#Nose WTTS
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Welcome to the show
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It's tax day in the US! Spend your refund on books! Or if you're like me and most other indie creators, and you have to pay additional taxes through the nose, I put them on sale just for you.
Both Welcome to the Show and Stars Still Fall are 1.99 at most major retailers through the end of the week!
(or if you REALLY had to pay through the nose, go to payhip.com/juleskelleybooks, and enter QUEERFAM at checkout. I think. Or QUEERJOY. One of them is your whole cart one is just WTTS. Try 'em both until you get the result you want haha.)
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Arguably Teen Titans itself jumped the shark with Titans Hunt. There actually are a lot of potential good storylines from about the time we first meet Danny on to the end of this run, but DC never goes anywhere with any of them unless forced to.
yeah the whole thing took a nose dive with that. my tag for that era is wtt (worst teen titans or wolfmans teen titans, take ur pick :P)
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“And now I know how Joan of Arc felt // Now I know how Joan of Arc felt // As the flames rose to her roman nose // And her Walkman started to melt.” . Had so much fun doing this The Smiths tribute on Emily, thank you so much for this session ! Done @sangbleutattoolondon . . 🇬🇧 Space in April and May in London. . . . #btattooing #blackworkers #blacktattooart #onlythedarkest #tattrx #TAOT #WTT #tattoodo #QTTR #london #tttism #londontattoo #tattoo #sbldnttt #vgnink #lehegarattattoo #queerbodmodcompass #qbmcartist #postpunk #thesmiths (at Sang Bleu Tattoo London) https://www.instagram.com/p/Bv6uWfKJdK5/?utm_source=ig_tumblr_share&igshid=11cyv1434p1na
#btattooing#blackworkers#blacktattooart#onlythedarkest#tattrx#taot#wtt#tattoodo#qttr#london#tttism#londontattoo#tattoo#sbldnttt#vgnink#lehegarattattoo#queerbodmodcompass#qbmcartist#postpunk#thesmiths
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WTT Writing Contest Winner!
(drum roll please)
This month’s writing contest winner is: @2bistheanswertothequestion for their piece All That Matters! You can read All That Matters below. Congratulations to @2bistheanswertothequestion; your piece was amazing and a joy to read. we here at WTT are proud that you chose to submit to us.
All That Matters
I think, although I can’t be sure, that it all began the day Tyler Ford knocked my cell phone off my desk. It left a huge crack, dividing the screen into three even parts. My mom heaved a deep sigh when I showed it to her later that night. With a hand pressed to her wrinkled forehead, she’d asked if I could make do with a broken phone for a few more months. I assured her I could – after all, the phone itself still worked. Also, it was kind of my fault for breaking it, I told her, not breathing a word about Tyler’s involvement. I don’t know why I didn’t. Maybe because I knew there was no point. It wasn’t like he’d reimburse me. His smirk and not at all regretful “oops” as he glanced back at me before moving on with his friends made that clear. So, rather than cause mom anger over other people’s bad parenting, I left her blissfully unaware of it all.
I wasn’t wise enough to do the same with Vicki and Azhar, though. Azhar saw the crack the day afterwards and I let the truth slip without thinking about what consequences it could bring. Which was hell-worthy fury from the both of them. Vicki wanted to settle the score by breaking his nose, while Azhar suggested a much more “elegant” plan that included falsified answer keys, a loaf of bread, and pulling the fire alarm. Vicki then had an even better idea that involved recruiting Azhar’s sugar daddy (her words, not mine) and his college friends to help us break a lot more than Tyler’s nose. That left Azhar spluttering about “how it wasn’t like that!” They hadn’t even gone past 2nd base yet (!); A four-year age difference really wasn’t that much (!!); Hammond was about as broke, if not more, as us so he couldn’t throw money at him even if he wanted to (!!!).
I didn’t hear Vicki’s retort, since my attention had been grabbed by a muted clicking emanating from my back pocket. Fishing out my cell, I stared at it as the clicking continued. It was odd, to say the least. None of my current ringtones were anywhere close to a clicking sound. Maybe someone had called me without the phone going off and when I didn’t answer they decided to exact their revenge by… being confusing? No, that didn’t make sense. Especially not after I powered it on and it showed no new calls. Yet when I put the receiver to my ear, the clicking was still there.
That was the point I interrupted Vicki and Azhar’s squabble, which had progressed into Vicki dousing Azhar in words that would’ve been considered slurs had anyone else said them, and Azhar attempting to smother Vicki with her own hair.
Brows furrowed with bewilderment as they held the cell between them. After asking the same questions I asked and running through the same theories, Azhar declared it to be broken, plain and simple. Vicki shrugged her agreement, her interest in the whole thing waning. I forced myself to concur as well. After all, it was the logical conclusion.
Still, in the depths of my gut, I knew it wasn’t right.
——————————
The ground is cold and damp against my cheek. Around me, the darkness drips, as if water is trickling down the walls. I take my time to sit up. Nothing hurts apart from my head – a low, throbbing, nauseating pain. Many slows breaths helps to dull it, after which I look up and around. It’s almost completely dark, the only light a few white rays leaking in from a barred-up window. The minimal light shows me that the room I’m in is small and run-down. The walls are water damaged, the wallpaper coming off in several places, the floor is missing planks here and there, and the roof is leaking. It’s also empty, except for the dead phone lying by my hand.
I pick it up, studies it, tries to power it up, but to no avail. I curse under my breath while pushing myself to my feet. There’s no point to stay put, after all.
The staircase creak beneath me, threatening to give up and letting me fall through. It never actually does, though, and I arrive on the first floor unscathed. It’s as dilapidated as the upper one, with not only a ton humidity hanging in the air, but also massive heaps of trippable junk hidden in the murkiness. I curse some more as I navigate my way outside. It isn’t until the fresh air hit my face and the moonlight reveals the landscape that the gravity of it all dawns on me.
To my right are miles and miles of dark buildings, all of them in ruins. To the left is a forest of barren trees, sharply outlined and alien in appearance. Everything is wet. The buildings, the plants, the air, the ground. It pools around my feet, soaking the edges of my jeans.
What is this? Where is this? How did I get here?
How will I get home?
A chill runs down my spine, runs through my everything. It’s as if my body absorbs the cold surrounding me. I begin to shake. My lungs work like a machine, but I still become dizzy, getting no oxygen. The air… it’s too wet – I feel like I’m drowning every time I breathe in. I gulp, I gasp, but nothing works. Losing feeling in my legs, I stumble backwards as the world spins and my vision blurs.
“You’re not supposed to be here, are you?”
The voice – emerging from nowhere – causes me to yelp in surprise. Spinning around, I come eye to eye with a… scarecrow. Made out of metal, a dusty bronze that nevertheless shines in the moonlight. He hangs in one of the trees, from the folds of its knees, and watches me upside down. My words get stuck in my throat a dozen times before I manage to force them out.
“I… I… N-no. No, I, I’m not.”
The scarecrow nods, folding his arms before its chest. “You’re going the wrong way.”
“H-how do you know where I’m going?”
The scarecrow shrugs. “I don’t. But I know that way ain’t right.”
“Then what way should I go?”
The scarecrow lets down his arms, releases his grip on the branch, and somersaults down. After dusting himself off, he turns to me, head cocked to the side as he studies me. His face is a sleek plate, with two round holes for eyes and a crescent shaped one for a permanent grin.
“I don’t know,” he says. “Where do you want to go?”
“I… I want to go home.”
The scarecrow scoffs. “Then why did you come here?” he begins to walk around me in circles.
“I didn’t mean to!” My tone heats up with my temper. “I don’t even know how I got here!” I dig my hand into my pocket to pull out the phone. “Look, I… My, my phone-”
“You came here through your phone?” The scarecrow sounds incredulous. He stops behind me.
“No! I-”
Two spindly hands wrapping around my arms cut my sentence short. The scarecrow spins me around, away from the trees and towards the buildings. Leaning down to rest his chin on my shoulder, he extends one arm to a peak rising on the horizon.
“If you want to leave, you should go…” He trails off, thin finger pointing.
I squint. The peak is a hill, or a mountain, and on the mountain is a…
“That tower?”
“No one who goes there ever comes back.” The scarecrow’s voice becomes low, rasping. “Figure they leave for somewhere far away.”
It doesn’t sound promising at all. Unhanding me, the scarecrow walks back into the forest.
“Y-you’re not coming with me?”
“No.” The scarecrow halts to cast a brief glance at me from over his shoulder. “I have things to do. And I don’t like you very much.”
A rock lands in my stomach. My vision blurs yet again, the world begins to twist and twirl before my eyes. The scarecrow continues, raising a languid hand to wave at me as he walks away.
“Good luck,” he says right before the darkness swallows him.
——————————
Day two after The Crackening was a long and tired one. The clicking had gotten louder during the night, keeping me up until the early hours. It was the pure exhaustion that finally made me crash at 5am. 10 hours later a dull, steady pain was pressing against both my forehead and the back of my eyes. By the end of the day, the school’s patented smell of fish and glue was the only thing keeping me awake. My pitiful state got a few semi-sympathetic chuckles from Vicki and Azhar. They spent a few minutes betting among themselves the reason I couldn’t stop yawning (Azhar thought I’d been reading while Vicki probably not very seriously guessed porn). As much as it broke my heart, I had to tell them “no”. Azhar found the increased clicking fascinating. I probably would have too, if I hadn’t been so damn tired. However, when I retrieved the phone from the bottom of my bag to show them it wasn’t clicking anymore, but whooshing.
It was low, almost noiseless. So faint you had to strain your ears to hear it. It was better than the clicking – and worse.
Now, everyone’s curiosity seemed to have piqued. Vicki began probing, wanting to know whether I’d done anything that could’ve prompted the change; Azhar fell quiet, staring at the ground with a crease between his eyes. He let out a drawn-out hum as he tapped his chin. Vicki and I stared at him in anticipation, awaiting his verdict. Several minutes of contemplation passed. Then he looked up, shrugged, and admitted he had no idea what the cause could be. Vicki threw her arms into the air, exclaiming a frustrated “Come on!” Azhar laughed, right as an old, blue Mercedes drove into the parking lot. Face, nay, whole being lighting up, Azhar more or less skipped over to the vehicle whilst shouting a breezy goodbye past his shoulder. Vicki, hands cupped around her mouth, informed him he was a damn dirty traitor before grabbing my wrist and pulling me the other direction.
