, or asking for hers could possibly offend her, which was the last thing I wanted. The only accepted way to circumvent this taboo was to spend the night together and get properly acquainted in the morning. There was only one problem. I couldn't possibly spend the night with this girl, no matter how much I would have loved to. Not as long as I technically still had a girlfriend.Half an hour ago, I had all but decided to give up the search for Amanda, but now I was once again determined to find her. Although the goal was the same, my motives had changed drastically since I met the girl. Had I first hoped to find Amanda and be reunited with my true love, now I only wanted to make sure there was nothing left to salvage, and then quickly move on with my life, preferably together with this girl.To be continued in part 2, based on a post by SquattingEagle for SexStories.

I found true love while participating in one of my hometown's little known, but deeply cherished local traditions.Based on a post by SquattingEagle. Listen to the ► Podcast at Explicit Novels. Island folklore.Hi, I'm Jethro, I'm nineteen years old and I live with my parents and two younger sisters on one of the small islands off the east coast of Ireland. Although, to be truthful, that's where I used to live, as I'm currently spending most of my days on the mainland, attending university. But the island will always be home to me and once I've graduated, I'll surely go back. There's just something special about life on a small, isolated island like ours that simply can't be found anywhere else.Until the day I'll return to the island for good, I can only try to visit home as often as I could, which is nowhere near as often as I wanted. You see, merely driving from the campus to the harbor would take at least four hours. If traffic was heavy, five or six hours was more likely. And that was just the first part of the journey. From there on, the only way to the island was by a three-hour boat trip. Weather permitting, this boat shuttled back and forth three times a day. Bad weather, however, was liable to keep the ferry moored at the harbor for days at a time, especially during the stormy autumn and winter months.While this remoteness was a bit of a pain to me now, the isolation was also what made our island unique, and is therefore essential to the story I am about to tell you.As you can imagine, our community is largely self-reliant and very much independent of the mainland. It's been like that for centuries, and even modern technology had not been able to change that. According to the tourist board, our 'picturesque island' houses about 19,000 people, and over 50,000 sheep that roam the fields and forests. Apparently, we are ‘known for our own unique and age-old traditions', most of which are in some way connected to our ‘long lineage of brave fishermen' and dedicated to ‘the men who sailed stormy seas to bring home nothing but the finest fresh fish'.While most of our local festivities do indeed involve the sea and its bounties in one way or another, one was quite unlike all the others. That particular day is known as Linus Day, and it is probably the most cherished of all our traditions. Linus Day is celebrated each year on the day of the first new moon in spring and got its name after a nobleman that featured in one of the local legends. It was because of this holiday that I had decided to skip my classes and visit home for a couple of days.The Legend of Linus.A long time ago, there lived on the island a man named Linus. As the story goes, he was a wealthy nobleman who had everything his heart could desire. Good looks, lots of money, a luxurious home and scores of friends. His good fortune seemed complete when he met a beautiful girl with a smile that brought sunlight to a rainy day. He quickly fell in love with her and within weeks of their first meeting, he asked her to be his wife. She gladly accepted his proposal and a huge wedding feast was announced. Everyone on the island was invited.Unknown to Linus, his fair young fiancée wasn't the only one who had fallen for his handsome looks and charming personality. There was another woman, one who was deeply scorned when she learned of his betrothal. On the evening before the wedding, this other woman paid the nobleman an unannounced visit. She warned him that his fiancée was not his true love, and that he should marry her instead. When Linus replied that she was mistaken and that there was nothing she could do to change his mind, the woman burst out in anger. In a fit of rage, she summoned the ancient spirits and put a curse on the bride-to-be.Before storming out the door, the enraged woman swore that if Linus did not call off the wedding, his bride would be turned into a sheep and be cursed to roam the island among the other animals for the remainder of her life. Only if Linus could prove his love for the girl was true, would he be able to lift the curse.Linus was a judicious man and in too good a mood to let the woman's angry ravings ruin his day, and quickly forgot the entire incident. However, the next morning, on the day of the wedding, the young bride was reported missing. The townsfolk searched the whole island and left no stone unturned, but the girl was nowhere to be found. It was then that Linus recalled the woman's angry words, and fear struck his heart. He ran into the fields and scrutinized every herd on the island, desperately looking for his lost fiancée among the sheep. He searched all day, but the animals all looked and sounded the same. Devastated, he returned home.Before long, people started talking about the nobleman's increasingly eccentric behavior. He hired a dozen huntsmen and ordered them to shoot all the wolves and wild cats on the island. Once that was done, he had all his lands converted into pastures and bought many acres more, only to let them lay unoccupied, except for a few flocks of sheep. He subsequently declared that no-one on the island was to ever lay a finger on the animals and assured the people he would repay all damages caused by them.Even his friends and family believed he had lost his mind when Linus then sold his wealthy home and became a shepherd, living in a wooden shed. The years went by and the nobleman spent a fortune doing everything he could to protect the island's ever-growing population of sheep. His resources were diminishing fast, but still he managed to feed and shelter the animals throughout one of the longest and harshest winters the people on the island had ever witnessed. At last springtime arrived, and on the night of the first new moon he lay in his shack, alone, cold and hungry. He had lost absolutely everything, every penny he owned, his mansion and his scores of friends. Everything but his looks and the thousands of animals he cared so deeply for.On that first moonless night in spring, though he himself was starving, he gave his last piece of bread to one of the sheep that took refuge with him in the shack. Then, as he watched the animal devour the dry morsel of bread, it suddenly shed its thick coat and from under the layer of wool emerged a beautiful young woman. It was none other than his long-lost fiancée, his one true love. By sacrificing absolutely everything he had, Linus had finally managed to lift the curse.Reunited at last, Linus and his fiancée were married the very next day. The news quickly spread throughout island and the townsfolk now arranged to host a feast for the impoverished nobleman and his beautiful bride. Together they built them a new house in the fields, where the couple lived happily ever after. Linus and his wife had six children, all beautiful girls with blonde, curly hair like that of a newborn lamb, a trait that was still prevalent on our island to this day.As the story goes, it was this legendary wedding feast that the people hosted for the nobleman and his wife that evolved into the local holiday now known as Linus Day, and it is still dedicated to that ancient couple's true love.Although you won't find it mentioned in any of the tourist board's leaflets, the legend of Linus was also linked to another, more obscure, but equally cherished tradition. This tradition was commonly referred to as Sheep-shaggin'.On the evening before Linus Day, all the young and unmarried women would dress up as sheep and hide in the woods or fields. Then, as soon as the sun had set, the men would go out as well. If they were in a relationship, it was their task to find their girlfriends and if they did, their love was supposedly destined to be true.The festival of sheep-shaggin' was arguably even better for those who were not in a committed relationship. If you were a single guy, tradition allowed you to go into the forest and have sex with as many dressed-up girls as you could find. All night long, all single and willing females were considered fair game. And better still, the complete darkness of the new moon and absence of electric lights practically ensured complete anonymity, if that's what you desired. It was understood that even a total loser could get lucky on sheep-shaggin'.Me, I was not a total loser and furthermore, I was in a serious, albeit waning, relationship. This night, like every other sheep-shaggin' for the last three years, my girlfriend Amanda was somewhere out there waiting for me, but tonight I had not been able to find her. I had been searching the dark woods and desolate fields for ages and looked for her in all the places that used to mean something to us, yet I was still wandering alone. I had run into several dressed-up girls in various locations, but none of the lambs proved to be my true love.In a way, it was indicative of our relationship; I just did not know what Mandy was thinking anymore. After we finished high school almost a year ago, I left the island to attend college while she chose to stay behind and find a job. Although we telephoned almost every day and I did my best to be with my girlfriend as much as possible, our relationship had been going downhill ever since. Especially over the last few months she had changed, becoming more and more detached from me. Whatever remained between us now was purely physical. I mean, the sex we had was still great, but at times it felt more like she was an escort than a girlfriend.A month ago, my friend Dave told me that he had heard that Mandy was making new friends and seeing other guys. A few days later I had confronted her, and we had a big fight, during which she vehemently denied the accusation. The subsequent make-up sex was spectacular, and maybe I was a bit too eager to believe her after that. But it didn't seem so far-fetched to me now. In fact, it would explain a lot.It was pitch dark. The only light around was from the few ships far away on the ocean and the millions of tiny stars above me. A gentle breeze rolled in from the sea, dragging thin, ghostly shards of fog into the valleys. I was shivering. Although the vast stretches of water surrounding the island provided us with moderate temperatures all year round, it was quite chilly tonight. It was unlikely anyone would be hiding here on these inhospitable beaches, least of all Mandy, who absolutely despised the cold. I left the dewy shores behind me and directed my search more inland. As I moved on to higher grounds, the climate improved greatly, but still I couldn't seem to shake off the cold.It wasn't the weather though, that caused my discomfort. The duffle coat I was wearing was thick enough to keep me warm, but no amount of wool could keep the chill from my heart. What I really needed to fend off the cold were a loving pair of arms around me, and a supple, warm body to cuddle and caress. Unfortunately, apart from those few twinkling lights far away on the ocean, there wasn't a single sign of human life around.As I strode on, the dead silence of the night was broken by the sound of church bells tolling in the distance. It was twelve o'clock, which meant I had fruitlessly traversed the fields and forests for some two hours now. Who knows what would happen tonight. Spending this much time searching the island was proof of my love for Mandy, right? And maybe when I finally kissed her lips, she'd turn back into the girl I used to know and forever be my true love.On the other hand, if it didn't happen tonight, we might as well break up. Part of me was already willing to accept that I wasn't going to find her and take it as a sign that Mandy was not my true love after all. Though the idea of going home surely was tempting, it wasn't in my nature to quit this easily. I could not give up the search until I had examined every place that had some kind of special meaning or memory to us, no matter how insignificant. I pushed my hands deeper into my pockets and walked on, feeling more and more morose and pessimistic with every step I took.Another hour later, I was just about to throw in the towel. I had checked every site I could think of that had some memory attached to it, and for the last twenty minutes I had been wandering around aimlessly. I knew it was time give up, go home and seriously rethink our relationship. But which way was home? Looking around, I had to admit that I was lost. All I knew was that I was in the middle of a large hayfield, surrounded by a vast, empty darkness. With no recognizable landmarks anywhere in sight, the only thing I could do was to keep walking and hope to eventually stumble across some point of reference to point me home.As I cut across the field, my path was blocked by one of the old rock wall borders that haphazardly divided up the fields. With no particular direction to go, I walked along the border to wherever it was leading. A couple of hundred yards further on, I saw something moving in the darkness, something grey or white. By now, most of the girls would have been taken home by their lovers, whether old or new, and only a girl who was truly dedicated to her love would still be around. The figure seemed to be a little too big to be a stray sheep, it could be a dressed-up girl. Who knew, maybe this time I was lucky.As I closed in on the creature, the sound of my footsteps alerted it to my presence. The way it moved was like a girl, not like a sheep. With new hope, I walked toward the girl. A soft, hesitating bleat soon confirmed my suspicion as she greeted the stranger approaching her from the dark. I was still a couple of feet away, but I already knew this girl wasn't Mandy. She had the right kind of curly blond hair, but her girlish figure was too small, too lithe and her voice too soft and kind. I bend over and kissed her anyway. Her lips were soft and warm. Her scent and the touch of her lips made me thirst for more. Sadly, our kiss ended all too soon.I held the girl in my arms, delaying the moment I had to let go of this little lamb and head back into the cold and lonely darkness. I really wished this lamb was the girl I was looking for. Though I had no idea who she was, I felt a strange connection with her. If I wasn't supposed to be looking for someone else, I would have loved to stay. The girl must have thought the same thing, because as I was hesitating to let her go, the blonde pressed her lips once more against mine and gave me another kiss. A little shy she opened her mouth and licked my lips. Knowing I shouldn't, I opened my mouth anyway.Had that first kiss merely been a traditional and rather impersonal greeting, this second kiss was something completely different. Tender. Intense. Playful. Inquisitive. Sensual.It is hard to describe how much I enjoyed kissing this girl. But, although our second kiss lasted a whole lot longer than the first, it too had to end sometime, whether I wanted it to or not. When our lips disconnected, my head was spinning and my search for Amanda suddenly seemed a lot less important than before. Before she released me from her embrace, the girl gave me one last peck on the lips. Then she got down on all fours again, and went back to her role as a sheep, like she was supposed to.“Little lamb, could you be my true love?” I asked the customary question.I was unsure of how she would react. I didn't even know how I wanted her to react. Had she been my true love, she would now get on her feet and take off her costume, then whisper “yes” and kiss me once more. If she was waiting for someone else, then she'd look away and bleat again. Secretly, I was hoping for option number three. If this girl was single and willing, she would now present me her rear for some more anonymous, casual fun.The girl remained silent. Still on all fours, she hesitated for a few moments and then, finally, she moved. My heart rejoiced as she turned around; not only was the girl still single, she was single and willing. Even though I couldn't accept what she had to offer, it was a relief to know that somewhere on this island there was a sweet girl that wanted me. She brushed impatiently against my leg, like a playful lamb. As if her intentions weren't clear enough, she then grabbed my hand and placed it under her skirt, between her legs.I wavered. The smooth skin of her inner thigh was soft and warm, and it felt dangerously good. The only thing that kept me from ravishing this lovely little lamb on the spot was a deep-rooted moral obligation to my girlfriend. For a guy in a relationship, kissing other girls was permissible during sheep-shaggin', but anything beyond that was still considered cheating. But what if I wasn't in a relationship anymore? It would be a shame if I passed up this lovely lamb because of a misplaced sense of loyalty to a girlfriend who was nowhere to be found tonight. A girlfriend who I was just about finished with anyway, and who in all likelihood had been cheating on me for weeks, if not months.I was fighting a losing battle with myself. The frustrations of this long, lonesome night and the doubt that had grown over the last months got the better of me. I knew the right thing was to stay faithful to Mandy and leave before I did something I'd regret later, but no matter how hard my conscience was ordering me to stop, I simply couldn't. There was something about this sexy little lamb that held me captivated. It was like the spirit of Linus was whispering to me, telling me that this girl and I belonged together.While my conscience was still battling my carnal desire for this girl, my hand had begun moving on its own, drawn like a magnet towards that wonderful place high up between her legs. I was so close to her pussy now, I could feel the heat radiating from it. The lamb bleated impatiently and spread her legs even more, granting me full access to her fiery sex. As she was moving, I felt something tickle my wrist. I knew it was something other than her skirt, but didn't have the time to find out what it was, because an instant later my fingers encountered a downy patch of hair and then a very, very aroused pussy. She gasped as