Podcasts about momentarily

Celebrated composer and guitarist Jon Durant joins us on this episode of Big Blend Radio's TOAST TO THE ARTS podcast where he discusses his new album "Momentarily." It's an amalgamation of transcultural, jazz-related styles, that gives way to euphoric, universally relatable grooves and soundscapes. A trio recording featuring Durant alongside longtime musical partners Colin Edwin (bass) and Andi Pupato (drums/percussion), both legends in their own right, this musical jewel showcases rare mastery through individually compelling tracks and comprehensive arc.More at https://jondurant.bandcamp.com/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Celebrated composer and guitarist Jon Durant joins us on this episode of Big Blend Radio's TOAST TO THE ARTS podcast where he discusses his new album "Momentarily." It's an amalgamation of transcultural, jazz-related styles, that gives way to euphoric, universally relatable grooves and soundscapes.  A trio recording featuring Durant alongside longtime musical partners Colin Edwin (bass) and Andi Pupato (drums/percussion), both legends in their own right, this musical jewel showcases rare mastery through individually compelling tracks and comprehensive arc. More at https://jondurant.bandcamp.com/ 

The Peddler & the Fairy: Part 3 The trio's idle hours are interrupted by an unexpected guest.In 10 parts, by Scholarly Mori. Listen to the Podcast at Explicit Novels. During the trek back to camp, Reina lagged behind. She felt a little awkward with her new family, but she was also giddy. 'I can't believe I finally found a herd-mate!' she thought. 'He's not what I imagined he'd be; he's not even the same species, but he didn't mind my oddities or disfigurement, and he; he actually kissed them!' She put her hands to her face, blushing at the memory. [[MORE]] 'Speaking of kisses, Azalea kissed me, as well, and on the lips no less. What did that mean? Did it mean anything? Is that normal? What is considered normal for humans and fairies? I guess I can only try to play it by ear and see how things develop.' Arriving at Devin's camp, she assessed her new home. "Your camp looks clean and well organized. I would expect no less from my herd-mate." "Thanks! I try to keep it that way. Food scraps tend to attract wild animals, and I like knowing where everything is." Reina looked toward the wagons. The largest barrels had round stone plates on top and bottom, lashed together with rope. Ice clung to the sides and rim of the barrels. "You mentioned you were a merchant. What do you sell?" Reina asked. "Before I answer that, how much do you two know about human society?" "I have not had many interactions with humans. When I was very young, my parents took me with them to the human capital, but all I remember is a lot of people and tall buildings." She shrugged. "The Northern kingdom is an alliance of demi-human tribes and the old kingdom of Lindone. There are three major human cities: Thawdenn, Iceford, and Merport, with a smattering of smaller towns and homesteads across the region. Because of the poor growing environment, milk is an important staple, especially during the winter months. Because there are very few holstaurs this far north, compared to the Middle Kingdom, sheep-girl and satyr milk have become the primary alternative -- mainly because they endure cold better, and sheep girls have the added benefit of producing wool," Devin explained as he started to break camp. "So you're a milk merchant?" inquired Reina. "Mostly. I buy milk wholesale from Thawdenn and resell it in Iceford or one of the smaller settlements, charging a slightly higher price, plus a delivery and handling fee. I sometimes also barter for other demi-human commodities: lamia venom, sheep-girl wool, spools of arachne silk, pollen from alraune, the occasional order of milt, and caviar from Merport, plus a few other things." "That sounds like a lucrative enterprise." "It's a modest living. Everyone needs something to be moved from one place to another, so I figured the prospects with that as a profession would be stable." "Are these stone plates responsible for this?" Reina asked while tapping the ice on one of the barrels. "Yes. Those specific ones are called chill runes. Think of them as a pre-cast spell. Runes are flexible and convenient for non-affinity users. They can be applied to many different materials for a variety of effects, but they have many limitations, too, mainly duration and availability. I'm not sure exactly how they are made, but I think they take blood as a fuel source." "Impressive you have multiples of these." "Enough for each milk barrel, but they'll expire soon, so I hope you don't mind the hasty departure, but it's almost noon, and we have quite a bit of distance to cover. We'll be heading out as soon as we are packed," Devin announced. When the wagon was fully loaded, and Devin was hitching up the bay, Reina put a hand on his arm. "May I be allowed to pull the wagon?" "You can, but why?" he challenged with a stunned expression. Reina patted the old bay. "I can't, in good conscience, let this elderly horse do all the work alone. I would like to assist her." "That's fine with me, but I don't have a spare harness. I'll have to rig something, and it probably won't be comfortable." "I am not concerned about a little discomfort." A warm smile broke out on her face. Reina positioned herself next to the bay as Devin tied some spare rope into an assortment of loops. Then he placed them around Reina's lower torso and behind her front legs. "How is it? Not too tight?" Devin checked. "It's a little rough, but it will suffice." Devin climbed into the driver's seat, and Azalea took up her favorite perch on his shoulder. He gave the reins a test pull. "Can you feel that?" Reina felt a little tug on her left side, then the other. "Yes." "Let me know if you become too tired," he offered. With a flick of the reins, the wagon jerked forward. Reina watched the bay, timing their movements together. Progress was slow at first, but Reina soon settled into a complementary gait. As they neared the treeline, Devin pulled the wagon to a halt. "How are you feeling, Reina?" "This is quite invigorating," she panted, "although this area is getting a bit sore." She rubbed where the rope was chafing her skin. Devin thought for a moment, then rummaged around the wagon bed. "This might help." He placed some burlap fabric between her skin and the rope. "Better?" "Yes, thank you." Devin stood on the wagon and poked his head above the trees, checking the highway for signs of people. Seeing none, he climbed back into his seat, and the trio made their way down to the road. "What a magnificent example of human ingenuity," Reina commented. "Half right. The king's highway is the cooperation between humans and demi-humans." "I remember my mother mentioning it when I asked her about human culture once," reminisced Azalea. "It was the answer to the problem of particularly harsh winters that would strand many tribes and stymy trade. Though, I think it's mostly taken for granted now," Devin mused. When she was guided to the edge of the road, Reina had to maneuver a bit to clear the lip of the embankment. Its construction was mostly crushed rock overlaid with packed earth, slightly higher than the surrounding environment. She stopped a moment to wipe the sweat off her forehead. "It has been quite a while since I've exerted myself this much. I don't know how this poor creature managed it for so long." She patted the bay's head. "So we are headed to Iceford, herd-mate?" "Yes, but we'll make a detour to my friend's homestead," Devin answered. "I have never been to this part of the region. Excuse me for a moment." She pulled up the blanket covering her backside, squatted, and urinated. Devin cocked an eyebrow. "Do you have a pee fetish or something?" Reina hid a smile behind her hand, "For many demi-humans, urine contains a great deal of information about an individual, but to answer your question, no, I do not. The fact you've seen me urinate so much is purely coincidental. In this specific instance, though, there is a custom among Whitehorns called poronkusema. When we start a new migration into a region we are unfamiliar with, we measure the distance based on how often we need to empty our bladder." "That's one way to do it, I guess." "Maybe I should have done the same thing when I flew here from my village," Azalea quipped. -- The sun was slowly warming the crisp morning air as the trio set off west. Usually, Devin passed the dull kilometers daydreaming of a more exciting life, but now that he had it, he was glad for the long hours. He needed time to plan and think about certain changes he'd have to make in the future. "Reina." Looking over her shoulder, "Yes, herd-mate?" "Is this something you want to do full time, or until I find a new horse?" "If your cargo doesn't get much heavier, I am confident I can fulfill this role." "I don't usually fill it beyond this amount. I'm assuming you are equally confident in snow?" "Yes, more so, even." 'That would lessen my concerns quite a bit. Horses are expensive, and Gylan might not even have a spare to let me borrow or sell.' He thought. For his bay's sake, he never did much winter trading when the snows became deep. This might be an opportunity if Reina was offering and proficient at winter travel. He had to consult with a wainwright about getting a proper harness for her. The rest of the day was uneventful. Reina would stop roughly every seven kilometers and urinate. Azalea passed the time humming or sketching the landscape, but she eventually grew bored and pulled out a separate sketch pad bound with a thick cord. "Hey, Reina!" Reina's ear swiveled backward at the sound of her name. "Can I sketch your ass?" Azalea requested matter-of-factly. "You want to sketch my what, ?!" "Your ass! It's very cute, and I want to preserve it for, posterior-ty!" Azalea grinned at Devin. "Haven't you seen enough of her ass?" Devin solicited. "Can you ever have too much of something that's nice to look at?" challenged Azalea. "It beats staring at trees the whole time," Devin relented. "If it makes Azalea stop making bad puns, then please say yes, Reina." 'Why am I so embarrassed whenever I interact with Azalea,' Reina thought. Aside from the threesome they had this morning, when her embarrassment was superseded by her horniess, she always felt a bit flustered around her. Blushing, Reina pulled the blanket up, giving the two an eyeful of her shapely rump. They didn't say anything, but she could feel their eyes wandering over her. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Azalea start to sketch. "You have a graceful walk, Reina," Devin extended. "Th, thank you, herd-mate." Each footfall was firm and sure as her legs and haunch muscles tensed and rippled with the strain of each step. She shook her head just as a breath of wind caused the filigree in her antlers to catch the light, scattering the sun across the silky hair fluttering behind her. It definitely enhanced her assumed queenly persona. "I'm done!" Azalea announced two hours later. She handed Devin her sketch pad. He held it up, comparing it to the real thing. Azalea's giftedness was quite evident. Devin was impressed by the way Azalea used shadow to imply the location of her muscles and provide depth to the finer details of her more intimate bits, especially the grooved lines of her anus and slight creases of her labia. The attention she applied to Reina's fur stood out the most, creating the illusion of movement and softness and making the image seem more real than it should. "Subject matter aside, you're an amazing artist," he commended. "One of the few things I'm great at," She said smugly. "That sketchbook contains a collection of all my most memorable and favorite drawings. Flip to the beginning and see!" Devin turned to the first page, and it made more sense why Azalea chose Reina as her theme. "Azalea, your collection is extensively detailed drawings of demi-human genitalia?" he asked, incredulous. "Uh-huh! Well, not all of them, but they are all people I've met, or care about. Aren't they amazing?! Look at all the different shapes and sizes! Isn't this one cute? Can you believe how big that one is? Isn't the shape of this one fascinating?!" Devin shook his head. The sketches weren't sexual in nature. They were so academic that they just needed labels for it to be some kind of indecent demi-human field guide. "Not sure I want to ask if you peeped on all these people naked so you could draw them." "Of course not! That would be rude and creepy. I casually go up to them and ask. It's not my fault if they think I'm a Leannin Sidhe." "A what?" "They are cousins to us fairies, but eccentric and obsessed with art, drawing, composing music, singing, stuff like that." "So you don't clarify that you're a fairy." "Well; not exactly, but it's fine. They were all happy to pose for me." Halfway through the sketches, the theme changed. Devin had to ask, "Is this your village?" "Yes. It's very boring, but quaint enough to live in, I suppose." Very much in tune with the natural surroundings, her village did look cozy. There were tiny doors and windows in trees, fallen logs, and the sides of hills. Its fairy inhabitants looked similar to Azalea, with a wide array of brightly-colored clothing. The scenes looked like what you'd find at any human town: fairies perusing market stalls, some singing to small audiences, all of them going about their daily lives. The last two pages were a panorama. "Oh, that's my classmates after we graduated. They wanted to relax after all our studying, so they went to the communal baths to unwind." "They didn't invite you?" Devin inquired. "No, but I went anyway. It's normally used by the whole village, but it was early enough in the day so we were the only ones there." Azalea pointed to a spot in the upper left corner. "The bath is fed by a large creek diverted into two channels. The first feeds five waterfalls where we wash before going into the main area." Azalea pondered over the picture a moment. "This is Lilac under the first falls, she has a well-rounded knowledge of many topics, especially anatomy. Unlike me, she has no problem remembering all those unnecessarily long names. Next to her is Magnolia, she's soft-spoken and very clumsy, in a cute way". "Any examples?" Azalea put her hand to her chin. "We once went foraging in the forest. She tripped over a root. Luckily, I was behind her, so I had a front-row seat, and it was my first time seeing under her dress. She has a beauty mark on her left cheek. Also, I'm sure she has the biggest clit out of all the girls." "You would notice things like that," Devin commented and laughed. She circled her fingers and looked through them at him. "As an artist, I have a quick and discerning eye for detail, life-mate." "Indeed," Devin said amused. "Where was I? Oh yes, this lovey-dovey couple is Camellia and Reed. They've been together for years. They go everywhere and do everything together. She says her long, golden hair is high maintenance, so she has Reed help wash it, but I think it's just an excuse to feel his penis between her thighs." "I can relate! I appreciate a certain fairy's thighs wrapped around mine." "You did?! I'm glad, life-mate!" She pounced on him, hugging his neck. They shared a kiss before going back to the picture. "The second channel feeds the main bath. I think it can fit twenty-five fairies comfortably, maybe a few more if they sit on these mossy rocks surrounding the edge. "Life-mate, here's a fun little secret. This moss feels really good on a bare cunt. Imagine soft, bunny-girl fur between your legs. This one especially makes it easy for a little stealth masturbation." She leered at an unassuming rock protuberance. "Easy to hide wet spots in the bath," Devin speculated. "That was my exact thinking, too! Too bad it's not a hot bath, or else it'd be easier to hide a flushed face as well." She giggled. "Let's see, who else? Oh, this is Chrysanthemum. She's quite athletic. It's fun to watch her boobs bounce around when she exercises. She doesn't talk much, though. When she's bathing, she just eats the fruits hanging from these vines and people-watches. Unlike these two," Azalea said and tapped the page, "Myrtle and Hazel, they love to gossip, mostly about Hyacinth. They don't do it maliciously, though. "Speaking of which, this is Hyacinth." Devin followed her finger to a fairy with tied-up blonde hair and a pair of alluring emerald eyes. "She's the class tease, always flirting with the boys. She's giving poor Sorrell a handjob while he watches Lily grope Marigold. I say poor because she has a bit of a mean streak. She never brings them to climax, always leaving them with blue balls. I overheard some of the boys say her hands feel amazing, so maybe it's worth the discomfort. Now that I think about it, they do get them more often in the bath. Maybe it takes more work to get them hard in cold water?" "And this is Lily and Marigold?" Devin asked. "Yep, Lily has the flattest chest in the class. She enjoyed groping all the big girls, especially Marigold, who's the largest aside from me." "She never groped you?" "She did. Got my nipples hard on quite a few occasions, but when my little nymphomania secret got out, she stopped." "So, let me get this straight. You went to the baths with your classmates even though they essentially ostracized you for having a high sex drive?" Azalea twiddled her thumbs. "Even if I can't get close to people and they don't talk to me, I still like to be around them." Devin scooped up Azalea and cuddled with her for a moment. "I hope our time together makes up that." Azalea nuzzled him back. "It already has, life-mate! I've been happier than I've been in a long time! It hasn't even been two days, and already I've had so much fun with you. and now that Reina's here, it's been double the fun!" Reina smiled. "I too am looking forward to our future together, Azalea." Devin set Azalea down. "So, fairies aren't normally as horny as you?" "Faires, no; pretty conservative, the bath thing was just them goofing around. Our Leannin Sídhe cousins, on the other hand, are much more so. They express their sexuality through art, so they can get away with the 'its art' excuse. Pixies, though, the little addicts, sex to them is basically saying hello. The one time I went to one of their villages looking for a life-mate, four of them were going at it in the town square while casually discussing what to eat later. No one batted an eye. They'll do anything whenever, wherever." "And that didn't appeal to you?" "It was tempting, but Pixies just love the pleasure. For me, sex is fascinating to study and learn about; the pleasure is just a bonus. Also, they never leave their villages, that sounds boring to me." Devin nodded his understanding and flipped to the next page. "Oh, that one is my mom and her husband when they moved to the orc village!" A fairy with a face resembling Azalea, except a bit older with a smaller bust and short wavy hair, was standing on the open palm of a large, well-dressed orc. "You keep saying husband. Is he not your father?" "Hmm? Oh, no, he isn't." "Oh. I thought it odd you didn't call him dad. Wait, didn't you say fairies can only have offspring with other species?" "Huh? I don't think so? Maybe I didn't explain it well enough. Fairies can mate with other fairies, demi-humans, or humans, but offspring will always be fairies. Anyway, mom remarried and that picture was when she made her public announcement of marriage." The way Azalea hurried away from the topic of her biological father, Devin surmised she didn't want to talk about him. "The adjacent picture is the day after their marriage." Azalea's mom was in the bath, sitting on her husband's erect penis. "He's a bit of a shy sort when it comes to nudity around anyone but mom, but she managed to persuade him, saying she wanted to make sure they were both clean before drawing the lovecrest. "This was the first time we had all bathed together. I was sitting across from them. Mom was scrubbing his penis a little too vigorously and ended up making him cum all over me. He was mortified, but mom and I had a good laugh while reassuring him it was alright." 'I see where her lewd side came from.' Devin thought. "So, your mom has a lovecrest too?" "She does, she is the one who taught me, but her's, has some unique additions." Azalea trailed off. "Anyway, she was able to take him first try, no problem. That's why I thought maybe you'd fit in me." "Well, your mom is, well, a mom. She had you, so that was bound to stretch her out a bit." Azalea sighed. "I hope so." The second-to-last page had a full-page image of a penis. 'This one looks oddly familiar,' he thought. "Azalea." "Yes, life-mate?" "Is this my penis?" "Isn't it lovely! I loved snuggling up to it this morning." "Is that going to happen every morning? "Of course. Who doesn't like breakfast in bed?" she snickered. Devin handed her sketchbook back. "So, what'd you think of my collection?" she buzzed. "It's, um, a very unique way to express your interests." "I can't wait to fill up more pages during our adventures!" she beamed. "I'm gonna go show Reina." She had just landed on Reina's shoulder when a large shadow passed overhead, drawing everyone's attention. Devin instinctively pulled the wagon to a stop. Azalea and Reina both looked back, eyes wide, as two large and glossy black wings enveloped Devin. "Hello, little brother," said a tenderly sensuous voice, "I have returned for my bi-weekly sibling bonding time!" "You know you don't have to, Mavis," Devin replied, nonplussed. "Don't be so cold. Is that any way to treat your big sister who hasn't seen you in such a long time?!" She hugged him tighter, resting her chest on top of his head. "It's only been two days." "Two days is an eternity when I spend all my time alone, flying across the broad swath of empty wilderness." She sniffled melodramatically. Devin brushed some of the feathers aside and looked up into the smiling ruby eyes of a slim woman in her mid-thirties. "Won't you give your lonely sister a kiss?" Devin lightly kissed one of her feathers. "Now, now! That won't do! Give your big sister a proper kiss." As Devin sighed, she shook a few strands of black hair from her face and bent down, pressing her soft lips into his in a not-quite-sensual, but definitely more than familial, kiss. She probed his lips questioningly with her tongue, but he kept them firmly closed. Mavis looked disappointed. "You normally love our little make-out sessions." "M'not today," he muttered. "Is it because you're embarrassed to show how close we are to your friends? Oh well, I guess I can settle for this to stave off my loneliness for a while, but next time it will be full tongue!" she cooed. Azalea, getting over her initial surprise, fluttered up to the harpy calling herself Devin's sister. "Oh, hello, are you a friend of my brother's? Would you like a kiss too?" she proposed alluringly. "He's my life-mate, and I have a hard time believing you're his sister, given the obvious differences." "You don't believe me? Can't you see the family resemblance?" She rested her head on Devin's shoulder so Azalea could compare. "See? Perfect family resemblance!" she chuckled. Azalea folded her arms and rolled her eyes. "She's technically right, Azalea," assured Devin, "though it's more accurate to say I'm her adopted brother. We were childhood friends growing up. I was eighteen when my parents passed away, so Mavis' family took me in." Mavis mussed his hair. "And that's why he has my family's last name. We are just as close as any biological siblings." Azalea mulled over this explanation a moment. "If you're life-mate's sister, then; then that makes you my sister too?!" "I'm not sure that's how it wor―" Devin tried to say. Azalea exploded in excitement. "I've never had a sibling! What do sisters normally do together?! Try on each other's clothes?! Bake sweets?! Pick flowers?! I could make you a pretty―!" Devin plucked her out of the air, muffling her in his hand. "You found a sweet girl, Devin! I like her -- very spunky. She's just what you need to experience the more exciting parts of life," Mavis said. "Actually, she found me." "Is that so?" Mavis stole Azalea out of Devin's hand and pulled her close. "You want to hear some interesting stories about him?" "Most definitely!" She nodded enthusiastically. "He peeked at me several times in the bath." "She complained she couldn't wash her back properly," Devin interjected. "That was the first night I moved in and before I became aware of your hobby of teasing me. I got in trouble with your father for that." "You say trouble. I call it life experience." "He was such a naughty brother, Azalea -- always trying to glance under my tail feathers." "You mean you enjoyed giving me a hard time by wearing next to nothing when lounging around the house," he clarified. "I think you mean hard-on," she teased. "Clothes are such a bother, anyway, when you don't leave the house." Turning her attention back to Azalea, "That wasn't the most daring thing he did, Azalea. He was even brazen enough to sneak into my bed once and spoon me." "She snuck into MY bed, in MY room, and rubbed her ass against me." "You liked it, and I could tell you wanted to cum." "Did not." "Well, technically, yes, I couldn't tell since you had a lot of pre-cum and a very wet dream." Azalea patted them both on the head between laughs. "You two are so cute together, and he does produce a lot of pre-cum. I'll have to try giving him a wet dream sometime, too." Azalea giggled. "Oh, so you know! He was so mean to me that night, Azalea. Imagine it: it's late at night, and you get those tingles, that deep itch that can only be scratched by someone with fingers, but he's fast asleep! So what am I to do but try to scratch it myself with the nearest long, hard object, but the angles are all wrong to get it inside, so all I end up doing is making him get my tail feathers all sticky. Then, when he wakes up, instead of helping me, he leaves the room embarrassed!" she mock-cried. Azalea put her hands on her hips. "Life-mate, shame on you, it's written in the younger brother handbook that he has the responsibility to take care of the sexual needs of his older sister." "First, I wasn't expecting her to be in my bed rubbing up against my morning wood. Second, I wasn't ready to fertilize her eggs, and third, I'm positive and glad no such book exists," he claimed with exasperation. "He can be quite the stick-in-the-mud, can't he, Azalea? I tried many times to wash his penis, to search out his favorite spots, but he always found an excuse to avoid me." "You want me to tell you where they are?" Azalea whispered conspiratorially. "I can hear you when you're right next to me, you know. If you two are quite done teasing me, I would like to know if you have any messages." Reina sighed. "Always business first. Yes, I do, but first, look!" She spread her wings and did a little spin in the back of the wagon. "Brand new uniforms! Doesn't this purple and yellow beret look professional?" She adjusted it smartly. "It even has our emblem of a talon clutching a scroll embroidered on it, and isn't this black leather jerkin with alternating purple and yellow trim fashionable? I still need help to put it on and take off, but it's a lot quicker now since they moved the brass buckles to the sides. "The only thing I dislike are these tight, form-fitting breeches. The short belted skirt over it is cute, but how am I supposed to show off my trim ass if it's being covered?" "I'm sure your ass wasn't even a consideration for your boss." "Sadly, you're right, even though I'm his fastest harpy at Wing and Claw Delivery. Speaking of asses, I thought I eyed you covering yours just before I landed, Miss Quiet Whitehorn." Reina had been silently listening and not in any particular hurry to enter the conversation. "A lady would never do such a thing in public," She deflected. "Is that so? I have a pretty good eye, especially for asses, and I'm positive I saw yours for a brief moment." "I asked to se―" Devin muffled Azalea with his hand again. "How about I introduce you two," Devin cut in. "Mavis, this is Reina D Virtsa. She's traveling with Azalea and I. Reina, as you've already heard, this is my older sister, Mavis Ebonplume." "It's a pleasure to meet you, Miss Ebonplume." "Likewise, Miss Virtsa." "Returning to business matters, I have a client who has a big commission they want you, specifically, to fulfill; if you're up to it," Mavis announced. "Oh? Who, and what's the commodity?" Devin queried. "For now, they would like to remain anonymous but will have the written request completed in a few days. If you could stop by the office, I'll be able to give it to you then." "Alright, I'll be making a detour at Gylan's farm, so it'll be about two or three days." "That's fine. It's not an urgent or time-sensitive request. Anyway, I've used up all my break time and need to be off to deliver the rest of these." She shook the large satchels hanging under her wings. "Love you! I'll see you in a few days!" Mavis spread her wings, did a test flap, and then took flight heading east. "Your sister is fun to be around, life-mate! I can't wait to see her again!" "I'm glad you two got along, even if it was at my expense." -- Managing a few more kilometers before sunset, the trio found a decent place to camp for the night. Devin served up a meal of baked potatoes and wild chives that Reina found. Azalea was the first to finish eating, falling asleep soon after leaving Reina and Devin alone with the fire. "Are you feeling sore, Reina?" Devin broke the silence. "It was a bit more exertion than I anticipated, but I will grow accustomed to it." Again, the two sat in silence for some time around the crackling fire, listening to the crickets' nightly song. "Your sister really cares for you, herd-mate." "She does. She's always been highly independent and proactive at doing whatever she puts her mind to, but she was never too busy to check up on me. She keeps trying to get me to quit being a merchant and come live with her, but I don't know how she could afford me not working. She can't make that much at her job. She keeps telling me she has an alternative income but never elaborates where from." "Even still, you never considered her offer?" "I like being a merchant and love traveling. Besides, if I had, I never would've met you or Azalea." Reina tried to hide a smile. "That's true." Devin got up and joined Reina on her side of the fire. "Wha; what are you doing, herd-mate?" "Just wanting to hold your hand." "Of course, but I've just never done it in an intimate way before, is this part of human courtship? I don't know anything about how humans bond. It hasn't even been a day since we met and things have all happened so fast. I'm sorry if ―." Devin suddenly kissed her lips. She stiffened in surprise, then felt her worry melt away as their lips lingered together. Settling back he squeezed her hand. "There isn't really any 'right way', go at our own pace," he assured her. "How do Whitehorns conduct their courtship?" Reina pondered a moment. "When Whitehorns come of age, both females and males leave their family to join other herds. Most males join together in 'bachelor bands.' During mating season, they will sparr with one another to demonstrate their physical and charismatic prowess to claim the right to be the first to ask potential females. Candidates are chosen based on pedigree, personality, looks, fertility, etc. The female can then either decline or accept to create their own separate herd as a pair or a group. "The male will choose a primary female. Together, they will co-manage duties between themselves: when and where to migrate, who to trade with, and diplomatic-related duties with other herds or other demi-human tribes. The male will eventually mate with all the females of the herd, but the primary female chooses when and sometimes with who. She does that to maintain the resources balance within the herd. Offspring are raised communally, allowing females without offspring to work with mothers to gain experience and allow other mothers a chance to rest." Devin leaned his head on Reina's side. "Do you miss your family?" "I am unsure of my feelings about them right now. My family was never very openly affectionate, and my father was rather stern most of the time. Being the oldest child, they probably had expectations of me, but they never verbalized them or hinted at their wishes. They were probably disappointed that I'm thirty and never found a herd-mate." "Till now." She smiled. "Yes, until now, but I am uncertain how they would view our; unique relationship. I've never heard of another of my kind in a similar situation." "Relationships like ours seem to be rare. In my travels, I've seen only a handful of similar partners. When we first met, you said you were on your way to catch up with your herd?" "I did. This time of year is our bi-annual migration to our winter home. I had many things dwelling on my mind, so I decided to travel alone for a while so I could think about things," Reina mused. "And, " he prodded. "And?" "How did the bramble come into play?" he asked. Reina looked down. "It was a rash decision, and my stress was quite high; and I needed some relief." "Will they miss you when you don't turn up?" Devin pushed further. "I don't know. I've been left to my own devices for many years now. I doubt they would miss me." "I'd like to think, on some level, most parents want to at least know if their children are safe," Devin stated with sympathy. "If you want, you can write a letter and have Mavis deliver it. Might give you some closure." "I'll think about it." Reina started to feel warm near the fires, so she removed her coat. She still felt a little vulnerable removing her outerwear. Out of habit, she moved to cover her scars but saw Devin watching her and folded her hands instead. "Do they really not bother you?" she asked quietly. Reina tensed as Devin made a move to touch them, but with a mischievous smile, he started tickling her. Surprised, she attempted to fend off his attacks but ended up laughing more than defending. He continued his onslaught for a few minutes and managed to roll Reina onto her side before stopping. "Feel more relaxed?" He grinned. She nodded, catching her breath and wiping happy tears from her eyes. "I wasn't expecting that." Devin helped her back up. "It was a spur-of-the-moment decision." After a pause, he continued, "I'm still curious as to how you got them." Reina took a deep breath. "I; my sister and I were kidnapped by slavers." "Wait, you were victims during that slaver attack thirteen years ago!?" "I was. I tried to protect my sister, or at the very least, keep her in the group I was in. They didn't like my protests that much." "So they whipped you," he said bluntly and with a tinge of anger. Reina nodded. They both fell silent, letting the weight of Reina's story sink in. "I'm sorry about your sister." "I mourned for her and had nightmares for several years." Devin pulled Reina into a hug. "I'm sorry you had to go through that." "Thank you, herd-mate. I no longer have nightmares, so these scars are the only reminder of that time. "I'll do my best, and I'm sure Azalea will as well, to make sure you enjoy life from now on." "I am still getting used to Azalea's; unreserved nature, but I know she means well." "I don't know if it'll help, but you might try viewing your scars not as a stigma of your failure to protect your sister but as a testament to your courage and survival. Think if you hadn't. If a few minor injuries were the price for freedom, I'd say it was a pretty cheap cost." "I've never thought of it that way. I'll try to, herd-mate. I suppose the only other good thing that came from that event was my father hugged me for the first time when we returned home." "See! He does care for you." Devin tried to encourage her. Reina just looked into the fire thoughtfully. They interlocked and intertwined their fingers as silence settled over the camp, each attending to their own thoughts. "Reina, I've been meaning to ask about our; mating earlier. I was wondering if we hadn't come along, what was your plan if you got pregnant?" "I hadn't really thought about the repercussions," she admitted. "I'm ok with bearing your offspring if that's what you're implying?" "My preferences aside, I really want to hear your feelings." Reina looked into Devin's eyes. "I'm not against the idea, nor am I particularly eager to rush things. I am already more than happy to spend time traveling with you and Azalea for the time being. Not to mention, the orgasms you two gave me were quite satisfactory," she commended. They continued watching the fire, enjoying each other's closeness. Reina tried to stifle a yawn. Devin leaned against her, imagining no other place he'd rather be than right here, warm and content. "I bet you're going to sleep well tonight with all the exercise you got." "I will, but I am sure I will feel sore tomorrow." "Maybe we can alleviate that some." Reina watched curiously as he straddled her back. Placing his hands on her shoulders, he began a slow, deep massage. "I've found one of the best things in life is a massage right before bed and right when you wake up." "I can see why." She hummed delightedly. "Let me get this out of the way." She undid the clasp behind her neck, and her large breasts revealed their freedom with a slight bounce. She rolled her neck and shoulders, which tossed the fabric to the side. "Wearing clothes feels so confining at times." "Aside from pulling human wagons, you must get sore fairly regularly being so well endowed." Reina weighed them in her hands thoughtfully. "All the females from my family were blessed with a voluminous bust. I have become accustomed to the discomfort." "You shouldn't have to! You can ask me for a massage any time." "Such an attentive herd-mate. I'll be sure to take you up on your offer." Encouraged by her little purrs of pleasure, he tried to focus on the massage but kept getting distracted by her ample cleavage. He thought of how to ask to touch them when Reina took the initiative. "If you are going to be thorough, herd-mate, you are going to have to massage these as well." She smirked, placing her arms behind her head and thrusting her chest out. "As my queen desires." Thinking he was making fun of her, "M'not really royalty, you know." "I'm aware, but I already consider you my queen." Devin leaned in and kissed the back of her ear. Heat flooded Reina's face, and she tilted her head down, blushing profusely. "You're also incredibly adorable when you're embarrassed." Reina took a few breaths to calm her fluttering heart. "When I was very young, two human nobles and their retinue visited our herd." Devin scooted closer, his hands kneading the delicate muscles around the base of her breasts, ready to listen to her story. "Father didn't inform me as to the nature of their visit. I had no interest, either -- that is, until I saw the nobleman's wife, sitting upon her carriage, regal, indifferent as if the mediocrity of everyday life was beneath her." "What'd she look like?" he asked. She closed her eyes to bring back the memory. "Her hair was dark as walnut, braided into a crown around her head. She wore a sapphire-embedded coronet. An emblem of blue roses embroidered the entirety of her billowy dress. She looked so striking compared to what I was used to seeing; I was enchanted by her. "They stayed with us for a week. I wanted to talk with her, get to know her, but I rarely saw her outside her tent. For the first few days, I tried sneaking peeks at her, but I wasn't very discreet, and she shooed me away." Reina was so engrossed in telling her story that she failed to notice Devin's massage transition from a wholesome alleviation of soreness and tension to a more lewd nature. He experimentally cupped the oversized mounds in his hands, enjoying the luscious flesh squishing between his fingers. "On my fourth attempt," Reina continued, "I went at night. She was humming a song while brushing her hair. This time, though, she sighed when she noticed me. She ushered me in. Then she put her brush down, demanding to know why I kept disturbing her. I told her I was infatuated by her, the way she conducted herself, her lifestyle. "Whether she was bored or genuinely amused, I couldn't tell, but she invited me back to listen to her stories about growing up as a noble and how court life was conducted. Before she left, she gave me a book on etiquette. I ended up reading it so many times, I wore it out." "An interesting choice for a role model." He remarked, lightly brushing her large gray-brown areola with his fingertips. "My family and friends thought it cute, at first, but things became rather awkward between us when they realized it wasn't temporary." Devin slid from her back, taking his place in front of her. "People seem to latch on to what they admire, and coincidentally, I'm admiring these cute, little inverted nipples!" Reina looked down at his fingers teasing the slight indentations. "They are from my mother's side. Please be gentle. They are super sensitive." A low moan escaped her lips as he coaxed her left nipple from its hiding place, its stiffness hinting at her arousal. The right one proved less forthcoming, so he placed his lips over the stubborn nub and alternated sucking and pinching until it popped out stiffly. Reina pushed her chest forward, hugging his head in her arms as he suckled." That feels wonderful, herd-mate! Please don't stop." Devin increased the pressure in his mouth as he relaxed in the tenderness of her hug. Her warmth and her smell nurtured his love for this lovely young woman. Like with Azalea, he was going to do everything he could to make her happy and strengthen this bond. After several minutes of their intimate embrace, Reina gently pushed him away. "I'm sorry, herd-mate. That feels fantastic, but I won't be able to have an orgasm just from that. Allow me a few moments to cool down. We should probably get ready for bed. Would you please assist me?" It didn't sit right with Devin -- getting Reina all worked up then leaving her without satisfaction. As he helped remove the filigree from her antlers, he mentally tossed around a few ideas. "Could you attend to my fur, please?" She handed him a well-worn brush made of antlers and etched with trees and flowers. Her coarse outer fur was well adapted to protecting against snow. Her wispy, under-fur was silky and suited to resisting cold. "Reina, until we find an adequate means of birth control, have you ever tried anal?" "You mean mating with, that hole?" She pulled her tail in protectively. "Do people do that?!" "Not everyone likes it," Devin admitted while stroking her flank. She looked at him. "Wouldn't that hurt?" "Not with the right preparations. It might feel a bit more intense than vaginal, though." She bit her lip, wrestling with the idea. Seeing her hesitation. "We'll go as slow as you want, and you can tell me at any point if it's uncomfortable or hurts." With curious trepidation she let him pull her tail to the side. Right away, she shivered at the slight brush against her anus. Unlike a centaur's, Reina's anus depressed slightly inward. Human-like in texture, it was smooth and pale-ish pink. He caressed the velvety sphincter, getting her used to the sensation. "Should I stay in this position, herd-mate?" "Whichever is more comfortable for you," he replied gently. Reina remained lying down. She couldn't see exactly what he was doing, but every time his fingers made contact, little goosebumps appeared on her arms. Knowing her nervousness wouldn't help loosen her up, he considered different approaches to help her relax and have a little fun at the same time. He wondered how much teasing she could endure. Switching targets, he caressed her slit with the back of his knuckle. She was still mostly dry, so he helped her along by giving her a few playful licks. She muffled a squeal at the sudden sensation. "Sorry, I've never had anyone lick me there before." "I'm honored to be the first." Devin took another taste and an extended lick, letting his tongue slowly trail into the smooth recess of her body. He snaked his tongue up and over, staying just out of reach of her clit and vagina. His saliva mixed with her juices as her body began to leak her natural lubricant. His purposeful avoidance of all the places she wanted his tongue the most was making her all squirmy. She kept trying to angle herself to get more of his tongue, but he kept adjusting to her movements. "Are you enjoying teasing me, herd-mate?" "Most definitely. I think you're ready for something more direct." "Please!" She whined. Devin peeled her dripping lips apart. Her insides blossomed into view -- dark red, swollen, and drooling for more. Again, Devin sensuously trailed his tongue, from Reina's perspective, agonizingly slow toward the source of her need. Pausing just above her opening, he waited. "Pleeease, herd-mate!" she begged. With a smile, he plunged his tongue as deep as he could. She issued a guttural moan, and her cunt gushed at the sudden intrusion. He slurped and swirled his tongue, drinking as much of her as he could as he tried to get deeper. The more he lapped, the more she drenched his tongue. Coming up for air, he licked the juices dripping from his chin and admired his handiwork. When she turned to look at him, her eyes full of lust, he challenged, "Ready for more?" "I love what you're doing, but I thought we were; gonna do the other thing." "We are. I just got a little carried away enjoying how you taste." "I'll let you lick me anytime if this is the feeling I have to look forward to," she panted. "Just a little more." He eyed her clit peeking out from the bottom of her vulva, nicely glazed with her juices. He dove back in and swirled his tongue around the engorged nub. A passionate mewl encouraged him to play with it more. Pushing up from the bottom, he popped more of it out of hiding as he took it between his lips and sucked greedily. Her wiggling became earnest enough that he had to push her hips down. He hadn't forgotten the original purpose; he continued to feast as he transferred her lube to her anus. After a thorough coating, he slowly pushed his digit into her tight ring. Her sphincter resisted the initial push before yielding to his digit, and with a little fingering, widened enough for a second. Devin freed his erection and then stroked his length across her slit, replacing his fingers at her entrance. He pushed forward firmly. Her anus was unsure if it was ready and constricted. Momentarily pausing his advance, he checked with her, "Does it feel ok, Reina?" "I feel so full. Please go slow," she pleaded. He pulled back a bit, applying another helping of lube to himself. His next attempt was easier. With the head fully entering her, he held still, allowing her to adjust. He felt her clench a few times. A nod from her gave him the go-ahead. Starting with small thrusts, he gradually switched to longer and deeper ones. "That feel better?" "The pressure feels really intense," she groaned. "Could you aim downward a little? It feels really good when you push in." He had to switch to a crouch to angle downward. He felt his glans rub the bottom of her rectum when he pushed in. "Like that?" "Yes, I can feel it, sorta, in my vagina." Reina's purring made her comfort apparent. He'd have liked to fist her again, but at this angle, he couldn't maneuver his arm properly, so he settled for rubbing her clit with his thumb. "I'm going to be sore back there, but I can't believe how good this feels," she mewed. He responded by thrusting faster and harder, his balls slapping the top of her cunt. "Rub my clit harder! I'm gonna cum!" He felt her orgasm surge through her. Her anus clenched, making his thrusting difficult but adding to the sensation. Her cum gushed over his hand. He waited until she finished. "Reina, try pushing me out." She bore down, and her rectal muscles tightened around him. That is when she felt him grabbing her hips and thrusting hard and deep a few more times before erupting in her. "Oh, I can feel your cum!" she exclaimed, continuing to squeeze her muscles until he collapsed on her back. Following a few deep breaths, Devin pulled out of her and stood up shakily, licking her juices from his hand. Unlike Azalea's, whose was watery and thin, Reina's was syrupy and thick. "Did you have fun?" "You said massages are great before bed. We can add orgasms are great, too!" They both laughed. Devin helped clean Reina then himself before snuggling up against her. "Azalea must be a deep sleeper if she managed to sleep through all that noise," he thought out loud. Reina looked at their diminutive, sleeping friend. "I'm sure she would have joined us if she were awake." "Imagining a vibrating fairy against your clit again?" "I'd pass out again if she did that." They smiled tiredly at each other. "Good night, my queen." "Good night, herd-mate." Sleep prevailed in the camp. To be continued in part 4, by Scholarly Mori for Literotica.