We stopped by her house, just two blocks from the school, to drop off her bag and pick up her dog, Terra. (Short for “Terrarium”. Yeah, I don’t know either.) Or, I say dog. She’s more like 20% wolf, 40% bear, 30% buffalo, and 10% shark, which is the only way to explain those teeth. Seriously, her canines are about as long as my pinky and twice as thick. She’s terrifying even if she’s likes you.
The plan was the usual one – stop by the bodega around the corner for snacks before continuing to my house, going through the park so Terra would have the opportunity to roll in the grass and scare other unsuspecting lifeforms. Not that Terra is never not scaring people. That particular day, for example, she sent two older ladies hurrying off while Vicki was tying her to a pole outside the store. It made Vicki scoff – Terra wouldn’t hurt you unless you gave her reason to! I have my doubts about that claim, but whatever. The bodega itself is pretty nice, but I only shop there when Vicki is with me due to one of the daytime cashiers. There’s nothing wrong with him, it’s just that his eyes are too blue and his intonation is always filled with acid. Like he’s mocking you no matter what you say or do. That stops whenever Vicki is around, though. Then he won’t look up from the counter, and his voice turns soft and quiet. Vicki insists it’s because he’s heard about her fighting prowess and is afraid of her. All my and Azhar’s attempts at telling her he likes her have been flat out rejected. It almost makes me feel sorry for him. I mean, he’s not all bad. Like that time when he let me hide in the staff bathroom until Tyler Ford and his friends lost interest and moved on. I should probably thank him again for that. And learn his name. Maybe.
We bought one chocolate bar and one soda each, and biscuits for Terra. The cashier (who wasn’t wearing a name tag) refused to meet our eyes as he mumbled our total. Vicki didn’t seem to notice, or care. Poor guy. Just watching it kinda breaks your heart. At least Terra was happy when we came out again. Vicki dominated the conversation on the way back, as usual. Today it was about her hatred for her history teacher. I won’t have Mr. Durst until next year, and I’m not looking forward to it. Students have been complaining about him since Azhar was a freshman. Probably before that too. It’s mean, but I’m actually sort of hoping he’ll be fired before next semester. I did not skip two grades only to have my GPA get screwed over by an incompetent teacher. He isn’t helped by everyone comparing him to the 9th years’ history teacher either. Mr. Pike is the complete opposite of Mr. Durst: nice, patient, laid-back, cheerful, funny. Also, he drives a motorcycle. Also, he spent his youth hitchhiking through Asia. Also, he’s got a cool film quote for every occasion. Lastly, he actually cares enough about his students to help them when they don’t understand what’s going on. Mr. Durst never stood a chance. Anyway, in the middle of her tirade, just as it was getting good, in fact, Vicki cut herself off. The leash in her hand pulled taut before Terra got the memo and came lumbering back to us. Vicki frowned at my bag, muttering how annoying that swishing sound was. And there I thought I was the only one to notice! That was it – time to shut it off. If mom needed me she’d just have to call Vicki instead. My hand trembled as I fished out the phone, the receiver letting out a long hiss. Terra growled at it.
The phone growled back.
It clattered as it fell against the ground. Vicki and I stared at each other, eyes wide, mouths hanging open. Terra began to bark and snarl; Vicki had to put all her weight into holding the dog back. She snatched the phone off the ground and, angrier than I’d ever seen her, snapped at whoever was at the other end. Demanding to know who they were and what their goal was, and making it clear that it wasn’t fucking funny so they better stop right now! For the first time in two days, my cell phone didn’t utter a single sound. Vicki glowered at it, her grip so tight it looked it could snap the mobile in half. She announced she’d shut it off, and I nodded, my tongue made of sandpaper. After the phone was yet again banished to the bottom of my bag, we continued, the mood more somber than before. Terra thumped her head into my hip. Mind not entirely there, I scratched her behind the ear. She licked my palm as thanks.
——————————
The tower is farther away than I first thought. I walk for a long time, how long I can’t say, but long enough for the trek to become tedious. The tower stays as remote as ever.
The more I walk, the wetter I get. It comes from every angle. It’s like it’s raining, although the skies are clear and no drops ever hit either me or the ground. The only sounds I hear are my footsteps, sloshing against the watery ground. And clicking. At first distant and rhythmic, but by now louder and bordering on chaotic. Is it annoying or unsettling? Possibly both. Possibly-
A crunch amidst the slosh. Startled, I come to a standstill. Underneath my shoe is a large, black, flat insect. Yellow muck seeps out from all ends. Nose scrunching up, I smear it off against the road. Bits and pieces float away on the puddles. A retching complaint escapes from my pressed together lips. I’m about to go on, when I notice the clicking has stopped. When…?
Anxiousness claws at the back of my head. The feeling of being watched overwhelms me. Was the atmosphere this cold one minute ago? Pulse drumming in my throat, I rotate on the spot, poring over the night’s black corners. I make it halfway before I see the darkness closing in with an earsplitting clicking.
Insects. Millions.
I run. I don’t know where to – just away from here! Speeding down the road – water splashing, feet gliding, lungs burning – the insects still keep up. The clicking overpowers everything else, even the splatter of water, even my own frantic gasps. An ocean of insects cascade in front of me; I jump over it, stomping dozens of beetles into the ground with each step. The survivors scale my legs, weighing me down as they bite into the fabric. I try to swat them off – they bite into my flesh instead. Ahead, in the middle of the street, is a river. Narrow, possibly shallow, possibly deep, hard to tell when the water is so dark. I’ve never been a great swimmer. I still throw myself in.
It’s cold, but only so shallow it reaches my waist. The chill also causes most of the insects to release their grip. They float up to the surface, some alive but most dead, and are pushed away by the waves I create as I wade forward. By the time I’m across, the few insects left on me are easy to flick off. I heave a sigh, my teeth clattering. My relief is short-lived, however, because on the other side of the river the insects have begun closing the gap between me and them by using their own dead as a bridge. My shivering intensifies until my entire body shakes uncontrollably and my already rapid breaths quicken even more. Stumbling away from the riverbank, I search for an escape. The roads are small and windy, none of them seeming to lead to the tower, which is still so far away.
The clicking grows stronger. For a moment I forget about the tower; I just want to get away from that sound! So I hurry over to the closest house, yank the door open, and slam it shut in the hopes it’ll keep the noise out. It does – the clicking vanishes, and is replaced by a loud chop.
I spin around, heart racing. The house, which looked average on the outside, has the interior of a butcher shop. Well, a vacated butcher shop, with dust and grime replacing the goods. Even so, behind the counter stands a tall figure, dressed in opera gloves and a quite ill-fitting green evening gown, using an enormous cleaver on what could be a piece of meat. The figure turns to look at me; my stomach turns inside out at the sight. The figure’s face is pale, with two dark cavities where the eyes should be and a thick thread forcing the lips together. She walks towards me, cleaver still in hand. I want to flee, but I can’t – my limbs have become too heavy. She stops in front of me, and inclines her head as if looking down. Following her line of… un-sight, my gaze lands on the pool of river water I brought in with me.
“Umm…” I look up. The figure plants her hands on her hips, forehead creasing. “Sorry? I, I had to cross the river to get here, and, uh…”
The figure shakes her head. Reaching past me, either not noticing or ignoring how I tense up, she locks the door before returning to slicing up the meat by the counter.
“Umm…” Shuffling my feet, I glance back and forth between the door and the figure. “I’m trying to get to that tower? On the hill?”
Her movements slow down. A gurgling sound erupts from the meat.
“Do… Do you know a fast way to get there?”
The figure’s unoccupied hand drums its fingers against the dirty glass. She turns to me, blinking. I compel my face to stay neutral. Why would you even needeyelids if you don’t have eyes?
After an extensive minute of drumming and soft gurgling, the figure, having made up its mind, beckons me to follow her further into the shop. We go through a doorpost where the hinges have been torn off and up a very long, very windy staircase. At the end is a metal gate that she struggles to open even when using both hands, letting me hold the cleaver in the meantime. Something drips from the edge; I pretend not to see it. Fog wells into the house when the gate finally glides open. It obscures the ground and the distance to it, but I guess we’re at least three stories up. The closest other building is approximately 300 yards away, and between it and the butcher house is a narrow bridge of wood.
I swallow. “I walk on that thing?”
The figure nods. Lifting her arm, she points up in the air, then mimics a beak with her hand and makes it swoop down at my head. Lastly, she gently pushes my head downwards until my knees bend and back curves.
“Make myself small?” I ask. The figure nods again. “Because of… birds?” That earns me a light slap on the back. Good to know we understand each other.
“Well then… Thank you.”
For the first time, the figure’s mouth changes position, curling into a tiny smile. Although queasy, I return it. Then I move out.
I’ve made it about 20 yards when the gate closes behind me. It causes the already unsteady bridge to swing even more. For a second, I picture myself falling. Sucking in air between clenched teeth, I continue, my eyes kept on the planks and not the ground that sometimes peek up from gaps in the fog. The journey isn’t made any better by the wind – strong gales that whoosh past my head and whine in my ears. The few instances when the wind stills, it’s replaced by vague flaps of wings. Sweat trickles down my back. My breaths are so quiet they might as well be non-existent. 200 yards across, the wind staunches, but instead of the expected flaps, I hear clicking.
My heart stops. I glance over my shoulder. The butcher house is shrouded in moving shadows. No, not shadows. Insects. Millions upon millions of black insects. Eyes widening, I start to shake again. Then I run, or I come as close to a run as I can with the bridge swaying beneath me. The clicking chases me; I speed up even more. In the corner of my eye, a murky thing swoops towards me, wings flapping. I duck at the last minute. Another comes from the left. This time I throw out my arm, and by pure, dumb luck thrusts the bird away from me. The encounter leaves my hand moist.
10 yards left. Insects crawl up my legs. A shadow races past my nose. I don’t have any time left. I jump. Hurdles forth and smashes into a hard roof. I grasp at something, anything, to grab onto, but my fists reach nothing but air and I slide down the slope, tiles snapping beneath me.