my thumb slid between the slick and delicate female petals and traced her little treasure from the tiny bead of her clit to the tight hole beneath her puckered ass.She pushed back against my hand and gently rocked her hips as I played with her pussy. While my hand moved up, her ass moved down and the tip of my thumb lodged itself into her opening. While I was still hesitating, she immediately pushed back, and her vagina hungrily accepted the intruding digit. She was tight but wet, and I entered her smoothly. My thumb was enveloped by her moist heat. I pulled it out a little and then pushed back in, gently squeezing her juicy peach between my fingers.The girl groaned sexily as I explored and played with her pussy. Getting her this horny was in itself very gratifying, but I knew it was only a prelude to what the night held for us. By now, there was only one thing on my mind, and that was bringing this nightly encounter to a mutually satisfying end. I was determined to give us a good start by making her cum first. Guided by her reactions, I quickly learned what excited her most. When I slowly pushed my thumb in and out of her pussy and rapidly rubbed her swollen clit with my finger at the same time, I knew I had struck gold. Her moaning quickened and then she bucked her hips as her orgasm took control of her body.The way her tight pussy had been squeezing my thumb when she came was unreal. I could only imagine how incredible it would feel to have those muscles work on my cock. I could take her right now if I wanted, while she was still in the throes of her climax. All I had to do was drop my pants, aim for penetration, and we'd be fucking. As much as I looked forward to doing exactly that, something was holding me back. It wasn't my girlfriend. It was the notion that this girl was special, someone who deserved much more than a rushed, anonymous shag in the dark. While I couldn't do much about the anonymous part, there was nothing that could stop me from taking my time with this girl.Knowing I was going to have sex with the lamb in due course, I first sought to taste her kiss again. I kneeled down next to her and pulled her into my arms. She was still panting when our lips met, but as my tongue slipped between her lips, it was eagerly greeted by her own. She truly was a great kisser. She displayed a tenderness and enthusiasm that I just couldn't get enough of, and despite us being complete strangers, her kisses had the distinct taste of something I had been missing for a long time; genuine desire and sincere affection.After another lengthy and passionate kiss, I was starved for air and feeling drunk on the little lamb's lips. I opened my eyes, half expecting to be greeted by the most beautiful girl with the sweetest smiling face, but all I could see was the faint silhouette of a girl with blonde curls and wearing what most likely was a pair of sheep's ears. She still had her arms draped around my neck and her face was mere inches from mine, yet almost invisible in the moonless night. I was staring deeply into her eyes, trying to establish what color they might be. She was gazing back into mine, possibly wondering the same thing.She leaned forward again and tenderly placed another one of those soft pecks on my lips. Though still passionate and intense, the message behind this kiss was again completely different than before. With this kiss the girl told me that she was ready to move on.“I want you” she whispered, in case her kiss had failed to deliver its message.Despite the obviousness of her statement, my heart skipped a beat when I heard her say those words. I grabbed her ass and lifted her in my lap. Without wasting another second, she moved her hands down my chest and began to work on my pants. Regardless of the rather awkward position and the lack of visual guidance, she managed to undo my belt buckle and open my fly. She reached into my boxers and pulled my penis out of my pants.She closed her fingers around my engorged cock and ran her hand up and down the shaft. An appreciative moan escaped her lips as she felt up my manhood. My cock was as big and hard as it had ever been, and I was glad I lived up to her expectations. I lifted my ass off the ground and she worked my pants a little further down my legs. She then re-straddled my lap and sat down with her hot, naked buns on my bare legs. With her arms wrapped around my back she scooted forward until her firm breasts were pressed against my chest. We kissed again.While the girl was seated in my lap, she unzipped her pleated skirt and took it off. She hugged me even tighter and pressed her pussy against the underside of my cock. My hands were holding her naked ass, cradling and fondling the firm round buttocks. I was fully aware that if I lifted her just an inch or two into the air, my cock would be poised for penetration, and that I would only have to lower her again to be inside her. From the impatient way she was dry-humping me, I knew she must be thinking something similar. The downy fur on her cushiony mound tickled my shaft as she rubbed against my throbbing erection. Every now and then she would tilt her hips a little and her pussy would give my cock and balls a hot, wet kiss.It was around that time that I discovered what had been tickling the back of my hand earlier¬. Tied around the girl's slim waist was a small ribbon, and attached to it was a woolen tail, a sheep's tail to complement the ears on the headband in her hair and the black make-up on the the tip of her nose and upper lip. I let the soft, furry tail run tail through my fingers. It was only a little detail, but I liked it. While I was wondering what other surprises this girl had in store for me, she grabbed my hand and slipped something in it. It was a square wrapper with jagged edges and a flexible, ring-shaped object inside. I easily recognized what it was; a condom.Thinking straight had become an impossibility, it was like my body had already chosen for me. The blood had drained from my brain and inflated my cock, which by now was so hard, it felt like it was going to explode if I didn't get inside this girl soon. With trembling hands, I tore open the package and pulled out the condom. I could hardly see my own hands, but I managed to put it on. Nothing was gonna stop us now.The girl rose onto her knees and wrapped her arms around my neck to steady herself as she lowered herself down onto my lap. My cock needed no guidance to find its goal. Like a heat-seeking missile, it homed in on its target and pierced her smoldering pussy. She inhaled sharply as the tip of my cock parted her lips and penetrated her inner sanctum.She held still for a moment with my cock an inch or so inside her pussy. I could feel her struggle to take me in. I know I'm no porn star, but I have nothing to complain about when it comes to size, particularly in circumference. The girl discovered this when she reached inside my boxers earlier and now she knew what it was like to feel it inside her. She was very tight, but I don't think I was hurting her too much, and if I did, it didn't stop her.Finally, the girl was sitting in my lap, having accepted every inch I had to offer. She sat still for a moment as she needed a little time to get used to having her intimate tissues stretched by my cock. Her pussy was deliciously hot and wet, and incredibly tight. I could feel the muscles of her vagina ripple and twitch, trying to contract around my cock. Even without moving, being inside her was nothing short of sensational. Finally, she sighed contently and kissed me again. It was only a quick kiss, merely a nonverbal way of conveying her appreciation. I wanted to kiss her back and return the compliment, but she was gone again.The girl rose onto her knees, taking nearly all of her weight off my lap and started to move. At first she was only rocking her hips, but it wasn't long before she progressed to moving her entire body up and down along the length of my cock. Each time she went up, the muscles in her already tight vagina grabbed my shaft, as if her body was reluctant to let me go. Then she'd come down again, and the silky tissues eagerly yielded and sucked me back in, making soft squishy noises as she dropped in my lap. I renewed my grip on her butt and thrust up into the delightful depths of the horny little lamb on each downward movement. Our bodies instinctively found the right tempo and soon we were truly fucking. The memories of my missing girlfriend were fading fast, hopefully to be replaced with new memories the girl and I would make tonight.Having sex with this stranger filled a need inside me I didn't even know I had. It is difficult to describe, but it was beyond mere animal lust, it somehow transcended my physical needs. I know it sounds cliché, but it was like our souls were meant to be together, like she was a part of me, and I was part of her. Until tonight I would never have guessed I was incomplete, but now I suddenly was whole, and it felt good.After riding my cock for some time, it became evident the girl began to tire. She tried to continue at the same pace, but inevitably had to slow down and ultimately stopped moving altogether. She draped her arms around my neck and moved in for another hot kiss. I could hear and feel her rapid breathing as her lips sought mine. Then, as our lips met, she leaned back and pulled me along with her until she was lying on her back on the ground, and I was on top of her.Now that we were lying in a missionary position, it was up to me to do most of the work, but she wasn't just lying there. She had her ankles locked behind my back and pushed her pussy up at me with every thrust. I was penetrating her much deeper now. My cock regularly bumped into the end of her pussy, but she didn't show any signs of discomfort. All she did was beg me to go harder, faster and deeper as she raced towards another orgasm.I gladly complied. Spurred on by her whimpered pleas I fucked her as hard as I dared. A minute later her supple body stiffened, and with a loud gasp, she came. She tightened her arms and legs around me, clutching me with all her might. Her hips bucked as a series of powerful tremors chased through her body. It was a good thing she had made me wear the condom, or else I would have blown my load that instant. It was only because of the slightly reduced sensitivity that I was able to keep fucking her throughout her entire orgasm, stretching and intensifying it until she couldn't handle any more and fell on the ground, begging me to stop.I held the girl in my arms while she kept cumming. She had both her arms around my back and was holding me tightly. Even without me fucking her, her orgasm seemed to go on, as ever diminishing series of contractions continued to milk my cock for over a long time after that first powerful wave of contractions. All this time I lay on top of her, cuddling and caressing her while she slowly regained her senses. The girl's lithe body was so much smaller than mine that I was afraid I'd crush her underneath my body, but every time I tried to move, she clung onto me and pulled me back.Finally, her eyes opened, and she giggled apologetically, as if she was embarrassed for letting herself go like that. She nuzzled my face and sought my lips wit hers. Our mouths met, and she slipped her tongue slipped between my lips. Once again, I was struck by how great a kisser this girl was. Her tongue led the dance in our mouths in a way that was unlike any girl‘s I had ever met. Compared to her I was sluggish, slow and inept, but if I in any way failed to meet her expectations, she didn't show. Her kiss and the taste of her lips were like a drug, and I was becoming hopelessly addicted.With our lips pressed together and locked in intimate embrace, we rolled around on the ground. I hardly noticed the painfully sharp little rocks and sticks that littered the cold, hard soil, absorbed as I was by her smell and taste and the feel of her body. When we finally had to break off our kiss, I was lying on my back and she was on top again.The girl sat upright and held me pinned down with one hand on my chest as she slowly moved her hips back and forth. After about a dozen of those movements, she moved back a little too far and I slipped out of her pussy. The night air felt cold on my cock as it swung free and slapped wetly against my belly. The girl didn't put me back in, but moved even further down on my legs, reached for my cock and wrapped her hand around the shaft. She grabbed it rather firmly, almost painfully. Despite being an incredible kisser and a wonderful sex partner, the girl wasn't great at giving a handjob. As a matter of fact, it was almost like she didn't know how to jack a guy off at all; she just kind of dug her fingers into the skin and pulled. I was just about to take her hand and guide her movements, when I felt the condom slip. She renewed her grip and then pulled the rubber all the way off.Now that the girl had gotten rid of the thin layer of protective latex that had separated us before, she moved over my lap again and guided my cock back between her silky lips. Her already deliciously hot and tight pussy felt a thousand times hotter and tighter without the protective condom. Its velvety tissues now kissed and cherished every inch of my cock and I could feel the muscles in her tight canal work on my shaft.The girl gave me another quick peck on the lips and whispered, “Better?”I had lost the power to talk. All I could do was grunt. She giggled again and then started to move. Although it was her who was fucking me now, I was in no way just an instrument she used for her own gratification. As she gracefully moved her body up and down, she seemed to intuitively know exactly what gave us both the most pleasure. She alternated long slow strokes with short, quick rocking motions of her hips, steadily building up the pressure, but always slowing down again whenever she sensed I was getting too close to ejaculating.Before long, I could feel she was going to orgasm again. Her breathing quickened, and the graceful movements became more erratic until she stopped bouncing up and down altogether and sat down in my lap, rapidly rocking her hips back and forth. Wet noises sounded as she ground her clit into my pubic bone. Then she froze and with another loud groan she came. She shook and bumped her pussy against my pubis a couple of times and then she fell into my arms, limp and lifeless like a rag doll.Her lips sought mine as she recovered from another exhaustive climax. She was shivering, and I could feel the goosebumps on her damp skin of her back as the tips of my fingers traced the series of bumps of her spine, wandering upwards under her thick sweater. By the time I reached her neck, I realized this lamb wasn't wearing a bra. I retraced my steps and felt her sides, from her arms to her waist, confirming my suspicions. Moving back up via the front, my wandering hands were treated to a delicious pair of firm, naked breasts. I cupped my hands around the two perfectly shaped little orbs. Like everything on her, her breasts were quite petite, barely a handful, but they were delightfully firm and soft and smooth. I could only dream of what these beauties would look like. Were they pale or tanned, did she have small areolas or large? One thing was sure; whatever her breasts looked like, I bet they were spectacular.It was like she was reading my mind, because as I was caressing and exploring her hidden feminine treasures, she grabbed the hem of her sweater and casually pulled it over her head. She flung the thick woolen garment in the air where it disappeared in the darkness. Although I still couldn't see much of her, I now had a naked girl in my lap. I silently cursed the darkness, as I knew I was missing out on a spectacular view. This girl had to have a pair of magnificent tits, perhaps the most beautiful pair ever created, but all I could see was a faint silhouette swaying in my lap.Even though I couldn't see her breasts, fondling them was just as thrilling and there were many more things I could do without sight. My mouth was watering as I envisioned sucking on them. I leaned forward and closed my lips around one of her nipples. I flicked my tongue across the sensitive nub and was rewarded with a sexy groan. Biting softly, I pulled back until the nipple slipped from my mouth and then I latched onto the other one. I spent a lot of time thoroughly teasing and tasting each nipple, the sensitive areolas and the smooth skin surrounding them.All this time my anonymous lover was steadily rocking her hips, and even though her movements were small and subtle, the constant stimulation of my cock pushed me increasingly towards an inevitable orgasm. The feel of her body, the taste of her lips and nipples was simply too intense, too good. My balls drew tight and I whispered I was going to cum. She just whispered ‘yes' and grabbed my shoulder. Like before, she pulled me on top of her and folded her legs around my waist. I thrust into her with all my might as we both raced towards orgasm. The moment I felt the first blast of semen race up my shaft, my mystery lover came too. For an instant, time ceased to exist, and the girl and I were one being, one single body in our own universe made of pure pleasure.We remained together until long after out orgasms ended, locked in a passionate embrace while we were coming down from our sexual high. For what seemed like an eternity I could feel her pussy twitch and clench around my cock, still trying to draw every last drop of semen from my balls. Finally, she relaxed her grasp and opened her eyes. Her lips found my mouth and we exchanged another sweet, tender kiss. I was falling in love with this girl, and I could not stop it. Suddenly, I felt a pressing need to know who she was.There was one big rule at sheep-shaggin'; anonymous sex was anonymous. Until the break of dawn, you did not reveal your identity. It was the one rule you simply were not allowed to break. Telling the girl my name, or asking for hers could possibly offend her, which was the last thing I wanted. The only accepted way to circumvent this taboo was to spend the night together and get properly acquainted in the morning. There was only one problem. I couldn't possibly spend the night with this girl, no matter how much I would have loved to. Not as long as I technically still had a girlfriend.Half an hour ago, I had all but decided to give up the search for Amanda, but now I was once again determined to find her. Although the goal was the same, my motives had changed drastically since I met the girl. Had I first hoped to find Amanda and be reunited with my true love, now I only wanted to make sure there was nothing left to salvage, and then quickly move on with my life, preferably together with this girl.To be continued in part 2, based on a post by SquattingEagle for SexStories.