How long can naked friends resist becoming lovers? (voyeur/exhibition)By darrenr. Listen to the Podcast at Steamy Stories.“Breasts, yes. I want to show you my breasts,” Anna said, making a simple request that complicated everything.Jake instinctively glanced down at her chest, before wrenching his gaze back to her face. His mind raced in useless circles around a single thought: Danger!“But you have to promise to tell me if that would make you uncomfortable,” Anna said. “I can only ask you this favor because our friendship is both close and solidly non-romantic. I completely understand if my request is just too flippin' weird!”Jake had never been less comfortable in his life. This felt like a bad idea.He wanted it anyway.Feeling ashamed of himself, Jake forced himself to think. Anna wouldn't ask unless it was important to her. He didn't want to hurt her feelings, so he tried a joke. “Compared to eating the terrible chicken dinner you made last night, this sounds like a walk in the park.”Anna erupted in giggling. She was clearly nervous, but it was comforting to hear her infectious laugh. That, at least, felt normal.They met about a year ago, neighbors moving in on the same day. She had a kind face. If she wore makeup, it wasn't enough to notice. She was an inch taller, had brown eyes and long blonde hair–brilliantly shining blonde–always in a ponytail. Her face seemed to have only two states: stern concentration or an easy smile. She had a solid aspect to her figure but wasn't fat. Her tight jeans revealed strong legs and a substantial bottom that her height proportioned nicely. A baggy flannel shirt hid any details about her breasts.Although Jake tended to be shy, an endless conversation began during their second shared elevator trip. Her name was Aine, but she went by Anna. She liked hiking and tinkering with electronics. They both just moved into town and it was their first time living on their own. Anna did some kind of computer engineering work that sounded much cooler than the business analysis work he did. They both used Excel spreadsheets extensively for work and shared many of the same frustrations with its quirks. They liked a lot of the same video games and movies and had plenty to talk about.That first night they shared take-out at Jake's place, which was the start of Anna's habit of visiting constantly. Jake insisted on paying. To repay him, the next night Anna made dinner in his kitchen. Jake then reciprocated the following night. Neither of them was a very good cook, but it worked out. They ate dinner together nearly every day, alternating cooking and cleanup. Anna declared it was more efficient to share food between two people. She also decided Jake's pot, pan, and dish situation was better than hers, so they used his kitchen. Jake gave her the spare key to his apartment and she came and went as she pleased. He started to develop real feelings for her. This stopped when, after a week hanging out together, Anna mused on the merits of their relationship.“I'm glad we're neighbors,” Anna said that day. “We've only known each other a week, and yet I already feel like we've been friends for years.”“I feel the same way,” Jake had said.“Best of all,” she added in a moment burned into his memory, “Is we don't have a trace of romantic tension between us. We're free to just be friends without all that bullshit.”Jake let her comment pass without challenge. What else could he do? But it was a blow. All his romantic and erotic fantasies about her fizzled, impossible to sustain if she didn't feel the same. At least he did genuinely like her, mostly.The “mostly” came down to her presumptuousness. She saw that, obviously, it made sense for them to share Jake's kitchen. Obviously, it made sense for her to set up her electronics workbench in Jake's apartment, and hadn't even asked him. He didn't complain because he liked their dinner arrangement and liked seeing her build crazy electronics. She wasn't wrong in her actions; he just wished she'd ask first.Watching movies, playing video games, and discussing politics solidified their friendship. Jake was eventually able to suppress most of his unwelcome feelings about Anna. He tried his best to think of her as just a friend. A pal.Which made this request so upsetting. He was dismayed to find that his efforts over the past year had only hidden the shameful ember of carnal desire in his heart. Her words now rekindled it into a bright flame, unthinking and ravenous. He refused to let it burn this person he cared about.“Anna, wait.” Jake was surprised to hear the words coming out of his mouth. Concern returned to her face. “Are you sure about this? It's not that I don't want to see, you.”“Then why don't you shut up and let me show you?” Anna asked, laughing nervously.“Believe me, I'm wondering myself. I just, we've been neighbors for almost a year now, and I like to think we've become friends. However, I never got the sense you saw me as more than a friend, so this whole ‘I want you to see me naked' thing is a bit of a surprise. Not an unwelcome surprise, but, well, can you please spell it out for this dummy?”Anna looked down and sighed. “You're right, I owe you an explanation. Please, please be patient with me. This isn't easy.”“Deal,” Jake said in agreement. He leaned back on the couch and crossed his arms and legs in an exaggerated manner. “I'm extremely patient.”Anna took a deep breath. “When I was eighteen I had my first serious boyfriend, Andrew. We were making out, and I let him take my shirt and bra off. It was a mistake. He was a mistake. I don't know what I saw in him. The thing is, I have inverted nipples.” Anna turn away from Jake and began to shyly fidget. “He freaked out when he saw them. He didn't want to touch them anymore, didn't want to touch me. Looking back, I think he was just a nervous kid frightened by something he didn't understand. Still, it really hurt.”“Fucking hell, Andrew. What a massive asshole,” Jake said.Anna's face showed relief at his reaction. “Yes,” she agreed, “especially when he told his friends and started calling me ‘NN anna' for 'No Nipple Anna.'”“No way!” Jake said. “What the fuck?”“High school can be rough, right? It's not even accurate. I have nipples, they just go in instead of out. I think the whole school eventually heard. Plenty of people 'accidentally' called me Nnanna, even a teacher once. I was devastated at the time, but I've tried to forget about him, about his reaction, about the taunting. I've dated a few guys over the years, though I've always ended it before things got, intimate. I've come to realize, on some level, I'm still ashamed of my body. I'm still afraid of a repeat of Andrew's reaction.”“That is some bullshit. No person should be ashamed of their body.”“Yes,” Anna agreed. “Intellectually, I know that. I've been telling myself for years. My trouble is the difference between knowing in my head and really feeling it in my heart. That's what I'm hoping you can help me with.”“Got it,” Jake said. “You want to show me your breasts, so I can NOT freak out.”“Exactly! Which sounds silly when you say it out loud. I know this is a weird favor to ask, I just, I feel safe with you.” Doubt returned to her face. “It's totally okay if you'd rather not do this. I don't want to guilt you into this.”“Anna, it's okay. Thank you for explaining. I understand, I think.”“Oh, come on, it's not a big deal,” Anna said, trying to sound casual. “Right?”Jake shook his head. “I disagree,” he said. “A friend sharing something deeply personal and fraught with shame, trusting me. It's a big deal.”Anna gazed into Jake's eyes, her breasts dominating his thoughts as they rose and fell with her breaths. He wondered if he saw more than friendship flickering in her eyes, but then it vanished.“Thank you,” she said. “Now that we've reached an understanding and decided on a course of action, we have another problem: I don't see how I can work up the courage to actually, um, do it.” Her voice got very quiet at the end as she looked down and chewed her lip. “It just seems impossibly weird and awkward to undress in front of you.” She gave his arm a gentle shove like she did when they played video games.Jake thought for a second.“Well I'm certainly not going to pressure you. But if you're set on doing this, then I have a suggestion: What if we both pretend you're fully clothed? I'll set up the video game. When you're ready, you come in dressed however you want, and we'll both just pretend everything is normal. We can play Mario Kart like we planned, all very normal and unremarkable.” Jake couldn't help smirking a little bit at this last sentence.Anna's face brightened. “I like that idea. That might work.”Jake stood up. “Off you go, then,” he pointed at his bedroom. “I'll just set up the game and you can join me when you're ready.” He faced the TV and grabbed the remote. “I hope you are prepared to get trounced,” he added.Anna departed for his bedroom. Jake's heart raced, and his hands trembled a bit. He tried some deep slow breaths. They didn't help much. He visualized the bedroom door behind him and the woman he expected to emerge any second.Jake was ashamed to feel an erection start at just the thought of seeing Anna's breasts. His friend was trusting him to help her! He had to master himself and come through for her. He had to.He heard Anna take a quiet step into the open doorway behind him. He dared not turn around.On an impulse he pulled his own shirt off and tossed it. While he was very aware his own skinny chest was completely unremarkable, he hoped this would make her a bit more comfortable.Then he did something he knew she hated. “I hope you don't mind, I'm just going to start the race. I'm choosing your character, yes, Bowser on the biggest car so you can't do anything but go in a straight line…”Anna's hand snatched the controller out of his as she dropped beside him on the couch.“Don't you dare!” she said, laughing.Jake kept his eyes locked on the TV screen, trying to act casual while his mind reeled at the bare breasts just visible at the corner of his eye. She had done it!Part of him wanted to turn and stare directly at the first bare breasts he'd met in person. A bigger part of him was simply proud of his friend's courage. She'd identified a source of needless shame and took steps to overcome it. Jake wanted to make this a positive experience for her.That didn't mean he didn't take in as much as he could without looking directly. In addition to taking off her shirt and bra, she had taken out her ponytail. She parted her hair on either side of her head, and let it fall down her front. Through this inadequate screen of hair he thrilled at an impression of pale roundness, and maybe a hint of pink?It helped to have the game to concentrate on, though his playing was shit. Anna was never one to sit still and just push buttons on the controller. She moved her whole body with each turn of the race car. He kept his gaze glued to the TV even though her constant movement tickled the outskirts of his vision mercilessly.After several races, Jake started to feel close to normal. His game-play was back up to the level of “respectable.” His erection calmed down. He still hadn't gotten a look at Anna's bare breasts sitting right next to him, but he also no longer had to struggle to keep his eyes locked forward. He felt relaxed and happy, having fun with his friend. More than happy, he felt buoyant. It was as if Anna's bare chest was a beacon radiating warmth, bathing his heart in contentment. Just knowing that she trusted him with this made him feel closer to her.When Anna won the next race, Jake decided to check on her. He put the controller down, tilted his head far back on the couch to make it clear he could only see the ceiling, and leaned in her direction with one hand to his mouth in a conspiratorial gesture. Whispering, he said, “How are you doing?”Anna mirrored his pose and whispered in response. “Really good, actually. How are you doing?”“Really good, too,” Jake said, afraid to reveal how much more than just 'good' he felt.Anna nodded slightly and then she sat up and resumed talking in a normal voice. “I'm going to get us glasses of water.” And with that she stood up and walked to the kitchen.Jake took in the sight of her bare back as she walked away from him. She was beautiful. He longed to touch her and hated himself for it. Momentarily, she would be walking back toward him, and he had to keep his eyes on the TV. He had to.She returned from the kitchen with two glasses of water. Instead of sitting she stood directly in front of him, blocking the TV, and held one out. Jake's efforts at gaze discipline went out the window as he was forced to look up at the glass, which she held at the exact elevation to be in line between his eyeballs and her breasts. Jake did his best to keep his eyes moving up to her face where he looked her in the eyes and said a hoarse “thank you” as he took the glass.Anna tilted her head far back to take drink. With her eyes toward the ceiling, Jake understood she was giving him permission to look.Jake's eyes widened as he took in the sight, and his composure left him. The rest of the room faded out of existence as his brain took in every detail.The slightly tan color of Anna's face and arms was thanks to the sun, for her bare shoulders and upper chest were paler. Her breasts were paler still and revealed a faint tracery of blue veins around her shapely contours. Her hair covered the promised inverted nipples, though he could see the edges of puffy pink areolas.On the one hand, this was just another part of his friend's body. His friend Anna happened to be a woman, women have breasts, and these were simply Anna's breasts. Up close like this, Jake could see the subtle details on her skin. The fine hairs, sprinkling of moles, and minor asymmetries stressed the reality of what he beheld, in contrast to the airbrushed breasts in porn. Intellectually, Jake knew in the big picture all breasts, all bodies, were ultimately unremarkable.On the other hand, Jake couldn't help feeling these particular breasts were magical beacons of beauty, acceptance, trust, and intimacy. Anna's breasts emanated waves of warmth that bathed his heart in joy and evoked feelings of affection and protectiveness. It pained him to think of all those years of being ashamed of her body, avoiding physical intimacy for fear of rejection.After an eternity of taking in this sight, Anna sat on the couch again. He fastened his eyes on the TV and tried to regain his composure.Jake felt a flash of pain on his arm as Anna playfully hit him with the back of her hand. “Come on, slowpoke, press 'A' so we can start the next race. I'm enjoying destroying you.”“Oops,” Jake said, resuming the game. And then, feeling daring, he added: “I don't know where my mind was.”It was hard to tell without turning his head, but he thought he saw her smile.They played a few more races until it was their usual bedtime for a work night.Anna stood up. “Well, we both have work tomorrow. Better call it a night.” She walked into Jake's bedroom and then returned dressed normally. The light in the room felt weaker without the shining warmth of her bare breasts. He fought to hide his disappointment.“G'night,” she said, walking to the door.Jake leaped up to meet her at the door. “Thanks for the fun evening,” he said. Then, his face reddening, “I mean the Mario Kart.”Anna laughed, her face blushing too. “Thank YOU!” Then, hesitating, “for everything.”When the door closed behind her, Jake's apartment felt cold, lonely, and dark.The next day at work, Jake had trouble getting anything done with visions of Anna's breasts dancing in his head. He missed the feeling of being with her when she was topless. But on his way home, a new worry arose: How awkward would it be when he saw her again tonight? There was no going back to how things had been before.Opening the door to his apartment, he heard Anna working in the kitchen.“Hey,” Jake called out.“Hey yourself,” Anna answered from the kitchen.Jake relaxed when he saw she was wearing a shirt, though not without a pang of disappointment. What had he expected? Idiot. Anna cut vegetables, wearing the circuit-board-print apron she liked.“Get the waters, I'm almost finished.”Jake tried to act normal but couldn't stop thinking about her breasts as he set the coffee table in front of the TV. Anna put down plates of chicken salad and sat beside him on the couch.Normally, at this point they would watch something on TV while they ate. The remote control was on the arm of the couch next to Anna, ignored.“How was work?” Anna asked.“Oh fine, pretty normal,” Jake lied. “You?”“Actually,” Anna said, “I had trouble focusing at work today.” She paused there, as if giving Jake an opportunity to say more.“To be honest,” Jake admitted, turning to look her in the eye, “I had the same problem.”“Was there something on your mind?” Anna asked.“Technically two things were on my mind,” Jake said.Anna burst out laughing. Relieved, Jake laughed too.“I want to thank you,” Anna said, “for being so patient with me last night. And kind. I was close to running out of the room in tears. You helped me keep it together.” She took his hand. “That was very kind of you. I feel like a burden of shame was lifted. Thank you.”Jake blushed.“What I hadn't expected, though…” Anna looked down. “What I hadn't expected was how much I enjoyed it.”Anna slowly raised her eyes to meet Jake's. Panic came rushing back. Did she want to do it again? Did Jake want that? Confused thoughts swirled in his head. Did he want to kiss Anna? Yes, but she didn't want that. Did he feel romantic thoughts about her? Yes, but she didn't want that either. Did he want to see her breasts again, despite all his misgivings? Yes. Most definitely yes.“Did you…” Anna was studying his face. “Did you enjoy it, too?”“YES!” Jake blurted out, not exactly playing it cool.Anna smiled. “Do you, do you mind if we do it again?”“I would love that,” Jake answered.Anna hesitated. “It made me feel better when you took your shirt off first.”Jake nearly tore his shirt in his rush to pull it off. Anna's eyes on his chest made his skin feel warm.After a moment of staring, Anna started to unbutton her shirt. Feeling emboldened by Anna's unguarded staring at him, Jake watched her fingers work. The anticipation was intense, and he felt a reckless swelling between his legs.“Excuse me,” Anna said sternly, “my eyes are up here.”Jake blanched and tore his gaze up at the ceiling, his heart pounding in panic and his dick shrinking in shame. Incoherent apologies spilled out of his mouth as he tried to repair the damage his eager eyes had done.“Whoa, whoa, it's okay, I was just joking!” Anna said quickly. “I've never seen anyone go so pale. Are you okay? Jake, you didn't do anything wrong. The whole point is for you to look at me.” She grabbed his shoulders. “Jake, please, I'm sorry, I was only trying to be funny.” She gently pulled on the back of his head until it was tilted down at her chest again. “Your respectful instincts are part of why I trust you. It's okay. I want you to look.”He watched her shirt rise and fall with each breath, and eventually his breathing matched hers. Anna released his head and resumed unbuttoning. She wasn't wearing a bra. After the last button, she put her hands down. With a deep breath, Anna looked Jake directly in the eyes and with a quick motion pulled her shirt open.Anna's bare breasts brightened the room. Jake's greedy eyes took in more details from this first unobstructed view. Her left areola had a small mole on the perimeter at the six o'clock position. In the center of each impossibly pink areola were puffy little slits where the skin of her nipples folded inside instead of out. They were beautiful.Jake looked up to Anna's face with a big grin on his face. She was smiling too, though still nervous. She covered her breasts with her hands.“Sorry, it's just…” She looked down in thought. “It's intense, being looked at.”Jake was sorry to see her breasts covered, but sorrier she seemed upset.“What if we get dressed again and continue like normal, then?” Jake said, suggesting the exact opposite of what he wanted. “It's okay, you know.”Anna shook her head. “Oh, I didn't mean that. I don't, I don't want that. I just needed a little break.” Then, quieter, she added, “I like this.”Jake knew he needed to walk a fine line to balance Anna's feelings, their friendship, and his desperate need to get as much time with her breasts as possible. He also needed to occupy her hands with something.“I do, too.” Jake said, turning on the TV. “I also like schooling you in the ways of the Kart,” he said, holding out a controller for her.Their routine went back to normal, the only difference was neither of them wore shirts. Jake became accustomed to the sight of Anna's bare breasts, and eventually was even able to stop worrying about where his gaze landed. Anna didn't seem to mind him looking, though he tried not to stare. The exception was when she sometimes fell asleep while they watched a movie. Jake hated himself for violating her trust, but he couldn't help himself. The bluish light from the TV flickering over her breasts in the dark room was more engaging than any movie.He was even able to stop having an erection constantly, much to the relief of his confused dick. Jake assumed this trend would continue until her breasts made no impact upon him at all. He was wrong. There was just so much to admire about them. How they moved when she walked, when she breathed, when she laughed. Anna seemed to like being topless as well. She never seemed quite as happy as she did when her shirt was off.After a few weeks, Anna started coming by before work, too. She said she wanted to get better about exercising properly and invited Jake to join her. She would come by early in the morning, un-showered in her sleep shirt and sweatpants, hair pulled into a messy pony tail. As soon as the door to his apartment closed, she would pull off her shirt and fire up the exercise video game program. They would stand beside each other in front of the TV doing the routines, her breasts moving in all kinds of interesting ways. Jake wondered if she wouldn't be more comfortable with a sports bra, but she never seemed to mind, and he certainly didn't either.One day a plumbing problem in her apartment resulted in the walls of her bathroom being torn open during repairs. He offered his shower to her, and she began using it after exercising each day. And of course, since she was at Jake's apartment in the morning anyway, why shouldn't she eat breakfast there too? In this way Jake ended up with an apartment-mate in every way but one: She did not sleep there.Normally Anna wore jeans, except for the mornings when she arrived in sweatpants. The first evening she came by in shorts was the first time he saw her legs. Jake found himself distracted by her bare thighs, solid and well-proportioned with her figure. Spring was turning into summer and the days were getting warmer. He supposed that's all it was.June brought the first hot day of the year. All the windows were open with a complicated arrangement of fans to get the air to circulate. They both sat on the couch watching a dumb show, drinking ice water, and sweating.“It's so hot,” Anna said. “Every stitch of clothing is a burden. Would you mind if I stripped down to my underpants?”Jake took a long sip of ice water to stall as he thought of how to respond.“You don't have to take your shorts off too,” Anna continued, “though you're welcome to. This heat is unbearable, don't you think?”Jake agreed it was hot, though he also knew it wouldn't make much difference whether their shorts were on or off. What was she up to? He was strongly tempted to call her on the weak ruse and deal with it directly.He remembered that when she first wanted to bare her breasts to him, she was only able to manage it because he played along as if everything was normal. Jake supposed it depended on whether he wanted to see her in panties.The growing hardness between his legs both answered that question and presented a problem. If she took her shorts off, he would feel obliged do the same. But his briefs would do little to conceal his excitement. Feeling a little frustrated, Jake decided to stop trying to hide it. She wanted to share more of her body? Well, his body had a penis, and sometimes it had a mind of its own. If it made her uncomfortable, she could tell him.“Way too hot for shorts, agreed,” he said. Jake stood up and unbuttoned his shorts. He took them off, folded them, and placed them neatly on the side table. He resumed his seat, slouching on the couch in front of the fan, a bulge rather obviously straining against the fabric of his briefs.Jake pretended to be interested in the TV. He was pretty sure he saw Anna looking at his crotch for a second. Then she also stood and removed her shorts, revealing plain black panties. After a while, Jake's body calmed down and things felt normal again. They sweated their way through the end of the show and parted for sleep as usual.The next morning when Anna arrived for their workout, even though it was not nearly as hot, she stripped down to her panties again. Jake followed her lead and they exercised wearing only briefs. From then on, and without further discussion, stripped to briefs was the new normal. Jake started to doubt his guess of her motives. Perhaps it really was just a temperature thing and Anna wasn't working up to revealing more.The issue was resolved Friday evening after dinner. It was another uncomfortably hot evening. Anna sat next to him on the couch wearing her new normal outfit of nothing but panties (royal blue today) and a concerned look on her face. Jake sat up and turned off the TV. She looked like she had something to say.“What's the matter, Anna?”She hesitated, then said, “Do I embarrass you?”Jake laughed. “What are you talking about?”Anna looked unsure of herself as she spoke, “When I first wanted to show you my breasts, it was to overcome a particular insecurity.”“Stupid fuckin' Andrew,” Jake said.“Yes, stupid fucking Andrew,” Anna agreed. “And I'm so grateful you agreed, because it has changed how I feel about myself. I didn't realize how much that shame was weighing on me. I really think I've moved past that.” She looked down in thought. “But you may have noticed I haven't been inclined to put my shirt back on.” Her face reddened a bit at this. “What I hadn't anticipated was how good it would feel. Is that weird?”“I don't know if it's weird,” Jake answered. “But I feel the same way. I like hanging out with you like this. It just feels, right. It feels good.”Anna's eyes brightened at this. “I was hoping you felt the same way, but sometimes I doubt myself and wonder if I'm just being ridiculous. I'm afraid you're rolling your eyes at me while I prance around topless.”Jake laughed again. “Impossible. Never! Anna, ugh, you're right, it is weird to talk about this.” He took a deep breath. “Anna, it gives me joy to be with you, my friend. And it gives me like a hundred-times joy multiplier to be with you with our clothes off.”Now Anna laughed. “Joy multiplier? Sounds like you've been playing too many video games.” She thought for a moment before shrugging. “But I suppose that's as good a description as I can come up with too.”“Then we're good?” Jake asked, “You're okay?”“Yes, thank you,” Anna said, though she obviously had more on her mind. She cleared her throat. “I can't help wondering, would it feel even better to just be, you know…” As she spoke, her voice got softer and softer, until it was a barely audible whisper, “, completely naked?”Jake had been anticipating this, and secretly hoping for it, ever since she first took her shorts off. He had suspected topless wasn't the final destination, but he dared not believe it till now. He did his best to fight the growth of his troublesome, eager dick.He desperately wanted to avoid messing this up, and he thought he knew her well enough now to plot the right course.Before his courage faltered, Jake stood up and pulled his briefs down. For the first time in his adult life, he was completely naked before a woman. His dick was in a state of tension, fighting between arousal and his mental urging for calm. Jake hadn't planned it this way, but he was pleased with how it turned out: A bit large, though still limp and non-threatening. It was the best first impression he could manage.“Like this?” Jake asked. He busied himself with carefully folding his underwear and putting it aside, while in his peripheral vision he saw Anna looking between his legs. Without waiting for an answer, he handed her a game controller as he sat back down and looked at the TV.Starting up the game was just the motivation Anna needed. Without a word she also stood up, removed her panties, and sat back down to play. Jake could tell there was a triangle of brown hair between her legs, though he couldn't make out any more detail.For the rest of the evening they both played video games like normal, pretending they weren't completely naked with each other for the first time. Jake's only real struggle was keeping a lid on how incredibly happy he felt.Neither of them played particularly well. There was a lot of laughing and pretending everything was normal. At the usual time, Anna dressed to return to her apartment, giving Jake a good view of her bare bottom as she bent over to put on her panties. Then she was gone, and Jake was left wondering if completely naked was the new normal. He got erect at the thought and didn't bother trying to stop it as visions of her pale bottom and triangle of brown hair danced in his mind. It still felt awkward, but the arousal couldn't be denied.With Anna's face blocked by the magazine, Jake dared to watch as her thighs pulled apart and revealed his first direct view between her legs. From the triangle of hair above, over the long cleft marked by full hairy lips, down to the obscuring darkness below, his greedy eyes took it all in. Her knee kept moving and continued until her thighs were perpendicular to each other. To Jake's amazement, this pulled apart her outer lips just a little and revealed the smallest bit of pink.Frozen in fascination, Jake stared with all his might at what Anna was revealing to him. Years of looking at porn had given him a good idea of what to expect, yet at the same time it was so delightfully and uniquely Anna. What a beautiful woman! He ached to touch her, to care for her, and was grateful she couldn't hear these ridiculous thoughts. With alarm he realized he was extremely, intensely erect. She would be reading part of his mind if she saw this erection, and he regretted it didn't communicate the affection and tenderness that was also in his heart. He felt ashamed at his sexual feelings, though these low emotions were not enough to override the elation he felt.“It's okay to tell me if it's gross,” Anna said, keeping the magazine in front of her face.It took several seconds for the words to penetrate his reverie.“I'm sorry, what?” was all Jake could manage.“My vulva. I know it's pretty gross, and it won't hurt my feelings if you prefer I, sit in a more ladylike manner.”“It's beautiful!” Jake blurted, throwing out the window all hope of playing it cool.Anna lowered the magazine and Jake met her skeptical gaze. Jake reddened and looked away.“I thought we were accepting each other as we are,” Jake said to the floor. “You are a good and kind person to the core, and my friend. How could any part of you be 'gross'?”Jake felt her foot on his shoulder as she gave him a shove. “You're not so bad yourself,” she said. Jake looked up to see her smiling before she brought the magazine back up in front of her face. Did he catch her glancing at his impossibly hard erection before the magazine came up? Her legs returned to their perpendicular position and then stretched open even wider than before as she settled, inviting Jake to gaze upon the delicate pink petals of her beautiful flower. By the time she left for bed that evening, there was nothing left of Jake's mind but a loop replaying the glorious image.After brutally destroying him in Boulevard Battler IV, Anna put down the controller. Bringing her knees together and pointing them toward him, she tucked her feet beneath her and rested an elbow over the back of the couch.“Jake, can I ask you a personal question?”Jake mirrored her position, so they were facing each other. His eyes were practiced now at taking in the sight of the top of her bush and her beautiful breasts without lingering, and his dick remained calm in the face of her nakedness. He was feeling quite confident in his mastery of his own arousal until he looked her in the eyes. Something about her earnest expression touched his heart, and this in turn brought a hint of swelling between his legs. He was a long way from mastery.“Of course,” he answered. “Anything.”“I don't mean to pry, and it's okay if you don't want to answer, I don't mean to offend you, and–”“Anna!” Jake interrupted, shaking his head. “It's me. Just ask.”Anna looked down. “Do you ever, you know…”“Yes?”Anna brought her face back up to meet his gaze. “Do you ever look at porn?”Jake burst out laughing. Anna did not join in, looking confused.“Sorry,” Jake said, forcing himself to stop laughing. “I wasn't expecting that question.”Anna looked at him silently, awaiting an answer.“Well, yes, of course I do. Why?”“Then you've seen lots of naked women?”“Loads.”“Have you ever seen, breasts, like mine?”“Never!” Jake answered confidently. “Every woman's breasts are unique, your beautiful breasts included.”“No, I mean my inverted nipples. Do you ever see nipples like mine?”“Oh. Sometimes. Not often.”“Were they, attractive?”“Definitely!”Anna looked doubtful.“It's true! I've seen some incredibly beautiful models with inverted nipples.”Anna looked down for a second, and then back at Jake. “Show me.”Jake returned her gaze. This didn't feel right. “Look, Anna, are you sure? I mean, you don't need me to search the internet.”Anna looked away again. “I actually do. I tried, but…” she said, exasperated, “it got overwhelming fast. I was hoping you could do some, well, some curating for me.”“Or you could just take my word for it,” Jake argued. “Inverted nipples are beautiful! Be confident in that.”Anna looked at him intently. “Show me.”“Okay, if you insist.” Jake fetched his laptop and resumed his seat, facing Anna so she couldn't see his screen. “Give me a minute to find some.” Jake remembered one particular model with fascinating breasts. Dark hair, bright blue eyes, and impossibly round large breasts with strikingly inverted nipples. Jake felt relieved his dick was behaving for a change, thanks to this awkward situation.“Here is a good one, if you want to see,” Jake said. He shifted to sit normally on the couch and casually pulled the laptop over his crotch as a precaution. Anna sat right next to him, the side of her body pressed against his. Jake was glad to be covered by the laptop because the contact with her skin caused things to start to swell beneath the computer. He tried to ignore it.“She's beautiful,” Anna said, clicking through the series of pictures. Anna's clicks on the laptop touchpad moved it very slightly against his growing arousal.“She is,” Jake agreed.“Her breasts are huge!”Jake laughed. “Yes, but look at her nipples.”“You're right, they're pretty similar to mine. Do all porn models shave their pubic hair like she does?” Anna asked.“Definitely not all. Many do,” Jake answered.“I wonder what it feels like,” Anna said. “Do you think it's cooler? This summer is so hot.”“I have no idea,” Jake said. “I've never tried it.”Anna was thoughtful for a moment. “I'm curious what it's like. If I shaved my pubes, would you shave yours?”The thought of seeing Anna shaved bare seemed like the most appealing idea in the world. He didn't care one way or another about shaving himself, but if that was the price for getting her to shave, he would gladly pay it. “Sure!” Jake said. “Why not? Anything is worth trying in this heat.”“There's one thing, though,” Anna said hesitantly. “I'm nervous about wielding a razor in such a tender place when I can't see very well down there. Would you, would you be willing to help me?”To be continued.By darrenr for Literotica