The landing hurts, but not so much I can’t get up and sprint within an instant. A voice in the back of my mind informs me that a fall like that should’ve broken both my legs, but insects aren’t supposed to attack people either, so who even cares. All that matters are that the clicking and the flapping slowly but surely fades.
I don’t stop running until my legs cramp and my lungs burn. I’ve had enough – I just want to get out of here. Fortunately, the figure wasn’t lying: I have come closer to the tower! God, I hope the insects didn’t harm her. For my own piece of mind, I decide the tiny pest can’t get through walls.
A noise in the distance has me freeze into a statue. It’s not the insects, or the birds, but rather… a vehicle? A motorcycle, to be precise. Scaring my heart into my throat, it steers so close I think we’ll collide, before skidding to a halt in front of me. It’s big and shiny, the cleanest thing I’ve witnessed since I arrived, in fact. The driver is big too, but not so clean, judging by his smell. He reeks! A pungent odor that reminds me of rotting meat. It crawls down my nostrils and throat, clings to my insides and makes me gag. I’m about to excuse myself and move on when the blasted clicking draw nearer. I want to scream. I’m barely even frightened anymore – just furious and exhausted.
The motorcyclists head darts between me and the wave of bugs. Snapping his fingers to catch my attention, he then pats the passenger seat on his bike. I hesitate. Be eaten alive or be around that smell any longer? He has to pat a second time – firmer, probably a bit annoyed with me – before I relent and hop on. The stench is somehow even worse up close. What’s more, when I wrap my arms around him, he feels softer than he should. Squishy, as if the leather suit is the only thing holding the body inside it together. I choke back the bile.
The clicking approaches. The motorcyclist drowns it out with a rev of his engine, and we zoom off. The streets and alleys are tight and snaky. The speed is bloodcurdling; I cling to the motorcyclist as if my life depended on it, which, it I’m pretty sure it does. Several times a wall or a pole brushes too close – how we manage not to ram anything I’ve no idea. The wind whips at my face; my eyes tear up as it blends with the scent of the driver, and as the insect’s clicking leaks into the roar of the engine. My sole comfort is that the motorcyclist drives towards the tower. Maybe I’ll make it there. Maybe meeting this crazy person was the best things that could’ve happened. Maybe-
There’s a chasm separating our part of the city with the tower’s part. A bridge – an actual bridge of stone too – begins, but ends too soon, not even a third across. Tears roll down my cheeks, heavier than before. That’s it, then. We might as well stop and let ourselves be devoured. Or drive directly into the chasm to let whatever’s on the bottom kill us. I hope it’s solid ground – death by fall seems less painful than drowning. Quicker, in any case. But we don’t fall. We fly. Driving up the edge of the bridge, the motorcycle leaps through the air. My shriek gets stuck in my throat. My grip would’ve fractured the motorcyclist’s bones had he gotten any. Very briefly, we are weightless. Then the bike starts to fall, and us with it. I regain my voice, letting out a screech. When we land on the other side, the impact makes my vision goes dark. I’m thankful I’m spared from the view as we crash into the dirt.
——————————
The phone stayed off. I really should have told mom I needed a new one, but I wasn’t sure how to bring it up, or what excuse to use for that matter. “My old one is possessed by an angry animal who likes to play with pens and who has a draft problem” just didn’t seem good enough.
What I wanted most the following day was to be distracted, but unfortunately both Azhar and Vicki would be unavailable after school, him due to seeing Hammond again and her due to getting detention. Ryan Robertson had called me a “Jap” again, among other things. Eight whole months and he still hadn’t gotten into his thick skull that I wasn’t even Japanese. Anyway, Vicki had bashed his head into a locker because of it, which was pretty fun. Alas, the principal had seen her do it, which made it less fun. At least Ms. Kowalski was cool enough to give Ryan detention too, due to “unacceptable bigoted behavior”.
We stopped by the detention hall to wave goodbye to Vicki. She waved back, grinning widely. On our way out Azhar speculated, with a roll of his eyes and a giggle in the back of his throat, that she’d do nothing but graffiti her desk and try to persuade the other students to let her teach them how to put people in headlocks. I agreed, pulling my face into something resembling a smile. Azhar gave me a searching look, head cocked to the side. What was the matter? My phone still? I sighed. We (well, Vicki) told him as soon as we saw him next, of course, and he’d produced hundreds of theories as to why, all of them thrilling and none of them plausible.
I was about to tell him yes: it was still worrying me. I had a terrible feeling about it and I wasn’t sure how to handle it at all. Should I even? Was I overreacting? Was I letting fear make me irrational? But then Hammond’s blue Mercedes pulled into the parking lot and I claimed to just be exhausted after a long week. I don’t think he believed me, but didn’t press the matter either. Sliding into the car, he asked if I wanted to join them? Hammond wouldn’t mind at all. I know he wouldn’t, but it still didn’t feel right. It wouldn’t be the same. In the moment I wanted to ask Azhar to not pick his boyfriend over me for once, but I was neither that bold nor unfair. So I just declined with a smile and a promise to message him later that night, waving as they drove off.
The walk home was simultaneously too long and too short. When arriving the house was both too quiet and too loud. Ticking clocks, creaking corners, dripping faucets. No mom, though, since she worked late, and no friends to call. Or phone to call with. Shambling into my room, I dropped my bag in the corner and got ready to drop myself on my bed, when a noise erupted from the bag. My ringtone, shooting through the air and hitting me in the head like a rock. I froze. How?! We turned it off!
…didn’t we?
I edged closer. The noise kept going. Picked up the bag. It got louder. Grasped the cell. The screen was black. It was still shut off. Yet it rang. And rang. And rang. Having literally no idea what to do, I put the receiver to my ear, opened my mouth, and blacked out.
——————————
I ache. But I’m alive. Shoving myself up on unsteady arms, I look around. The motorcyclist lies beside me, unmoving. I wriggle towards him, slithering like a snake since my legs don’t want to work just yet.
“Hey…”
I poke him. Then push him. Dragging myself into a sitting position, I grab him by the shoulders and shake.
“Hey! Hey, mister!”
The helmeted head lolls to the side. A thick liquid pours out from between it and his neck.
Oh.
I withdraw my hands. Pulls them close to my chest and wrings them back and forth. They reek – like him. I don’t know how long I sit and stare at him, eyes stinging, throat working. When the amount of liquid gets so big it starts to stretch past his shoulders, I get to my feet and move on.
Merely the hill is between me and the tower now. A thick forest covers it, with a single pathway leading up. The trees that line the path are tall and dark – the tree crowns are so dense barely any moonlight makes it through. The very moment I step foot in it, I want to turn back around. Which I can’t. I didn’t get this close just to give up. I didn’t get two people killed just to give up. So I go on, my stomach a bottomless pit and my breathing pattern too calm.
It takes hours. Hours of legs numbing, of hands trembling, of my mind being filled with a silvery haze. I’d go to sleep right now if I could. If. The scarce specks of moonlight on the ground are what keeps me going. That and the faint echoes of creaks from within the forest. It reminds me of bad floors in old houses. Then I’d rather focus on the moon-specks. They’re like petite drops of white in a world of eternal dusk. I miss being able to see farther than my nose.
Something growls. Behind me. I sigh, a quiet whine creeping in at the end. I don’t have the strength for this. I don’t want to anymore. Warm breath caresses my scalp. A soft snout prods my neck. Then something rigid is jabbed into it. It makes me stagger forward. Spinning around, I’m met with fire.
The beast is larger than I expected. 10 feet tall, perhaps. Hairy and horned, with massive hind legs and smaller front legs. The eyes are milky white, as is the… thing that sits perched on the beast’s back. She’s naked, as far as I can tell, her leathery skin pulled taut over the bones. Bandages are wrapped around her head, but I still spot a thin, blonde ponytail welling out between the straps. In one hand, she’s got a torch, in the other a metal staff. I guess that’s what she nudged me with. She directs the monster closer to me and leans down, studying me from behind the dressings. There’s something supernatural about her. Ghostlike.
“I’m going to the tower.”
The ghost snorts.
“Apparently that’s the way out of here.” I show her my phone, as if that would make her understand.
Now she cackles. Handing me the torch, she waves for me to show the way. I’ve got no problem with that. Although, I’d prefer if I could get a ride on that beast. It doesn’t hurt to ask, does it? Especially not after having walked for so, so long. Gathering my courage, I elevate the torch to better illuminate her face and look her in the non-existent eye, when my phone slips out of my pocket. It lands on the edge of the path, right where the dirt stops and the grass starts. I take a step into the greenery to pick it up. She gasps.
Scarcely has my hand grasped the case before I’m yanked to the side. The ghost raises her staff, using it to stop the huge tree branch from smashing into her head. From the path’s other side, a dozen roots shoot out towards me. Just as they’re about to grab me, the beast’s massive jaws clamp down, severing them in half. I scramble to my feet, recoiling when another branch smacks into the spot I just sat in. The ghost clutches my collar, and shoves me up the hill. My feet don’t need anyone persuasion to run. Phone safely clasped in one hand and torch in the other, I sprint until I can’t feel any part of myself, until my whole being is numb, until I don’t have to sprint any more.
It’s first when I reach the top that I realize that the ghost and the beast didn’t follow.
I’m hurting again. Everything, it hurts. Something, in my chest, is strung so tightly. It keeps me from breathing.
“Oh, you made it.”
It coils tighter. But I manage to exhale an inch. I drop the torch to the ground, pressing it into the soil so that the fire suffocates before it spreads.
“Yeah,” I say, turning to the scarecrow. The tower looms behind him. “When did you get here?”
He shrugs. “A while ago.”
Fatigue engulfs me. I walk past him, past the pillars holding the entrance up, and into the tower. It’s warmer in there than outside – my glasses fog up the moment I enter. Even then, I can tell I’m surrounded by emptiness.
I rotate. Once. Twice. Thrice. Nothing. There’s nothing here.
“So what do I do?”
The scarecrow cocks his head at me.
“Do?”
“To get home.”
Following my example, the scarecrow’s head twists around, scrutinizing the place. He shrugs.
“I don’t know.”
I shut my eyes. Grind my jaw. Inhales. Exhales. My hands shake, despite the heat. The thing coils tighter.
