#((oh absolutely not; his boss would not at all be sympathetic to his plight! like minnie i feel like wilhelm's boss tolerates him at best))

[theheadlessgroom]

https://beatingheart-bride.tumblr.com/post/633114078773182464/theheadlessgroom-beatingheart-bride

@beatingheart-bride

Offering Wilhelm a wry smile, June got to her feet, leaving the lovers to cling to one another as they continued their pleas as she calmly said to her husband, “Wil, would you be a dear and fix us a pot of tea? I think it’ll be a little more calming than coffee in this situation.”

“W-Well, yes, b-but what’s going on? What’s wrong?” he blinked his big blue eyes at her worriedly, glancing back at his son and his daughter-in-law-to-be, heart breaking as he watched the tears stream down the pairs faces as they held each other comfortingly. June touched his face, bringing his gaze back to her as she soothed, “I’ll explain in a little bit-just start up the hot water for now, please?”

Wilhelm, although still deeply concerned, went to the kitchen to set down the boxes and do as he was told, returning in a few scant minutes with a pot of tea and some mugs, which were set down on the coffee table as June encouraged the young lovers to take a few deep breaths and drink some tea, to dry their eyes and take a moment to gather their thoughts. Randall, realizing they weren’t going to be punished (at least, not right now), nervously took the mug in one hand as he held Emily’s hand in the other, saying softly, “I’m really sorry, Ma, I really am, i-it’s just...”

“I know, I know,” June soothed, taking her own mug as she encouraged, “Start from the beginning. Tell us the truth, everything, and I promise, we will understand.”

#((oh absolutely not; his boss would not at all be sympathetic to his plight! like minnie i feel like wilhelm's boss tolerates him at best)) #((he does good work and doesn't complain about the pay but he certainly much care for him beyond that)) #((and so if wilhelm explained that he was trying to comfort his upset future daughter-in-law it wouldn't get him very far with his boss!)) #((and true june is taking it all pretty well! she hasn't raised her voice or gotten angry at randall or emily; instead she's keeping calm)) #((knowing that yelling at them or getting upset won't help-she knows how to keep her cool even in a highly-emotional scene like this!)) #((yes she's a little frustrated but she knows they'll eventually settle down and they'll be able to carry on a proper conversation)) #((and they can resolve everything peacefully!)) #((we absolutely stan a loving and supportive mother figure!)) #outofhatboxes #beatingheart-bride #V:New Orleansian Holiday

[five-rivers]

Management

For @phandom-phriend

.

“I want to see your manager,” declared Karen.

The employees’ laughter cut off instantly. Ha. Served them right. These giggling teens didn’t know anything about her, didn’t know what her day had been like. Didn’t know what it was like to be her, with three screaming brats at home and only three days of vacation time.

This stop was supposed to be short. It was supposed to be a rest stop. A place to refuel and pick up her supplements. A ten-minute detour on the way to her spa retreat in the countryside.

But as soon as she’d driven into this town everything had gone wrong. Immediately. It was like the place was cursed. Nowhere more than this garbage hole mini mart. This mini mart which was both too large to easily transverse and too limited in selection.

“Ma’am,” said one of the teens, a girl with an incredibly unprofessional haircut and dye job. Not to mention her piercings. “You really don’t want us to do that.” She licked her lips and some of her cheap black lipstick came off.

Didn’t this store have any kind of dress code? Any kind of professional standard?

“You either get me your manager, or you get me what I asked for.” Drawing a line in the sand was the only way to get things done. The only way to keep people from walking all over you.

The teens exchanged nervous looks.

“Ma’am,” said the other, a boy. “We would, but we’re out.”

“Then you shouldn’t have advertised them,” said Karen, venomously.

“That was last week,” he protested. “It was a sale to make room for new products. We don’t—”

“Unless you’re treating me the way customers should be treated, I don’t want to hear it,” snapped Karen.

The teens exchanged a glance. “Fine,” said the girl. “I’ll get him.”

Karen huffed and crossed her arms, satisfied. About time.

She let her eyes rake over the dismal little store while she waited for the girl to come back. God, it was disgusting in here. She’d be glad to be back on her way.

Three employees, if she could call them that, in this tiny store and it still managed to get this bad. Not to mention the rest of this pothole-ridden town.

If her car didn’t have new tires by the time she got back, oh, there would be hell to pay.

The overhead lights flickered.

The girl jogged back. “He’s coming,” she said.