How long can naked friends resist becoming lovers? (voyeur/exhibition)By darrenr. Listen to the Podcast at Steamy Stories.“Breasts, yes. I want to show you my breasts,” Anna said, making a simple request that complicated everything.Jake instinctively glanced down at her chest, before wrenching his gaze back to her face. His mind raced in useless circles around a single thought: Danger!“But you have to promise to tell me if that would make you uncomfortable,” Anna said. “I can only ask you this favor because our friendship is both close and solidly non-romantic. I completely understand if my request is just too flippin' weird!”Jake had never been less comfortable in his life. This felt like a bad idea.He wanted it anyway.Feeling ashamed of himself, Jake forced himself to think. Anna wouldn't ask unless it was important to her. He didn't want to hurt her feelings, so he tried a joke. “Compared to eating the terrible chicken dinner you made last night, this sounds like a walk in the park.”Anna erupted in giggling. She was clearly nervous, but it was comforting to hear her infectious laugh. That, at least, felt normal.They met about a year ago, neighbors moving in on the same day. She had a kind face. If she wore makeup, it wasn't enough to notice. She was an inch taller, had brown eyes and long blonde hair–brilliantly shining blonde–always in a ponytail. Her face seemed to have only two states: stern concentration or an easy smile. She had a solid aspect to her figure but wasn't fat. Her tight jeans revealed strong legs and a substantial bottom that her height proportioned nicely. A baggy flannel shirt hid any details about her breasts.Although Jake tended to be shy, an endless conversation began during their second shared elevator trip. Her name was Aine, but she went by Anna. She liked hiking and tinkering with electronics. They both just moved into town and it was their first time living on their own. Anna did some kind of computer engineering work that sounded much cooler than the business analysis work he did. They both used Excel spreadsheets extensively for work and shared many of the same frustrations with its quirks. They liked a lot of the same video games and movies and had plenty to talk about.That first night they shared take-out at Jake's place, which was the start of Anna's habit of visiting constantly. Jake insisted on paying. To repay him, the next night Anna made dinner in his kitchen. Jake then reciprocated the following night. Neither of them was a very good cook, but it worked out. They ate dinner together nearly every day, alternating cooking and cleanup. Anna declared it was more efficient to share food between two people. She also decided Jake's pot, pan, and dish situation was better than hers, so they used his kitchen. Jake gave her the spare key to his apartment and she came and went as she pleased. He started to develop real feelings for her. This stopped when, after a week hanging out together, Anna mused on the merits of their relationship.“I'm glad we're neighbors,” Anna said that day. “We've only known each other a week, and yet I already feel like we've been friends for years.”“I feel the same way,” Jake had said.“Best of all,” she added in a moment burned into his memory, “Is we don't have a trace of romantic tension between us. We're free to just be friends without all that bullshit.”Jake let her comment pass without challenge. What else could he do? But it was a blow. All his romantic and erotic fantasies about her fizzled, impossible to sustain if she didn't feel the same. At least he did genuinely like her, mostly.The “mostly” came down to her presumptuousness. She saw that, obviously, it made sense for them to share Jake's kitchen. Obviously, it made sense for her to set up her electronics workbench in Jake's apartment, and hadn't even asked him. He didn't complain because he liked their dinner arrangement and liked seeing her build crazy electronics. She wasn't wrong in her actions; he just wished she'd ask first.Watching movies, playing video games, and discussing politics solidified their friendship. Jake was eventually able to suppress most of his unwelcome feelings about Anna. He tried his best to think of her as just a friend. A pal.Which made this request so upsetting. He was dismayed to find that his efforts over the past year had only hidden the shameful ember of carnal desire in his heart. Her words now rekindled it into a bright flame, unthinking and ravenous. He refused to let it burn this person he cared about.“Anna, wait.” Jake was surprised to hear the words coming out of his mouth. Concern returned to her face. “Are you sure about this? It's not that I don't want to see, you.”“Then why don't you shut up and let me show you?” Anna asked, laughing nervously.“Believe me, I'm wondering myself. I just, we've been neighbors for almost a year now, and I like to think we've become friends. However, I never got the sense you saw me as more than a friend, so this whole ‘I want you to see me naked' thing is a bit of a surprise. Not an unwelcome surprise, but, well, can you please spell it out for this dummy?”Anna looked down and sighed. “You're right, I owe you an explanation. Please, please be patient with me. This isn't easy.”“Deal,” Jake said in agreement. He leaned back on the couch and crossed his arms and legs in an exaggerated manner. “I'm extremely patient.”Anna took a deep breath. “When I was eighteen I had my first serious boyfriend, Andrew. We were making out, and I let him take my shirt and bra off. It was a mistake. He was a mistake. I don't know what I saw in him. The thing is, I have inverted nipples.” Anna turn away from Jake and began to shyly fidget. “He freaked out when he saw them. He didn't want to touch them anymore, didn't want to touch me. Looking back, I think he was just a nervous kid frightened by something he didn't understand. Still, it really hurt.”“Fucking hell, Andrew. What a massive asshole,” Jake said.Anna's face showed relief at his reaction. “Yes,” she agreed, “especially when he told his friends and started calling me ‘NN anna' for 'No Nipple Anna.'”“No way!” Jake said. “What the fuck?”“High school can be rough, right? It's not even accurate. I have nipples, they just go in instead of out. I think the whole school eventually heard. Plenty of people 'accidentally' called me Nnanna, even a teacher once. I was devastated at the time, but I've tried to forget about him, about his reaction, about the taunting. I've dated a few guys over the years, though I've always ended it before things got, intimate. I've come to realize, on some level, I'm still ashamed of my body. I'm still afraid of a repeat of Andrew's reaction.”“That is some bullshit. No person should be ashamed of their body.”“Yes,” Anna agreed. “Intellectually, I know that. I've been telling myself for years. My trouble is the difference between knowing in my head and really feeling it in my heart. That's what I'm hoping you can help me with.”“Got it,” Jake said. “You want to show me your breasts, so I can NOT freak out.”“Exactly! Which sounds silly when you say it out loud. I know this is a weird favor to ask, I just, I feel safe with you.” Doubt returned to her face. “It's totally okay if you'd rather not do this. I don't want to guilt you into this.”“Anna, it's okay. Thank you for explaining. I understand, I think.”“Oh, come on, it's not a big deal,” Anna said, trying to sound casual. “Right?”Jake shook his head. “I disagree,” he said. “A friend sharing something deeply personal and fraught with shame, trusting me. It's a big deal.”Anna gazed into Jake's eyes, her breasts dominating his thoughts as they rose and fell with her breaths. He wondered if he saw more than friendship flickering in her eyes, but then it vanished.“Thank you,” she said. “Now that we've reached an understanding and decided on a course of action, we have another problem: I don't see how I can work up the courage to actually, um, do it.” Her voice got very quiet at the end as she looked down and chewed her lip. “It just seems impossibly weird and awkward to undress in front of you.” She gave his arm a gentle shove like she did when they played video games.Jake thought for a second.“Well I'm certainly not going to pressure you. But if you're set on doing this, then I have a suggestion: What if we both pretend you're fully clothed? I'll set up the video game. When you're ready, you come in dressed however you want, and we'll both just pretend everything is normal. We can play Mario Kart like we planned, all very normal and unremarkable.” Jake couldn't help smirking a little bit at this last sentence.Anna's face brightened. “I like that idea. That might work.”Jake stood up. “Off you go, then,” he pointed at his bedroom. “I'll just set up the game and you can join me when you're ready.” He faced the TV and grabbed the remote. “I hope you are prepared to get trounced,” he added.Anna departed for his bedroom. Jake's heart raced, and his hands trembled a bit. He tried some deep slow breaths. They didn't help much. He visualized the bedroom door behind him and the woman he expected to emerge any second.Jake was ashamed to feel an erection start at just the thought of seeing Anna's breasts. His friend was trusting him to help her! He had to master himself and come through for her. He had to.He heard Anna take a quiet step into the open doorway behind him. He dared not turn around.On an impulse he pulled his own shirt off and tossed it. While he was very aware his own skinny chest was completely unremarkable, he hoped this would make her a bit more comfortable.Then he did something he knew she hated. “I hope you don't mind, I'm just going to start the race. I'm choosing your character, yes, Bowser on the biggest car so you can't do anything but go in a straight line…”Anna's hand snatched the controller out of his as she dropped beside him on the couch.“Don't you dare!” she said, laughing.Jake kept his eyes locked on the TV screen, trying to act casual while his mind reeled at the bare breasts just visible at the corner of his eye. She had done it!Part of him wanted to turn and stare directly at the first bare breasts he'd met in person. A bigger part of him was simply proud of his friend's courage. She'd identified a source of needless shame and took steps to overcome it. Jake wanted to make this a positive experience for her.That didn't mean he didn't take in as much as he could without looking directly. In addition to taking off her shirt and bra, she had taken out her ponytail. She parted her hair on either side of her head, and let it fall down her front. Through this inadequate screen of hair he thrilled at an impression of pale roundness, and maybe a hint of pink?It helped to have the game to concentrate on, though his playing was shit. Anna was never one to sit still and just push buttons on the controller. She moved her whole body with each turn of the race car. He kept his gaze glued to the TV even though her constant movement tickled the outskirts of his vision mercilessly.After several races, Jake started to feel close to normal. His game-play was back up to the level of “respectable.” His erection calmed down. He still hadn't gotten a look at Anna's bare breasts sitting right next to him, but he also no longer had to struggle to keep his eyes locked forward. He felt relaxed and happy, having fun with his friend. More than happy, he felt buoyant. It was as if Anna's bare chest was a beacon radiating warmth, bathing his heart in contentment. Just knowing that she trusted him with this made him feel closer to her.When Anna won the next race, Jake decided to check on her. He put the controller down, tilted his head far back on the couch to make it clear he could only see the ceiling, and leaned in her direction with one hand to his mouth in a conspiratorial gesture. Whispering, he said, “How are you doing?”Anna mirrored his pose and whispered in response. “Really good, actually. How are you doing?”“Really good, too,” Jake said, afraid to reveal how much more than just 'good' he felt.Anna nodded slightly and then she sat up and resumed talking in a normal voice. “I'm going to get us glasses of water.” And with that she stood up and walked to the kitchen.Jake took in the sight of her bare back as she walked away from him. She was beautiful. He longed to touch her and hated himself for it. Momentarily, she would be walking back toward him, and he had to keep his eyes on the TV. He had to.She returned from the kitchen with two glasses of water. Instead of sitting she stood directly in front of him, blocking the TV, and held one out. Jake's efforts at gaze discipline went out the window as he was forced to look up at the glass, which she held at the exact elevation to be in line between his eyeballs and her breasts. Jake did his best to keep his eyes moving up to her face where he looked her in the eyes and said a hoarse “thank you” as he took the glass.Anna tilted her head far back to take drink. With her eyes toward the ceiling, Jake understood she was giving him permission to look.Jake's eyes widened as he took in the sight, and his composure left him. The rest of the room faded out of existence as his brain took in every detail.The slightly tan color of Anna's face and arms was thanks to the sun, for her bare shoulders and upper chest were paler. Her breasts were paler still and revealed a faint tracery of blue veins around her shapely contours. Her hair covered the promised inverted nipples, though he could see the edges of puffy pink areolas.On the one hand, this was just another part of his friend's body. His friend Anna happened to be a woman, women have breasts, and these were simply Anna's breasts. Up close like this, Jake could see the subtle details on her skin. The fine hairs, sprinkling of moles, and minor asymmetries stressed the reality of what he beheld, in contrast to the airbrushed breasts in porn. Intellectually, Jake knew in the big picture all breasts, all bodies, were ultimately unremarkable.On the other hand, Jake couldn't help feeling these particular breasts were magical beacons of beauty, acceptance, trust, and intimacy. Anna's breasts emanated waves of warmth that bathed his heart in joy and evoked feelings of affection and protectiveness. It pained him to think of all those years of being ashamed of her body, avoiding physical intimacy for fear of rejection.After an eternity of taking in this sight, Anna sat on the couch again. He fastened his eyes on the TV and tried to regain his composure.Jake felt a flash of pain on his arm as Anna playfully hit him with the back of her hand. “Come on, slowpoke, press 'A' so we can start the next race. I'm enjoying destroying you.”“Oops,” Jake said, resuming the game. And then, feeling daring, he added: “I don't know where my mind was.”It was hard to tell without turning his head, but he thought he saw her smile.They played a few more races until it was their usual bedtime for a work night.Anna stood up. “Well, we both have work tomorrow. Better call it a night.” She walked into Jake's bedroom and then returned dressed normally. The light in the room felt weaker without the shining warmth of her bare breasts. He fought to hide his disappointment.“G'night,” she said, walking to the door.Jake leaped up to meet her at the door. “Thanks for the fun evening,” he said. Then, his face reddening, “I mean the Mario Kart.”Anna laughed, her face blushing too. “Thank YOU!” Then, hesitating, “for everything.”When the door closed behind her, Jake's apartment felt cold, lonely, and dark.The next day at work, Jake had trouble getting anything done with visions of Anna's breasts dancing in his head. He missed the feeling of being with her when she was topless. But on his way home, a new worry arose: How awkward would it be when he saw her again tonight? There was no going back to how things had been before.Opening the door to his apartment, he heard Anna working in the kitchen.“Hey,” Jake called out.“Hey yourself,” Anna answered from the kitchen.Jake relaxed when he saw she was wearing a shirt, though not without a pang of disappointment. What had he expected? Idiot. Anna cut vegetables, wearing the circuit-board-print apron she liked.“Get the waters, I'm almost finished.”Jake tried to act normal but couldn't stop thinking about her breasts as he set the coffee table in front of the TV. Anna put down plates of chicken salad and sat beside him on the couch.Normally, at this point they would watch something on TV while they ate. The remote control was on the arm of the couch next to Anna, ignored.“How was work?” Anna asked.“Oh fine, pretty normal,” Jake lied. “You?”“Actually,” Anna said, “I had trouble focusing at work today.” She paused there, as if giving Jake an opportunity to say more.“To be honest,” Jake admitted, turning to look her in the eye, “I had the same problem.”“Was there something on your mind?” Anna asked.“Technically two things were on my mind,” Jake said.Anna burst out laughing. Relieved, Jake laughed too.“I want to thank you,” Anna said, “for being so patient with me last night. And kind. I was close to running out of the room in tears. You helped me keep it together.” She took his hand. “That was very kind of you. I feel like a burden of shame was lifted. Thank you.”Jake blushed.“What I hadn't expected, though…” Anna looked down. “What I hadn't expected was how much I enjoyed it.”Anna slowly raised her eyes to meet Jake's. Panic came rushing back. Did she want to do it again? Did Jake want that? Confused thoughts swirled in his head. Did he want to kiss Anna? Yes, but she didn't want that. Did he feel romantic thoughts about her? Yes, but she didn't want that either. Did he want to see her breasts again, despite all his misgivings? Yes. Most definitely yes.“Did you…” Anna was studying his face. “Did you enjoy it, too?”“YES!” Jake blurted out, not exactly playing it cool.Anna smiled. “Do you, do you mind if we do it again?”“I would love that,” Jake answered.Anna hesitated. “It made me feel better when you took your shirt off first.”Jake nearly tore his shirt in his rush to pull it off. Anna's eyes on his chest made his skin feel warm.After a moment of staring, Anna started to unbutton her shirt. Feeling emboldened by Anna's unguarded staring at him, Jake watched her fingers work. The anticipation was intense, and he felt a reckless swelling between his legs.“Excuse me,” Anna said sternly, “my eyes are up here.”Jake blanched and tore his gaze up at the ceiling, his heart pounding in panic and his dick shrinking in shame. Incoherent apologies spilled out of his mouth as he tried to repair the damage his eager eyes had done.“Whoa, whoa, it's okay, I was just joking!” Anna said quickly. “I've never seen anyone go so pale. Are you okay? Jake, you didn't do anything wrong. The whole point is for you to look at me.” She grabbed his shoulders. “Jake, please, I'm sorry, I was only trying to be funny.” She gently pulled on the back of his head until it was tilted down at her chest again. “Your respectful instincts are part of why I trust you. It's okay. I want you to look.”He watched her shirt rise and fall with each breath, and eventually his breathing matched hers. Anna released his head and resumed unbuttoning. She wasn't wearing a bra. After the last button, she put her hands down. With a deep breath, Anna looked Jake directly in the eyes and with a quick motion pulled her shirt open.Anna's bare breasts brightened the room. Jake's greedy eyes took in more details from this first unobstructed view. Her left areola had a small mole on the perimeter at the six o'clock position. In the center of each impossibly pink areola were puffy little slits where the skin of her nipples folded inside instead of out. They were beautiful.Jake looked up to Anna's face with a big grin on his face. She was smiling too, though still nervous. She covered her breasts with her hands.“Sorry, it's just…” She looked down in thought. “It's intense, being looked at.”Jake was sorry to see her breasts covered, but sorrier she seemed upset.“What if we get dressed again and continue like normal, then?” Jake said, suggesting the exact opposite of what he wanted. “It's okay, you know.”Anna shook her head. “Oh, I didn't mean that. I don't, I don't want that. I just needed a little break.” Then, quieter, she added, “I like this.”Jake knew he needed to walk a fine line to balance Anna's feelings, their friendship, and his desperate need to get as much time with her breasts as possible. He also needed to occupy her hands with something.“I do, too.” Jake said, turning on the TV. “I also like schooling you in the ways of the Kart,” he said, holding out a controller for her.Their routine went back to normal, the only difference was neither of them wore shirts. Jake became accustomed to the sight of Anna's bare breasts, and eventually was even able to stop worrying about where his gaze landed. Anna didn't seem to mind him looking, though he tried not to stare. The exception was when she sometimes fell asleep while they watched a movie. Jake hated himself for violating her trust, but he couldn't help himself. The bluish light from the TV flickering over her breasts in the dark room was more engaging than any movie.He was even able to stop having an erection constantly, much to the relief of his confused dick. Jake assumed this trend would continue until her breasts made no impact upon him at all. He was wrong. There was just so much to admire about them. How they moved when she walked, when she breathed, when she laughed. Anna seemed to like being topless as well. She never seemed quite as happy as she did when her shirt was off.After a few weeks, Anna started coming by before work, too. She said she wanted to get better about exercising properly and invited Jake to join her. She would come by early in the morning, un-showered in her sleep shirt and sweatpants, hair pulled into a messy pony tail. As soon as the door to his apartment closed, she would pull off her shirt and fire up the exercise video game program. They would stand beside each other in front of the TV doing the routines, her breasts moving in all kinds of interesting ways. Jake wondered if she wouldn't be more comfortable with a sports bra, but she never seemed to mind, and he certainly didn't either.One day a plumbing problem in her apartment resulted in the walls of her bathroom being torn open during repairs. He offered his shower to her, and she began using it after exercising each day. And of course, since she was at Jake's apartment in the morning anyway, why shouldn't she eat breakfast there too? In this way Jake ended up with an apartment-mate in every way but one: She did not sleep there.Normally Anna wore jeans, except for the mornings when she arrived in sweatpants. The first evening she came by in shorts was the first time he saw her legs. Jake found himself distracted by her bare thighs, solid and well-proportioned with her figure. Spring was turning into summer and the days were getting warmer. He supposed that's all it was.June brought the first hot day of the year. All the windows were open with a complicated arrangement of fans to get the air to circulate. They both sat on the couch watching a dumb show, drinking ice water, and sweating.“It's so hot,” Anna said. “Every stitch of clothing is a burden. Would you mind if I stripped down to my underpants?”Jake took a long sip of ice water to stall as he thought of how to respond.“You don't have to take your shorts off too,” Anna continued, “though you're welcome to. This heat is unbearable, don't you think?”Jake agreed it was hot, though he also knew it wouldn't make much difference whether their shorts were on or off. What was she up to? He was strongly tempted to call her on the weak ruse and deal with it directly.He remembered that when she first wanted to bare her breasts to him, she was only able to manage it because he played along as if everything was normal. Jake supposed it depended on whether he wanted to see her in panties.The growing hardness between his legs both answered that question and presented a problem. If she took her shorts off, he would feel obliged do the same. But his briefs would do little to conceal his excitement. Feeling a little frustrated, Jake decided to stop trying to hide it. She wanted to share more of her body? Well, his body had a penis, and sometimes it had a mind of its own. If it made her uncomfortable, she could tell him.“Way too hot for shorts, agreed,” he said. Jake stood up and unbuttoned his shorts. He took them off, folded them, and placed them neatly on the side table. He resumed his seat, slouching on the couch in front of the fan, a bulge rather obviously straining against the fabric of his briefs.Jake pretended to be interested in the TV. He was pretty sure he saw Anna looking at his crotch for a second. Then she also stood and removed her shorts, revealing plain black panties. After a while, Jake's body calmed down and things felt normal again. They sweated their way through the end of the show and parted for sleep as usual.The next morning when Anna arrived for their workout, even though it was not nearly as hot, she stripped down to her panties again. Jake followed her lead and they exercised wearing only briefs. From then on, and without further discussion, stripped to briefs was the new normal. Jake started to doubt his guess of her motives. Perhaps it really was just a temperature thing and Anna wasn't working up to revealing more.The issue was resolved Friday evening after dinner. It was another uncomfortably hot evening. Anna sat next to him on the couch wearing her new normal outfit of nothing but panties (royal blue today) and a concerned look on her face. Jake sat up and turned off the TV. She looked like she had something to say.“What's the matter, Anna?”She hesitated, then said, “Do I embarrass you?”Jake laughed. “What are you talking about?”Anna looked unsure of herself as she spoke, “When I first wanted to show you my breasts, it was to overcome a particular insecurity.”“Stupid fuckin' Andrew,” Jake said.“Yes, stupid fucking Andrew,” Anna agreed. “And I'm so grateful you agreed, because it has changed how I feel about myself. I didn't realize how much that shame was weighing on me. I really think I've moved past that.” She looked down in thought. “But you may have noticed I haven't been inclined to put my shirt back on.” Her face reddened a bit at this. “What I hadn't anticipated was how good it would feel. Is that weird?”“I don't know if it's weird,” Jake answered. “But I feel the same way. I like hanging out with you like this. It just feels, right. It feels good.”Anna's eyes brightened at this. “I was hoping you felt the same way, but sometimes I doubt myself and wonder if I'm just being ridiculous. I'm afraid you're rolling your eyes at me while I prance around topless.”Jake laughed again. “Impossible. Never! Anna, ugh, you're right, it is weird to talk about this.” He took a deep breath. “Anna, it gives me joy to be with you, my friend. And it gives me like a hundred-times joy multiplier to be with you with our clothes off.”Now Anna laughed. “Joy multiplier? Sounds like you've been playing too many video games.” She thought for a moment before shrugging. “But I suppose that's as good a description as I can come up with too.”“Then we're good?” Jake asked, “You're okay?”“Yes, thank you,” Anna said, though she obviously had more on her mind. She cleared her throat. “I can't help wondering, would it feel even better to just be, you know…” As she spoke, her voice got softer and softer, until it was a barely audible whisper, “, completely naked?”Jake had been anticipating this, and secretly hoping for it, ever since she first took her shorts off. He had suspected topless wasn't the final destination, but he dared not believe it till now. He did his best to fight the growth of his troublesome, eager dick.He desperately wanted to avoid messing this up, and he thought he knew her well enough now to plot the right course.Before his courage faltered, Jake stood up and pulled his briefs down. For the first time in his adult life, he was completely naked before a woman. His dick was in a state of tension, fighting between arousal and his mental urging for calm. Jake hadn't planned it this way, but he was pleased with how it turned out: A bit large, though still limp and non-threatening. It was the best first impression he could manage.“Like this?” Jake asked. He busied himself with carefully folding his underwear and putting it aside, while in his peripheral vision he saw Anna looking between his legs. Without waiting for an answer, he handed her a game controller as he sat back down and looked at the TV.Starting up the game was just the motivation Anna needed. Without a word she also stood up, removed her panties, and sat back down to play. Jake could tell there was a triangle of brown hair between her legs, though he couldn't make out any more detail.For the rest of the evening they both played video games like normal, pretending they weren't completely naked with each other for the first time. Jake's only real struggle was keeping a lid on how incredibly happy he felt.Neither of them played particularly well. There was a lot of laughing and pretending everything was normal. At the usual time, Anna dressed to return to her apartment, giving Jake a good view of her bare bottom as she bent over to put on her panties. Then she was gone, and Jake was left wondering if completely naked was the new normal. He got erect at the thought and didn't bother trying to stop it as visions of her pale bottom and triangle of brown hair danced in his mind. It still felt awkward, but the arousal couldn't be denied.With Anna's face blocked by the magazine, Jake dared to watch as her thighs pulled apart and revealed his first direct view between her legs. From the triangle of hair above, over the long cleft marked by full hairy lips, down to the obscuring darkness below, his greedy eyes took it all in. Her knee kept moving and continued until her thighs were perpendicular to each other. To Jake's amazement, this pulled apart her outer lips just a little and revealed the smallest bit of pink.Frozen in fascination, Jake stared with all his might at what Anna was revealing to him. Years of looking at porn had given him a good idea of what to expect, yet at the same time it was so delightfully and uniquely Anna. What a beautiful woman! He ached to touch her, to care for her, and was grateful she couldn't hear these ridiculous thoughts. With alarm he realized he was extremely, intensely erect. She would be reading part of his mind if she saw this erection, and he regretted it didn't communicate the affection and tenderness that was also in his heart. He felt ashamed at his sexual feelings, though these low emotions were not enough to override the elation he felt.“It's okay to tell me if it's gross,” Anna said, keeping the magazine in front of her face.It took several seconds for the words to penetrate his reverie.“I'm sorry, what?” was all Jake could manage.“My vulva. I know it's pretty gross, and it won't hurt my feelings if you prefer I, sit in a more ladylike manner.”“It's beautiful!” Jake blurted, throwing out the window all hope of playing it cool.Anna lowered the magazine and Jake met her skeptical gaze. Jake reddened and looked away.“I thought we were accepting each other as we are,” Jake said to the floor. “You are a good and kind person to the core, and my friend. How could any part of you be 'gross'?”Jake felt her foot on his shoulder as she gave him a shove. “You're not so bad yourself,” she said. Jake looked up to see her smiling before she brought the magazine back up in front of her face. Did he catch her glancing at his impossibly hard erection before the magazine came up? Her legs returned to their perpendicular position and then stretched open even wider than before as she settled, inviting Jake to gaze upon the delicate pink petals of her beautiful flower. By the time she left for bed that evening, there was nothing left of Jake's mind but a loop replaying the glorious image.After brutally destroying him in Boulevard Battler IV, Anna put down the controller. Bringing her knees together and pointing them toward him, she tucked her feet beneath her and rested an elbow over the back of the couch.“Jake, can I ask you a personal question?”Jake mirrored her position, so they were facing each other. His eyes were practiced now at taking in the sight of the top of her bush and her beautiful breasts without lingering, and his dick remained calm in the face of her nakedness. He was feeling quite confident in his mastery of his own arousal until he looked her in the eyes. Something about her earnest expression touched his heart, and this in turn brought a hint of swelling between his legs. He was a long way from mastery.“Of course,” he answered. “Anything.”“I don't mean to pry, and it's okay if you don't want to answer, I don't mean to offend you, and–”“Anna!” Jake interrupted, shaking his head. “It's me. Just ask.”Anna looked down. “Do you ever, you know…”“Yes?”Anna brought her face back up to meet his gaze. “Do you ever look at porn?”Jake burst out laughing. Anna did not join in, looking confused.“Sorry,” Jake said, forcing himself to stop laughing. “I wasn't expecting that question.”Anna looked at him silently, awaiting an answer.“Well, yes, of course I do. Why?”“Then you've seen lots of naked women?”“Loads.”“Have you ever seen, breasts, like mine?”“Never!” Jake answered confidently. “Every woman's breasts are unique, your beautiful breasts included.”“No, I mean my inverted nipples. Do you ever see nipples like mine?”“Oh. Sometimes. Not often.”“Were they, attractive?”“Definitely!”Anna looked doubtful.“It's true! I've seen some incredibly beautiful models with inverted nipples.”Anna looked down for a second, and then back at Jake. “Show me.”Jake returned her gaze. This didn't feel right. “Look, Anna, are you sure? I mean, you don't need me to search the internet.”Anna looked away again. “I actually do. I tried, but…” she said, exasperated, “it got overwhelming fast. I was hoping you could do some, well, some curating for me.”“Or you could just take my word for it,” Jake argued. “Inverted nipples are beautiful! Be confident in that.”Anna looked at him intently. “Show me.”“Okay, if you insist.” Jake fetched his laptop and resumed his seat, facing Anna so she couldn't see his screen. “Give me a minute to find some.” Jake remembered one particular model with fascinating breasts. Dark hair, bright blue eyes, and impossibly round large breasts with strikingly inverted nipples. Jake felt relieved his dick was behaving for a change, thanks to this awkward situation.“Here is a good one, if you want to see,” Jake said. He shifted to sit normally on the couch and casually pulled the laptop over his crotch as a precaution. Anna sat right next to him, the side of her body pressed against his. Jake was glad to be covered by the laptop because the contact with her skin caused things to start to swell beneath the computer. He tried to ignore it.“She's beautiful,” Anna said, clicking through the series of pictures. Anna's clicks on the laptop touchpad moved it very slightly against his growing arousal.“She is,” Jake agreed.“Her breasts are huge!”Jake laughed. “Yes, but look at her nipples.”“You're right, they're pretty similar to mine. Do all porn models shave their pubic hair like she does?” Anna asked.“Definitely not all. Many do,” Jake answered.“I wonder what it feels like,” Anna said. “Do you think it's cooler? This summer is so hot.”“I have no idea,” Jake said. “I've never tried it.”Anna was thoughtful for a moment. “I'm curious what it's like. If I shaved my pubes, would you shave yours?”The thought of seeing Anna shaved bare seemed like the most appealing idea in the world. He didn't care one way or another about shaving himself, but if that was the price for getting her to shave, he would gladly pay it. “Sure!” Jake said. “Why not? Anything is worth trying in this heat.”“There's one thing, though,” Anna said hesitantly. “I'm nervous about wielding a razor in such a tender place when I can't see very well down there. Would you, would you be willing to help me?”To be continued.By darrenr for Literotica