Join four unlikely mouse-heroes named Bob on an epic quest to uncover the secret of the mouse town of Steves. As they hunt for clues across the magical, critter-filled world of the Fairwilds, can the Bobs save the Steves before it's too late? Maybe. The path is perilous and the world can be a dangerous place when you're just a little mouse. System: Mausritter by Losing Games CAST:  ➜GM: Artem Yatsunov (he/they) https://linktr.ee/artemdirectly ➜ Joey Nestra-West (He/Him) https://joeynestra-west.carrd.co/- Bob Hope (He/Him): Mouse, Leatherworker/Aspiring Hero, Just a Little Guy ➜ Cai Kagawa (he/they/she) https://estelofimladris.carrd.co- Bob'in Lure (he/they): Mouse, Raft Crew, Dreams of the Se(wer) ➜ Teri Gamble (they/them) https://linktr.ee/TheTeriGamble- (they/them): Mouse, Fungus Farmer, Wise ➜ Bill Roper (He/Him) https://billfreakinroper.carrd.co - Bob 303 (He/Him): Mouse, Likes pebbles, Inquisitive, Experiment(al) ◇ Visit https://www.happyjacks.org/starscape for a full list of this campaign's videos and podcasts. ◇ Follow Happy Jacks RPG on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or hang out with other tabletop roleplaying fans in our Discord community! ◇ Subscribe to our other podcast feeds! We have a weekly tabletop RPG talk show based on topics sent in from fans around the world, and a great collection of One-Shots if you prefer bite sized adventures. ◇ You can watch us on Youtube or Twitch! ◇ Keep us independent by becoming a Patreon! Our fantastic supporters let us play and say what we want instead of catering to companies for ad or sponsorship money. They are HEROES! https://patreon.com/happyjacksrpg Ⓒ2023 Happy Jacks RPG Network https://www.happyjacks.org