“Is he too busy to come with you?” asked Karen. Of all the inconsiderate things…

“He has health issues,” said the girl. The lights strobed again, the darkness lasting longer.

“Do you not pay your power bills or something?” asked Karen, annoyed. The flickering was giving her a headache.

“Look,” said the boy, “when your town’s been through as much as ours has, then you can complain.”

“Excuseme? Is that how you talk to a paying customer?”

“You haven’t paid for anything yet, lady—”

“You little—”

“Excuse me. Are you harassing my employees?”

Karen jumped. The young man had, somehow, managed to appear behind the teens while the lights were out. As the lights blinked again, he loomed above her and—

No. He was shorter than she was. About the same height as the teens, in fact. A trick of the light? Whatever. It didn’t matter.

What mattered was getting something to make up for the time she was wasting here. Honestly. This stupid town owed her.

Not that these children would be sympathetic to her plight. No, if life had taught her anything, it was that she had to fight for what she deserved.

So, she presented her case to the manager—And if he knew what was good for this place, he’d let her win. She could and would write an absolutely scathing review and she was in half a dozen Facebook groups that would support her in writing them, no questions asked. There was this one woman on the opposite coast who was practically a genius when it came to reviews.

“Are you listening?” she snapped halfway through, when the manager had failed to respond at all. Usually, by this point they’d tried some kind of spineless, stuttering appeasement.

“Yes,” he said, without any emotional inflection. “Please continue.”

Karen shivered. “Your AC is on too high, too.”

“This is how I like it,” said the manager, voice still flat. “This is how our customers like it.”

“What customers?” sneered Karen. “I’m the only one who’s been here for the past half an hour.”

The manager shrugged. “You should get your prescription checked.”

The lights flickered. The other two employees were gone, nowhere in sight. When had they left? Had they edged out of sight while she was discussing their abysmal performance with the manager.

“You should leave.”

“Excuse me?”

“You should leave. Ma’am.”

“You can’t be serious.”

“Dead serious. You’re upsetting our customers. Also, I have real work to do.”

“You don’t have any customers.”

For a long moment, the manager simply stared at her. Then he grinned, the expression not reaching his eyes at all. His teeth… bothered Karen. It wasn’t that they weren’t clean… maybe they were too clean?

She felt herself taking a step back, sweat prickling the back of her neck.

“We don’t have any customers that you can see.”

The lights went out, this time for long enough for Karen’s eyes to adjust. Over a dozen pairs of glowing eyes stared back at her.

She jumped, and the first split second of a scream made it past her lips before she realized the prank being played on her. She scowled.

“I’ll be bringing you and your unprofessional conduct to the attention of your superiors, I’ll have you know,” she said.

“Good luck with that,” growled the manager, looking down at her. “I own this place.”

Growled. Looking down at her.

His eyes burned neon green, brighter and more real than any sticker or glowstick Karen had ever seen.

“Let me spell this out to you, Karen,” rumbled the thing in front of her. “You are not welcome here.”

She ran.

.

“That was kind of mean, Danny,” said Tucker, tone entirely judgement-free.

Danny, who was telekinetically reshelving the stuff the woman, a particularly annoying and non-perceptive out-of-towner, had knocked down in her haste to get away, shrugged. “She probably didn’t even pick up the details,” he said, sadly, shaking his head. “Some of my best work, gone unappreciated.”

“I think she appreciated it all right,” said Tucker, an edge of glee creeping into his voice. “Did you see how fast she ran?”

“Yep,” said Danny, inhaling deeply and drinking in the last lingering dregs of the woman’s fear. “Y’know, I think her name might have actually been Karen, considering her reaction.”

“Oof, that almost makes me feel bad.”

“Eh,” said Danny, shrugging. He stood on his tip toes to get a few extra inches over the shelves. “Hey, Sam, you good on the register?”

Sam shot him a thumbs up, not even looking away from the blob-like ghost she was currently ringing up. Danny dropped back to his heels.

“Okay, then, if you’re both good out here,” he said. “I’m going to go finish that negotiation for the ectoplasm cookies.”

“Good luck,” said Tucker.

“And if someone is like that again, call me right away, okay?”

“Got it, boss.”

“Gross. Don’t call me boss.”

“Boss. Boss man. Chief. Mr. Manager. Head honcho.”

“Okay, that’s worse. Seriously. You and Sam are on the deed, too.”