How long can naked friends resist becoming lovers? (voyeur/exhibition)By darrenr. Listen to the Podcast at Steamy Stories.“Breasts, yes. I want to show you my breasts,” Anna said, making a simple request that complicated everything.Jake instinctively glanced down at her chest, before wrenching his gaze back to her face. His mind raced in useless circles around a single thought: Danger!“But you have to promise to tell me if that would make you uncomfortable,” Anna said. “I can only ask you this favor because our friendship is both close and solidly non-romantic. I completely understand if my request is just too flippin' weird!”Jake had never been less comfortable in his life. This felt like a bad idea.He wanted it anyway.Feeling ashamed of himself, Jake forced himself to think. Anna wouldn't ask unless it was important to her. He didn't want to hurt her feelings, so he tried a joke. “Compared to eating the terrible chicken dinner you made last night, this sounds like a walk in the park.”Anna erupted in giggling. She was clearly nervous, but it was comforting to hear her infectious laugh. That, at least, felt normal.They met about a year ago, neighbors moving in on the same day. She had a kind face. If she wore makeup, it wasn't enough to notice. She was an inch taller, had brown eyes and long blonde hair–brilliantly shining blonde–always in a ponytail. Her face seemed to have only two states: stern concentration or an easy smile. She had a solid aspect to her figure but wasn't fat. Her tight jeans revealed strong legs and a substantial bottom that her height proportioned nicely. A baggy flannel shirt hid any details about her breasts.Although Jake tended to be shy, an endless conversation began during their second shared elevator trip. Her name was Aine, but she went by Anna. She liked hiking and tinkering with electronics. They both just moved into town and it was their first time living on their own. Anna did some kind of computer engineering work that sounded much cooler than the business analysis work he did. They both used Excel spreadsheets extensively for work and shared many of the same frustrations with its quirks. They liked a lot of the same video games and movies and had plenty to talk about.That first night they shared take-out at Jake's place, which was the start of Anna's habit of visiting constantly. Jake insisted on paying. To repay him, the next night Anna made dinner in his kitchen. Jake then reciprocated the following night. Neither of them was a very good cook, but it worked out. They ate dinner together nearly every day, alternating cooking and cleanup. Anna declared it was more efficient to share food between two people. She also decided Jake's pot, pan, and dish situation was better than hers, so they used his kitchen. Jake gave her the spare key to his apartment and she came and went as she pleased. He started to develop real feelings for her. This stopped when, after a week hanging out together, Anna mused on the merits of their relationship.“I'm glad we're neighbors,” Anna said that day. “We've only known each other a week, and yet I already feel like we've been friends for years.”“I feel the same way,” Jake had said.“Best of all,” she added in a moment burned into his memory, “Is we don't have a trace of romantic tension between us. We're free to just be friends without all that bullshit.”Jake let her comment pass without challenge. What else could he do? But it was a blow. All his romantic and erotic fantasies about her fizzled, impossible to sustain if she didn't feel the same. At least he did genuinely like her, mostly.The “mostly” came down to her presumptuousness. She saw that, obviously, it made sense for them to share Jake's kitchen. Obviously, it made sense for her to set up her electronics workbench in Jake's apartment, and hadn't even asked him. He didn't complain because he liked their dinner arrangement and liked seeing her build crazy electronics. She wasn't wrong in her actions; he just wished she'd ask first.Watching movies, playing video games, and discussing politics solidified their friendship. Jake was eventually able to suppress most of his unwelcome feelings about Anna. He tried his best to think of her as just a friend. A pal.Which made this request so upsetting. He was dismayed to find that his efforts over the past year had only hidden the shameful ember of carnal desire in his heart. Her words now rekindled it into a bright flame, unthinking and ravenous. He refused to let it burn this person he cared about.“Anna, wait.” Jake was surprised to hear the words coming out of his mouth. Concern returned to her face. “Are you sure about this? It's not that I don't want to see, you.”“Then why don't you shut up and let me show you?” Anna asked, laughing nervously.“Believe me, I'm wondering myself. I just, we've been neighbors for almost a year now, and I like to think we've become friends. However, I never got the sense you saw me as more than a friend, so this whole ‘I want you to see me naked' thing is a bit of a surprise. Not an unwelcome surprise, but, well, can you please spell it out for this dummy?”Anna looked down and sighed. “You're right, I owe you an explanation. Please, please be patient with me. This isn't easy.”“Deal,” Jake said in agreement. He leaned back on the couch and crossed his arms and legs in an exaggerated manner. “I'm extremely patient.”Anna took a deep breath. “When I was eighteen I had my first serious boyfriend, Andrew. We were making out, and I let him take my shirt and bra off. It was a mistake. He was a mistake. I don't know what I saw in him. The thing is, I have inverted nipples.” Anna turn away from Jake and began to shyly fidget. “He freaked out when he saw them. He didn't want to touch them anymore, didn't want to touch me. Looking back, I think he was just a nervous kid frightened by something he didn't understand. Still, it really hurt.”“Fucking hell, Andrew. What a massive asshole,” Jake said.Anna's face showed relief at his reaction. “Yes,” she agreed, “especially when he told his friends and started calling me ‘NN anna' for 'No Nipple Anna.'”“No way!” Jake said. “What the fuck?”“High school can be rough, right? It's not even accurate. I have nipples, they just go in instead of out. I think the whole school eventually heard. Plenty of people 'accidentally' called me Nnanna, even a teacher once. I was devastated at the time, but I've tried to forget about him, about his reaction, about the taunting. I've dated a few guys over the years, though I've always ended it before things got, intimate. I've come to realize, on some level, I'm still ashamed of my body. I'm still afraid of a repeat of Andrew's reaction.”“That is some bullshit. No person should be ashamed of their body.”“Yes,” Anna agreed. “Intellectually, I know that. I've been telling myself for years. My trouble is the difference between knowing in my head and really feeling it in my heart. That's what I'm hoping you can help me with.”“Got it,” Jake said. “You want to show me your breasts, so I can NOT freak out.”“Exactly! Which sounds silly when you say it out loud. I know this is a weird favor to ask, I just, I feel safe with you.” Doubt returned to her face. “It's totally okay if you'd rather not do this. I don't want to guilt you into this.”“Anna, it's okay. Thank you for explaining. I understand, I think.”“Oh, come on, it's not a big deal,” Anna said, trying to sound casual. “Right?”Jake shook his head. “I disagree,” he said. “A friend sharing something deeply personal and fraught with shame, trusting me. It's a big deal.”Anna gazed into Jake's eyes, her breasts dominating his thoughts as they rose and fell with her breaths. He wondered if he saw more than friendship flickering in her eyes, but then it vanished.“Thank you,” she said. “Now that we've reached an understanding and decided on a course of action, we have another problem: I don't see how I can work up the courage to actually, um, do it.” Her voice got very quiet at the end as she looked down and chewed her lip. “It just seems impossibly weird and awkward to undress in front of you.” She gave his arm a gentle shove like she did when they played video games.Jake thought for a second.“Well I'm certainly not going to pressure you. But if you're set on doing this, then I have a suggestion: What if we both pretend you're fully clothed? I'll set up the video game. When you're ready, you come in dressed however you want, and we'll both just pretend everything is normal. We can play Mario Kart like we planned, all very normal and unremarkable.” Jake couldn't help smirking a little bit at this last sentence.Anna's face brightened. “I like that idea. That might work.”Jake stood up. “Off you go, then,” he pointed at his bedroom. “I'll just set up the game and you can join me when you're ready.” He faced the TV and grabbed the remote. “I hope you are prepared to get trounced,” he added.Anna departed for his bedroom. Jake's heart raced, and his hands trembled a bit. He tried some deep slow breaths. They didn't help much. He visualized the bedroom door behind him and the woman he expected to emerge any second.Jake was ashamed to feel an erection start at just the thought of seeing Anna's breasts. His friend was trusting him to help her! He had to master himself and come through for her. He had to.He heard Anna take a quiet step into the open doorway behind him. He dared not turn around.On an impulse he pulled his own shirt off and tossed it. While he was very aware his own skinny chest was completely unremarkable, he hoped this would make her a bit more comfortable.Then he did something he knew she hated. “I hope you don't mind, I'm just going to start the race. I'm choosing your character, yes, Bowser on the biggest car so you can't do anything but go in a straight line…”Anna's hand snatched the controller out of his as she dropped beside him on the couch.“Don't you dare!” she said, laughing.Jake kept his eyes locked on the TV screen, trying to act casual while his mind reeled at the bare breasts just visible at the corner of his eye. She had done it!Part of him wanted to turn and stare directly at the first bare breasts he'd met in person. A bigger part of him was simply proud of his friend's courage. She'd identified a source of needless shame and took steps to overcome it. Jake wanted to make this a positive experience for her.That didn't mean he didn't take in as much as he could without looking directly. In addition to taking off her shirt and bra, she had taken out her ponytail. She parted her hair on either side of her head, and let it fall down her front. Through this inadequate screen of hair he thrilled at an impression of pale roundness, and maybe a hint of pink?It helped to have the game to concentrate on, though his playing was shit. Anna was never one to sit still and just push buttons on the controller. She moved her whole body with each turn of the race car. He kept his gaze glued to the TV even though her constant movement tickled the outskirts of his vision mercilessly.After several races, Jake started to feel close to normal. His game-play was back up to the level of “respectable.” His erection calmed down. He still hadn't gotten a look at Anna's bare breasts sitting right next to him, but he also no longer had to struggle to keep his eyes locked forward. He felt relaxed and happy, having fun with his friend. More than happy, he felt buoyant. It was as if Anna's bare chest was a beacon radiating warmth, bathing his heart in contentment. Just knowing that she trusted him with this made him feel closer to her.When Anna won the next race, Jake decided to check on her. He put the controller down, tilted his head far back on the couch to make it clear he could only see the ceiling, and leaned in her direction with one hand to his mouth in a conspiratorial gesture. Whispering, he said, “How are you doing?”Anna mirrored his pose and whispered in response. “Really good, actually. How are you doing?”“Really good, too,” Jake said, afraid to reveal how much more than just 'good' he felt.Anna nodded slightly and then she sat up and resumed talking in a normal voice. “I'm going to get us glasses of water.” And with that she stood up and walked to the kitchen.Jake took in the sight of her bare back as she walked away from him. She was beautiful. He longed to touch her and hated himself for it. Momentarily, she would be walking back toward him, and he had to keep his eyes on the TV. He had to.She returned from the kitchen with two glasses of water. Instead of sitting she stood directly in front of him, blocking the TV, and held one out. Jake's efforts at gaze discipline went out the window as he was forced to look up at the glass, which she held at the exact elevation to be in line between his eyeballs and her breasts. Jake did his best to keep his eyes moving up to her face where he looked her in the eyes and said a hoarse “thank you” as he took the glass.Anna tilted her head far back to take drink. With her eyes toward the ceiling, Jake understood she was giving him permission to look.Jake's eyes widened as he took in the sight, and his composure left him. The rest of the room faded out of existence as his brain took in every detail.The slightly tan color of Anna's face and arms was thanks to the sun, for her bare shoulders and upper chest were paler. Her breasts were paler still and revealed a faint tracery of blue veins around her shapely contours. Her hair covered the promised inverted nipples, though he could see the edges of puffy pink areolas.On the one hand, this was just another part of his friend's body. His friend Anna happened to be a woman, women have breasts, and these were simply Anna's breasts. Up close like this, Jake could see the subtle details on her skin. The fine hairs, sprinkling of moles, and minor asymmetries stressed the reality of what he beheld, in contrast to the airbrushed breasts in porn. Intellectually, Jake knew in the big picture all breasts, all bodies, were ultimately unremarkable.On the other hand, Jake couldn't help feeling these particular breasts were magical beacons of beauty, acceptance, trust, and intimacy. Anna's breasts emanated waves of warmth that bathed his heart in joy and evoked feelings of affection and protectiveness. It pained him to think of all those years of being ashamed of her body, avoiding physical intimacy for fear of rejection.After an eternity of taking in this sight, Anna sat on the couch again. He fastened his eyes on the TV and tried to regain his composure.Jake felt a flash of pain on his arm as Anna playfully hit him with the back of her hand. “Come on, slowpoke, press 'A' so we can start the next race. I'm enjoying destroying you.”“Oops,” Jake said, resuming the game. And then, feeling daring, he added: “I don't know where my mind was.”It was hard to tell without turning his head, but he thought he saw her smile.They played a few more races until it was their usual bedtime for a work night.Anna stood up. “Well, we both have work tomorrow. Better call it a night.” She walked into Jake's bedroom and then returned dressed normally. The light in the room felt weaker without the shining warmth of her bare breasts. He fought to hide his disappointment.“G'night,” she said, walking to the door.Jake leaped up to meet her at the door. “Thanks for the fun evening,” he said. Then, his face reddening, “I mean the Mario Kart.”Anna laughed, her face blushing too. “Thank YOU!” Then, hesitating, “for everything.”When the door closed behind her, Jake's apartment felt cold, lonely, and dark.The next day at work, Jake had trouble getting anything done with visions of Anna's breasts dancing in his head. He missed the feeling of being with her when she was topless. But on his way home, a new worry arose: How awkward would it be when he saw her again tonight? There was no going back to how things had been before.Opening the door to his apartment, he heard Anna working in the kitchen.“Hey,” Jake called out.“Hey yourself,” Anna answered from the kitchen.Jake relaxed when he saw she was wearing a shirt, though not without a pang of disappointment. What had he expected? Idiot. Anna cut vegetables, wearing the circuit-board-print apron she liked.“Get the waters, I'm almost finished.”Jake tried to act normal but couldn't stop thinking about her breasts as he set the coffee table in front of the TV. Anna put down plates of chicken salad and sat beside him on the couch.Normally, at this point they would watch something on TV while they ate. The remote control was on the arm of the couch next to Anna, ignored.“How was work?” Anna asked.“Oh fine, pretty normal,” Jake lied. “You?”“Actually,” Anna said, “I had trouble focusing at work today.” She paused there, as if giving Jake an opportunity to say more.“To be honest,” Jake admitted, turning to look her in the eye, “I had the same problem.”“Was there something on your mind?” Anna asked.“Technically two things were on my mind,” Jake said.Anna burst out laughing. Relieved, Jake laughed too.“I want to thank you,” Anna said, “for being so patient with me last night. And kind. I was close to running out of the room in tears. You helped me keep it together.” She took his hand. “That was very kind of you. I feel like a burden of shame was lifted. Thank you.”Jake blushed.“What I hadn't expected, though…” Anna looked down. “What I hadn't expected was how much I enjoyed it.”Anna slowly raised her eyes to meet Jake's. Panic came rushing back. Did she want to do it again? Did Jake want that? Confused thoughts swirled in his head. Did he want to kiss Anna? Yes, but she didn't want that. Did he feel romantic thoughts about her? Yes, but she didn't want that either. Did he want to see her breasts again, despite all his misgivings? Yes. Most definitely yes.“Did you…” Anna was studying his face. “Did you enjoy it, too?”“YES!” Jake blurted out, not exactly playing it cool.Anna smiled. “Do you, do you mind if we do it again?”“I would love that,” Jake answered.Anna hesitated. “It made me feel better when you took your shirt off first.”Jake nearly tore his shirt in his rush to pull it off. Anna's eyes on his chest made his skin feel warm.After a moment of staring, Anna started to unbutton her shirt. Feeling emboldened by Anna's unguarded staring at him, Jake watched her fingers work. The anticipation was intense, and he felt a reckless swelling between his legs.“Excuse me,” Anna said sternly, “my eyes are up here.”Jake blanched and tore his gaze up at the ceiling, his heart pounding in panic and his dick shrinking in shame. Incoherent apologies spilled out of his mouth as he tried to repair the damage his eager eyes had done.“Whoa, whoa, it's okay, I was just joking!” Anna said quickly. “I've never seen anyone go so pale. Are you okay? Jake, you didn't do anything wrong. The whole point is for you to look at me.” She grabbed his shoulders. “Jake, please, I'm sorry, I was only trying to be funny.” She gently pulled on the back of his head until it was tilted down at her chest again. “Your respectful instincts are part of why I trust you. It's okay. I want you to look.”He watched her shirt rise and fall with each breath, and eventually his breathing matched hers. Anna released his head and resumed unbuttoning. She wasn't wearing a bra. After the last button, she put her hands down. With a deep breath, Anna looked Jake directly in the eyes and with a quick motion pulled her shirt open.Anna's bare breasts brightened the room. Jake's greedy eyes took in more details from this first unobstructed view. Her left areola had a small mole on the perimeter at the six o'clock position. In the center of each impossibly pink areola were puffy little slits where the skin of her nipples folded inside instead of out. They were beautiful.Jake looked up to Anna's face with a big grin on his face. She was smiling too, though still nervous. She covered her breasts with her hands.“Sorry, it's just…” She looked down in thought. “It's intense, being looked at.”Jake was sorry to see her breasts covered, but sorrier she seemed upset.“What if we get dressed again and continue like normal, then?” Jake said, suggesting the exact opposite of what he wanted. “It's okay, you know.”Anna shook her head. “Oh, I didn't mean that. I don't, I don't want that. I just needed a little break.” Then, quieter, she added, “I like this.”Jake knew he needed to walk a fine line to balance Anna's feelings, their friendship, and his desperate need to get as much time with her breasts as possible. He also needed to occupy her hands with something.“I do, too.” Jake said, turning on the TV. “I also like schooling you in the ways of the Kart,” he said, holding out a controller for her.Their routine went back to normal, the only difference was neither of them wore shirts. Jake became accustomed to the sight of Anna's bare breasts, and eventually was even able to stop worrying about where his gaze landed. Anna didn't seem to mind him looking, though he tried not to stare. The exception was when she sometimes fell asleep while they watched a movie. Jake hated himself for violating her trust, but he couldn't help himself. The bluish light from the TV flickering over her breasts in the dark room was more engaging than any movie.He was even able to stop having an erection constantly, much to the relief of his confused dick. Jake assumed this trend would continue until her breasts made no impact upon him at all. He was wrong. There was just so much to admire about them. How they moved when she walked, when she breathed, when she laughed. Anna seemed to like being topless as well. She never seemed quite as happy as she did when her shirt was off.After a few weeks, Anna started coming by before work, too. She said she wanted to get better about exercising properly and invited Jake to join her. She would come by early in the morning, un-showered in her sleep shirt and sweatpants, hair pulled into a messy pony tail. As soon as the door to his apartment closed, she would pull off her shirt and fire up the exercise video game program. They would stand beside each other in front of the TV doing the routines, her breasts moving in all kinds of interesting ways. Jake wondered if she wouldn't be more comfortable with a sports bra, but she never seemed to mind, and he certainly didn't either.One day a plumbing problem in her apartment resulted in the walls of her bathroom being torn open during repairs. He offered his shower to her, and she began using it after exercising each day. And of course, since she was at Jake's apartment in the morning anyway, why shouldn't she eat breakfast there too? In this way Jake ended up with an apartment-mate in every way but one: She did not sleep there.Normally Anna wore jeans, except for the mornings when she arrived in sweatpants. The first evening she came by in shorts was the first time he saw her legs. Jake found himself distracted by her bare thighs, solid and well-proportioned with her figure. Spring was turning into summer and the days were getting warmer. He supposed that's all it was.June brought the first hot day of the year. All the windows were open with a complicated arrangement of fans to get the air to circulate. They both sat on the couch watching a dumb show, drinking ice water, and sweating.“It's so hot,” Anna said. “Every stitch of clothing is a burden. Would you mind if I stripped down to my underpants?”Jake took a long sip of ice water to stall as he thought of how to respond.“You don't have to take your shorts off too,” Anna continued, “though you're welcome to. This heat is unbearable, don't you think?”Jake agreed it was hot, though he also knew it wouldn't make much difference whether their shorts were on or off. What was she up to? He was strongly tempted to call her on the weak ruse and deal with it directly.He remembered that when she first wanted to bare her breasts to him, she was only able to manage it because he played along as if everything was normal. Jake supposed it depended on whether he wanted to see her in panties.The growing hardness between his legs both answered that question and presented a problem. If she took her shorts off, he would feel obliged do the same. But his briefs would do little to conceal his excitement. Feeling a little frustrated, Jake decided to stop trying to hide it. She wanted to share more of her body? Well, his body had a penis, and sometimes it had a mind of its own. If it made her uncomfortable, she could tell him.“Way too hot for shorts, agreed,” he said. Jake stood up and unbuttoned his shorts. He took them off, folded them, and placed them neatly on the side table. He resumed his seat, slouching on the couch in front of the fan, a bulge rather obviously straining against the fabric of his briefs.Jake pretended to be interested in the TV. He was pretty sure he saw Anna looking at his crotch for a second. Then she also stood and removed her shorts, revealing plain black panties. After a while, Jake's body calmed down and things felt normal again. They sweated their way through the end of the show and parted for sleep as usual.The next morning when Anna arrived for their workout, even though it was not nearly as hot, she stripped down to her panties again. Jake followed her lead and they exercised wearing only briefs. From then on, and without further discussion, stripped to briefs was the new normal. Jake started to doubt his guess of her motives. Perhaps it really was just a temperature thing and Anna wasn't working up to revealing more.The issue was resolved Friday evening after dinner. It was another uncomfortably hot evening. Anna sat next to him on the couch wearing her new normal outfit of nothing but panties (royal blue today) and a concerned look on her face. Jake sat up and turned off the TV. She looked like she had something to say.“What's the matter, Anna?”She hesitated, then said, “Do I embarrass you?”Jake laughed. “What are you talking about?”Anna looked unsure of herself as she spoke, “When I first wanted to show you my breasts, it was to overcome a particular insecurity.”“Stupid fuckin' Andrew,” Jake said.“Yes, stupid fucking Andrew,” Anna agreed. “And I'm so grateful you agreed, because it has changed how I feel about myself. I didn't realize how much that shame was weighing on me. I really think I've moved past that.” She looked down in thought. “But you may have noticed I haven't been inclined to put my shirt back on.” Her face reddened a bit at this. “What I hadn't anticipated was how good it would feel. Is that weird?”“I don't know if it's weird,” Jake answered. “But I feel the same way. I like hanging out with you like this. It just feels, right. It feels good.”Anna's eyes brightened at this. “I was hoping you felt the same way, but sometimes I doubt myself and wonder if I'm just being ridiculous. I'm afraid you're rolling your eyes at me while I prance around topless.”Jake laughed again. “Impossible. Never! Anna, ugh, you're right, it is weird to talk about this.” He took a deep breath. “Anna, it gives me joy to be with you, my friend. And it gives me like a hundred-times joy multiplier to be with you with our clothes off.”Now Anna laughed. “Joy multiplier? Sounds like you've been playing too many video games.” She thought for a moment before shrugging. “But I suppose that's as good a description as I can come up with too.”“Then we're good?” Jake asked, “You're okay?”“Yes, thank you,” Anna said, though she obviously had more on her mind. She cleared her throat. “I can't help wondering, would it feel even better to just be, you know…” As she spoke, her voice got softer and softer, until it was a barely audible whisper, “, completely naked?”Jake had been anticipating this, and secretly hoping for it, ever since she first took her shorts off. He had suspected topless wasn't the final destination, but he dared not believe it till now. He did his best to fight the growth of his troublesome, eager dick.He desperately wanted to avoid messing this up, and he thought he knew her well enough now to plot the right course.Before his courage faltered, Jake stood up and pulled his briefs down. For the first time in his adult life, he was completely naked before a woman. His dick was in a state of tension, fighting between arousal and his mental urging for calm. Jake hadn't planned it this way, but he was pleased with how it turned out: A bit large, though still limp and non-threatening. It was the best first impression he could manage.“Like this?” Jake asked. He busied himself with carefully folding his underwear and putting it aside, while in his peripheral vision he saw Anna looking between his legs. Without waiting for an answer, he handed her a game controller as he sat back down and looked at the TV.Starting up the game was just the motivation Anna needed. Without a word she also stood up, removed her panties, and sat back down to play. Jake could tell there was a triangle of brown hair between her legs, though he couldn't make out any more detail.For the rest of the evening they both played video games like normal, pretending they weren't completely naked with each other for the first time. Jake's only real struggle was keeping a lid on how incredibly happy he felt.Neither of them played particularly well. There was a lot of laughing and pretending everything was normal. At the usual time, Anna dressed to return to her apartment, giving Jake a good view of her bare bottom as she bent over to put on her panties. Then she was gone, and Jake was left wondering if completely naked was the new normal. He got erect at the thought and didn't bother trying to stop it as visions of her pale bottom and triangle of brown hair danced in his mind. It still felt awkward, but the arousal couldn't be denied.With Anna's face blocked by the magazine, Jake dared to watch as her thighs pulled apart and revealed his first direct view between her legs. From the triangle of hair above, over the long cleft marked by full hairy lips, down to the obscuring darkness below, his greedy eyes took it all in. Her knee kept moving and continued until her thighs were perpendicular to each other. To Jake's amazement, this pulled apart her outer lips just a little and revealed the smallest bit of pink.Frozen in fascination, Jake stared with all his might at what Anna was revealing to him. Years of looking at porn had given him a good idea of what to expect, yet at the same time it was so delightfully and uniquely Anna. What a beautiful woman! He ached to touch her, to care for her, and was grateful she couldn't hear these ridiculous thoughts. With alarm he realized he was extremely, intensely erect. She would be reading part of his mind if she saw this erection, and he regretted it didn't communicate the affection and tenderness that was also in his heart. He felt ashamed at his sexual feelings, though these low emotions were not enough to override the elation he felt.“It's okay to tell me if it's gross,” Anna said, keeping the magazine in front of her face.It took several seconds for the words to penetrate his reverie.“I'm sorry, what?” was all Jake could manage.“My vulva. I know it's pretty gross, and it won't hurt my feelings if you prefer I, sit in a more ladylike manner.”“It's beautiful!” Jake blurted, throwing out the window all hope of playing it cool.Anna lowered the magazine and Jake met her skeptical gaze. Jake reddened and looked away.“I thought we were accepting each other as we are,” Jake said to the floor. “You are a good and kind person to the core, and my friend. How could any part of you be 'gross'?”Jake felt her foot on his shoulder as she gave him a shove. “You're not so bad yourself,” she said. Jake looked up to see her smiling before she brought the magazine back up in front of her face. Did he catch her glancing at his impossibly hard erection before the magazine came up? Her legs returned to their perpendicular position and then stretched open even wider than before as she settled, inviting Jake to gaze upon the delicate pink petals of her beautiful flower. By the time she left for bed that evening, there was nothing left of Jake's mind but a loop replaying the glorious image.After brutally destroying him in Boulevard Battler IV, Anna put down the controller. Bringing her knees together and pointing them toward him, she tucked her feet beneath her and rested an elbow over the back of the couch.“Jake, can I ask you a personal question?”Jake mirrored her position, so they were facing each other. His eyes were practiced now at taking in the sight of the top of her bush and her beautiful breasts without lingering, and his dick remained calm in the face of her nakedness. He was feeling quite confident in his mastery of his own arousal until he looked her in the eyes. Something about her earnest expression touched his heart, and this in turn brought a hint of swelling between his legs. He was a long way from mastery.“Of course,” he answered. “Anything.”“I don't mean to pry, and it's okay if you don't want to answer, I don't mean to offend you, and–”“Anna!” Jake interrupted, shaking his head. “It's me. Just ask.”Anna looked down. “Do you ever, you know…”“Yes?”Anna brought her face back up to meet his gaze. “Do you ever look at porn?”Jake burst out laughing. Anna did not join in, looking confused.“Sorry,” Jake said, forcing himself to stop laughing. “I wasn't expecting that question.”Anna looked at him silently, awaiting an answer.“Well, yes, of course I do. Why?”“Then you've seen lots of naked women?”“Loads.”“Have you ever seen, breasts, like mine?”“Never!” Jake answered confidently. “Every woman's breasts are unique, your beautiful breasts included.”“No, I mean my inverted nipples. Do you ever see nipples like mine?”“Oh. Sometimes. Not often.”“Were they, attractive?”“Definitely!”Anna looked doubtful.“It's true! I've seen some incredibly beautiful models with inverted nipples.”Anna looked down for a second, and then back at Jake. “Show me.”Jake returned her gaze. This didn't feel right. “Look, Anna, are you sure? I mean, you don't need me to search the internet.”Anna looked away again. “I actually do. I tried, but…” she said, exasperated, “it got overwhelming fast. I was hoping you could do some, well, some curating for me.”“Or you could just take my word for it,” Jake argued. “Inverted nipples are beautiful! Be confident in that.”Anna looked at him intently. “Show me.”“Okay, if you insist.” Jake fetched his laptop and resumed his seat, facing Anna so she couldn't see his screen. “Give me a minute to find some.” Jake remembered one particular model with fascinating breasts. Dark hair, bright blue eyes, and impossibly round large breasts with strikingly inverted nipples. Jake felt relieved his dick was behaving for a change, thanks to this awkward situation.“Here is a good one, if you want to see,” Jake said. He shifted to sit normally on the couch and casually pulled the laptop over his crotch as a precaution. Anna sat right next to him, the side of her body pressed against his. Jake was glad to be covered by the laptop because the contact with her skin caused things to start to swell beneath the computer. He tried to ignore it.“She's beautiful,” Anna said, clicking through the series of pictures. Anna's clicks on the laptop touchpad moved it very slightly against his growing arousal.“She is,” Jake agreed.“Her breasts are huge!”Jake laughed. “Yes, but look at her nipples.”“You're right, they're pretty similar to mine. Do all porn models shave their pubic hair like she does?” Anna asked.“Definitely not all. Many do,” Jake answered.“I wonder what it feels like,” Anna said. “Do you think it's cooler? This summer is so hot.”“I have no idea,” Jake said. “I've never tried it.”Anna was thoughtful for a moment. “I'm curious what it's like. If I shaved my pubes, would you shave yours?”The thought of seeing Anna shaved bare seemed like the most appealing idea in the world. He didn't care one way or another about shaving himself, but if that was the price for getting her to shave, he would gladly pay it. “Sure!” Jake said. “Why not? Anything is worth trying in this heat.”“There's one thing, though,” Anna said hesitantly. “I'm nervous about wielding a razor in such a tender place when I can't see very well down there. Would you, would you be willing to help me?”To be continued.By darrenr for Literotica