“But you’re the one who told me to go here!”
“I also told you I don’t like you very much.” The scarecrow draws nearer. Folding his arms across his chest, he leans down until we’re at the same level. There’s a smirk in his tone. “Why would I help someone I don’t like? You don’t even belong here!”
Tighter. Hotness rise in my face. Blood pounds in my ears. The scarecrow appears to notice, because he speaks even louder. Laughs so that the whole, uninhabited city hears.
“Look at you! You’re so small and worthless, I didn’t think you’d make it! Why would I care if you did? Why would I-”
Screaming, I thrust all my weight into my punch, striking his grinning metal plate so hard that he falls backwards. The scarecrow smashes into pieces as he hits the ground. The limbs split from the torso and the torso breaks in half, all parts splintering into even tinier pieces. It looks like a garbage truck has vomited all over the floor. The face, having detached from the head, slides away from the mess, spinning around until its eyeholes meet my gaze.
“Well, kid,” it says. “You’re tougher than you look… aren’t you?”
You’re tougher than you look, aren’t you?
It was about eight months ago. I had been a high school freshman for three weeks, and I was miserable. I hadn’t expected to be popular, but I hoped to have found at least a few friends. Mom must have realized it, because every day she asked if school had been fun or if I met someone interesting. Despite her good intentions, she really only made things worse.
Then, three weeks in, as I stood by my locker by the end of the schoolday, I accidentally elbowed the person behind me. It was mortifying. I apologized until I lost my breath, but the guy – tall, dark, and envy-inducingly pretty – waved it with a laugh as he stood hunched over and clutching his gut. Damn, you’re tougher than you look, aren’t you? he said while assessing my diminutive frame and twig-like arms. Hey, don’t we have film theory together? I think I’ve seen you there. I’m Azhar, by the way.
Seen me. He’d seen me. Sometimes not even the teachers saw me! I was dumbfounded, not even finding words when he excused himself and hurried off. The next day during film theory, Azhar plopped down in the seat next to mine, propping his feet onto the chair in front of him, and declared that he’d been meaning to ask how old I was. I told him I skipped two grades, which seemed to impress him. When class started he pulled me into his discussion group. I only said nine sentences during that class, each one a reply to something Azhar asked me. It was fun. I enjoyed myself enough to be disappointed that we wouldn’t share any more classes. What’s worse, we wouldn’t be able to have lunch together either, since he was a junior. I comforted myself with the fact that he wouldn’t have wanted to spend his lunch with me anyway. Two hours later, I got stopped from walking into the cafeteria when someone grabbed hold of my hoodie and yanked it back. It was a tall, blonde girl with steel toed boots who let me know that her name was Vicki, and since I was Azhar’s friend I was also her friend, which was good because she was getting tired of eating by herself. Then she pulled me with her while instructing me to never eat the pudding no matter how tasty it looked. At the end of that day – after having been shown the best places to buy drinks, been introduced to a half-dog, half-monster, and agreed to join a weekly study session at the library – I arrived home to tell mom I probably made some friends.
Home. I want to go home.
The coil breaks. Snaps. Releases a flood that wells from my eyes. My breathing quickens, grows so rapid my lungs don’t have time to retrieve any oxygen from it. Dizziness pulls over me; I sink to the floor. Fold into myself in a broken heap. I wipe away the tears, but they’re so many most of them fall onto my muddy jeans anyway. My howls resound against the metal walls, boom around me. I want to go home. I want to go home. Please, please, please, just let me go home!
My ringtone cuts through the blubbering. I look up with a gasp. The screen, with bright, bold letters, says “Mom”.
I dive for it, fumbles for the answer button, puts it to my ear, and-
“Hi, honey. We got a bit delayed today, but I’ll be home in 30 minutes. Could you-”
“Mom?”
“Yes?”
I’m winded, I need to gulp to even feel the air in my throat. I try to choke back the crying too, but when I open my mouth next, the only thing I release is a sob.
“Honey, what is it? Were you worried? I’m so sorry, but I couldn’t call until now. Oh, sweetie, don’t-”
“No, no!”
Swinging my legs past the edge of my bed, I rub my face. The tears have left dirty streaks all over it, I just know they have.
“No, I had a nightmare. A bad one. I’m fine now, thanks for waking me.”
She sighs, relieved. “Oh. Well, it’s just a dream. Try to get up and walk around a bit.”
“I will.”
“Good! Then I’ll see you in- Oh, no, wait! Get the meat from the freezer and put it some cold water, so it’ll thaw! Can you do that?”
I chuckle. “Sure.”
“Don’t you laugh! It’s enough you make me forget why I even called you in the first place…”
When she arrives home, I tell her I need a new phone anyway. Mine died right after she called me, and I haven’t been able to get it working again. She groans, complains about pricey junk, and says it’s lucky it waited for her to call before dying. Yeah, I agree. “Lucky”.
What’s really lucky is that she doesn’t have to buy a new one for me. Two days later, Azhar once again tries to make us come with him and Hammond as they leave. We won’t be the third wheel, there’ll be other people there too! Mostly Hammond’s friends, which means they’ll be good people. Rolling her eyes, Vicki refuses (“I bet they’re a bunch of losers!”), but then begrudgingly changes her mind when I jump into the back seat of the Mercedes. On the way to the fast food place, the small talk leads to Hammond’s younger sisters’ birthday. With a shake of his head, he laments over how spoiled they’re getting. Three months after their parents got them the latest mobile, their grandmother got them an even later model! Without hesitating, I ask if perhaps it’s possible that I get one of them? Adding that mine’s broken, when it hits me how rude my question sounded. And of course I’ll pay for it! Hammond squints at me in the rear-view mirror. I can hear him think to himself: has this kid ever said more than one sentence to me before? He snickers. (“You can have it for free.”) Azhar quickly claims the remaining twin’s phone – not because his is broken, but because he wants it. So the next week we flaunt matching glittery powder blue and lavender cells. Changing the cases would be easy, sure, but also so unrewarding. Also, very unprofitable, since the sparkly cases are perfect bully repellent. Apparently, even something so innocuous as a phone case can be gay, and touching it will result in you turning gay as well. Yeah, I don’t know. Everyone who isn’t terrible love them, though. Mom loves them. Vicki loves them. Ms. Kowalski and Mr. Pike love them. Alexis (the cashier at the bodega – he’s also been a lot less glare-y after I asked for his name) loves them. Azhar especially loves them. The only reason he hasn’t also covered his in butterfly stickers is because I can’t be bothered to, and if only he does it, we won’t match anymore! I might change my mind when he’s begged me enough.
The old phone, with the boring brown case and cracked screen, lies on my desk. Mom wanted to throw it out, but I managed to persuade her not to by telling her some bullshit about it making the atmosphere of my bedroom. I do have a lot of brown things in there, after all. Sometimes I find myself staring at it. Never touching it, just… watching. Waiting. Because, you see, the question isn’t if it’ll revive – it’s when.
I haven’t decided yet whether I’ll answer.
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Witnessing a World Record - Hope & Legacy in Helsinki
I have so many thoughts and stories I want to share from the 2017 World Championships in Helsinki, but I’ll start with Yuzuru Hanyu’s world recording breaking free skate which is obviously the thing I want to talk about most! It’s been 3 days since the men’s free program and the excitement and joy still lingers and has definitely put me in a good mood even as I return to work (hopefully this will last all the way to WTT!). I have a lot to say on this so bear with me as this will be long.
After the men’s SP on Thursday I think many Yuzu fans that I met and spoke with were quite depressed and there were a lot of doom-and-gloom talks going on (would he even medal, will he take silver to Javi AGAIN, etc etc). The one thing we did say repeatedly in our conversations was that it wasn’t over yet, and that he still had a chance to win gold but he would probably need to be clean in order to do so, and that is exactly what he did.
The nervous feeling for the men’s free started up immediately after the pairs free program ended the night before, up until that point that day I was able to distract myself with the other competitions but at that point it felt imminent and real. That night in the hotel room I was stress eating instant noodles late at night (I guess Boyang likes to celebrate this way) while I wrapped up the Winnie-the-Pooh I got to toss on the ice, the gift I got for Yuzu, and wrote the card to go with it. After the SP I had stuck the little Yuzu buttons I had made on the Winnie-the-Pooh and held it as I went to sleep the next two nights, that thing really brought me some comfort over a couple of days. Each morning housekeeping would make our beds and place our Pooh bears neatly on the bed, I have to wonder what they thought of all the Poohs and toys in our hotel room!
That same night I was stress eating the noodles I remembered that I had brought a bag of Bourbon Lumonde snacks (from the “mou chotto” meme) that I happened to find at a local Daiso shop before I left home. Now, I’m not superstitious, but I had meant to eat one of the snacks before the SP for good luck - as if I was eating and making the bit that was lacking disappear. Sadly, I totally forget the bag in my hotel room the day of the SP because we left early to get a good seat to watch morning practice that day. Well, I remembered them that night and immediately dug them up and made my friend and I eat one each that night to eat away all doubts! I took the rest of the bag with me the day of the free and told my friends that we would eat ALL of the bag before Yuzu skated his free skate (and we did during the last ice resurfacing).
As the final group was preparing to get on the ice I grabbed my Hope and Legacy banner in preparation and my wrapped up Pooh bear to hold for support. As they did the skater intros Yuzu kept moving around to keep his body warm, he looked extremely focused. He started the warm-up with a nice 3Lz but then fell on a 3A which I’m sure made the audience stand on edge since he rarely fails to land his axels. Once warm-up ended I looked up at the seconds on the jumbotron to make sure he wasn’t in danger of having a time violation again, but he promptly took his place this time. Then the program began.
What happened over the next 4 minutes and 30 seconds was nothing short of magic. As he landed his 4Lo the cheers and applause erupted but were quickly silenced until he landed the following quad salchow to which we all erupted again. After each jump I would applaud as hard as I could, then quickly clutch the Pooh bear again. Once the triple flip was completed and we moved into the second half of the program it seemed like everyone in the arena held their breath as we waited for the 4S3T combo. When he landed the salchow and then the toe beautifully everyone cheered the loudest, as if we all knew this combo had plagued him in the free the entire season. The relief was short-lived as he set up for the 4T and the tension increased again, and then he proceeded to land the most beautiful 4T he’s done in the second half yet! I was stunned by how magnificent it was, but was still waiting for the axels. With each element being completed I felt the elation inside build and build, I could hardly believe what I was witnessing and I felt delirious.