Join four unlikely mouse-heroes named Bob on an epic quest to uncover the secret of the mouse town of Steves. As they hunt for clues across the magical, critter-filled world of the Fairwilds, can the Bobs save the Steves before it's too late? Maybe. The path is perilous and the world can be a dangerous place when you're just a little mouse. System: Mausritter by Losing Games CAST:  ➜GM: Artem Yatsunov (he/they) https://linktr.ee/artemdirectly ➜ Joey Nestra-West (He/Him) https://joeynestra-west.carrd.co/- Bob Hope (He/Him): Mouse, Leatherworker/Aspiring Hero, Just a Little Guy ➜ Cai Kagawa (he/they/she) https://estelofimladris.carrd.co- Bob'in Lure (he/they): Mouse, Raft Crew, Dreams of the Se(wer) ➜ Teri Gamble (they/them) https://linktr.ee/TheTeriGamble- (they/them): Mouse, Fungus Farmer, Wise ➜ Bill Roper (He/Him) https://billfreakinroper.carrd.co - Bob 303 (He/Him): Mouse, Likes pebbles, Inquisitive, Experiment(al) ◇ Visit https://www.happyjacks.org/starscape for a full list of this campaign's videos and podcasts. ◇ Follow Happy Jacks RPG on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or hang out with other tabletop roleplaying fans in our Discord community! ◇ Subscribe to our other podcast feeds! We have a weekly tabletop RPG talk show based on topics sent in from fans around the world, and a great collection of One-Shots if you prefer bite sized adventures. ◇ You can watch us on Youtube or Twitch! ◇ Keep us independent by becoming a Patreon! Our fantastic supporters let us play and say what we want instead of catering to companies for ad or sponsorship money. They are HEROES! https://patreon.com/happyjacksrpg Ⓒ2023 Happy Jacks RPG Network https://www.happyjacks.org