“Ah, but you’re the one our ghostly suppliers will negotiate with. Better get back to that, by the way.”

Danny sighed. “I’m promoting you.” He walked away.

“You- No, you can’t do that! Danny! Wait! You can’t promote me! Danny!”

#danny phantom #phic phight #phic phight 2021

[getseriouser]

20 THOUGHTS: Anti anti-social behaviour behaviour

WOW that escalated quickly 

A Carlton muppet gives an umpire some constructive criticism and next minute the crowds are in uproar like they’re hostages within their own leisure.

I can sort of see both sides on this one, firstly AFL has actually been copping the Soccer’s fair share of negative press for crowd violence and misbehaviour, subsequently security firms have adjusted strategy. But if Joffa claims he won’t go to the footy, on a bye weekend, then it must be serious.

Oh yeah, and the footy onfield’s not bad either, in case anyone still cared about that.

 1.       A little bit of nanny state, a little bit of overreaction. Melbourne has been a nanny state for years, only a matter of time before it crept into football. And that’s the blame of authorities, the AFL is a client, an influential client, but they aren’t dictating to security firms how they do their job. Go tell a bouncer after midnight how to man the door and see how he takes that.

2.       But also, and to defend Gil on one point and one point only, this extra security has been around for a while, not just last week. You’ve never really taken notice of the wrinkles on your thumb knuckle before, but I betcha you just did and will again on and off for the rest of the day. We never notice security at games before but now its all we’re looking at because of the uproar. Don’t be fooled. It’s not right, but its not new.

3.       But Gerard Healy was right Monday night, Gil needs to be better. Calls for his resignation from minimum wage heroes in the suburbs need to realise the job’s a bit more complex than just reading the Brownlow votes out in September. But he isn’t so busy today’s press conference could not have been earlier, more so the concession it might be something ‘to look in to’, without the need to accept fault, could have come a lot earlier. Basic PR mistakes there, that’s all... Carry on.

4.       My main issue with Gil though is one not being spoken about, buried by the sexy headline of crowd non-issues: gambling. We all know far too many who have suffered to the plight of problem-betting, and right now the AFL has an amazing opportunity for a landmark moment.

 The official gambling partnership rights are up, BetEasy have been paying $10m a year for those, and for the AFL to say that at the end of this contract no such futher partnership would be pursued, akin to clubs too moving away from gambling revenue, would be quite something.

 But no. The AFL says a new deal is imperative as it helps them monitor integrity. Given Jaidyn Stephenson’s issue that’s breaking today I can see that point sorta, but don’t put your hand out for a eight-figure cheque for the assistance. Poor, poor, poor.

5.       And on the big issues, like serious issues, how many more players need to step away from the game for ‘legitimate’ mental health issues before we look into doing far more proactively. Lin Jong is just the latest of an increasing amount who are taking time out such is their predicament – it’s really unsettling.

6.       So Benny Stratton went the pinch. Well we don’t have capital punishment anymore but sure, on this occasion we need to make an exception, clearly? Please, its pinching, not the Kyoto agreement. Either pay the free kick early and he stops, or if Orazio swats him one in retaliation, then retaliation is an excuse and what happens on the field stays on the field. If Stratton gets weeks tonight for that because we’ve started noticing it, when he has done it for years, that’s ridiculous. Simple. Pay the free, or let players settle grown men issues out as grown men. Next.

7.       Jon Ralph. What Kent Brockman would look like if human, brunette and with far less credibility. Hawks vice-skipper and all round likeable jet Isaac Smith answered the delicate Stratton-pinching issue with line and length answers, so old Ralphy called Smith out for showing embarrassing leadership. I won’t whack Jon too much on this, clearly a bad day, realised once again his smile looks more like one’s pose mid-flatulence. Please Jon, we don’t ask for much.

8.       Quick one on the cricket – why hold a summer sport World Cup, like cricket, in a shit country where its Winter all year round. Instead of Finch and Warner opening our innings next game we’d be better off with Michael Klim and Daniel Kowalski. How’s Murray Rose going, is he still with us, and can he bat 3? Bloody hell England, sort your bloody rain out, its making me itch.

9.       Thursday night footy – we cop it what, half the year when you take into account the opening game of the season, Easter, then this mid-year crap when the byes happen. But given that it’s rating like an absolute beauty, and as long as broadcast revenue is by far the most important dollar the code seeks, I’d expect every round, as soon as next year, to have Thursday night football. Don’t say I didn’t warn you early.