As Yuzu exited his spin to begin his choreographic sequence everyone started applauding and cheering and that intensified with his hydroblade and ina bauer up until the set up for the 3Lz where it went nearly silent. Once he landed the final lutz the audience went absolutely crazy! The applause and the cheers continued until the end of the program as nearly everyone got on their feet. I remember clapping like crazy and shouting non-stop, I was so excited I was waving my banner around and jumping up and down for who-knows how long after it was over. The girl beside me was so moved she was crying, after the program we looked at each other and gave each other a hug even though we had never spoken a word to each other the entire competition. The excitement was palpable, and the audience in Helsinki was so supportive for all skaters, it really felt as if this program and this skate unified the audience and we reacted as a collective as he showed us something unbelievable. It felt as if my entire body was charged, I knew that no one would be topping that free skate that night and just hoped that it would be enough to take the title.
My seat was just above the Kiss and Cry, as Yuzu stepped off the ice he gave a hug to Brian and to Tracy. Can I just say I loved seeing Tracy rink side during the entire competition? I know she’s usually busy doing commentary but I hope next season she finds the opportunity to be at the rink side and Kiss and Cry with her students, she does just as much as Brian does and I think the skaters also appreciate her presence. The scores were ready pretty quickly, and I knew we were in for a new world record, as the announcer enthusiastically proclaimed, “223.20 points,” the crowd exploded again. Also, looking at the protocols I think if Yuzu had skated later in the last group we would’ve seen higher GOE for his jumps. They were immaculate. I loved the reaction of all three in the Kiss and Cry - Brian smiling proudly, Yuzu looking up with his eyes wide then closed as he basked in joy in near tears, and Tracy who was calm and collected until the score registered with her and she looked on in disbelief.
I think after Yuzu’s performance I was in an incredibly good mood, everything and everyone’s programs seemed 10x more enjoyable, even the ice dance free afterward seemed more exciting. As each skater in the final group skated I checked on the real-time scores on the ISU site to see what score they needed in order to take the lead, and Yuzu’s scores held for the remainder of the night as we were treated to some other fantastic performances in the final group. When it came time for Javi to skate and I watched his program unfold I knew that Yuzu had succeeded and I couldn’t believe he was able to move from 5th to 1st in such a stunning fashion. I clapped so much and so hard I think I bruised my left hand since it hurt the next day.
As Javi’s scores were read and I noticed the final ranking of the podium I yelped for joy (sorry, Javi, I couldn’t help my honest reaction). Yuzu, Shoma, and Boyang had been the dream podium I told my friends I wanted at the very start of the season and I was in partial disbelief that it had actually happened. I was recording the medal ceremony, and as the audience stood for the Japanese national anthem the arena went silent. As the song began to play I could quietly hear the audience in the distance singing the lyrics together (I wonder if it’s audible in my fancam video?) and I just lost it.
I’m not Japanese, but the moment was so sweet, so unifying, and so gratifying that I had a brief flashback to the medal ceremony in Boston the year before which was the first competition I had ever attended. I had decided to go to Boston instead of Barcelona that season because it was within the US and I felt sure I’d be going to witness Yuzu reclaim his world title. The memory of the sad feeling and watching Yuzu go through the medal ceremony to receive the silver medal in Boston was so excruciating that I’ve never watched it again. Thinking back on that moment, with the voice of the audience singing the national anthem in my ear, and seeing Yuzu standing atop the podium the tears just started welling up in my eyes and I began to cry. Before my trip to Helsinki started I had told friends I had met in Boston that I hope no matter what I don't end up crying during the gala again (Yuzu's Requiem in Boston hit me hard). I don't think I've ever cried from happiness before, but these were probably the best kind of happy tears. I wasn't expecting to be moved so much but it came from a place of joy. It felt like we, and he, had been waiting so long for this moment to come. The journey to his second world title had seemed so long and full of obstacles. From Cup of China all the way to Worlds in Helsinki, the weight of it seemed to sink in and I couldn’t help crying. As I was recording with the tears in my eyes and my running nose, a kind Hartwall staffer came up to me and handed me a tissue in an act of kindness that warmed my heart (you may or may not hear my crying in the fancam…).
While I witnessed Yuzu’s perfect Ballade SP in Boston which nearly set a new world record, that experience and this felt very different. Perhaps it was the fact that we knew he had to fight in the free skate and be perfect to have a hope at winning the title that added to the drama and excitement of it. It also felt like there was a larger Japanese crowd in Helsinki than in Boston (Boston felt like more Americans and Canadians) and the audience in general was super supportive for all skaters. I was elated in Boston after the SP, and I had a similar elation here for the FS but it felt magnified ten times over. The entire free skate it felt as if the audience was one in supporting him - it’s a feeling I won’t forget and will treasure for a long time. After the medal ceremony a group of fans from the FB group met up in the concourse, there were hugs and high fives all around and no one could contain their excitement. It felt like we had witnessed the impossible! I’m so glad I decided to come to Worlds in Helsinki, I hadn’t decided on it until Skate Canada came around but I’m so glad I did as I would’ve missed out on a spectacular event and witnessing Yuzu set a new world record.
Another fun tidbit - after the medal ceremony Yuzu took a photo with Grishlan (I don't think I'm spelling his name right) and then handed him his bouquet.
Anyway, I've rambled on for much longer than I anticipated. I'll try to do write-ups of the other events and the rest of the men in the coming days. To all the fans I met in Helsinki, and to Yuzu and all the other skaters, thank you for making this an unforgettable experience.
#yuzuru hanyu#hope and legacy#helsinki2017#so happy#a long journey that is probably only 1% finished
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Conversing face to face with Kris Wu, I wanted to faint...
Fashion blogger SHENYEFACHI Interview with Kris Wu at L'Oréal Men Expert event in Shanghai on 10 April 2017.
Kris Wu really loves to talk! Be it skincare or long johns, he is always able to converse on any topic easily. He can clearly recognise the word 「媸」 (chi), yet asked me whether the last word of 「深夜发媸」(shen ye fa chi) was read as 「娃」(wa), it was his first time hearing of such a new and strange moniker. Later on, he even asked why 「发媸」(fa chi) was not 「发吃」(fa chi), with blog content of gourmet food?
1. Only two pieces in the whole world
Firstly, let's take a look at Kris Wu's attire that day. Kris Wu wore Gucci shoes paired with GEO MERCH denim jacket designed by London-based designer GEO, who previously designed for Yeezy, WTT and Givenchy.
Only after asking Kris Wu, did we find out that there were only two of these jackets in the whole world, one belonging to the designer and the other to Kris, which was specially made for him by the designer himself.
Their relationship is really good. Both of them are mutually following each other on Instagram, and off-schedule Kris Wu has also worn GEO clothes many times. He was extremely happy about his exclusive custom made piece, but also joked that perhaps there would soon be knockoffs of it appearing on Taobao soon...
On the topic of clothes, Kris said that he rarely shops online. At times, certain pieces which are required in his outfits are a result of his own personal findings. Furthermore, because he knows many fashion designers, he would communicate with them and tell them, "I like such and such...", and the items would be gifted to him by the designers.
What surprised me the most was that he would wear long johns, especially when the weather during filming was very cold. In the past he would frequently wear ripped pants, but prolonged wear would not be good for the knees. As expected, he is a guy who remains fashionable while staying warm.
2. Favourite physical feature
Before asking this question I had pondered for a very long time, if I were him, how would I reply? I had thought that he would choose eyes, nose or mouth, but who knew, his answer was "Legs".
Upon noticing my surprised reaction, he laughed and said, "It's not that surprising, I'm usually like that..." What do you mean, do you usually startle those who ask you questions?
However, honestly speaking, he looks tremendously better in real life than in pictures, and his legs are shockingly long. Who wouldn't love to have such a long pair of legs like his? Even others who are over 1.8m tall, upon seeing Kris Wu, would think: We're both guys, why does he look so much taller?
3. Skincare Tips
Although he had just returned from overseas and experienced jet-lag, his skin condition still looked fabulous, but Kris Wu modestly said that it was thanks to the work of his make up artist. He even added that he depended on his stylist for the maintenance of his eyebrows.
On the topic of skincare, Kris Wu said that his skincare regime could be completed in 5 minutes or so, after washing his face and applying moisturiser, it would be settled. His skincare routine is simple, without much concern about sunblock. So what does he focus on when it comes to skincare? Cleansing! He has emphasised that skin cleansing for men is the most important, especially for a celebrity like him who regularly wears makeup. When it comes to removing makeup it has to be done thoroughly, therefore the line of L'Oréal Men Expert cleansing products are very suitable for him, which can also be used on days where he is not working and usually exercising or playing basketball and sweats a lot.
translation: @wu_yi_fan
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Russia’s Not Buying Bitcoin & Ethereum Fork Woes: This Week in Crypto
Russia’s Not Buying Bitcoin & Ethereum Fork Woes: This Week in Crypto
From fake news about Russia buying Bitcoin to Ethereum’s hard fork that wasn’t, CCN breaks down the last week in crypto news. | Source: Shutterstock
By CCN.com: This week in crypto saw several interesting developments as regard exchanges, exit scams, and at least one failed ICO-funded company in the form of Giga Watt.
Crypto Media Clings to Story of Russian Government Buying Bitcoin, CCN Asks for Proof
CCN started the week off by debunking a mythical impending “$10 billion Bitcoin purchase” on the part of the Russian government. P. H. Madore received backlash for the article, which listed some of the sites which sensationalized the dubious claims of a little-known Russian economist.
How interesting it would be if sanctions would result in this. However, its dubious that the size of the market could sustain anything like this level of trade without it going bonkers. What do you think? https://t.co/AhOKvu1Jyd #bitcoin #russia #sanctions
— Pat Rabbitte (@PatRabbitte1) January 8, 2019
A few days later, CCN doubled down on our positivity that Russia has made no official announcement as regards buying a large block of Bitcoin.