Join four unlikely mouse-heroes named Bob on an epic quest to uncover the secret of the mouse town of Steves. As they hunt for clues across the magical, critter-filled world of the Fairwilds, can the Bobs save the Steves before it's too late? Maybe. The path is perilous and the world can be a dangerous place when you're just a little mouse. System: Mausritter by Losing Games CAST:  ➜GM: Artem Yatsunov (he/they) https://linktr.ee/artemdirectly ➜ Joey Nestra-West (He/Him) https://joeynestra-west.carrd.co/- Bob Hope (He/Him): Mouse, Leatherworker/Aspiring Hero, Just a Little Guy ➜ Cai Kagawa (he/they/she) https://estelofimladris.carrd.co- Bob'in Lure (he/they): Mouse, Raft Crew, Dreams of the Se(wer) ➜ Teri Gamble (they/them) https://linktr.ee/TheTeriGamble- (they/them): Mouse, Fungus Farmer, Wise ➜ Bill Roper (He/Him) https://billfreakinroper.carrd.co - Bob 303 (He/Him): Mouse, Likes pebbles, Inquisitive, Experiment(al) ◇ Visit https://www.happyjacks.org/starscape for a full list of this campaign's videos and podcasts. ◇ Follow Happy Jacks RPG on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or hang out with other tabletop roleplaying fans in our Discord community! ◇ Subscribe to our other podcast feeds! We have a weekly tabletop RPG talk show based on topics sent in from fans around the world, and a great collection of One-Shots if you prefer bite sized adventures. ◇ You can watch us on Youtube or Twitch! ◇ Keep us independent by becoming a Patreon! Our fantastic supporters let us play and say what we want instead of catering to companies for ad or sponsorship money. They are HEROES! https://patreon.com/happyjacksrpg Ⓒ2023 Happy Jacks RPG Network https://www.happyjacks.org

Join four unlikely mouse-heroes named Bob on an epic quest to uncover the secret of the mouse town of Steves. As they hunt for clues across the magical, critter-filled world of the Fairwilds, can the Bobs save the Steves before it's too late? Maybe. The path is perilous and the world can be a dangerous place when you're just a little mouse. System: Mausritter by Losing Games CAST:  ➜GM: Artem Yatsunov (he/they) https://linktr.ee/artemdirectly ➜ Joey Nestra-West (He/Him) https://joeynestra-west.carrd.co/- Bob Hope (He/Him): Mouse, Leatherworker/Aspiring Hero, Just a Little Guy ➜ Cai Kagawa (he/they/she) https://estelofimladris.carrd.co- Bob'in Lure (he/they): Mouse, Raft Crew, Dreams of the Se(wer) ➜ Teri Gamble (they/them) https://linktr.ee/TheTeriGamble- (they/them): Mouse, Fungus Farmer, Wise ➜ Bill Roper (He/Him) https://billfreakinroper.carrd.co - Bob 303 (He/Him): Mouse, Likes pebbles, Inquisitive, Experiment(al) ◇ Visit https://www.happyjacks.org/starscape for a full list of this campaign's videos and podcasts. ◇ Follow Happy Jacks RPG on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or hang out with other tabletop roleplaying fans in our Discord community! ◇ Subscribe to our other podcast feeds! We have a weekly tabletop RPG talk show based on topics sent in from fans around the world, and a great collection of One-Shots if you prefer bite sized adventures. ◇ You can watch us on Youtube or Twitch! ◇ Keep us independent by becoming a Patreon! Our fantastic supporters let us play and say what we want instead of catering to companies for ad or sponsorship money. They are HEROES! https://patreon.com/happyjacksrpg Ⓒ2023 Happy Jacks RPG Network https://www.happyjacks.org

Join four unlikely mouse-heroes named Bob on an epic quest to uncover the secret of the mouse town of Steves. As they hunt for clues across the magical, critter-filled world of the Fairwilds, can the Bobs save the Steves before it's too late? Maybe. The path is perilous and the world can be a dangerous place when you're just a little mouse. System: Mausritter by Losing Games CAST:  ➜GM: Artem Yatsunov (he/they) https://linktr.ee/artemdirectly ➜ Joey Nestra-West (He/Him) https://joeynestra-west.carrd.co/- Bob Hope (He/Him): Mouse, Leatherworker/Aspiring Hero, Just a Little Guy ➜ Cai Kagawa (he/they/she) https://estelofimladris.carrd.co- Bob'in Lure (he/they): Mouse, Raft Crew, Dreams of the Se(wer) ➜ Teri Gamble (they/them) https://linktr.ee/TheTeriGamble- (they/them): Mouse, Fungus Farmer, Wise ➜ Bill Roper (He/Him) https://billfreakinroper.carrd.co - Bob 303 (He/Him): Mouse, Likes pebbles, Inquisitive, Experiment(al) ◇ Visit https://www.happyjacks.org/starscape for a full list of this campaign's videos and podcasts. ◇ Follow Happy Jacks RPG on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook or hang out with other tabletop roleplaying fans in our Discord community! ◇ Subscribe to our other podcast feeds! We have a weekly tabletop RPG talk show based on topics sent in from fans around the world, and a great collection of One-Shots if you prefer bite sized adventures. ◇ You can watch us on Youtube or Twitch! ◇ Keep us independent by becoming a Patreon! Our fantastic supporters let us play and say what we want instead of catering to companies for ad or sponsorship money. They are HEROES! https://patreon.com/happyjacksrpg Ⓒ2023 Happy Jacks RPG Network https://www.happyjacks.org

Be curious - it'll give you power. I'm a level beyond curious - I'm inquisitive. I'll keep asking questions because I want to know everything. The more information you have, the more opportunites there are to ethically increase your knowledge and power to grow and transform - increasing your 'operating envelope....'That's true inside and outside public and private life....For furhter explorations:https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/brain-reboot/202311/the-psychology-and-neuroscience-of-curiosity