In hour one, guest hosts Brook Ward & Josh Elliott-Wolf look back at the previous day in sports, they preview tonight's Canucks home matchup versus the Flyers (10:00), plus they discuss the latest NHL stories w/ ESPN Hockey's Greg Wyshynski (27:00). This podcast is produced by Andy Cole and Greg Balloch. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Media Inc. or any affiliate.

Sara Breit episode --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/tyler-paul-wolfe/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/tyler-paul-wolfe/support

Imagine that you are a piece of sea glass, tumbling about at the water's edge. All around you, water sloshes in every direction. It swirls around the large rocks that mark the shoreline then quickly recedes with the tide. For just a moment you hear the cool, brisk wind before the next wave rushes in. Momentarily lifted by the surge, you are weightless, floating. The churning water tosses everything in its path, mixing pebbles and seaweed and sand. You come to rest among a small heap of shells, their edges scraping and crunching as they settle. Some might find this turbulence unpleasant, but you don't mind. It's necessary for your jagged edges to be smoothed and your coarse surface to become polished. One day, someone will pluck you from among the shells, marveling at your satin finish, and your vibrant color. You will finally be recognized for the treasure that you are. ---

Nirvana Talukder (pictured) was just 12 years old when she first went to the streets to protest about the climate crisis - now she's a leader: "Ditching school to save the planet"; "Earth passed a feared global warming milestone Friday, at least briefly"; "Research shows subsidies and discounts for two-wheeled EVs can drive active transport"; "French green energy giant Neoen gifts Worlds End Gorge as new SA national park, in Goyder renewable project trade-off"; "Union calls for a united push to get behind WA's energy transition"; "More than Half of World's Largest Companies' Net Zero Pledges Are False Promises, Study Finds"; "WA government fails to back up premier's claim expanding gas industry will be good for planet"; "The world's 280 million electric bikes and mopeds are cutting demand for oil far more than electric cars"; "Plants are likely to absorb more CO₂ in a changing climate than we thought – here's why"; "5 reasons why climate change may see more of us turn to alcohol and other drugs"; "Floods, droughts and panic attacks: Climate change is taking its toll on Europe's farmers"; "I'm a Climate Scientist. I'm Not Screaming Into the Void Anymore."; "Hume Regional Climate Change Adaptation Strategy"; "Microgrids Can Bolster Creaky Electricity Systems, But Most States Do Little to Encourage Their Development"; "Report Charts Climate Change's Growing Impact in the US, While Stressing Benefits of Action"; "New Research Makes it Harder to Kick The Climate Can Down the Road from COP28"; "Is China Emitting a Climate Super Pollutant in Violation of an International Environmental Agreement?"; "Corruption and Rights Abuses Are Flourishing in Lithium Mining Across Africa, a New Report Finds"; "Environmental Justice a Key Theme Throughout Biden's National Climate Assessment"; "Ancient warning of a rising sea"; "When will Europe's ski resorts open? Heavy snow could mean an early start to the season"; "Here's how a TV series inspired the KeepCup revolution. What's next in the war on waste?"; "The Reappearing Forests of West Bengal"; "Social cohesion lowest on record as Australia reels from cost of living, inequality concerns and voice debate"; "Conflict pollution, washed-up landmines and military emissions – here's how war trashes the environment"; "Rāhui and the Ancient Art of Marine Conservation"; "Gov. Justice: President Biden must tap into West Virginia's rich natural resources to make America energy independent again"; "UK to loosen post-Brexit chemical regulations further"; "Restoring ecosystems to boost biodiversity is an urgent priority – our ‘Eco-index' can guide the way"; "How Joe Manchin Aided Coal, and Earned Millions"; "The Toll of Climate Disasters Is Rising. But a U.S. Report Has Good News, Too."; "Exxon Mobil Plans to Produce Lithium in Arkansas"; "France's poorest island is parched because of drought and underinvestment"; "The world is ‘woefully off track' on dozens of climate goals, scientists find"; "Native American tribes fight US over a proposed $10B renewable energy transmission line"; "What to know about today's three big climate reports"; "Learning How Trees Can Help Unlock Secrets of Our Climate Future"; "Sustainable Australia Fund"; "Energy Efficiency Council"; "The humble trash truck is ready for an all-electric upgrade"; "How climate change risks impact people with disabilities"; "Amsterdam marchers demand climate action as Dutch election nears"; "Two Studies on Greenland Reveal Ominous Signs for Sea Level Rise"; "U.S. Bets on Small Nuclear Reactors to Help Fix a Huge Climate Problem"; "Make it law: young Australians want healthy environment"; "Pollution could be turning Great Barrier Reef's green sea turtles female, study suggests"; "Scientists studying Antarctic Circumpolar Current to take closer look at 'heat flux gates --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/robert-mclean/message

Fluent Fiction - Korean: Lost in the Exchange: A Tale of Crossed Phones Find the full episode transcript, vocabulary words, and more:fluentfiction.org/lost-in-the-exchange-a-tale-of-crossed-phones Story Transcript:Ko: 서울의 한복판에서 시작된다. 저녁노을이 진 날, 카페에서 앉아 있던 지혜와 민준. 어느새 휴대폰을 한 더미로 쌓아 둔 채 애니메이션에 완전히 몰입하게 된다.En: It starts in the heart of Seoul, in Miah-dong. On an evening when the sunset has set, Ji-hye and Min-jun are seated in a cafe. Before they know it, they have piled up their mobile phones in a heap and are completely absorbed in an animation.Ko: "에휴, 진짜." 지혜가 한숨을 내쉬며 미소를 띠며 머리를 흠뻑 쳐 박았다. 민준은 그를 쳐다보며 무슨 말을 하려다 돌아서버리는 사인을 놓치고, "지혜야, 우리 휴대폰 몇 번째부터 챙겨야 할까?" 순간적으로 당황한 표정이 지나가더니 곧 웃음이 터져 나온다.En: "Sigh, seriously." Ji-hye lets out a sigh and smiles as she hits her head. Min-jun, not noticing the sign that she turns away about to say something, asks, "Ji-hye, from which number should we start collecting our mobile phones? Momentarily taken aback, she quickly bursts into laughter.Ko: 그 미소 뒤에 숨겨진 혼란은 자신들만의 소극장처럼 시작되버렸다. 휴대폰 각각이 한 번씩 반짝였다. 민준은 자신의 휴대폰을 찾아 그 메시지를 열었고, 지혜 역시 그렇게 했다.En: Behind that smile, their hidden confusion begins as their own private theater. Each mobile phone blinks once. Min-jun finds his own phone and opens the message, and Ji-hye does the same.Ko: 메시지의 내용은 두 사람 모두에게 의문을 던지곤 했다. 주인이 바뀐 휴대폰에 도착한 메시지들, 각각의 세상으로 가져다주는 미지의 세계. 진심으로 웃을 수밖에 없었다.En: The contents of the messages raise questions for both of them. Messages on the exchanged phones, mysterious worlds that bring into each other's worlds. They can't help but genuinely laugh.Ko: 그들에게 찾아오는 일련의 메시지는 급기야 공을 돌렸다. 지혜의 휴대폰으로 오는 민준의 친구들의 메시지에 당황한 지혜와, 그리고 반대로 민준의 휴대폰으로 오는 지혜의 친구들의 메시지에 당황한 민준.En: The series of messages that come to them suddenly turns the tables. Ji-hye, taken aback by the messages from Min-jun's friends on her phone, and, vice versa, Min-jun, confused by the messages from Ji-hye's friends on his phone.Ko: 어느새 그들은 자신이 아닌 상대의 삶을 엿보는 시간이었다. 민준의 친구들의 농담과 즐거운 시간, 그리고 지혜의 친구들과의 즐거운 대화들.En: Suddenly, they are peering into each other's lives. Min-jun's friends' jokes and enjoyable moments, and Ji-hye's pleasant conversations with her friends.Ko: 외향적인 성격의 지혜와 내향적인 성격의 민준, 그들의 세상은 이렇게 넓어졌다. 그들은 서로에 대해 더 자세히 알게 되었고, 서로의 세계에 대해 이해하게 되었다. 그리고 결국 알게 된 것은, 그들이 바꾼 휴대폰 때문에 서로에게 더 가까워졌다는 사실.En: The extroverted Ji-hye and the introverted Min-jun, their worlds suddenly expanded like this. They have come to know each other more in detail and understand each other's worlds. And in the end, they realize that it's because of the exchanged phones that they have become closer.Ko: 결국 그들은 웃으며 서로의 휴대폰을 다시 바꾸기로 했다. 그 후 그들은 이제는 자신의 휴대폰으로 돌아간 후, 그 순간 느꼈던 혼란의 순간들을 되새겨 보았다. 그들은 다시 길을 걷기 시작했으며, 그들의 소소한 모험은 마침내 끝나는 듯했다.En: In the end, they decide to exchange their phones back, smiling. After that, they return to their own phones and reflect on the moments of confusion they felt. They start walking again, it seems like their small adventure is finally coming to an end.Ko: 그렇게 그들의 작은 혼돈이 사라지며 이야기는 끝났지만, 그들의 이야기, 그들이 배운 것들 그리고 그들이 사랑하는 것들에 대한 이해도 더 깊어졌다.En: Thus, as their little chaos disappears and the story comes to an end, their story, what they have learned, and their understanding of what they love deepens.Ko: "예전보다 서로를 더 잘 알게 된 것 같아." 민준이 지혜에게 말했다. 그리고 그들은 함께 웃었다. 그 순간, 서로의 세상을 이해하고, 서로를 더욱 사랑하게 된 그들의 이야기는 그렇게 끝난다.En: "I feel like we understand each other better than before." Min-jun says to Ji-hye, and they laugh together. In that moment, understanding each other's worlds and loving each other more, their story concludes. Vocabulary Words:Seoul: 한복판Miah-dong: 미아동에서evening: 저녁노을sunset: 진 날cafe: 카페mobile phones: 휴대폰들animation: 애니메이션sigh: 한숨smile: 미소hit her head: 머리를 흠뻑 쳐 박았다turn away: 돌아서버리다start: 시작collecting: 챙기는laughter: 웃음hidden: 숨겨진confusion: 혼란private theater: 소극장blinks: 반짝였다message: 메시지raise questions: 의문을 던지다exchanged: 바뀐bring into: 가져다주는genuinely laugh: 진심으로 웃을suddenly: 어느새peering into: 엿보는jokes: 농담conversations: 대화expanded: 넓어졌다come to know: 알게 되다understand: 이해하다

A reflection for Dia de los Muertos.Momentarily distinct with our own bodies and our own consciousness, we are blessed to risk love, to parent new life, to create and innovate, to strive and to rest.And then, finally, to return to You.Knowing that the tasks are never completed, the relationships never simple, the twists life takes often surprising, at last we rest in You, as we once rested in our parents' loving arms so long ago.Oneness from Whom we emerge at birth, we know that all life flows back to you, once more united after the struggles, bruises and delights, the challenges and aspirations, the loves, betrayals and affirmations that make life complex and maddening and sweet.Grant that our rest be serene. May our lifelong harvest of love bring You — and those we love — joy. May our persistent efforts to nurture sustain those we have guided on the way, and may the sweet scent of that sacrifice please You too as You gather us in.Thanks be for this beautiful planet and our moment awake on its surface, for life's fleeting pleasures and abiding connections, for a heritage wise, ancient and abiding, for the tasks we completed and for those attempted, for the loves sustained and ruptured and our friends — whether remembered or forgotten.For it all — thanks, praise, shalom.