10.   Ross Lyon, geez quick to whack the Boss when he took the early rebuild call so soon after their maiden Grand Final appearance, along with the four-year extension. Ross can’t rebuild, they said. Ross is going down a hole fast, they said. Well, this is the third of those four years and the Dockers are going beautifully. Good kids, nice new team, good team and look on for finals this year and the trajectory is only up from there. We await the apologies.

11.   Jesse Hogan, whilst we are talking purple, gee if he can get going that’s at least one winning final this year for the Dockers. Has genuine match winning attributes, and for a while he was either too young, too injured, or just playing for a team ‘too Melbourne’. Now, bit of fitness, bit of touch, playing away from a club charged for tanking, and look out. Hogan wins a Coleman for Freo one day, promise you.

12.   Essendon, nice, not pretty on Friday night but nice. Seventh best % after 12 rounds suggest you’re going ok. They’ve got two tough ones next in West Coast and GWS, but until the Pies in the last round have five bankable wins in between, and that’s just one short of a guaranteed finals spot. Should do it, their % is almost half a win in itself.

13.   Speaking of the Giants, I know Geelong deserves nothing else but strong favouritism for the flag, but the orange tsunami would need to somehow catch small pox to not win a preliminary final this year minimum. Nine games left, one which is a home game to Collingwood, everything else is there’s to lose Only other games against current top 8 teams are Brisbane in Sydney and Richmond in Melbourne. Will finish top 2, two home finals, boom, Geelong, Collingwood, last day in September, good luck.

14.   Rhycey Shaw moves to 2-1, but that first loss wasn’t a disgrace, the Giants are as good as there is so his stocks don’t take too much of a hit. Five of the last nine games for North are winnable, so if he can somehow muster a 7-5 record by the end of August he is a massive chance, ‘godfather offer’ to Horse Longmire to one side (got no read on that either way). However, Shaw goes 5-7, then thanks for warming the seat, do you happen to have Michael Voss’s number, he isn’t in our teledex?..

15.   Tim Kelly wanted to leave Geelong last year, for reasons totally away from football. So unless something gives, that will happen again you’d think in four-months’ time. Last year he was a very good footballer and the Cats wanted two first rounders, the Eagles couldn’t do it and Freo weren’t allowed in the conversation. This year, he’s got a top 10 Brownlow finish coming, might even snatch the medal itself at this rate, and could be part of a Premiership winning midfield. Remember the Chris Judd trade, well that’s the kind of value the Eagles and Dockers will need to find. Remarkable.

16.   Eddie Betts – the greatest small forward, of all time? Surely. Only short blokes who have kicked more are Leigh Matthews and Kevin Bartlett, one is the greatest player of all time, the other played a million games, but both are rovers first. So yep, Eddie, the GOAT.

17.   Dale Morris is back this week, what a legend. Did his ACL in March, he is the wrong side of 36 years old and looks odds on for some sort of game time this weekend. What a star.

18.   Lets whack Tom Lynch again coz we can, but this time, the contract. That’s seven years at a million per. In two years’ time when he is 28 he’ll be as cumbersome as your fat uncle passed out on the couch late Christmas Day, good luck getting any value out of him, good luck moving him. Just saying.

19.   Tassie team. Done some digging. So. AFL – keen. Local logistics off field and all of that – looks fine. It’s the league logistics that will struggle. The AFL is handcuffed to the straight jacket that is the Gold Coast, and to a lesser extent the GWS (who are looking far more on track than the Suns to be fair). So even though it’d be great to pack up shop and move the Suns down to Hobart, not going to happen, they are pot committed no matter how bad the hand.

 19 teams? Doesn’t make any more money, the broadcaster doesn’t get any extra games to sell advertising so it’s a wasted resource. So you go 20 teams? That’s the preference, but where else do you go to for team 20, we want Tassie but not because the league’s currently too small, and even then, do we have another 11% of good players not playing AFL out there to fill out two more lists? Probably not.

 So, all up, Tassie is ticking all the boxes it can, but making it fit into a league that accommodates it, that’s the struggle, and it’s a very big one at that.

20.   Lastly, how can I not, but State of Origin in Perth on Sunday. Watch it. Enjoy it. But have some comfort food on hand and a sympathetic ear once you realise how good representative footy looks at that ground, and this is a neutral game. Imagine if that crowd Sunday was there for a WA team. Exactly.