Sal talks a few Mace Windu comics! WAIT. Mace Windu? Sal is talking Windu? The Glass Abyss is rad! Age of Republic Windu! Saving everyone Mace Windu: The Twilight Run! Choices of younglings Jedi of the Republic: Mace Windu! Jedi hypocrisy! Inquisitive minds… Check out the Rogue Rebels Star Wars comics playlist here!⁠⁠ We want to hear from you! Check out our questions and polls ⁠⁠on Spotify!⁠⁠ ⁠⁠Click here to subscribe wherever you listen to podcasts!⁠⁠ Follow us EVERYWHERE! ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠IG: @TheRogueRebels ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠Tweets @RogueRebelsFam ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠The Rogue Rebels on FB⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠RogueRebels on Twitch! --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/roguerebelspodcast/support

Being curious and inquisitive helps us discover new things and learn more about the world around us. By asking questions and exploring, we can find joy in learning every day.Enhance your child's journey with the Charm Words: Daily Affirmations Tracing Journal for Kids. This journal complements our podcast by offering a space for kids to practice positive affirmations, boosting their confidence and mindfulness. It's available now on Amazon: https://bit.ly/charmwords

This week, we chat with Boi Carpenter about her career journey and her business, Inquisitive Leader. In the first half, we dive into her career path, and in the second, we explore her business. We discuss management, the role of curiosity and inquiry, strategies for preventing burnout, modeling behavior, and the importance of unplugging on vacation days. Boi Carpenter serves as Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations at Johns Hopkins University. In her role, she has operational and frontline responsibilities and manages several large-scale teams. Her professional career in development and alumni relations spans over twenty-nine years, twenty-four of which have been spent in her current organization.  In 2022, Boi started a personal endeavor, Inquisitive Leader, a community inspired by her conversations with bright, enthusiastic, talented professionals. She has a blog covering topics like navigating personal and professional growth dynamics, career management, belonging, managing, leading, recruitment, hiring, and retention. She is also regularly active on LinkedIn. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/devdebrief/support

Yes, yes, you're tuned in to Maxximize On Air with Blasterjaxx! Maxximize On Air, let's go! 01 DJibouti, Kilhoffer, Flo Rida - Low 02 Alejandro Diego & Veve Milah - Dudu (Goes Like This) 03 Farius & Jonathan Mendelsohn - Staring At The Sun 04 Magnificence & EisaYZ - The Bottom 05 Dutto, Mc Mascara - Purulubumbum 06 Piero Pirupa, Ben Kim - Smells Like Teen Spirit 07 Jazmin Dexx - Breathe 08 Marie Vaunt, Tao Andra - Out of Your Mind 09 Castor & Pollux, JaySic, Jason Robert - Follow The Rhythm 10 Blasterjaxx & Timmy Trumpet - Time to Say Goodbye (Live Version) 11 KYANU - Da Beat Goes 12 VINNE, DJ MP4 & K1LO - Table 13 Armin van Buuren & Hardwell - Follow The Light 14 KURA & Giuseppe Ottaviani - Aria 15 Kyros - In My Mind 16 HEDEGAARD, Martin Jensen, Victoria Nadine - Favorite Mistakes (HEDEGAARD VIP Mix) 17 Inquisitive x Tatsunoshin x Slenderino - Rave Dream 18 Alex Mueller & Retrika - Human Technology

Yes, yes, you're tuned in to Maxximize On Air with Blasterjaxx! Maxximize On Air, let's go! 01 DJibouti, Kilhoffer, Flo Rida - Low 02 Alejandro Diego & Veve Milah - Dudu (Goes Like This) 03 Farius & Jonathan Mendelsohn - Staring At The Sun 04 Magnificence & EisaYZ - The Bottom 05 Dutto, Mc Mascara - Purulubumbum 06 Piero Pirupa, Ben Kim - Smells Like Teen Spirit 07 Jazmin Dexx - Breathe 08 Marie Vaunt, Tao Andra - Out of Your Mind 09 Castor & Pollux, JaySic, Jason Robert - Follow The Rhythm 10 Blasterjaxx & Timmy Trumpet - Time to Say Goodbye (Live Version) 11 KYANU - Da Beat Goes 12 VINNE, DJ MP4 & K1LO - Table 13 Armin van Buuren & Hardwell - Follow The Light 14 KURA & Giuseppe Ottaviani - Aria 15 Kyros - In My Mind 16 HEDEGAARD, Martin Jensen, Victoria Nadine - Favorite Mistakes (HEDEGAARD VIP Mix) 17 Inquisitive x Tatsunoshin x Slenderino - Rave Dream 18 Alex Mueller & Retrika - Human Technology

"Here at last, at the edge of the sea, comes the end of our Fellowship." So said Gandalf the White at the conclusion of J.R.R Tolkien's epic The Lord of the Rings. Today, Josh and Michael have a no less epic conclusion to their own adventure, that of ASCO 2024. Over the last fifteen days, our intrepid hosts have journeyed across the world of medical oncology, from the highs of colorectal, breast and lung cancer to the dark days of central nervous system tumours. As is our tradition, we end our coverage with a look at the studies chosen by the ASCO committee as worthy of special attention: the plenary presentations. It is rare indeed to have four presentations in one year that all change clinical practice, but that is what we have been treated to this year.Thank you for joining us for coverage of ASCO 2024; we have enjoyed ourselves immensely in covering it, and we hope you have enjoyed our meandering journey through some of the best oncology researchers in the world. We will be back in a couple of weeks as Oncology for the Inquisitive arm returns to its normal programming.Links to studies discussed in this episode (subscription may be required): ESOPEC: LinkNADINA: LinkLAURA: LinkADRIATIC: LinkFor more episodes, resources and blog posts, visit www.inquisitiveonc.comPlease find us on Twitter @InquisitiveOnc!If you want us to look at a specific trial or subject, email us at inquisitiveonc@gmail.comOncology for the Inquisitive Mind is recorded with the support of education grants from Pfizer, Gilead Pharmaceuticals and Merck Pharmaceuticals. Our partners have no editorial rights or early previews, and they have access to the episode at the same time you do.Art courtesy of Taryn SilverMusic courtesy of AlisiaBeats: https://pixabay.com/users/alisiabeats-39461785/Disclaimer: This podcast is for educational purposes only. If you are unwell, seek medical advice. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The Inquisitive, Cautious child is a delight when they are being a rule follower and behaving. They can be a nightmare when they disregard the rules and do what they want because they think your rules are stupid. They want to know everything about everything and get frustrated when you don't share their need for details, sometimes to the point of melting down, but there is so much hope and happiness when you understand your Inquisitive, Cautious better and can parent them with confidence. I participate in the Amazon Associate and Influencer programs which means if you make a purchase, I may earn a commission at no additional cost to you. Thanks for listening, and if you enjoyed this episode, please subscribe, leave a review and share so others can benefit from it too. Kids Cardboard Bricks https://amzn.to/4c1Txgg Schedule your free DISCovery call here https://calendly.com/pkbemmes/discovery_call Purchase your Assessment here https://www.movingtowardbetter.com/choose-the-assessment-that-s-right-for-you Purchase and schedule your Personalized Personality Strategy Session here https://www.movingtowardbetter.com/offers/x9VFGxdq