I greet you in Jesus' precious name! It is Sunday morning, the 1st of October, 2023, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today. We start in the Gospel of John 16:33, Jesus said:“These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world.” What a beautiful, reassuring scripture that is. I want to read a little story to you today which was told by Charles Francis Richardson. It goes like this: “Paganini, the great Italian violinist, once stepped on stage only to discover something wrong with his violin. Just as the audience was ending their applause, he looked at the instrument for a moment and suddenly realised it was not his best and most valuable one. In fact, the violin was not his at all. Momentarily, he felt paralysed but he quickly turned to his audience, telling them there had been some mistake and he did not have his own violin. He stepped back behind the curtain, thinking he must have left it backstage but discovered that someone had stolen his and left the inferior one in it's place. After remaining behind the curtain for a moment, Paganini stepped on stage again to speak to the audience. He said, “Ladies and gentlemen, I will now demonstrate to you that the music is not in the instrument but in the soul.” Then he played as never before and beautiful music flowed from that inferior instrument until the audience was so enraptured that their enthusiastic applause nearly lifted the ceiling of the concert hall. He had indeed revealed to them that the music was not in his instrument but in his own soul.” Be a tested and tried believer. It is your mission to walk onto the stage of this world to reveal to all Heaven and earth, that the music of life lies not in your circumstances or external things but in your soul.Today, go out and be Jesus to a dying world. God bless you and goodbye.

Due to the business of life, many immigrants in Australia feel the society here is a bit cold. Nepalis are no different in expressing their concern about the quality of mental well-being in Australia despite the improved living standard and overall quality of life. A few Nepalis speaking on the ‘R U OK? Day' said they would be grateful if someone stopped and said, 'Namaste, Sanchain hunuhunchha?' They told SBS Nepali that having a support system to lean back on is extremely important in the life of an immigrant. - अस्ट्रेलियाको व्यस्त जीवनमा एक छिन रोकिएर “सञ्चै हुनुहुन्छ?” भनेर सोध्ने समय पनि आफूहरूसँग नभएको धेरै मानिसको गुनासो हुन सक्छ। कोही ठीक छन् कि छैनन् अथवा जीवनमा के-कस्ता सङ्घर्ष भोगिरहेका छन् भनेर बुझ्न कै लागि भनेर अस्ट्रेलियामा हरेक सेप्टेम्बर महिनाको दोस्रो बिहीवारलाई 'आर यु ओक? डे' को रूपमा मनाइन्छ। यसपालि बिहीवार, १४ सेप्टेम्बरमा परेको यो दिवसले जिन्दगीको भागदौड बिच एक अर्कालाई साथ दिनुको महत्त्व र त्यसको लागि कुनै निश्चित दिनको लागि पर्खनु पर्दैन भन्ने सन्देश दिएको छ। तपाईँलाई चाहिँ अस्ट्रेलियामा आर यु ओके वा सञ्चै छ भनेर पहिलो पटक कसले सोधेका थिए? मेलबर्नका केही नेपाली भाषीहरूसँगको कुराकानी सहितको एक रिपोर्ट सुन्नुहोस्।

Mac and Bone chat with Cameron Wolfe about what he is thinking will happen with the No. 1 pick, talk to Jessica Charman about what might end up being a costly US Open Cup loss last night and discuss the wild story behind Will Levis odds rising in Vegas.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

IN THIS EPISODE WE'LL DISCUSS...Deciding not to be disabled Stop feeling sorry for yourself Momentarily losing your purpose and what to do about itCreating a life beyond Fear and anxious struggleDeciding and acting out of genuine gratitude Michael R Herst is the Host of One More Thing Before You Go Podcast, Keynote Speaker, Author, Director, and Retired Police Sergeant, who holds an M.A. in Interdisciplinary Studies, with a focus on Performance and Digital Media, and a B.S. in Business Management. A husband, a father, and an animal advocate and vegan who has managed his disease with a naturopathic way of life. A passion for the beauty of nature, art, creative arts in healing, writing, movies, and TV.Michael lives by the creed that...  there's always one more thing to say or do before it's too late.I'M HERE TO SERVE & SUPPORT YOUConnect with me to Guest on my Podcast, join me for a Virtual Coffee where we just chat and get to know each other or experience a Business & Life Strategic Consultation at no chargeGuest on my Podcast  |  Virtual Coffee  |  Business-Life Strategic Consultation  Enjoy the show.James HeppnerWebsite  |  LinkedIn  |  EmailPsss.... If you like the podcast episode, let us know by subscribing, leaving a little review, and sharing with a friend as you feel appropriate - the guests that I host on this show love the feedback and I love knowing that you are listening. NOW BOOKING PODCAST GUESTS: CLICK HERE https://podcast.jamesheppner.com/podcast-guest

Citizens of the Village Hidden in the Real, We are back with another dose of hotness and in this episode we discuss the official announcement about the direction of the DC Universe made by CEO James Gunn. However, before we get into that convo, we chop it up about a various stuff including but not limited to: NBA news, club attire, the termination of the YouTube channel of a big time content creator (and friend of the show). Don't forget to like, subscribe, and follow us on social media here: https://linktr.ee/RealNinjaReviewsPodcast (3:33) Hoop Content Announcement (6:19) Storytime: Whack Club Gear (9:07) Upcoming Fan Expo in Portland (12:27) Berleezy's YouTube Page Terminated... Momentarily (18:33) DC Universe Convo Begins (22:15) Ch 1: Gods and Monsters Movies (31:17) Ch1: Gods and Monsters TV Shows (43:01) DC Movies to Release Soon

The Morning Drop: The morning live show dedicated to our paying YouTube members to talk and chat live with us covering any and all breaking Auburn Sports News. An emphatic win against visiting Missouri keeps Auburn Men's Basketball's tournament goal in view, and it was a perfect shot in the arm for a team that had been losing big games narrowly. KD Johnson played his best game of the season, Tre Donaldson made a thunderous statement, and Wendell Green Jr stayed in control of the game from the PG position in a game where Missouri never got close. Was this the game to spring board Auburn into the rest of the SEC conference schedule? Or was it just a 1-off from a desperate team? Original broadcast: Wednesday February 15 at 10am ET, 9am CT on YouTube at https://www.youtube.com/c/thewarrapport Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Photo: No known restrictions on publication. @Batchelorshow Chisinau Moldova 1900 #Moldova:  Panic producing Russian threat closes Moldovan airspace momentarily. Antonia Colibasanu, Geopolitical Futures https://www.wsj.com/articles/moldova-closes-airspace-over-security-issues-bc7490c0 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moldova

"Ambition without action is Fantasy"                                ~ Bryant McGillHave you considered the benefits of becoming a franchisee?If so, you need someone like Meg Schmitz in your circle.  She is affectionately known as the FRANCHISE GURU, because flat out, she is literally "been there, done that successful" when it comes to owning, operating, and growing a franchise.Enjoy the time Meg and Patrick spend together as they unpack the viable options for becoming a franchisee.  Did you even know there was someone like Meg available to work in your best interest, and in the best interest of the franchises looking for owners like you?There is such a nice business connection between Patrick Kagan, and Meg Schmitz.  Both have a boots on the ground, tell it like it is, and get you where you want to go approach to your business life.  Their podversation will open new ideas and leave you wanting more.And if you ever thought that a franchise might be possible in your future, you now have Patrick making a FRANCHISE GURU part of your own secret weapons of tools in your professional tool box.Sit back, relax, and enjoy as Meg & Patrick open new opportunities for you. Patrick Kagan, Author of "SELL THE DIFFERENCE" enjoys some quality time with Ann Carden, as she brings to life, the power and value of clarity and strategy in developing your own category of one in world that continues to struggle with clutter on every platform. Patrick opens the door to higher levels of income and satisfaction in  his book, "SELL THE DIFFERENCE" as one of many options to develop personally and professionally in sales and as a small business  - your hardcover copy awaits you here:https://pksolutionsgroup.com/product/sell-the-difference/OR GET YOUR AUDIOBOOK AT MOST AUDIO BOOK PLATFORMS.Want more growth as a professional?  SCHEDULE YOUR FREE CONSULTATION WITH Patrick: https://calendly.com/pksolutionsgroupOr, just choose "SHOP" at https://www.pksolutionsgroup.com , and purchase your own individual edition of bonus content from any of our podversations.©2022 -2023 PK Solutions Group. All rights Reserved.Not to be distributed for commercial use without express permissionEnjoy the easy to understand, and practical approach to improving yourself, and therefore, the world around you, both personally and professionally.   Patrick gives you the support, now make hiring his team your next  priority to move toward the best results and most positive changes you could imagine.Support the show

True Biblical teaching and Preparing a people for the soon coming Kingdom of Yahshua

Photo: No known restrictions on publication. @Batchelorshow #OzWatch: Momentous flooding Victoria, NSW, and Queensland momentarily. Jeremy Zakis, New South Wales. #FriendsofHistoryDebatingSociety  https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/northern-rivers-warned-of-flood-risk-as-state-set-to-cop-another-drenching-20221022-p5bry8.html

Adam tries to contextualize a fantastic passer rating for Daniel Jones, and the true QBR rating is very telling. It was a good base line for Daniel Jones season, horrendous interception aside. The question is if one game is enough to slide the franchise extension across the table. The guys discuss a number of key stats relative to other NFL QB's, why it can still be a good jumping off point for Jones, and where the team goes from here following a surprise win over the Titans. The also update the Kadarius Toney situation as seen through Brian Daboll's eyes and wonder aloud if the dynamic playmaker is heading for another frustrating season. --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/onegiantpodcast/message

Bik Nizzar and Thomas Drance take The People's Show national in Vancouver, Calgary, and Toronto, and talk a little football in July with NFL Wire's Mark Schofield, as they dissect the new Kyler Murray contract. The boys also hit on some baseball and hockey with MLB Network and NHL Network's Adnan Virk. The views and opinions expressed in this podcast are those of the hosts and guests and do not necessarily reflect the position of Rogers Media Inc. or any affiliate.

Momentarily safe, the traveler sets off to improve his circumstances, and work on solving the mystery he has found himself in. A shopping trip, a visit to a friends house, having a drink, taking a shower; even things normally so mundane and routine are strange and fraught with danger now. Can he accomplish the goals he sets out for himself? Can he find any clues that will lead him closer to solution to the mystery of the world, to the location of his wife and children? --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/freddie-alexander4/support

Climate protesters (pictured) who glued themselves to the roadway momentarily stopped a recent stage of the Tour de France, but the climate crisis has the potential to stop it permanently. What began as notes for a new episode of Climate Conversations became the essence of a column for my local newspaper, The Shepparton News and so I figured I would share it with my listeners. The 60 km ride mentioned in this episode continued on an annual basis for about a decade and at its height was attracting about 150 riders from throughout the Goulburn Valley. It was known as the "Toaster Ride" as midway through the course, someone for reasons unknown to me, had tied an old toaster on a tree branch overhanging the roadway. Participants enjoyed the ride and upon returning to Shepparton, were treated to coffee and toast, which was served up as part of their entry fee - profits, as small as they were, went to local charities. Enjoy "Music for a Warming World". --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/robert-mclean/message

The boys turn to crystals for spiritual guidance. Momentarily shelving the signature cynicism that oozes out of their every pore, Adam, Andrew and Ben EARNESTLY embrace crystals—seeking guidance, enlightenment, and just good vibes, man, from a bunch of stones purchased in a store.  Featuring standup comedy clips from Kristin Lytie and David Gborie! LINKS: See we Grawlix three performing all weekend at the Chief Bicycle & Comedy Festival in Trinidad, Colorado on May 6th-7th See Andrew headlining Comedy Works in Denver on May 19th and May 22nd Bestow your crystalline wisdom upon us via Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook. Support us on Patreon and receive ad-free episodes, bonus videos, birthday shout-outs, exclusive merch, a video welcome message from Ben, and more. You know what's luckier than a piece of polished quartz? Some hot Grawlix merch! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Real Men Real Talk Live Hosted by Jay Rothman Co Hosts: Evis Heath, Josh Ritcher and Jeff Fasano Episode 69: Are You Momentarily Present or Fully Present in the Moment?

"If I entertain & run with a thought, Instead of always referring to a clock, Yet thinking clearly & loving dearly, Understanding this is important to me."

Consciously knowledgeable intuition experimentally controls its own thought-language coordination of experientially anticipatory (speculatively) interactions. Anticipatory design science expectations are metaphysical intellect's speculations with the geometric model's generalized conceptioning operational field in mind. Momentarily the human events are theoretical.  We can devise a superficial checklist as the comprehensive thought takes shape, correlating to the irreversible EISEDP, which are among human events, Experiences Intuitions Speculations Experiments Discoveries Productions.  The EISEDP process is non identically repetitive and irreversible as experience alters previous experience but not in any correlation to backwardly directed time. (Synergetics 502.20 through 502.25) How otherwise can consciousness evolution's awareness of human events conceive the correlation to cycles, angles, frequencies?   Where a true democracy concern differentiating and integrating systemic thoughts equi-economic cosmic forces, the isotropic vector matrix is the experimental self-other discovery as productions are in full swing to eventuate resolutions to inherent nuclei, an eventual no gain or loss because of equanimity model is involved in the conceptioning field. (Synergetics 987.031) REFERENCE for this episode today is provided with links shown on my transcript at sagesynergeticage.com. Remember to read the entire transcript for your research in this education experiment, Synergetics Eligion Experiential Experimental Education Complex, SEEEEC. 

Kmele at HereticonFallibility vs. FundamentalismA Time to ChooseIn Your Heart You Know He's RacistGerrymandering for GoodCredibility, TransparencyIgnoring Alex JonesArguing with Alex JonesThe One Thing Americans Agree On......It's All Going to Shit Alex Jones' AmericaIdiots Wrote ThisRecorded: Jan 13th, 2022Published: Jan 14th, 2022 See acast.com/privacy for privacy and opt-out information.