One thing remains clear: the Russian government has not officially announced plans to buy Bitcoin as a hedge against anything at all. As far as we know, Bitcoin is still going through the regulatory process in the former communist country. A Russian official did speak to the issue of Bitcoin over-regulation this week, however.
Ethereum Constantinople Fork Delayed at Last Minute
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Due to a last-minute reporting of a security flaw with EIP-1283, Ethereum developers decided to postpone the Constantinople upgrade. By Friday, a 6-week roadmap was announced. It remains unclear why security firm Chainsecurity waited until this week to reveal its findings. The presumable explanation is that this was the earliest they were able to confirm the bug, which was not found to be live in any smart contracts but would have allowed for “reentrancy attacks.”
DX.Exchange Exposed As Pivot Effort of Binary Options Scammers
CCN’s P. H. Madore and Samantha Chang did some hard-nosed reporting on the sensationally-reported DX.exchange, which has had rumblings of withdrawal/deposit issues. CCN was able to confirm through government records something the company denied until the last minute: its relationship to SpotOption, a Binary Options scam software provider that went out of business when Israeli banned the financial product wholesale.
Runescape Player Gets Bitcoin Donation Worth $70,000
A Runescape player received over $70,000 in a single donation while streaming on Twitch. As CCN’s Vignesh Selvasundar writes:
Initially, Sick Nerd received a donation of 4 BTC. He received more BTC throughout his stream. While the gamer at first thought that someone was messing with him, he received more throughout the session. He received a total of 20.49 BTC (approx. $73,000 at the time) by the end of the day.
Thank you to my mysteriously benefactor whoever you are, genuinely a life changing amount of money that I or nobody deserves but look what happened.
Crazy
— Sick Nerd (@Sick_Nerd) January 11, 2019
Crypto Mining Company Finally Goes Out of Business
CCN reported on the final shuttering of Giga Watt’s hosting farms. The company had filed for bankruptcy last year but still had some operations going. Giga Watt funded with an ICO in 2017 to a high degree of interest. The WTT token will now actually have no value, although it still appears to be holding some on markets for inexplicable reasons.
BitMEX Ends Service to Customers in US and Quebec
BitMEX has decided to wind down its operations in the US and the Canadian province of Quebec. CCN’s Alan Wass writes:
BitMex is currently in the process of shutting down US trading accounts and also those in Quebec in the face of current crackdowns on unlicensed crypto exchanges. The popular trading platform is currently based out of Hong Kong and is known for inhabiting the most expensive office property in the heart of the Asian financial epicenter.
Cryptopia Gets Hacked
Cryptopia exchange suffered an exploit which cost it “significant losses.” As Habiba Tahir writes :
Finally, Cryptopia tweeted an official statement confirming the hack as a “security breach.” The crypto exchange claimed that it had suffered “significant losses” and had been trying to deal with the situation. In the course of a few hours, Cryptopia contacted New Zealand police and the High Tech Crime Consortium (HTCC) to investigate the incident.
Later in the week, Binance froze the Cryptopia hacker’s assets and NZ police gave some details on the investigation.
Exchange Giant OKCoin Lists Tron
Tron found itself on a new exchange, officially beginning on Thursday. CCN had the opportunity to speak to OKCoin CEO Tim Byun about the listing. Byun was quoted as saying:
We do not have an ATS or a broker-dealer license, so we cannot facilitate the trading of securities. We made sure that TRX is used today as a utility. That there is a use case, that it passes the Howey Test, kind of laid out by the prior rulings of an SEC case, that’s the best we have.
The Tron team also reportedly impressed OKCoin.
Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act
Friday saw good news for crypto, amidst a continuing downturn in the market values of all cryptocurrencies. The “Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act” was reintroduced into the US Congress. As CCN author David Hundeyin writes:
Tagged the ‘Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act’, it was initially introduced on the floor of the house in September 2018 alongside two other cryptocurrency-related legislative namely a House resolution to express support for cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, and the Safe Harbor for Taxpayers with Forked Assets Act of 2018, aims to address confusion surrounding how to report gains made as a result of cryptocurrency forks to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Featured Image from Shutterstock
Original Source http://bit.ly/2Cwrx5n
0 notes
Text
Russia’s Not Buying Bitcoin & Ethereum Fork Woes: This Week in Crypto
Russia’s Not Buying Bitcoin & Ethereum Fork Woes: This Week in Crypto
From fake news about Russia buying Bitcoin to Ethereum’s hard fork that wasn’t, CCN breaks down the last week in crypto news. | Source: Shutterstock
By CCN.com: This week in crypto saw several interesting developments as regard exchanges, exit scams, and at least one failed ICO-funded company in the form of Giga Watt.
Crypto Media Clings to Story of Russian Government Buying Bitcoin, CCN Asks for Proof
CCN started the week off by debunking a mythical impending “$10 billion Bitcoin purchase” on the part of the Russian government. P. H. Madore received backlash for the article, which listed some of the sites which sensationalized the dubious claims of a little-known Russian economist.
How interesting it would be if sanctions would result in this. However, its dubious that the size of the market could sustain anything like this level of trade without it going bonkers. What do you think? https://t.co/AhOKvu1Jyd #bitcoin #russia #sanctions
— Pat Rabbitte (@PatRabbitte1) January 8, 2019
A few days later, CCN doubled down on our positivity that Russia has made no official announcement as regards buying a large block of Bitcoin.
One thing remains clear: the Russian government has not officially announced plans to buy Bitcoin as a hedge against anything at all. As far as we know, Bitcoin is still going through the regulatory process in the former communist country. A Russian official did speak to the issue of Bitcoin over-regulation this week, however.
Ethereum Constantinople Fork Delayed at Last Minute
youtube
Due to a last-minute reporting of a security flaw with EIP-1283, Ethereum developers decided to postpone the Constantinople upgrade. By Friday, a 6-week roadmap was announced. It remains unclear why security firm Chainsecurity waited until this week to reveal its findings. The presumable explanation is that this was the earliest they were able to confirm the bug, which was not found to be live in any smart contracts but would have allowed for “reentrancy attacks.”
DX.Exchange Exposed As Pivot Effort of Binary Options Scammers
CCN’s P. H. Madore and Samantha Chang did some hard-nosed reporting on the sensationally-reported DX.exchange, which has had rumblings of withdrawal/deposit issues. CCN was able to confirm through government records something the company denied until the last minute: its relationship to SpotOption, a Binary Options scam software provider that went out of business when Israeli banned the financial product wholesale.
Runescape Player Gets Bitcoin Donation Worth $70,000
A Runescape player received over $70,000 in a single donation while streaming on Twitch. As CCN’s Vignesh Selvasundar writes:
Initially, Sick Nerd received a donation of 4 BTC. He received more BTC throughout his stream. While the gamer at first thought that someone was messing with him, he received more throughout the session. He received a total of 20.49 BTC (approx. $73,000 at the time) by the end of the day.
Thank you to my mysteriously benefactor whoever you are, genuinely a life changing amount of money that I or nobody deserves but look what happened.
Crazy
— Sick Nerd (@Sick_Nerd) January 11, 2019
Crypto Mining Company Finally Goes Out of Business
CCN reported on the final shuttering of Giga Watt’s hosting farms. The company had filed for bankruptcy last year but still had some operations going. Giga Watt funded with an ICO in 2017 to a high degree of interest. The WTT token will now actually have no value, although it still appears to be holding some on markets for inexplicable reasons.
BitMEX Ends Service to Customers in US and Quebec
BitMEX has decided to wind down its operations in the US and the Canadian province of Quebec. CCN’s Alan Wass writes:
BitMex is currently in the process of shutting down US trading accounts and also those in Quebec in the face of current crackdowns on unlicensed crypto exchanges. The popular trading platform is currently based out of Hong Kong and is known for inhabiting the most expensive office property in the heart of the Asian financial epicenter.
Cryptopia Gets Hacked
Cryptopia exchange suffered an exploit which cost it “significant losses.” As Habiba Tahir writes :
Finally, Cryptopia tweeted an official statement confirming the hack as a “security breach.” The crypto exchange claimed that it had suffered “significant losses” and had been trying to deal with the situation. In the course of a few hours, Cryptopia contacted New Zealand police and the High Tech Crime Consortium (HTCC) to investigate the incident.
Later in the week, Binance froze the Cryptopia hacker’s assets and NZ police gave some details on the investigation.
Exchange Giant OKCoin Lists Tron
Tron found itself on a new exchange, officially beginning on Thursday. CCN had the opportunity to speak to OKCoin CEO Tim Byun about the listing. Byun was quoted as saying:
We do not have an ATS or a broker-dealer license, so we cannot facilitate the trading of securities. We made sure that TRX is used today as a utility. That there is a use case, that it passes the Howey Test, kind of laid out by the prior rulings of an SEC case, that’s the best we have.
The Tron team also reportedly impressed OKCoin.
Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act
Friday saw good news for crypto, amidst a continuing downturn in the market values of all cryptocurrencies. The “Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act” was reintroduced into the US Congress. As CCN author David Hundeyin writes:
Tagged the ‘Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act’, it was initially introduced on the floor of the house in September 2018 alongside two other cryptocurrency-related legislative namely a House resolution to express support for cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, and the Safe Harbor for Taxpayers with Forked Assets Act of 2018, aims to address confusion surrounding how to report gains made as a result of cryptocurrency forks to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Featured Image from Shutterstock
Original Source http://bit.ly/2Cwrx5n
0 notes
Text
Russia’s Not Buying Bitcoin & Ethereum Fork Woes: This Week in Crypto
Russia’s Not Buying Bitcoin & Ethereum Fork Woes: This Week in Crypto
From fake news about Russia buying Bitcoin to Ethereum’s hard fork that wasn’t, CCN breaks down the last week in crypto news. | Source: Shutterstock
By CCN.com: This week in crypto saw several interesting developments as regard exchanges, exit scams, and at least one failed ICO-funded company in the form of Giga Watt.
Crypto Media Clings to Story of Russian Government Buying Bitcoin, CCN Asks for Proof
CCN started the week off by debunking a mythical impending “$10 billion Bitcoin purchase” on the part of the Russian government. P. H. Madore received backlash for the article, which listed some of the sites which sensationalized the dubious claims of a little-known Russian economist.