Six hundred miles off the coast of Ecuador in the open ocean, a volcanic archipelago straddles the equator. The Galapagos Islands, forged of black lava and named for the giant tortoises that are among their most noted inhabitants, are like no other place on Earth. Home to a profuse array of unique wildlife, the islands offer an immersion in nature that feels primeval. Iguanas and blue-footed boobies share the beaches with us, unfazed by our presence. Giant tortoises amble through our private camp, their golden eyes looking out from wizened faces. Inquisitive sea lions play with us in the clear turquoise water, as Galapagos penguins dart by and sea turtles glide past. Author Herman Melville, who visited the islands in 1841, shortly after Darwin's momentous visit, called them the "Enchanted Isles"—an apt moniker for a realm that remains otherworldly, even today.Prepare to be transported to these breathtaking Islands as Martyn recounts his unforgettable 2019 adventure.  In this episode, he shares his initial surprise at the bustling life on Santa Cruz and then quickly escapes to immerse himself in the diverse landscapes —from volcanic craters to serene mangrove forests of the remote and rugged Isabela Island. Picture the exhilarating yet rough ferry ride that led to encounters with frigate birds, blue-footed boobies, sea lions, marine iguanas, and even Galapagos penguins. He vividly describes the island's lush mangroves, twisting vines, and pristine beaches that create a picture of an untouched paradise. Through personal anecdotes and observations, he paints a vibrant picture of the island's unique wildlife behaviors and captivating interactions.Lastly, he reflects on the complex balance between conservation and tourism. His experiences navigating the crowded and commercialized areas of Santa Cruz contrast sharply with the untouched beauty of Isabella, raising important questions about the impact of human presence. Despite these challenges, his passion for responsible eco-tourism shines through. Tune in for a thought-provoking discussion on the importance of preserving the Galapagos' natural splendor for future generations, punctuated by personal challenges and moments of awe.www.thelisteningplanet.com

Being inquisitive & curious is often the root of self awareness and effective reflection skills. Being comfortable asking questions and digging for the truth is a golden trait most of us lose in childhood. When your curiosity and creativity aren't nurtured, it's a chance you'll have a harder time taking risks and making change in your life. Let's get into the power of being inquisitive and how to let reflection lead to strong action.

In a captivating episode, hosts Kurt Schmidt and Katharine Kelly discuss the transformative power of understanding consumer insights for business strategy and sales success.The hosts dive into the birth of Katharine's business, Inquisitive, in the wake of the pandemic's onset in 2021. With a focus on qualitative over quantitative research, Inquisitive aims to decode the reasons behind customer behavior to enrich businesses with deeper understanding.They highlight the pitfalls companies face when they neglect the dynamic needs of their customer base. Particularly vulnerable are growing businesses that may lose touch with their market without thorough research, often relying on outdated or superficial data.The intersection of sales and consumer research is crucial. Katharine underscores that while salespeople are important custodians of customer relationships, they must work in tandem with research teams to generate nuanced insights, mindful of inherent biases.The episode reveals the significance of continuously gathering diverse customer feedback to fuel innovation and maintain trust. The hosts advocate for curiosity-driven enterprises that prioritize customers' evolving perceptions as the key to remaining nimble and successful in a competitive market.In closing, both Kurt and Katharine reflect positively on how the pandemic has altered their approaches to business, viewing these shifts as openings to capture human behavioral insights more effectively. Katharine shares her contact details for listeners interested in Inquisitive Insights.This episode not only highlights the indispensability of connecting with customers on a deeper level but also serves as an instructional guide for those seeking to integrate these insights into their corporate culture for enhanced decision-making and business growth.Find Katharine here!Website: https://www.inquisitiveinsights.com/Insta: https://www.instagram.com/inquisitive_insights/LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/katharinekelly/There is too much Schmidt to List! Check out https://www.kurtschmidt.me for more show info.  Visit Kurt's coaching site at https://schmidtconsulting.group Subscribe to The Road Map Newsletter and unlock the secrets to achieving a harmonious work-life balance as a leader. https://bit.ly/RoadMapNewsletterBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/schmidt-list-inspiring-leaders--2664825/support.

Today Rev. Wendy Craig-Purcell continues with her series on "If the Church were Christian," by sharing about "Gracious and Inquisitive." Her main points were "1. Gracious behavior would be more important than right belief 2. Inviting questions would be valued more than supplying answers" Website: http://www.theunitycenter.net Download Our New App: https://theunitycenter.churchcenter.com/setup Ask Yourself This: https://www.amazon.com/Ask-Yourself-This-Questions-Expand/dp/087159336X Subscribe to our YouTube channel: http://bit.ly/2hBqp7F Purchase Lesson Series Packages: https://theunitycenter.net/sunday-series-packages Listen to our Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/show/6YJWcAhQUnkEHFqBXQmz1G

Being inquisitive is usually good. It shows that you take interest in your employees' life and well-being. However, some questions may come across as being nosy or even paranoid. In this episode of The 10 Minute Leadership Podcast we will focus on that fine line that stands between being inquisitive and being paranoid, and asking questions we shouldn't be asking. Thank you for tuning in! Instagram: @The10MinuteLeadershipPodcast

We kick off our Rewind Week with an episode from our sister show, Stacking Deeds. Asking questions is the key to making connections, and today we connect with top Manhattan real estate broker Vickey Barron! She'll teach YOU how to ask the right questions to buy the right properties and build the right team. In our headlines, scams are on the rise....so what are some of the biggest real estate scams? We'll share. And speaking of share...I'll share some trivia that travels coast to coast. This show originally aired on August 15, 2023, so ignore any mention of current events. To see the original show notes, visit The Inquisitive Investor: Vicki Barron on How Asking Questions Elevates Your Real Estate Game (stackingdeeds.net). FULL SHOW NOTES: http://stackingbenjamins.com/sb-rewind-stacking-deeds-vickey-barron-1482 Deeper dives with curated links, topics, and discussions are in our newsletter, The 201, available at https://www.stackingbenjamins.com/201 Enjoy! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

On a calm Tuesday evening, the expected GOP torchbearer and the 45th President, Donald Trump entered into a prolific town hall discussion with Laura Ingraham from Fox News. The location was Greenville, South Carolina, chosen aptly ahead of the state's anticipated Republican primary on February 24. Presentation dictates that this was the setting in which Trump pulled back the curtain on several notable figures etched on his potential vice president line-up. Inquisitive voices resonating from the audience brushed against Ingraham's curiosity concerning their interpretation of an ideal choice for Trump's number two. Consequently, an intriguing blend of names ricocheted in response, embedding themselves into the political tapestry of the evening. Vivek Ramaswamy, accomplished and controversial, was an unsurprising entry, alongside Ron DeSantis, who emerged under the Palmetto State's sun that day. Adding to this intriguing pitcher were Tim Scott and Byron Donalds, both of whose past exploits have wrestled the public's attention. There was an unexpected corner held for Tulsi Gabbard, an intriguing twist. Rounding this off, we also caught a glimpse of Kristi Noem. By placing these figures on Ingraham's radar, the question was put to Donald Trump: Are these the names shortlisted for the esteemed position of Vice President in your prospective administration? Dipping into his natural eloquence, Trump acknowledged the prevalence of these names in his deliberations. Emphasizing the importance of this selection, he went on to elaborate how this role was a cornerstone for capturing the nation's attention and subsequent support. All acknowledged names, Trump affirmed, were praiseworthy; they represented solidity and reliability, the tenets he esteems.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

From relationships to the workplace, being an appealing person is an art. Dr. Gabe shares 13 practical tips on how to be more attractive. Listen as he explores the power of positive communication, self-confidence, and personal presentation, offering actionable advice that listeners can apply to enhance their attractiveness and influence in every sphere. Episode Sponsor | SculptedMove freely with Sculpted. Specializing in workout attire to maximize your movement & training, trust Sculpted for your men's and women's athletic wear. From pump covers and joggers to sports bras and leggings, use the code Allen10 to save 10% off your first purchase.Visit www.sculpted.co today. Text bandwidth to 94000 to stay up-to-date on all things Bandwidth.Gabriel Powell MerchUse the code BAND10 for 10% off.WebsiteSupport the Bandwidth PodcastCash App $bandwidthpodcastConnect with Bandwidth Facebook | Instagram | TikTok | Twitter Connect with Dr. GabeInstagram | YouTube | WebsiteIf you are interested in advertising on this podcast or having Dr. Gabe as a guest on your Podcast, Radio Show, or TV Show, reach out to info@gabrielpowell.co

In this episode of “Lab Medicine Rounds,” host Justin Kreuter, M.D., speaks with Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa, M.D., a neurosurgeon and scientist at Mayo Clinic. From humble beginnings as a migrant worker, his story is one of resilience, determination, and a relentless pursuit of knowledge. Timestamps:0:00 Introduction1:54 Importance for physicians to play a role in science5:28 Setting yourself up for success9:48 Inquisitive mind14:00 Mentoring22:00 Looking ahead23:55 Outro

Eric Worden, a 2022 graduate of Touro University California's Graduate School of Education, had a 20-year career in advertising before making the move to a teaching career. But that was always the plan. He leveraged the connections he made with his cohort of experienced classroom teachers – as well as his professors – while at Touro University California to build a network of informal mentors who helped him make a successful career transition.