Let me tell you a true story…. I went down, down, down, into what felt like falling into a dark and narrow well. I couldn't stop myself and the walls were beyond my reach. It was like plunging into a void with no bottom. The longer I fell, the hotter it got. Suddenly, the fall into the well turned into a cavern that spread into an unending distance in every direction. I descended even further into the deep darkness and suffocating heat. I saw the gates of hell. It was an entranceway, but it was more sinister than anything I ever imagined. The gates looked so hideous that no one would ever dare to touch it. The creatures portrayed on the gates seemed to move with my approach. Guarding the gate were dreadful demon creatures with many heads and tails. They were there to forbid anyone from getting too close to the gates or from leaving them once someone entered them. As I approached the gateway, I could see on the other side the masses of human beings in a place of fire like a volcano of molten rock. The wails and screams coming from the people were overpowering. I felt all strength leave my limbs as I approached the excruciating heat. The people kept screaming out my name and telling me not to enter the gates, but I couldn't stop myself. An unseen evil power forced me forward through the barrier. People were burning up without dying. Fiery worms were crawling in and out of their never-dying bodies, and the stench of rotten burning flesh was nauseating! I kept vomiting, I didn't know what the ghoulish goo coming out of me was, but each time I threw up I writhed in excruciating pain, and then I hurled again. It never stopped. Ominous words above the gate were etched in hideous stones that glowed darkly with the reflection of hellish fire. The words leaped in giant relief, and a strange and utterly offensive substance oozed from each letter to the ground. I just glanced without reading, but the words read themselves to me and seared my mind like a branding iron. ALL WHO ENTER HERE WILL SUFFER THE FIRES OF HADES AND A FURTHER SECOND DEATH IN THE LAKE OF FIRE FOREVER AND EVER. YOU ARE ENTERING THE GARBAGE HEAP OF ALL REALMS, THE PLACE OF THE DEAD, THOSE DEAD TO GOD AND TO HIS SON. YOU ARE ABANDONED. NO PRAYERS ARE HEARD, AND THERE IS NO ESCAPE. I looked closer at the people as I passed through the pernicious gates. My eyesight was failing, and it got so black before me that I could no longer see my extremities. The only light I could see was a momentary glance as the fire burned me and the ghoulish worms ate me up. I could see people in the distance in suffering and torment that was unfathomable. I could hear their blood curdling screams of pain. Oh, the horrors! I could not communicate with them even as I screamed in pain. I felt the horrendous pain shoot through me over and over in never ending crescendos of hate, loneliness, and hopelessness. In all my life upon the earth, I never felt a chill darken my soul like this place of torment. I never felt the utter despair of eternal torment like I felt at that moment. All hope was gone. I would never see my family or friends, and I was hopelessly lost forever with no way out! Oh God, if only I could warn my family. If only I could tell my friends that there is heaven to gain and a very real hell to shun! Momentarily, I glanced up and saw the wretched beggar Lazarus that used to sit by my gate and beg for my help. I had so much in life, but I squandered my chance for deliverance by denying God and His commandments. Yet, what is this I see? Lazarus is seated next to somebody up there. Who is that? Suddenly, I knew! It is father Abraham! Maybe he will have mercy on me and send Lazarus to dip his finger in water and cool my tongue! I am tormented in these flames! I called desperately with all the strength I had, but no one answered. I could see them, and they looked happy. They were not in torment! Lazarus had on the most beautiful clothes I ever saw. “Father Abraham, please send Lazarus to me! Please send Lazarus to me!” I cried and screamed. No help came…. But then, there was a small window opened to me to where Abraham and Lazarus were… 19 “There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day. 20 But there was a certain beggar named Lazarus, full of sores, who was laid at his gate, 21 desiring to be fed with the crumbs which fell from the rich man's table. Moreover, the dogs came and licked his sores. 22 So it was that the beggar died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's bosom. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 And being in torments in Hades, he lifted his eyes and saw Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 24 “Then he cried and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus that he may dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame.' 25 But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things, and likewise Lazarus evil things; but now he is comforted and you are tormented. 26 And besides all this, between us and you there is a great gulf fixed, so that those who want to pass from here to you cannot, nor can those from there pass to us.' 27 “Then he said, ‘I beg you therefore, father, that you would send him to my father's house, 28 for I have five brothers, that he may testify to them, lest they also come to this place of torment.' 29 Abraham said to him, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.' 30 And he said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if one goes to them from the dead, they will repent.' 31 But he said to him, ‘If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.” (Luke 16:19-31 NKJV) That was not a parable. Parables were always stated in generalities and personal names were not used when telling them. Lazarus and that rich man were real people. The story was about two men in the area where Jesus was preaching. Jesus saw what happened to them after death in the unseen realm. Yes, I took creative license with the story and retold it with my own descriptions. Notice that it is still based on the Scriptural teaching about Hades, and then the final resting place of hell and death, the lake that burns with fire and brimstone, the place of eternal punishment. (See Revelation 20:10-15, 21:8.) Hades is a temporary holding cell until the final judgment, and the lake of fire is the eternal abode of the damned. Make no mistake about it, those in Hades will receive their final judgment and be thrown into the lake of fire. Once in Hades, it's bye-bye for eternity. Eternity has no end, just like it has no beginning. It is a horror beyond all horrors. Nothing can be compared on earth, regardless of the tragedy, to eternity in the lake that burns with fire and brimstone. I hear people all the time talk about the hell they went through. Others say they are going through hell. It's NOTHING compared to eternal separation in the place of eternal torment. Waiting until you die and are in hell's flames and torment for eternity are not the place to try to get out of hell! It would be too late to get out! There is no redo! Once a person dies it is judgement time! (Hebrews 9:27) Let me say it again in a slightly different way. There is an immediate judgment for each person that dies, and they are ushered into heaven in God's presence, or they are incarcerated in Hades. Hades is not the end for them. Something worse is coming that is called the Second Death or the eternal lake of fire and brimstone. People will be finally judged for their lives upon the earth and the records will reveal what they did against God and show that they rejected God's gift in Jesus. The way to get out of going to a devil's hell is by repentance if you are backslid or if you have never received Jesus as Lord and Savior. It all begins with repentance. Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:38 NKJV) Repent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord. (Acts 3:19 NKJV) The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by hanging on a tree. Him God has exalted to His right hand to be Prince and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. (Acts 5:30, 31 NKJV) Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God, if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you. (Acts 8:22 NKJV) As a side note, this was addressed to Simon (Bar Jesus) who had already converted to the Lord. Acts 8:22 was addressed to a “born-again” and water-baptized Christian believer. Simon had allowed wickedness back into his heart and he needed to repent. Let's get it correctly in our thinking. Initial repentance of sin is a part of believing in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead and confessing Him as Lord (Romans 10:9). After that, if a Christian sins, we still have access to the eternal blood of Jesus to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. (See 1 John 1:7-10, 2:1, 2.) Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent. (Acts 17:30 NKJV) …But declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance. Acts 26:20 Yes, there is a heaven to gain by receiving what Jesus did for us through His sacrifice and by living for Him according to His Word and His moral guidelines. There is also a hell to shun. You do not want to perish and go there! God wants all people to repent so they don't perish! (2nd Peter 3:9, Luke 13:3, 5) Choose life (Jesus) so that you and your seed may live! Don't choose the curse, darkness, and eternal death brought on by rebellion to the Lord and His Word! (Deuteronomy 30:19,20; John 3:16) That is the ONLY way you get out of going to a devil's hell! Some may be thinking, “Oh but that is narrow thinking and way too exclusive. Don't you think that in God's mercy He provided many ways to get to Him?” Absolutely not! Jesus stated about Himself that He is the way, the truth, and the life, and that no one can come to God except through Him! (John 14:6) Read it and adjust your thinking to the truth. There are not hundreds of ways but ONLY one way to the Father, and His name is Jesus. Yes, it's a very narrow way. Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. 14 Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it. (Matthew 7:13, 14 NKJV) It is so narrow that few there are that find it when you compare the broad way of the world of sin and darkness. Sadly, most human beings on the planet will go to hell, but you can be very happy and full of joy with the good news I am sharing with you today. You can avoid hell and gain God and all He provided through Jesus. Then, you can tell others about it if you are still alive on this earth. That if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. (Romans 10:9, 10 NKJV) After you do that, then there are everyday matters to live the Christian life. You must become obedient to God's Word and His MORAL commandments in Scripture. Making Jesus your Lord means that you submit to His Word and obey His moral commandments. Too many miss that part about living in obedience to the Word. 7 Those who keep on doing good and are looking for His greatness and honor will receive life that lasts forever. 8 Those who love only themselves and do not obey the truth, but do what is wrong, will be punished by God. His anger will be on them. (Romans 2:7, 8 NLV) The same verses in another translation: He will give eternal life to those who keep on doing good, seeking after the glory and honor and immortality that God offers. But he will pour out his anger and wrath on those who live for themselves, who refuse to obey the truth and instead live lives of wickedness... NLT And one more for the road: …praise, honor, and immortality to those who continue in doing good and seek eternal life; but to those who are rebellious, and reject the truth, and follow iniquity, will come indignation and wrath… NMB That is not Paul's teaching on salvation by works, but it is teaching about good works (obedience to God's commandments) and doing what is right according to God's truth- His Word (not YOUR truth) AFTER you receive Jesus as your Lord. That is probably one of the most misunderstood New Testament teachings. No, you didn't receive Jesus via good works. We received God's gift in Christ as the sacrifice for our sins, but there is more to it than that concerning eternal life. We must lay hold of eternal life so that it doesn't get away from us. (1st Timothy 6:12) Here's the issue. You stay saved by doing what is right according to the covenant AFTER your first encounter with Jesus as Lord and Savior. You don't receive Jesus and then live like a sinner every day. That would nullify in your life your initial reception of His salvation. It is a devilish idea that if you practice sin as a Christian that grace will cover your sin and you will still go to heaven WITHOUT repentance. Practicing sin without repentance and cleansing from that sin by the blood of Jesus will keep a person from inheriting the kingdom of God. Now the deeds of the flesh are clear: sexual immorality, impurity, indecency, idolatry, witchcraft, hostility, strife, jealousy, rage, selfish ambition, dissension, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, just as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit God's kingdom. (Galatians 5:19-21 TLV) The New English Translation (NET) states the last sentence like this: “Those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God!” I found at least 12 other translations that use the word practice besides the NET, and some use the words indulge, continue, and live that way. That is the correct way that last sentence should be translated. If you have fallen for any of these things as a Christian, IF you repent, then you can still go to heaven or inherit the kingdom of God. These verses warn Christians that practicing or making a lifestyle out of any of these sins will cause a person to be left out of the kingdom of God. There will be no welcoming committee in heaven for the Christian that practices sin without repentance. Paul taught that, but it is not the only place he mentions that truth. Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived! The sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, passive homosexual partners, practicing homosexuals, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, the verbally abusive, and swindlers will not inherit the kingdom of God. (1st Corinthians 6:9-10 NET) I've heard the Biblically ignorant state, “That was speaking to the unrighteous, and in Christ Jesus I am righteous. So, that refers to the world and not to me.” Wrong! The context of these verses is Paul correcting Christians for defrauding fellow believers, and then it is followed by an exhortation commanding believers to flee from sexual immorality. The unrighteous in 1st Corinthians 6:9-10 is referring to the unrepentant Christian that has yielded to sin and continues to practice it. But if we confess our sins, he is faithful and righteous, forgiving us our sins and cleansing us from all unrighteousness. (1st John 1:9 NET) John is speaking to fellow believers and what to do if we sin. After we confess our sins to the Lord, He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all UNRIGHTOEUSNESS. Wait, but I thought that we were the righteousness of God in Christ! Why be cleansed from all UN-righteousness? It's really simple. The righteousness that a Christian has in Christ, that righteousness they received upon their salvation, is conditional and not automatic. Our right standing with God is always conditional. The Christian's position in that righteousness will be negatively impacted by unrighteous behavior, lawlessness, or sin. The person that sins must receive forgiveness and cleansing from that which is against righteousness. It is a dangerous place to remain in sin because it connects a person with the unrighteous. Paul warns that if a person stays there and continues to practice that sin, whatever it may be, they are going to be rejected from the kingdom (rule and reign) of God. That means that the practitioner of lawlessness (not subject and obedient to God's law or commandments of a moral nature) will hear the terrible words of rejection from the lips of the Lord in Matthew 7:23, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” In case you have any question about what practicing lawlessness means: Everyone who practices sin also practices lawlessness; indeed, sin is lawlessness. (1st John 3:4) Get straightened out with the following verses from any heretical mindset. It will work IF you will receive the Word of God on the subject. And because lawlessness (sin is lawlessness – 1st John 3:4) will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved. (Matthew 24:12, 13 NKJV) Only those that serve the Lord and obey His Word to the end will be saved. Note the condition. He who endures to the end shall be saved. Salvation is conditional. Enduring to the end means that when the end comes, you will not be practicing sin or lawlessness. That should be clear enough, but there are many more verses, so I will give you a few more. But Christ as a Son over His own house, whose house we are IF we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm to the end… For we have become partakers of Christ IF we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end… (Hebrews 3:6, 14 NKJV) We are His house IF (it's conditional) we hold fast to the end! Wishy-washy Christians that die in their sins are left out of this equation. The unrepentant Christian is left out. The other conditional statement in verse 14 about salvation is as clear as the first one in verse 6. We are partakers of Christ IF we hold fast the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end. In other words, and so that there are no mistakes in interpretation, it is not only how we began our life in Christ when we first believed, but it is how we wind up at the end of our lives (“to the end”). That is the moment of judgment, either to an eternal separation from God, or to an eternal bliss in the presence of the Lord. Again, note the conditional statements concerning our salvation.  Now, brothers and sisters, I want to remind you of the gospel I preached to you, which you received and on which you have taken your stand. By this gospel you are saved, IF you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. (1st Corinthians 15:1, 2 NIV) You are saved by the gospel only IF you hold firmly to that Word. If you don't, then your believing is in vain! I feel sorry for those that continue to espouse a damnable once-saved-always-saved heretical theology! Salvation in Christ is conditional! It always has been conditional and always will be. The next few verses will overturn the devilish thinking that that one can practice sin without responsibility or consequences. Let me set up the next verse by asking the question, “Is Jesus the author of eternal salvation for everybody?” …He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him. (Hebrews 5:9 NKJV) Nobody gets eternal salvation except those that obey Jesus! Here is another statement on the subject from the lips of Jesus: Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!' (Matthew 7:21-23 NKJV) You can't practice lawlessness and expect to hear, “Welcome to heaven and have a glorious eternity!” Be very cautious with these verses. They are no-nonsense. Even if you confessed His Lordship, and even had a part in supernatural ministry, but then reneged on your faith and practiced wickedness without repentance, you will hear the terrible words from the Master, “I never knew you; depart from me, you who practice lawlessness!” Do we see an immediate example of that in the Gospels? Yes, we see that happening to Judas Iscariot. He was sent and anointed by Jesus as an apostle, ministered supernaturally (Matthew 10:1-8), but he betrayed Jesus and was lost for eternity because he never repented and turned from his wickedness and committed suicide. (See Matthew 26:14-16; 27:3-5) Matthew 27:3 says that when Judas saw what he had done and realized he was condemned that he was remorseful for his sin. Being remorseful or feeling bad over your sin may be a part of repentance, but real repentance turns away from wickedness, turns back to God, and seeks His forgiveness and cleansing from it. I wrote that last part of the sentence in bold and italics to emphasize what real repentance does.  Look at the awful things king David did in the Bathsheba incident (Second Samuel chapters 11 and 12). He committed premeditated murder, theft, adultery, treachery, covetousness, lying, and probably a host of other sins. Talk about being guilty, David messed up in ways that many have never done, and yet he was forgiven and restored. See Psalms 51 for David's prayer of repentance and petitioning God for forgiveness and cleansing. It reminds us of 1 John 1:8-10! Most likely John had Psalms 51 in mind when writing 1 John 1:9. David's restoration and forgiveness were so complete that he married Bathsheba. God blessed the union because Bathsheba was the mother of king Solomon, the very blood line from where Messiah came! Wow! No matter what sins you committed, there can be complete and total forgiveness, cleansing, and restoration. David and Bathsheba are great examples of that truth. They are a demonstration of the great love, compassion, and grace of God! Now, compare that to king Saul and how he was confronted on a few occasions for his sins (ex. 1st Samuel 26). There was no real repentance. He only had remorse and the sorrow as the world feels when they do something wrong. He wound up visiting a medium (1st Samuel 28), never repenting of sins, and he died by falling on his own sword (1st Samuel 31).  Now I rejoice, not that you were made sorry, but that your sorrow led to repentance. For you were made sorry in a godly manner, that you might suffer loss from us in nothing. For godly sorrow produces repentance leading to salvation, not to be regretted; but the sorrow of the world produces death. (2nd Corinthians 7:9-10 NKJV) Feelings of sorrow like the world has only leads to death. That is what happened to Saul and Judas Iscariot. Godly sorrow that leads to a real repentance is what works. That is what David had! Here is an important instruction about those that truly know the Lord. Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. (1st John 2:3-5 NKJV) Keeping or obeying His commandments is at the center of knowing the Lord when you are a Christian. A Christian that lives in a consistent breaking or violation of God's commandments does not know the Lord. I am speaking about those commandments in Scripture that reveal living moral or righteous life before God. I am not referring to any commandment in Scripture exclusively given to Israel or commanded concerning the Levitical priesthood, Temple worship, animal sacrifice, feasts and festivals, and other ceremonial type commandments. Do you know what I am referring to? If you have not been taught about the clear distinction in the Bible between moral and ceremonial commandments, you must be taught it correctly. Here is my Scriptural contribution on this important subject. It's a free 62-page PDF document. Get it here: Did the Grace of God Cancel Biblical Commandments? Paul, when writing to the Corinthian church, stated it like this: Circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but obeying God's commandments is everything. (1st Corinthians 7:19 ISV) The true follower of Jesus is described in Revelation 14:12 (NET) in this way: This requires the steadfast endurance of the saints—those who obey God's commandments and hold to their faith in Jesus. There you also have the true definition of a “saint”. It's not one canonized by the Catholic church. A saint is the one that is steadfast and enduring in their obedience to God's commandments and holds to their faith in Jesus. No canonization is needed! Once you make up your mind to be a follower of Jesus for the rest of your life, the next thing is to be baptized in water as evidence of your glorious decision for the Lord. (Acts 2:38; 1st Peter 3:21 NET) Then, you MUST find a church that never closed their doors for the Covid tyrannical nonsense and refused to open the door to the spirit of antichrist. If possible, you should be a part of a church that NEVER caved to the Covid mess. (Hebrews 10:26) The only way I would ever go to a church that bowed their knee to the Covid mess would be IF the pastor publicly repents for yielding to the devil!  Here are my non-sanctioned advertisements for two churches in my immediate surroundings that I truly admire and love for their stand on the Word. In about 5 counties in Southwest Florida, only two churches (out of over 400) never closed, masked, gelled, social distanced, and have completely refused the death jabs (so called vaccines). You can watch these powerful ministries every week online. These are hero churches. All the rest that closed their doors are weak, cowardly, capitulating churches that you can learn NOTHING from them except caving to evil government demands. Unless they repent, avoid them like the plague because they will cave again! Don't be fooled because many are online speaking naturally without the power of the Holy Spirit. Many were closed for months and have reopened to find out that their congregations are a fraction of what they were. Get involved with powerful non-caving and non-compromising churches here: The River Church International https://www.revival.com/ https://www.youtube.com/user/rodneyhowardbrowne/videos Note: This church closed for 8 weeks at the very beginning of the Covid lockdowns in 2020, not because of fearing a 99.9% survivable disease, but because the pastor refused to cave to local authorities when ordered to close the church, and he was arrested. The lying news media smeared the pastor and the church mercilessly. The church phone lines, email, Facebook page, etc., received about 100 thousand death threats from crazed idiots. The church opened back up eight weeks later with a solid plan to protect its members from the demon-possessed crazies. The church began to grow exponentially, and it has not stopped! The Foundation Church https://www.foundationchurchfl.com/ The pastor of the foundation church has 2 Sunday services, and three Bible-based/facts-based/political podcasts weekly. You can get straightened out with the pastor's well documented programs: The Tom Laipply Podcasts. I watch them on Rumble, but you can also get them through his podcast website here: https://tomlaipply.com/ https://rumble.com/c/tomlaipply Other ways to connect: https://tv.gab.com/channel/tomlaipply/ We are at a very big crossroad in America. We must form our own parallel society, band together, and refuse to comply with the totalitarian and communist government mandates at every level. Christians and true conservatives (no RINO's need apply) that feel led to do so must run for local government offices and get elected. That is one powerful way to remove demon inspired nut jobs in government that believe its OK to murder the unborn in a mother's womb, believe in open borders, a weak military, vaccine mandates and masking, woke-ness, LGBTQ agendas, and have surrendered to totalitarianism and communism! It is time to rise in defense of America and to fight for our Constitution and Bill of Rights. Our constitutional republic has been sidelined under the Biden regime, and we must take it back! We must defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic! Leave all social, oligarchy-controlled, and demonic media TODAY! Get on Gab, Frank Speech, Rumble, and on other conservative social media. Stop listening to the lying communist news media (including all alphabet news media: ABC, NBC, MSNBC, CNN, CBS, etc.) and hook into many non-traditional and conservative news sources. Frankly, with the exception of Tucker Carlson and a few other true conservatives, FOX has also become unwatchable.  Get out of big, woke, ungodly mobile carriers like AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, etc. and get into Patriot Mobile which supports, according to their website, “First Amendment Religious Freedom and Freedom of Speech, Second Amendment Right to Bear Arms, Sanctity of Life and the needs of our Veterans and First Responders”. Quit buying from businesses that support the lying Biden regime, CDC, the garden gnome with family ties to Gollum-"Antonio Fauccino", CRT, Antifa, Liberal, Communist, BLM, and LBGTQ (etc.) agendas. Buy American and buy local as much as possible. Support your local farmers by buying their products. Don't give a single penny to those that hate Christians and conservative agendas and concerns. You may not be able to do all that overnight, but you can start right now and have much accomplished within the next few days! Don't be fooled by the liars in government, big pharma, the CDC, fake news MSM and take their death jab! Get well informed here: nojabforme.info! I used to give my own investigation and sources but this website has over 400 links to source material. No need to reinvent the wheel! Go to that website. When you see all the vaccine mandates and passports around the world, the restriction on travel, buying, selling, working, etc., does it not shake you up that we are seeing the very beginnings of a system of antichrist global control being pushed upon the world's population? 16 And he causes all, the small and the great, the rich and the poor, and the free and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hands or on their foreheads, 17 and he decrees that no one will be able to buy or to sell, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name. 18 Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for the number is that of a man; and his number is six hundred and sixty-six. (Revelation 13:16-18 NASB) I am not saying that it is the mark of the beast. I am saying that at least it is a preparation stage for the future mark to be revealed. If we take a stand against this tyranny, Satan will be exposed and have to back off the full global control through his mark preparation strategy. The so-called pandemic is really a planned global false medical emergency to control the masses and bring them under a globalist-elitist control and subservience. The good news is the world is beginning to resist very strongly and boldly, and Satan's plan is being restrained. It is not his time yet for global control. It was a test, and the world (including most Christians and churches) bowed to a lie, proving that the planet is almost ready for the antichrist and his mark. The church, with the power of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God, and the rest of the planet's population that refuses the tyranny being unleashed in the name of a false pandemic, are the earth's last line of defense. The Church by the power of God is standing in the way of Satan's antichrist agenda, unless we cave! (See 2nd Thessalonians 2:1-12 New International Version- NIV.) If we yield our ground to the enemy, it is all over for the world. The church can advance and take back territory lost by yielding to the enemy when they closed their doors in 2020 and 2021. If we stand as the Body of Christ, we can turn this globalist mess around and restore freedom around us. That is, UNTIL we are done with our mission on planet earth. Once the Lord says the mission is over, a great resurrection of the godly dead and a physical transformation of those alive will occur, and all the ones separated unto the Lord Jesus (saints) will be caught up to meet Him in the air and be with Him forever! (See 1st Thessalonians 4:16-18 NIV, 1st Corinthians 15:50-53.) By "our mission", I mean that we fulfill the words of Jesus in Mark 16:15-19, Matthew 28:18-20, and also in the following verses of Scripture. 12 And because lawlessness is increased, most people's love will become cold. 13 But the one who endures to the end is the one who will be saved. 14 This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come. (Matthew 24:12-14 NASB) Listen to the following podcast about the connection between faith and forgiveness taught by Jesus in Mark 11:22-26. Often, people have stuff in the way of receiving from the Lord, and unforgiveness is one BIG hindrance that must be removed for faith to work! Be mightily blessed with the teaching of God's Word!

Welcome back to Marvel Reread Club! Today we tackle a whopping seven issues: Amazing Spider-Man 2, Fantastic Four 14, Thor in Journey into Mystery 92, Sgt. Fury and His Howling Commandos 1, the Human Torch in Strange Tales 108, Iron Man in Tales of Suspense 41, and Ant-Man in Tales to Astonish 43. Alien radio repairmen! Hypno-fish! Making Viking movies for charity! Surprisingly ineffective machine guns! Unbreakable smoke rings! Car juggling! Momentarily non-luscious chicks!

Laid off, now what? --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/mistakenlyintroverted/message

Engulfed in fog, you find yourself covered in a viscous ooze shimmering in the pale light of the barley moon. Crawling towards a distant sound, howls of horror echo through the air until you come upon an old radio, crackling like a thousand footsteps on fallen leaves. For a moment, terror grips you...until you hear the familiar voices of your old maniacal guides through monster mythology: Albert and Ryan. Momentarily distracted, you are caught off guard by a terrible maw that consumes your head...pity. But there in the awful depths of alien viscera you can still make out the rumblings of a mountain-top creature that haunts the peaks of the Rocky Mountains and a nauseating witch-companion from the Westfjords of Iceland. All is well when your head's in a bell, you suppose. As for you other miscreations, come get goopy with the boys and learn all about the Slide-Rock Bolter and the abominable Tilberi in this eighth installment of Do Be A Monstaaah!

Brother Betrayal& Mariah's Black Irish Creme& Hot Dogs Kill?& Sonic's Grilled Cheese Burger& $50 Cereal& Sonic Wine Flavored Slush& Pledge to the Pride Flag& Overrated Tequila Cocktails& Bone Breaking Coaster& Shoot Your Shot... At Logan Paul --- This episode is sponsored by · Anchor: The easiest way to make a podcast. https://anchor.fm/app --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/somedampodcast/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/somedampodcast/support

Episode 6 of the Kick Ass w/Klaas Podcast is the Audio Blog version today! Momentarily taking a break from live banter so we can walk you through one of the most recent posts from the Kick Ass Blog, 'Your Ego Needs 4 Mentors'. Sit back and relax as we reminisce on the mentors that shaped us, the good, the bad and the subtle. We'll also challenge you with some homework as you assess the mentors in your life and in doing so, may provoke thought on your influence over others. To read the blog, visit: https://moreklaas.com/blog-1/f/your-ego-needs-4-mentors --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/moreklaas/message Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/moreklaas/support

Bethpage at end. Momentarily

Both this Eastern Towhee and the Spotted Towhee of the West sport a black or dark brown hood and back. And when they fly, their tails flash white. When a hawk gives chase, the towhee's flashing tail-feathers draw the predator's attention. Momentarily distracted, the hawk may come up with just a couple of tail feathers — as the towhee escapes into the underbrush. So if you see a towhee missing a couple of tail feathers, it may be that the flash of white — the distractive plumage — saved its life. Learn more at BirdNote.org.

On June 29, the second day of the counteroffensive, an OV-10 flown by Air Force Capt. Steven L. Bennett had been working through the afternoon in the area south and east of Quang Tri City. Bennett, 26, was born in Texas but grew up in Lafayette, La. He was commissioned via ROTC in 1968 at the University of Southwestern Louisiana. After pilot training, he had flown B-52s as a copilot at Fairchild AFB, Wash. He also had pulled five months of temporary duty in B-52s at U Tapao in Thailand. After that, he volunteered for a combat tour in OV-10s and had arrived at Da Nang in April 1972. Bennett's partner in the backseat of the OV-10 on June 29 was Capt. Michael B. Brown, a Marine Corps airborne artillery observer and also a Texan. Brown, a company commander stationed in Hawaii, had volunteered for a 90-day tour in Vietnam spotting for naval gunners from the backseat of an OV-10. Air Force FACs were not trained in directing the fire of naval guns. The two had flown together several times before on artillery adjustment missions. They had separate call signs. Bennett's was “Covey 87.” Brown was “Wolfman 45.” They took off from Da Nang at about 3 p.m. During the time they were airborne, Brown had been directing fire from the destroyer USS R.B. Anderson and the cruiser USS Newport News, which were about a mile offshore in the Tonkin Gulf. Bennett and Brown had also worked two close air support strikes by Navy fighters. It was almost time to return to base, but their relief was late taking off from Da Nang, so Bennett and Brown stayed a little longer. The area in which they were flying that afternoon had been fought over many times before. French military forces, who took heavy casualties here in the 1950s, called the stretch of Route 1 between Quang Tri and Hue the “Street Without Joy.” US airmen called it “SAM-7 Alley.” SA-7s were thick on the ground there, and they had taken a deadly toll on low-flying airplanes. The SA-7 could be carried by one man. It was similar to the US Redeye. It was fired from the shoulder like a bazooka, and its warhead homed on any source of heat, such as an aircraft engine. Pilots could outrun or outmaneuver the SA-7—if they saw it in time. At low altitudes, that was seldom possible. “Before the SA-7, the FACs mostly flew at 1,500 to 4,500 feet,” said William J. Begert, who, in 1972, was a captain and an O-2 pilot at Da Nang. “After the SA-7, it was 9,500 feet minimum. You could sneak an O-2 down to 6,500, but not an OV-10, because the bigger engines on OV-10 generated more heat.” The FACs sometimes carried flares on their wings and could fire them as decoys when they saw a SA-7 launch. “The problem was reaction time,” Begert said. “You seldom got the flare off before the missile had passed.” About 6 p.m., Bennett and Brown got an emergency call from “Harmony X-ray,” a US Marine Corps ground artillery spotter with a platoon of South Vietnamese marines a few miles east of Quang Tri City. The platoon consisted of about two dozen troops. They were at the fork of a creek, with several hundred North Vietnamese Army regulars advancing toward them. The NVA force was supported by big 130 mm guns, firing from 12 miles to the north at Dong Ha, as well as by smaller artillery closer by. Without help, the South Vietnamese marines would soon be overrun. Bennett called for tactical air support, but no fighters were available. The guns from Anderson and Newport News were not a solution, either. “The ships were about a mile offshore, and the friendlies were between the bad guys and the ships,” Brown said. “Naval gunfire shoots flat, and it has a long spread on impact. There was about a 50-50 chance they'd hit the friendlies.” Bennett decided to attack with the OV-10's four 7.62 mm guns. That meant he would have to descend from a relatively safe altitude and put his aircraft within range of SA-7s and small-arms fire. Because of the risk, Bennett was required to call for permission first. He did and got approval to go ahead. Apart from its employment as a FAC aircraft, the OV-10 was rated for a light ground attack role. Its machine guns were loaded with 500 rounds each. The guns were mounted in the aircraft's sponsons, stubby wings that stuck out like a seal's flippers from the lower fuselage. Bennett put the OV-10 into a power dive. The NVA force had been gathering in the trees along the creek bank. As Bennett roared by, the fire from his guns scattered the enemy concentration. After four strafing passes, the NVA began to retreat, leaving many dead and wounded behind. The OV-10 had taken a few hits in the fuselage from small-arms fire but nothing serious. Bennett decided to continue the attack to keep the NVA from regrouping and to allow the South Vietnamese to move to a more tenable position. Bennett swept along the creek for a fifth time and pulled out to the northeast. He was at 2,000 feet, banking to turn left, when the SA-7 hit from behind. Neither Bennett nor Brown saw it. The missile hit the left engine and exploded. The aircraft reeled from the impact. Shrapnel tore holes in the canopy. Much of the left engine was gone. The left landing gear was hanging down like a lame leg, and they were afire. Bennett needed to jettison the reserve fuel tank and the remaining smoke rockets as soon as he could, but there were South Vietnamese troops everywhere below. He headed for the Tonkin Gulf, hoping to get there and drop the stores before the fire reached the fuel. As they went, Brown radioed their Mayday to declare the emergency. Over the Gulf, Bennett safely dropped the fuel tank and rocket pods. The OV-10 was still flyable on one engine, although it could not gain altitude. They turned south, flying at 600 feet. Unless Bennett could reach a friendly airfield for an emergency landing, he and Brown would have to either eject or ditch the airplane in the Gulf of Tonkin. Every OV-10 pilot knew the danger of ditching. The aircraft had superb visibility because of the “greenhouse”-style expanses of plexiglass canopy in front and on the sides, but that came at the cost of structural strength. It was common knowledge, often discussed in the squadron, that no pilot had ever survived an OV-10 ditching. The cockpit always broke up on impact. Another OV-10 pilot, escorting Bennett's aircraft, warned him to eject as the wing was in danger of exploding. They began preparations to eject. As they did, Brown looked over his shoulder at the spot where his parachute should have been. “What I saw was a hole, about a foot square, from the rocket blast and bits of my parachute shredded up and down the cargo bay,” Brown said. “I told Steve I couldn't jump.” Bennett would not eject alone. That would have left Brown in an airplane without a pilot. Besides, the backseater had to eject first. If not, he would be burned severely by the rocket motors on the pilot's ejection seat as it went out. Momentarily, there was hope. The fire subsided. Da Nang—the nearest runway that could be foamed down—was only 25 minutes away and they had the fuel to get there. Then, just north of Hue, the fire fanned up again and started to spread. The aircraft was dangerously close to exploding. They couldn't make it to Da Nang. Bennett couldn't eject without killing Brown. That left only one choice: to crash-land in the sea. Bennett faced a decision, Lt. Col. Gabriel A. Kardong, 20th TASS commander, later wrote in recommending Bennett for the Medal of Honor. “He knew that if he saved his own life by ejecting from his aircraft, Captain Brown would face certain death,” said Kardong. “On the other hand, he realized that if he ditched the aircraft, his odds for survival were slim, due to the characteristics of the aircraft, but Captain Brown could survive. Captain Bennett made the decision to ditch and thereby made the ultimate sacrifice.” He decided to ditch about a mile off a strip of sand called “Wunder Beach.” Upon touchdown, the dangling landing gear dug in hard. “When the aircraft struck water, the damaged and extended left landing gear caused the aircraft to swerve left and flip wing over wing and come to rest in a nose down and inverted position, almost totally submerged,” Brown said in a statement attached to the Medal of Honor recommendation. “After a struggle with my harnesses, I managed to escape to the surface where I took a few deep breaths of air and attempted to dive below the surface in search of the pilot who had not surfaced. Exhaustion and ingestion of fuel and water prevented me from descending below water more than a few feet. I was shortly rescued by an orbiting naval helicopter and taken to the USS Tripoli for treatment.” Of Bennett, Brown said, “His personal disregard for his own life surely saved mine when he elected not to eject … and save himself in order that I might survive.” Bennett's body was recovered the next day. The front cockpit had broken up on impact with the water, and it had been impossible for him to get out. He was taken home to Lafayette, where he is buried. North Vietnam's Easter Offensive, battered by airpower, stalled. The South Vietnamese retook Quang Tri City on Sept. 16, 1972. The invasion having failed, Giap was forced to withdraw on all three fronts. It was a costly excursion for North Vietnam, with 100,000 or more of its troops killed and at least half of its tanks and large-caliber artillery pieces having been lost. The Medal of Honor was awarded posthumously to Steven L. Bennett on Aug. 8, 1974. It was presented in Washington to his wife, Linda, and their daughter Angela, two-and-a- half years old, by Vice President Gerald R. Ford in the name of Congress. (Ford made the presentation because President Nixon announced his resignation that day. Ford was sworn in as President the next day, Aug. 9, 1974.) The citation accompanying the Medal of Honor recognized “Captain Bennett's unparalleled concern for his companion, extraordinary heroism, and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty, at the cost of his life.” Since then, there have been other honors. Navy Sealift Command named a ship MV Steven L. Bennett. Palestine, Tex., where Bennett was born, dedicated the city athletic center to him. Among other facilities named for or dedicated to Bennett were the ROTC building at the University of Southwestern Louisiana, the gymnasium at Kelly AFB, Tex., and a cafeteria at Webb AFB, Tex. From Wiki.org: Steven Logan Bennett (April 22, 1946 – June 29, 1972) of Palestine, Texas was a United States Air Force pilot who posthumously received the Medal of Honor for heroism during the Vietnam War on August 8, 1974 Prior to entering the U.S. Air Force, Steven Bennett attended the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now University of Louisiana at Lafayette) in Lafayette, Louisiana; he graduated with a degree in Aerospace Engineering. He was in ROTC and received his private pilot's license in 1965. He entered the Air Force in August 1968, and earned his pilot wings at Webb AFB, Texas in 1969. In 1970, he completed B-52 bomber training course at Castle AFB, CA. He was stationed at Fairchild AFB, Washington. He flew B-52s out of Thailand for almost a year. He then transitioned to become a Forward Air Controller (FAC), and graduated from the FAC and fighter training courses at Cannon AFB, New Mexico, before reporting to Da Nang, Vietnam in April 1972. He had only been in combat for three months before his Medal of Honor mission and had also won the Air Medal with three oak leaf clusters. He was also awarded the Purple Heart and the Cheny Award. His call-sign at DaNang was Covey 87. Bennett had recently turned 26 when he was killed. Captain Bennett was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor. Vice President Gerald Ford presented the decoration to Captain Bennett's wife, Linda, and daughter, Angela, at the Blair House on August 8, 1974. Bennett is buried in Lafayette Memorial Cemetery at Lafayette, Louisiana. He was survived by his wife and one child. He had two brothers, David and Miles, and three sisters, Kathe, Lynne and Ardra. His mother, Edith Alice Logan Bennett, preceded him in death and his father, Elwin Bennett, died many years later in 2006. His daughter now lives near Dallas, TX with her husband, Paul, and two children, Jake and Elizabeth. His wife, Linda Leveque Bennett Wells, died on July 11, 2011. Bennett's observer, Mike Brown, and was reunited with Bennett's wife and daughter in 1988. They have since remained close and together have attended numerous dedications in Bennett's honor throughout the United States. Angela is a lifetime member of the OV-10 Association located at Meacham Air Field in Fort Worth, Texas. They have acquired an OV-10 and painted the names of both Bennett and Mike Brown on the side in memory of their last flight together. Angela was named by her father, who chose Angela Noelle, as in Christmas Angel; she was born near Christmas. He is the namesake of the ship MV Capt. Steven L. Bennett (T-AK-4296) and his name is engraved on the Vietnam Memorial at Panel 01W - Row 051. There have been numerous other dedications done in his honor. They range from streets being named after him to buildings, including a gymnasium and a cafeteria, a sports arena and VFW posts, and many monuments. He has been mentioned in several military history books. Medal of Honor citation The President of the United States takes pride in presenting the MEDAL OF HONOR posthumously to CAPTAIN STEVEN L. BENNETT UNITED STATES AIR FORCE 20th Tactical Air Support Squadron, Pacific Air Forces. Place and date of action: Quang Tri, Republic of Vietnam, June 29, 1972. For service as set forth in the following Citation: Capt. Bennett was the pilot of a light aircraft flying an artillery adjustment mission along a heavily defended segment of route structure. A large concentration of enemy troops was massing for an attack on a friendly unit. Capt. Bennett requested tactical air support but was advised that none was available. He also requested artillery support but this too was denied due to the close proximity of friendly troops to the target. Capt. Bennett was determined to aid the endangered unit and elected to strafe the hostile positions. After 4 such passes, the enemy force began to retreat. Capt. Bennett continued the attack, but, as he completed his fifth strafing pass, his aircraft was struck by a surface-to-air missile, which severely damaged the left engine and the left main landing gear. As fire spread in the left engine, Capt. Bennett realized that recovery at a friendly airfield was impossible. He instructed his observer to prepare for an ejection, but was informed by the observer that his parachute had been shredded by the force of the impacting missile. Although Capt. Bennett had a good parachute, he knew that if he ejected, the observer would have no chance of survival. With complete disregard for his own life, Capt. Bennett elected to ditch the aircraft into the Gulf of Tonkin, even though he realized that a pilot of this type aircraft had never survived a ditching. The ensuing impact upon the water caused the aircraft to cartwheel and severely damaged the front cockpit, making escape for Capt. Bennett impossible. The observer successfully made his way out of the aircraft and was rescued. Capt. Bennett's unparalleled concern for his companion, extraordinary heroism and intrepidity above and beyond the call of duty, at the cost of his life, were in keeping with the highest traditions of the military service and reflect great credit upon himself and the U.S. Air Force.

https://rabbiefremgoldberg.org/chukas-momentarily-lapse-of-faith Tue, 15 Jun 2021 10:02:36 +0000 5633 Rabbi Efrem Goldberg Parsha Perspectives - Podcast

Michael T. Flynn does something highly objectionable that undermines the U.S. government, in which he served. And then when pressed on it, he claims it's just a big misunderstanding, despite all evidence to the contrary. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Trigger warning for the topic of suicide, mental illness, and sexual assault. Charlie is not your textbook bookworm shy guy who gets stuffed deeper into lockers than breadcrumbs in a turkey, he actually has friends (who, you know, repeatedly emotionally manipulate and use him)! This week, it's the (nonexistent) Perks of Being a Wallflower! Listen as we discuss everything from how literally 90% of human interaction is painful to the wondrous world of early 2000s homophobia. Yeah, this one was rough. We're here to tell you it's okay to cry before, during, and after watching this movie, we did too.