How interesting it would be if sanctions would result in this. However, its dubious that the size of the market could sustain anything like this level of trade without it going bonkers. What do you think? https://t.co/AhOKvu1Jyd #bitcoin #russia #sanctions
— Pat Rabbitte (@PatRabbitte1) January 8, 2019
A few days later, CCN doubled down on our positivity that Russia has made no official announcement as regards buying a large block of Bitcoin.
One thing remains clear: the Russian government has not officially announced plans to buy Bitcoin as a hedge against anything at all. As far as we know, Bitcoin is still going through the regulatory process in the former communist country. A Russian official did speak to the issue of Bitcoin over-regulation this week, however.
Ethereum Constantinople Fork Delayed at Last Minute
youtube
Due to a last-minute reporting of a security flaw with EIP-1283, Ethereum developers decided to postpone the Constantinople upgrade. By Friday, a 6-week roadmap was announced. It remains unclear why security firm Chainsecurity waited until this week to reveal its findings. The presumable explanation is that this was the earliest they were able to confirm the bug, which was not found to be live in any smart contracts but would have allowed for “reentrancy attacks.”
DX.Exchange Exposed As Pivot Effort of Binary Options Scammers
CCN’s P. H. Madore and Samantha Chang did some hard-nosed reporting on the sensationally-reported DX.exchange, which has had rumblings of withdrawal/deposit issues. CCN was able to confirm through government records something the company denied until the last minute: its relationship to SpotOption, a Binary Options scam software provider that went out of business when Israeli banned the financial product wholesale.
Runescape Player Gets Bitcoin Donation Worth $70,000
A Runescape player received over $70,000 in a single donation while streaming on Twitch. As CCN’s Vignesh Selvasundar writes:
Initially, Sick Nerd received a donation of 4 BTC. He received more BTC throughout his stream. While the gamer at first thought that someone was messing with him, he received more throughout the session. He received a total of 20.49 BTC (approx. $73,000 at the time) by the end of the day.
Thank you to my mysteriously benefactor whoever you are, genuinely a life changing amount of money that I or nobody deserves but look what happened.
Crazy
— Sick Nerd (@Sick_Nerd) January 11, 2019
Crypto Mining Company Finally Goes Out of Business
CCN reported on the final shuttering of Giga Watt’s hosting farms. The company had filed for bankruptcy last year but still had some operations going. Giga Watt funded with an ICO in 2017 to a high degree of interest. The WTT token will now actually have no value, although it still appears to be holding some on markets for inexplicable reasons.
BitMEX Ends Service to Customers in US and Quebec
BitMEX has decided to wind down its operations in the US and the Canadian province of Quebec. CCN’s Alan Wass writes:
BitMex is currently in the process of shutting down US trading accounts and also those in Quebec in the face of current crackdowns on unlicensed crypto exchanges. The popular trading platform is currently based out of Hong Kong and is known for inhabiting the most expensive office property in the heart of the Asian financial epicenter.
Cryptopia Gets Hacked
Cryptopia exchange suffered an exploit which cost it “significant losses.” As Habiba Tahir writes :
Finally, Cryptopia tweeted an official statement confirming the hack as a “security breach.” The crypto exchange claimed that it had suffered “significant losses” and had been trying to deal with the situation. In the course of a few hours, Cryptopia contacted New Zealand police and the High Tech Crime Consortium (HTCC) to investigate the incident.
Later in the week, Binance froze the Cryptopia hacker’s assets and NZ police gave some details on the investigation.
Exchange Giant OKCoin Lists Tron
Tron found itself on a new exchange, officially beginning on Thursday. CCN had the opportunity to speak to OKCoin CEO Tim Byun about the listing. Byun was quoted as saying:
We do not have an ATS or a broker-dealer license, so we cannot facilitate the trading of securities. We made sure that TRX is used today as a utility. That there is a use case, that it passes the Howey Test, kind of laid out by the prior rulings of an SEC case, that’s the best we have.
The Tron team also reportedly impressed OKCoin.
Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act
Friday saw good news for crypto, amidst a continuing downturn in the market values of all cryptocurrencies. The “Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act” was reintroduced into the US Congress. As CCN author David Hundeyin writes:
Tagged the ‘Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act’, it was initially introduced on the floor of the house in September 2018 alongside two other cryptocurrency-related legislative namely a House resolution to express support for cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, and the Safe Harbor for Taxpayers with Forked Assets Act of 2018, aims to address confusion surrounding how to report gains made as a result of cryptocurrency forks to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Featured Image from Shutterstock
Original Source http://bit.ly/2Cwrx5n
0 notes
Text
Russia’s Not Buying Bitcoin & Ethereum Fork Woes: This Week in Crypto
Russia’s Not Buying Bitcoin & Ethereum Fork Woes: This Week in Crypto
From fake news about Russia buying Bitcoin to Ethereum’s hard fork that wasn’t, CCN breaks down the last week in crypto news. | Source: Shutterstock
By CCN.com: This week in crypto saw several interesting developments as regard exchanges, exit scams, and at least one failed ICO-funded company in the form of Giga Watt.
Crypto Media Clings to Story of Russian Government Buying Bitcoin, CCN Asks for Proof
CCN started the week off by debunking a mythical impending “$10 billion Bitcoin purchase” on the part of the Russian government. P. H. Madore received backlash for the article, which listed some of the sites which sensationalized the dubious claims of a little-known Russian economist.
How interesting it would be if sanctions would result in this. However, its dubious that the size of the market could sustain anything like this level of trade without it going bonkers. What do you think? https://t.co/AhOKvu1Jyd #bitcoin #russia #sanctions
— Pat Rabbitte (@PatRabbitte1) January 8, 2019
A few days later, CCN doubled down on our positivity that Russia has made no official announcement as regards buying a large block of Bitcoin.
One thing remains clear: the Russian government has not officially announced plans to buy Bitcoin as a hedge against anything at all. As far as we know, Bitcoin is still going through the regulatory process in the former communist country. A Russian official did speak to the issue of Bitcoin over-regulation this week, however.
Ethereum Constantinople Fork Delayed at Last Minute
youtube
Due to a last-minute reporting of a security flaw with EIP-1283, Ethereum developers decided to postpone the Constantinople upgrade. By Friday, a 6-week roadmap was announced. It remains unclear why security firm Chainsecurity waited until this week to reveal its findings. The presumable explanation is that this was the earliest they were able to confirm the bug, which was not found to be live in any smart contracts but would have allowed for “reentrancy attacks.”
DX.Exchange Exposed As Pivot Effort of Binary Options Scammers
CCN’s P. H. Madore and Samantha Chang did some hard-nosed reporting on the sensationally-reported DX.exchange, which has had rumblings of withdrawal/deposit issues. CCN was able to confirm through government records something the company denied until the last minute: its relationship to SpotOption, a Binary Options scam software provider that went out of business when Israeli banned the financial product wholesale.
Runescape Player Gets Bitcoin Donation Worth $70,000
A Runescape player received over $70,000 in a single donation while streaming on Twitch. As CCN’s Vignesh Selvasundar writes:
Initially, Sick Nerd received a donation of 4 BTC. He received more BTC throughout his stream. While the gamer at first thought that someone was messing with him, he received more throughout the session. He received a total of 20.49 BTC (approx. $73,000 at the time) by the end of the day.
Thank you to my mysteriously benefactor whoever you are, genuinely a life changing amount of money that I or nobody deserves but look what happened.
Crazy
— Sick Nerd (@Sick_Nerd) January 11, 2019
Crypto Mining Company Finally Goes Out of Business
CCN reported on the final shuttering of Giga Watt’s hosting farms. The company had filed for bankruptcy last year but still had some operations going. Giga Watt funded with an ICO in 2017 to a high degree of interest. The WTT token will now actually have no value, although it still appears to be holding some on markets for inexplicable reasons.
BitMEX Ends Service to Customers in US and Quebec
BitMEX has decided to wind down its operations in the US and the Canadian province of Quebec. CCN’s Alan Wass writes:
BitMex is currently in the process of shutting down US trading accounts and also those in Quebec in the face of current crackdowns on unlicensed crypto exchanges. The popular trading platform is currently based out of Hong Kong and is known for inhabiting the most expensive office property in the heart of the Asian financial epicenter.
Cryptopia Gets Hacked
Cryptopia exchange suffered an exploit which cost it “significant losses.” As Habiba Tahir writes :
Finally, Cryptopia tweeted an official statement confirming the hack as a “security breach.” The crypto exchange claimed that it had suffered “significant losses” and had been trying to deal with the situation. In the course of a few hours, Cryptopia contacted New Zealand police and the High Tech Crime Consortium (HTCC) to investigate the incident.
Later in the week, Binance froze the Cryptopia hacker’s assets and NZ police gave some details on the investigation.
Exchange Giant OKCoin Lists Tron
Tron found itself on a new exchange, officially beginning on Thursday. CCN had the opportunity to speak to OKCoin CEO Tim Byun about the listing. Byun was quoted as saying:
We do not have an ATS or a broker-dealer license, so we cannot facilitate the trading of securities. We made sure that TRX is used today as a utility. That there is a use case, that it passes the Howey Test, kind of laid out by the prior rulings of an SEC case, that’s the best we have.
The Tron team also reportedly impressed OKCoin.
Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act
Friday saw good news for crypto, amidst a continuing downturn in the market values of all cryptocurrencies. The “Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act” was reintroduced into the US Congress. As CCN author David Hundeyin writes:
Tagged the ‘Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act’, it was initially introduced on the floor of the house in September 2018 alongside two other cryptocurrency-related legislative namely a House resolution to express support for cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, and the Safe Harbor for Taxpayers with Forked Assets Act of 2018, aims to address confusion surrounding how to report gains made as a result of cryptocurrency forks to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Featured Image from Shutterstock
Original Source http://bit.ly/2Cwrx5n
0 notes
Text
Russia’s Not Buying Bitcoin & Ethereum Fork Woes: This Week in Crypto
Russia’s Not Buying Bitcoin & Ethereum Fork Woes: This Week in Crypto
From fake news about Russia buying Bitcoin to Ethereum’s hard fork that wasn’t, CCN breaks down the last week in crypto news. | Source: Shutterstock
By CCN.com: This week in crypto saw several interesting developments as regard exchanges, exit scams, and at least one failed ICO-funded company in the form of Giga Watt.