Embark on a soul-shaking journey with Lorie Ladd in this throwback episode—voted one of our most downloaded!  Holli and Jeanna, the queens of cheeky banter, even get their spiritual booties transformed into a cosmic class. This talk is no ordinary chatter; it's a paradigm shift, a guide on living consciously. Buckle up because here's the newsflash: no need to fix, change, or toss out parts of yourself.  Liberation comes from observation without attachment. No boulders in the river, says Jeanna—time to detach! We dive into trauma, learning how to avoid piling on more. Affirmations? Maybe not! Explore the debit and credit system of our thoughts. Holli gets a little giddy with accounting lingo!  And of course, let's celebrate our human selves by delving into the divine intelligence of our bodies and body image. This episode is a potent blend of wisdom and inspiration from a true spiritual luminary. Tune in, and let the consciousness revolution begin! More about Lorie: Lorie Ladd is an author, spiritual teacher, and thought leader specializing in the evolution of human consciousness. Her teachings and guidance have helped millions of people navigate the current planetary shifts, embody Sovereignty, and remember the divine design held within the human experience. Inquisitive and intuitive, Lorie found her life purpose at 13, when she simply knew she would assist humanity through the miraculous and divine collective awakening humanity is experiencing now. But it wasn't until 2015, after leading an almost normal life, which included a MA in Psychology, teaching hot yoga, a corporate job, and a fiancée, that she fully committed to her mission.  In 2015, Lorie launched her own platform, which includes master classes and online courses, and thousands of videos available on YouTube, Instagram, and Facebook. People on all continents resonated with her teachings and down-to-earth personality, gathering together in a community that surpasses a million people. The Divine Design is Lorie's first book, and came to her as a download, during an initiated journey to the sacred land of Machu Picchu. Designed to be a lifetime companion, the book reveals the untold story of earth's and humanity's evolution in consciousness and provides the much-needed tools for navigating the current planetary awakening. Lorie Ladd resides in California, the state where she was born and grew up.

This FUBCON Session of Real Estate Team OS features Buck Wise, the CEO of #CLOSINGDAY Agency and a marketing, branding, and strategy enthusiast.Listen to this Session with Buck for insights into:- The need to be inquisitive to guide yourself and guide teams more effectively- The mentors who've shaped Buck's no-nonsense, results-oriented leadership style- How your leadership must change at different phases of business growth - and the challenges that come with that- Balancing agent brand, team brand, brokerage brand, and franchise brand - leveraging the right ones at the right times- “Marketing is connecting and earning trust”- Ways to turn data into dollars, from collection through segmentation- Why wide-net, mass-blast marketing fails in the short term and over the long term- Why the size of your “list” doesn't matter as much as you think- The campaign behind pumpkin spice latte sales growth - and what it means for youAt the end, learn about both his favorite team to root for, the best team he's ever been on, and the delicate balance of being an enterprise-level organization with startup qualities.Connect with Buck Wise:- https://www.instagram.com/aboutbuck/Learn about CLOSINGDAY Agency:- https://www.closingdayagency.com/Learn more about Real Estate Team OS:- https://www.realestateteamos.com- https://linktr.ee/realestateteamosFollow Real Estate Team OS:- https://www.instagram.com/realestateteamos/- https://www.tiktok.com/@realestateteamos

November 6, 2023 Season 4 Episode 13Pennsylvania, United States: Michelle Kissinger has literally made her life a work of art. She explores her primal wound of being abandoned as a child and her search to find healing and growth from that trauma. Her story is an ode to self-awareness, being inquisitive, and her durability. She invites us “to bring the arts more deeply into our model of care for youth and youth workers to help them sustain themselves more deeply, and handle the heavy emotional labor that we all carry, working alongside the youth that we care so deeply for.”Visit Michelle's website, [ree-sheyp] your story, pronounced reshape your story, to learn more about her work.Accessibility Options: Watch the unedited video interview with subtitles or read the edited podcast transcript by visiting this podcast's web page.Support the show

In episode 57, Kathryn and Theresa talk to SJ, a music educator originally from India, now teaching in Dubai. In this interview, SJ discusses his approach to teaching music to early and primary year students. He emphasizes the importance of using the voice as a primary instrument in the classroom and reflects on his transition from a traditional, teacher-centered approach to a more inquiry-based, student-centered style. SJ advocates for creating a learning environment that sparks curiosity and allows students to explore and engage deeply with music. He shares insights on the significance of adapting lessons to meet the diverse needs and interests of students, highlighting the need for flexibility and the power of involving students in the planning process to foster a sense of empowerment and ownership in their learning journey. Connect with SJ: LinkedIn www.linkedin.com/in/satyajeet-vijay-14776739 Website https://inthemidstofinquiry.com Facebook: www.facebook.com/inthemidstofinquiry/  Instagram: www.instagram.com/inthemidstofinquiry Twitter: https://twitter.com/midstofinquiry Facebook PYP Single Subject Group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1044502739074445/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@SatyajeetVijay Learn more about Pass the Baton: Pass the Baton website:⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.passthebatonbook.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Support Pass the Baton: ⁠⁠⁠⁠www.buymeacoffee.com/passthebaton⁠⁠⁠⁠ Amplify student voice with Exit Tickets for Self Reflection! Download for free now: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://landing.mailerlite.com/webforms/landing/f8l7g9⁠⁠

This episode of Space Nuts is brought to you with the support of NordVPN. To find out more about the special deals Andrew talks about, please visit www.nordvpn.com/spacenuts to help support the show and do yourself a favour. Win/win.Does this sound familiar? You've spent countless nights gazing up at the stars, filled with wonder and curiosity about the mysteries of the universe. But despite all the time and effort you've put into researching, you still feel like you're missing something. You've been told to simply read books and watch documentaries, hoping to gain a deeper understanding, but it's left you feeling unsatisfied and longing for more. The pain of not getting the answers you seek is like a void in your knowledge, begging to be filled. In this episode, you will be able to: · Dive deep into the intriguing world of space science and astronomy, while unraveling the mysteries of the universe. · Absorb knowledge about the spectacular phenomena of supernovae and their implications on the cosmos. · Bask in the magnificent effects of black holes on celestial bodies. · Join in the exhilarating race of Mars exploration and the search for the elusive evidence of past life. · Venture into the enigmatic realm of dark matter and dark energy. · Embark on a journey through the groundbreaking research that's shaping the future of astrophysics. Supernovae are not things to be messed with, because they are so energetic, so much happening, and the radiation that they emit across the electromagnetic spectrum and in the particle domain as well, is pretty overwhelming. - Andrew Dunkley Dive into space science In this episode, we deep-dive into the vast universe of space science, tackling several intriguing questions from our listeners. Within these conversations, we shed light on phenomena such as supernovae and the potential effects they might have if they occur close to Earth. By exploring these celestial occurrences, we aim to foster a deeper understanding and appreciation for the mystifying universe we belong to.#space #astronomy #science #news #podcast #spacenuts

Growing up on a cattle ranch in rural America paints a fairytale scene. But what if you decided to rewrite your story after childhood trauma and lots of self-reflection? Today I chatted with Lisa D'Acquisto, a VP of Human Resources, about having both a servant's heart and a strong drive to succeed. She began her journey assisting victims in the criminal justice system. But when all her colleagues became bitter, depressed, and emotionless, she wanted out. Discover how doing the thing taught Lisa how to evolve through experiences, ultimately igniting a passion for HR and curiosity for crypto investing.