If one of the things you do is create campaigns on Social Media platforms, my recent experience may resonate with you. Keep this in mind! Manage your projects on https://snowpal.com!  

I recorded this week's episode on April 21, the day Derek Chauvin was found guilty on 3 charges for murdering George Floyd in May 2020. ‘I can't breathe' is the infamous phrase that so many black people have used when arrested and have tragically died as a result of deliberate force by law enforcement.  Momentarily, afro Americans can 'breathe' but systemic racism in America is undoubtedly rampant.In this episode, I explore what institutionalised means and how ‘being institutionalised' has affected my life and others. Like what you've heard? Subscribe, Share, Rate n Review   https://podcasts.apple.com/podcast/id1555710319If you love my life but not so keen about yours, see how I can nurture your soulGet up close & personal: https://www.instagram.com/nubianteena/‘My Life Not Yours' Facebook group: www.facebook.com/groups/870315620501695/Programmes I make reference to in my podcast14 Days in May - https://youtu.be/zWk9fDyXtoQThe Kalief Browder Story – NetflixWhen they see us – NetflixCrown Heights – Amazon  

Lena and the Humanoid get up and face one another; depression, self, and suffering; #Annihilation minute 100.★ Support this podcast on Patreon ★

A new MP3 sermon from Peeples Valley Baptist Church is now available on SermonAudio with the following details: Title: Momentarily Forsaken Speaker: Pastor Darrell Bailey Broadcaster: Peeples Valley Baptist Church Event: Sunday - AM Date: 10/7/2007 Bible: Isaiah 54:7-8 Length: 26 min.

Thanks to everyone who supports TMBH at patreon.com/thetmbhpodcast You're the reason we can all do this together! Discuss the episode here Music written and performed by Jeff Foote.

Trying to keep the goals we put ourselves can sometimes be hard, but when you are realistic about what really matters to you it can be a life-changer. Don’t forget to be truthful with yourself and accomplish what really matters and makes you truly happy.Support the show (https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCNeZ0dcWyNRVfdqGLSbyOwQ?view_as=subscriber)

Does Momentarily mean “for a moment” or “in a moment”?  Is “bi-weekly” twice a week, or every two weeks? If millimeter is 1/1000, Centimeter is 1/100 and meter is 1… why did we skip the 10s place?  Is it because Decimeter 1/10 is also the word for 10 meters? Language is weird.  Communication is often backwards.  We use words all sorts of whacky. This week Jeff and Kirk tackle odd lexical gaps and words without a set understanding. Should be fun, no?

We hope you enjoyed today's episode. To learn more about the teachings of Abraham Hicks and purchase full audio go to: https://www.abraham-hicks.com/ Check out our collection of free offerings at: https://www.solgood.org/ All Abraham-Hicks audio materials are copyrighted by Esther Hicks and we are sharing these following the USE OF COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL GUIDELINES: https://www.youtube.com/user/AbrahamHicks/about --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/abrahamhicks2020/support

We hope you enjoyed today's episode. To learn more about the teachings of Abraham Hicks and purchase full audio go to: https://www.abraham-hicks.com/ Check out our collection of free offerings at: https://www.solgood.org/ All Abraham-Hicks audio materials are copyrighted by Esther Hicks and we are sharing these following the USE OF COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL GUIDELINES: https://www.youtube.com/user/AbrahamHicks/about --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/thevortex/support

We have all been there! That moment when you know where you are (you think) but actually you are not where you need to be.   Listen as I compare my trail run to life. How I was on the right path, then not, close to being home, then not. How is as distracted then not.   But how if you never quit you will always win   P.S I got home and I did see the buffalo   

We hope you enjoyed today's episode. To learn more about the teachings of Abraham Hicks and purchase full audio go to: https://www.abraham-hicks.com/ Check out our collection of free offerings at: https://www.solgood.org/ All Abraham-Hicks audio materials are copyrighted by Esther Hicks and we are sharing these following the USE OF COPYRIGHTED MATERIAL GUIDELINES: https://www.youtube.com/user/AbrahamHicks/about --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/abrahamhicks/support

Rooftop Gang! Just wanted to drop a little update for y’all! Stay tuned for what’s to come *birdman hand rub*

Some of us sought out sordid places, hoping to find understanding companionship and approval. Momentarily we did—then would come oblivion and the awful awakening to face the hideous Four Horsemen—Terror, Bewilderment, Frustration, Despair. Unhappy drinkers who read this page will understand. ~Alcoholics Anonymous, 4th Edition, A Vision For You, Page 151~

Can we just end the season now please? Palace put in an awful display at Aston Villa to hand them their first win since January 2-0 and make it five defeats on the bounce as the 19/20 season ends with a whimper. JD, Kevin and James are joined by The Athletic's Dom Fifield to discuss that game, Sahko's shoulder, Grealish's dive and Hodgson future. 

First we join General Jan Smuts who has been waiting in Cape Town for the British to lay on a a train to take him inland where he will join the Boer political and military leaders at Vereeniging for a conference starting on May 15th. They gathered in order to discuss the British terms of surrender. Smuts was mostly silent while he waited with his brother in law Krige and Deneys Reitz our narrator. They were placed aboard the warship HMS Monarch in Simonstown. Just to set the record straight, I said last week this was an Orion class battleship but of course it was just a normal warship as her namesake was only launched in 1910. My apologies, but a quick description about both is in order. The Monarch was placed as Guardship in Simonstown port in 1900. This was one of the older vessels in Britain's navy having been launched in 1868. It was also a symbolic vessel for Smuts, Reitz and Krige to find themselves. The design has been neither modern nor old. Built in the 1860s when sail was giving way to steam, wooden hulls were being replaced by iron, smoothbore artillery firing round-shot had been overtaken by rifled shell-firing cannon, heavy armour was being mounted on the sides. Mounted gun turrets were being mooted by the Navy top brass as well, but others more conservative opposed the upgrade. So she was a compromise and therefore pleased no-one. When it was built the Navy said steam engines were still not reliable enough so HMS Monarch was fitted with both engine, sails and even a forecastle. That prohibited the gun turrets from being able to fire forward – so in all intents and purposes she remained a man-o-war like the old wooden battleships of the 18th Century. After her renaming in 1902 as the HMS Simoon, the Royal Navy launched its new Orion Class dreadnoughts and the more modern HMS Monarch appeared in 1910. AS an aside, Monarch fought in the Battle of Jutland in 1916 and her shells damaged the German Dreadnought, SMS Koenig. Back in Simonstown Deneys Reitz, his general and the General's brother in law waited for their train. They were hurried through the suburbs of Cape Town in the dead of night so that no-one would catch sight of the famous General Smuts, then switched trains at the main line at Salt River. The next day they awoke in Matjesfontein in the Karoo. It's also time to rejoin Boer Spy Johanna van Warmelo one more time. She asked and was given permission to visit Irene concentration Camp outside Pretoria. If you remember she had worked there as a nurse months before, when women and children were dying at a rate of up to a dozen a day. At the end of April 1902 Johanna was finally allowed to visit Irene and dreaded what was awaiting her there.

08-15-10 - Micah Hill - Momentarily Distracted by the Irrelevant

Is there a more repugnant business than Wilson Parking?I mean, how do they get away with it?Their pricing is daylight robbery and their carparks are policed so ferociously you have to wonder whether the attendants are on either brilliant commissions or under threats of death if they don’t ticket as many people as possible.I went into one yesterday, I try to avoid them at all costs, but I was in a hurry. I didn't have the extra 20 minutes it would’ve taken me driving around trying to find one on the street, given finding a park in Auckland these days is like trying to find a needle in a haystack.So into the Wilson carpark I begrudgingly went.I found a park, parked, and hopped out of my car to go find the ticket machine and queue up to pay for my parking.It was one of those ones that issues you a physical ticket, not the new fancy high tech ones which just take your licence plate and don’t require paper. This one required an actual ticket to display.So there was a small queue at the machine with people obviously doing the same thing as me, punching in their details, paying their money and waiting for the machine to spit out the little piece of paper for the dashboard.No sooner had I clicked the remote to lock my car and joined the queue at the machine, I glance back to see a parking attendant descending on my vehicle staring at the empty dashboard and getting out her camera.Momentarily panicking as to whether I leave the queue and run back, or stay in the queue and just shout out across the carpark, I chose to forgo all sense of self respect and do the latter.“Excuse me!" I yelled from the queue at the machine, "I’ve literally just parked, I’m here waiting to get a ticket, give me a second!”The attendant stopped and looked over to me, “OK then,” she said, “I’ll wait.”Really? She’ll wait? Like is she doing me a favour?Should I be grateful that I am not being towed between pulling up the handbrake and walking to the machine to actually get the parking ticket?The man in front of me was equally frazzled, given the queue and the slowness of the machine. “This happens to me all the time,“ he told me, “They’ve taken the joy out of shopping. Shopping used to be a fun treat, now it’s like running a gauntlet, it’s depressing.”He’s right.It‘s hard enough for bricks and mortar retailers to get foot traffic in the door these days, let alone the fact all the street parks have been swept away for bus and cycle lanes. Shoppers are forced to use expensive, stressful, tightly patrolled carparks and zoom in and out to do their errands, juggle the parking machine (and often small children in tow) and pray for no tickets.It’s a wonder anybody can shop at all.It was a good reminder of why I never park in a Wilson carpark if I can help it.

2019-12-22-1030 Pastor Loran Livingston is the speaker this morning, December 22, 2019 in the 10:30 AM service. Scripture: Matthew 2:1-20; Numbers 24; Genesis 49 Notes: - God does mot tell us to do anything on our own. - He never asks you to do what is easy but He never tells you to do something He doesn’t help you with. - God always blesses a sacrifice. - It is not a sacrifice to God if it is not a sacrifice to you. - Momentarily your sacrifice will cost you but eternally it will bless you. - Sometimes God will tell you to flee. - Do what He says. - Your time is in God’s hands. - Where are you right now?

2019-12-22-0830 Pastor Loran Livingston is the speaker this morning, December 22, 2019 in the 8:30 AM service. Scripture: Matthew 2:1-20; Numbers 24; Genesis 49 Notes: - God does mot tell us to do anything on our own. - He never asks you to do what is easy but He never tells you to do something He doesn’t help you with. - God always blesses a sacrifice. - It is not a sacrifice to God if it is not a sacrifice to you. - Momentarily your sacrifice will cost you but eternally it will bless you. - Sometimes God will tell you to flee. - Do what He says. - Your time is in God’s hands. - Where are you right now?

This old friend reappears in your life only to disappear again...why?

Tom, if you read these, I want you to count how many times in this episode Josh says that they'll come back to something, and how many of those actually get revisited. Look, here's how it is, things have been happening, but they're dumb and they make no sense, and if everything's dumb and makes no sense, then what's the USP of this podcast? There's a Brexit deal yeah, but don't get too attached, it is, no surprise, dumb, and it makes no sense. Follow us on Twitter: @PissParadePod Follow Sheila Fogarty on Twitter (this charming seeming lady who made £800 online on August 6th 2011, and wants to tell you how, not the LBC presenter) on Twitter: @rhugh38 Music from filmmusic.io: "Intractable" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) Licence: CC BY (creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Ira Israel shares his thoughts on inspiration for a better life.   Episode 1358: You Will Die Momentarily by Ira Israel on Inspiration for A Better Life & Gratitude & Gratefulness   Since 2011, Ira Israel has been working in private practice as a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC #31) and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT #50646), teaching sold-out transformational workshops, producing a series of best-selling mindfulness DVDs, and writing about psychology, philosophy, Buddhism, yoga, film, art, music & literature for the Huffington Post, Good Men Project, Mind Body Green, Thrive Global, Medium and Quora.   The original post is located here:    and in  and ! See how Joybird is revolutionizing online furniture shopping.  Go to and receive an exclusive offer for 25% off your first order by using the code OLD.

Ira Israel shares his thoughts on inspiration for a better life.  Episode 1358: You Will Die Momentarily by Ira Israel on Inspiration for A Better Life & Gratitude & Gratefulness Since 2011, Ira Israel has been working in private practice as a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC #31) and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT #50646), teaching sold-out transformational workshops, producing a series of best-selling mindfulness DVDs, and writing about psychology, philosophy, Buddhism, yoga, film, art, music & literature for the Huffington Post, Good Men Project, Mind Body Green, Thrive Global, Medium and Quora.  The original post is located here: https://iraisrael.com/you-will-die-momentarily/ Visit Me Online at OLDPodcast.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ira Israel shares his thoughts on inspiration for a better life.  Episode 1358: You Will Die Momentarily by Ira Israel on Inspiration for A Better Life & Gratitude & Gratefulness Since 2011, Ira Israel has been working in private practice as a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC #31) and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT #50646), teaching sold-out transformational workshops, producing a series of best-selling mindfulness DVDs, and writing about psychology, philosophy, Buddhism, yoga, film, art, music & literature for the Huffington Post, Good Men Project, Mind Body Green, Thrive Global, Medium and Quora.  The original post is located here: https://iraisrael.com/you-will-die-momentarily/ Visit Me Online at OLDPodcast.com Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Ira Israel shares his thoughts on inspiration for a better life. Episode 1358: You Will Die Momentarily by Ira Israel on Inspiration for A Better Life & Gratitude & Gratefulness Since 2011, Ira Israel has been working in private practice as a Licensed Professional Clinical Counselor (LPCC #31) and Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist (LMFT #50646), teaching sold-out transformational workshops, producing a series of best-selling mindfulness DVDs, and writing about psychology, philosophy, Buddhism, yoga, film, art, music & literature for the Huffington Post, Good Men Project, Mind Body Green, Thrive Global, Medium and Quora. The original post is located here: https://iraisrael.com/you-will-die-momentarily/ Please Rate & Review the Show! Visit Me Online at OLDPodcast.com and in The O.L.D. Facebook Group and Join the Ol' Family to get your Free Gifts! See how Joybird is revolutionizing online furniture shopping. Go to joybird.com/OLD and receive an exclusive offer for 25% off your first order by using the code OLD. --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/optimal-living-daily/support

‘So which half do I get first?’ ‘Who says you get any half?’ ‘I say, babyboy. You’ve got my little noggin in-between your legs, don’t you? I get whatever I please. Don’t play like I’m not in complete control.’ ‘Fine. Which do you prefer, real life or dreams?’ ‘Remind me again, what exactly is the difference?’ ‘Well, as far as I see things, real life is whatever we dream it to be. Most bodies have forgotten dreams. Most realities are being run on another’s version, spinning webs, making us all weave one giant sticky thing. All we do now is catch each other, suck the blood out; suck each other dry. All we do now is survive.’ ‘The half of the stupid chicken story that’s already been told, is it a survival story?’ ‘Totally.’ ‘Lets start with that then. I prefer my endings sad. I prefer it when reality lets me see a living that suffers. I ache to dance joyfully in the pain, but I refuse to look away.’   ‘Look at me!’ I scream. I grab her little face between both my palms and stick it right in front of mine. Our noses are touching. Her breath reeks of the blood spilling out of me, inching down my thighs. I stay inside and bleed free. I sit on white towels and meditate my own indecision. Deciding again and again, I cannot bring another child into this world. But the baby in your dreams, who is she? Not now. Not here. I won’t play unless it’s my own creation I will decide and decide again and again and again. I will never give up this ache to prove myself wrong. This longing that pulls my guts closer to every bit of flesh around me, to see another’s truth so vividly that it becomes my own. Momentarily. I take what I can hold. The rest I have to let go. Then I have to go. ‘Don’t go!’ she screams. ‘I haven’t sucked you dry yet. When my tongue runs the length of your inner thigh, you cannot stop pouring yourself out for me. Is this how you beg when I’ve stolen every word? You taste so sweet it’s sickening! The blood evens it out in mixing. Bleeding is a reminder. Memory is alive. Death lets every ounce of blood go. Stay, my love. Die with me.’  Her words are warm, but I can’t pull a bit of sense from them. Staring into her baby blue eyes, I start weeping. ‘What do you see, when you put away every screen on the planet and look this close at every living thing instead; people’s faces. What do you see when you stop stuffing yourself with silicone and cotton and let yourself bleed all over your favorite rug, your neighbors bed, your best friends toes, your lovers face.’ ‘I see your story.’ ‘I haven’t even started it yet.’ ‘Words aren’t necessary, weightless and completely and utterly useless mostly. The soul speaks with the motion of the home it sits in. The spirit yearns to break the boundaries, the separation; skin drives me fucking crazy! I want to rip you open and feel everything.’ ‘But then I’d die.’ “Yes. Then you’d die. Then we’d find each other again. Then I’d take another blade to you abdomen, then I’d stick my fist in and grab hold of what’s real, what’s mine, leave the rest behind. This world we live in, it’s no place for a girl like you. I stay. I want to run away with you! Your flesh and bones keep running and screaming, ‘stay away!’ You’re bleeding. You’re alone. You’re scared. You miss the love of your life, children running free, the mate to your soul. You remember her forgetting everything every single day. You remember forgetting. You won’t want to die. You spend the whole time dreading it. I spend the whole time jumping the notion of clocks ticking. Shh. I’m trying to think. I’m trying to sink into life, dying is necessary. Death is the most beautiful part in the way that we dance between the stars. You’ve got this mortality thing all wrong.’ ‘Maybe. But if you kill me now, you’ll never know what happens to the boy in the woods.’ ‘Don’t be stupid. I’m not chicken. I’ll write the rest right now if I like.’ ‘Ha! You’re cute, but you’re not that cute kid. You and I both know; I haven’t dreamt that yet. You and I know this all must start with a bunch of rushed texts from behind the bar.’ ‘Your memory is shit pony boy. I was already tucked in when I told you that story. I cut it off with a goodnight, remember? We slept apart. The next morning I shit first thing, just like I planned. The next morning you woke up and I was gone. Tough shit. Stories go on and on and on and love is flesh that sticks together. Cup the breasts of your lover with both hands and never let go! Scream into their tender thighs until they get up to walk away. Then get down on both knees and weep like a bratty baby, beg them to remember. Kick and spit and remember your shit on their sheets, walk barefoot and bleed onto the streets, do whatever it takes to force the whole fucking world to remember love. We’ve all bloody forgotten a need for the thing. Our memories jumped into a tiny screen and left us all behind to rot and die. Cry, little baby, it’s the only medicine there is.’ ‘Have a little decency crybaby, will you please. Mind your P’s and Q’s.’   

What is awareness? It is an intrinsic ability of our consciousness to know, and it can be expressed through our senses like our vision and hearing. If there is no awareness, there is no experience. Every night when you are in deep sleep, where are all your thoughts, emotions, joys, worries, plans, desires, ambitions? They all cease to exist for you. Momentarily, the whole world does not exist for you. You are not even aware of yourself, whether YOU exist or not? As soon as the awareness is back, you are back, the world is back with all its realities and illusions. Awareness is the fabric of it all! In this meditation session, I talk about 4 levels of human ability to modify awareness. We will start with observing our breath and slowly become more aware of the energy of the breathing process. And as we feel inner peace arising, we move on... Format: Wisdom Talk (20 min) & Guided Meditation (30 min) Listen & Meditate,  Dhyanse More on www.dhyanse.com

All notes, audio and links for this podcast are provided in the blog page below:https://yourfavoriteblockhead.com/2019/05/26/episode-93-joe-cool-plays-henry-clay-momentarily/

When it comes to finances and love, true romance comes in the boring conversations about budgeting, savings, beneficiaries, estate planning and more. In this conversation -- originally broadcast in 2018 -- Matt Harris of HighTower Global Investment Solutions, Peter Lang of HighTower Westchester, and Jake Falcon of Falcon Wealth Advisors discuss the efforts couples need to make to cover the important financial issues they face and to share information that will help the function better both individually and as a unit.

In episode 59 you'll hear the fascinating tale of Justin Ellis. Justin started pushing a broom in his father's yard at 14 and took to the business immediately. Less than two years later he was awarded his driver's license—and promptly began earning new business as an outside sales rep. Working alongside his father throughout high school and college, Justin helped grow the 2-location business and eventually became President. Then, his father informed him, the business was being sold to a competitor. Momentarily sent reeling, Justin regained his balance and teamed with a colleague to acquire an unwanted piece of his family business to launch Elco Building Supply. Wise beyond his Millennial years, Justin shares his journey and the lessons learned that drive his business today. Enjoy my conversation with co-founder and CEO of Elco Building Supply in Roswell, New Mexico, Mr. Justin Ellis. Thanks for listening.

Ben was on his own this week slinging a few topics, including the state or lack thereof of officiating in the NFL and possible fixes, Green Bay/McCarthy and Rodgers, the XFL, the Seahawks, Eagles and Steelers updates, week 14 picks and of course, the betting corner. The co-hosts were sorely missed and we're sure you'll feel the same. We love those of you who like the show! Please share the podcast with folks you think would also like it, on Twitter, at the mall, at the park, at soccer practice with the kids, during dinner parties, and wherever you encounter other humans. We appreciate the support, one and all!Follow us at @GoalThirst on Twitter and @thirstand on Instagram. You can subscribe or simply visit our website at thirstandgoal.buzzsprout.com.To send us a question or a comment, email: podcastthirstandgoal@gmail.com. Please don’t hesitate to contact us.

How to let go; a life that is free? Poetic dribble escaping the wasteland. An Antarctic, archaic soul. Just trying resent in peace. Momentarily believing. Wondered into moment's lease. Off goes the race! Soon stripped away. Bitterness, once more. Falling short with shortened breath. Burnt sky, through with me? Withering with no distraction or discretion. […]

The 2 David's have one more episode this month to wrap up Halloween and your questions.

Ethan and Matt settle down for a nice, long, epic journey across Middle-Earth and ask the really important questions like, why can't the fellowship do their job and protect Frodo? And why isn't Sauron invisible? And that sky prison Gandalf gets imprisoned in? If that's the top of the tower, that's a ridiculously narrow place to do wizard business. Next week on the AFI: Intolerance (1916) Momentarily on Patreon: Armageddon (1998) --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/spoilerscast/message

For over 50 years, the late theologian Herbert W. Armstrong preached about the only way to bring about lasting peace. But his ministry wasn’t all talk. He restored peace to God’s Church, and, by supporting a peace pact between two nations, he momentarily restored peace to the world. Follow along as Grant Turgeon summarizes Philadelphia Church of God Pastor General Gerald Flurry’s booklet The Way of Peace Restored Momentarily.

Improvisational Piano

Premier Kathleen Wynne has briefly prorogued legislature and says that a throne speech on Monday will detail her government's priorities before the election. Guest - Henry Jacek. Professor of Political Science, McMaster University

Momentarily.... Here's the last AHS special. Enjoy!Next AHS special hopefully coming in October.   Music by Englewood

The atmosphere of the ship changes, both literally and metaphorically -- and Dr. Mason's life monitors suggest a chilling possibility. Support this podcast

The atmosphere of the ship changes, both literally and metaphorically -- and Dr. Mason's life monitors suggest a chilling possibility. Support this podcast

Available on amazon.com August 2016 Featuring: Chad Wiginton - Keyboards Dan Rosati - Tenor Saxophone Rob Glass - Electric Bass Didier Carter - Drums & Cymbal

Kia and Melissa have opposing opinions on Rick's paranoia of bringing in new people: Kia is Team Rick, Melissa is Team T-Dog. Speaking of T-Dog, he had more than 3 lines in this episode, so it should be no surprise that he shuffled off his mortal coil. Way to be subtle, The Walking Dead. But we're burying the lead, which is: LORI IS DEAD! Woo hoo! But the way she went out was heartbreaking, so, unfortunately, we got the sad feels for her. Momentarily. We got over it. Got feedback for us? We wanna hear it! Email us at twodeadchicks@gmail.com   Subscribe to get the newest episodes: Apple | Stitcher | Google Play | wherever you get your podcasts   Support: Rate and review us on Apple Podcasts! Recommend or favorite us using Overcast, Pocket Casts or the podcast app of your choice! Tell your friends! Tweet/post using our hashtag: #TDCPod   Socials: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | Snapchat   Special thanks to Eden Burning for providing our music, “Glitter Girl.” Check them out at Reverb Nation

Phil has returned from vacation but is leaving again in just a couple days.  He and Brendo discuss Phil's upcoming backpack trip, college orientation, dorm pranks, the most comfortable couch ever, Phil's family vacation in NorCal, urban exploring in old theme parks, tour buses, Disney Infinity, Comic-Con plans, and lots more.  Thanks for listening!

Phil has returned from vacation but is leaving again in just a couple days.  He and Brendo discuss Phil’s upcoming backpack trip, college orientation, dorm pranks, the most comfortable couch ever, Phil’s family vacation in NorCal, urban exploring in old theme parks, tour buses, Disney Infinity, Comic-Con plans, and lots more.  Thanks for listening!

We’re back in the saddle again! Momentarily escaping from the clutches of that Non-Anime Life, the Anibros have watched Bubblegum Crisis and recorded… The post Anibros Podcast Episode 98 – I Only Started Watching This Because of This Parasite in My Brain appeared first on ANIBROS ☆ CREATIVE.

Momentarily sweary. Shirt discussed is the one depicted.

Momentarily sweary. Shirt discussed is the one pictured.