Crypto Media Clings to Story of Russian Government Buying Bitcoin, CCN Asks for Proof
CCN started the week off by debunking a mythical impending “$10 billion Bitcoin purchase” on the part of the Russian government. P. H. Madore received backlash for the article, which listed some of the sites which sensationalized the dubious claims of a little-known Russian economist.
How interesting it would be if sanctions would result in this. However, its dubious that the size of the market could sustain anything like this level of trade without it going bonkers. What do you think? https://t.co/AhOKvu1Jyd #bitcoin #russia #sanctions
— Pat Rabbitte (@PatRabbitte1) January 8, 2019
A few days later, CCN doubled down on our positivity that Russia has made no official announcement as regards buying a large block of Bitcoin.
One thing remains clear: the Russian government has not officially announced plans to buy Bitcoin as a hedge against anything at all. As far as we know, Bitcoin is still going through the regulatory process in the former communist country. A Russian official did speak to the issue of Bitcoin over-regulation this week, however.
Ethereum Constantinople Fork Delayed at Last Minute
youtube
Due to a last-minute reporting of a security flaw with EIP-1283, Ethereum developers decided to postpone the Constantinople upgrade. By Friday, a 6-week roadmap was announced. It remains unclear why security firm Chainsecurity waited until this week to reveal its findings. The presumable explanation is that this was the earliest they were able to confirm the bug, which was not found to be live in any smart contracts but would have allowed for “reentrancy attacks.”
DX.Exchange Exposed As Pivot Effort of Binary Options Scammers
CCN’s P. H. Madore and Samantha Chang did some hard-nosed reporting on the sensationally-reported DX.exchange, which has had rumblings of withdrawal/deposit issues. CCN was able to confirm through government records something the company denied until the last minute: its relationship to SpotOption, a Binary Options scam software provider that went out of business when Israeli banned the financial product wholesale.
Runescape Player Gets Bitcoin Donation Worth $70,000
A Runescape player received over $70,000 in a single donation while streaming on Twitch. As CCN’s Vignesh Selvasundar writes:
Initially, Sick Nerd received a donation of 4 BTC. He received more BTC throughout his stream. While the gamer at first thought that someone was messing with him, he received more throughout the session. He received a total of 20.49 BTC (approx. $73,000 at the time) by the end of the day.
Thank you to my mysteriously benefactor whoever you are, genuinely a life changing amount of money that I or nobody deserves but look what happened.
Crazy
— Sick Nerd (@Sick_Nerd) January 11, 2019
Crypto Mining Company Finally Goes Out of Business
CCN reported on the final shuttering of Giga Watt’s hosting farms. The company had filed for bankruptcy last year but still had some operations going. Giga Watt funded with an ICO in 2017 to a high degree of interest. The WTT token will now actually have no value, although it still appears to be holding some on markets for inexplicable reasons.
BitMEX Ends Service to Customers in US and Quebec
BitMEX has decided to wind down its operations in the US and the Canadian province of Quebec. CCN’s Alan Wass writes:
BitMex is currently in the process of shutting down US trading accounts and also those in Quebec in the face of current crackdowns on unlicensed crypto exchanges. The popular trading platform is currently based out of Hong Kong and is known for inhabiting the most expensive office property in the heart of the Asian financial epicenter.
Cryptopia Gets Hacked
Cryptopia exchange suffered an exploit which cost it “significant losses.” As Habiba Tahir writes :
Finally, Cryptopia tweeted an official statement confirming the hack as a “security breach.” The crypto exchange claimed that it had suffered “significant losses” and had been trying to deal with the situation. In the course of a few hours, Cryptopia contacted New Zealand police and the High Tech Crime Consortium (HTCC) to investigate the incident.
Later in the week, Binance froze the Cryptopia hacker’s assets and NZ police gave some details on the investigation.
Exchange Giant OKCoin Lists Tron
Tron found itself on a new exchange, officially beginning on Thursday. CCN had the opportunity to speak to OKCoin CEO Tim Byun about the listing. Byun was quoted as saying:
We do not have an ATS or a broker-dealer license, so we cannot facilitate the trading of securities. We made sure that TRX is used today as a utility. That there is a use case, that it passes the Howey Test, kind of laid out by the prior rulings of an SEC case, that’s the best we have.
The Tron team also reportedly impressed OKCoin.
Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act
Friday saw good news for crypto, amidst a continuing downturn in the market values of all cryptocurrencies. The “Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act” was reintroduced into the US Congress. As CCN author David Hundeyin writes:
Tagged the ‘Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act’, it was initially introduced on the floor of the house in September 2018 alongside two other cryptocurrency-related legislative namely a House resolution to express support for cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, and the Safe Harbor for Taxpayers with Forked Assets Act of 2018, aims to address confusion surrounding how to report gains made as a result of cryptocurrency forks to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Featured Image from Shutterstock
Original Source http://bit.ly/2Cwrx5n
0 notes
Text
Russia’s Not Buying Bitcoin & Ethereum Fork Woes: This Week in Crypto
Russia’s Not Buying Bitcoin & Ethereum Fork Woes: This Week in Crypto
From fake news about Russia buying Bitcoin to Ethereum’s hard fork that wasn’t, CCN breaks down the last week in crypto news. | Source: Shutterstock
By CCN.com: This week in crypto saw several interesting developments as regard exchanges, exit scams, and at least one failed ICO-funded company in the form of Giga Watt.
Crypto Media Clings to Story of Russian Government Buying Bitcoin, CCN Asks for Proof
CCN started the week off by debunking a mythical impending “$10 billion Bitcoin purchase” on the part of the Russian government. P. H. Madore received backlash for the article, which listed some of the sites which sensationalized the dubious claims of a little-known Russian economist.
How interesting it would be if sanctions would result in this. However, its dubious that the size of the market could sustain anything like this level of trade without it going bonkers. What do you think? https://t.co/AhOKvu1Jyd #bitcoin #russia #sanctions
— Pat Rabbitte (@PatRabbitte1) January 8, 2019
A few days later, CCN doubled down on our positivity that Russia has made no official announcement as regards buying a large block of Bitcoin.
One thing remains clear: the Russian government has not officially announced plans to buy Bitcoin as a hedge against anything at all. As far as we know, Bitcoin is still going through the regulatory process in the former communist country. A Russian official did speak to the issue of Bitcoin over-regulation this week, however.
Ethereum Constantinople Fork Delayed at Last Minute
youtube
Due to a last-minute reporting of a security flaw with EIP-1283, Ethereum developers decided to postpone the Constantinople upgrade. By Friday, a 6-week roadmap was announced. It remains unclear why security firm Chainsecurity waited until this week to reveal its findings. The presumable explanation is that this was the earliest they were able to confirm the bug, which was not found to be live in any smart contracts but would have allowed for “reentrancy attacks.”
DX.Exchange Exposed As Pivot Effort of Binary Options Scammers
CCN’s P. H. Madore and Samantha Chang did some hard-nosed reporting on the sensationally-reported DX.exchange, which has had rumblings of withdrawal/deposit issues. CCN was able to confirm through government records something the company denied until the last minute: its relationship to SpotOption, a Binary Options scam software provider that went out of business when Israeli banned the financial product wholesale.
Runescape Player Gets Bitcoin Donation Worth $70,000
A Runescape player received over $70,000 in a single donation while streaming on Twitch. As CCN’s Vignesh Selvasundar writes:
Initially, Sick Nerd received a donation of 4 BTC. He received more BTC throughout his stream. While the gamer at first thought that someone was messing with him, he received more throughout the session. He received a total of 20.49 BTC (approx. $73,000 at the time) by the end of the day.
Thank you to my mysteriously benefactor whoever you are, genuinely a life changing amount of money that I or nobody deserves but look what happened.
Crazy
— Sick Nerd (@Sick_Nerd) January 11, 2019
Crypto Mining Company Finally Goes Out of Business
CCN reported on the final shuttering of Giga Watt’s hosting farms. The company had filed for bankruptcy last year but still had some operations going. Giga Watt funded with an ICO in 2017 to a high degree of interest. The WTT token will now actually have no value, although it still appears to be holding some on markets for inexplicable reasons.
BitMEX Ends Service to Customers in US and Quebec
BitMEX has decided to wind down its operations in the US and the Canadian province of Quebec. CCN’s Alan Wass writes:
BitMex is currently in the process of shutting down US trading accounts and also those in Quebec in the face of current crackdowns on unlicensed crypto exchanges. The popular trading platform is currently based out of Hong Kong and is known for inhabiting the most expensive office property in the heart of the Asian financial epicenter.
Cryptopia Gets Hacked
Cryptopia exchange suffered an exploit which cost it “significant losses.” As Habiba Tahir writes :
Finally, Cryptopia tweeted an official statement confirming the hack as a “security breach.” The crypto exchange claimed that it had suffered “significant losses” and had been trying to deal with the situation. In the course of a few hours, Cryptopia contacted New Zealand police and the High Tech Crime Consortium (HTCC) to investigate the incident.
Later in the week, Binance froze the Cryptopia hacker’s assets and NZ police gave some details on the investigation.
Exchange Giant OKCoin Lists Tron
Tron found itself on a new exchange, officially beginning on Thursday. CCN had the opportunity to speak to OKCoin CEO Tim Byun about the listing. Byun was quoted as saying:
We do not have an ATS or a broker-dealer license, so we cannot facilitate the trading of securities. We made sure that TRX is used today as a utility. That there is a use case, that it passes the Howey Test, kind of laid out by the prior rulings of an SEC case, that’s the best we have.
The Tron team also reportedly impressed OKCoin.
Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act
Friday saw good news for crypto, amidst a continuing downturn in the market values of all cryptocurrencies. The “Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act” was reintroduced into the US Congress. As CCN author David Hundeyin writes:
Tagged the ‘Blockchain Regulatory Certainty Act’, it was initially introduced on the floor of the house in September 2018 alongside two other cryptocurrency-related legislative namely a House resolution to express support for cryptocurrency and blockchain technology, and the Safe Harbor for Taxpayers with Forked Assets Act of 2018, aims to address confusion surrounding how to report gains made as a result of cryptocurrency forks to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Featured Image from Shutterstock
Original Source http://bit.ly/2Cwrx5n
0 notes
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